Coalescence (Camden Investigations Book 1)

by Gary Starta

  “Actually, how do you handle people that disagree with you? I know government cover-ups absolutely freaking bug the shit out of you. But how do you deal with someone like me? Because you’re right—despite all I’ve seen tonight, I’m still a skeptic when it comes to aliens.”

  “I have mandated a rule. It’s called: Mitchell’s requisite. It goes like this. If you disagree with me, that’s your right. But it’s not your right to invalidate my argument. In other words, I won’t accept you calling me foolish or wrong. It’s based on numbers. If two people disagree, then each can only be 50 percent correct in their assumption. If four people are involved, and two are at odds with the others’ findings, then each can only be 25 percent right. As you can see, as the numbers of people engaged in the disagreement grows, the percentage any one person can be correct diminishes. Well, unless nine out of ten people should agree. Ultimately, it doesn’t really prove or disprove the arguments. But it makes things more civil. I just don’t think people should denigrate others. I may still be skeptical of the spirit world, Iris, but right now, I can only be 50 percent correct in my assumption.”

  She laughed. “Good night, Mitchell. I like the way you argue.” She continued smiling, watching his SUV drive off. She possibly was slipping as an investigator. She hadn’t noticed until now what his license plate signified. His plates read: UFO GUY. Maybe I’m not just hooked on this investigation.

  MITCHELL GLANCED at the clock as he dropped into his bed. It was late. It would be even later back east where his scientist friend, Evan, lived. The Dial was an investigation in itself, and then there was the crop circle. Better yet, he had an even bigger mystery to grapple with. Did Iris feel the same way about him as he did her? He believed there was chemistry, but he couldn’t be sure, just as he couldn’t be certain about UFOs. He almost flipped priorities and dialed Iris. Instead, he dialed the phone number he originally intended and waited seven long rings for an answer.

  “Hi, Evan, I’m so sorry to call this late. It’s just that some events have been occurring lately. I think you should put in for an emergency sabbatical or whatever you need to do to get out here ASAP.”

  Evan grumbled in response, groggy and confused.

  “What I’m saying, Evan, is I think I’m onto something. Remember when we dreamed of experiencing the investigation of a lifetime? Well, I’m pretty certain I’m on it now.”

  Chapter Six

  DAN CAMDEN finished gift-wrapping Iris’s present in spartan décor. Plain pink paper, no bow, and a label-sized card would have to do. He glanced at it, attempting to keep an emotional distance. He did have ulterior motives, but he also still had a heart. Dan envisioned a smile forming on his daughter’s lips as he handed her the present. He would wait for Iris to arrive home for her lunch hour. Despite her anger toward him, she might take the gift as a good will gesture.

  He peered at his reflection in the rearview mirror. His eyebrows were knotted tight. He would have to wash away that look of apprehension if he hoped to put that smile on his daughter’s face and begin a covert surveillance detail.

  Dan realized he was no better than an absentee father. On the rare occasions his job allowed him downtime, he usually spent it traveling from Arizona to Colorado to visit Iris and DJ. Iris welcomed the visits, begrudgingly. She put on a front that she didn’t want him around. But he could see through her veneer. She was heartbroken he had left the family—twice. He tried to make it up to her by handing her wads of money stuffed in an envelope on his visits. She always accepted the financial assistance but with a look in her eye that screamed: I want a father not an ATM machine. Dan would have given her money as an early birthday gift last night except a van parked on the street with the license plates UFO Guy forced him to change tactics.

  Dan never mixed business with his family life. That’s why both his marriages crumbled. Jill and Doris came to resent his cold exterior. He could never talk about his job, yet he never seemed to leave it at the door either. Despite what it took from him, his commitment to a shadow branch of the government he’d come to fondly regard as the Organization was never in question. The appearance of what could only be a UFO investigator demanded attention. It could very well become a threat that might put his daughters in harm. Yet it could also produce a chance to acquire highly coveted off-world technology. Either way, Dan would be prepared.

