33 Degrees of Separation (Legacy)

by Rain Carrington

  Wishing the day would never come, Pat was afraid to fall asleep, even as his lids fell over his eyes. That night was the forever that he had only dreamed of, and the day would come, with worry and fears that everything he now cherished the most would end.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  It was a study in anxiety and terror. From the moment he rose from the bed he’d so lovingly shared with Pat, seeing him gone, knowing he’d sneaked off to be in the servant’s quarters, the plan, knowing what the day had in store for him, it all crashed in on him like a burning building crumbling to the ground.

  He got in the shower to wash off some of the dread, but he couldn’t shake it. He knew if Pat had been there, he wouldn’t feel so filled with anxiety. It was Pat that was keeping him grounded, giving him the strength to fight.

  As he toweled off, he thought about that, and what Pat would say to that. He’d remind Ian that he had it in him. Ian didn’t rely on Pat for his strength, that it was there all along.

  Trying to take that with him as he dressed, he took the burner phone and called Javi. “Hey, mijo, how’s your guts this morning? Churning?”

  “Yes. Is everything set?”

  “Set and ready for you. The makeup guy your dad sent has everything he needs, the car’s waiting, the GPS set with the directions. Everything is ready on this end. Don’t chicken out, huh?”

  He knew Javi’s motives for saying it, and he breathed a little easier with the support. “You don’t need to bait me, Javi, I’m ready.”

  “Good. I figured, but thought I’d test you.”

  After they hung up, Ian left his room, heading for the back stairs. Before he got there, however, his mother caught him in the hall. “Ian! I’m so glad I found you. I had the tailor make a new suit for you for the party. I know he doesn’t have your current measurements, but I think you’re close to what you were a few months ago. He can adjust it as needed.”

  “I’m a little thinner, but I’m close, Mother.”

  “Good. Good, son.”

  She was off, her trail of entourage following her as she pointed to everything she wanted fixed before the party.

  Ian shook his head and went down the stairs, heading to the servant’s quarters. Once at Pat’s room, however, he found it empty. He got on his phone and called, but Pat didn’t answer.

  He hurried to the kitchen, and relaxed as he saw Pat there, gorging on a plate of sausage and peppers. “There you are.”

  Pat jumped and turned, looking guilty. After he swallowed, he said, “Sorry. Fiona called and I had to come eat. Have you tried these?”

  “No, but it looks great.”

  Fiona set a plate down in front of him, thick Italian sausage cut in half longways and peppers cooked just right, not too limp, but not too crisp. Ian didn’t think he could eat a bite, but once he tasted it, he found he was shoveling the food in his mouth like he hadn’t eaten for days.

  “Fiona! Why have you never made me this before?”

  “Are you kidding? If your mother knew that stuff was in the house, she’d fire me. Sausage? You’ve heard her, the meat they scrape off the floor after butchering real cuts?”

  Ian seemed to remember that rant of his mother’s once or twice. “Oh. Yeah.”

  Pat was moaning as he took his last two bites, reminding Ian of the previous night. He felt his face heat as he whispered, “Keep that up, and we’ll have to go back upstairs.”

  “Shh,” Pat scolded. “We don’t have time.”

  Fiona took their plates and shooed them out of the kitchen. “I have a thousand finger sandwiches to make before three and all the other food she’s making me cook that she didn’t trust the caterer with. Out!”

  Ian and Pat each kissed her cheek before they left to head back to Ian’s room. The tailor was there, and Pat waited in the sitting room while the tailor fitted Ian’s new spring wool suit.

  He was antsy but had to act aloof and bored. He hated catering his feelings to the occasion. Not speaking to the tailor, however, did give him time to go over everything. He trusted that Javi and the others had everything set. All he had to do was to keep calm and get through it all.

  After the suit was fitted perfectly, the tailor took it to sew downstairs and Pat came in as Ian was wrapping in his robe. “I need to shower. Join me?”

