Now & Again (21 page)

Nsamba weighed his bleak options. Before he could decide on an approach, his headset suddenly came alive with Vandermark’s voice from Maryland. “Taylor, this is Neville. We need to know where they went. We can’t afford to skip any timelines.”

* * *

At
the Point
, Vandermark was standing with his face next to the live feed screen that showed Nsamba. “This could be the line that matters. Somehow, you have to make Leah talk.”

On the screen, Nsamba’s face turned toward the camera and Vandermark could see him clearly. He spread his hands in futility. “Neville, be reasonable. All I have available is a boy on a bike and an old lady next door. What do you expect me to do?”

* * *

Back in the truck’s control area, Nsamba was still staring up at the camera when John’s voice sounded in his headset. “Hang on, I got a coupl’a newbies moving downstream.”

John’s monitor showed two Mormon youths in white shirts, black ties, and black slacks, walking down the sidewalk near the McCaslin house. Nsamba spotted them on his set of screens and cringed. “How exactly does this help me?”

A voice popped into his headset. “This is Fargo. Maybe me and Rose could pretend to be friends of Josh. You know, we wanna know where he went, when he’s gettin’ back – somethin’ like that.”

Will grimaced. “That’s totally crappy.”

Nsamba ignored Will and decided to work with what he had. “It’s lame, but we’re out of time. What do you think, Rose?”

Rose’s voice joined the discussion. “I’m game. What the hell? Might work.” Will rolled his eyes but didn’t say anything further.

“Okay,” Nsamba said. “Fargo and Rose, they’re yours. Get the info and get out. The moment it goes bad I am going to abort. Tell Sal the change of plan. Will, how do we look?”

“Readouts are in the green. Cradles are go.” Will’s face registered his continued disapproval.

John scanned his side. “Good to go here. On your call, Taylor.”

Nsamba fingered the red override button on the left side of his workstation as he gave the command. “You are all go.”

The cradles hummed with power. Fargo settled her crosshairs on one of the boys; Rose locked onto the other. Kranzie tracked along with the neighbor lady as she moved in her yard and then locked on.

* * *

In the cardiac waiting room at Holy Cross Hospital, Kendall stood by a window with his cell phone up to his ear, listening to a distant ringing. There was an answer and he smiled. “Hey, it’s me, Hon.”

Josh sat in a chair nearby and looked up to eavesdrop on the conversation.

* * *

Leah held a wireless phone to her ear and smiled broadly. “Thought that might be you. About time. When are you guys coming home?”

She walked into the living room as she listened to his answer. Stopping, she perched on the arm of a couch and her smile faded. “But why? Who is this older man? And why do you…”

Her doorbell rang. “Hang on, somebody’s at the door.”

* * *

In the control room at
the Point
, Everett boiled out of the elevator and spotted Vandermark by a monitor. “Neville, you lying son-of-a-bitch! What the hell have you done?”

Vandermark turned on him with a fury. “Shut-up, old man, and sit down! I have no time for this right now! I’ll get to you when I’m ready!”

A couple of technicians jumped up to block Everett’s angry approach. Hahn quickly moved to intervene.

Everett shoved at the technicians and tried to bull his way through. “Get out of my way! How dare you!” The young techs held him back while trying to be gentle about it. Everett was irate. “Get your hands off me! I’ll have you tossed so fast it’ll make your head spin. Why I’ll…”

Hahn put a calming hand on his arm. “Please, Hugh, just give us a moment. Please!” She rolled a chair up to him. “Sit. I know you’re angry and I don’t blame you. Neville was rude but he was telling the truth – we are at a critical moment. Please.”

Everett fumed and stubbornly refused to sit but he stopped trying to move forward. “Lies! You lied to me all along. You’re lying now, for all I know. You’re all in this together. I know that now.”

At a nod from Hahn the technicians took a half step back and Everett flicked their hands off with contempt. He stood silently behind the chair and glowered, but he couldn’t help stealing a look at the monitors. He saw that Vandermark had turned back and was staring fixedly at the screens. Everett furrowed his brow, trying to comprehend what he was watching.

* * *

Leah set the phone down on the arm of the couch, crossed the small tiled foyer, and opened the door. She saw two identically dressed young men on her porch, eagerly looking at her.

The taller of the two led off. “Hello, Mrs. McCaslin. Can we talk with you?”

