Current Impressions (13 page)

Rounding the corner, he caught the flash of
blue ahead and sped to catch up. She was quicker than he
remembered, running with a strength and grace he never noticed.
Still, he was faster, stronger. She glanced back over her shoulder
as the distance closed between them. He reached out with a hand to
grab her arm. His fingers grew into talons and cut angry, red
strips into her flesh.

“
Get away from me,” she screamed. She
sunk to the floor and wrapped her arms protectively around herself.
Thin, red trails coursed down her arm. With the realization that it
was his fault, his veins frosted over. He did that. Hurt her.
Hadn’t meant to.

Hands.

What happened to his hands?

He held them out. They shook, but they were
only hands, not talons. Had he imagined the whole thing? No, or her
arm would be fine.

“
I’m sorry,” he said. “I didn’t mean to
hurt you.”

“
Just go away,” she cried. She hung her
head, her hair falling in a riot of curls. It couldn’t hide the
tears on her cheeks or the fear in her eyes.

“
Meara, it’s me.” He moved to crouch
before her. She shot up and pressed herself against the wall,
turning her face away from him.

“
I said get away from me!” she
screamed.

“
Meara—”

Her scream cut through him, doubling the
piercing pain in his head. What the hell was the matter with her?
Why was she afraid of him?

“Evan! Wake up!”

A sharp knock sounded at his door. He
slapped his hand on the alarm clock, and the screaming stopped. The
headache remained, drilling through his teeth. Would his skull
split? It sure felt like it.

“Evan.” He recognized the voice on the other
side of the door now—Professor Nolan. “Hurry down for breakfast.
We’re leaving in twenty.”

Evan fell back against the pillow and closed
his eyes. The dreams were getting old. He didn’t mind dreaming
about Meara, but he preferred her flirty and fun. He hoped to never
see that look in her eyes. Pure fear. Fear of him. If dreams were
supposed to tell him something, he needed help interpreting this
one and the previous ones. What did they mean? Why was he having
them anyway? Was it the change of scenery? Seeing Meara as
something other than human? He didn’t think so. She seemed human to
him, even now.

He scrubbed his hands over his face and
staggered out of bed. At least he packed Advil at his mom’s
insistence. He popped two pills without water and dressed quickly.
A baseball cap would substitute for washing his hair. Given the
choice, he’d choose breakfast over cleanliness, especially when he
considered that they were most likely spending the day outside.
Professor Nolan was vague about the whole internship program. At
the time, it didn’t matter. He took the job to be close to Meara.
Now that he was here, though, he wanted to know what he’d be doing.
Nolan told him so little. Today was his first day on the job. That
was all he knew.

Breakfast consisted of sausage, toast, and
stewed tomatoes. Evan ate it all and washed it down with two cups
of black coffee. The sharp pain subsided to a dull ache at the base
of his head. It was not ideal, but it was tolerable.

“Anything else, sir?”

Stonewall stood by the doorway, watching
Evan with an amused expression. The man was odd; there was no doubt
about that.

“I’m good, Stonewall. Thanks.” He stood to
carry his plate and cup to the sink.

Stonewall intercepted, taking them from him.
“Very well, Master Mitchell. Master Nolan and Master Guthrie are
waiting for you outside.”

Outside could be anywhere, but they were
probably in the front yard. Evan guessed right. The men stood next
to the impossibly small rental car.

“We’re taking that?” Evan asked the question
before he could stop himself. The ride was uncomfortable enough in
the front seat. He couldn’t imagine folding himself up to fit in
the back. The two men laughed, as if they shared a private
joke.

“No, Evan,” Professor Nolan said. “I was
just getting some papers from the glove compartment. We’re going to
the pier. Our boat is docked down there.”

They climbed down the steps that Meara and
Kieran must have taken yesterday. Kieran—just thinking his name
made a ball of jealousy grow in Evan’s stomach. Did the guy have to
look so perfect? Was he a model or movie star or something? Evan
could hold his own. He had his share of girlfriends over the years.
The problem was, next to Kieran, Evan looked plain. He looked
plain, and he didn’t like it. The fact that Meara kissed Kieran
only made the green-eyed monster worse. She was attracted to
Kieran, which made him a dangerous opponent. Evan refused to lose
her.

