“Absolutely. You continue to impress me and I’m sure you’ll do just fine in the field.”
Behind the spot where Jack and John talked, a portal began to appear in the room. Alexie’s group soon walked through while making a large commotion. The reason for the exuberance was quickly identified, as Bridgett strolled through with a large morphacite container in hand.
“We also brought back some extra shards of morphacite that were surrounding the area,” said Butch, lowering a bag filled with the substance to the ground.
“Another successful hunt! Excellent work, everyone,” said John. “Have you heard from Marcel’s team yet?”
“They’re still coming up empty-handed so far,” said Alexie.
“Ah. Maybe I’ll send Jack along with them tomorrow to see if he can help them out.”
“Did you finally give him your seal of approval?” she said with a smirk.
“Yeah, he finally got around to it,” said Jack.
“Well I think Marcel would waste Jack’s talents. You should probably just add him to my group,” Alexie said to John, while also flashing a quick wink at Jack.
“Ha! I’m sure you’d like th—”
John’s screen began to chime, interrupting the conversation. He held up a finger as if to put the conversation on pause.
“Hello . . . are you sure?” he said with a concerned expression. “You need to be positive, are you positive? Tell me everything you know.”
Those in the room, noticing something was wrong, stopped talking with one another as a palpable feeling of uneasiness began to fill the air. John’s line of sight cycled between the Searchers and the floor as he listened with a troubled face. Another portal formed in the room, transporting Marcel, Garnet, and Ferra back to the facility.
“Hey, what the hell happened to my dartboard?” said Garnet, seeing it completely covered in sharp bits of morphacite. She soon took notice of the conspicuous uneasiness in the room and kept silent until John was finished with his call.
“Let me know if you find out any more about the situation. Whatever you do, be relentless and keep looking,” said John, ending the tense exchange.
“What is it, boss?” said Butch.
John gave a blank stare for a moment before forming the words he needed to say.
“Uh, Jack, you know how I told you I would look into why your mother hasn’t been answering her screens?”
“Y-yes,” he said, feeling a knot in his stomach and the blood rush out of his face.
“I sent two agents to make sure she was all right . . . and they couldn’t find her.”
“What! What do you mean? Is she missing? Track her screens or go to where she works. She’s got to be around somewhere,” he said, gesturing frantically as he talked.
“Jack, they’re going to keep looking. I promise you that. They’ve already tracked down every screen she’s connected to and looked everywhere. Her place of work hasn’t heard from her for a few weeks now. I wouldn’t start panicking yet, though. If anyone can find her, the agents I assigned to the case can. But, as of right now, your mother is nowhere to be found.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
ALWAYS ONE STEP BEHIND
“It’s my fault. I knew I shouldn’t have left her alone,” said Jack, placing his hands on the back of his head and running them through his hair as his anxiety escalated.
“That’s simply not true,” said John. “And you’d be a sitting duck if you stayed with her. It would have only been a matter of time before Mark—”
“Ah! Mark! Now I’m starting to see your train of thought; you think Mark came for her like he came for my father. It’s almost as if you knew her coming up missing was inevitable.”
“No, I wasn’t trying to say Mark is behind her disappearance.”
Jack thought about the pages of hidden material his father recorded in his notebooks that speculated on the possibility of Division 1042 being used for sinister intentions.
“It’s exactly what you were going to say. It was the easiest dot to connect, so the thought slipped out of your mouth fast enough to get past the always-on bullshit filter you usually send everything you tell us through,” said Jack.
The tension in the room continued to increase as the other Searchers remained silent.
“I will remind you, as I see you’re starting to forget, that I am your boss and you answer to me. Not the other way around. I want to be a friend and confidante to every member of the Searcher team, but I also occupy a position of respect within the division.”
“I respect you, John, I really do,” said Jack. “And I would say you’re a man of your word, wouldn’t you?”
John remained silent.
“I also know you gave me your word that my mom, Melissa, would be looked after, if I joined the division. Did you ever send anyone to check on her after I left for this facility? She’s been missing for how many weeks without your knowledge?”
“Jack, what’s happened is inexcusable and I will make sure we get down to the bottom of it. And I’m having to bear the load of a lot more than that right now. I need you to respectfully go somewhere else and cool off before I pull you from the coming missions to investigate some relic sites that were recently ransacked!”
Without response or hesitation, Jack backed away from the group and left the room to contemplate the troubled situation in which he found himself.
“I don’t think he needs to come with us,” said Marcel.
“Now you listen to me,” said John. “I don’t need to be Bridgett, Richard, or even Jack to read your idiotic mind. Whether you like it or not, he’s the most talented Searcher we currently have at this facility. You could barely form morphacite into basic shapes by the time you were three months into your training, while I just witnessed James’s son controlling at least a thousand small pieces at once. Get over whatever issues you have with him and start playing nice or I swear you’ll be sitting here with me and watching the video feed from the drones while your talents go to waste. Are you grasping what I’m saying?”
