“What do you think?” Vero turned his head to his father.
“All I know is that whenever I flew . . . I never felt alone.”
Vero smiled.
“Back in the mid-1980s, several cosmonauts on a Soviet space station were doing their routine assignments when a strange orange gas suddenly surrounded the station followed by an intense bright light.”
“A bright light?” Vero thought aloud.
“Yes,” Dennis said. “Right after their eyes adjusted, all the cosmonauts reported seeing seven tall figures with large wings and halos over their heads surrounding the station.”
“Angels?”
“I think so. They reported it to the ground control team, who dismissed their sightings by saying it was a mass delusion brought on by the stress and fatigue of prolonged space flight. But eleven days later, a fresh crew of another three cosmonauts joined the first crew, and right after they arrived, they, too, saw the bright light and the seven beings with wings. They were reported as saying that the beings’ wingspan were the size of a 747. And because the second crew had just gotten there, they could no longer blame the sightings on fatigue.”
“So what happened?”
“Weeks later when they all got safely back to earth, they put the cosmonauts through a battery of physical and psychological tests. They all passed with flying colors.”
“So do you believe them . . . that they saw angels?”
“Vero, before you can even think about becoming an astronaut, they make sure you’re of sound mind. So, yes, I think they saw angels. Maybe it’s not a scientific explanation, but isn’t it comforting to think about?”
Vero sat in front of a computer in the school library. It was lunch break, and despite his growling stomach, Vero was determined to learn everything he could about the garden of Eden; but in everything he read, nothing new jumped out. There were many theories on the location of the garden, which ranged from places in the Middle East to the Far East. And some said the garden was destroyed during the Great Flood. Vero was left even more confused than before. Uriel had told him the garden was partitioned off in the Ether, but there was an entrance somewhere on earth. All Vero could come up with was that the entrance might be near where the garden had originally been. But where was that? Vero’s thoughts were interrupted by a familiar voice.
“Danny, what is it?” Davina cried.
Vero looked up and saw Davina standing with Danny in front of the checkout desk. As Danny slipped a book into the return slot, Davina grabbed his arm.
“Can you at least tell me what I did?” she asked, her face troubled.
Danny didn’t answer. He yanked his arm away from her, letting another book slip into the slot. Without a word, he turned and walked out of the library. Davina watched him leave. Vero got up and walked over to her.
“Davina . . .”
Davina turned to Vero.
“Are you all right?”
Davina shook her head. “He hates me for some reason, but he won’t tell me why. I don’t know what happened. He won’t even talk to me!”
Seeing Davina near tears sparked Vero’s anger. His eyes became slits as he watched Danny walk down the hallway. He charged off after him.
“Danny!” Vero yelled.
Danny continued walking. Vero chased up to him and grabbed his arm, spinning Danny to face him.
“Get off me, Leland!”
“Why are you so mad at Davina?” Vero shouted. “You act like such a jerk to her!”
“What do you care? Isn’t this the moment you’ve been waiting for? It’s your big chance to swoop in and make her your girl,” Danny said.
“It’s not about that,” Vero said. “She’s really upset, and she’s like one of the nicest people in the world.”
Danny’s face softened. “I found out I’m moving. When school ends, my whole family is going to Colorado.”
“Why?”
“My dad’s sick of always being on the road.”
Vero recalled that Danny’s father drove a tractor-trailer.
“His route’s from here to Colorado, and the trucking company offered him a desk job out there so he can stay in one place.”
“That’s not all bad. You’ll get to see him all the time.”
“But Davina and I will be over,” Danny said with emotion.
Panic came into Vero’s eyes as he put two and two together, and remembered he was Danny’s guardian. Which meant when he became a full-fledged angel, he would be with Danny all the time—in Colorado! Vero had thought that when the time came to leave his family, he would at least be in the same town with them. That he would still be able to see them going about their lives.
“You’re right! You can’t go!” Vero blurted out.
“What?” Danny asked, confused.
“You have to stay here!”
“But you just said it was good—”
“Forget what I said!” Vero said. “Tell your dad you’re not going! You belong here with Davina and your friends.”
Danny looked at Vero, uncomfortable with his outburst. Did Vero just say he was his friend? The bell rang. Lunch was over.
“You’re a weird dude,” Danny said, shaking his head as he walked off to class.
A blast of hot steam hit Vero smack in the face as he opened the dishwasher. As he jerked his head back, Nora walked past him.
“Clover is supposed to unload those,” she told Vero.
“I’ll do it,” Vero said.
“No, it’s her job,” Nora said. “Tell her to come down.”
Vero walked out of the kitchen to Clover’s bedroom. He opened the door without warning her first. Clover spun around in her chair. She was sitting at her desk studying.
“You should knock first!” she yelled at him. “What if I was getting changed?”
“Then you would have locked it,” Vero said. “Mom said you need to empty the dishwasher.”
“Tell her I’m studying.”
“She doesn’t care. I tried to do it for you, but she said no.”
“Yeah, I bet you tried real hard.”
