He showed Amanda the contents of the gray bag. There was a lot of money. Walter added, “Even if they don’t, you’ll be taken care of.”
Walter sat back in his chair. “Do we have a deal?”
“Why are you doing this for us?” Amanda had asked. “Why not just send us back and let us fend for ourselves?”
Walter smirked. “I need your help, and you want to have as normal a life as possible. It’s a win for both of us. All I ask is that you stay in 2016 and help Matthew find that charm.”
Amanda understood that she would fare better in 2016 than she would in 2185. She saw it as an opportunity to help her brother, so she had agreed. “I’ll do what you ask. We’ll stay in 2016.”
Walter was relieved and stuck out his hand to shake on it. She shook his hand and had started to leave the room when he added, “There’s just one more thing.”
“What’s that?”
“You can never tell Matthew about our deal. Addie and Bryan will both know if you do, and if that happens…well, the deal is off.” Walter’s tone deepened and he asked, “Do you understand?”
Amanda nodded her head that she understood and left Walter’s office.
Amanda’s mind refocused on the present as she drove up the driveway of her former home. It looked just the way she remembered. Even the brick walkways were the same. She peeked in the rearview mirror to see the excitement in Steven’s eyes. “Look, my tree house is still there!” he cried.
She pulled the car to a stop at the front-door entrance and gathered her thoughts for a moment. An e‑mail was one thing, but meeting her uncle in person after all these years would be difficult. The last time she had seen him, he’d been just a few months younger than she was. She motioned to Steven to get out of the car, and they walked to the front door.
With a quick ring of the doorbell, Amanda stepped back in anxious anticipation. Her gray bag was in one hand and Steven’s hand was in the other. The door opened to smiles, hugs, and a welcoming spirit. Amanda and Steven were home.
Saturday morning sunshine streamed brightly through Cameron’s blinds in the living room where Matthew had slept. He had been ready to head to the cardinal statue at six o’clock in the morning, but Cameron wouldn’t allow it. “There will be crowds around the quad until at least ten. We’ll head there when it empties out.”
“That sounds good. I’ll call Amanda on the way.”
Cameron agreed. “Yeah, there’s no sense waking her up now.”
The boys wouldn’t speak again until nine o’clock. Between eating breakfast, gathering a few tools, and playing the latest war-strategy video game that Cameron had purchased, they were just biding their time.
Across town, Addie and Bryan prepared for their trip to the big pharmaceuticals announcement. Sandra had promised to pick them up on the way there, but Addie had changed plans on her the night before.
“We have to be prepared to leave the minute we get out of the complex.” Addie pulled a small black case from one of her bags and showed it to Bryan.
“Is that it?” he asked. “You know what it means if this works.”
“If this works, everything changes.”
They were both dressed nicely for the times. They wanted to show they were taking seriously this opportunity to spend time with Sandra and Evan. Bryan wore his nicest navy suit and tie, while Addie wore a free-flowing beige dress and black flats. Her hair was up, and Bryan complimented her on it.
She replied, “Thanks, but it’s more of a mission necessity than a fashion statement.”
He laughed. “After we pull off this mission, you can wear your hair however you want. Walter might even let you dye it pink.”
Addie held the small black box and placed it into a purse that she flung over her shoulder. Bryan grabbed the car keys, and they were out the door. Both took a quick look back at the house as they left. There was a good chance they would never see it again.
Bryan started the car. “It wasn’t so bad being fake married and a fake dad for the last few months. I could get accustomed to it.”
Addie smiled but reminded Bryan they had much bigger things to worry about. “It was all a part of the mission. You just can’t get too invested in things like this. The more feelings that you let crop up, the harder it is to do what has to be done.”
Bryan pulled out of the driveway, and they were on the way to Genesis. “I didn’t mean anything by it. I just think it’s a good reminder of why we do what we do. Don’t you?”
Addie peered out the window and dropped the smile she had forced a moment earlier. “All I ever think about is how it should have been.”