  “No, I can’t. I need to meet with your father, go over the details again. If you can’t get into their bunker, the whole thing is off.”

  “Javi has his guys ready to meet with the Grail’s army?”

  “Yeah. As soon as you get the proof of what they’re planning, Javi takes it to them, along with the offer of monetary severance. Many don’t have families, so the threat won’t mean a thing without the money.”

  Ian knew that all his money would soon be in their hands, as well as an enormous chunk of his father’s wealth. “If this works, they deserve it. We have to kill the Grail before they kill half the world.”

  Pat held him, worried. “This will work, baby. I swear it.”

  “Are you trying to convince me or yourself?”

  “Both, maybe.”

  Ian pulled away from him, straightening his back, steeling his will. “It will. It has to. If not, something will.”

  Pat nodded to him and the way he stared, like he was seeing Ian again, like no one else every had, it made Ian feel alive. “If anyone can, Ian, it’s you.”

  Things from there went quickly. After Ian showered and dressed, he found his mother directing the florists where to place the five-thousand-dollar bouquets of orchids, lilies and jasmine, the decorators were placing bunting around the house while the garden was being filled with white iron tables and chairs, buffet tables with champagne fountains and dessert shelves.

  There was a band setting up in the small orchestra bay near the fence, and floating candles were being set in the two ponds. Everything would be perfect and beautiful. Ian appreciated the effort, though he knew it was more for his mother than for him.

  Once the guests started to arrive, Ian stood in the receiving line in the middle of his parents, and as people passed, introduced, or reintroduced to him, his father would lay a hand on his shoulder when a Grail member stood before them.

  Pat was watching closely for this clue and Ian new he was memorizing their faces. His father had invited all the top Grail members to the party, and they all accepted. It was expected that they come, to cheer on the next generation of their order.

  Every one of the thirty-third degrees were to be there, as well and the thirty-seconds. A spattering of others that were rising quickly in the ranks were invited as well, and a few of those of lesser degrees that were close family acquaintances.

  Like Cameron.

  He came through the line, dressed and made up to look like his father. He seemed as nervous as Ian felt, being surrounded, and only a little rubber and makeup to hide his true identity. Ian nodded to him, and he nodded back. “Good luck in your future endeavors, Ian.”

  Keeping his smile at bay wasn’t easy, but he knew what Cameron was saying. He wanted it over, wanted to be able to come out as himself, take off the mask that made him look like the father that had sacrificed himself for him. “I’ll do my best, sir.”

  There were twenty members of the Grail there at final count. Once they left the receiving line, Marianne flitted off to mingle, so Ian’s father could pull him aside. “They’re all here, all those that could go to the bunker.”

  “And if they leave?”

  “They’re close to it, Ian. They could be there in less than an hour, so get in, get what you need and get out. I haven’t been there in more than a year, but they rarely move things.”

  They’d gone over it a million times, but Ian was glad he’d mentioned it. Suddenly, all the details were leaving his head like they were evacuating.

  The sounds of the party drifted to him, the low murmur of conversation, clinking glasses, the band started to play an easy tune. Pat was always there, on the outskirts, watching him, like any good
bodyguard would do, but Ian felt more than that protection from him. He felt his worry and most of all, his love.

  His mother was less than pleased that Pat insisted on staying. He pointed out that Mitchel was there, and she floated off to mingle with the beautiful people. That while Ian tried to keep himself from shaking all over, and making himself look like he was ready to do something that could get him killed.

  He picked at the canapes, sipped a glass of white wine, spoke to Denny and the couple of his friends that were there, but he didn’t linger anywhere for long, letting his face be seen around the place by everyone.

  His father’s suit, a grey silk, there was another exactly like it waiting for him to change into. There was makeup waiting to be applied to him, and when he thought of it, the plan, he knew it wouldn’t work. No one would buy it, and they’d all be killed.

