Portal - BK 1

by Imogen Rose

  I wondered about our brief, but for me, significant kiss. Had I been too forward? He had kissed me back, so it couldn’t have been totally repugnant to him. I wondered if it had been our first time. It certainly felt like it. I think I would have remembered kissing him. It had been the single most amazing moment in my life. I was not particularly confused about the kiss itself. It had felt right, like it was meant to be.

  I was more mystified by the “October shivers.” I wondered what that was all about? Was it a common occurrence? Did it only occur during October? What caused it? I had really enjoyed watching the meteor shower and hoped we could come back for the other ones I couldn’t recall the name of. Ori something?

  We sped along the highway. I didn’t recognize anything. I hoped Kellan would come along to New York with us. He suddenly slowed down and pulled to the side of the road. My heartbeat quickened. He lifted up his visor and I followed suit. He checked his cell phone, I guess it must have buzzed him.

  “Can I stop by my house and pick up a package for your mother?” he asked.

  I nodded, and we were quickly on the road again. Kellan soon turned into a dirt road and drove toward an impressive looking mansion. It looked more like a hotel than someone’s house. The house was well lit with exterior lights; we pulled up by the enormous front door. The door opened and a tall man came out to greet us.

  “Hello, Arizona! How have you been? Here’s the package for Ollie.”

  I took it and carefully placed it between Kellan and myself. I thanked the man who I assumed was Kellan’s dad. He shared Kellan’s looks and smile.

  “Dad, I’ll be back in about half an hour. Arizona, do you mind driving my kit to school tomorrow? We could drop it off at your place now.”

  I wondered if my little Wrangler could handle three kits!

  “Sure, but how will we get it on the bike?” I asked.

  Kellan laughed, “We’ll take a car.”

  We waved at his dad as we drove into the garage. Kellan parked along a black Porsche. He got up and fetched his kit from the back of the garage. I noticed his U+ stick. He threw it all into the back of the convertible. It barely fit. I took my helmet off and got into the car. Kellan hopped into the driver’s seat, backed the car out, and we drove off home. The surroundings started to look familiar, and we soon turned off at my driveway. Kellan drove right up to garage and jumped out to let me out.

  “Is the Jeep in the garage?”

  I nodded, keyed in the combination to open the doors and walked over to the Wrangler. I opened the back door to discover Harry’s kit. It pretty much took up all the space. I pushed at it to try to make space for Kellan’s kit. He nudged me aside and shoved Harry’s kit and threw his in.

  “There!” he said, satisfied. “Thanks, Shrimp. This means that I’ll get to drive the bike in tomorrow. Are you going to come and watch?”

  I muttered, “I’ll be there.”

  “Good,” said Kellan and walked me to the house. I could hear excited yapping from inside.

  “Bye, Kellan. See you tomorrow. Best of luck at the tryouts,” I said as I started walking to the door.

  “Not so quickly, Shrimp. Come here!”

  I turned around and met his gaze.

  “You’ve avoided telling me what Harry was going on about. What’s the big secret?”

  “It’s nothing really. I want to surprise you tomorrow. So can you wait a bit longer?”

  He sighed and said, “I suppose. You’re going to have me wondering all night now!” He looked at me curiously. “Arizona, what happened this evening, by the lake….” He paused.

  I waited, barely breathing. I stood frozen staring at the ground.

  “It was….” He paused again. He took a step toward me. Then, Kellan cupped my face in his hands and turned it up to face his. He then slowly moved forward until I could feel every breath of his against my face. He brushed his thumb against my lips parting them slightly. He stopped and stared into the very core of me as I closed my eyes and found his lips.

  Olivia Darley looked out her office window gazing at the wondrous sky above. She had always been in awe of its vast beauty. The planets, stars and galaxies provided a constant source of fascination. She was now transfixed by the Draconid meteor showers. Although she knew she could get a clearer view on her computer, it was so much more beautiful like this. She hoped that Rupert was out looking at them.

  Her feet ached. It had been a long and difficult day. She went back to her desk and made herself comfortable in her soft, suede-covered desk chair. She threw off her trusted nude Louboutins and wriggled her toes.

  There was a silver frame at the far end of her desk. She pulled it toward her and gazed lovingly at the photograph. She remembered the occasion well. It had been her mother’s 72nd birthday. The whole family posing in front of the Falls at Niagara: her mother, Rupert, Harry, Arizona and Ella.

  Her life felt perfect now and she had contemplated closing down the October Project. After all, this time the portal could be shut forever. There were no further loose ends. Nothing more needed to be “retrieved.” She imagined saying goodbye to that life forever and felt no twinges of regret. She was certain that she had done the right thing. Everyone around her seemed happy and she was certainly more content than she had ever been in her life.

