Edgewood Series: Books 1 - 3 (81 page)

“Destined to be together,” I repeated.

“Like the heavens aligned just for us.” She reached up and touched my cheek, then smiled playfully. “I believe you said something about a gift?”

“Oh yes!” I shifted my balance and reached into my pocket. When I handed her the small white box, I said, “It’s not much but I hope you like it.”

She pulled off the rubber band holding the lid to the bottom and casually dropped it onto the roof. While she lifted the lid, I kept my eyes on her face. I’d bought the ring at a jewelry store in a strip mall at the end of town. When I’d gone into the store I didn’t have a set idea on what to get her. She didn’t seem to wear much jewelry. I knew it couldn’t be flashy or tacky. And I wanted it to be significant to the two of us. Oh, and I had to be able to afford it. A tall order. I stood at the counter for the longest time looking at the charm bracelets, and diamond earrings, and engagement rings. None of it seemed right and I almost left, but just then the saleswoman, a portly lady with a bouffant hairstyle, suggested I might want to look at some of their antique jewelry. “We buy it from estates,” she said. “Perhaps you’ll find just the perfect thing for your lady friend. We have lots of unique pieces.”

I thought about Nadia. “She is unique,” I said.

The saleslady brought out a wooden tray lined with velvet and covered with various rings and bracelets. I spotted it right away and picked it up to examine it. A silver ring made up of interlocking spirals. At the top a clear stone was set in the middle of one of the spirals. “That’s a nice piece,” she said approvingly. “Custom made by a gentleman for his wife when they were first dating more than sixty years ago. The woman who brought it in was their daughter. She said the ring was designed to symbolize their interlocking lives and never-ending love.” The saleswoman tapped on the ring. “See how the spirals are linked together?”

“What about the stone? Is it a diamond?”

“No, Austrian crystal. Not as valuable, but pretty nonetheless.”

The saleslady told me the price and I said I’d take it. I pulled a roll of twenty dollar bills out of my pocket, and peeled off the right amount while she boxed the ring and rang it up. It didn’t occur to me until later that it might not be the right size, but in fact, it wound up fitting Nadia perfectly.

She gasped when she lifted the lid, but I had a feeling she’d have been happy with anything I gave her. “It’s an antique,” I said. “Not an engagement ring or anything,” I added hastily. “I just thought you’d like it.”

“I love it,” Nadia said, slipping it on her finger. “It’s perfect.” She held out her hand to admire it.

“It has the spirals, which I thought was cool.”

“Like the lux spiral.”

“Yes.” I tried to remember what the saleslady said. “And because they symbolize our interlocking lives and our never-ending love.”

It was apparently the right thing to say because Nadia surged forward and gave me a big hug. She was halfway through the window now and I realized it wouldn’t take much more to free her completely. We could both leave right now, right this minute. We could be gone before anyone noticed; it wouldn’t matter to me where we went. Except. Tomorrow I was going to Washington D.C. to cure the president and save the nation. My lips caressed her ear. “Oh, I would love to take you away with me.”

“Then do it,” she said.

Leaving her behind was the hardest thing I’ve ever done.

Russ

My dad drove Carly and me to the airport the next afternoon. Before we could leave, my mom stopped us at the front door to obsessively shower us with hugs and kisses, as if she thought she’d never see us again. I’d overheard her the night before telling Dad she was worried about the two of us flying together because if the plane went down she’d lose both of her kids. She was good at coming up with pretend reasons to be afraid. If she knew the real truth about the trip she’d have been catatonic with fear. One thing was good though—both my parents totally accepted our change of schedule. They seemed to think that the excuse the Praetorian Guard gave, which was that leaving earlier would allow us additional opportunities, was completely acceptable.

As we gathered up our luggage in the front entryway, my mother was overcome with emotion. “I’m so proud of both of you,” she said, cradling Carly’s face in her hands. My sister allowed it for a moment before gracefully pulling away.

Because I was taller, I was spared the same treatment. When she came in for a hug, I patted her head and said, “Mom, let’s not make this into a big deal. We’ll be back before you know it. Besides, you’ll have Frank to keep you company.”

