Out in the Dark

by Nicola Adams

  He put the car in neutral and coasted it down the drive. It was fairly easy as the property was uphill from the main road. A small blessing during flood season

  Jake stopped the car and put on the parking brake, then jogged back up the drive to close the garage door. One last look at his mother’s bedroom window and he left. He knew she was watching by the shadow that flitted away from the window, but he pushed the thought away. He had to go. She couldn’t stop him. He was seventeen and in some native tribes that made him a man.

  Swallowing the sadness of leaving his home, he started the car. Moisture in the carburetor caused a slight backfire. If his mom wasn’t awake before, she would be now. He didn’t give himself time to think about it. Instead he gunned the engine and threw the car into gear, then he sped off into the darkness.

  He would take I-90 across the Cascades, into Idaho and then drop down to Nevada where it intersected with US Route 95. It seemed easy enough, and once he got into Nevada he would be able to figure out where his dad was. He’d been sending his dad telepathic messages that he was coming. He wasn’t sure if they were getting through but the increasingly painful and panicked images he had been getting seemed to be settling down.

  The car was ready for action, the tank was full and Jake turned south to pick up a triple-shot Americano at the all-night McD’s drive-through.

  “Can you toss in some apple pies too?” he asked, remembering how much he liked them. Besides, the sugar would help keep him awake.

  “How many you want?” the bored and slightly annoyed voice sounded through the speaker.

  “Uh…give me five, and add a large fries too,” Jake said loudly.

  “That’ll be 9 bucks and 85 cents. Pull up to the second window.” A crackle and a click told Jake the attendant had shut off the microphone and probably the receiver too. Couldn’t really blame the guy; who would want to work graveyard shift at McD’s in this town?

  Jake pulled up and handed ten dollars to the window, which was still closed. He could just make out the kid on the other side working the espresso machine. He looked a lot like Brandon. Could it be? Was that why he always looked so tired in class, because he worked here nights? Jake knew his family was hard up for money, but surely not this hard up.

  “Here’s your coffee, sir.” The attendant slid open the little window and was about to hand Jake his drink when his face broke into a wide smile. “Hey, dude, what you doin’ out?”

  “Running away. You?”

  “Oh you know, just earning some dough for the season. Football uniforms ain’t cheap. Besides, I can study here.” The big football player winked and held up his math book with a Playboy tucked inside. “I’m sure to get good grades in biology this year!” He laughed loudly and hoarsely. “Just look at Miss October!”

  “Hot stuff, Bran.” Jake laughed along, but didn’t really mean it.

  “Yeah, it’s cool,” Brandon said. “Here’s your stuff, dude.” He handed down a bag of hot food and took Jake’s money. He turned to make change and came back with a few coins and a small stack of hamburgers. “Here, you’ll need them for the road. They’re almost past time and I don’t want to eat ’em. Look at me,” he said patting his ample middle. “Just take ’em. Go find your dream. At least one of us should get out of here.” His comment took Jake by surprise. He assumed Brandon, of all people, was more than happy to live in the Bend, as they affectionately called their town.

  “Right…thanks, man.” Jake was about to put the car back into gear when Brandon stopped him. “Where you goin’ and can I have Jessica?”

  “Sure, if she’ll have you, but you gotta be good to her, or I’ll come back and beat you up.” Jake laughed, as if he stood a chance of even making a dent in Brandon. “I’m going to find my dad.”

  “Go for it, man. Your dad’s an okay dude. Hope you find him. Safe journey.” Brandon stuck his hand out of the little window, knuckles forward, and Jake hit it with his knuckles. He was touched by the kid’s concern. He realized there was a lot he didn’t know about his classmates or the town, but there was no turning back. He had to go.

  “Hey, can you say goodbye to James for me?” Jake realized he owed his only real friend something more than a text message. Maybe a message from Brandon would help.

  “Him?” Brandon raised his eyebrows and shook his head. James wasn’t exactly part of the in crowd. He was a sickly, little stick-figure of a kid who got straight A’s.