“You okay, son?” Ken asked. “You’re awfully
quiet.”

“I’m all right. It’s a headache, but I took
something for it already.” Evan shook off the poisonous thoughts
and started paying attention to where they were walking. Halfway
down the hillside, the stairway split. One set continued down to
the shoreline and beach, the other angled to a long pier. Docked on
it was one very large boat. Unfortunately, the thought of being at
sea didn’t excite Evan this morning. Whether it was the dream, the
headache, or the competition, his heart was not in it. He nodded
toward the pier. “Nice boat.”

“That’s no boat.” Ken laughed. “That’s a
fifty-foot trawler.”

“Ken’s pride and joy,” Professor Nolan
chimed in.

“It’s great.” Evan tried to drum up some
enthusiasm. It sounded flat to his ears.

“Let’s get onboard. Check her out,” Ken
said. “Ted, check the gauges, will you?”

“Sure thing.”

For the first time, Evan had the impression
that Ted worked for Ken Guthrie and not the other way around. What
was their relationship? Did Ken finance this research? Whatever it
was they were researching. The ignorance was killing him.

“What’s on the agenda for today, Mr.
Guthrie?” Evan asked.

“Ken. Call me Ken, son,” he replied absently
as he checked the rigs and various equipment on deck. Evan wasn’t
sure how he felt about being called ‘son,’ but he let it slide. Ken
seemed to have a few quirks. If it got too annoying, he’d ask him
to stop.

“You had some visitors yesterday, didn’t
you, Evan?”

It took Evan a moment to realize Ken asked
him a question. He was still trolling the deck and his back was to
him.

“Uh, yeah,” Evan said. “My girlfriend,
Meara, and her friend. I hope that’s okay.”

“Of course, of course. What’s that saying,
‘my house is your house’?” He paused and considered, then waved it
off. “Ah, never mind. The point is that you’re welcome to have
visits from your friends.”

“Thank you.”

“Where’s your girlfriend staying anyway?”
Ken looked at him now. His gaze was sharp and packed a punch for an
old man.

Evan shrugged. “An island near here, I
think. She’s living with her dad.”

“Ah. Divorce?”

“No…” Evan paused. He really didn’t want to
tell Ken about Meara’s life, but he had to say something. “Her mom
died a few months ago.”

“Sorry to hear that.” Ken looked sorry, too.
“Pretty girl. You should invite her to dinner.”

“Thank you,” Evan said.

“How about this weekend?” Ken persisted.

“I would…” How could he explain that he
didn’t have a way of reaching her? He didn’t like it himself, but
she promised she’d come back as soon as she could. Ken watched him
expectantly.

“Yes?” Ken prompted.

“Well, I don’t have any way of getting ahold
of her.”

“What?” Ken’s bushy, white eyebrows rose
comically. “A teenage girl who doesn’t have a phone? I didn’t think
they left the house without one.”

“She did, but it broke and…” Evan felt
increasingly uncomfortable. He really didn’t want to explain
Meara’s lack of a phone to Ken or anyone else for that matter. Ken
seemed to sense his discomfort.

“I’m just teasing you,” Ken said. “Next time
you talk to her, you invite her over. Tell Stonewall and he’ll plan
for another mouth to feed.”

“I will. Thanks again.”

“No thanks necessary.” Ken looked up and
yelled to Professor Nolan in the cabin. “Ted, you ready to get that
engine purring?”

The motor roared to life and, within
minutes, they were headed out to sea. Evan asked if there was
anything he could do, but Ken waved him off.

“Take a seat,” he said, motioning to the
benches along the middle of the boat. “There’ll be plenty of time
to teach you. Just enjoy yourself today.”

Ken went inside the cabin by Professor
Nolan. Evan stayed on the bench, leaning back against the wall. The
wind blew his hair, and the cool sea spray helped soothe the
tension in his muscles. He closed his eyes and relaxed. Only when
the boat slowed did he open them again. With relief, he realized
that the ache in his head was finally gone.

He moved to the front of the boat and looked
around. No land in sight. Too late, he wished he’d paid attention
to which direction they headed.

“Ready to get to work?” Professor Nolan
clapped him on the shoulder and smiled. Ken must have taken control
of the boat at some point. They were still moving forward at a
snail crawl.