  The allure of starting a family had led Dan down this path in the 80s. The entry level engineering jobs found in the classifieds weren’t going to pay a mortgage or the expense of a newborn. But one advertisement was different. It only required an engineering degree, no experience necessary; on the job training would be provided. Enthusiasm, commitment, and a sense of adventure were more important than experience, the ad stated. Elated, Dan jumped at the opportunity. He had to sign a slew of documents, but the starting salary was more than enough to quiet the voices of caution whispering in his head.

  In fact, he was aware of what his employers were thinking about him. One of them was blessed with the gift of extrasensory perception as well. Dan had always kept his gift concealed as he was ordered to. He never let his first wife Jill know that he did foresee some rocky patches in their impending marriage. Yet his gift never provided him a glimpse of his career. Maybe he would have avoided it if he knew exactly what he would be getting himself into. Dan wasn’t just obligated to keep government secrets concerning technology; he was going to be forced to keep his entire involvement with the Organization under wraps from anyone he would ever love. Ironically, the type of technology the Organization acquired assisted with this task.

  A microchip was implanted in his brain. Dan found it incredulous. He had seen TV shows suggesting chips would be used to track people or monitor a patient’s health in the not so distant future. But in these shows, the chip was imbedded in necks or feet. This tech was invasive. It wasn’t within easy reach of being discarded. He had been joined with it. It was a part of him. It made him feel like a hybrid: part machine, part human. Maybe he succumbed to the chip because it made him feel special. He wasn’t only aiding in the creation of new technology—he was the new technology. This was the carrot a young man like Dan could not resist. His employers weren’t surprised. They did, after all, advertise for a man with little or no prior experience. Dan’s minimal life experiences had been played to their advantage quite well.

  With the chip, Dan wasn’t able to utilize his psychic gift. Therefore, the risk of his family finding out about his work was marginalized. At first, Dan didn’t understand what the risk was. He was certain Jill had no extrasensory perception. But his employers realized his gift could be transferred to his offspring. Sure enough, Iris Camden came to realize her gift in first grade. She would never realize just how she inherited this ability. Dan’s mind could not be read. The chip altered Dan’s brainwaves. He would never become engaged in a theta or delta brain state because this was where the subconscious mind took over. These were the states attributable to mind reading, astral projection, and remote viewing. Thus, he existed on little sleep, and when he did it produced lucid dream states.

  Only when commissioned by his employers, could Dan take the chip off-line. In these instances he was as psychic as his child. He was allowed to do this by a remote switch surreptitiously hidden in the confines of his watch. But fear for his family’s safety, made these occurrences few and far between. If he could read Iris psychically, he feared other “ears” would be able to as well. His wives argued with him about his treasured timepiece, wondering why he would never wear the new watches they had bought him for Christmas gifts. These tiny fissures became huge cracks in both of his marriages. Dan realized his second wife would probably be no more forgiving of his covert life than Jill. But Dan foresaw what new technologies his reverse engineering would bring the world. In time, it would be commonplace for people to have devices installed in their brains that allowed them to operate computers with their minds. It would even be possible to access the Internet this way. This wasn’t s
cience fiction. The technology already existed thanks to alien visitations. The government was just waiting to release these wonders to the general populace. They needed to thoroughly experiment with it first. They also needed to use these wonders for black ops. Great secrets could be obtained from both enemy and allied nations alike. The day would arrive when these technologies would be sold, and Dan wanted a family to share those wonders, even at the risk of creating a second child with psychic abilities. And as Dan imagined, not envisioned, that’s exactly what happened.

  Dan checked his watch. Another few minutes and Iris would stop home. She seldom deviated from habit. Dan attempted to console himself that Iris would not get herself mixed up with any alien discoveries because of this. He had ingrained the notion in her head at an early age that UFOs were nonsense, mere misinterpretations or hoaxes. He’d told her there were no other life forms, but even if there was, they wouldn’t be traveling via starship to planet Earth. He didn’t believe his daughter could be convinced otherwise. She probably was only interested in this guy for dates. He hoped so. But the iPhone would ensure it because it would serve as his eavesdropping device. With today’s phones, you didn’t need to plant bugs. As long as your target kept the batteries in their phone, you could monitor without fear of discovery. Besides, he could never risk using his psychic abilities because with them, came a severe risk of discovery.