Vero didn’t answer. Something had caught his attention. Clover followed his gaze. Vero was staring at her drawing of the mountain with the forest below—the one from her dream that she had shown him a few weeks ago. Only now, the image was much more detailed and vivid.
“What?” Clover asked.
“You’re still working on this drawing.”
“Yeah, I can’t shake it,” Clover said. “I keep seeing it. It has to mean something.”
“What’s this triangle?” Vero asked, pointing to a triangular shadow that cast over the valley.
“It’s the mountain’s shadow,” Clover said.
“Except the mountain is shaped more like a cone. It shouldn’t cast a perfectly triangular shadow like that.”
Clover shrugged. “It’s what I see.”
“Well, I’ve learned some things about the Book of Raziel,” Vero said with a pause. “This book isn’t like any book you’ve ever read . . . It’s an actual gem. And it’s somewhere near the entrance to the garden of Eden,” Vero told her.
“This”—Clover held up the drawing—“has to be it. I’m telling you, I feel real strongly about it.”
“Maybe, but where is this?” Vero said, feeling his frustration grow the more closely he studied her drawing. “There are tons of places on earth that have jungles and mountains. We’ll never figure it out from this. It’s impossible,” Vero said, totally exasperated.
“Clover,” Dennis said, walking into the room. “Mom said now for the dishes.”
Dennis glanced down at the drawing.
“Beautiful drawing of Sri Pada,” he sai
d, then turned and walked out.
Clover and Vero looked to one another, astonished.
12
FLYING COACH
It makes perfect sense,” Vero told Clover as they sat in front of the big computer screen in the downstairs study.
“It seems like too much of a coincidence,” Clover said as she clicked the mouse.
“It is!” Vero said. “That’s why it can’t be a coincidence. There are forces at work here.”
Vero looked at the image of the majestic mountain of Sri Pada on the screen.
“A holy site for many different religions . . .” Vero read. “In the country of Sri Lanka.”
“You’re right,” Clover said. “Dad’s been working on the Sri Lanka project for over a year. It’s no coincidence.”
“The mountain is located in the Central Highlands of the island nation. It’s surrounded by forested hills below, and is home to a wildlife preserve of many species including panthers, Sambar deer, and elephants,” Vero read.
Clover pointed to the black panther and Sambar deer in her drawing. Vero nodded then turned his eyes back to the bright computer screen.
“The mountain soars upwards to almost 7,360 feet. Half of the year, it’s shrouded in cloud cover. At certain times of the year, torrential rain runs down the sides, which over time has eroded away the hillside and exposed some of the richest gem mining in the world.”
“The book is a gem!” Clover said with awe.
Vero nodded.
“But why is it a religious site?” Clover asked.
“I don’t know,” Vero said, his eyes scanning the screen.
“It says more than three million pilgrims travel yearly to the mountain,” Clover said. “Including Hindus, Buddhists, Muslims, and Christians . . .”
As he read, Vero’s eyes went wide. “Sri Pada. It means ‘sacred footprint.’ There’s a rock formation near the summit, which bears a huge imprint in the shape of a foot. Many Buddhists say it belongs to Buddha. Some Hindus say it’s Lord Shiva’s, and many Muslims and Christians believe it’s Adam’s first footprint on earth after he was exiled from the garden of Eden.”
“Sri Pada is so beautiful that Adam stepped there to make his transition from the garden of Eden less painful,” Clover read. She turned to Vero. “Everything points to Sri Pada. It’s where you need to go! I’m sure of it!”
Vero nodded. “I think so too.”
“So now what will you do?” Clover asked.
“I have to get there,” Vero said with determination.
“Can you just fly there?”
“I wish,” Vero said, shaking his head. “The book is on earth, not in the Ether, so I have to figure out a way to get to Sri Lanka.”
“Maybe if Dad goes, you can go with him. You’ll just have to convince him.”
“Is he going for sure?”
“He was talking about it,” Clover answered. “You’ve got to get him to take you.”
Vero was thinking. How could he get his dad to bring him along? The trip would be expensive, plus he doubted his dad would allow him to miss school just because Vero wanted to travel out of the country for no reason.
“Dad! Come here!” Clover yelled. “Dad!”
“What are you doing?” Vero panicked.
“Just ask. What if he says yes?”
“What?” Dennis yelled from down the hall.
“Can you come here? Vero wants to ask you something!” Clover yelled.
“Tell him to come here! I’m busy! And the dishes are still waiting for you!” Dennis shouted.
“Go,” Clover said to Vero. “I’ll help.”
Clover stood and grabbed Vero’s arm, pulling him up out of the chair. They walked down the hall to the family room. Dennis was reading a book while Nora was watching television. Vero glanced at the television. It was a cooking show. His mom was always looking for new recipes to try.
“What is it?” Dennis asked, looking up from his book.
“Um, it’s well . . .” Vero stammered.
“Vero wants you to take him with you to Sri Lanka,” Clover blurted out.
