Grim Judgment

by Jennifer Reinfried

  Finally, I let out a deep breath and opened the contacts on my phone, praying his number hadn’t changed.

  “Bruce? God, Bruce, is that you?” Duncan’s voice was exactly how I remembered it, cutting through the silence that surrounded me as he answered after only two rings.

  I hesitated, then, with a heavy heart, said, “It’s me.”

  “Jesus, Bruce, it’s good to hear your voice,” Duncan said. “Although, something tells me—”

  “You were right,” I interrupted.

  He sucked in a breath. He wasn’t stupid, knew I was referring to Jaxon. The last time I spoke with him, on a short phone call after the incident at the lab, he had told me that my son might still harbor the ability to harness his powers, even after the memory wipe, and that all it could take was a single moment to trigger it. He had asked me, nearly pleaded, to contact him should I ever suspect that Jaxon was beginning to use his powers again, so Duncan could take him away. Well, those weren’t his exact words. More like, “so we can wipe him again, or try to help him control it, somewhere far from civilization, lest he hurt anyone.” Same thing, in my eyes.

  “We have to help him. He could seriously injure someone, even himself.”

  “I know, I know.” I began to pace again. “Give me your word neither will be hurt.”

  “I told you years ago—”

  “I know you did, but do it again,” I snapped.

  “Bruce, you have my absolute word that I will not harm your children. I just want to help them and prevent Jaxon from hurting anyone. Listen,” he said, talking quickly. “The Synths are all grown now, the ones with me here. I’ve been helping them train ever since we disappeared. However, there was an accident, and...well, Peter was killed.” Duncan’s voice wavered, but he continued on. “We’re in South America right now. Long story. We’ll head there as soon as we bury Peter, but it won’t be as soon as I could hope. South America isn’t known for fast highways. On top of that, the Synths don’t have passports. Mari had to freeze the border patrol to get us in, but she was injured, and I can’t guarantee we’ll be so lucky on the way back. It could take us a couple of weeks to get to you. But we can help them. Train them, Bruce. I’ll send the Synths to collect Jaxon. You know he needs our help to stay under the radar as he discovers more about his—”

  “All right,” I said sharply, cutting my old friend off once again. I ran a hand through my hair, then said, “All right,” again. “Send them.”

  “You’ll be coming with, right? There’s so much you need to know, Bruce.”

  I hung up. I know, it was rude. I hadn’t even told Duncan where to go, but needed some time to myself. I’d call him back later, after leaving Shawn and Jaxon. I wanted to enjoy the little time I had left with my sons before our lives were upended and found myself back in a lab, or wherever Duncan would take us, working with Synths yet again.

  A sound sent my heart into a leap, and I spun around and stared at the door to my room, which was now ajar. I strode to it and pulled on the handle, exposing a very serious looking Shawn. When I said his name, he only blinked, so I said it again.

  “Shawn, what are you doing?” He opened his mouth but didn’t say anything, and I knew he’d heard part or even all of my conversation. Frantic, my mind flew through any kind of explanation I could give as my mouth said, “Are you okay, son?” I hesitated, then reached forward and gently gripped his arm.

  “Send who? Don’t hurt who?”

  Shit.

  I swallowed, then forced a chuckle. “Oh, that? That was nothing.” I sounded like a lover caught in an affair. Oh my fucking God. “You weren’t supposed to hear that.” Oh, great, make it worse, Bruce. Why don’t you say, “This isn’t what it looks like” while you’re at it?

  “Don’t hurt who?” Shawn repeated as he pulled out of my grasp and backed away.

  “Shawn, hey. Don’t get upset.”

  “Who were you talking to? Why won’t you tell me?”

  My mind was still fluttering, and I blurted out the first thing it presented me. “What, a dad can’t have any secrets this close to Christmas?” I stared at him in horror, knowing how stupid it sounded even as I said it. To my relief, Shawn let out a laugh.

  “That’s a month away.”

