Stitch (17 page)

29. Execution

At the completion of her afternoon ethics seminar, Alessa zipped her backpack and headed off towards the science building to meet Janie.  Jangling the keys to Professor Liu’s lab in her pocket, Alessa wondered what the producers had in store for her next.  With any luck she would be on Isaac’s set by nightfall, but she knew from experience that things rarely went as planned in Paragon.

Janie had proposed that they smuggle the “wormhole capturing apparatus” out of the lab by daringly hiding it in plain sight, and as Alessa approached the front of the building, Janie was waiting for her and clutching a large box that was labeled “broken equipment.”

Noticing Alessa’s approach, Janie smiled wickedly.  “Let’s do this.”

Alessa led Janie up to the lab and unlocked the door.  Once inside, they worked quickly in silence to disconnect the power and load each piece of the machine into the container.  Sealing the top with tape, Alessa and Janie hoisted the box between them and strolled out of the building.

Alessa was surprised at how nervous she felt, her entire body shaking with adrenaline as she and Janie waltzed through the quad, doing their best to look unassuming.  She knew the producers needed her to get to Isaac’s set to fulfill the climax of the show, but she just didn’t expect them to make it this easy for her.  She kept waiting for the other shoe to drop.

At the edge of the quad, Alessa and Janie turned onto the wide cobblestone path that led to Z-E-Pi.  Alessa’s heart skipped a beat as she noticed a security guard up ahead.  She made to turn off the path and let him pass, but before she could nudge Janie in the right direction, the guard looked up and noticed them.

Janie swore under her breath and panic rose in Alessa’s chest.  The guard was headed right for them.  Had the producers changed their plans?  Maybe they wanted Alessa to get caught, had decided to draw the show out longer.  If that was the case, there was nothing Alessa could do but play along.  She braced herself as the guard approached them.

“Good evening, ladies.”

“Hi,” Janie responded cheerfully.

Alessa just kept her mouth shut and tried to steady her racing heart.

“That’s an awfully large box you’ve got there – hope that’s not elicit contraband or anything.”  The guard smiled.

Alessa just laughed nervously in response.

“I’m just kidding.  Do you need any help carrying that thing?”

Janie jumped in.  “Oh, how nice of you to offer.  No, thanks, I think we’ll be okay – not too much farther to go.”

“All right, then.  You have a good evening.”

“You too,” Janie replied.  When the guard was out of earshot, Janie added, “Way to keep it cool, Less.”

Alessa exhaled.  “Sorry.”

They continued quickly home and deposited the box on the bed in Alessa’s room.  Closing the door, Janie turned to Alessa.

“So, where should we set this baby up?”

Alessa hadn’t really given this much thought – she suspected that the producers would make the device work no matter where they used it. 

“How about right here?”

Janie frowned.  “What if someone walks in?  We should do it in the attic bathroom where no one will notice us.” 

“Yeah, but I only had one encounter with Isaac upstairs – I’ve had tons in here.  I think we’re more likely to snag a wormhole where they most often naturally occur, which means wherever I see him most, and that’s here.”

“Okay, fine,” Janie relented.  Alessa knew of course that the whole dispute was for show – this close to the end, it was essential to stay in character to keep the producers’ suspicions at bay.

Unloading the three electromagnetic poles, Alessa positioned one on the bed.  She placed the second on her desk and handed the third to Janie.  “Put this in the other corner while I hook the power up, will you?”

Janie perched the final pole atop the fireplace mantle across the room while Alessa connected the power cord and plugged it into the wall.

She took a long look at Janie.  “Well, here goes nothing…”

Janie nodded and Alessa flipped the power switch.

Alessa wasn’t sure what to expect when she turned the apparatus on, but if she’d been hoping for special effects, she wouldn’t have been disappointed.  At first the device looked the same as it had in the lab, with waves of electric current – what Alessa had suspected was really another hologram – circling the globes mounted on each pole and connecting them in a triangle formation.

And then all of sudden sparks began to crackle at various points around the triangle, and a tiny dot appeared in the center, suspended in midair.  As Alessa watched, the dot began to grow, slowly at first but quickly gaining speed, the edges of the expanding circle reaching toward the floor and ceiling.  Through a long oval which now stood as high as Alessa, she could see what looked like the back of her house, only different, newer.  Isaac’s house.

Again, Alessa marveled at the convincing visuals that the producers’ holograms could construct; she really felt like she was looking through a window into another time.  Even though she knew it was an illusion, Alessa felt the urge to reach through the ring, to see if what she was looking at was real.

