However, “disappearing” wasn’t the course of action anyone would have expected of the New Haven Council, which still remained missing in its entirety. I secretly agreed with Alia’s opinion that the hijacked plane probably was the Council’s. It took hours last night to halfway convince a teary-eyed Alia that there was still hope. I wasn’t even sure why I was trying to keep our spirits up anymore. It had been more than half a year. Though Merlin still maintained that Lumina wasn’t under a single hiding bubble, that in itself was no guarantee that Cindy hadn’t been converted. Cindy had once been the personal hider of the last Guardian queen, Diana Granados. Who was to say she wasn’t traveling with King Randal Divine now? If we really wanted to find Cindy, our best bet was to simply turn ourselves in and accept Angel conversion.
“So how’s Alia doing?” Candace asked me as she helped me wash the dishes later that morning. My sister hadn’t been at the breakfast table.
“She’s still in bed,” I replied. “She said she wasn’t hungry, but I’ll take something up for her later. Max can go to Harding’s by himself today, and if Alia’s not up by noon, I’ll call up her kids and cancel their lesson.”
“I wish there was something I could do,” Candace said sadly.
“She’ll be okay,” I said. “Alia’s pretty tough. We’ll just give her some time.”
My sister did get up for lunch, but she ate very little. I moved her kiddie-combat lesson to the next day so that she wouldn’t have to face her students in a weakened condition.
But it was the next day that everything once again fell into chaos.
Steven hadn’t come down for breakfast, and I had sent Walter up to fetch him. But Walter returned alone, saying that there was no answer when he knocked on Steven’s bedroom door.
“He’s not there?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” said Walter. “I knocked a lot. You didn’t expect me to actually open the door, did you?”
Steven was snappish and rude with everyone including me, but particularly with everyone excluding me. Still, that was no excuse. We had lived with Steven for a long time and Walter should have been used to that by now.
I looked at Walter irritably. “He could be sick, you know.”
Overhearing us, Rachael said, “Steven is eating at Mrs. Harding’s today. He asked me to give him hiding protection so he could go over first thing.”
“Really?” I said, surprised.
“Well, he didn’t exactly ask,” said Rachael. “More like ordered.”
That wasn’t what had surprised me. “What did Mrs. Harding want with Steven?”
“I don’t know,” said Rachael, shrugging. “Steven just said that Mrs. Harding had called and asked him to come over.”
Terry asked sharply, “Well, who picked up the phone?!”
Rachael shrugged again. “I don’t know. Probably Steven.”
There was only one phone in a house shared by fourteen, and Steven rarely left his room except at mealtimes and for training. Terry and I stared at each other, no doubt thinking the exact same thing.
Terry grabbed the phone and dialed Mrs. Harding’s number, but I already knew what she was about to hear.
Steven was gone.
We didn’t expect to find a goodbye note, but we checked his room anyway. There was no note, but further investigation revealed that our jar of petty cash in the kitchen had been removed.
“He’s gone home,” I said simply. “Back to Lumina.”
Steven’s father was on the Council. If the hijacked plane really had been the Council’s, Steven might soon be reunited with his family.
“That bastard!” Terry shouted in fury, kicking over a chair.
We wouldn’t particularly miss Steven, but the real problem was that once the Angels picked him up, he would be made to give away the exact location of Walnut Lane.
Mrs. Harding called an emergency meeting for the Walnut Guardian families that very afternoon. Representing the Refugee House, Terry and I attended the meeting together, leaving the rest at home. I had a feeling that we weren’t going to be very popular today.
“We tried to locate Steven before he was out of range of our finders,” Mrs. Harding told the visibly disturbed crowd that had gathered in her living room. “The hiding protection he received would have worn off within less than an hour, but unfortunately no one could sense him even after that time.”
Mrs. Harding looked quite upset, and paused for a moment before saying slowly, “We believe that Steven never made it out of our town. Most likely he was picked up and taken in by our neighbors.”
