The Golden Couple (The Samantha Project Series, # 2)

by Karpinske, Stephanie

  “Yes, I went back and checked it and rechecked it. It was a really complex code. After I figured out which numbers stood for which letters, I had to figure out the right sequence. And then the sequence had to be reordered.”

  Jack kept staring at the paper as if doing so would change what it said. “It can’t be. This is too easy. How could it be that the very thing we’re looking for is right here on this disk? Of all the places this could have ended up, it ends up here? At Paul’s house?”

  He got quiet and a worried look came across his face. “What’s wrong, Dad,” Erik asked. “What are you thinking?”

  “GlobalLife would never want the information on this file to get out. And if it did get out, they’d want to know where it was and who had it. So I’m wondering if this file has some type of hidden locator device built into it that goes off when you open it.”

  “But the file came from that Dan guy. I thought you and Paul knew him,” I said.

  “Yes, and he was a good guy. I’m probably being overly cautious.” Jack thought for a moment. “Well, if there’s even a chance that the disk has the answers we’re looking for, then I have to risk opening it. I just can’t believe that the information about those base pairs is what’s on this thing. Maybe luck is finally coming our way.”

  “I wouldn’t say that just yet, Dad,” Erik said. “Why don’t you open the file first and then we’ll see.”

  “I’m hoping I can. I’ve been working on this for hours, and everything I thought would work hasn’t. So now I need to get creative.”

  “Then we’ll leave you alone so you can get back to work.” Erik got up. “Sam, let’s go out back and work on some more stuff. Maybe we should practice getting those scenarios running in your head again.”

  “That’s my least favorite ability. Let’s practice something else,” I suggested, thinking of how that ability hadn’t helped me much in the past. Also, in order to get the scenarios running, my body had to release a high level of stress hormones and I really didn’t want to feel stressed today.

  “What are Colin and I supposed to do all day?” Brittany was finally up and dressed. She came over to the table.

  “I’ve got an idea.” Jack glanced up from the computer. “Erik, you and Sam work on listening to Brittany’s and Colin’s thoughts from different places and different distances. It will be good practice for both of you.”

  Erik headed for the door. “That’s a good idea. Colin? Brittany? You up for that?”

  “I guess,” Brittany muttered. “But I still don’t like that whole mind-reading thing you guys do.”

  We all went outside and Erik gave instructions to Colin and Brittany. “Okay, now just think about whatever you want. Once you get to your spot, yell back at us to let us know you’re there. After two minutes, come back and we’ll try something else.”

  Colin went down the hill and into the woods. Brittany followed him, stopping halfway down the hill.

  “Ready,” I heard Colin call out.

  “Me, too,” Brittany yelled.

  Erik nodded for us to begin. At first I tried to hear Brittany’s thoughts. I got nothing until about 30 seconds in. “How could Paul not have a TV? Who doesn’t have a TV? We were dirt poor and Mom still got us a TV. And cable.”

  I stopped listening to Brittany and changed my focus to Colin, imagining him in front of me. I could hear his thoughts right away. “I’ve gotta get some alone time with you, Sam. Maybe we could sneak away for an hour out here in the woods. It would be just like that time we drove out to Baxter Park and you and I—”

  “Stop! We’re done!” I yelled, startling Erik. “Time’s up!”

  “Are you sure? I think that was only a minute.” Erik checked his watch.

  “Nope. Two minutes. Your watch must be slow.” I could feel my face blushing. “Colin. Brittany. We’re done,” I called out to them.

  When they were back up the hill, I yanked Colin off to the side. “Why were you thinking those things? You know that Erik could hear you!”

  “Oh, I thought you were listening to me and Erik was listening to Brittany.”

  “No! We were listening to both of you!”

  Colin shrugged. “I don’t care. You’re my girlfriend. Erik knows that. It’s no big deal.”

  “Yeah, it is a big deal,” I whispered. “Those were private memories. I don’t want him hearing that stuff. I mean Baxter Park? You had to bring that up?”

