The Faithful

by S. M. Freedman

  “You’ve had her for eleven years, Gabriel. I’m taking my daughter back.”

  She lowered the gun, aimed, and fired.

  CHAPTER SIXTY-SEVEN

  It was a strange ride to Denver. Sumner found himself trying to cover up the awkward silence with jokes, which naturally fell on deaf ears.

  Ora and Lexy were sitting as far from each other as they could manage while in the same vehicle. Neither had said a word since leaving The Ranch, and the hurt and tension between them were palpable.

  The family reunion in the middle row of seats wasn’t going well, either. Sumner guessed that trying to connect with a long-lost daughter after shooting the only parent the girl had ever known was going to be a challenge.

  Of course, it was only a leg shot. Father Gabriel would likely recover. Sumner had pointed that out to Ashlyn, but she failed to see the logic.

  She refused Ryanne’s attempts at conversation with the rudeness only a twelve-year-old could manage, curled into a ball against the door, and fell asleep.

  Everyone’s nerves were shot. Well, except Jack’s, since he was the only one lucky enough to be comatose. The rest were either jittering like junkies coming off a three-day binge, sleeping fitfully, or lost in their own dark thoughts.

  “The Magical Mystery Tour takes Denver!” Sumner said as they passed a sign that said they were forty miles outside the city. No one replied, and he shrugged and refocused on the road. The traffic was light. The morning was frosty and full of big blue skies.

  “Do you think she’ll ever forgive me?” Ryanne asked Josh softly. Sumner watched them surreptitiously in the rearview mirror, straining to hear their conversation over the road noise and Ora’s gentle snoring from the seat beside him.

  Ryanne’s eyes were red and puffy, and Sumner felt a stab of compassion for her.

  “I’m sure she will, just give her time,” Josh replied softly. The two were squished in next to each other, giving Ashlyn much-needed space on the far side. The girl was sleeping against the door with her mouth slightly open.

  Lexy and Phoenix were sharing the third row, Jack stashed between them. Lexy was watching the world pass by outside her window, her brow furrowed in thought. Phoenix was sprawled with his bare feet on the armrest in front of him, snoring.

  “I don’t know.” Ryanne shook her head sadly. “She must feel like I abandoned her. Like I didn’t love her, or something.”

  “But that’s not true,” Josh said gently. In the mirror, Sumner saw him take her hand. “You didn’t choose to leave her. It’s not your fault.”

  “I let myself forget her,” Ryanne said. “How could she ever forgive me for that? I can’t forgive myself for that!”

  The sight of her small hand tucked inside Josh’s made Sumner’s stomach clench, but he refused to acknowledge it. As usual, his mouth opened against his will. “She’s lived the last twelve years on The Ranch. Give her some credit; she knows what goes on. If there’s something she won’t forgive you for, it’s shooting her dad.”

  Josh and Ryanne both looked up at him.

  “Thanks Sumner; you always know just what to say.” But her lips curled up into a tremulous smile.

  “Homeboy speaks the truth,” he said, and went back to driving. A little while later, he asked, “Any idea where we should go?”

  Josh had been looking over a map, and he nodded. “I think we should rent a cabin. There’s an area called Idaho Springs in the mountains west of Denver. It’s still off-season, so we should be able to find something. What do you think?” he asked Ryanne.

  She nodded. “That would be good for Ashlyn. She’s never been off The Ranch. Heading straight to a city would be overwhelming.”

  “All right,” Sumner agreed. “Which way?”

  By late morning, they had rented a furnished log home at the top of Soda Creek Road. Past the Indian Hot Springs Resort, the road angled up into the trees, winding past the occasional home as it moved into the mountains. The property Josh had rented was miles away from its nearest neighbor. It was set on at least an acre, accessed by a small bridge that crossed over Soda Creek and became a gravel track as it curved toward the house. The best part, as far as Sumner was concerned, was that it had its own mineral hot spring, located in a cave carved into the mountain on the edge of the property.

