by H. R. Moore
Anita couldn’t quite believe what she was hearing. ‘Are you serious? It’s as clear as day to see the two are linked. You are ignoring the evidence in front of you because you don’t want to admit your father is wrong. Marcus, the world is on the brink of a crisis, the likes of which we have never seen. There’s nothing in the past that can help with what we’re currently facing, we need to interpret what we have in front of us and act on that information. Don’t you think we should be taking action?’
Marcus had been backed into a corner and didn’t know what he should do. To agree with Anita was to go against his father and in essence agree with everything they were saying about him, which he obviously couldn’t do. His father may be many things, but Austin took his duty seriously, he would never do something he thought would harm the world. But then again, the evidence was mounting up that they should take action. ‘All I know is that dad wouldn’t act in a way he thought would harm the world, which means he must know something more about what is going on than we all do. Maybe we should just trust that he has been around for longer, so maybe he has a different perspective.’
Bas and Alexander had had enough. ‘I’ve already heard this bullshit from one member of the Mind line today and luckily I don’t have to stand here and listen to any more of it,’ Bas sniped. ‘Just wait and see what happens when we take no action, you’ll look like a total fool then, along with your father.’ Bas and Alexander left Anita and Marcus, and stormed off in the direction of the Observatory.
Anita stood still for a second, trying to process what Marcus had just said. She turned slowly to face him and he seemed deflated, his shoulders hunched forward, his usual confident swagger momentarily deserting him. ‘Did you mean what you just said?’ Anita asked slowly, ‘or were you just saying that so as not to trash your father?’
Marcus couldn’t admit that he wasn’t sure, not in front of Anita. ‘Anita, nobody’s one hundred per cent sure what’s going on at the moment. We’ve never encountered this situation before, so we can’t be sure what will happen next. I don’t think the right thing to do is scaremonger about disaster and destruction; that won’t help anyone.’
‘So we should do nothing so as not to put the cat amongst the pigeons?’ Anita couldn’t believe he was still supporting Austin’s position.
‘It’s a very delicate situation. I don’t think we should do anything rash.’
‘Well I’m afraid what your father is doing at the moment is doing something rash. To not act at all is criminal and you can’t bury your head in the sand forever.’ Anita turned away and started walking towards the Body Temple, Marcus followed her hoping to move the conversation on to a happier topic. ‘I’ll see you later Marcus, I need some time alone,’ she said turning towards the entrance steps.
‘You’re going to let a Council debate come between us?’
She wheeled back round to face him, a look of disbelief plastered across her face, ‘you’re going to let some ridiculous view held by your father come between us? Open your eyes Marcus, it’s a big scary world out there and daddy is number one villain.’ Anita turned away, taking the steps into the Temple two at a time. Marcus watched her go, trying to decide what he really thought and which side to come down on. His mind raced through a mix of emotions, like it wasn’t sure quite which one to settle on. He was angry, confused, hurt, embarrassed, worried and most of all had a deep sense of foreboding that this situation was not going to blow over as he would like it to. He didn’t want to lose Anita, it’d surprised him how much he’d missed her when she’d gone away to Kingdom and he’d seen her pretty much every day since then. But he also didn’t want to piss off his father, who had only just started to involve him in his business affairs. Nothing he’d seen so far had made him think that Austin, or indeed any of the previous Mind Descendants, had ever done anything out of line with their duty. However, now he came to think about it, it was a little strange that, it would seem from the brief history, nobody had ever put a single foot out of line. Maybe he was being lied to? Everyone was terrified of Austin, but up until now Marcus had assumed that was because he had a powerful position and an unpredictable temperament, but he would never purposely hurt someone without good reason. Would he?