“You do?” Dennis looked surprised.
“Um, yeah. I’ve always wanted to go there.”
“Well, he’s certainly not going to go before I do,” Nora said, hitting the mute button on the remote.
“Since when did you become interested?” Dennis asked Vero.
“Last year, when I had to do a report on it for Social Studies.”
“I remember that report,” Dennis said with suspicion in his voice. “It was the one you wanted me to write for you because you were bored with it.”
“No, that’s all Vero talks to me about. How fascinating he found that country,” Clover said a little too quickly.
“I think someone just wants to skip a week of school.” Dennis smiled to Vero.
“Oh, so you’re going?” Nora asked Dennis.
“Not a hundred percent confirmed, but it looks like the week after next.”
“That’s perfect!” Vero shouted. “That’s winter break, so I won’t miss any school!”
“Vero, you’re not going,” Dennis said. “If I could take anyone, it would be your mom.”
“Then we’ll all have to go,” Clover said. “We’ll make it a family vacation.”
“Yeah!” Vero said excitedly.
“Guys,” Dennis said. “Calm down—you’re getting yourselves all worked up here. Tickets to Sri Lanka cost an arm and a leg . . .”
“I’ll chip in,” Vero said.
“Me too,” Clover said. “I have a couple hundred bucks saved.”
“Look, I love the idea of all of us getting away to some faraway, exotic land, but sorry, it’s just not going to happen,” Dennis said.
“Oh, I just remembered,” Nora said. “Mary called me yesterday and asked if we could take Tack for that week. They have to go to visit Marty’s mom. They’re moving her to an assisted living facility and selling her house.”
“Well, that ends it. Sorry, guys, it’s a no,” Dennis said. “But I’ll be sure to send you a postcard, and take lots of videos on my phone.”
Clover exchanged a look with Vero. This hadn’t gone exactly as they had planned. Vero walked back to the study and Clover followed. Once inside, she shut the door behind them.
“What are you doing?” Clover asked as Vero sat in front of the desktop.
Vero typed on the keyboard, an idea growing in his mind. Clover sat next to him. She stared at the screen.
“You’re searching for flights to Sri Lanka?”
“Yeah.”
“They’re nine hundred and fourteen dollars!” Clover said. “Dad’s never gonna pay that for all of us.”
“No, he won’t.” Vero sighed.
“We have college savings accounts,” Clover said. “Maybe we could take the money from there?”
“They won’t do it,” Vero said with frustration.
“I’ll keep working on Dad,” Clover said. “It’s meant to be. I’ve got a feeling on this one. I’ll convince him.”
Vero didn’t answer. His mind was elsewhere.
That night, Vero tiptoed down the hall to his parents’ bedroom. He poked his head into the room. His mom lay fast asleep with her eye mask around her head—she always needed the room to be completely dark to fall asleep each night. His dad was on his back, snoring loudly. Vero often wondered why his mother chose an eye mask rather than earplugs. Some nights he could hear his dad snoring all the way to his room.
Vero gingerly walked back, careful not to wake anyone. He stood at the base of his bed. Last year, when he was terrified for Clover’s safety, he got himself so worked up that he produ
ced a heart attack, which caused him to transition to the Ether. Raphael had told Vero that he had actually willed himself to the Ether. So if he could do it once, Vero reasoned he could do it again. He closed his eyes and had one single thought—to get to the Ether. He desperately wanted to go there. He needed to find two angels in particular. The thought consumed him. He felt pain in his chest and grabbed over that area, then collapsed on his bed, his head hanging over the side.
Vero removed his hand from his chest and he looked around him—green stalks met his eyes in every direction. He was lying in a field of sunflowers. He stood up and screamed— the angels Leo and Karael, his parents’ guardian angels, stood before him.
“Well, you called us,” Leo said defensively.
“Oh, yeah, I did,” Vero said, slapping his hand to his head in an attempt to recover from the jarring transition.
“When you’re a full-fledged guardian, you’ll no longer feel the transition,” Karael told Vero. “It gets much easier.”
“What do you need, Vero?” Leo asked.
“I have a pretty good idea where the entrance to the garden of Eden is,” Vero said.
“You do?” Leo asked, surprised.
“Sri Lanka,” Vero said.
Karael looked to Leo. Vero could tell they were speaking mind to mind. He picked up on snippets of their conversation.
“Yes, my dad’s going there,” Vero said.
“You can read minds?” Leo asked Vero.
Vero nodded. “A bit. Look, I’m here because I need you to convince him to take me with him to Sri Lanka.” Vero looked to Karael. “And convince my mom too. If she puts pressure on him, he’ll take me.”
“We can’t just do that,” Leo said. “It has to be approved.”
“What do you mean?” Vero said, the panic rising in his voice.
“Well, of course we need to confirm that it’s God’s will,” Leo said.
“But I need to go there! It’s what I must do! You promised to help me!” Vero pleaded.
“And we will, Vero,” Karael said. “If God allows us.”
The Dragon's Descent Page 12