A few people in the crowd exchanged knowing glances. I didn’t know what Mrs. Harding was referring to so I looked at Terry for help, but Terry seemed just as clueless.
“At this time, I would like everyone to remain calm,” continued Mrs. Harding. “All of the information we have suggests that even if the Angels do plan to attack us, they will not be able to gather their forces for at least two or three weeks. We will relocate well before they get to us.”
There were murmurs of displeasure and worry from the crowd, and we received more than a few dirty looks. I felt the full weight of what we had done here. Because of us, the entire settlement would have to be moved.
Mrs. Harding talked over the noise, saying, “We all knew that this day would come. It was only a matter of time, and it is fortunate that we were not caught unawares. Now, I have already chartered a bus to move the children to our mountain camp. Everyone under eighteen years old will be evacuated first thing tomorrow morning. I will be asking for a number of adult chaperons to accompany them. The rest of us can take a few more days to wrap up our affairs in this town. With any luck, we will be able to leave Walnut Lane without incident.”
“What about them?!” called a furious voice from across the room. The owner of the voice was a middle-aged man pointing at Terry and me. A few others were nodding and staring at us angrily.
Mrs. Harding replied in a no-nonsense tone that quickly subdued the muttering crowd, “If I am not entirely mistaken, these two young Knights will be assisting our evacuation. We all voted for taking Teresa’s lost children into our community, so I see no excuse for your tone.” Mrs. Harding stared coldly back at the man who had shouted, and when he didn’t speak, she continued, “Now, I’m sure that those of you with children will want to get going and prepare for tomorrow. I will be making calls later to your houses to give you details and ask for volunteer escorts.”
The crowd dispersed, but Mrs. Harding asked Terry and me to remain.
“We’re really sorry,” I said once the three of us were the only ones left in Mrs. Harding’s living room.
Mrs. Harding smiled. “Nonsense, dear. As I just told the angry mob, it was only a matter of time before we were discovered. There are so many Guardians being converted these days, who is to even say the Angels don’t already know exactly where we are. At least this way, I have a good excuse to move the settlement before anything terrible happens.”
Terry asked, “What did you mean by Steven being taken by our neighbors?”
“There is a very small Angel outpost on the other side of our town,” explained Mrs. Harding. “Just a handful of Seraphim living in one house. It occasionally serves as a staging point for Angel operations in this region.”
“You’re kidding!” exclaimed Terry. “How long have they been there?”
“Oh, I’m not quite sure, dear. We’ve known about them for seven years or so. The Angels have long used that house to jail those they capture in their raids until they are moved to their queen – or king now – for conversion.” Mrs. Harding chuckled and added, “They never once guessed that they were sharing this town with a Guardian settlement.”
Terry stared at her. “And it never occurred to you to shut them down?”
“Certainly, it has,” replied Mrs. Harding. “But we’ve always had to consider that a failed attempt could jeopardize our secrecy. And after all, none of our members have ever been attacked by th
em.”
Terry shook her head in frustration. “So Steven never even made it out of town. He left us with the purpose of joining the Angels, so he’ll waste no time telling them everything he knows. Maybe we should–”
“No, Teresa,” Mrs. Harding cut across her gently. “I know what you want to say, but we will not attack them. Chances are they have already contacted other Angel units, so destroying their outpost will not blind the Angels to our location. And besides, if Steven wanted to return to his family so much that he would willingly join the Angels, there is little point in trying to rescue him.”
As Terry and I walked back to our house, Terry muttered savagely, “I wasn’t planning on rescuing Steven.”
Despite the direness of our situation, I couldn’t help but laugh.
Everyone had gathered in the living-room dojo awaiting our return, and Terry quickly explained what was happening. Many used the opportunity to vent some anger over Steven’s betrayal, and I suspected that it was probably a good thing we weren’t about to get him back.
“We’re not exactly a popular bunch right now, so stay indoors,” said Terry. “Walnut Lane will be closing permanently as soon as the Guardian families tie up their loose ends. Meanwhile, Mrs. Harding is evacuating everyone under eighteen years old tomorrow morning. The adults will follow at a later date.”