Marcel stared with an aggravated expression for a moment before he nodded and replied with a simple, “Sir.”
“Now everyone listen,” John began. “You just heard me mention something about relic sights being ransacked. I’m afraid it was done by Mark and his rogues. Unbeknownst to anyone else, I received word about them yesterday and asked Rakiten how we should proceed. I don’t want to send any of you to the sites the rogues looted, but I have direct orders from Rakiten and the founder to do so. The mission will begin once I do a little more prep work and gather as many security and patrol drones as I can to send with you.”
John made his way to the elevator as he furiously typed away on his screen to begin making the necessary arrangements for the Searchers. As everyone in the group began to disperse, Bridgett pulled Alexie to the side.
“You need to go talk with Jack.”
“He probably wants to be left alone right now,” said Alexie.
“Look, he was letting his mind go to some dark places and blamed himself for everything as he argued with John.”
“Geez, Bridgett, you read his mind while all that was going on?”
“Oh, don’t try and high-road me right now. You would have done the same thing if you could. It came in a bit fuzzy, but I know what I sensed. I mean, in full disclosure, I read both his mind and John’s mind.”
“Bridgett!”
“Whatever. I’m not ashamed of staying informed. Take my advice or leave it. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m in desperate need of a decent sandwich,” she said, turning around and walking toward the kitchen.
Alexie stood there for a moment with an unblinking expression before clinching her fists and letting out a sound of exasperation as she walked away.
The afternoon came and went. In the evening, Alexie made her way to the first floor’s common area to see who was around. She saw a few other teammates, but no sign of Jack anywhere.
“Hey, have you seen Ja
ck since this morning?” she said.
“I’m afraid not,” said Richard. “I think he’s secluded himself in his room all day.”
“Alexie, come here,” whispered Garnet, moving her index finger in a come-hither fashion.
“What is it?” she said, matching Garnet’s low volume.
“I was wandering past Jack’s door earlier today and thought I heard him crying in his room.”
“You just happened to be walking by?”
“Well, I might have been a bit nosey. I can’t be blamed if it’s in my nature, though,” said Garnet.
“You most certainly can be blamed for that, but thanks for letting me know,” said Alexie.
Resolving to find him, she made her way to Jack’s room. Once outside his closed door, she knocked to see if he was still secluded within.
“Hey, how are you doing?”
Her question went unanswered.
“Are you in there?”
There was still no response. She turned the knob and cracked the door to make sure she wasn’t talking to a vacant room, but saw Jack sitting quiet and motionless at the foot of his bed.
“There you are. I wasn’t sure you were in here, at first.”
“I thought I locked the door,” he said in a hushed tone, continuing to look down wanly at the floor.
“Look, I was going to leave you alone, but I’ve also come to a recent understanding that you may be the kind of person who would want someone to talk to and help you through some of the hard things you’re dealing with right now.”
“And you’re going to be that someone for me?” said Jack, using a tone that Alexie interpreted as sarcastic.
“I guess not,” she said, starting to exit the room.
“No, wait, I didn’t mean anything by that. Please don’t leave.”
She remained in the doorway with apprehension for a moment before closing it behind her and settling on the floor beside him.
“Thanks for checking on me,” said Jack, staring vacantly.
“I understand you want to remove yourself from the situation,” said Alexie, wrapping an arm around Jack, “but this is when you need to be strong. Your mother could very well be alive. If she’s captive somewhere, we need to focus on finding her.”
“I wouldn’t even know where to start looking . . . You know, I thought I’d always have more time with both of my parents.”
“We all think that, then they’re gone before we know what happened.” Alexie’s eyes began to glaze over with tears. “There’s no need to worry yet, though. Your mom could still be fine.” She wrapped her other arm around him and squeezed him tight, trying to comfort him the best she could.
“I hope she is, but I don’t think hoping will get me very far. And I’m sorry I’m not yet strong enough to feel like there’s still hope. After my father’s death, my mind’s having a hard time staying away from the worst scenario involving my mom’s disappearance,” said Jack.
“No, I . . . I understand where your head’s at with all this,” she said, looking at him with heavy eyes. The vulnerability Jack was willing to express made her feel like it was time to unveil more of her own life and allow him the chance to know her better.
“My mom and dad were both amazing. I received nothing but a constant stream of unconditional love and admiration from them. There were inevitable moments when I was an unruly teenager, but they let me find my own way through angst-filled years.”
“That reminds me a lot of how mine were as I grew up,” said Jack. “Do you still keep in contact with your parents?”
“I’d do anything to talk with them again, but they both passed several years ago . . . Do you remember when that old, resentful, hateful truck driver walked into the lobby of the ShuttleShell headquarters and detonated the homemade bomb he carried inside with him?”
“Yes,” he said, remembering the horrifying tragedy.