  IRIS GREETED her dad with a hug. She always fantasized the day would come when her father would announce he was leaving his job. There would be no more need for such strict secrecy. Best of all, he would be there for her. Maybe it would take some of the sting out of the last few decades. Iris didn’t kid herself that her pain would ever totally heal. That part of her harbored resentment against Doris Camden. She would never forgive her stepmom for breaking apart Dan’s first marriage. Not even in her death.

  Today was not the day for the “announcement.” Her dad did seem uncharacteristically happy though. He handed her a gift wrapped in pink paper with a beaming smile. “What’s going on, Dad? You run out of cash or something.”

  Dan smiled. “Good one. Actually, I thought it might be more fitting—and thoughtful—to give you a tangible present for your upcoming birthday.”

  “Okay.” Iris smiled back at her dad. “You’re a week early. Dad, I hope this is not your memory failing you. Remember when I suggested you take Ginkgo Biloba?” She waited for the wave of shock on her father’s face to subside.

  Finally, he smiled. “Ah, got me again. Well, it serves me right.”

  Yes it does, Iris thought. “But seriously I do suggest taking supplements—at any age. I’m sure your job still demands the most of you.”

  Dan sighed. “I know where this is going. In a minute you’re going to get very pissed with me. You’re not going to come right out and say that my job ruined all our lives. Yet you will, in your own kind of way. But before you do this, why don’t you unwrap your present, honey?”

  Iris thumbed a piece of stubborn tape off the corner of the container. “Actually, the choice of word differs. I was going to say your job ‘consumed’ our lives. Hmm. Sure packed this baby tight. Is this some secret device?” Iris fought the urge to smile. It was another barb. She waited for the shock to return to her father’s face. It was so predictable. Anytime she mentioned technology, he would get sensitive and quiet. She knew darn well her father created technologies most of the nation believed to be science fiction. He had to, because all the secrecy and interviews she was mandated to attend screamed so. Once every few years, Dan’s cohorts asked her if she was aware of any specific work her father did, and she answered them truthfully, with a “no.” The interviewers only told her that her cooperation would keep America safe. Yet her intuition knew better. Of course, he and his cohorts were up to something nefarious. But she was sure these creations were not alien in origin. She respected her father for telling her this over the years. She was proud not to buy into superstition. Her peers at school fell for these so-called conspiracy theories at will. She didn’t believe her phone or computer was the invention of aliens who were unfortunate enough to crash in Roswell, New Mexico.

  “Ooh. It’s the latest model.” Iris held the iPhone up for her dad’s inspection. “Okay, you sure this baby’s safe to use?” She couldn’t resist the opportunity to mock her father one more time. It was the closest form of bonding she would ever have with him, and if this were the case, she wasn’t going to squander a moment.

  “Yes, but you didn’t hear that from a government employee.”

  “And if I did,” Iris said, “it would be off-the-record of course.”

  “Now, I’ve got to ask you one favor. I need your old flip phone back, so I can have the store copy your contacts. I’ll also need the new phone back of course, but just for a few hours. You can live without a phone for a few hours, can you?”

  “I don’t know. Could you have lived without your cassette Walkman back in the day?” Iris felt her pulse rate increase. Her father wasn’t baited. His expression reminded her of when he fought with stepmom Doris. She folded her arms across her chest in preparation for some bad news.

  “Seriously, Iris, I don’t want to pry. It’s just that I swung by last night and saw a van parked in front of the house. I didn’t want to intrude if you had company, so that’s why I waited to come to see you today. I did notice your company’s license plate. I just hope you’re not involved with some kind of alien investigation.”

  “Well, I did meet someone. And maybe it’s not about investigating but more about having some kind of personal life.” Iris retained her stance, arms folded.