“Evacuate?” asked James.
Terry explained about the bus that would take the kids up to the secret mountain camp, adding, “It’s just a precaution. We’re pretty sure we can all get out before the Angels gather on this location, but just in case they do, we don’t want any children in the settlement.”
James looked aghast. “You’re not going to make us leave with the little kids, are you?! This is exactly the kind of thing we’ve been training for.”
There were nods and murmurs of agreement from our crowd, and even Susan and Max looked determined to stay and help guard Walnut Lane.
Terry smiled. “Anyone who wants to go will have a seat on the bus tomorrow, but as far as making you leave, you won’t hear it from me.”
Felicity turned to her younger sister and said, “You’ll hear it from me, though.”
Susan scowled at her.
I pulled Terry aside after our meeting. “We have to get the youngest ones on the bus, Terry,” I insisted. “If not James, at least Max and Susan, and maybe Daniel and Walter too.”
“They all want to stay, Adrian,” said Terry.
“Of course they want to stay! It’s an adventure for them. But we can’t risk their lives for nothing.”
“First off,” said Terry, poking me in the chest, “their lives aren’t at any real risk. We’re sure to get out without incident. Second, James is right in that everyone here has trained for exactly this sort of thing. It’s the perfect opportunity for us to test out their nerves in an almost risk-free crisis. Just think of it as a training mission.”
“Oh, like mine at the Holy Land?”
Terry winced, and I instantly regretted hitting such a tender nerve. Terry had tried to keep me from harm that night.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “It just popped out, and I didn’t mean it that way. But do we really have to make these kids do this?”
“We’re not making them do anything, Adrian,” Terry said patiently. “This is what they want. Even Max wants to stay here and defend Walnut Lane.”
“And what if the Angels really do come?”
“Let them come!” Terry replied fiercely. “We’ve been training these kids to be soldiers. That just doesn’t come without risk.”
I shook my head in resignation. I wasn’t going to defy Terry and order anyone onto tomorrow’s bus. Terry was probably right about the risk assessment, anyway. I couldn’t ask for a safer mission for our trainees to get their feet wet in.
Patrick joined us for dinner. He also brought along baby Laila, who had learned to walk just last month. Patrick’s foster parents were attending an evening meeting with Mrs. Harding and her Knights.
When he heard that every one of us was planning to stay behind, Patrick announced that he was going to stay as well, adding, “My mom is going to be on the bus tomorrow. She can take Laila.”
Alia said something telepathically to him, and he looked like he was about to reply, but just then, Susan and Felicity’s so-far quiet argument turned noisy.
“You’re not my mother!” Susan shouted angrily at her sister. “You can’t tell me what to do! Even Terry said I could stay!”
I had pretty much finished eating, so I quickly retreated to the kitchen to start cleaning up. I had a feeling that the sisters would be at it for a while, and I knew better than to get between them. Susan had made a good deal of progress in her CQC training with me, and I was afraid she might try to get me to vouch for her.
As I scrubbed the plates, pots and pans, I could still hear the two arguing in the dining room, and sure enough, Susan burst into the kitchen a moment later, followed by Felicity.
Susan said in a shaky voice, “Adrian, please tell my sister to stop treating me like a little kid!”
I sighed. “Susan, for what it’s worth, I think you’re as combat-ready as anyone else in this house. But if it were entirely up to me, I’d have every one of us on that bus tomorrow, including myself.”
Susan let out a frustrated moan and stomped out of the kitchen.
Felicity whispered to me, “Thanks.”
I grinned. “You’re welcome and good luck.”
As Felicity started chasing after Susan again, I turned back to my dirty dishes.
Alia came in to help me with the cleaning up, and I was pleasantly surprised to see that she was all smiles.
“What’s the good news?” I asked as she joined me at the sink and started drying the dishes.
