“Wow, that’s awesome!” Ruby said, gushing over Timmy.
Yeah, Ruby certainly liked Timmy. Not sure if she even realized it. Realistically, Timmy was a better fit for Ruby than Frank. I mean, I love my bro, but I’m not sure how much he and Ruby have in common.
I’d learned what I needed to learn. Standing up, I said. “Ruby, let’s switch seats.”
“Sounds cool!” she said.
I sat next to Jimmy, which I liked. She plopped down next to Timmy and smiled. “I love Minecraft,” she grinned.
Nina Note: Well, we learned that Adra and her family had visited Timmy and his family but nothing unusual had happened. From what Timmy told us, Adra and her sister acted like normal kids in a new environment. Nothing suspicious there. I didn’t get any sort of weird vibe from Timmy. I felt pretty certain he wasn’t a mimic. I admit I have no idea what a mimic vibe should feel like, but I just knew that Timmy wasn’t a suspect. Wayne being at Timmy’s was an interesting tidbit though. It probably meant nothing, but it felt like something that needed further investigation…just to cover all bases.
Chapter 11: Working Together
Waiting for us at the school bus parking lot was Adra, impatiently tapping her feet.
“Why did you take the bus?” Adra demanded the second I got off the bus.
I didn’t have to answer her, but I did. “I was doing some research,” I told her quietly.
She took a step backward. “Fair enough.”
We started walking towards the school together. “I’ve been doing some research too. I talked with my mom and dad...and a few others. They think this could be the work of a mimic.”
“That’s what my parents think as well,” I replied.
Ruby stuck her head in between us. “Me too!” she added.
“Mimics occur in nature, but not often. There can’t be more than 1000 of them in the world today,” Adra explained.
“How do you know that?” I asked.
“I have my sources,” Adra replied.
“That matches my research,” Ruby said.
“But we know there is a secret group in this city, one that has an interest in people like us,” Adra said. “I say we go talk to them. They asked my parents to join them. My parents blew them off.”
“Really?” I said.
“Yeah, they recruited my parents. But my parents didn’t trust them,” Adra said.
“Oops, so our information was wrong,” Ruby’s eyes widened.
“What?” Adra asked.
“Somebody told us your parents were cooperating with the secret group,” I said.
Adra shook her head. “No, they came to our house. We were polite but sent them away. Now we need to go and talk to them. See what they know. What they might be up to?”
“Well yeah, but they are kind of a secret group, and we don’t know where they’re currently based,” I said.
Adra smiled. She pointed to Sasha who was talking to Barb by the doorway. “But she does. Right?” Adra then looked at Jimmy. “Wait, doesn’t your mom work for them too?”
“Wow, you are good,” Jimmy said.
Adra sniffed Jimmy. “Oh no! You’re a vampire hunter! How did I not catch that earlier?”
Jimmy looked her in the eyes. “My family may be vampire hunters, but I’m not one.”
“You’ve got the instincts,” Adra said. “The DNA!”
Jimmy nodded. He looked embarrassed and started to blush. Then he smiled. “But I am in control. I know that both Nina and her mom are great people. They’re helping this world.”
Adra crossed her arms and grinned. “Good answer. I can see why Nina likes you.”
I felt myself blush a little too.
“We’re good friends,” Jimmy told her.
“Why don’t we just get the location from your mom then?” Adra suggested.
“Because my mom is a dedicated person...she won’t tell us,” Jimmy said, looking down.
“Well, Nina and I have ways to make her talk,” Adra grinned. “We can be very persuasive.”
I positioned myself between Jimmy and Adra. “I don’t like the idea of making Jimmy’s mom do something she doesn't want to do.”
Adra snickered. “She's a vampire hunter. Are you taking the side of vampire hunters now? Maybe my grandma is right, and you can't be trusted! Maybe you are the one trying to make the supernatural beings come after my family and me!”
I had to handle this carefully. I needed to think about my response and choose my words. “Wait, you have an aggressive grandma too?”
