“No problem, love.”
They rented a skycar using money from Nate’s account. The sparkly purple vehicle had all the modern conveniences. Plush seats, hi-tech sound system, state-of-the-art computers. Shauna flew while Mike scanned the passenger-side monitor for green and whites. Within ten minutes they were descending through a mountain pass. Four peaks, two on either side proudly showed their coat of white. Dots of skiers moved down the slopes. They looked like ants trailing through a film of salt.
“Skycar 101,230, turn right. You’re in our sights. Cleared to land,” a male voice said.
“Roger. Skycar 101,230 landing.” Shauna plugged in the coordinates and the skycar arrowed downward. Within five minutes they saw a landing zone ahead. Once the skylane was cleared of any other skycars they landed the craft and shut down the engines.
A lone figure strolled toward them. Mike helped Shauna out of the vehicle. “Welcome to our new headquarters,” Douglas Wentworth said. He hugged Shauna tightly and clasped hands with Mike. “Glad you’re well. Let’s get going.”
They crossed the empty landing zone and headed toward the base of a mountain. Shauna didn’t see anything that would indicate buildings or accommodations of any kind. “Dad? Where’s headquarters?”
His bushy eyebrows raised and his eyes lit with humor. “You’ll see.”
Mike wrapped an arm around Shauna’s shoulders and they walked side by side. “Your father’s full of mystery today. He loves it.”
Shauna laughed. “Yes, he does. He’s always been a sucker for a good puzzle.”
They neared the base of the mountain and saw the faint outlines of buildings. As they approached Shauna gasped. “My, God, Dad. This is amazing.” A whole city, much like the one in the Rockies, spread out before them. Each building was covered with white but it wasn’t snow. They blended so perfectly with the surrounding landscape that no one could see it from the air or the ground until they were very close.
“Wow. I’m impressed, Doug,” Mike murmured.
Puffed up, head tall, his arms swinging easily at his side, Douglas said, “This is your brother’s brainstorm, Shauna. George found a material that could bend reflections and take on the surrounding countryside. If we were in a pasture, the buildings would be green. In the summer the buildings here are brown to blend in with the mountains. Come.” He waved them through a door into the building. “George also perfected invisi-shields for buildings so we have double protection this time. Lucky for us he took time off from reporting to put his degree in science and engineering to good use. Otherwise I would have felt I’d wasted my money on his education. I think he’s finally got his wanderlust under control,” Douglas laughed.
Before Shauna could say anything a large man threw himself at her. Mike took a step forward to protect her but stopped when he heard her cry of delight. “George!”
The young man was an Adonis. Bright, intense blue eyes sparkled with animation. Blond, short straight hair covered his head. He had a perfect Roman-style nose, a cleft chin and the same larger lower lip that Shauna had. “Hey, sis. Missed ya.”
“Oh, I missed you too, brother.” Tears freely flowed down Shauna’s cheeks. She hugged him for a very long time. “Where have you been?”
“Traveling the world for Mom and Dad. And working on my invention. Like it?”
“Love it, George. The invisi-shield is great but the composite material that reflects the surroundings is brilliant.” George took a bow. “Not modest I see,” Shauna laughed. She saw his eyes stray to her left. “George, this is Mike Forrester. Mike, my brother George.”
Mike stuck out his hand. George took it but held fast. The two men stared at each other for some time. Shauna saw assessing looks pass between them and worried that her brother and her fiancé wouldn’t like each other. Finally George said, “Welcome to the family. I’ve heard a lot about you from Mom and Dad. Seems they like you quite a bit. So, when’s the wedding?”
“George!” Shauna’s hands flew to her mouth.
“Look, sis. This guy wouldn’t be here if Mom and Dad didn’t approve. He wouldn’t be a Subversive after so short a time, either.”
Shauna’s mouth opened and closed. It unnerved her to know her parents planned on her marrying Mike.
“Since everyone’s here I might as well do it properly,” Mike said. “Mr. and Mrs. Wentworth, George. I love Shauna with all my heart and soul.” Mike turned to Shauna and took her hand. He held it to his heart for a minute then dropped to one knee.
