The Park (Evenstad Media Presents Book 1) (7 page)

JOURNAL 04JUSTICE

ENTRY 005

DATE: 2/19/2074

I finally managed to find another one of the medallions. I
almost missed it. I mean, if there'd been any sort of fucking light in here, it
would have been easy. Probably would have seen the metal glinting. I found it
hanging from the eaves of one of the trailers. I mean, I would have thought
they would have at least fucking tried to hide them. Probably part of what made
it so hard to find, just sitting out there for the taking.

As soon as I found it, I headed back. Just in fucking time,
too. I caught Desiree wandering toward the door. It took me a solid minute or
two to even get her attention. Totally fucking dazed. Out of her skull.

I was lucky to have found the medallion when I did. I
definitely can't leave Desiree alone now. I haven't even been able to get away
and test the medallion out. No idea what it fucking does. But at least I've got
it. I'm better armed and Desiree's going to be better protected. That's what
I'm hoping for, anyway. For all I know, it could be some stupid decoy they put out
to mess with our fucking heads. And wouldn't that be fantastic?

ENTRY END

JOURNAL 08DESIREE

ENTRY 004

DATE: 2/20/2074

Justice took me back inside. I think I'm thankful for it,
but I just can't be sure. I keep hearing this voice and these words. I know
it's You, God. I think I know. I just… I need a sign. Any sign. If You've truly
chosen to speak to me, give me a sign. I need Your guidance. Should I listen to
the words I hear? I want to do right. I want to do Your will. But I need a way
to be certain. I don't want to succumb to the Devil. Please, God, just help me
decide. Tell me who to listen to.

Amen.

ENTRY END

JOURNAL 11SUSAN

ENTRY 005

DATE: 2/22/2074

Tina's pushing to leave. Heard her talking to Craig.
Starting to work. He's considering. Don't like it. Don't want him against me.
Her I can deal with. I've put it off long enough now. She's getting shiftier.
Don't like it. The two of them could take me out. Pretty sure on that. Just a
matter of going first. Don't think they have the stomach to kill. Never thought
I did, either. But here I am. Can't have Tina around much longer. She's been
leaving when she thinks I'm asleep. Think she's looking for something to help.
One of the medallions, probably. She gets one, that could end everything. Don't
like it.

ENTRY END

JOURNAL 02CHRISTINA

ENTRY 004

DATE: 2/23/2074

I'm a fool. An even bigger fool than I thought. Apparently,
I'm feeding Julia's delusion now. I didn't see it until after the fact, but
that's exactly what I did this morning. Probably means I'm falling into it
right alongside her.

I was starting to feel guilty about how well she was taking
care of me. It's not like I ever did anything for her. Not once since I found
her, in fact. So I made sure I was up before she was, which wasn't an easy thing
to do in the first place, and I made breakfast. Or I tried to. I burned the
canned ham right down to the center. Yeah, not just the outside. All the way
through. I guess there aren't any smoke alarms in these trailers. But I made up
for it. The frozen hash browns didn't even get cooked all the way through. So I
guess that balances it all out.

I was going to throw it out, but that's when Julia walked
in. Trust me, I could tell that she wasn't thrilled about the whole thing, but
she smiled and sat down. I tried to give her as little as possible, but she
just kept asking for more until she had a good, full serving in front of her.
And she ate it and said how wonderful it was, even as we both struggled to
choke it down.

I don't know. We have enough food to not worry about it
running out. It's all frozen or canned, so it won't spoil. There's no logical
reason for her to have eaten it. But she did.

ENTRY END

JOURNAL 09TINA

ENTRY 006

DATE: 2/26/2074

I did it. I finally found another medallion. It was right
over by the wall. I was worried about setting off the alarms and giving myself
away, but I've been looking for almost a week, now, and this was the first one
I'd found. I don't know if they just shut the alarms off or if this spot is
somehow unprotected or what. If it was, it could be a way out. Not going to
risk that, though. It's pretty clear I'm supposed to stay put.

