Crow - The Awakening

by Michael J. Vanecek

  Laurence loaded a magazine into his pistol, chambered a round, and holstered it. He then put the other magazine in his belt pouch and headed for the door, rushing back just long enough to get his thermos of coffee. There were perks for Seattle operations, after all.

  Feeling elated at finally having a target, Laurence jumped in his car and followed several SUVs out. He mounted his scanner on its dash mount and tweaked the angle so he could see it better. No mistakes this time, he thought to himself. One way or another he was bringing a trophy back to his boss and restoring his reputation that had become tarnished because of the hunt for Steven.

  As he looked at the scanner, he could see the net starting to tighten around the traveling blip. There were times when it would slow down and his people would begin taking strategic positions when it would start moving again. Patience was key. He hit the highway and started toward the side of town that the blip was headed toward. As he started getting to that side of town, he started to see buildings that were familiar to him. "Wait a minute," Laurence said to himself as he looked around and hit the exit ramp. "I've been here before." Then it hit him. He was in this area when he was tracking Brandon.

  "I know where he's headed," Laurence said into his bluetooth device. He marked the destination on the tracker and hit 'Send'. "That's the mansion where Brandon's parents live. We don't want him to make it in there. The parents are high profile lawyers with big cartel enemies. Set up a roadblock here and here," Laurence tapped on his scanner a couple of times, marking two possible intersections that they could use to head him off and collect him. "Get him to turn down this road and we'll collect him there." He circled the road and hit 'Send' again and sat back. If he makes it to the house, they would have to deal with the best trained and armed guards that money can buy. Not impossible given that his men are the best trained soldiers that money can't buy, but not preferable either.

  Anticipating failure, he set up teams closer to the residence and he himself headed to park by the residence itself. He pulled up schematics of the residential block trying to look ahead and make sure escape avenues were covered. There was no room for mistakes and redundant contingencies for failures were the only way to turn the tide of their previous failures. Rubbing his eyes, Laurence opened his thermos and drank deeply. It was still very hot, but he needed the shock to wake him up. He was running on thirty six hours without sleep and was already feeling it at the restaurant. But how could he even think of sleeping when his prize was so close? They were ready to spring the trap and his mouse was not getting away this time.

  As he rushed to Brandon's location, he listened in on his men preparing the trap. One of them purposefully ran a red light and t-boned a car at an intersection with their armored SUV. The damage to the car was extensive and it stopped traffic altogether even as they drove off. Another team found a city truck parked near their intersection and quite simply grabbed a bunch of cones and set up a detour. Not quite as flashy as the wreck, but just as effective. He watched as yet more of his team took up flanking positions in their kill zone, ready to move in when the car passed and box it in. They would have to either box in several cars or get eyes on their target, so some of the team took up observation positions at the detour points to see if they could spot Steven and identify the car. Laurence smiled. They were going to get him this time with little fuss and then simply disappear and no one would know better.

  "Honey, that is... a red painting." Charley drank a beer while looking at what Sarah had just produced. Lots of bold strokes with various shades of red, emphasizing her frustration and fear. Her work was definitely an emotional piece and she wiped paint off her forehead as she surveyed it.

  "Yeah, it turned out that way, didn't it?" She wasn't sure this would be one for the gallery, but then all of her paintings were charged with emotion so maybe so. It didn't help her mood, however. It was getting dark and Steven was still missing. Every time she stopped painting, she had to swallow back a panic attack, wondering where Steven could be.

  "Maybe he..." Charley hesitated, "...well, he is a young man and single," he offered. Sarah looked at him for a moment. "Well, he is!" Charley insisted. "He's getting more familiar with town, meeting people and... you know."

  "And he just happened to leave his wallet and phone home?" Sarah asked, skeptical.

  "Hey, it happens! Especially if you're in a hurry to get to a hot date." Charley sat down on their couch and beckoned Sarah over. "Stranger things have happened." She sat down next to him and snuggled, considering the possibilities. It was only natural for her to assume the worst, given her history. She allowed herself to entertain the possibility that Steven was just out being a boy and would come home soon.

