by Lynn Moon
“That’s great, Martha. Thank you. I hope that’s all that’s going on right now.”
“No sir.”
Lewis cleared his throat before speaking. “You called me sir which can only mean it isn’t good.”
“I’m afraid not. We’ve lost contact with Carrie and Lacey.”
“What do you mean lost contact?”
“We cannot reach them by cell or radio, nor do they show up on the scope. It’s as though they fell through a hole in the Earth or something.”
“Martha,” Lewis scolded. “People do not fall into a hole and disappear. I want to know as soon as anyone finds anything. Understand?”
“Jeff,” Greghardt said.
“Don’t Jeff me,” Lewis argued. “I know it’s not my fault. But damn it. I sent them on this mission and I didn’t think it through first.”
“Jeff!” Strickland shouted. “I think you should hear this.”
The three stared at the television as the news caster discussed the latest developments.
“… the seventh woman this year to suddenly wake up and find herself in a courtroom with no idea as to how she got there or why, Meredith Creeten, collapsed shortly after screaming out in shock. Her lawyer, Justin Monish, moved for a continuance in lieu of the recent developments. The judge has asked for a psychological examination before the case continues and …”
“My God, it’s happening again,” Lewis exclaimed.
“How can this be?” Strickland asked. “What’s going on?”
“We need to get a full scale investigation going right away,” Greghardt added.
“I thought I already did that,” Lewis said.
“I canceled it,” Greghardt replied.
“You what?” Strickland and Lewis yelled at the same time.
“… I’m Jackie Peters coming to you live from…”
* * * * * *
Constable Fahey stood in front of the castle wondering what would be the best course of action. He knew Dr. Nestle was not someone a person played with or challenged. Nestle was a dangerous man with a long list of powerful associates. But the longer he waited, the more Fahey knew something terrible would happen. He took in a deep breath before climbing the stairs and opening the door.
He entered the lobby of the Stonefield Castle Hotel only to be greeted by men he did not recognize. Each nodded his head as Fahey walked past. Fahey calculated there were about sixty. Some wore military uniforms and others plain suits. Fahey noticed the bar out of the corner of his eye and decided a stiff drink would be good about now.
With glass in hand, he turned to study each person. No one spoke, each seemed to be engulfed in his own private world.
Damn strange. Then he saw him. Dr. Nestle stood only a few feet away staring at him with his dark and intent eyes. As the doctor walked toward him, Fahey gulped down the rest of his drink.
“Good day to you, Doc,” Fahey said.
“What may we help you with, Constable?”
“Nothing,” Fahey responded turning to the bartender. “I just came for a drink.”
“Long way to come for a short glass of ice and liquor, Constable.”
“Perhaps,” Fahey replied taking a sip. “But I like the drinks here. They’re better than anywhere else.”
The men stared at each other for a few minutes before Fahey added, “Another Bones affair I suppose, obvious as to the way no one mingles with anyone else.”
“What do you want, Constable?” Nestle asked. “This is our annual conference. We have one every year, as you well know. So what do you want?”
“As I said, a drink.”
Nestle glanced around. He loosened his tie and adjusted his slacks. “I see. Very well then.”
Fahey watched as Nestle became lost in the crowd. Then as if they were never there, the men disappeared, one by one, through various hallways and doors. When Fahey finished his drink, the lobby was empty of everyone except him and the bartender.
* * * * * *
Nestle paced the floor pounding his fist into his hand. The situation was out of control and if things didn’t calm down soon, the organization would be in jeopardy. What wasn’t adding up was the general. She concerned him. Why would a volunteer act so standoffish and confused? Then there was the Constable who would not stop snooping around. What was he searching for, it couldn’t be the general. She agreed to be here. Pacing the floor, his temper rose and his heart pounded. His head ached. The decision of what to do about Geeshmore kept nagging at him and he would have to make a decision soon. A knock at the door woke Nestle from his thoughts.
“Yes?”
“Sir, it’s me,” a voice echoed back.
“Enter,” Nestle replied.
A young man entered wearing a concerned expression. They stood and stared each other before either spoke.
“Sir, I’ve been asked to speak with you about some of the problems plaguing us recently. Perhaps you would like to join us downstairs so we can talk as a group.”
Nestle nodded. “Let’s get Spangleholtz and Geeshmore on a conference call, they’ll have a few words to add.”
The young boy bowed slightly then left. Nestle walked to the window and peered out. His emotions were running wild. He watched as a flock of birds flew past. The waters were calm and the air clear. It was a beautiful day outside, but inside it was storming.
“I’ll be damned,” he whispered, “if I will allow anyone to break down this society. We have not been around for as long as we have for nothing.”
Chapter 69
“EARLY!” DRAKE YELLED running into her hospital room. “I found them.”
“Found who,” she asked sitting up in bed.
“Feeling better?”
“Found who? And yes I am, thank you,” Early replied.
“I found the doctors who handled your daughters’ eggs.”
“Really? I could have told you who they were.”
“No no, you don’t understand,” Drake interrupted. “The building was destroyed in a fire. But we’ve track the doctors down.”
