by Sybil Nelson
"What is he doing?” I asked over my shoulder.
"Singing,” smart alec Ian provided.
"Well I know that. But why? Does he think he's Michael Bublé?"
"He's actually singing April in Paris. It's a Sinatra classic,” Ian added.
I rolled my eyes. "Tai? What's going on?” I asked as I tried to follow along with Marco's dance moves. I didn't know when he'd learned to ballroom dance but he was actually pretty good. I just had to match his feet and try not to get dizzy.
"He's not himself,” Tai answered as she followed us around the room. She tried to poke her head in between us several times trying to study him. His eyes seemed different. They were still the same amazing green color, but they seemed a little far away.
Suddenly, we stopped moving. Then Marco tipped me back and planted a kiss on my lips. At first I was really tense because I thought the nausea would hit any second. But then as the kiss kept going and there were no signs of puking, I actually started to enjoy the kiss.
Finally, he let me up for air and said, “Now that I can get used to."
Breathing heavily I studied my hands and legs. No metal. I had finally kissed Marco without vomit or turning into a statue. It was a dream come true. Just when I was about to go in for round two, Tai reached up and clicked off the collar.
"What happened?” Marco asked, shaking his head like a puppy coming out of a pool.
"You just played tonsil tennis with ya sheila there,” Ian said. "And you pranced around the room like some sort of ballerina."
"I did? In front of everyone?” Poor Marco was so embarrassed. He jammed his hands into his pockets and looked away from me.
"Yeah, and it was gross,” Ryan added.
Marco started blushing. OMG he was so cute! I still hadn't caught my breath back from the kiss and the red tinge in his super tanned cheeks made it even harder to breathe.
"I can't believe I did that. That is not like me at all."
"Exactly,” Tai said confidently as she slipped the collar off of Marco's neck. "I think it's ready."
Chapter 18: Meant to Be
"Well as fascinating as that was, we better be on our way now,” Ian said, snatching the collars away from Tai.
She gave him a fierce look then quickly went back to her normally sweet self. "Great. Just let me pack up a few things,” Tai said, reaching for a laptop on a table behind her.
"Where do you think you're going?” Ian asked.
"What do you mean? I have to go, too. I have to. No one else knows how to work these." She snatched the collars back from Ian then waved them in the air.
I was so proud of her for standing up to Ian. I couldn't help but smile. No longer was she the shy little girl who let eighth graders bully her out ice cream that was rightfully hers or uninvite her to a dance. Somewhere along the way she had developed some confidence and...well...a backbone. I wondered if Spencer had something to do with that. Or maybe she just finally realized how awesome she was.
"She's right you know,” I said, standing next to my best friend and crossing my arms. "What if something goes wrong and she needs to make a last second adjustment. None of us would have any idea what to do."
"This is ridiculous. This whole mission is turning into some sort of sheila slumber party." Ian threw his hat in the air in frustration then stormed out of the building. Ryan caught the hat in mid air then flew out right behind Ian.
Marco looked back and forth between me and where Ian and Ryan had gone. I could tell he was still embarrassed about kissing me and dancing in front of everyone the way he kept putting his hands in his pockets then yanking them out every two seconds. Finally, he took off toward the door.
Josh sighed. "Tai,” he said, turning to her. He grabbed both her shoulders and stared directly into her eyes. "I know you want to help us and I appreciate all that you've already done. But this is going to be extremely dangerous. We can't guarantee your safety."
Tai nodded. "I...I...I know what I'm getting into. I also know that you and Priss need me. I want to do this. I wanna come."
Josh started shaking his head.
"It's my mission,” I said, stepping in between him and Tai. "You said so yourself. My mission, my decision. She's coming."
"Fine, but she's your responsibility." Josh turned and went after the other boys.
"You sure you want to do this?” I asked her once Josh had left.
Tai didn't even acknowledge me. She just kept staring after Josh. "Holy hot chocolate. He's so beautiful," she said in almost a whisper.
I rolled my eyes. She really needed to get over this crush on my brother she obviously had.
"Tai, snap out of it!" I said, snapping my fingers next to her ears. "I asked you a question."
"Oh, what?" She turned to me and blinked rapidly as if she was coming out of a trance.
"I said, are you sure you want to do this?"
"I can't believe you would even ask me that," she said with a 'duh' look on her face. "You're my best friend. You risked your life to save mine. And I know you would do it again in a heartbeat. This is the least I can do."
Without Ian around to pick on me, I let a few tears escape. She hugged me and said, “We’re gonna get your mom back." Tai smiled and then went back to packing up her computer, the collars, and a bunch of wires.
"By the way, I was wrong,” she said after a few minutes.
"About what?” I hopped up on a lab table while wiping away the last of my tears.
"About Marco. I think maybe you two are meant to be together."