  As his panic started to rise, there was Cameron, pretending to be his father, and two other members of the Grail were there, speaking to him, like nothing was amiss. For all they knew, Cameron was James, and when Ian concentrated on that, he started to believe again that they might just pull it off.

  Speeches were made by his father, his mother and finally, him. He thanked everyone for attending his party, and for all the love and support he’d received throughout his schooling. Applause was heard, the slapping together of soft, manicured hands. As he looked out over the faces, all of them bored, unconnected, he realized so much. They were bored, and they were connected to no one person. These men and women were so in love with their money and possessions that there was little room left for people.

  They rarely looked each other in the eye, said all the right things without saying much at all. His hatred spurred his confidence. He was ready.

  Pat met him by the bar, Ian getting a new glass of wine to nurse. “How’re you doing?”

  “I’m ready. When you guys say the word, get me out of here.”

  Pat scanned the party and whispered, “Everyone seems to be having a good time. At least I think so. It’s hard to tell.”

  Ian spun around and laughed sarcastically. “The fucking corpses.”

  “Give it another half hour. Start your goodbyes now, as it’ll take a while to get to the important people.”

  “Yeah, okay.”

  As instructed, Ian went to a few of the tables to personally thank his parents’ friends for coming, for their gifts, though he didn’t know what they’d given him. Making his way around the tables, he grew in disdain for those there, their fake smiles and words that meant nothing.

  His mother playfully chided him for wanting to leave the party early, though she’d known ahead of time. “Kids,” she laughed. “Well, these boys will likely want to get out there and find some pretty girls to dance with for the night. Go, son, but you and I will have a talk about this!”

  Playing along, he teased, “Oh, mom, you know you can’t wait until you get a grandbaby or two.”

  “Oh, I’m going to make a fabulous grandmother,” she bragged.

  One of the men at the table complimented her, “You can’t be a grandmother. You’re much too young.”

  Ian agreed to seem like he cared about their banter, and then excused himself, trying not to run to Pat and Denny. “Get me the fuck out of here.”

  Denny laughed, but it was nervous laughter. “Some guy over there asked me to refill his wine.”

  “Did you?”

  Denny winked and confessed, “I sure did. That white wine now has a third of my piss in it.”

  Ian cracked up with that and made Denny point out who it was. “Oh, shit,” he said while staring at the fat lump of flesh. “That is a top Grail member.”

  “All the better.”

  When they left, Pat was in the back while Denny drove so he could watch for anyone following them. “So far, so good. I think they bought the excuse you wanted to go party with your friends.”

  “Well, they’re all there, ready to put on a hell of a party for the night,” Denny informed him. “Cara has all her friends, so even if they are watching, they will be distracted. All Cara’s friends are hot, and most dress with as little clothing as possible.”

  Ian knew that, and still didn’t understand. “Cara is a thousand times more modest than them, smarter, all of that, and she still hangs out with them.”

  “They’re good people, Ian. Can’t judge a book, ya know? Here you are, a pretty rich boy, who, if I judged you by looks, we’d have never been friends. Two of Cara’s hot friends started their own homeless shelter, and other left behind a six figure a year job to run an animal rescue.”

  Properly put in his place, Ian thought about the Grail. “People the Grail would hate and kill.”

  “Yeah, so you better do this tonight, and do it well. We need that army behind us.”

  More pressure, but it didn’t make him more nervous, he only became more determined. “If we can’t get the army, we’ll think of something else. I refuse to let them win.”

  “That’s my baby,” Pat bragged, then instructed Denny to turn at the next light. “If this car is following, they’ll move over and pretend to go straight, then they’ll come down the next street.”

  “I thought if a car was following, they followed,” Denny quipped.

  “Too easy.”

  The car indeed followed them, and in fact parked behind them when they got to the apartment. From there, the three got out of the car and Denny laughed, telling them, “That’s Cara’s friend Chuck and his two girlfriends.”

  “Two?”

  Denny winked at Ian. “Poly is the new thing, Ian. Cara would kill me, of course, and the big guy in the backseat would likely break you into little pieces, but it works for a lot of people nowadays.”