“A fire? Where? When?”
“A few days after you were arrested,” Drake continued but was interrupted again.
“What are you talking about?”
“The clinic, it was destroyed in a fire,” Drake declared.
“And what does that have to do with helping me?”
“Oh Early, sweetie, we have to bring you up to speed,” Drake said.
“Okay, explain.”
“The clinic where you were impregnated wasn’t a real clinic. In fact, there’s no record of a clinic ever being there.”
“But…”
“Just listen. I figured someone had to have rented it so we searched and found the owner. The owner didn’t want to talk at first. But the more we pushed and paid, the more he did. We found them sweetheart, we found them.”
“And?”
“Listen to this. We tracked the doctors to a hospital in Washington, and not just any hospital either. It’s a research facility.” Drake glanced down the page he held in his hands. “Ummm, here it is… Barker Institute. It’s located in the mountains, not easily accessible either.”
“And that means?”
“It means you were set up,” Drake surmised, “somehow.”
“How in the world do you connect me to that facility?”
“Don’t you get it?” Drake asked. “Why would a research facility in Washington set up an invetro-fertilization facility in New York? Now all I have to do is connect your husband to this facility, no wait, that other lady… darn what was her name, Sterling… Stalling… Starling…”
“Marty Starling?” Early asked.
Drake stopped reading his paper and stared into Early’s eyes. “I’ve got to go. If I can somehow connect Ms. Starling and your husband to that clinic.”
Early watched Drake dash out of her room. She rolled her eyes and laid her head on her pillow. What was left of her life was becoming more and more complicated every day.
* * * * * *
“You may see your daughter now,” the nurse whispered to Marty who’d fallen asleep. “I’ll stay here and watch your girls if you’d like.”
“May I take them with me?” Marty asked, not wanting to be away from them.
“Yes, of course.”
Marty towed her little ones behind her as she entered her sick daughter’s room. Tubes and wires were hooked into Lizzie on just about every place of her little body.
“Oh my,” Marty exclaimed.
“It isn’t as bad as it looks,” Spangleholtz said from a corner in Lizzie’s room. “She’s going to be fine.”
“What’s wrong with her?” Marty almost cried.
“She has a streptococcus germ, that’s all.”
“Is she contagious?” Marty asked concerned for the welfare of her other girls. “I mean, I don’t want…”
“No, she isn’t contagious,” he answered. “But when she’s well, we need to talk. It’s time you fully understand everything about your daughter.”
Marty stared at the man with a quizzical look. She already knew everything she needed to know about her daughter. Whatever could this man be talking about?
Chapter 70
THE DOOR WAS not easy to open. It was sealed tight by the corrosion of time. Carrie needed some things from her backpack, but unfortunately it was way above her head and out of her reach. It’d been a long week and she was ready for it to be over—although she did thrive on adventures, this was getting ridiculous.
“Now what?” Lacey asked.
“Need to find the key,” Carrie surmised.
“Excuse me? A key, you want to find a key? Are you insane?”
“I’ve been told I am,” Carrie replied searching the massive room.
Lacey rubbed her face with the back of her hands and sighed. It didn’t take long before Carrie returned with various bottles along with some other strange objects.
“Like I said, I needed to find the key. Now, help me please.”
“What are we doing?”
Carrie handed Lacey a bottle. “We have to unlock this door. I found some acid and other things to use. If we drip this stuff around the frame it’ll eat through the corrosion. Then I can freeze the lock with this dry ice stuff. The metal should shatter. Like I said, a key.”
The girls worked carefully dripping the acid around the door frame. Carrie’s feet were planted firmly on a solid metal chair placed near the door. Large rubber gloves protected her hands and lower arms, and a long metal tongue held the glass container housing the acid. Lacey stood on another chair wearing the same type of gloves and dripping the same type of acid. As they talked, they worked, which helped to make the time pass faster.
Not once did they discuss their situation or what would happen if they couldn’t find a way out. They shared stories about their lives and their past experiences. Lacey finally told Carrie about her time in South America and what she could remember. Although her memory was vague and spotty, the feelings of what she experienced were still very vivid in her mind. Through their hours of work, Carrie admired Lacey for talking about herself, the things that made Lacey, Lacey. Not often did people speak so freely around her. It never occurred to Carrie that perhaps she wasn’t the only person who had a sad beginning in life. Carrie told Lacey about her drunken father. She explained how her mother died giving birth to her and her father never forgave Carrie for killing his wife. Living with a drunk left a bruise on Carrie’s soul she knew would never completely heal.
Those few hours together brought Carrie and Lacey to a closeness that frightened and enlightened them. Both girls grew not only in spirit but in a knowledge about life that day.
* * * * * *
Lacey giggled as the old metal door creaked open. It took all their strength along with a metal rod, but the door slowly gave way. The area beyond was dark and damp, and held a musty odor.
“Okay, are you ready?” Carrie asked.
Lacey nodded.
“Don’t touch the door,” Carrie cautioned. “There’s still acid on it.”
Together they cautiously entered the dark hallway.