"Why?"
"When I changed his channel, the first thing he did was take you in his arms like some old classic movie and kiss you."
"So?"
Tai stopped packing for a second and looked at me. "There are an infinite number of personalities he could have assumed. The chances that he chose one where he was still in love with you is miniscule."
"So what does that mean?"
"It means you are deeply hotwired into his brain, girl. It's like you're a part of him no matter what channel his brain is on."
I thought about that for a second. It made complete sense. It would explain why I'd always felt so connected to him. What did that mean for us?
"As long as he's wearing a collar, you won't have to worry about the side effects of a metal conversion,” she added. "You might actually be able to have a normal relationship. Well, normal for you anyway."
"Thanks a lot,” I said, balling up a piece of paper and tossing it at her head.
"Hey watch it or I'll...I'll..." Tai had no imagination when it came to comebacks. "I'll program him to miss your birthday every year." Tai smiled as if that was funny or clever or something. How lame? I rolled my eyes.
"What about Kyle?” I asked
Tai shrugged. "Maybe you can be friends again. I still think you need each other. But we're only thirteen. It's not like you have to sign your marriage license or something. Who knows what the future holds."
She had a point. There was no telling what would happen between Kyle and me in the future. Hey, there was no telling what would happen tonight. I might not even survive this mission. If I did, I'd have plenty of time to worry about my relationship drama later. I just didn't see how it would be possible to tell Kyle the truth one day and have a "normal" relationship with him. I sighed and tried to shake the thought from my mind. I really needed to focus on my mission.
"You almost ready?” I asked, jumping off the table.
Tai stuffed a few more things into her backpack, zipped it up and said, “Okay, I'm ready. Let's do this."
Chapter 19: Tracked
We were flying toward the Arctic Circle for what felt like a year before any of us came up with a plan. It was probably more like ten minutes but with the angry silence that filled the jet, it felt so much longer. Well, I guess the guys could have had a plan, but if they did, they weren't sharing. I think they were still kind of mad at me for bringing Tai along. I had no choice though. She's the only
one who could work the collars. I glanced over at her in the copilot's seat typing away at her laptop which she somehow connected to the jet's console. I sure hoped she knew what she was doing.
I hadn't really put too much thought into what I would do once I got to the North Pole. Part of me was hoping I would just be able to walk in whatever camp or building Selliwood had built, toss my mother over my shoulder and walk out. I knew it would be ridiculously more complicated than that. I mean, first of all, I didn't even know where exactly they were. I mean, the arctic was a big place.
"Look," I said finally. "I know you're all mad at me or whatever but that's not going to get us anywhere." I craned my head back and made sure my voice projected to the back of the jet so that they could hear me. "We're gonna have to work together."
No one said anything or even acknowledged that I was talking. I started going through all the inspirational movies I'd seen lately and trying to think of the best pep talk to steal when Josh stood up and joined me in the cock pit. Marco was a couple of steps behind. Good thing. I didn't think my Remember the Titans speech applied to the current situation.
I still wasn't sure what we were going to do, but working together was a good first step. Thankfully, I was flying with the smartest people I knew. I was sure one of them would be able to figure something out. Tai started tinkering with the radar system making adjustments so she could pick up the slightest signs of Selliwood and company. Josh and Marco stood between Tai and me and used the computer system on the jet to find out anything they could about the arctic. Ian sulked in the back with his hat over his face. Ryan stared out of the window either looking for clues or enjoying the view. I couldn't really figure out which.
"There's an abandoned helicopter landing pad that was used during a Soviet expedition through the Arctic about twelve years ago,” Marco said, standing between Josh and me in the front seats of the cockpit. "I bet that's where he lands his aircrafts before going to their actual station."
"We should be able to land there, then head to Selliwood's exact location on foot. He can't be too far,” Josh said.
"How do you know? What if he just lands directly on the ice and he's nowhere near this location?” I asked.
Marco shook his head. "Let's hope not. Landing on ice might be fine for a helicopter, but the jet is too heavy. I wouldn't risk it. According to what we're reading here,” he said, pointing to the screen. "The thickness of the sea ice has been decreasing over the past several years. Global Warming. I don't want us to end up sinking."
I stole a glance at Marco. I couldn't help but get a little nervous for him. If something happened and he fell through the ice as metal, he'd sink to the bottom and freeze to death.
***
"There's nothing out here, Priss,” Tai said with a sigh. "I've got the radar to a range of over 500 miles in any direction. I got nothing. Maybe you were wrong."
"I can't be wrong,” I said as we circled the Arctic Circle for the third time. This was our only lead, our only hope. But so far, we hadn't seen buildings, or construction, or any evidence that Colonel Selliwood had built some kind of base. My heart sank. Maybe we'd never find my mother.