  "Oh, she had better be worth it," Sarah said, grinding her teeth. Charley grinned.

  "Did you make your deadline?" She looked at him, feeling a little guilty distracting him from his work.

  "Barely." He smiled at her and moved a strand of hair out of her face. They may need to stop partying on the roof so late if these deadlines keep up.

  He was going to say something else, but there was a knock at the door. Sarah jumped, surprised. She looked at Charley. "Steven still has keys, right?" Charley nodded so she got up and looked through the peephole. A pretty, short blond woman stood in the hallway, flanked by a stocky man who looked to be at least part Native American. She looked back at Charley then opened the door a crack.

  "Hello?" She wondered if these people had gotten the wrong address. Sarah has had to redirect lost people before. Or perhaps it was someone wanting a private viewing of her art. She frowned on that, however. Far better to view in the controlled setting of a show than in the discombobulated cluttered apartment.

  "Are you Sarah?" the woman asked curtly. For an instant, Sarah go the impression she was looking in a mirror as she squinted at the woman.

  "Yes." Okay, so these people are not lost. Sarah got ready to tell them she didn't do private showings.

  "I'm Sally. This is Jonah," she introduced herself. Sarah had her mouth open to respond when she stopped and her eyes went wide and she opened the door all the way, stunned.

  "THE Sally?" Sarah asked, her voice trembling. Her legs suddenly felt weak as she looked at the mother of the boy she had taken in and come to consider a part of her family. With Sally's son missing and Sarah feeling guilty about it, this could not be a worse time for Sally to show up and Sarah went momentarily blank.

  Sally looked in behind Sarah, automatically performing an evaluation based on how the apartment was kept. It was full of paintings. An artist, Sally noticed. That was a plus. Cluttered. Sorta like Jonah. Likes red. Will have to ask her about that. Sarah was always barefoot when she painted since feet were easier to clean paint off of than shoes, so she didn't have that to judge yet. And now, Sarah was gaping in complete shock.

  "We got a call that our son was missing. We're here to find him," Sally stated simply.

  Sarah blinked and suddenly came to her senses. "Oh my God, you're really here! Please come in!" Sarah stepped aside and waved them in. Charley stood up and waved timidly as they walked in.

  Sally smiled and they entered the apartment and looked around. Sarah closed the door and turned around to face her guests. She opened her mouth again, but was completely lost for words so she rushed into the kitchen instead. "Tea? Beer? Chai? Water? Coffee?" Sarah fumbled around for glasses.

  "Sarah," Sally said. "Sarah... Sarah!" Sally tried to get her attention and Sarah looked up appearing like a deer caught in the headlights, glasses in hand. "We're fine."

  Sarah turned around, leaning against the counter as she wiped her eyes, looking very nervous. She put her hand on her chest as she looked at Sally. "We... uh... don't know where he is," she said, as if confessing to losing something very precious. "I am so sorry. I've looked everywhere." She looked at Charley who nodded in agreement.

  "That's why we're here," Sally said calmly. She found it interesting that Sarah was nearly hysterical about her missing son
and suddenly wanted to get to know this woman better.

  "Charley thinks he might just be out being a boy." She tried to smile, though not convinced herself.

  "Why do you think he is missing?" Sally stepped further into the apartment, looking around. A lot of the clutter was relatively recent. She caught a glimpse of a bedroom and instinctively knew Steven would have slept in there. Largely because it had piles of clothes on the bed and floor. He had really been here, Sally thought to herself.

  "Well..." Sarah collected herself. "He missed work today, and his wallet and phone were left in his apartment." She wrung her hands, looking scared. "He never leaves them laying around. Ever." Sally nodded, well aware of how obsessive Steven can be. Sarah wiped her eyes again as she looked up at the ceiling, trying not to cry. "I've called the police and the hospitals and he's not in any of them and no one seems to be interested in helping."