  “You’d score points with Jess if she knew you looked out for James,” Jake said, knowing full well he was pushing his luck. Brandon might just as soon beat James up as trip over him in the hallways. He wasn’t even on Brandon’s radar.

  “If you think she’ll like that, sure.” And the big guy slid the window shut.

  Jake drove off, and rolled up his window. The aroma of hot food and coffee started filling the car as he pulled onto I-90. The interstate was empty. He could see the headlights of some long-haul truck coming out the pass up ahead, but that was all.

  The Pontiac settled into a smooth acceleration up the mild incline into Snoqualmie Pass. The sky was clear and Jake could see the stars. He should make it to Coeur d’Alene sometime in the early afternoon. Once he crossed the desert and passed Spokane it wouldn’t be far. He figured on about six hours to Spokane.

  Chapter 4

  Jake fiddled with the dials on the old analog radio. Dad had never bothered to upgrade the system from the one that originally came with the car. He said that if you wanted to have a vintage car it should stay vintage, right down to the nuts and bolts.

  A Seattle jazz station came in without too much static, but it would probably be lost on the other side of the Cascades. Jake remembered the nights his dad would play his jazz trombone for them. He liked to show off and had taught Jake how to play, but in the past year since he had left Jake hadn’t touched the instrument. It just did not seem right, somehow.

  He reached into the bag on the passenger seat and took out some fries. They felt greasy and salty and hot. He shoved them into his mouth and realized he should have packed some water. Coffee would probably not quench the thirst these fries would bring. He shrugged and figured he would deal with that problem later, and shoved another handful of fries into his mouth.

  The Snoqualmie Pass was open with only a light dusting of snow on the shoulders. At the top he saw a few trucks at the rest stop. No doubt their drivers were trying to catch a precious few hours of sleep before rushing on to the next city.

  A quick glance at the gas gauge told him he was doing well on mileage. The only concession his father had made against “vintage” in favor of modern was to swap out some components in the engine to make it more fuel-efficient. A few extra miles per gallon could make all the difference. Or so he claimed.

  The theme music from Star Trek on his phone jangled over the jazz and Jake reached in his pocket. Without thinking he pressed the Talk button and immediately regretted it.

  “Jake, honey.” His mother’s voice sounded worried. “Are you headed out to Grandpa’s?”

  “Um, not really,” Jake said and then quickly corrected himself. “Not yet. I’m making a detour. But it’ll be all right, Mom, I promise.”

  A long silence followed in which he heard his mother blow her nose. She was crying.

  “I’ll give you five days and then I expect you to head to your grandpa’s.”

  “And if I don’t?” Jake didn’t really want to know the answer, but asked anyway.

  “Then I call the state patrol and have them bring you back,” she said, with as much firmness as she could muster. “I don’t want to, Jake, but it’s for your own good. You don’t know what you’re doing or what you might find.”

  “I’ll be careful, Mom,” Jake said, and swerved to avoid a raccoon crossing the road with her offspring. He barely managed to stay off the snowy shoulder, his heart racing, as he got back in-between the two stripes on the road that were his only guide.

  “I love you, Jakey. Be safe.” With th
at his mother disconnected.

  “Love you too, Mom,” Jake said to the darkness outside.

  He felt very alone. In an attempt to feel more manly and in control, he took a big swig of the triple shot. It had cooled down sufficiently, but was too bitter. He should have asked for sugar or a squirt of vanilla syrup in there. His mouth tasted awful after the fries and now this coffee. Maybe some apple pie would clear it up.

  His stomach was protesting mildly, but that was to be expected. His stomach protested a lot about the foods he fed it.

  Since Brandon had given him all that extra food Jake figured he would eat it. No point in letting it get cold and go to waste. It wasn’t the good organic stuff his mother always cooked or had around the house, but this was no time to be hippie and correct; he had a mission to complete.