"What are we gonna do? What if we can't find them?” I said, trying to swallow my panic. Now was not the time to flip out. Finding my mother and the others was too important.
We all stared out into the blanket of white outside the jet in silence. A huge polar bear sat on the edge of the ice staring into the water. Seconds later a fish jumped up out of the water. The polar bear jumped in the air and caught the fish in its mouth before splashing into the water.
"Did you see that?” Ryan said excitedly. "He was like a dog going after a Frisbee!"
"Uh huh, yeah,” I grumbled. I really wasn't interested in the National Geographic spectacle taking place outside. Not when we had a mission to accomplish. Apparently, Josh and Marco weren't in the mood to observe the scenery either. They didn't even look away from the computer monitor. Tai, on the other hand, stopped what she was doing and looked up. She hopped out of her seat and joined Ryan in the back as he looked out of the window.
"And then he just jumped into the water,” Ryan continued as if it was the coolest thing he had ever seen.
"Hey, guys,” Tai said in a weird kind of tone. She sounded like a cross between scared and curious. Let's call it scarious. "What if the base is underground...or underwater?"
We looked at each other. Then we all looked out of the window. Why didn't I think of that?
"That's extremely possible,” Marco said. "Colonel Selliwood wouldn't want to build something that was easily found. He'd want as much secrecy as possible."
"You see! Aren't you happy I brought her? Good job, Tai!” I held up my hand for a high five and she crossed back into the cockpit to give me one.
"Good job my arse. How exactly are we supposed to find an underwater base, and once we find it, how are we supposed to get in?” Ian said, entering the cockpit. It was starting to get really crowded in there.
"I don't think we have to worry about finding them,” Josh said as he stared straight ahead with a look of dread on his face. "I think they just found us."
I looked down at the radar and noticed two aircrafts following us.
Ian came over and stared at the screen as well. Then he closed his eyes. "One of them is Katya,” he said.
"How do you know?” Tai asked.
"I know my sister. It's a twin thing."
"The other one is Peter,” Ryan added. "I can feel it."
"How did they find us?” I said, preparing for evasive maneuvers. "I know Dad and Will Smith fixed the cloaking mechanism."
The next time I looked at Marco he had turned completely to metal. "Maybe they are not tracking the jet. Maybe they are tracking us. Me, Ryan and Ian. Maybe the micro chip in our brains sends off a signal that can be picked up on within a certain range."
I looked at Josh. He shrugged. "I guess that's possible."
"Buckle up, boys,” I said, pulling the jet into a hard left.
Marco fell backwards and landed on his metal butt. Ryan flew to his seat and quickly put on his belt.
"Think about it,” Marco said after getting his bearings and buckling into his seat. "Each time the jet was tracked, you were with one of us."
"You're right,” I said. "In UAE I was with you and during the air fight over the Gulf of Mexico I was with Katya." I swung the jet upside down so that I was flying on top of the planes that were tailing us. I noticed Ryan turn a shade of green. How could he get sick during a flight? He could fly. "So how do you suppose we get out of this?"
Marco looked at Ryan. "How strong do you feel?"
Ryan knew exactly what Marco was suggesting. "I guess I have to be strong enough to carry the two of you,” he said, indicating Marco and Ian.
"We'll meet up with you later,” Marco said unbuckling his belt and standing. He headed for the door. "We'll try to get them off your tail. Maybe they'll follow us and leave you alone."
"Marco don't! That's suicide,” I said. I started to panic. He was about to kill himself just to save me. Of course Ian was going too. I didn't really care about Ian. He could leap out of the plane now for all I cared. Not Marco though. He meant too much to me. I couldn't let him do it. I would've jumped up and tried to slap some sense into him, but I had to fly the jet.
"Josh, take the controls,” I said, hopping out of my seat and letting Josh take over. I wrapped my arms around Marco. "Don't. Please don't,” I whispered into his metal chest.
"She's right,” Josh said. "There are two of them. They could easily split up and come after both us."
"Well, I don't see you coming up with any other ideas,” Ian said. "What are we supposed to do?"
"I don't think it matters anymore, guys,” Josh said, taking his hands off the controls. "They've taken over the jet."
Chapter 20: The Loading Dock
I took Tai's usual seat at the copilot's position just to make sure. We had lost complete contro
l of the jet. No matter what buttons I pressed or how hard I pulled up we kept being dragged slowly toward the white sheet of ice beneath us. It was like being pulled by a giant magnet or tractor beam.
"Priss, do something!” Josh yelled.
"I'm trying. Nothing's working!” I kept banging away at the console. "There's nothing I can do." I finally gave up and put my head in my hands. I had to hold back tears. I felt kind of like what I imagined a pig headed to the slaughter house would feel. I was sure we'd be dead. This was all my fault. This was my mission and I'd failed.