Anita reached the top of the stairs feeling like she was going to explode, how could Marcus be so stupid? She could feel that he’d been fighting with his emotions, but he’d sided with Austin when deep down he must have known that some kind of action needed to be taken. He’d sided with Austin when he could’ve quite easily sided with her once the others had gone. She understood the political setting, Marcus couldn’t publically trash his father, especially in front of another Descendant, but surely he trusted her enough by now to tell her what he really felt? Anita felt hurt and frustrated. Not only had he not trusted her, but he’d also let her down in front of the others, so now she looked like a fool for being so close to him. She wanted to punch something.
‘Anita?’ came a voice from behind her, startling her that anyone had managed to get so close without her feeling their energy. She whirled around to see Helena standing next to a pillar, a strange look on her face, like she was almost nervous.
‘I’ll do it,’ said Anita, surprising both of them equally. Action needed to be taken by somebody, she reasoned.
Helena walked forward, ‘er…what we discussed the other day?’ She said the words cautiously, ‘you’ll do it?’
‘Yes,’ she said, holding her breath, wondering if she was really doing this.
‘I think we should go for a run. We don’t want to be overheard,’ Helena replied in a low voice. Helena led Anita to a small cottage around the corner from the Temples, pulled out a key and let them in. ‘Here, I’ll be back in a minute,’ she said, throwing some running tights, a t-shirt and trainers to Anita before making her way up the small spiral staircase to go and get changed.
A few minutes later they were running in the direction of the river, Anita relishing the opportunity to vent her frustration, so she pushed the pace faster and faster, her energy lifting higher and higher. By the time they reached the river she felt really quite good; it still took her by surprise that something as simple as a fast run could make her feel so invigorated. They paused by the edge of the river, stretching and watching the lively water ripple its way down stream.
‘So what made you change your mind?’ asked Helena, pleased to see that Anita was a great deal more relaxed now than she had been earlier.
‘I realised the Descendants aren’t going to act any time soon. Austin is too determined to make sure they don’t, but somebody has to do something and you’ve offered me a way to help. I would be as bad as they are if I didn’t act either.’
‘And what about your relationship with Marcus?’
‘If all goes well, he’ll never know about it and we can carry on as we are, which is in a tense fashion at the moment.’ A shadow played across her face before she pushed it away. ‘What exactly do you need me to do? Where will I find this information that needs to be retrieved?’
Helena took a deep breath. ‘We don’t know. That is part of what you are going to have to do. All we know is that a memory was stolen from me. I obviously can’t remember what it was, as it was stolen, but it was something about the origins of the Institution, something that could be used to undermine us if we ever challenged Austin. It was stolen a couple of decades ago, that’s why the Institution went quiet around that time and we’ve had to stay that way ever since. All I know is that it’s stored in a brass cylinder, alongside but slightly set apart from other brass cylinders. We only know that much because Amelia, Marcus’ mother, managed to get inside Austin’s head once and find out. It was just before they separated. Unfortunately Austin realised something was wrong before she could find out where the cylinders were stored and steal the memory back.’
‘So you need me to find out where Austin stores his memories, which Marcus may not even know, get him to take me there, then somehow steal the cylinder, which
is easily identifiable as it is set apart from all the others, and therefore someone will notice as soon as it’s gone, sneak the cylinder out of wherever it’s stored, without Marcus noticing, and bring it to you, presumably without taking a peek inside?’
‘In a nutshell.’
‘Sounds like a piece of cake,’ Anita said sarcastically.
‘Of course, you may have to find a way to tap Amber and Austin for information on its whereabouts, or maybe some of the security guards, because as you say, Marcus may not know where it is.’
‘Great,’ she said quietly. ‘So just out of interest, what do you think will happen to me if they catch me?’ She said it flippantly, but she had to admit, if only to herself, that the thought was worrying.
‘I shouldn’t get caught if I were you. One thing I can guarantee is that it won’t be pleasant for you if you do. They probably won’t kill you, as you mean too much to Marcus, unless of course they find a way to do it so it looks like a genuine accident, but either way, probably best to try and avoid it. Amber can be most unpleasant.’