  Sally looked at Jonah. "If he went to Asherah, surely he would have taken his stuff with him," she said quietly. Jonah looked at her then back at their hosts. "Do you think they've taken him?" Sally asked her husband, starting to fear the worst. Jonah didn't answer.

  Sarah looked at both of them. "Who?"

  Sally looked down for a moment, wondering just how much this couple needed to know, then looked at Sarah. She was so scared for Steven and it touched Sally's heart that Steven had found her, that he wasn't truly alone while he was there. "There are people who might be interested in Steven."

  "What? Why?" Sarah was at a loss, her hopes of the boy having fun and being irresponsible fading.

  Sally looked around. "Can we sit down?"

  "Oh, sorry!" Sarah rushed, clearing paintings off one of their love seats and brushing it off. "Here you go."

  Sally, with Jonah in tow, navigated through the apartment and sat down. Charley went and grabbed a couple of beers and handed them to their guests. Sally nodded to him and waited until they sat down, Sarah on the edge of her couch.

  Sally looked at the beer, trying to compose what she was going to say. "First off, Steven's never late. He never misses his responsibilities. And he never forgets anything he intends to keep with him. Well, unless it's his lunch or something. But wallet and phone, for him those would be must-have items. He's extremely... obsessive about stuff like that. Nothing, no girl or anything would distract him from that."

  Sarah looked at Charley, crestfallen. That bit of information basically obliterated their hopes that he was just out being irresponsible. But why would he have left those items behind?

  "Did anyone come here? Any strangers?" Sally asked. "One would look like a very large linebacker." Sally wondered if Lohet and the team would have disguised themselves like last time. "The other tall and pale, a woman and a... little girl." She leaned forward in her seat, watching Sarah's face closely. But she just looked blankly at them, shaking her head. Sally relaxed a little. Maybe not them, then. She had no idea how to ask about the golems. They all looked just like regular people.

  Sally looked at both of her hosts for a moment longer, then continued. "Okay, Steven's parents discovered something that some important people didn't want discovered. They are missing now. Abducted. Steven has spent most of his life trying to find them."

  "I thought you were his parents?" Sarah pointed at them. "He's always calling me Sally by mistake."

  "Really?" Sally blushed and looked at Jonah, squeezing his hand. "We adopted him after his parents went missing. That's what they wanted." She was flustered that her son would still be thinking of her and she struggled to keep her focus.

  "Why would anyone want to harm Steven?" Sarah asked, incredulous. He was the sweetest boy she had known. Excepting her brother, perhaps.

  "We think he may have come across what his parents discovered," Sally said. "We did our best to steer him away from that, but he has a mind of his own and found a way. That's why he left home." She looked at Jonah who nodded. "There's other people looking for him too. The ones I described. They think he has abilities that they want to use."

  Sarah looked at Sally and Jonah back and forth, expecting more. "And?"

  "We really can't tell you more than that," Sally said. "But we're going to find our son."

  Sarah was having trouble making heads or tails of the story. Steven has gone from being a kid that might be lost or otherwise occupied, to a kid that bad people wanted to capture, like some cheap spy novel. She was about to ask more when there was a knock at the door.

  "What now?" Sarah got up and opened the door. A well built but slightly balding man stood there smiling. She looked at him for a moment then asked impatiently, "Hello?

  "Mrs. Windsong?" he asked pleasantly.

  "Yes?" Sarah shook her head, starting to get even more impatient with the interruption.

  "My name is Jacob Bradly. You called in a missing person's report?"

  Sarah raised her eyebrows, nodding, unsure whether this could be good or bad. After all, Steven wasn't there with him. Sally stood up, trying to look past Sarah at Jacob.

  "My associates and I would like to have a word with you concerning Steven Crow," Jacob said with an amicable smile as two burly, armed men in black body armor entered the apartment, pushing a very startled Sarah back. Jacob walked in after them, looked back out in the hall, then closed the door.

  "You're a graduate already?" Coby's jaw dropped. "You can't be more than... twenty?"

  "Almost eighteen." Steven admitted. He looked down at his knees. "It's just a bachelors, though. No one really cares for that anymore."