  He repeated that last bit to himself a few more times to boost his flagging courage. This had seemed like a better idea in daylight.

  A painful image flashed across his mind. He could see his dad doubled over and could almost feel the kick he’d gotten to the gut. He willed himself to see more details, to see who was doing this to his father. It was hard to concentrate on the image and keep the car on the road, but he managed to get a glimpse of the other man.

  With a shock, Jake slammed on the brakes. That wasn’t right; that was not how the military ran those PSI experiments. Who were these people?

  Cold sweat poured down Jake’s back as he gripped the steering wheel and tried to control his breathing. He felt as if he had been punched in the gut like his dad. He was no longer even aware of the freeway, the car or the darkness. He only felt the pain his father felt, and the betrayal, knowing that his father was being held against his will. Somehow, something had gone terribly wrong.

  Static crackled through a John Coltrane piece, sharply bringing Jake back to the present.

  “Oh, shit,” he said, realizing he had stopped in the middle of the freeway just on the other side of the rise. If a car came over the crest they would not be able to stop in time, and would probably swerve to avoid him, ending up in the trees.

  Still shaken, Jake put his foot on the accelerator again. The car roared back into action and fishtailed for a moment with the excess power. That’s what his dad would have called it. Nothing much fazed him. A combat veteran and an officer to boot, he could handle anything. Of that Jake had always been sure…until tonight.

  Picking up speed to at least match the speed limit, Jake continued his journey. He was too shaken to even think about going above the speed limit. With one hand he unwrapped a burger and bit into it. It tasted good after the shock he’d had, but when he tried to wash it down with more coffee, it didn’t work. He had to pull over quickly to keep from vomiting all over the interior of the car.

  He turned off the engine and sat in the car after cleaning himself up. The pile of puke steamed next to the car, but at least he couldn’t smell it inside the car. His whole body shook now and he wondered if maybe he was sick. More than once he reached into his jacket pocket for his cell phone to call his mother, but every time, he put it back again. She would only worry and would probably come get him. Then he might never have the courage to go again.

  Maybe he could call Jessica. He hadn’t said goodbye to her either. He owed her that much at least. Checking the time on his cell phone he was surprised to find it was only just after two. He’d thought it would be later and closer to dawn. It probably was not the best time to call his girlfriend and break up with her or to tell her he’d told Brandon he could have her.

  Against his better judgment, he texted her. Just a quick message, nothing flowery or romantic, just the bare facts: “off to save dad. brandon s there for u. bye”

  Then he thought about James. James should still be up; he had trouble sleeping. He would be staring through his telescope, either into the neighbor’s windows or up at the stars. James would take his excitement where he could find it, and in The Bend the choices were limited. “James, Jimmy-J-James, you horny toad, what you doin’?” Jake said jovially when he heard his friend’s sleepy “hello.”

  “Jake?”

  “Yeah, it’s me, old pal, old buddy.”

  “Do you know what time it is?”

  “Not quite dawn’s early light yet.”

  A sigh sounded from the other end.

  “Being poetic? What have you been drinking, smoking, snorting or otherwise abusing?” James asked, impatience sounding in his voice.

  “It’s worse than you think, J buddy. I’ve run away and I’m going to rescue my dad.”

  Silence.

  “J? James, you there?”

  “Yeah, I’m here,” James said softly. “What’s going on, Jake?”

  “He’s in trouble. I can see it. And, well, he’s being beaten up, I can feel it,” Jake said hesitantly. He had talked to his friend about the ESP experiments his dad had done and the things he’d taught Jake, but would James think he was crazy?

  “Can you show me?” James said, after a while.

  “For real?”

  “Yeah, I want to know. I did some research, and, well, you’re right, it’s legit.”

  Jake almost let out a whoop of joy that at least his best friend believed him. It would figure that James would do the research first though, even after Jake had taught him the basics.

  “Ready?” Jake asked, and concentrated on calming his mind and slowing his breathing. He took a few deep breaths and settled back into the seat.