Shauna sucked in her breath as tears trailed down her cheeks.
“Shauna Wentworth, will you do me the great honor of becoming my wife?”
A second didn’t pass. She almost didn’t let him finish the sentence. “Yes!” Shauna launched into Mike’s arms. He’d barely had enough time to stand as he secured her legs around his waist and kissed her deeply.
A not too discreet cough broke them apart. “We haven’t given you our approval,” Douglas said in a stern voice.
“Dad,” Shauna warned. “You wouldn’t…”
Douglas and Louise glanced at each other and then at their son. George shrugged his shoulders. Shauna slipped off of Mike, turned and put her fists on her hips. “Dad?”
“You’re right,” he laughed. “I wouldn’t. I couldn’t help it.” Taking his wife’s hand in his, Douglas said, “You have our approval to marry our daughter.”
* * * * *
Mike settled back in a chair. “So what have you found out since we disappeared?”
Louise made a pot of coffee. “You were chased by the guardians after Shauna hacked into their system. Even records that were ancient set off alarms in their four buildings. I imagine they were a bit frantic. I would have loved to have seen that,” she said wistfully. Louise poured five cups of coffee and handed them out. “Grab your cream and sugar.”
Douglas took up where Louise left off. “It seems that in the old days—say, your time Mike—the organizers of The Society were clever and devious enough to set codes into their computers. If certain words or phrases were accessed the computers would send out red flag warnings to other Society members. Of course, there were a select few members. The fathers of The Society passed their secret down through sons—no daughters—”
“The chauvinistic jerks,” Shauna mumbled.
“Well, er, yes,” Douglas said. “Be that as it may, they also recruited only their best friends or someone very high-powered.” Douglas sipped his coffee. “The recruitment process was long. Backgrounds were checked. The leaders of The Society were a ruthless group of men. They searched—and found—the deepest, darkest secrets the men were hiding. Anything that would cause a scandal qualified as long as it would ruin the man’s life. A harsh group, the few leaders of The Society were no friends of their so-called friends. And to be an enemy of them meant certain death. No one learned about The Society who wasn’t a member. If you did, you died.”
“So,” Louise said, “when you were hacking you hit a phrase or document that had been flagged. The Guardians came after you and you escaped.” She put her empty cup of coffee on the table. “Where did you escape to, by the way?”
Mike chimed in. “To 2004.”
Silence filled the room. Then almost in unison everyone said, “What?”
Grinning from ear to ear, Shauna stepped up and took a bow.
“I see you’re as modest as I am, dear sister,” George laughed.
“My God, Shauna,” her mother said. “That was brilliant. But how did you do that?”
Shauna moved to her mother and gave her a hug. “One of your Global Guardian recruits helped us. A young kid. He stuck my time travel device in a medical kit, got us a skycar and voilà! 2004.”
“Did he know what it was?” Louise asked.
“No, he couldn’t have. He probably thought nothing of it except that the Guardians had taken it from me and I’d want it back. He saved our lives.”
“Do you know who he is?” her father asked.
&nbs
p; “No. But if I ever see him, I’ll thank him for saving us.”
“One day, dear sister,” George said, “I’d like you to tell me about 2004.” He turned to Mike. “This must be so strange, sitting here in your future.”
“I’m getting used to it.” Mike grinned at Shauna. “But I was thrilled to be home for a short while. I had the opportunity to tell my brother what I’ve been doing lately.”
“Did he believe you?” Douglas asked.
“Not at first,” Mike said. “But Shauna persuaded him with her travel device. The strange thing was that I’d left on December 21, 2004 and returned on December 23, two days later. I’d been gone for almost three months but to Scott, my brother, I’d only been gone two days.”
“I have to work out that problem,” Shauna said. “I want to figure out how to come back months later, if the traveler wants that. He or she should be able to come back an hour later or a year later. But that’s for me to figure out at another time.”