My nephew Frank had been hopped up all morning. He’d rifled through my things while I packed, tearing apart my shaving kit and other personal items. His nonstop talking made my head hurt. When I heard my mom heading up the stairs with more clean laundry for me, I yelled, “Mom, Frank Shrapnel is annoying me.” Using his middle name always amused me.

“Frank, stop bothering Russ,” she’d called back. Like that would help.

I grinned at the kid. “You heard the woman. Stop bothering me.” It was hard to stay mad at Frank though. He idolized me, copying everything I said and did. Believe me, I didn’t get that kind of admiration very often. Like never. And now that I knew he was David Hofstetter’s son, I found myself studying his face on a regular basis. Once I saw the resemblance, I couldn’t unsee it. It was as obvious as the nose on his face. And it wasn’t just his physical appearance, it was in mannerisms too: the way he walked, how he gestured with his hands when making a point. The narrowing of his eyes when he was deep in thought. He was more David than Carly. How my parents never noticed it, I don’t know. Maybe they weren’t looking for it.

At the airport, Dad pulled up to the baggage claim area, helped us get our bags out of the trunk, and said good-bye. He gave Carly a warm embrace and me a man-hug, then reminded us to call as soon as we arrived. "If you don't, your mother will really worry," he said. "And I will too."

Once the car pulled away Carly took the lead, navigating her rolling luggage around scatterings of people moving too slowly for her taste. Every now and then she'd glance back to see if I was keeping up. With Nadia gone and Carly here, this trip had a different feeling than our trip to Peru. I was more nervous, more stressed. The previous night I'd tossed and turned, dreaming the president was in a coma in a locked room and I couldn't reach her. I woke up with a feeling of failure, and even now, in broad daylight, I was still trying to shake it.

After we'd checked our bags, we met up with the others in the sitting area right outside of security. The other four had arrived before us and were waiting. I was glad to see Dr. Anton in his suit and bow tie, stroking his goatee and talking to Rosie, while Jameson and Mallory lingered nearby. I was grateful that the parents had been instructed that there were to be no prolonged good-byes at the airport, because the students, meaning us, needed to embark without the emotional attachment of our home life pulling us back. Or something like that. Anyway, I didn't miss having my mom make a big fuss in front of the others. As it was, I was the only one bringing a family member, which was weird enough. Hopefully Carly wouldn't make a scene or do anything embarrassing. She could be unpredictable.

“Hail, hail, the gang’s all here,” Dr. Anton said, jovially as we approached. “And with plenty of time to spare too.” We’d been told to come two hours early, so we would have extra time in case there were long lines, but at this time of day, the airport wasn’t too busy.

“Next we go through security?” Jameson suggested. He had his arm resting over Mallory’s shoulder. His hand dangled, like this was a casual gesture. I knew better.

“Not just yet,” Rosie said. She had a large purse clutched under one arm. Several magazines peeked out of the outside pocket. “We have to wait for the others. Oh, here they are now!” She waved enthusiastically, her arm making a wide arc over her head. I looked to see Mrs. Whitehouse and Kevin Adams hurrying toward us.

“Are they going with us?” I asked.

“No,” Rosie said. “Just coming to say good-bye.”

Kevin Adams, carrying a large plastic bag, reached us first. Mrs. Whitehouse, right behind him, struggled to keep up. When she got to us, Mrs. Whitehouse insisted on giving everyone a farewell hug. Being pressed against her front was like sinking into an enormous flabby pillow. She kept me in the embrace a few seconds longer than I was comfortable with. As I tried to ease out of it, I saw Carly slip away from the group on the pretense of having to go to the restroom.

After they'd both wished us well, Kevin pulled stacks of comic books out of his bag. "A little going away gift," he said, parceling out a stack to me, Mallory, and Jameson. "Something to read on the plane."

We thanked him and stuffed the comic books into our respective carry-on bags. Mine, like the others, was held together with a strip of paper with my name on it. I wondered if he'd hand selected comics for each of us, or chosen them randomly. I'd have plenty of time to find out later.

Not to be outdone, Mrs. Whitehouse said. “I too have presents for the kids.” She rifled in her purse and handed each of us a polished stone, the type you see in shops selling crystals and miniature pyramids. Each stone had a word engraved on it. We compared. Mine said
Peace
, Jameson’s said
Hope
, and Mallory’s said
Love
. We all said thank you with as much enthusiasm as we could muster.