“Where are we?” Evan asked.

“Northwest of Scotland. About fifteen miles
out.”

“What are we doing here?” Evan asked. He
expected Nolan to give him a non-answer like he had every time
before.

“This is top-secret research,” Professor
Nolan began. “We’ve discovered something big. The start, we think,
of a mantle plume.”

“Volcanic activity?” Evan was surprised. In
this area, that would be unheard of. Although his focus was on
marine animals, he took a couple of oceanography courses and
studied plate tectonics. There were no plates in this area, at
least that the scientific community knew of.

“Yes. We’ve seen the telltale emissions.” As
he talked, Ted began to lay out the scuba gear. The engine shut
off, and Ken came out of the captain’s cabin to join them.

“You told the boy about our find?” Ken
asked, and Ted nodded. “Good, good. Mind you, this is top secret,
Evan. No blogging on this one.”

“Of course not, sir, I mean, Ken,” Evan
corrected when Ken raised one white eyebrow at ‘sir.’

“You do know how to dive, son?” Ken
asked.

“I’ve been certified, yes,” Evan said.

“Then what are you waiting for? Suit
up.”

“I get to go down?” Evan’s pulse raced. He
didn’t think he would actually get to go out on this first
excursion. He figured he’d be assigned to man the ship.

“You and Ted,” Ken said. “I’m conducting a
few experiments on deck with my samplings from last week. We all
take turns going down. I’ll go next time.” Evan stood, unmoving,
and Ken added, “Go on. You’ll find equipment in your size. Ted sent
me the details ahead of time. I had everything ordered for
you.”

Evan changed and went to stand by Professor
Nolan on the metal platform. He moved experimentally in his
wetsuit, which was on the tight side. Maybe Ted should’ve asked him
for his size instead of guessing. Evan added his diver’s mask and
air tank. Right then, he envied Meara. A flicker of thought and she
could glide through the water—lightweight and carefree. His
equipment weighed him down, and if it failed, it would cost him his
life. He shook the thought off. He was lucky he had this summer
job. He was going to see things few men ever saw.

“Ready?” Ken asked. They gave him a
thumbs-up, and Ken lowered the platform into the water.

“Grab the scuba scooter in front of you.
It’ll get us there faster.” Professor Nolan’s voice floated around
him, and Evan realized the scuba mask was outfitted with some kind
of communication system. Until Nolan told him, Evan hadn’t noticed
the compact scooter in front of him, or the one the professor held.
He unhooked it from the platform and tried to figure out how to
operate it. A quick lesson on the deck of the boat might have been
nice.

“Here. Take mine. I’ll start yours. Watch
what I do.” He observed as Ted flipped a switch on the side and
pressed a button on the top. “Hold in the levers to propel
ahead.”

Evan squeezed in the levers near the handle.
He surged forward. He let up on the levers and slowed down. He
could hear the professor laughing.

“You’ll get used to it,” he said. “By the
way, if you want to talk, just do it. I can hear you.”

“How far down are we going?” Evan asked.

“About three hundred feet.” The professor
sped ahead of him. “Just follow me.”

They descended, and the water grew darker
and darker. The headlight on the front of the scuba scooter lit the
area ahead, but only about five feet. It was isolating and a bit
disorienting. Evan focused on Ted’s flippers and followed as the
professor instructed.

The water cooled progressively as they moved
down, but then it began to warm again. Evan attributed it to the
mantle plume and wondered how active it really was. The professor
wouldn’t bring them here if it weren’t safe, right?

“Almost there.” Professor Nolan’s voice
startled him. He’d gotten used to the silence on their descent.
“There it is.”

He came up alongside Ted, their scooters
illuminating the ocean floor. Evan gasped as he took in the view.
The mantle plume was the cracked mouth of death from his
nightmares. It spewed black and decay along its length.

“So much destruction,” Evan murmured, not
realizing that he said it aloud until the professor responded.

“The destruction is temporary, but the
energy potential is tremendous.” Evan heard the excitement in his
voice. “Do you know what this could mean to the scientific
community? It’s believed that a mantle plume once raised an island
and then sunk it within a hundred-year span. That kind of tectonic
energy hasn’t existed in this region for a millennia at least.”