Turning back to Bryan, she said, “Let’s go over this one more time.”
Addie reviewed the plan. She explained how important it would be to convince Sandra to give them a private tour of the facility before the big announcements were made. “If we can get one or two people to show us around, it won’t be a problem to separate ourselves.”
She also reviewed the layout of the facility. Bryan already knew where they needed to go. There was a chemical mix lab that housed what they needed, but it was under some heavy guard. It would take both of them to get past the security.
Whatever happened, they wanted to make sure to avoid Evan Elliott as much as possible. The last thing they needed was an altercation with the most powerful man in the world.
Bryan pulled into the side lot at Genesis, where hundreds of other vehicles were already parked. Addie sent Sandra a text to let her know they were there. Sandra returned the text and told them to meet her in the front lobby of the visitor’s center.
Addie grabbed Bryan’s arm before he exited the car. “No matter what happens, I just want you know how much I respect you.” Bryan grinned and replied, “We’re gonna be fine. Just stick to the plan.”
The building covered over two million square feet and boasted one of the largest test labs in Virginia. It was white from top to bottom, with an occasional window dotting the outer walls. The visitor center on the other hand was structured in glass, with high-end landscaping surrounding the exterior. It was an impressive site.
Bryan held the door for Addie, and they noticed Sandra standing by the main desk as soon as they entered. She grinned and welcomed the Chance couple. “I am so glad you two could make it. Are Matthew and Amanda with you?”
Addie explained that they weren’t able to make it but wanted to hear all about it when they got home. She looked around to see droves of people getting badges and being placed into groups with tour guides. “Where’s Evan?” she asked. “I’m sure he’s excited about all of this.”
Sandra replied, “Oh, he is so excited about the news conference! He’s around here somewhere prepping for the big speech, so you probably won’t see him for a while.” Sandra pulled a couple of VIP passes from the desk and handed one to Addie and one to Bryan. “The announcement doesn’t start until ten thirty, so I thought you might want to take a tour of the facility first.”
Bryan replied, “That would be great.” He looked at the passes and said, “Wow, we’re VIPs. Does that mean we get a private tour?”
Sandra was a little surprised by the request, but she was intent on impressing the Chance couple. “Well, we don’t really have private tours, but I bet I could get Evan’s assistant to walk you around. She’ll show you the really cool stuff.”
Sandra picked up her phone and sent out a text to Evan’s assistant. A reply came within moments that read, “I’ll be there in a few minutes.” Addie made some small talk with Sandra to fill the gap, and Bryan stood there acting like he cared about youth basketball and kitchen decorations.
Before too long, a door opened behind the welcome desk, and out walked Evan’s assistant. “Are you sure you have time to do this?” Sandra asked.
The young assistant replied, “Not a problem at all. Mr. Elliott has everything under control.” The assistant’s voice had the shrill of a teenager and would take some getting used to. She introduced herself to Add
ie and Bryan. “I’m Connie Bowers, Mr. Elliott’s personal assistant. It is always nice to meet friends of Evan’s and Ms. Sandra.”
Ms. Bowers wore a pencil skirt down to her knees, heels that added five inches to her height, and a tight blouse that left little to the imagination. Her long hair did hide some of the obvious enhancements that had been made to her body, but overall, she looked like a college freshman.
Addie said, “I’m impressed that a woman of your youth has such a high position with Mr. Elliott.”
Connie replied, “Oh, I’ve been working for Mr. Elliott for years. I just know how to take care of myself.”
Bryan said, “No arguments here.” Addie slapped him on his chest, and he put his hand in the air, signaling his male ignorance and his agreement to shut up.
Connie took a badge from the desk. “If you will follow me, I’ll give you the dime tour. It’s much better than the nickel tour.”
As the three of them made their way through the door behind the main desk, Sandra commented that she would see them at the conference. With a parting smile, Addie replied, “Can’t wait for it.”