Both youths smiled. Leah evaluated their outfits and their demeanor. “No thanks, guys. I’m happy with my religion, okay? Besides, I’m on the phone.”

She started to close the door but the tall one, with Fargo inside, persisted. “Oh, sorry. No, it’s not about that. We’re ah, we’re not…we’re not working now…”

The shorter young man winced. Rose was in control of him and she jumped in, trying to save Fargo. “She means we just want to know where Josh is.”

Leah was plainly puzzled. “She? Where Josh is? Why are you asking?”

The taller one knew things were going badly but still tried to carry on. “He’s a…a friend of ours. Yeah, both of us, we’re friends of his. He said you’d know where he and his dad went.”

The shorter one smiled. “Yeah. Do you?” The cheerful youths waited awkwardly in the doorway, rolling their eyes at each other.

Leah felt hassled. “But I don’t know…you mean the trip to Maryland?” She was perplexed and, somehow, suspicious. “Why would Josh say a thing like that?” She turned back into the house, leaving the door open. “Can you give me a second? Stay right there.”

* * *

In the Reivers’ trailer, Nsamba erupted with a shocked shout. “Maryland!” He swiveled to look up at the camera. “Neville, did you hear that? They went to Maryland!”

* * *

“They’re here? What the hell!” Vandermark shot up from his chair and looked nervously around the room. Seeing Everett watching him, he sat back down and made an effort to stay calm.

* * *

Leah picked the phone back up from the couch. “Honey, there’s two young men here asking where you and Josh went. They say they’re friends of Josh and…”

* * *

In the waiting room, Kendall’s face paled. “What? Who would know we…?” Kendall motioned for Josh to come closer. His voice was firm. “Leah, listen to me, whoever these people are, they’re not friends. You hear me? Get out of there. Get out now!”

* * *

Upset, Leah turned back towards the door but the Mormon youths were already inside. They grabbed at her. She screamed and lashed out with the phone, dropping it in the process. The boys evaded her attack. Leah jumped away and rushed for the kitchen. She screamed in terror when her path was blocked by Jimmy Thompson, a young kid from across the street, and Darlene, her long time neighbor. They had entered through the back door and now raced at her from the kitchen. Surrounded, Leah dodged in a different direction but their hands quickly locked her in place.

Jimmy, with a furious Sal riding his mind, viciously grabbed her face and forced her to look at him. “Where are they? Where in Maryland? Tell me! Where?”

Leah struggled against the hands and gasped in fright. “I don’t know! I…who are you?” Her desperate eyes recognized her neighbor. “Darlene? Why?” She saw the phone on the floor and screamed. “Kendall! Help! Kendall!”

Fargo, inside the taller Mormon, yelled at Jimmy. “Sal, you hear that? It’s him on the phone! Kendall’s on that phone!”

* * *

Vandermark was out of his chair again in an instant. He no longer cared what Everett thought. All he knew was he had to stop this. “Did they say Kendall’s on that phone? No! Taylor! No direct contact. Nobody talks on that phone.” He was practically hopping in place. “End the jump! Taylor! End it now!”

Hahn’s mouth was set. “You’re already five seconds too late.”

* * *

Nsamba slammed the jump override button but was forced to miserably watch the monitor as the action continued to progress for five more, long seconds.

* * *

Fargo, inside Jimmy, leaped for the phone and angrily brought it to his ear. “We’re comin’ for you, Kendall. You hear me? You bastard! We got most of you, and we’ll get the rest too. You and Josh. And when we do, we’ll…”

Fargo was forcibly dismounted by the abort button, and Jimmy came back to himself just as Leah shattered a lamp over his head. The boy collapsed to the floor.

Leah spun around to defend herself but found that she was the only one standing. Her neighbor, Darlene, sobbed in the corner with her hands over her face. The stunned young Mormons were sprawled side by side on the floor, staring blankly at each other.

Leah lifted the phone from Jimmy’s limp hand. She was shaking. “Kendall, are you still there?”

* * *

In the waiting room, both Josh and Kendall were pressed together with the phone between them. “Yes, we’re here. Are you okay? Is it over? Who was that?”

* * *

“I…I’m gonna be okay…I – what is this?” Leah sank onto the arm of the couch again. “These people. I mean, there’s Darlene from next door, and there’s a kid from across the street, and some older boys; but now they’re not…I don’t know.” Tears streamed down her cheeks as the emotions caught up with her. “It was like they were, I don’t know, somebody else, and now…they’re not. Does that even sound right?”