‘I’ll bear that in mind. Anything else to mention before I jump into the fire?’
‘No, I think that pretty much covers it. I think it’d be best if we have as little contact with each other as possible. I don’t want anyone to get suspicious. If and when you succeed, find a way to send me a message and then as promised, I will tell you everything about your parents.’
‘That’s not why I’m doing this.’
‘I know. But surely you want to know about them?’
‘Not if you tell me something I don’t want to hear,’ she fired back confrontationally. ‘Of course I want to know. I’ve wondered my whole life, but I don’t want to think about that until I’ve done this, focusing on reasons entirely separate to knowing about them; focusing on taking action against a Descendancy that’s going to let the world’s population starve. When I’ve done that, I would very much like to hear all about my parents, but not as payment for what you’re asking me to do. I’m doing this because I want to, not because it’s part of a business transaction.’
‘Understood,’ Helena replied unthreateningly, ‘I just want that cylinder back in our safe hands so we can start to work on restabilising the energy. I’d love it for you to help us do that too, if you want?’
‘Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. I could end up in Austin’s dungeon for the rest of time if I’m not careful. One small step at a time for now I think.’
‘Right you are. In which case, I’ll look forward to your message. Good luck.’
‘Thanks. I’ll probably need it.’ Helena ran back towards Empire. Anita headed in the opposite direction, found a place to cross the river and set off for the castle. As ever, there was no time like the present.
*****
Anita had reached the castle at the same time as Marcus had arrived back from Empire. She’d suggested they take a walk to the cliff where they’d danced before the ball. They’d made up, neither one really apologising and neither one adapting their point of view, Anita had thought he’d be suspicious if she had. They accepted that their opinions differed on this subject, which would inevitably happen from time to time, so they agreed to draw a line under it and move on.
For a few days after that, their relationship had been tense, but that wore off and it soon went back to how it’d been before. Regrettably, there now seemed to be a silent agreement between them that Anita would no longer see Alexander, although that made her feel even more guilty about him. She hadn’t seen him, apart from bumping into him outside the Temples, since they’d got back from Kingdom. She’d been avoiding him as she didn’t know what to say and now she was working for the Institution, it wasn’t the best time for Marcus to have something to be jealous of. She put off arranging any more Spirit lessons and spent more and more time with Marcus instead. Marcus seemed to relax a little when he realised Anita wasn’t seeing Alexander any longer and their relationship strengthened as a result, however he was also becoming more controlling as the days went by. He wanted to know where Anita was going and who she was seeing, and he tried to go with her practically everywhere she went. The only saving grace was that she could go to work at the Observatory, which gave her some much needed space. However, even this was unpleasant for a while, Bas appalled that she was still with Marcus. Luckily, Bas couldn’t stay mad with Anita for very long, his distain wearing off after a couple of weeks, but Anita found herself on the roof, lying on the largest energy receiver (who cared about the readings, there was still no improvement), much more often than usual. She needed time to consider what she was doing, whilst enjoying some coveted time by herself.
The quest to find Austin’s brass cylinder was going in much the same way as the quest to find the one in her head had, it was going nowhere. There were no clues anywhere and Marcus didn’t let her near Austin and Amber, or any of the security guards, for her to be able to probe them for information. She’d seen a guard emerge from an invisible door in the panelling under the stairs one day. This had taken her by surprise, but that the castle stretched down into the ground wasn’t in itself at all surprising or suspicious, much to her disappointment. Although it wouldn’t be remarkable if that were where Austin kept his secrets, with nothing more than that to go on, Anita was not doing very well so far.
To compound her problems, Marcus now wanted to meditate with her as well. He kept harping on about how she’d meditated with Alexander, so it was only fair that he should be allowed to meditate with her too. She kept putting it off, but knew that would only fly for so long without him becoming suspicious. The problem was, she worried they might accidently find the cylinder in her head. What would happen then? She needed advice from Alexander before they meditated, but Marcus barely ever left her side, so she was finding it tricky to think of a way to get some time alone with him, without Marcus knowing. Eventually Cleo saved the day.