In the other corner of the visitor center sat Cassie Jenkins. She had watched the whole interaction between Sandra and Addie. She pulled out her cell phone and called Matthew. He was en route to the quad with Cameron.
In the passenger seat of Cameron’s car, Matthew grabbed for his phone as it started to ring. “I bet that’s Amanda,” he said. Looking down, though, he saw that it was Cassie instead. He answered the phone and asked what was going on.
“So far, your parents have met up with Sandra Landrum, and it looks like they’re going on a tour with Mr. Elliott’s assistant. Nothing seems out of the ordinary.”
“Can you follow them on the tour?”
“I’ll try,” Cassie replied. “I’ll call you back soon.”
Matthew told Cassie that he appreciated everything she was doing, and she reiterated to him that she would help him in any way she could.
Matthew ended the call and asked Cameron if he had heard from Amanda. Cameron replied, “She hasn’t tried to call me. Is she not picking up for you?”
Matthew looked at his phone and said, “I’ve called her five times and left a couple of messages. I don’t know why she’s not picking up. I hope she’s ok.”
Cameron smirked. “I’m sure she’s fine, buddy. Even if you don’t get a hold of her, we can finish this up on our own.”
Cameron parked on the opposite side of campus from the quad. They thought it would be better to walk up and check the area out before starting their work on the statue. If anyone saw them damaging the beloved cardinal, there would be hell to pay.
The game crowds had already made their trek to the football stadium, so the quad was empty by ten o’clock. Random students would walk by every few minutes, but they were generally concentrating on their own problems and paid no attention to Matthew and Cameron.
“How do you want to start?” Cameron asked.
“Well, based on what we saw yesterday, we need to start at the beak.”
The plans clearly pointed to the statue’s beak as being the location of the black charm, and the boys thought they had found it the day before. It should be as simple as chipping it off the beak. But as Cameron started to chip at the spot, he realized something wasn’t right.
“What’s the problem?” Matthew asked. “Is it not coming off?”
Cameron replied, “This isn’t the stone. This is part of the bronze on the statue. I can’t chip it off—it’s made right into the statue. This isn’t the stone. Maybe we should look over the plans again.”
Uneasily, Matthew replied, “We don’t have time for that. Do you have the other half of the stone in your pocket?”
Cameron reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small box, a precaution Matthew had requested before they’d left the apartment. “It’s right here where you asked me to keep it. Why, what are you gonna do with it?”
Matthew stepped away from the statue and asked Cameron to bring him the box. “I think I have an idea, but you have to promise me that no matter what happens, you won’t call for any help.”
Puzzled, Cameron agreed and waited for Matthew to do whatever he was going to do. Matthew took the half of the charm in their possession and placed it in his hand. He thought to himself, “I hope Addie and Bryan are having better luck than us.”
Connie Bowers looked at her watch. “We have only fifteen minutes until the start of the speech. I’d better get you two back to the front grounds.”
Bryan stopped her. “A couple of things before we head back. First, we want to thank you for such a thorough tour—we really enjoyed it. Second, I remember Evan mentioning a chemical room where this new supervaccination is prepared. Is that anywhere around here?”
Connie nodded vigorously. “Oh yes, we’re actually just a floor above the lab that handles that. If we took that elevator down one floor, we would be looking right at it. But we’re not allowed to take anyone down there. That’s company policy.”
Bryan replied, “Oh, that’s fine. I’m sure you wouldn’t have access to it anyway.”
Connie grinned. “Oh, I have access to anywhere in the facility. I just can’t take guests down there.”
Addie added, “It’s strange. I have seen a ton of security cameras around here, but I don’t see any in this hallway.”
Connie replied, “Approximately ninety percent of the building is under surveillance, but they don’t cover all of the hallways. I guess they figure there’s nothing here to see.”
Addie laughed and said, “That’s good for us.” She proceeded to land a wicked punch to Connie Bowers’ jaw. She went skidding across the floor, and Bryan ran over to grab her badge.