  “Ready,” James said. He sounded calm and very relaxed.

  Jake concentrated hard on his friend and on “transferring” one particular image. Because it was a painful image it made Jake’s head hurt. He felt a throbbing near his right temple and knew if he kept at it he would end up with a terrible headache and he might well throw up again. His dad had warned him about those kinds of headaches. Something about not being properly grounded or shielded, but he didn’t have time to do either of those; this was important.

  “Whoa, dude,” James’s voice came through, breaking Jake’s concentration.

  “You saw?”

  “I sure did, holy shit, that’s heavy stuff,” James said. A wave of relief washed over Jake and he sank farther back into the seat, pressing the phone to his ear and easing his tight grip on the steering wheel.

  “Can I help?” James added softly.

  “Not sure how, but I’ll probably call you from the road or something.” Jake was grateful for his friend.

  The annoying ding-ding sound of an incoming text message disturbed the bond.

  “Gotta go, probably a text from Jessica. I broke up with her a few minutes ago,” Jake said, sheepishly.

  “Bad move, dude. Catch you later. Safe journey.” And with that James disconnected.

  Jake looked at the little message box and wondered if he should read the text now or wait till morning. He wouldn’t blame her if she was angry or upset, but he also knew her repertoire of swear words and did not want to hear or see them at this late hour. She could out-cuss any trucker or dock worker; and that from such a sweet face.

  A delayed pang of guilt rippled through Jake as he realized he might well have hurt Jessica, and that she would never speak to him again. Then again, he might never see her again.

  Rather than put off the inevitable, he opened the message and was mildly shocked to find she had texted him a nude picture of herself with the words “your loss.”

  “Yep, that’s for sure.” He grinned to himself and saved the message.

  Chapter 5

  Jake nosed the car back onto the road and soon found himself driving through the scab lands, remembering the summer he and his parents had spent there hunting for fossils. Good memories, which made him smile and feel good enough to try a now cold apple pie.

  He bit into it and remembered throwing up earlier. But that wasn’t because he had eaten the wrong thing, but was because of the kick to the gut his father got, he told himself.

  Past Moses Lake he started to notice a
slight graying of the sky and he looked forward to the dawn. The darkness was beginning to bother him. It matched the place his father was at, judging by the images he had been getting.

  “I’m coming, Dad, just hold on,” he said out loud.

  The Seattle radio station had long since lost its reach but now Jake turned the radio on again and ran the dial up and down the band to find something to listen to.

  Country, news, oldies, static. He went up and down the dial to find something, and wished he had taken his mother’s car. At least she had a CD player in her car and a way to hook up the iPhone to play music. He finally settled for the oldies station and listened to mostly static-free Motown.

  Since there was nothing much to do on the empty road aside from drive, he let his mind wander, thinking again about how little resistance his mother had put up to his leaving like this. Had she really given up? Or did she think this was just a teenage “thing” he needed to get out of his system?

  Jake tried to think of how he would find his father once he was in Nevada. He was at least sure that’s where he was. It was in one of the images his father had sent him; he’d seen the Entering Nevada sign. But where? It was a big state with many empty areas where one could easily hide. He figured he would sort that out once he got there. He would criss-cross the state, methodically driving along every road there was if he had to. He was now more convinced than ever that his father was in deep trouble and in the hands of some rogue group. It had to be, the government would not treat him like this. Kevin Hanson was far too important to them as a healthy and happy medium. He’d told Jake that they took very good care of him when he was taking part in the ESP/PSI experiments some years back.

  Another desolate truck stop loomed up ahead and this time Jake felt he should pull over and maybe get something decent to eat and wash his hands and face. He also needed to use the bathroom, and the idea of squatting by the side of the road in this cold did not appeal to him.

  He pulled into the lot and parked next to a filthy minivan with Ohio plates. A glance inside told him it had to be a traveling salesman; he could see boxes of knick-knacks and novelties all labeled Made in China.