  I allowed myself to relax, but only slightly. “Look, I’m having something shipped here for you and Jax.” The words tumbled out, and I struggled to keep them from tripping me up and making me sound like a drunk. “I’m not going to tell you what or when it will get here, but—”

  Shawn lunged forward and I nearly squealed like a squirrel seeing an attacking cat. But it was just a hug. Just a hug. I breathed my relief into his shoulder before realizing he still had a hold on me.

  “Hey. You sure you’re all right?”

  “I’m fine,” he said. “I just couldn’t sleep. I was wandering around when I heard you.”

  Hoping the trembles of my adrenaline wearing off weren’t noticeable in our embrace, I pulled back and clapped him on the shoulder. “Well, I’m sorry if I startled you.”

  “It’s no big deal.” Shawn was smiling.

  “Want a beer? I can’t sleep myself.”

  He shook his head. “Nah. I think I’ll try lying down again.”

  “‘Kay. Holler if you need me, bud. I mean it.” I patted his shoulder. “I love you.” My throat closed as I thought about him being taken from me again.

  “Love you too, Bruce.” Oh, fuck, my heart. “Night,” he said. He pulled the door shut behind him, and I could hear his soft footfalls as he shuffled down the dark hallway.

  I walked back to the window, my insides a wreck. Looking up at the dark sky again, I finally released my emotions, letting them corrupt the happiness and peace I’d felt all night. Making the decision to leave Shawn with a possibly unstable Jaxon tore at me. But it was my best option. Duncan can fix this. He can help Jax. Shawn will be all right for now, has been able to talk Jaxon down before. I hate ignoring his safety but bringing it up to them now runs the risk of Jax snapping...this is safer. God, I hope this is safer. Fear, anguish, and regret, silently buffeted me until I could stare at the stars no longer.

  Chapter Twenty Two

  NOW

  2016

  The van slowed to a bumpy halt a few yards away from a large log cabin surrounded by dense trees on all sides. Behind it lay a path that led to what seemed to be a large lake, although from Shawn’s vantage point, he couldn’t see too much of it. He stretched his arms skyward, craning his neck this way and that, attempting to loosen his stiff muscles from the two day drive from Boston to the middle of nowhere outside of Salt Lake City.

  “God, am I glad to be out of there.” Aaron slammed one of the van’s doors. He ran a hand over his face and glanced at Isaac and Emma, who stood next to each other a few feet away from the Synths, eyeing their surroundings with a wary gaze. “You two needed a room, like, ten hours ago.”

  Shawn shot a quick glance in their direction, catching Emma’s flush. He looked away, taking in the woods around him. The trees were mostly evergreens, tall with thick scraggly trunks and heavily scented pine needles. Some had fallen to the ground, blanketing it softly, adding to the foliage and dirt. No birds made a sound as they began to walk toward the two-story building nearby, which was wide with a sturdy roof and a tall chimney. Only three windows dotted the side that faced them, with a large wooden door that flung open before they could even approach the front steps.

  Duncan hurried toward them and pulled Mari into a tight hug.

  Shawn halted. After nearly thirty-five hours in the car, driving through the nights with the Synths taking turns behind the wheel, all he wanted to do was lie down and forget about what had happened to him. To everyone around him.

  “Duncan,” Aaron started, but could say no more before he, too, was pulled into an embrace.

  The older man’s gaze finally fell on Shawn, who glanced away, uncomfortable. This isn’t my family. What do I say? He jerked a thumb over his shoulder.
“Brought the criminals.” He winced as soon as he’d spoken, knowing his weak attempt at humor was tasteless.

  “We got Naomi killed...” Duncan trailed off, lips in a tight line, shoulders slumped.

  There was silence, then the last person he expected spoke up.

  “That’s not fair.” Emma pushed past the Synths and walked up to Duncan with confidence. “There was no way anyone could have known what Jaxon would do. If they hadn’t released Isaac, he’d be tortured to death by now. And the rest of you could be, too, if he turned his vengeance on you. You don’t want that on your conscience. This shouldn’t be either. Or on theirs.” She gestured behind her at the rest of Duncan’s group.

  “I...” He stared at her, a confused look on his face. “Of course not.”