  "Wow. That's still incredible. I'm in my thirties and am just now getting around to finishing my masters." Coby was flabbergasted. Sitting in the same car as a prodigy. He'd only met one before in his life, another kid who was in college.

  Steven shook his head. "It's not that incredible. It hasn't helped me get work."

  "To be honest, man, I think your age had more to do with it than your degree," Coby grinned. Steven was still very young and no doubt not all that experienced. That's the worst part of being a prodigy. No one could get past their young age.

  "Yeah, there's that, I guess." Steven looked out the window. It was getting dark.

  "I wouldn't sweat it too much." Coby looked over at him. "After all, you've got your whole life ahead of you."

  Steven smiled thinly, hoping he would even survive the week. For the past couple of days he hasn't spent much time thinking more than a few minutes ahead, much less his “full life”.

  "But even then, you'll still want to hit up your masters. A bachelors will only get you so far," Coby continued. "There was a time when a high school diploma meant something, then it was the bachelors. Now it's the masters. I'm waiting for the other foot to drop and force me to get a PhD just to get ahead in life." Coby shook his head.

  "As long as you're happy doing what you're doing, what does it matter?" Steven asked. He really didn't intend to get into a deep philosophical discussion with Coby, but it did distract his mind from the torment of the past couple of days.

  "Who's really happy at work anymore nowadays?" Coby looked over at him. "I mean, we get neck deep in debt going to college getting some business degree so we can go to work crunching numbers or filing papers then we can't wait for the weekend. It's like we spend our entire lives trying to get by hoping someday we might find something that we're happy doing. But happiness doesn't pay the bills."

  Steven nodded. It was starting to get a little deep for him. Coby was clearly unsatisfied with life. Steven figured a lot of people were. He had grown up around people who didn't care much about the holy grail of getting ahead and they were some of the most well adjusted and content people he knew. He was about to mention that when Coby put on the brakes.

  "Whoa, look at that!" Coby looked forward. The intersection ahead had been completely blocked by a tremendous wreck and crews were detouring the traffic down a side street. "Someone is having a really bad day today." He looked at the wreckage as they turned. Steven saw emergency crews chopping the car
up to get to the occupants inside as they passed slowly. Suspicious, he scanned the vehicles in the area, but none stood out. Perhaps it was an honest wreck after all. After seeing so much wreckage at the hands of those pursuing him it was hard for Steven to relax.

  "Sir, we have him on the passenger side of a blue late model Corolla," the spotter said. He had placed himself on top of a box van in a parking lot and lay prone, scanning the traffic with his binoculars, covering the passenger side of cars turning thanks to their detour. Given that any passenger was sure to gape at the wreckage, it was rather easy to spot him. Another spotter was positioned on other side and he confirmed it as the car drove past him. "We have an unknown driver. The target is in the passenger seat and is coming your way."

  Laurence grinned. They were taking the bait. "Activate the second detour."

  The men had narrowed the traffic to a single lane while they waited and now closed it off altogether when they saw the car approaching. One of them waved the car onto a side street with a flashlight wand while others pretended to be doing something with the manhole. The car turned without any issues. The trap was now armed.

  "Another detour?" Coby peered out his windshield at the blocked intersection. Steven started getting worried. One is fine, but two in a row seemed more than coincidental. And why were they being sent down the side street rather than around the construction work?

  "I don't have a good feeling about this, Coby." Steven looked around. As they passed through the intersection, Steven looked back and watched the men. He noticed that they promptly tossed the cones to the side of the street and disappeared. "Coby, this is a setup. You need to speed up and get us out of here."

  "What? Setting what up?" Coby looked at Steven then in the rear view mirror, perplexed.

  "Some people are after me and I think they just set us up." Steven was looking around trying to spot them and craned his neck to look up in the sky, hoping against hope they didn't rain down bullets from the air again. He saw an SUV suddenly pull out behind them. "Floor it, Coby!" Steven yelled, looking around for anyone else.