  “We had a good time there.” He smiled, wrapping his arms around my waist. “A really good time.”

  “Yeah, I remember. But that’s between us. I don’t want other people to know. It’s embarrassing.” I tried to pull away but he wouldn’t let me.

  “Okay. I won’t think that stuff anymore. Well, at least not when he’s listening in.” Colin leaned down and whispered to me. “So what about my offer? Do you want to get some alone time later?”

  “I don’t know. We’ll see how the day goes.” I couldn’t believe Colin could think about making out with everything going on. That was the last thing on my mind.

  “You guys ready to try something else?” Erik asked. He didn’t act weird, so maybe he hadn’t heard Colin’s thoughts, or at least not all of them.

  “I want to try this mind-reading thing.” Brittany went up to Erik. “I want to see for myself what it’s like communicating but not talking.”

  “You know that’s not possible, Brittany,” I said. “Only Erik and I can do that.”

  “But we could pretend, just for fun. Come on,” Brittany urged. “It won’t take long. I’m tired of everything being so serious. Can’t we have a break?”

  “Okay. What are you suggesting?” Erik asked.

  “Well, it could be like when we were kids. You know that telephone game where you whisper stuff to people? Except instead of doing that, you’ll listen to our thoughts and write down what we say, giving it to the other person.”

  It was juvenile and silly, but Erik agreed to it. After all, it would only take a few minutes. Erik would play the role of “mind messenger,” listening to their thoughts and delivering the written messages back and forth.

  Erik asked Brittany to pick the topic that she and Colin would discuss. “Let’s see. I would like to talk about the latest spring fash—” She stopped, glancing over at me. “On second thought, I would like to discuss travel, a topic I am interested in.”

  Her attempt to impress Erik sounded completely forced. She blushed and looked down at the ground.

  “That’s a good topic,” I said, trying to save her. “So, Brittany, what about travel would you like to discuss?”

  She looked up, surprised that nobody was laughing at her. “Um, well, I would like to talk about Paris. I’ve always wanted to go there.”

  “Okay,” Erik said. “Then let’s pretend Colin is a Parisian and you’re asking him about his culture.”

  “And, Sam, don’t listen in,” Brittany ordered. “Only Erik can.”

  “Why?” She ignored me, so I went and got a pen and some paper for Erik to write the messages. Then I sat off to the side and watched.

  The conversation began. Erik listened to Brittany’s questions about Paris, then wrote them down and gave them to Colin. Then Erik listened to Colin and wrote his responses down, giving them to Brittany. It continued back and forth. After a few minutes, Erik was doubled over in laughter. Soon Brittany was laughing, too.

  “You guys are done. Now what’s so funny?” I asked.

  “Colin. He was hilarious,” Erik said. “At first, he tried to think with a French accent. That was funny enough. And then you should have heard his answers to Brittany. Well, they’re all written down so you can read them, but they’re even funnier with the accent. Colin, you should be a comedian, man.”

  “And that part when you said—” Brittany was laughing so hard she couldn’t finish.

  Colin’s sense of humor and quick wit were one of the many reasons people liked him. It had obviously won over Erik and Brittany.

&nb
sp; “Well, I guess we should get serious again. See that shed over there?” Erik pointed to a small wooden structure at the far end of the backyard. “You guys go in there and start thinking really fast, like you’re in danger. Jump from one thought to another. The thoughts don’t even need to relate to each other.”

  Brittany made a face. “I’m not going in that shed. There’s probably snakes and rats in there.”

  “I’ll keep them away from you,” Colin assured her as he led her to the shed.

  “Sam, you go inside the house and see if you can hear their thoughts,” Erik instructed. “That way, we’ll see if you can hear through several walls. I’ll stay out here.”

  “Oh, sure. Give me the hard stuff.”

  “I’m being easy on you today,” he said as I walked back to the house. “I didn’t even ask you about Baxter Park.”

  I could feel him smiling. I went in the kitchen, ignoring Erik’s comment.

  “Okay, start now,” I heard Erik yell from outside.