  They made it to their new, temporary home just before lunchtime. As the others piled out, Phoenix carrying Jack, Josh offered to go back to the Safeway to pick up supplies. Ryanne volunteered to go with him. Sumner nodded, but didn’t move from the driver’s seat.

  “What is it?” Ryanne asked. “Are you okay?”

  Their rental was a large, two-story log home, half hidden in the shade of the pines dotting the property. It butted up against a rocky outcropping where Sumner guessed they would find the hot springs. Tucked behind the house he saw a storage shed and a separate two-car garage. A large pile of firewood was stacked neatly against the side of the garage.

  “Would you consider this far enough away from the city?” Sumner asked.

  “Far enough away for what?” Ora asked, yawning.

  After a moment, he shook his head. “Never mind.”

  CHAPTER SIXTY-EIGHT

  The next few days were quiet as we waited for Jack to awaken. They were a time of rest, a time of healing, and a time for forming and testing new relationships. It was a perfect pocket of time, one I would later look back on with both gratitude and regret.

  They were the last days of before, and in my memory they became seared in golden light, the way all good days do once they are gone. It was a perfect moment of stillness, sandwiched between crisis and chaos, and all the more beautiful because of what followed.

  We had time to prepare, buying generators, air purifiers, gas masks, and stores of supplies, just in case. We had time to seal the windows and doorframes. We had time to talk, to rehash our experiences and brainstorm about what disaster might be coming. But mainly, we waited. We waited for the boy with the answers to wake from his sleep.

  I was grateful, most of all, for the time with my daughter. Over those few days, the ice within her began to thaw, and we started the process of learning about each other. I listened for hours as she told me about her life on The Ranch, and she was equally interested in my life on the Outside. We would never be able to make up for the years we had lost, but a bond was beginning to form nonetheless.

  And so, at the end of the beginning, or the beginning of the end, I was given this gift. I was given this perfect bubble of time with the flesh of my flesh—a chance to see her perfect beauty and to touch her cinnamon hair, to tuck her between clean blankets and to kiss her sleeping cheek. My heart swelled with the joy of motherhood, even as I feared the coming of tomorrow.

  Later, I would be haunted by what-ifs. What if Jack had awoken earlier? What if I had figured out my part in it before Jack had spelled it out for me? What if and what if and what if. What if there had been more time?

  Josh found me in the side yard. Ashlyn had gone to Denver with Phoenix to see a movie and buy some clothes at the Walmart. It was her first time going to a movie theater and she was obviously thrilled, not to mention she was going with Phoenix. She would have happily gone dump picking with Phoenix.

  I was on the swing bench, rocking gently and watching the clouds roll across the late-fall sky. I was trying not to worry about Ashlyn’s safety, or about the obvious adoration she had for someone who was, well, a grown man.

  Above the burbling of Soda Creek, I heard the crunch of leaves under his shoes, and turned to watch him approach. We hadn’t had a moment alone since our trip to Safeway. The house was always full, and there was always something to do.

  “Come sit,” I invited, patting the cushion next to me.

  He sat and we started to swing.

  “How are things inside?”

  He shrugged. “Sumner is making sloppy jo
es and singing Springsteen songs at the top of his lungs. He really can’t carry a tune.” I laughed and he continued. “Ora finally convinced Lexy to talk to her, so I thought I’d better give them some privacy.”

  “Good. That’s good.”

  “How are you doing, Ryanne?”

  I shrugged. “Surprisingly well, under the circumstances. Ashlyn is . . .”

  “She’s a very smart and lovely girl,” Josh said.

  “She is, isn’t she?” I agreed, my heart swelling with a mixture of joy and grief. “It’s strange to go so long not even remembering I have a daughter, and then boom! There she is. And she’s a real person, with her own opinions and desires . . . and everything.” I shook my head. It seemed I was always on the verge of tears.

  Josh took my hand, and we spent several minutes swinging in contented silence.