“Nice punch, Mrs. Chance. She’ll be out for a while.” Bryan and Addie proceeded to walk to the elevator at the end of the hall when the double click of heels popped behind them. They both turned to find Connie Bowers on her feet. Her fully functional Hathmec was now revealed on the outside of her shirt.
“That wasn’t very nice of you, Mrs. Chance. How about I show you how it’s really done?” Connie tossed a large handful of carrier stones at Bryan and Addie, which blinded them for a moment. Connie jumped in the air, losing one shoe in the process, and her bare foot came full across the face of Addie, tossing her into the adjoining wall.
Bryan attempted to grab Connie, but before he could do so, she lifted her leg up to her hand and removed her other shoe and proceeded to slap the leather against Bryan’s face. He fell to the ground, and Connie climbed on top of him. Three quick punches to the face, and Connie leaned back to survey her work. “I’m assuming this isn’t the picture you had in your mind of me being on top of you.”
She took the heel of her shoe and raised it above her head in anticipation of plunging it into Bryan’s chest. As her momentum started toward his body, it was interrupted by Addie’s flying across and tackling her to the ground. Connie sat up and started to make her move until she realized that Addie was holding her Hathmec up in the air.
Connie reached up to her neck but there was nothing there. She had been stripped of her Hathmec. Addie stood up and looked down at Connie, who was still on her knees. Addie said, “You won’t wake up from this for a while.” Addie kicked the taste out of Connie’s mouth, and she fell to the ground like a limp crash-test dummy.
Bryan stood up and thanked Addie. “I wasn’t expecting to be attacked by a Barbie look-alike.”
They grabbed Connie and pulled her into a utility closet in the hallway. Bryan found some electrical tape and bound her hands and legs just in case she woke up. Addie held on to her Hathmec and tied it to a top shelf in the closet. It wouldn’t come loose and Connie would be in no position to reach for it when she woke up.
Bryan and Addie made their way to the elevator and took it to the lab level one floor below them. As the door closed on the elevator, Cassie poked her head around the corner of the hallway. She had seen the entire al
tercation and was trying to call Matthew, but the building’s lining was obscuring her cell phone signal.
Her calls were getting blocked, and the message she tried to leave Matthew may or may not have gone through. She approached the stairs to go down a level. She needed to see what Addie and Bryan were up to. “Matthew, if you get this, please call me back. Something isn’t right here.” She thought to herself, “I hope Matthew’s ok.”
“Matthew, you don’t look so good. I don’t think we should do this.” Matthew had his half of the trans-x charm in his hand and was waving it around the cardinal statue, trying to determine where his hand had been when he’d felt the worst. He started to get dizzy and stumbled around the statue.
“Dude, you’re gonna pass out again. You need to stop.” Matthew’s eyes began to grow dark, but he had one image in his mind before they did, and he screamed it out: “The feet!”
Matthew fell to the ground and Cameron pulled him away from the statue. Everything in Cameron told him to call for help, but he had promised Matthew that he wouldn’t. He looked around the feet of the cardinal statue—and there it was. It was so obvious but at the same time so well hidden. The other half of the charm was wedged up to the edge of the cardinal’s talon. He tried to pull it off with his fingers but had no luck. Pulling a small chisel from his pocket, he began to chip away at the statue. It only took a few pops before it was free.
He held it in his hand for a moment and then turned back to Matthew. “I’ve got it! I’ve got it, Matthew.”
Matthew was still lying on the ground taking short breaths, and Cameron rushed over to him. “Come on, wake up. You’re gonna be ok.”
Just then, the half charm in Cameron’s hand jumped out of his grasp. The half that Matthew had in his hand did the same thing. The two separate pieces levitated in midair and gradually formed back into one solid piece. There was a quick burst of yellow light and a light clink as they merged. It sounded like two champagne glasses coming together. The expression on Cameron’s face changed from concern to confusion in a matter of seconds.
Last Chance Volume 2 - The Legend of the Hathmec: Planting the Seed Page 27