And then she heard a quiet hiss and her head started to spin.  Were the producers flooding the room with gas?  The wormhole continued expanding outward, reaching ever closer to Alessa and growing at a faster and faster pace.  Out of the corner of her eye, Alessa saw Janie duck for cover against the wall.  The last thing Alessa remembered before losing consciousness was the side of the hole racing toward her.

Alessa woke up face down on the lawn outside her house, or rather, Isaac’s house.  Coming to, the first thing she noticed was the poke of a folded piece of paper tucked into her pocket – the map Janie had promised their ally would deliver.

Still sprawled on the ground, Alessa’s heart raced as she considered the magnitude of the task in front of her.  She needed to convince Isaac to follow her, sneak off the set while avoiding the production team’s grasp, and set out into the wilderness beyond Paragon’s walls – where a deadly virus may still be lurking – to find
something
that would revitalize the rebel movement and give them hope for the future.  She wasn’t quite sure how she would be able to manage all of this without getting killed, but she supposed it was too late to back out now.

Alessa stood up to take in her surroundings. The ground was bare, with no hint of the snow that blanketed the actual ESU campus. As Janie had expected, it seemed the producers had landed Alessa in what Isaac believed was springtime, the day before the fire to be exact – perfect timing for a dramatic conclusion to the show. But little did the production team suspect that they were about to get an even more dramatic ending than they’d hoped for.

She was alone in the backyard at dusk, a light shining from the kitchen of the nearby house.  Peering in the window, she found Isaac sitting at the table whittling away against a block of wood.

The blood rushed to Alessa’s head as she registered that Isaac was only steps away.  She watched him greedily for a few moments, fighting the urge to burst through the door and scoop him up in her arms right then.  Her breathing quickened as she stretched her fingertips on the glass of the windowpane, struggling to contain her overwhelming desire to touch him.

First things first – she knew she needed to get a good look at the map before she could lead Isaac to their escape.  How could she steal a peek without attracting the producers’ notice?

Just then the lights flickered, giving her the opportunity she’d sought.  Perfect timing – Alessa guessed that her ally had somehow disrupted the power supply, but she knew that the producers would be scrambling to restore the cameras before they missed her reunion with Isaac.  She hurried to unfold the map before they could.

Hidden in the shadow of the house, Alessa stole a quick glance at the plan and noted that her starting point was the foyer closet.  Hastily shoving the map back into her pocket, Alessa choked down her fears and readied herself for what came next.

30. Awakening

Isaac stood at the kitchen window examining the small block of pinewood in his hand in the fading evening light. He switched on the overhead lamp to get a closer look, searching carefully for knots and noting each of their locations in turn.  Satisfied, he withdrew a small, sharp knife from a drawer and made his way toward the heavy wooden table.

Even an hour after the servants had put the last clean pot back on the shelf, the hearty aroma of dinner still lingered in the air as Isaac sat down to begin his carving.  He wasn’t much of a woodworker, but he hoped that keeping his hands busy for a few hours might help his mind to focus on something other than his last encounter with the mysterious presence.

Though three days had passed since he’d last seen her, he’d had no success in shaking the troubling feeling that had settled in his gut after he’d failed to grasp the meanings of her frenzied gestures and frustratingly silent shouts.  He’d replayed the scene over and over in his mind, but could not make sense of anything she’d tried to convey.  All Isaac knew was that she was desperate to tell him
something
, and he was eagerly anticipating their next meeting in hopes of learning what that something was.

Isaac turned the block over in his hand as he considered what shape this particular piece of wood might best take to.  With his mind so preoccupied over the past few days by his exchange with the woman, Jo was certain to be feeling snubbed, and he thought she would appreciate a gift.

Isaac withdrew the knife from its thick leather sheath and starting chipping at one corner.  The soft wood gave readily under his steady hand and within a few minutes, a rudimentary resemblance of a horse had emerged.  He held it up to the light to examine it and was pleased with his handiwork.  However, with a painful cramp slowly creeping into his hand, he opted for a short break before continuing.

Carefully sliding the blade into its case, Isaac set the knife on the table.  He allowed his mind to wander as he massaged the heel of his palm with his thumb to loosen the cramp.  As usual, most of his thoughts revolved around the presence.

The strange woman had taken hold of him like nothing he’d ever experienced.  For months now her mystery had dominated his waking thoughts, and he’d devoted an inordinate amount of time to anticipating their next encounter.  He had hoped that he’d be able to learn more about her by now, but frustratingly, he was no closer to understanding who she was than he had been at the start.

After their last exchange, however, Isaac felt certain that he was on the verge of a breakthrough.  She had tried to communicate with him, and it was only a matter of time before they figured out how to break down the barriers that stood between them.  His body tingled as he remembered her burning emerald eyes and wondered idly what it would feel like to run his fingers through her thick, glossy hair.