“So,” Douglas said standing. “We have our research compiled. We have proof the CEOs have manipulated the world to their advantage and the Global Guardians are no more than an organization of hired thugs to hide their century-long secret.”
“What do we do with it, Douglas?” Mike asked.
“Now we leak it to the unsuspecting public,” Douglas said.
Chapter Fourteen
Like a worm slithering its way slowly across the pavement after a rain, news leaked out over the worldnet that the Fearsome Foursome was corrupt. A blog here, a website there. The word spread like peanut butter. Within twenty-four hours a slight rumbling was seen on the pages of the most anti-Fearsome Foursome sites. Sites that weren’t monitored much due to lack of interest.
But the worm kept inching its way across the worldnet. Three days later a notice crossed the desk of a little-known secretary down in the offices of Robert Cranston’s Circle Planet Com. “Hey, Shirley, did you see this?” Margie Simmons asked her friend.
“See what?” Shirley typed furiously over her holographic keyboard. “I’m swamped.”
“There’s a tiny notice here that the CEOs are hiding a secret from the world.” Margie printed out the one-line report and handed it across the desk to Shirley.
Shirley glanced at it, then back to her keyboard. “So?”
“Did you read it, Shirl?”
“Don’t have time. Shred it.”
“I think this can be important,” Margie said. “Should I send it up to Cranston’s assistant?”
Shirley glanced sharply at Margie. “Are you nuts? Send the old codger bad news and you’re fired. Fired from here is fired from everywhere, remember?”
Margie jumped up from her chair. “I know, Shirl but this could be important.”
“It’s your suicide,” Shirley said. She typed faster.
Margie stared at the sentence. She paced the room. She read it again to herself. “For over one hundred years the CEOs have hidden a secret from the world that will change the course of history.”
“I wonder what that means.”
Margie sat down, gave the one-line sentence another long glance then tossed it on her desk.
* * * * *
“Anything?” Shauna asked.
“No. No uprisings, no rumbles, no squeaks. Give it time,” her mother answered.
Three days had passed since the sentence had been inserted into a little-known website. Shauna had searched for just the right group of anti-CEO enthusiasts. This group was so off-the-charts rebellious that they knew no one would pay much attention to them.
“Why’d you choose this group?” Mike asked. He sat at a table punching keys on an ancient keyboard from his day. The clicking filled the quiet room. “They’re a bunch of radical fanatics and nobody listens to what they say.”
“For just that reason,” Shauna said. “We’re starting low and slow. When the news blows and it certainly will, we don’t want the Fearsome Foursome to be able to trace it back to us. It’s our safety net, of sorts.”
“Poor suckers,” Mike murmured. He clacked away on the keyboard. “You’re setting them up for prison sentences.”
“That would be the best for them. They’re the type that blow up buildings with no concern about the innocent people inside them. I hate people like that.” Shauna slammed her hand on the table next to her. The loud ringing startled the other Subversives in the room, including her parents.
“Something wrong, daughter?” Douglas asked in a mild tone of voice.
“No, Pops, not really. Mike and I were talking about the radical underground group we chose to start getting the message out.”
“Ah. You told him your feelings on the matter of innocent lives, I see.” Douglas grinned at his daughter. “You’ve always been a sucker for the underdog or those unaware.”
“Yeah.” Shauna turned back to her keyboard. “Well…I need to research more. I need two more sites like that one to start moving the word faster.”
Mike came over to Shauna. He leaned over and hugged her. “I love that you feel so strongly about protecting innocent people. You’re a good, kind woman, Shauna and I’m proud of you.”
Warmth flooded her. Shauna knew that everyone in the room heard Mike’s statement. She glanced at her mother who sat across the table from her and saw a soft, loving expression on her face. “Don’t let it get out of this room. I have a reputation to uphold,” she said.
Mike laughed. He kissed the top of her head. “I’m feeling cooped up. May I take a skycar for a spin? We could use some aerial reconnaissance, don’t you think?” he asked Douglas.