  “I’m so sorry. I would love for you to meet someone. That’s great news.”

  “I just wish the same for DJ. She’s lived like a hermit for the past few months. She used to feed off public speaking and dreamed of continuing school. But now she might as well be a cave dweller. She works a dead end job that doesn’t encourage her skills. She only lives to be angry at the world it seems.”

  “She just needs time to get over losing her mother, Iris. And maybe this anger is healing her. She’ll eventually come around and get over it. You’ll see.”

  “That’s just it. She wants to get over it. But Doris Jean won’t let her. She won’t crossover. And because of this, DJ tries to block her gift. She’s quit our ghost hunting team. I really don’t care that she did. It’s just that she seems to be quitting everything lately, and that’s not healthy.”

  “Oh, of course it isn’t.” Dan scratched his chin.

  Iris waited for some revelation, but it didn’t come. She wished she could tell her dad about the strange device. He would probably know what it was or what to do with it. But she recalled Mitchell’s paranoia. It wouldn’t be in the best interests of the public. And from her father’s sudden silence, it pained her once again to realize how much she would never know about this man. If she would never come to know everything about him, she could never trust him. Yet in her heart, for some foolish reason, Iris believed she could still love him, regardless.

  “We’ll work this all out. I think a Smartphone for a smart girl is definitely justified.”

  She smiled and waved a hand toward the floor as if she wanted to dismiss her previous rant. “Sounds good.” If she could only have part of one parent, she would rather have that than nothing.

  “I’ll see you soon.” Dan started to maneuver out the door, but stopped. “And Iris, good luck with this new man but just remember, there are no little green men.”

  Iris nodded and waited for him to shut the door. Then she mumbled to no one in particular. “And if that’s the case, then the only thing I would be guilty of is wasting is my time, wouldn’t it?”

  DAN CHECKED messages on Iris’s old phone before heading into the store.

  Iris, got some good news, just found a lab to inspect the plants at last night’s scene. The guys are busy researching the meaning of the caduceus symbol. Let’s talk about the next step of your “ghost” investigation
. . .

  The text was from Mitchell. He had to be the UFO Guy. Dan pursed his lips and exited his vehicle. As he crossed the store’s parking lot, he reasoned his daughter probably wasn’t actually doing anything more than engaging in some dating foreplay with her suitor. It was highly doubtful any investigation of a crop circle would lead to anything substantial. They never did. But Dan was intrigued by the reports of the lighted balls or what he knew to be OBOLs. The Organization would love to get a hold of one of those babies. He recalled a colleague joking that they probably held the secrets of humankind’s origins. Dan didn’t believe the colleague was joking then. He didn’t believe the elusive OBOLs were anything less substantial now. Moments later, he greeted the counter clerk with a big smile.

  “Can you help assist me in activating my daughter’s new phone? I’m afraid I just don’t know much about technology.”

  “That’s okay,” the young attendant said with a smile. “I’d be glad to assist.”

  Even with his psychic gift inhibited, Dan Camden knew the clerk believed him 100 percent. To her, he was just another technically challenged father hoping a material gadget would bring him a bit closer to his family. In a way, the clerk was partially right.

  DJ SLINKED into the house as normal. She didn’t want to raise any suspicions with Iris. She hung up her coat on the rack and trudged upstairs. Just another day at work . . . decorating cakes. She knew the cake decoration wasn’t important; it was what the thought meant to recipients. Why couldn’t these people just come out and say they loved without forcing you to eat lard and a ton of sugar?

  Her outward appearance concealed the teeming emotions within her. At least DJ hoped they did. She couldn’t let Iris know her matchmaking might be successful. It was just pride talking, she knew that. But she didn’t want her sister running her life. Once she hooked her up, who knew what else Iris might have in store for her? That’s why she avoided conversation with her elder sister at all costs. She still could be found out via psychic means. In fact, she knew all about Dad’s visit just from her psychic tether to Iris. She just hoped her feelings didn’t translate as easily as thoughts concerning her telepathic networking.