I haven't even gone back to the house yet. I need to wait a
little bit and get my head clear. I tested out the medallion, and just having
it scares me. All I saw was this ball of gold. It was shimmering like a really
hot fire, and it went far enough that I didn't see it fizzle out. Maybe it even
hit the wall. I don't know. But it was fast and hot and it's only been a couple
minutes and it's already ready to go again.

I found the mother lode. As in winning might actually be
possible

ENTRY END

TO: Niels Evenstad

FROM: Frederick Evenstad

SUBJECT: Golden Gun

SENT 3/31/2072 AT 11:14 a.m. EST

Brother,

The reports about the CESUs we made for The Park have caught
my eye. Enough that I'm emailing you directly. I don't want word of this to get
out. It's very sensitive and could be very bad for both of us if the
information ever got out.

One of the CESUs that my people made, the lab techs started
calling it the 'golden gun.' It's a thermal weapon. They designed it to be a
secret weapon, the kind of thing that would make someone almost invulnerable. A
potential range of miles and enough heat to kill on contact. The timing unit
they installed is incredibly fast as well. Less than two minutes before it can
be fired again. It's quite a long time, but not compared to the potential
destructive capacity

I think we have to cut it. It's bad enough that we know that
one can be made. I'm in full support of this program of yours, but with this, I
fear that the bad press could be too much to overcome.

Please consider what I've told you,

Frederick Evenstad

Chief Operating Officer, Evenstad Technologies

—

TO: Frederick Evenstad

FROM: Niels Evenstad

SUBJECT: RE: Golden Gun

SENT 3/31/2072 AT 12:22 p.m. EST

I'm aware of all of this. I've already approved all forty
CESUs to be used. I realize that this 'golden gun' of yours is dangerous, but
the ratings, Brother. The ratings will get word out about your product, and the
money will buy us real family security.

Niels Evenstad

Chief Operating Officer, Evenstad Media

JOURNAL 10MANFRED

ENTRY 006

DATE: 2/26/2074

Secrecy is more important than ever. People draw close to
me. I saw a flash of light go by. I can only assume that it came from one of
the medallions. Nothing in nature, and certainly nothing I have yet seen here,
would cause such an effect. I worry that the young man and woman may have
tracked me here. I must cut back on my journal even more, to avoid the light of
the screen revealing my location. Hopefully, my mind is strong enough to
withstand the wear without it.

ENTRY END

JOURNAL 05CRAIG

ENTRY 004

DATE: 2/28/2074

Oh God. I can finally stop for a moment. I've left Susan
behind after what she did. I just… I couldn't believe it. She didn’t have any
difficulty with it and didn't show any remorse about it.

Tina's dead. I didn’t stay a single second after that. Why
would I? How could I? There was no reason for Susan not to turn straight on me.
I left while her CESU was still recharging and just ran.

I'm alone again, and all I have to show for the time I spent
with Susan is Tina's corpse and paranoia. I'm no closer to taking apart these
CESUs than when I first went looking for tools.

Well, I guess that's not entirely true. I think I know how
to get into them. But I don't like it. I think I have to use another CESU to do
it. It's just too bad I couldn’t have grabbed Tina's. Maybe that would have
worked.

ENTRY END

JOURNAL 11SUSAN

ENTRY 006

DATE: 2/28/2074

Tina's gone. Craig ran. Probably smart. Way he was acting, I
might have had to take him out, too. Not an immediate problem. I can remove him
when I need to. Nabbed the other medallion she had. Nasty piece. Keeping it
close at hand. Between that and my first one, I don't see where I'll be in much
danger. Just have to be careful. Don't let them go without a charge for too
long.

Think the money is safely mine. Haven't met everyone yet. If
Craig and Tina are the average, I should be fine. Not issues. Might get some
respect from the girls at work. Lot of people might quit work. Twenty million
is good, but not really enough for a good life. Not after taxes. Have to stay
behind the cash register for a bit, still.

ENTRY END

WHO IS GOING TO WIN THE PARK?