“The shields are up and working, Mike,” Douglas said. The computers haven’t detected any hint of a Guardian for weeks. We’re safe. But if you need to clear your head, be my guest. Just remember to use the invisi-shield, keep the electronics on our secret frequency and don’t fly too far from here. Whatever you do, don’t go into any traffic lanes.”
“Mike, don’t go, it’s too dangerous,” Shauna said. A feeling of panic rushed through her so fast it caught her unaware.
“Sweetheart, I’ve done what I can for now. I’m tired of staring at a computer. I’ll be safe, I promise you.”
“But you’re still new to flying. Anything can happen.”
“It’s as safe as walking, you told me that yourself.” Mike kissed her bottom lip. “I love that lip.” He gave a cocky wave to her parents and the others in the room and strolled out into the crisp, cold morning air.
Shauna turned on her parents. “Why’d you let him go?”
“He needed to breathe, Shauna,” her mother said. “You can’t keep him cooped up here. He’s been going stir-crazy for a day or two. You’ve been too preoccupied to notice.”
The door opened letting a blast of frigid air into the room. Mike came back and said, “Just in case…is there some kind of personal tracking device I can wear or hide on me?”
“That’s it,” Shauna jumped up from her chair and stood in front of Mike. She poked him in the chest. “You’re not going anywhere. If you think something’s going to happen, then you can just take a long walk around the compound to clear your muddled head.”
Mike laughed and pulled Shauna to him. “I’m not planning on anything going wrong, love. But we’re working against the most powerful and corrupt men in the world. They won’t want to be toppled from their perch. When the crap hits the fan they’ll fight with a vengeance. That’s when hiding will be critical. And who knows how long we’ll have to hole up here? I just want some fresh air.”
Mollified, Shauna hugged Mike. “Well…okay. But if you get yourself in trouble know that when you do get back here, all hell’s going to break loose.”
“Yes, ma’am, Ms. Sergeant.” Mike gave Shauna a snappy salute.
“Come here boy,” Douglas said. “I have just the thing for you.” They walked to a storage unit at the other end of the room. Douglas pulled out a gun-shaped device, pointed it at Mike’s shoulder and pulled the trigger.
&nb
sp; “Ouch!” Mike rubbed the spot. “What was that?”
“I just inserted a chip in you,” Douglas said. “The secret code for The Subversives is encrypted inside. If anything happens and you’re captured by the Guardians any undercover Subversive will know how to contact us. Plus, it emits a constant signal. Now go clear your head.” Douglas slapped Mike on the still sore shoulder. He winced.
“Thanks.” He waved as he strode out of the room and rubbed his shoulder at the same time.
“Serves him right,” Shauna muttered. “He’d better not get lost.” She turned back to her computer but couldn’t concentrate. This was the first time Mike had left on his own. A nervous feeling skittered along her spine.
Shauna stared into space. The feeling grew, coalescing into dread. What if he didn’t come back? What if he was having second thoughts about helping her and her parents? Maybe he had regrets about getting involved with her.
Or was it a case of cold feet? Did he love her enough to marry her? Maybe he had realized that marrying her meant staying in his future without his brother.
What was she going to do? Shauna leaned back in her chair. She could vividly smell his scent, that musky, clean scent that attracted her to him so completely. She inhaled deeply then let out a long sigh.
“He’ll be back, darling,” her mother said. “Trust his love for you. It’s eternal.”
Shauna forced back tears of weakness. “How do you know, Mom?”
“It’s engraved on his face, stamped in his every move with you. He’ll be back.”
* * * * *
As Mike lifted off into the sky he felt all the tension drain away. For the last two days he’d felt as if a noose were tightening around his throat. He didn’t know why. He believed in the cause he was helping, loved the people and organization who would bring justice to this world.
But he missed home again. He missed Scott and for some reason he missed his father.
That’s what had been bothering him lately. His dad didn’t know where he was and didn’t seem to care. The old hurt raced through Mike as he flew a leisurely pattern over the compound. What would he think of him flying a skycar? Would he be proud? Probably not.
No Future Christmas Page 18