  “Is it wrong to feel this . . . peaceful?” he asked. “We have a boy inside the house who is wasting away, a day at a time. I can’t reach his dad. We know something bad is coming down the pike and we’re helpless to stop it unless Jack wakes up.”

  “Maybe it’s that whole ‘ignorance is bliss’ thing. Since we don’t know what’s coming, it’s easy to forget that it’s real.”

  “Maybe.”

  “Did you get ahold of Sheriff Lagrudo?”

  “Yesterday. I convinced him to bring my mom here. They should arrive sometime tomorrow.”

  “That’s great, Josh.”

  “Yeah.” He was watching the sky intently, but I noticed his cheeks were rosy. “But that means I have something I need to take care of. If I don’t want another lecture from her, that is.”

  “What is it?”

  “And if something happens, well, more than anything I would regret not having this conversation with you.”

  “Okay . . .”

  “I loved your mom, Ryanne. Not in a romantic way, but I really loved her. She had the ability to eclipse a person. She was somehow larger than life. She was wild and vulnerable. Reckless. But there was something about her that made you want to take care of her, something damaged and . . . weak. Broken.”

  He looked at me, his eyes compassionate and sad. “When I first met you, all I could see was Sherry, every time I looked at you. You look so much like her, and your voice is the same, and you have some of her mannerisms, too. Like the way you push your hair back from your forehead. Or that crooked smile when you’re teasing me. Her eyes were brown instead of green, and you’re smaller than she was, but still.

  “I promised her I would never stop looking for you. I would keep the investigation alive until I could bring home her baby, one way or another. When she died I vowed that, if I found you, I would take care of you the way she no longer could. But in my mind, you never grew up. I mean, I knew the years had passed. I knew that, if you were alive, you were no longer a child. But I guess I couldn’t picture it. Not until I found you.

  “And then, there you were. So similar to her and yet so different. You don’t need anyone to take care of you; you can take care of yourself just fine. You’re strong and smart and funny. You prefer to eat chemicals instead of real food, and you’re totally addicted to caffeine, and you’re stubborn and you don’t listen if you think you know better, and you’re completely frustrating and beautiful and brave. And you’ve eclipsed me.”

  “You think . . . I’m beautiful?”

  He laughed. “Is that all you’re getting from this?” He turned to me and hesitantly touched my cheek. His fingers were cold but his eyes were warm. “Ryanne, I don’t think I have the words—”

  “Hey! There you guys are!” Sumner shouted from the porch. He was waving excitedly, a dish towel tucked into the waistband of his jeans.

  “Sumner, can we have a minute?” Josh asked, the frustration evident in his voice. I don’t think Sumner noticed.

  “He’s awake! Jack’s awake! And he wants to talk to you, Ryanne!”

  “Oh!” I jumped off the swing, making Josh sway alarmingly. “Are you serious?”

  “Come on!” Sumner was vigorously waving me forward.

  I turned to Josh, who was still sitting on the swing. His expression was unreadable.

  “Go on, I’m right behind you.”

  “Are you sure? What about—”

  “It can wait,” he said, although I suspect we both knew it was a lie.

  CHAPTER SIXTY-NINE

  Jack was sitting up in bed, his face pale and thin. Ora was trying to interest him in some soup while Lexy stood in the corner nervously wringing her hands. Both women had been crying; they were sporting equally red, puffy eyes.

  Jack’s brown eyes fixed on me as soon as I entered the room. His pale hair was stringy and limp, hanging across his forehead in greasy strands.

  “They found you.”

  “They did,” I said, pulling up a seat beside the bed. “How do you feel?”

  He smiled ruefully, exposing crooked teeth and a gap near the back where a baby tooth had recently come out. “I feel like someone hit me over the head with a shovel.”

  “Do you have a headache? Would you like an aspirin?” Ora jumped in.

  He shook his head. “It’s just a joke.” He turned back to me. “I don’t know your name.”

  “I’m Ryanne. And that’s Ora and Lexy. And this is Sumner, and Agent Metcalf. He’s the FBI agent who was looking for you after you . . . disappeared.”