There was a silent moment on the phone. Kendall’s voice replied hesitantly. “Like someone else was in their mind? Is that how it seemed to you?”

She brushed at her tears. “Now you’re frightening me. People in our minds? What’s happening to us? Why all the secrets? What are you and Josh doing in Maryland?”

* * *

Josh silently stared out the hospital window; his eyes were stern. Behind him, Kendall’s face showed the strain he was under as he tried to fashion an answer for Leah. “I’m sorry dear. I’m sorry for everything. Honestly, there’s no way in hell that I can explain it. But I can tell you one thing. Josh and me – we’re the good guys.”

* * *

In Maryland, an angry Vandermark barked at Nsamba on his screen. “Get that truck turned around and your people back here.”

Nsamba looked haggard. “We will still lose a full day, no matter what we do. The truck can only move so fast. And we have Julie to handle…”

“I know all that. Just do it as fast as you can. I need you here.” Vandermark angrily punched off the connection and dropped into his chair. “Shit! We go there to get them and they’re already here! That’s impossible!”

Hahn’s face was impassive. “Who are they visiting in Maryland? Or did they actually come looking for us?”

“Don’t be silly,” Vandermark scoffed. “They couldn’t know we even exist.”

Hahn’s eyes caught his. “They do now.”

Everett stepped around his empty chair and closed in on Vandermark. His words dripped with sarcasm. “Oh, let me guess. These missing people must be Quyron’s infamous natural-born jumpers then?”

Vandermark swiveled in his chair to face the CEO. “Yes, they’re a spreading poison in the lines, but I’ll find a way to stop them.”

Everett pounced on his sentence with a growl. “Not anymore!”

“What?” Vandermark was momentarily shocked. “Look, Hugh, I shouldn’t have shouted at you, I admit it, but things were…”

“You’re done here! You, Hahn, this whole project is over and done, as of now. This moment!”

Vandermark was controlling his irritation. “You’ve no idea what you’re throwing away. Stop and think. We’ve developed new technologies you don’t even know about…we…” His face changed. He no longer cared for the farce. “You can’t shut us down. We’ve come too far.” He smoothly slid his chair to the side display where his preset button icon was still on the screen. He touched it twice with a finger. It blinked and vanished. “I won’t allow it.”

Everett sneered at Vandermark, his face ruddy and his eyes wide. “
You
can’t?
You
won’t? The hell with you! I made this company, and I made you too! And what I say goes!” He spoke with such intensity that flecks of spit gathered at the edges of his mouth. “And I say you’re through! Get out!”

He walked a few steps away from Hahn and Vandermark and struck a pose. “Echo, I’m rescinding all previous access permissions to
the Point
. That includes Dr. Vandermark and Dr. Hahn and these worthless technicians sitting here, whatever the hell their names are. As of this moment, every part of this project is turned off. Is that clear?”

There was no reply.

“In addition, I want all security to…” Everett faltered. “Echo?” His pose lost some of its stiffness. “Echo? This is Dr. Everett. Answer me!”

There was still no response. Everett eyed Vandermark with apprehension. “What have you done?”

Vandermark sat smugly in his chair. “Something long overdue. Echo?”

The familiar female voice answered instantly. “Yes, Dr. Vandermark.”

“Cease all service to Dr. Everett’s comm units and terminals and all access to all locations.”

A short pause and the voice returned. “Done.”

Everett yanked his palm computer from a pocket and flipped it open. A moment’s check proved it had ceased to function. Everett threw it at Vandermark but missed his aim. “Now what? Tie me up? Stick a sock in my mouth? I should have fired you years ago. You lying coward!”

“Oh, please. Let’s not be so dramatic.” Vandermark swiveled his chair back towards the console and dismissed Everett. “Just leave. The quieter the better. On tiptoes would be best. I have important work to do and you’re in the way. So get out.”

Everett’s face flamed with impotent fury. The two techs stood ready to block a rush at Vandermark. Everett turned and walked out. His stride was determined and he refused to look back.

Hahn nervously leaned in to Vandermark. “You can’t just let him go…he’s not powerless, you know.”

Vandermark smirked and ignored her. “Echo, our two jumpers seem to be ahead of us. I’d like to fix that. Now that we know they’re nearby, query the nanos and track their new lines. Find out exactly where they’ve been and I will want to see those selected archives as soon as possible.”