“Do you have a gun?” Lacey asked.
“Yes,” Carrie answered. “And you?”
“Yes.”
As they walked, they scanned the hallway the best they could with the dim flashlights.
“Wait,” Carrie said squatting to the floor.
“What?”
“I play video games and unless you make a map of where you are and where you’ve been, you can get lost real fast.” Carrie pulled out a pencil and paper from her shirt pocket and scribble out a rough map.
“Where’d those come from?” Lacey asked.
“Found them in an old desk.”
Carrie drew a round circle to indicate the room they just left, she then added the hallway where they now stood. “I don’t know which way is north, but I believe we’re headed deeper into the mountain. So I must conclude we’re walking west. Anytime we make a turn or go up or down, we must remember to add it to this map. Okay?”
“Okay,” Lacey replied. “Perhaps I should make one too?”
“No, too confusing,” Carrie said shoving the paper into her shirt. “Let’s go.”
They walked down the hall encased in a strange smooth surface. It reflected their lights and reminded Carrie of a metallic substance. But she couldn’t tell for sure what it was made of. They reached the end of the hall, and had to decide to go either right or left.
“Now what?” Lacey asked.
“You pick,” Carrie replied.
“Umm, left,” Lacey answered.
“Okay, left it is.”
But left only took them to a dead-end with small rooms on both sides. One room was a closet for brooms and mops. The other was a restroom for both men and women.
“Yah gotta go?” Carrie asked.
“Actually, yes,” Lacey answered. “I wonder if it works.”
Carrie pushed on the handle and the toilet flushed. “Well, there’s water.”
“Okay, you keep watch for me and I’ll keep watch for you.”
“If I wasn’t so hungry,” Carrie began, “I’d recommend we just sleep here tonight. But we need to find something to eat.”
“Food would be good about now,” Lacey said as she shut the door behind her.
* * * * * *
The corridor seemed endless as the two walked down the metallic hall. Echoes from their footsteps muffled as they came to the end. A large door blocked their way to either freedom into the fresh mountain air, or their death… a dead end.
“Now what?” Lacey asked.
“We try the door.”
“Oh like it’s just going to open?” Lacey asked.
But as Carrie turned the knob and pushed, the door opened and fresh cool air swirled passed. Beams from their flashlights danced into the room as they scanned the area for hidden dangers.
“So far so good,” Carrie whispered.
“Where are we?” Lacey asked.
“Not real sure.”
The door shut behind them when they walked in. The sound echoed loudly for a few seconds and made both girls cringe. Frozen in place, they waited for someone, or something to jump out of the darkness and attack. But only silence greeted them.
“Something’s off,” Carrie whispered.
“I know,” Lacey said. “I feel like we’re being watched.”
The room was big, but not as large as the laboratory. Instead of a tile floor, this room was carpeted. From the dim light, Carrie could tell the place was clean and tidy. Several couches lined the walls and small tables with chairs sat in the middle. At the far end, which was only about twenty feet away, Carrie could make out what appeared to be a kitchenette.
“Some kind of a conference room?” Carrie whispered.
“Maybe,” Lacey answered.
Standing side to side, the girls examined the room. Several doors on both sides led to places unknown. They stood a
nd listened for whatever would attack them.
“Did you hear that?” Lacey whispered.
“Yes,” Carrie replied. “Sounds like heavy breathing.”
“I don’t think we’re alone,” Lacey whispered through her tears.
Chapter 71
CHARLOTTE STOOD IN awe in front of the man and woman smiling down at her. The small-framed house was not what she was used to. The modest living room would only sit about six and was miniature in comparison to the large room with the two carved lion heads. The house was a single story, and Charlotte was used to many floors.
“Charlotte,” the woman said. “What a pretty name. I’m your grandmother.”
“Hello.”
“Charlie told us all about you and I’ve so wanted to meet you.” The woman spoke with such a smooth and wonderful voice it gave Charlotte a warm and secure feeling.
“I don’t understand,” Charlotte said with a frown.
Charlie handed a picture to Charlotte and explained who everyone was and how she was related to them.
“So my mother was your daughter?” Charlotte asked.
“Yes that’s correct,” the woman replied.
“And she’s dead?”
“Yes, I’m afraid so,” the woman added.
“How?”
“Well,” the woman said, holding out her arms, but Charlotte didn’t want to go to her. “You see, not all people are good. Your mother and father volunteered to have their children in a special way. They wanted the perfect child, the smartest and the prettiest. I wasn’t for it, but I couldn’t talk them out of it. Their minds were set. Their doctors were bad people. I never saw my daughter again once she checked herself into that clinic. We moved here fourteen years ago to be close to her. We just couldn’t say goodbye. Then one day Charlie found us. He’d sneak out of the compound from time to time to explore. After a while we became friends. One night he broke into a file room and stole his records. That was when we discovered he was our grandson. He was five at the time. Later we learned of you and your sisters. Charlie ran away from that place and has lived here ever since. I asked Charlie to leave you alone, unless you needed us. But when he told us about your ability to fly we knew you’d no longer be safe. So, here you are.”