  I listened for any thoughts from Brittany or Erik. Thirty seconds passed. Then a minute. Still nothing. After another minute, I heard a few words from Colin, but then he cut out again.

  I went outside to find Erik. “I hardly got anything. I guess it doesn’t work with all the walls in the way.”

  Colin and Brittany came back over by Erik and me.

  “It didn’t work for me either,” Erik said. “I only got a few words. That’s really weird. You two think about something right now. Sam and I will try again with you next to us.”

  Erik and I listened but again only heard a few words here and there and no complete sentences.

  “This happened to me once before,” I said. “It was when I was on that bus to Texas. I met that girl, Ruby, and I tried to read her thoughts but I could only get a few words. She had her cell phone in her hand so, maybe this is dumb, but I was thinking that the phone was interfering with her brain waves, making it so I couldn’t read and interpret her thoughts.”

  “That’s not dumb. That makes total sense,” Erik said. “Except that nobody has a cell phone, right?”

  We all shook our heads. Erik glared at Brittany.

  “What are you looking at me for?” Brittany asked. “I don’t have a cell phone. If I did, I’d be using it.”

  “Something’s not right.” Erik looked up and around. “We heard everything when you guys were down in the woods. So what’s different? It’s like there’s some type of interference.”

  I noticed a sound off in the distance. “Erik, do you hear something?”

  Erik listened. “Yeah. It kind of sounds like a helicopter.”

  Brittany yawned, stretching her arms out. “So you hear a helicopter. Who cares?”

  Erik listened closer. “Helicopters fly low. They survey what or who is on the ground.”

  I looked at Erik. “GlobalLife has helicopters.”

  “Everyone inside!” Erik yelled.

  We sprinted back to the house. When we got inside, Jack was looking out a back window. “When did you notice it, Erik?”

  “Just now. It came out of nowhere.”

  “It’s not close enough for me to see any detail on it. Tell me what it looks like.”

  Erik joined him at the window, using his enhanced vision to get a better look at the helicopter. “It’s all black. No markings.”

  “Go check out front,” Jack said. “See if anyone’s there. Be discreet. Don’t open the drapes.”

  Erik ran to the front window. “Nothing. There’s nobody there.”

  Jack went to the kitchen. “I want all of you to get over here. Hurry up!”

  We joined Jack in the kitchen. “It’s still off in the distance, so listen up. We’re going to run to Paul’s underground shelter. It’s hidden in that shed.” He pointed to the shed Colin and Brittany had been in earlier. “Got it?”

  We nodded.

  Jack motioned Erik to move in front of us. “I want you to go first, Erik, and open the door to the shelter. It’s right in the middle of the floor. Everyone else follow him. Go as fast as you can. I’ll be the last one in. Ready?”

  The sound of the helicopter got significantly louder. “Erik, now!” Jack shouted. Erik bolted out the door and the rest of us followed him into the shed. We got into the shelter and Jack shut the door behind us.

  We moved to the far end of the shelter and waited. The helicopter sounded like it was circling the house. As we listened, we stood there in total disbelief. It didn’t make sense. We’d come all this way only to have GlobalLife swoop down and get us now? Out of nowhere? For that to happen, someone would have had to tip them off. And the only person who knew we were there was Paul.

  Jack was thinking the same thing. “I can’t believe he would tell them we were here. He wouldn’t. I know he wouldn’t. But if it wasn’t Paul, then how the hell did they find us?”

  Erik went up to Jack. “Maybe it’s not GlobalLife, Dad. Maybe it’s a military helicopter, like the kind that used to go over our farm. Maybe they’re just doing some type of training exercises.”

  The helicopter continued to circle above us.

  Jack nervously rubbed his beard. “We can only hope that’s what it is.”

  “What is this place?” Brittany whispered.

  “It’s an old bomb shelter,” Jack said. “Paul made it into an underground bunker because he’s so paranoid about things. Good thing he did. It’s the only place we can hide. If that’s GlobalLife, their equipment won’t be able to detect us out down here.”