POLL2

1: Susan (32%)

2: Christina (14%)

3: Blake (10%)

4: Justice (7%)

5: Rita (7%)

6: Craig (7%)

7: Manfred (7%)

8: Desiree (6%)

9: Julia (6%)

10: David (2%)

11:Tina (1%)

12: Nathan (1%)

(Information Collected by The Cruise)

JOURNAL 08DESIREE

ENTRY 005

DATE: 3/4/2074

Lord, I've received Your sign. Everywhere I look, I see
demons. On the walls, sitting next to me on the furniture, everywhere.
Everywhere but the doors and windows. I never see the demons outside. So I
know. I understand. I can't stay here. They won't leave. You've revealed them
to me, and there's no way for me to banish them. Not from here. They've
impregnated the walls.

I have to leave. Staying here won't do anyone any good.
Justice doesn't want me to leave. He doesn't understand it. I can't make him
see what's going on. I know You have Your reasons for not letting him see it.
You have Your reasons and they aren't for me to question. I can only say it
would be easier if You would share the visions, but I don't make this request.
I would not dream of such indignity against You.

When it comes time to escape, I will be ready. I don't know
what work You have waiting for me out there, but I know that it's beyond that
door. It's outside these walls, in the darkness. It's out of Justice's safety
and protection. I see now that You didn't answer my pining for love. That,
perhaps, is not in my future. Justice is here as a challenge. He's simply
misguided. I won't hurt him. He's innocent. But I have to escape. I swear to do
this in Your name.

Amen.

ENTRY END

JOURNAL 05CRAIG

ENTRY 005

DATE: 3/5/2074

I've managed to find a new place to live. It's far away from
Susan, unless she decides to leave. I doubt she will. She spent too long
setting up those traps and security measures and everything. She's way too
practical to waste that much time and energy. Scary practical.

I'm still working on the CESUs. My best theory is still that
I need to use a CESU to get into a CESU. At least as long as I'm stuck in here
without proper tools. Of course, I might end up killing myself in the process.
I don’t have any of the exact paperwork or schematics on them, but the amount
of energy inside of a CESU is huge. If I screw up… I don't want to think about
it. I'm working on estimates anyway. They could be wrong.

And I have to find two. The one I had on me when I woke up
is a ways off from the house. Have it set up with a tripwire. A million things
could go wrong with it, but if it works out, I'll have a good thirty seconds'
notice to get away.

I'll be completely unprotected at that point, too. Not
something I'm hoping for, but it's better than the alternative. You know,
death. So I'd rather find two. Something to work on and something to work with.
Hopefully not something powerful. Don't want to rupture whatever's in there.
But I'd rather have the one I work with strong enough to make somebody else
stumble, if necessary. A delicate balance. I don't know that I'll be able to
find it.

It might be easier if I could sleep better. Ever since I
left, I've been on edge. Any little noise or light wakes me up. I'm lucky to
get a few hours. And those few hours are normally filled with nightmares. Tina
dying. Susan finding me. My own damn curiosity getting me blown up or burned to
death. I've been way too tired lately. So I'd rather find the other CESUs soon.
I don't know how many more nights I'll be lucid enough to comfortably do the
kind of precision work I'll end up needing to do.

ENTRY END

JOURNAL 02CHRISTINA

ENTRY 005

DATE: 3/5/2074

I've come to a decision. Probably get my stupid ass killed
in the process, but Julia needs protecting, and I'm here. So I'm doing it. I
can't tell her about it, but I'm doing it. I just don't want her getting hurt.

She's teaching me to cook. If I make it out of this in one
piece, I guess I'll actually be able to fend for myself. Hopefully I can get my
food bills down. Restaurants and prepackaged dinners aren't really
cost-effective. I always knew that, but I didn't think I could cook. Actually,
I knew I couldn't. Now I can… sort of.

Let's just hope that I actually get the chance to put this
all to use. But then, if I do, that means Julia didn't survive. Either way, I
failed. Which one is worse? I don't know for sure. Depends on the day. Depends
on the time of day, I guess.

Right now, the best option is Julia surviving. I guess I'll
see what the verdict is tonight, when I don't sleep again. The past couple days
haven't been good for me. Exhaustion. This whole thing's been keeping me up.
But I can't manage to give up and leave. I just can't.

ENTRY END