“Patrick agreed to take tomorrow’s bus,” replied Alia.
“Really?” I said in wonder. “How’d you manage that?”
“I told him his mother is going to be too busy to look after Laila by herself, and that the children could use an extra Knight to make sure they’re safe at the camp.”
“Security for the kids, huh? That’d be a good argument for Felicity to use with Susan.”
Alia laughed. “I’ll tell her.”
Alia closed her eyes for a moment, concentrating on sending her telepathy through the walls.
Despite the angry looks Terry and I had to endure at the meeting today, as well as the inescapable guilt of having contributed to the uprooting of an entire psionic settlement, I couldn’t help feeling happy seeing my sister in such good spirits. Alia’s fears about Cindy’s fate were not forgotten, but they were temporarily put on hold to deal with the crisis at hand.
“There,” said Alia, opening her eyes. “But I don’t think Susan is going to agree as easily as Patrick did.”
“Yeah, well, Susan has a hot head,” I said.
“Like you, Addy.”
“Thanks a lot!” I laughed. Then I said hesitantly, “Would it be pointless to ask you to get on that bus too?”
Alia threw me an exasperated look.
“Okay, okay!” I said, hastily backing down. “You know I had to try.”
My sister gave me a quick hug and whispered, “Everything’s going to be okay.”
How I wished I could believe that.
Early the next morning, Patrick stopped in to say goodbye to Alia, who couldn’t see the bus off because her power wasn’t hidden. Alia spoke telepathically; Patrick, in whispers. They hugged for a full five minutes. It was hard to believe that they were only going to be apart for two weeks or so.
Susan’s departure wasn’t as quiet. Felicity, taking Alia’s advice last night, had managed to get Susan’s grudging consent to evacuate with the rest of the Walnut Lane children, but still Susan protested all morning.
After one last push near departure time, Susan finally gave in, saying crossly to her sister, “Okay, fine! I’ll go! But don’t bother seeing me off. I’ll go with Patrick.”
“
Oh, no you don’t,” said Felicity. “I’m going to make sure you really get on that bus.”
As Patrick and Susan left with Felicity and a few others who were going to see the bus off, I turned to Max and said, “Last chance, Max. Sure you want to stay here?”
Max nodded quietly.
“Alright,” I said. “I guess that’s everyone, then.”
Mrs. Harding had strongly suggested that Max evacuate today, but Terry had countered that Max was most emotionally stable when he was with us, particularly James, who he was closest to.
Alia looked up at me and said sadly, “I wish I could’ve said goodbye to Laila.”
“You’ll see her soon,” I assured her. “We’re only here until the families finish packing up their lives.”
After the bus left, Terry had Scott, Heather and Candace quit their jobs, and the younger ones quit school.
“If there’s an attack, we want to be here and ready for it,” said Terry.
Terry put everyone back on a full-day training schedule, occasionally sending out pairs of trainees to assist the real Walnut Lane Knights in patrolling the settlement. Terry saw this as not only a chance to redeem us a little in the eyes of the angry families, but as an opportunity to give our students some hands-on training. Admittedly, Walnut Lane was just two blocks in size and the kids didn’t even know what they were supposed to be on the lookout for, but at least it kept everyone busy.
The days passed uncomfortably. The Walnut Lane families were quitting their jobs, saying goodbye to friends, and selling their material possessions or moving them to temporary storage. To avoid attracting unwanted attention, this all had to be done slowly and carefully. The Wolves especially would be on the lookout for this kind of sudden mass departure, which was a possible sign of psionics on the move.
“It’s freezing out there,” said Scott, returning to the house with Rachael from an evening patrol.
A week had passed since Steven’s disappearance. The winter snows had already melted, but the late-February wind could still bite pretty harshly. I was glad that my psionic power gave me an excuse to stay indoors.
“How is everything outside?” I asked conversationally as Alia passed Scott and Rachael mugs of hot coffee.
The Quest (Psionic Pentalogy Book 4) Page 14