  He stopped to listen. The helicopter was still circling. “If they truly suspect that we’re here, they could have people all around us. Around the house. In the woods. They’ll eventually find—”

  “Dad, listen,” Erik pointed up. “Do you hear that? It sounds like it might be leaving.”

  We all listened. It did seem to be heading away from us.

  “It may not be above us anymore, but I still hear it,” Jack said. “We’re staying here until we’re sure it’s gone.”

  After an hour of waiting, Jack slowly opened the shelter door. He went up and looked around, then came back. “Okay, I don’t see anything. Let’s go.”

  “I want you to keep watching for it, Erik,” Jack said when we were back in the house. “I need to keep working on that file. If you hear or see anything at all, let me know.”

  “So now we’re stuck in here?” Brittany plopped down on the sofa.

  I sat down next to her. “You could read one of Paul’s books. He’s got plenty to choose from.”

  “Yeah, right, Sam. Like I really wanna read a book about,” Brittany glanced at the books on the shelves behind her, “alien encounters, war profiteering, or artificial intelligence. Yeah, that’s fun. Let’s look for a TV instead. Maybe he has one hidden in a closet somewhere.”

  “He doesn’t own a TV,” Jack called out from behind his laptop. “He’s never had one the whole time I’ve known him. Doesn’t see the need for one.”

  Brittany rolled her eyes as she got up and picked out a book. “Here’s one. The Pyramids and Other Ancient Mysteries. Do you want that one, Sam?”

  I grabbed the book. “Yeah. I love reading about the pyramids. Because really, how did people build those back then? I don’t understand how they did it without big equipment.”

  “Aliens,” Colin said. “Whenever you can’t explain something, blame the aliens. Works every time.”

  “I can’t explain women,” Erik mumbled from the chair next to me.

  Colin laughed. “Because they’re aliens. Mystery solved.”

  “Ha, ha,” I said.

  “Do you think aliens look like humans?” Brittany asked.

  “No,” Erik replied, “but I don’t think they look like the movie aliens with the massive heads and big black eyes.”

  We continued discussing the crazy topics in Paul’s books for the rest of the afternoon. Erik kept checking outside but the helicopter never returned.

  “I don’t think it was Glob
alLife, Dad.” Erik went to sit at the table with Jack. “If it was, like you said, they would have sent someone up to the house.”

  Jack didn’t respond. He was concentrating on whatever was on his laptop screen. His face looked both worried and confused.

  “Dad, are you listening?”

  “What? No. What did you need, Erik?” Jack was very distracted by something.

  “Never mind. Doesn’t matter.”

  Jack looked up from his laptop. “Since it’s safe out there now, why don’t you guys go outside before dinner? Get some fresh air.”

  Erik laughed. “What are we, 5? You’re sending us outside?”

  “Just for a little while. Paul will be home soon and I need to talk to him about something.”

  “All right. Everyone out,” Erik ordered.

  We all went out back. Erik and Colin searched the shed for some sports equipment while Brittany and I sat on the porch. After a while, I went inside to get a drink of water and heard Jack and Paul talking intently in the other room. It sounded like they’d been discussing the helicopter incident.

  “Yeah, I should have told you about those training exercises they do,” Paul said. “There’s a military base just north of here. But you usually don’t see them at that time of day. And the training is often on the weekends, so it is suspicious. Good thing you thought to use the shelter.”

  Jack moved on. “So going back to what I told you earlier about what I found in this file. You don’t really believe that, do you, Paul? Because if you do, then I think you’ve read too many of those conspiracy theory books. I know the file is very detailed but this is obviously a hoax. And here I spent all night and all day getting this file open. For some silly hoax.”

  “Dan wouldn’t go to all this trouble for a hoax.” Paul lowered his voice. “Listen, Jack. I’m now certain that Dan was killed. And I know it was GlobalLife. They did it because of what was on this disk. It finally makes sense.”

  “Come on, Paul. He wasn’t killed. It was an accident.”

  “It wasn’t an accident. I didn’t tell you the whole story, Jack.”

  “Okay. So what’s the story?”