  “Yeah, I know, but…If you had another girl half as smart and driven as Cara, they’d kill you.”

  “What a way to go.”

  Pat growled from behind him, “Don’t even fucking think about it. I don’t share my toys.”

  Knowing he should take offense to being called a toy, all it managed to do was to turn him on. “Can you not make me hot before I have to do this?”

  Chuckling, Pat kissed him on the back of the neck before they all got out of the car, and with Chuck and his girlfriends, went right up to the apartment, that was already filled with partygoers.

  Ian was surprised at the amount of people that could fill the place, and he knew it would be hell for anyone to keep track of one person amongst the crowd. He was rushed to his bedroom where a man he’d never met stood, a suitcase opened that was filled with makeup and prosthetics for his face.

  “Ian, this is Matthew Obrite. He’s the artist that has kept Cameron as James all this time.”

  Ian shook his hand, and the tiny man was obviously nervous. “You’re one of them too. Those…people.”

  “Yeah, but not voluntarily, and hopefully, with your help, not for long.”

  He was small in stature and dark skinned, and his smallness made his wide eyes seem out of place on his cute face. He couldn’t have been more than twenty-two, but the stress of what he was doing obviously weighed on him. “Hopefully not for long is right. If I didn’t need all this money, I’d be gone by now.”

  Ian understood his family was in desperate need, so he offered him more, but Matthew turned him down. “I’m not greedy. Seems like greed has got us all here, hasn’t it?”

  “Sure seems like,” he agreed.

  Denny stuck his head in and announced, “All clear. Everyone here is on the list, and they’re ready to hang for the night. Get moving.”

  Pat nodded to Matthew, “Start, please, we are pressed for time.”

  Ian’s desk chair was moved for him to sit in, and there started the long process of aging him to look like his father. He was given shallow crow’s feet, his jaw was widened by less than a quarter inch and his lips thinned with makeup. Ian had never noticed the tiny differences, but to a trained eye like Matthew’s, they were glaring. “Facial recognition software is hard
to beat. You have the same cheekbones and nose, which is a big help, but the jaw and forehead, those are where we could falter.”

  “Forehead?”

  “Yours is less protrusive than your father’s. Thankfully, it’s not the other way around, or we might be dead in the water. I can add, but I can’t subtract.”

  He was watching in the hand mirror Matthew had given him, watching him transform into his father. Seeing his father looking back at him in the mirror, it was more than creepy. “Jesus.”

  Pat agreed, “That’s wild. I will not be hitting on you while you have that on.”

  “No? Never thought my dad was hot?”

  “Only because he resembled you.”

  Ian smiled then whispered, “Sorry. Will that…crack me?”

  As he laughed, Matthew informed him, “No. Go about your business, talk normally, or at least, like your father talks. This is all stage makeup, the latest stuff, and you can wear it for hours before needing the slightest touchup. Don’t worry about the makeup, worry about the rest, like knowing things only your father could know if you’re caught.”

  “He coached me. I’m to say I flew in on a helicopter, that I wanted to check things, worrying that having all those members at the party would compromise the Grail. He told me to act upset I was even being questioned, that I was a top member and he should be doing the questioning.”

  Pat nodded to him as he sat on the bed, watching the transformation being completed. “You will remember everything if and when it happens, Ian. I know, it’s difficult right now, with your nerves jumping, but you have to remember, you are fucking smart and you have something that they don’t. You’re determined to save the world. Literally.”

  Saving the world. All of that. He supposed that was exactly what he was trying to do, but he wasn’t alone.

  The suit that was identical to his father’s was hanging in a garment bag in the bathroom. He changed into it, while trying to remember everything. He was having a hard time with his memory, and it wasn’t like things weren’t there, the problem was that too much was there. He was remembering everything at once, and it became a jumble to him. He couldn’t sort it out, but Pat came to his rescue, as usual.