Anita had been skirting around the issue of the possessive Marcus on one of her rare evenings out without him, when Cleo had mentioned that Marcus was spending a lot of time in the Archives when Anita was at the Observatory. She had no idea what he was doing there, as she only ever saw him coming and going and was wondering if Anita knew. She’d replied honestly, saying she had no idea, although it did seem a bit strange, then had changed the subject to see if Cleo had found anything interesting in her research; she was looking into the relic discovery and the reaction of the Descendants, but hadn’t yet found anything. This wasn’t surprising given the Descendants controlled the Archives, but she was sure it was only a matter of time until something cropped up.
*****
The following day, Anita had gone to the Observatory as usual, allowing Marcus to drop her off in his car, but twenty minutes later, having received a message from Cleo that Marcus was safely in the Archives for the day, Anita left the Observatory and headed for the river. Cleo had delivered a message to Alexander to meet her in the trees next to where she’d first learned to supress her energy. Unusually for Cleo, she hadn’t made a suggestive comment, or questioned why. Maybe it was something in Anita’s worried face that had put her off, but Anita had been extremely grateful when Cleo had agreed without hesitation.
Anita reached the river full of anticipation and could feel Alexander’s powerful energy in the trees waiting for her. Her energy soared when she felt it and his did the same when he sensed her presence. He hung back in the shadows, just in case Marcus had someone following her, or in case somebody happened to be passing by and spotted them. She stepped into the trees, her heart soaring as her eyes took in his beautiful, rugged form. It took all the self-control she possessed to prevent her from running to him and throwing her arms around him; she hadn’t realised until now how much she’d missed him. He was fighting a similar battle, straining against every instinct he had to reach out and pull her to his chest. She stopped a few feet away from him, feeling a nudge at the edge of her energy and without hesitation sent one back. He closed his eyes until
the sensation had passed, a pained look on his face when he reopened them, his electric blue eyes sad as they looked hopefully into hers.
He searched for something to say but didn’t know where to start, instead standing silent, taking in the contours of her face, Anita doing the same to him. She finally broke the spell. ‘I’ve missed you,’ she said hesitantly, his stomach flipping as she said the words. He took a step towards her, reaching out to place his hands either side of her face and pull her to him, the familiar tingles starting to shoot through his body before their skin made contact. When his fingers met her cheeks, the shock was so strong he worried they might be fusing together, his eyes boring deep into hers, confirming she felt the new intensity too. He closed his eyes and placed his forehead against hers, his brow furrowed as he fought desperately to get his boiling energy under control. Anita finally managed to steel herself, using every ounce of control she possessed to pull away from him, the aroma of oranges swirling around her, filling her lungs, screaming at her to kiss him. ‘I need your help Alexander,’ she breathed breathlessly, forcing herself a safe distance away from him to focus on what she had come for. She sat down on the trunk of a fallen tree and waited as he took deep breaths, recovering from the physical effect her touch had had on him.
‘Of course, anything,’ he said, shaking his head to concentrate on her words, moving towards the tree trunk, his body seeming to pull him unconsciously towards her.
Anita put her hand up to stop him, ‘please don’t come too close,’ she said. ‘This is difficult enough as it is.’
‘What’s wrong?’ he asked, his face full of concern.
She looked dejectedly at the floor; meeting his hypnotic eyes wasn’t a great idea right now. ‘Aside from the confusion I feel every time I see you, Marcus wants to meditate with me. I’ve put him off so many times already, it’s only a matter of time before I’m going to have to do it, but I’m worried that he’ll find out about what happened between us, or that we stumble across the cylinder in my head. I don’t know why it’s there or what it contains, but I know I don’t want him to know about it.’