  “Hey, back off.” Aaron stepped in front of Emma, an odd but angry expression on his face. “Duncan, she—”

  “Not right now. Get inside. Everyone, except Shawn.”

  The group hesitated.

  “Move it.” Duncan sounded exhausted.

  Scrambling up the steps, Mari, Aaron, Emma, and Isaac all disappeared inside the cabin, good and bad trying to stay as far away from each other as possible. No, Shawn thought. Not good and bad. Just...different sides of the fight. The old fight.

  Duncan came up to him, the dying sunlight shining through tree branches and creating soft shafts of yellow that fell on the ground in patches. Insects danced inside of each, lazily, pointlessly.

  “This is my fault,” the older man said quietly.

  Shawn ran rough hands across his face. He looked at Duncan, noticing faint darkness underneath his eyes. The man’s beard was unkempt, longer than normal. The clothes he wore were slightly wrinkled, almost as if he had slept in them the entire time they’d been gone.

  “You three could have been killed. There’s an APB out on you in Redborough, and with Vance as powerful as he is, there’s no way we can assume he hasn’t spread your face to police in other cities. What was I thinking?” Duncan gestured behind him at the house. “Mari and Aaron. Lucas.” He paused. “Naomi. Peter. They’re my family. Like my own children. Do you know how frantic I was when I found Naomi? How horrified I was? Not only for my sake, for Lucas’, but for you three as well? I risked everyone’s lives, Shawn, and look what happened.” Duncan looked as if he was about to cry. He turned away, facing the woods.

  “Yeah.” Shawn reached out and put a hand on his shoulder. “Yes, you did. Just like you risked their lives to save me and Jax. But you had to. You had to.”

  Duncan let out a ragged sigh but didn’t reply.

  “I’m sorry,” Shawn said, “but if there is any chance we’re going to stop Jaxon from flipping his shit and killing everyone, we need Emma. Yes, we had Isaac, but your plan was the smartest way to get them both, and safely. Like she said, none of us could have known Jax would have...have done what he did. This isn’t on you.”

  “I get it.” Duncan stared at the ground. “But I’ll never fully agree. I’ll always feel at fault.”

  Shawn ran a hand through his hair. “We’ve all done things we regret.” Shawn frowned. “I know what I’ve done in my past. And I know now that it was wrong of me. I thought I was ridding the world of filth, but in reality, all I was doing was creating more. Children left without parents, filled with hate. Parents losing their kids, whom they love regardless of their mistakes in life. It wasn’t my right to take people from their loved ones, no matter what they’d done. That was my fault. I chose to hurt people. You chose to help.”

  There was a silence in which Duncan simply stared at Shawn, then a small smile drew his lips upward. “I’m impressed,” he said. “Not many change when their views are so absolute.”

  “Well, I’ve had some eye-opening experiences these last few months.”

  Duncan grinned. “Nice.”

  “Pun totally intended,” Shawn said, laughing. He reached up and rubbed his forehead. “Look, Naomi’s premonition has Isaac and Emma in it, fighting with us. Now that we have them, we stand a chance, don’t we?”

  “Her visions were never wrong. She saw us all die.”

  “And that’s why we’re teaming up, why we’re fighting. To change the outcome. We know the future, and now we can change it. We had to try, okay? And we did. We saved them, like you saved us in Redborough.”

  “No,” Duncan shook his head. “We saved you two to try and capture Jaxon. I’d been trying to tell you, but between your surgery and questioning Isaac, there was no time before you three left.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “On Thanksgiving night, Bruce called me, told me that Jaxon was realizing his powers again. He asked us to help him, to take Jaxon away and teach him to use his abilities. You weren’t even part of the equation.” Duncan ran a hand through his hair. “The accident with Peter had just happened. We needed time to bury him, to get back from South America by car. Had we gotten to Redborough sooner, we could have stopped things before the chaos, and that weighs on me every single day.

  “But when we came to find you on the roof, after Jaxon snapped, we had to make a decision. I felt that if we got you to safety, we could prevent many deaths by his hand, and we would have Jaxon to protect and teach.” Duncan looked at Shawn. “That we might change the future before he even fully understood the enormity of his powers. That maybe by stopping him from killing those people, that showing him the good side of his powers together, we could possibly alter the premonition so early that none of it happens, that no one has to fight. Or die.”