“Those stones were all blessed with a protective prayer. You must all promise to carry your stone with you every day. Just put it in your bag or pocket, or what have you. It will keep you safe.” Mrs. Whitehouse’s wide face was made wider by a big grin. “Make sure you take them with you to the Bash, okay?”

“Okay,” Mallory said, turning the stone over in her palm. I stuck mine in my pocket for the time being. I appreciated the thought, although I wasn’t buying the whole protection thing.

“I also,” Mrs. Whitehouse said with flourish, “have something extra for Mallory.” She pulled a jeweler’s box out of her purse and held it out. “Sorry boys, this is a girl thing.”

“What is it?” Mallory asked, taking it from her. Even though none of us were crazy about Mrs. Whitehouse, Mallory couldn’t resist the allure of a present.

“Open it and see,” she said gleefully.

“Oh pretty,” Mallory said. She lifted a chain out of the box, and held it up for all of us to see. Dangling off the chain was a white rose with petals edged in gold. “It looks old.”

“It belonged to my grandmother,” Mrs. Whitehouse said. “Carved ivory. I was hoping that you’d do me the honor of wearing it to the Bash.”

Mallory’s mouth dropped open. She hurriedly put the necklace back in the box. “I couldn’t possibly take something that belonged to your grandmother.”

“No, no, no.” Mrs. Whitehouse took a step back and held out a hand. “I insist. Please. I would be honored if you would keep it and wear it.” She smiled in a sweet way. “I don’t have any daughters to pass it on to and it would make me happy to know someone I care about can wear it and enjoy it.”

“Well.” Mallory seemed undecided, but only for a moment. “All right then. Thank you.”

“That’s my girl!” Mrs. Whitehouse put her arm around Mallory and whispered something to her before moving on to me. Before I realized what was going on, Mrs. Whitehouse pulled me off to the side for a little conversation. I tried to pretend I was listening to Dr. Anton and Kevin make small talk about the flight schedule but she saw right through me.

“It just doesn't seem right that poor little Nadia isn't here," she said quietly to me. "I bet you really miss her, Russ.”

“Yes, I do.”

“Remember how on the last trip you went and got her at the last minute?” She smiled sweetly.

I nodded.

“I bet you'd love to do that again. Go charging out of here and save her. See if you can pull it off again like you did last time.”

I stared right into her eyes, wondering what she was getting at. We'd been told that the lux spiral was only witnessed by teenagers with exceptional intellectual capabilities. In other words, geniuses. Mrs. Whitehouse had once been an Edgewood teen who'd witnessed the lux, and she'd developed superpowers afterward. In theory, in order to qualify, she would have been highly intelligent at the time. I wasn't seeing it now though. How could she possibly think I could get Nadia when so much was on the line? And knowing how much I wanted Nadia there, it was mean to goad me like that. Last time I'd been able to successfully get Nadia's dad to allow her to come. But things were different now. Nadia's mother was on high alert, and more was at stake on this mission. I wasn’t about to jeopardize national security.

She continued. “I bet you’d like to hop into a taxi just like last time and go right to Nadia’s house.”

“Yeah, well, unfortunately, that’s not an option,” I said. “I’d miss my flight.”

“Oh, I don’t know about that. I bet you could get back on time.”

She put her hand on my shoulder and gave it a squeeze. I’m not normally rude but she was seriously creeping me out. I said, “Please don’t do that.” I took a step back and walked around to where Mallory and Jameson stood. Her eyes followed me, but luckily she stayed planted.

After Carly came back from the bathroom, Dr. Anton took it as a cue we should be on the move. He had an authoritative but friendly way of wrapping things up with Kevin and Mrs. Whitehouse. “I wouldn’t dream of keeping you any longer,” he said, grabbing onto the handle of his rolling carry-on. “I’m sure you both have a million things you should be doing.” He said it as if he were being considerate of their time, instead of just blowing them off. I’d have to remember that trick for future reference.

Mrs. Whitehouse got a stricken look on her face. “Kids, don’t forget to carry the stones with you everywhere. They’ve been blessed!” We all nodded before grabbing our bags and following behind Dr. Anton. As we headed away, I could still hear Mrs. Whitehouse complaining to Kevin that she didn’t have enough time to talk to us.