  “Josh,” he said gruffly from behind me.

  “And there’s also Phoenix, and my daughter Ashlyn, but they’ve gone to see a movie, so they’ll be back later.” I was starting to sound like a rambling idiot, but I couldn’t help myself. I was eager to delay hearing the bad news.

  Jack seemed uninterested in the others. His focus was on me.

  “Do you know what the White is, Ryanne?”

  “You mean the color?”

  He shook his head. “That’s okay. It knows you. What day is it?”

  “November first,” Josh answered promptly, for which I was grateful. I’d lost track of the days.

  “Oh.” The boy’s response was so faint I almost missed it.

  “Is that bad?” I asked.

  “Well, it’s definitely not good. I don’t know . . .” His gaze had turned inward, and we all watched him silently. “I guess we have to try. Right?”

  “Absolutely,” Sumner agreed. “Try what?”

  “I don’t really know. It’s not something they teach in school, you know? That’s why I need you,” he said to me.

  “I’m here. I’m listening, Jack. Tell me what you know.”

  “They think humans are like cockroaches. Using up resources and killing the earth. Do you think that’s true?”

  “I guess there’s some truth to that,” I admitted.

  “Right, I guess. But they also think psychics are a sub . . . I forget the word.”

  “Subspecies,” Ora said quietly.

  ‘That’s right,” Jack agreed. “They think that they . . . that we, are a new or better species. That we’ve evolved from humans . . .”

  “It’s called eugenics,” I told him quietly.

  “What’s that?” Jack asked.

  “It’s why the Nazis exterminated six million Jews,” Josh said darkly.

  “It’s a bit more complicated than that,” I said to Josh. “It’s a concept that was developed by Francis Galton, who was Darwin’s cousin, by the way, in the late 1800s. Governments around the world practiced some form of eugenics. A lot of people were killed, or sterilized. There were forced pregnancies, and, well, you name it. But it was a recognized field of study at universities, and a widely accepted practice. It was the atrocities of Nazi Germany that caused a worldwide movement against eugenics.”

  “That’s terrible,” Jack said.

  “Sure is,” Josh agreed. “So this is what this cult . . . wh
at I Fidele believes? That they need to practice eugenics on some kind of a global scale?”

  “That’s exactly what they believe,” Sumner said grimly. “And they are so much bigger than any cult ever dreamed itself to be.”

  “I guess you’re right. To have infiltrated high levels within the FBI—”

  “All levels of government,” Sumner interjected. “And that’s just in this country.”

  “What?” Josh asked.

  Ora answered, “I Fidele is a worldwide organization, Josh. We’re . . . they’re all over Europe, Asia, Africa. Everywhere.”

  “It was founded in Rome in 1958. You met one of the Founding Fathers in the Underground,” Lexy added, and I noticed she avoided saying his name.

  Josh leaned back against the doorframe, clearly stunned.

  After a pause, I turned back to the boy on the bed. “Jack, do you know what they have planned?”

  “Does it have to do with The Command?” Sumner jumped in.

  Jack nodded. “The Telekinetics. Yes.”

  “Do you know where they are?” Sumner asked.

  Jack motioned to the bookcase in the corner of the room. “Pass me that globe,” he said, and Lexy pulled it off the top shelf, dusted it off, and brought it to him. He spun it slowly, and I watched the blues and greens and browns blur together. Finally, he slapped a hand down, stopping its motion.

  “Right there,” he pointed. We all moved closer.

  “Victoria Island?” Sumner asked. Jack had placed his finger over a large island in the Canadian Arctic. It sat perched above the Northwest Territories and Nunavut. “You can’t be serious.”

  Jack nodded. “See right here?” He ran his finger along the northwest coast of the island.

  “That’s Fort Collinson. It’s an abandoned trading post that was used by the Hudson’s Bay Company. That’s where they are. They fly them in from Yellowknife. They fly in and they never leave,” he said with certainty.