Adra nodded. “Yeah, she’s way old school…thinks everything new is bad…thinks the old ways can’t change.”
“I have…like…a grandma exactly the same!” I said.
“Yeah, she’s sweet but a bit crazy,” Frank added. “Still, she loves me.” He straightened up, flexing his muscles some. “The thing is, we shouldn’t make anybody’s mom do what she doesn’t want to do. It’s hard enough being a mom.” He pointed at Sasha. “I suggest we simply ask Sasha to help us. She likes me. I think she’ll help.”
Adra looked over her shoulder at Sasha. She looked back at Frank. She shrugged. “Sure, let’s give it a try.” Adra grinned. “From what I hear Sasha’s mom is really tough on her.”
“Adra, you have really good sources of information,” I said.
“Yeah my house gnome, Groucho is the best,” she laughed.
We walked up towards Sasha. Sasha smiled when she saw us. “Well, well, look what the silly cat finally dragged my way.”
Adra looked at Barb and ordered. “Leave us alone!”
Barb turned and immediately walked away.
Sasha’s smile grew wider. “Nice display of power there.”
“Sasha, we need to talk to you,” I said. “It’s important.”
Sasha snickered. “Let me guess; you’ve finally developed the guts to want to go to my mom’s facility.”
“We would love to talk to your mom and her people about some of the weird stuff that’s going on here lately,” I said.
Sasha nodded. “If it’s weird - you know my mom will probably know something about it.” She grinned. “What’s in it for me?”
Adra stepped right up to Sasha. “You get to keep your good health,” Adra told her. “I’d hate to have to play with your mind. I’m not sure I’d put everything back the right way.”
Sasha didn’t back down. I had a feeling she didn’t have the common sense to back down. “Here’s the deal, sweetheart,” Sasha said to Adra. “My mom told me to have an open door policy with both you and the lovely Nina. Well, she didn’t use those exact words, but she made it clear that if either of you ever wanted to visit, I should be your guide. So, my dears, if you had plans for today, change them...because I’m going to take you where you want to go.”
“Oh great!” Ruby said. “That place seems so cool.”
Sasha shook her head. “Not you. Not Jimmy. Not even the tall, cute Frank. Only the vampires are invited.”
“I’m not sure I like that!” Ruby said.
“I don’t care what you like,” Sasha told her. “I consider you to be insignificant.”
I picked Sasha up off the ground with one hand. “Hey, Ruby’s my friend.”
Sasha laughed. “So what? That doesn’t make her any more significant in my book. The kid was nothing but a sit-in-the-corner geek until you got here. She’s meant to be a sidekick, not a leader. My mom’s organization is built for leaders.”
Ruby put a hand on my arm. “I may not agree with her point, but I see her point,” Ruby told me. “Let’s just do this the easy way.”
I dropped Sasha to the ground. “Fine. We’ll do this your way. After school gets out.”
Sasha snickered again. I didn’t love the snickering. She produced three school passes from her back pocket. “Actually, Ms. Anna has permitted us to do a personal field trip. We can leave now.”
“Wait, why didn’t you tell us about this trip in the first place?” I asked.
Sasha laughed. “I just love seeing how you guys react. It’s fun playing with your heads.”
Ruby frowned. “You’re skipping school?”
Pointing at the pass in Sasha’s hand, Adra said. “We have a pass; it’s not skipping.”
“I’m not sure I like this,” Ruby said. “Not just because you’re missing school...I’m worried it could be a trap.”
“I doubt my mom would set a trap,” Jimmy said.
“Oh, my mom so would,” Sasha scoffed. “Though she’d call it a test.”
“Don’t worry, I’m going to be there to make sure everything goes smoothly,” Aunt Mika said, appearing as if on cue. “Ms. Anna told me what’s up.”
“But don’t you need to teach music?” Frank gasped. I’m not really sure why he gasped.
Aunt Mika patted him on the shoulder. “Anna is going to cover for me.” Aunt Mika started walking towards the parking lot. “Come on, let’s get this show on the road.”