  “But now he’s gone,” Shawn said quietly, guilt beginning to pull at his chest.

  “Yes. Now he’s gone. And Naomi...” Duncan sighed. “Lucas and I had to bury her. The rest of her family wasn’t there.”

  “I am so sorry,” Shawn said. Guilt swelled within him, rising along his throat.

  “Look,” Duncan said. “We did what we thought was best for those around us. But now, with Jaxon on the loose—”

  “He’s not an animal.”

  “No. But he’s dangerous, and vengeful. Frankly, I’m shocked he didn’t murder us all in our sleep the night he got away.”

  “That’s not fair. He’s not evil.”

  “Shawn, you don’t know what he’s capable of.”

  The two stared at each other for a quiet moment.

  “How did Bruce know about Jaxon’s powers returning?” Shawn said finally.

  Duncan smiled. “I’ll let him tell you all about it. I actually just spoke with him a bit ago. Told him where we are. He’s coming here, Shawn.”

  “He is?” His heart leapt. “Why?”

  “To help. Trust me, we need as much as we can get right now.”

  Relief replaced the guilt Shawn felt. “Look, don’t be angry with yourself. Please.”

  “I am and will be for a while, but that doesn’t mean I won’t heal.”

  Shawn smiled. “Understandable.”

  Duncan cleared his throat and clapped Shawn on the shoulder. “Now let’s get inside to make sure those five are behaving, huh?”

  Shawn grinned as he followed Duncan inside, only to have raised voices wash over them upon their entry. The door opened to a homey living room, furnished with two plush couches, a television with humorously long antennae, and a long coffee table off to the left. On the right lay the kitchen, small but with a refrigerator, quaint stove and an island. Emma, who had seemingly gotten over the shock of Lucas, was standing close to Isaac alongside the front of the counter, with Mari mere feet away, yelling in her face. Aaron seemed to be trying to calm the women down, but to no avail. Isaac simply looked helpless while Lucas leaned against the far wall, his eyes averted, staring out of a back window.

  “There’s no way I’m holing up with you,” Mari was saying loudly. “How many people have you even killed?”

  “None!” Emma shouted back. “Okay, one, but it was self-defense.”

  Mari laughed harshly. “Says the fucking criminal.”

  “Hey, hey.
” Shawn put his hands up and walked forward, passing Duncan. “What the hell? We’re gone five minutes and—”

  “I’m not comfortable sleeping in the same place as these two murderers.”

  “You knew this is how things were going to go before we even left.”

  “Yeah, well now I’m not okay with it.”

  “We don’t have another choice right now,” Shawn said. “Plus, there were plenty of times on the way here they could have done something, or run off, and they didn’t. I trust them.” He shot a meaningful look at first Emma, then Isaac, then looked back at Mari.

  “Shawn’s right,” Emma said. “This is the only choice we have.”

  “Bullshit,” Mari spat. Her narrowed eyes glared at the other woman.

  “Listen to me.”

  “Fuck you.”

  “Mari, please.”

  “I don’t give a shit what you say.”

  Isaac reached out and brushed Emma’s arm. “Maybe we should just—”

  “Listen to me.” Emma shouted, brow furrowed, but eyes pleading.

  Mari hesitated, blinking rapidly.

  Shawn heard Aaron’s sharp intake of breath from where he stood beside him and glanced around. The blond man was staring off to the left, unfocused eyes pointing beyond the women.

  “What is it?” Shawn asked.

  “Nothing.” Aaron straightened. “This is going nowhere.” He looked over at Duncan and said, “A word?” The bearded man nodded and began to follow him into a side room, then paused, a wary gaze flickering between Emma and Isaac.

  “Pretty sure we can handle them if we need to,” Lucas said. Duncan smiled at him for a moment, then exited, shutting the door behind him.

  A short moment occurred in which the five of them looked between each other, then Shawn made his way over to where Aaron and Duncan had disappeared. He pressed his ear against the wooden door.