“That’s where my parents worked. They had both walked into the building only a handful of seconds before the terrorist came in. My dad used his body as a shield to try and protect my mom. He died instantly, along with more than thirty others. My mom was one of many who were knocked unconscious and sustained life-threatening injuries. She was rushed to the hospital, but I wasn’t able to make it there in time to see her before she passed.”
Alexie started to cry as she dredged up the memories of that terrible day. Jack held her tight, trying to show sympathy and appreciation for her willingness to share the heartbreaking story. He never realized how much she truly understood what he was going through.
“Thirty-eight people died in total because of that man—that demon,” she said. “All I have left of my parents now are the memories. That’s one of the things you can always hold close and bring with you wherever you go. I know you’ve lost your dad, but there’s still hope for your mom.”
She closed her eyes and placed her head against his as tears rolled down her face. A fraction of a memory shot through her mind, not of her parents, but of Jack’s. She was confused as to why she would be imagining what his parents would have been like. More memories of Jack’s parents began to rush through her head, as if she were experiencing them first-hand.
“Oh. Oh, wow!”
“What? What is it?” said Jack, worried.
“I think I just formed a cognitive link with you.”
“Are you serious?”
“Completely serious,” said Alexie. “First I saw a memory of carving my initials in a tree with your dad, your mom beside us. Then there were visions of playing with some toys, getting a much-desired video game system for my birthday, and other things. Those are your memories, aren’t they?”
“They are,” said Jack, looking surprised and delighted. “Those memories are the exact ones I was just thinking of.”
“I could feel what you felt. I experienced the happiness you were radiating,” she said, astonished. ”I didn’t mean to see them, it just happened. I promise it was out of my control.”
“There’s nothing to be upset about,” Jack assured her. “The same thing happened to me when the ability appeared after the fight with Marcel. Keep practicing and I’m sure you’ll be able to control it better.”
“I don’t know who to practice on. I wouldn’t want to infiltrate anyone’s mind who doesn’t approve. I’m not Bridgett,” she said with a lighthearted laugh.
“Well, you can practice on me. I have nothing to hide; my mind is an open book for you to riffle through.”
“Are you sure, Jack? You don’t have to do that.”
“I’m positive. I’ll be able to help guide you a little too, since I’ve been able to hone my ability more with some recent training.”
“Thank you,” she said, giving him a big smile. “You’re a better person than I originally assumed. I’m sorry I didn’t give you enough credit when we first met.”
“No apology necessary,” said Jack. “You had just met me and I was skeptical about the Searchers from the very beginning, anyway, because of my dad’s death. If you’d have asked me the first time we met if I thought I’d be sitting here with you right now, I’d have said there’s no way. And crazy enough, here we are, side by side.”
Letting go of her inhibitions, Alexie leaned in and kissed him. The passion they felt for each other escalated when they both inadvertently shared a cognitive link. The telepathic connection led to Jack and Alexie experiencing the fullness of the love and admiration they shared for one another.
“Now that was something sensational,” said Alexie.
“I couldn’t agree more,” said Jack, smiling. “I was hoping that would happen one day.”
“Oh, were you now?” she said, kissing him again.
“Thank you for being here. Not just for the affection, of course, but the fact that you came here to make sure I was okay. I want you to know I’m very grateful.”
“To be honest, I wasn’t sure if you just wanted to be left alone. I’m glad I came to check on you, though. Besides, you’d have d
one the same for me,” said Alexie.
“I can barely put into words how happy I am you stopped by. It took me from a state of hopelessness to one of bliss,” he said, smiling.
“Well, since I don’t want to overstay my welcome—”
“Oh, you can stay as long as you want!”
“Ha! I’m sure you’d like that,” she said, winking at him. “But I’ll be getting together with you again soon to help develop my cognitive linking ability, like we talked about. It’s amazing to me that it just showed up out of nowhere and it’s something new and exciting for me to work on. In the meantime, you probably need something to eat. I’m guessing if no one’s seen you all day, you didn’t make it to the kitchen.”
“Now that you mention it, I am terribly hungry. Would you like to join me?”
“Normally I would, but I’m drained and really do need to get some rest.”
“I understand,” said Jack. “Sleep well and I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Oh, and one more thing before I go . . . I don’t think it would be a good idea to parade our affection around the facility. John or another team member may try to discourage it, if you get what I’m trying to say.”
“Loud and clear,” said Jack, kissing Alexie one last time before she retired for the night.
Even after a late dinner that followed a long, emotional day, Jack remained awake in his bed for a short while. His thoughts were soon interrupted by a repetition of knocks on his door.
Hm, I wonder if Alexie is back again? he thought.
Butch was the person on the other side of the door, holding some sort of tactical outfit in front of him. Upon further inspection, Jack noticed it was the same uniform worn by the other Searchers when they went out on their missions.
“I’m guessing this is a special delivery for me.”
“You got that right,” said Butch. “Glad to finally have you join us tomorrow. Hopefully, with you on board, we’ll find more relics and artifacts faster than we currently do.”
“I hope so too,” said Jack.
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