Sasha, Adra, and I followed behind Aunt Mika.
Nina Note: Yep, this very well could be a trap, or at the very least - a test. Of course, it was a chance we had to take. I felt anxious to see the headquarters of the people keeping tabs on us and tracking supernatural beings. It didn’t help that one of my travel companions was a girl who I barely knew...one who could very well be behind all the mischief lately. The other girl had actually attacked me before and had even tried to take over the school, if not the town. Though, I felt a little better knowing that Aunt Mika would be with us. While she was a zombie and didn’t really have any powers, she had been alive for a long time and knew a lot of stuff. Also, I didn't have to worry about her getting hurt or worse. When you are mostly dead, not a lot of bad things can happen to you.
I couldn’t let my nerves get in the way of getting to the bottom of this. I wanted to find out if a mimic could be involved. I could see where an organization like Elena’s could really make use of a mimic, especially the mimic’s powers.
Chapter 12: Is It a Trap
“Where are we heading?” Aunt Mika asked Sasha after we all got in her car.
Sasha looked over the upholstery in the car. “Seriously, they don’t pay teachers all that well. Do they?”
“Nope,” Aunt Mika said. “I repeat. Where are we heading?”
“Head to the old lighthouse by the lake,” Sasha said still shaking her head as she positioned her butt into the front seat. “Man, these seats hurt my behind. You should let my mom do some research for you,” Sasha offered. “You can make good money. Maybe get a real car.”
“I like this car, it has class and style,” Aunt Mika insisted.
“It smells of vulture poop,” Adra noted.
“Yeah, that is hard to wash out,” Aunt Mika admitted. “Still, it makes the car unique.”
“Whatever,” Sasha said, looking at her phone. “Oh BTW…that means by the way,” she told Aunt Mika, “my mom wants me to tell you people...or near people that our organization may not have an official name, but we have labs and research centers all over the place. This is just one of many. One we will most likely never use again.”
“Fair enough,” Aunt Mika said.
“Maybe Nina and I will rip the place down,” Adra said coolly.
“I’m sure my mom’s security team would be more than up for the challenge,” Sasha taunted.
“Ah, girls, this is more of a fact-finding mission. There should be no fighting,” I said, trying to play peacemaker.
“That’s no fun,” Sasha said.
“Well, we agree on something,” Adra nodded. “Plus, if I discover a mimic, there will be fighting.”
The car went silent. Aunt Mika turned on the radio. Sixties music started to play. She turned up the volume. We drove the rest of the way in silence, trying to enjoy the tunes. Somehow, I knew this was the relative calm before the storm.
We pulled up next to the old wooden lighthouse on the shore of the lake. It looked like the lighthouse hadn't been used in decades. The windows were cracked. Some of the wood had disintegrated. The once majestic building looked defeated by time. Yet, despite being old and weather-beaten, the place still looked relatively sturdy.
Walking up to the door, we found wooden planks blocking it off.
“Ah, how do we get in?” Adra asked. She sniffed the air. “I don’t smell or sense anybody around. Is this a trap?”
Ignoring her, Sasha pushed the doorbell next to the door. There was only silence. She held the button in.
“Not very impressed so far,” Aunt Mika said.
The wooden planks receded into the sides of the door. The door popped open. “Inside…now!” Sasha ordered. “Quickly!”
We all scooted into the round room. We saw a staircase leading up. There appeared to be nothing else in the room.
“Ah, okay,” Aunt Mika said, “still not impressed.”
The floor below us started to shake. The floor started lowering itself and us.
“Okay, this is better,” Aunt Mika said.
We felt ourselves drop down many stories. The floor came to a stop in a long, well-lit hallway. The walls were lined with reflective metal. The ceiling had some sort of defensive weapon every 10 yards or so. The hall stretched behind us and in front of us as far as the eyes could see.
Sasha started walking forward. “Walk this way,” she said.
“If I could walk that way I wouldn’t need the talcum powder,” Aunt Mika said.