A flicker from the overhead light interrupted his reverie.  Isaac wondered if there was some sort of outage coming – after all, the power lines running to the farm weren’t exactly reliable.  He stood up with the intention of checking the electricity in the rest of the house, but he was interrupted by a sudden swing of the back door.

Standing in the doorway was the woman.

Isaac gasped.  He’d been anticipating this moment for days, but her unexpected appearance left him breathless nevertheless.  He froze in place as his mind scrambled to compute a course of action.

As they locked eyes, time seemed to slow and Isaac was able to perceive her more clearly.  She somehow seemed more
vivid
than she ever had before, flushed and radiant, with gleaming hair and glowing skin and shining sea-green eyes.  And then he realized what it was.  She was solid.

Isaac gaped as comprehension dawned on him.  The woman wasn’t just some transparent figment, but alive, and here, standing in full flesh and blood right in front of him.

“Isaac!”

The peal of her voice reverberated in his ears. 
Finally
, he could hear her.  As he registered her words, confusion replaced his relief.  She knew his name?  “How…”

She paced toward him, her hands reaching out for his, and he prayed that she would not disappear again.  She didn’t.  As her fingers closed around his, the heat of her palms pressed through him, strangling the words that had been rising in his throat.

“Isaac…”  Tears glistened in her eyes as she squeezed his hands.

All Isaac could think to say was, “…Who are you?”

She took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling, steadying herself.  Then she trained her startling green eyes on his.  “It’s me, Isaac.  Alessa.”

Isaac’s head spun.  Alessa?  Wasn’t that the name that Jo had said he’d been uttering in his sleep?  He tried to make sense of it.  How could he have known her name?  Did they know each other somehow?  If so, he couldn’t imagine how he could have forgotten her…

Alessa grasped his hands tighter, pulling him back to the moment.  “Isaac, I know you’re confused.  But you need to listen to me.  I have something very important to tell you.”

The lights continued to flicker, but Isaac barely even noticed.  All he could concentrate on was her – her eyes, her skin, her scent – there was nothing else.

“I’m here to warn you, Isaac.  There’s going to be a fire that will kill you and your family, but I think you can avert it.”

Isaac’s jaw dropped.  “How could you know this?”

“I’m…” Alessa paused and took a slow breath.  “I know how this sounds, but the truth is, I’m from the future.  I live in this same house, a hundred years from now, and I’ve been seeing your ghost.”

“From the future?  But how is that possible?  I thought
I’ve
been seeing
your
ghost, or something like it, anyway.”

Alessa shrugged her shoulders.  “I don’t fully understand it, either.  All I know is that I dug up some old newspaper records and I found articles saying that your entire family died on April 13th, 1917.”

Isaac released Alessa’s grasp and brought his hand to his chest to steady himself.  “But that’s tomorrow!”

Alessa placed her hand on his shoulder to reassure him.  “That’s plenty of time!  I know the fire was started by Josephine in the barn, so you just need to keep her away from there for the next 24 hours and I think everything should be okay…”

Isaac’s heart pounded as he tried to process what she was saying.  He and his family would die tomorrow, but she’d found a way to warn him in time.  He just needed to make sure that Jo didn’t leave his sight.

He placed his hand gently but firmly on Alessa’s shoulder.  Only inches away now, he gazed solemnly into her eyes.

“Alessa, I don’t know how to thank you.”  He paused for a moment to let the magnitude of his appreciation sink in.  “You’ve been the only thing I’ve thought about for months, but I couldn’t seem to contact you.  It was the most frustrating thing I’d ever experienced.”

Alessa smiled softly.  “I know, Isaac, I felt the same.  I just felt…” she searched for the right word, “…drawn to you.  When I learned what happened to you – what
would
have happened to you – I just… I couldn’t live without knowing I’d tried to warn you …”

Tears welled in Alessa’s eyes as she looked up at Isaac, invoking a tenderness inside him that yearned to comfort her in any way he could.  He could feel the current buzzing between their bodies, a compulsion to hold her.  He withdrew his hand from her shoulder and gently cupped her face, tentatively at first.  Her breath caught and she seemed to melt into his touch.

Emboldened, he threaded his fingers through her thick, soft locks, releasing his other hand from hers and resting it on the curve of her hip.  His body throbbed with the closeness of her, his heart bursting with affection and gratitude and desire as he leaned in.