The rest of us simply shrugged. Sasha and Adra looked at me for an explanation. “Old person joke,” I said.
Sasha suddenly stopped walking. “Oops,” she said, taking a step back. “I forgot to push the light switch on the top level three times.” She stepped back on the floor that had brought us down here. She smiled and waved as the floor carried her back upwards.
“Oh that’s not good,” I said.
“She tricked us!” Adra said.
“Yeah, I wondered if this was a trap,” Aunt Mika said.
All the weapons on the ceiling dropped. Each of them spun and pointed at us.
“Intruders detected,” a mechanical voice over a loudspeaker announced. “Raise your hands and surrender. Now!”
Aunt Mika instantly shot her hands up into the air. “Look, I may not be killable, but those things would really hurt!”
I slowly raised my hands. “Okay, we know when we’re beaten!”
I heard Adra in my mind. Come on; it takes more than this to stop us. Right?
I sent thoughts back to her. I think this is a lot to overcome, even for us.
Can’t you blur? Adra asked with her mind.
Of course, I can. But Aunt Mika can’t! I thought back.
We take out the weapons before they have a chance to fire. I think our odds are good. Adra thought to me.
What if we fail?
No big deal if your aunt takes a few hits. I'll take the ones in the back; you take the ones in front.”
Before I had a chance to even consider her suggestion, Adra reacted. She blurred down the hall, way too fast for a human or even a machine to pick up. Needing to react just as fast, I leaped up and ripped the first weapon off the ceiling. Bouncing to the ground, I sprung forward, batting the next weapon down. There was no time to think or even breathe. I jumped at the next weapon, swinging at it with my claws. The weapon shattered into millions of pieces. I leaped at the next and the next. By now the weapon systems had figured out that Adra and I weren't going to go quietly. The remaining systems opened fire. I could see the pellets flying at me as if they were in slow motion. Easily dodging them, I disabled the rest of the weapons.
Luckily for Aunt Mika, by the time the weapons reacted we had already taken out any that could have hit her. She remained bullet free...at least for now.
Three silver robot spheres rolled down the hallway towards us. The spheres stopped in front of us. They popped up, forming tall skinny, faceless metallic men. Each one had four arms with three long claws attached to each arm.
“Surrender,” one of the metal men ordered.
“Yeah, that's not going to happen!” I replied firmly.
The hallway started to fill with a yellow gas.
“You do need to breathe. Correct?” one of the metal men asked.
Adra and I both shook our heads. “Actually no,” Adra said. “I can go a long time without needing to breathe.”
Not wanting to be outdone, I said, “Me too.”
Aunt Mika pointed to herself. “Zombie. No need to breathe at all. I mean, I enjoy breathing. It makes me feel very human. But I don’t need to.”
The three metal men-things exchanged looks. They buzzed. “We must resort to physical violence.”
Aunt Mika took a fighting stance. “Give it your best shot, bot. I trained with Chuck Norris. I actually taught the old guy!”
“Did you really?” I asked her.
Aunt Mika winked at me. “There’s a lot about me you don’t know, kid.” Aunt Mika spun into the air and hit the middle robot man with a flying kick to the jaw. The robot staggered back. Aunt Mika dropped down on him with an elbow-smash driving the robot dude to the ground.
“Okay, now that was impressive,” one of the robot men said.
The other one shook his head in agreement. “Affirmative!”
The two robots exchanged glances. Well, they tilted their heads towards each other.
“Time for plan B!” they said.
Their claws started crackling with electricity.
I blurred forward and grabbed them. Extending my arms, I smashed them both into the wall. They shattered, leaving only their heads intact.
“Do we have a plan C?” one of the robot heads asked.
“Yes, we can explode!” the other robot head said.
Adra ran forward and kicked them down the hall. “I love soccer!” she said. The two robot heads exploded harmlessly.
“I guess there is no plan D,” Aunt Mika snickered.
The wall next to us slid to the side, revealing a large room. Jimmy’s mom and Ms. Elena stood in the room behind a transparent door. The door rolled open.
Families Page 6