As Isaac pulled Alessa closer, he could feel her gripping his shoulder tighter.  She slipped her free hand around his waist and pulled hard, closing the space between their bodies.  Anticipation flared in her eyes, razing the last shreds of his inhibition.  Her eyelids closed at the same moment as his, and Isaac drew a hurried breath.

As he leaned his face towards Alessa’s, Isaac knew at once that he’d been here before.

Dirt and leaves clung to Isaac’s skin as he lay huddled in the thicket.  Even hours after the sun had set, the heat and humidity of the day refused to subside and the air felt thick and heavy.  And being sidled up next to Alessa in such close quarters – the bare skin on her long, taut limbs glistening in the moonlight – certainly wasn’t helping.

Isaac had partnered with Alessa on countless reconnaissance missions in the six months since they’d lost Joe, but this was the first that had placed them in such close physical proximity.  In that time, his feelings for Alessa had grown and evolved in many ways, but tonight the only feeling he could concentrate on was that of her body pressed next to his.

He’d always found Alessa’s beauty undeniable, but knowing how his brother had felt about her, it had always seemed best to push those feelings aside.  And as Isaac got to know Alessa, he came to appreciate her on a much deeper level.

After losing Joe, she’d become Isaac’s lifeline.  Given that they needed to hide their grief in order to avoiding arousing suspicion, Alessa was the only person he could talk to about what he was feeling.  Their clandestine assignments for the rebels provided their only opportunities to talk freely about their shared pain and their uncertain dreams for the future.

In addition to her emotional support, Isaac had also grown to admire Alessa for her efforts in the rebellion.  Ever since the tragedy with Joe, Alessa had invested herself completely in the cause and had quickly proven talented.  She’d earned greater and greater responsibility and, along with Isaac, had become entrusted with executing some of the rebels’ most critical missions.  He respected her abilities and her dedication intensely, and there was no one he trusted more.

Though their friendship was rooted in their shared grief over Joe, it had blossomed into something much richer and much more profound than Isaac had anticipated.  Over time he’d realized that the complicated feelings he had for Alessa were love.  And along with that love came a deep, consuming desire that he had worked tirelessly to suppress.

As much as he cared for Alessa, Isaac still couldn’t shake his old notions of Alessa as Joe’s sweetheart.  He remembered what Joe had said on that fateful day – “If I’m captured, I need you here to take care of Less,” – and Isaac had taken his brother’s last request seriously.

He was determined to do right by the memory of his brother, to be strong and brave and to protect Alessa, whatever the cost.  But he was fairly sure that his brother wouldn’t have been happy about Isaac becoming romantically involved with Alessa, and that guilt had thus far prevented Isaac from acting on his feelings.

But on this sweltering summer night with the heat of Alessa’s smooth, soft body pressing into his side, strands of her glossy hair clinging to the droplets on her neck, and her striking emerald eyes sparkling in the night, he was starting to reconsider his position.

If Joe
truly
wanted Isaac to take care of Alessa, he reasoned, he would want him to be there for her completely, in any way she might need him.  Right?  The only question was whether Alessa
did
need him in that way, or if she still only saw Joe’s kid brother when she looked at him.

Alessa turned suddenly to Isaac, disrupting his contemplation.  She tucked her recently-cropped chin-length hair behind her ears, still adjusting to the new low-maintenance style she’d opted for in light of the colossal challenges they faced in the rebellion.  “Wasn’t the delivery supposed to happen by one o’clock?  It’s almost two now.  I’m wondering if our intel was bad…”

Sweat glistened on her brow, her hair matted against her cheeks, and clumps of dirt clung under her chin.  But as far as Isaac was concerned, she’d never looked more stunning.  The mission be damned, it was now or never.

“Alessa, I… I have to tell you something.”

She looked at him expectantly, her expression softening as she registered the emotion on his face.  She searched his eyes, concerned.  “Isaac, what’s wrong?”

Isaac took a deep breath and rolled onto his side toward Alessa.  She mimicked his movement unconsciously and they lie facing each other, close enough to feel each other’s breath.  He steeled himself for what came next.  He needed to show Alessa how he felt, whatever the risk.

Tentatively he inched closer, watching her reaction.  Her eyes widened as she realized what Isaac was about to do, but she didn’t pull back.  Encouraged, he plunged forward and gently touched his lips to hers.

At first Alessa froze, her eyes staring into his with alarm.  But only for a moment.  Then her body relaxed, her eyelids fluttered shut, and she wrapped her arms tightly around him as she returned his kiss with a passion he’d only dreamed of.  They clung to each other as everything around them – the sticky humid air, the scratching branches, all of their doubts and insecurities and fears – melted away under the intense blaze of their kiss.

And Isaac was certain he’d made the right choice.