  She looked at the tattooed wedding band on her left hand. This was a “forever” like no other. The October Project had been for him, for us, for the family.

  Her computer bleeped a message. She wondered what it could be this time. It was late and she needed to get home. She was not going to make it back before Ella’s bedtime. She wondered how her lack of involvement in Ella’s auditions was affecting her little princess. It was unfortunate that they were taking place in October, a month when she basically lived at Ames. She clicked on the message icon: a brief message from Dr. Moreau. She needed a quick chat. Olivia replied, asking Glenda to come over to her office.

  Her protesting feet were crammed back into the Louboutins. She wondered what Glenda needed to talk to her about. She hoped that Glenda would not become the first October Project failure. Although it wouldn’t be the end of the world, she was replaceable. It was only her “core five” that were irreplaceable. Glenda was an extraordinary woman, though. She would prefer to keep her, as long as she and her family could be controlled.

  There was a knock at the door. Olivia checked her computer to see who was outside - just Glenda, looking slightly flustered. She unlocked the door and pressed the computer key, which activated the welcome message outside her door.

  Welcome to Dr. Darley’s office. The door is unlocked. Please step inside and close the door behind you.

  Olivia watched Glenda walk in and close the door carefully behind her. Glenda was in her late fifties, five foot ten, green eyes and curly blonde hair. Olivia remembered her as very chic, always dressed in smart pantsuits. She guessed that life in New Jersey had rubbed off. Glenda was comfortably dressed in blue jeans, a “Bushkills” sweatshirt and Nike sneakers. It was hard to imagine that this was the same woman from all those years ago at Imperial College in London.

  Glenda was a woman whose mind stretched in impressive directions. Olivia had hoped that Glenda’s unlimited willingness to explore new horizons was still intact. It was Glenda who had inspired Olivia to delve into quantum mechanics. This was at Imperial College, over twenty years ago when Olivia was a student there. Glenda had been one of her professors. Olivia didn’t think that Glenda had any recollection of her from those days. She had been just one of many students.

  “What can I do for you, Glenda?”

  “It’s actually a personal matter, Olivia. Arizona popped over to see Ariele earlier this evening. They seemed to know each other fairly well, and Arizona recognized me. I didn’t hear much of their conversation, but I thought it best to let you know.”

  Recognized? Olivia felt uneasy. She tried to maintain a calm front, but was screaming on the inside yearning for more information. She had been
very uncomfortable about Ariele making contact with Arizona but it had been inevitable. She hoped that Ariele would have the good sense not betray their trust in her. However, Olivia had not been upfront with Glenda, so she or Ariele may have let something slip inadvertently.

  “Thanks for letting me know, Glenda. They probably just met at school and Arizona would have guessed that you were Ariele’s mother?”

  Glenda shrugged, “It seemed more than that to me. I’ll keep an eye on the situation as much as I can.”

  “How are the tests going, Glenda? I noticed that the tremors were more pronounced today.”

  Glenda twisted in her chair uncomfortably. “We had to increase the speed today and the collisions became unpredictable. The collider vibrated more than usual. I am sure the ‘October shivers’ were more distinct. The computer is still analyzing the data. I hung on to look at it. It’s taking much longer than I expected though. So, I’m going to head home and check it tomorrow.”

  “That’s a good idea,” said Olivia. “Ariele is still adjusting, she needs you. Has she found any activities to get involved with at school? I hear she was a good lacrosse player at Princeton. Arizona is on the cheer squad and debate team. Would she be interested in those?”

  “It’s too early to tell. She’s been moping around since we got here, not showing any interest in anything. Today was the first time I saw her smile, being excited and enthusiastic. It’s all thanks to Arizona. Her biggest issue in school is Simla. You know that I don’t understand all the ins and outs of this situation yet, but I really can’t understand Simla’s attitude. She doesn’t seem to recognize Ariele from Princeton. Perhaps you could find some time and explain all this to me?”

  She was right – it did need to be explained. Olivia didn’t have all the answers though. Simla and Justin were not part of the October Project; she had no idea what they were doing here or how they had been transported over. They had not come through the portal, at least to her knowledge. Simla’s mom and Justin’s dad worked at Ames under Larry, but on entirely different projects. She needed to pin Larry down to find out how these families had found their way here.

  “I will, Glenda, when I feel the time is right,” she replied firmly but reassuringly.

  Glenda got up to leave and Olivia reminded her to ask a guard to walk her to her car. As the door was shutting behind Glenda, Olivia picked up her cell and called Rupert.

  “Hi, Honey, how are things? I miss you.”

  “Hey, Ollie, things are fine. If you’re going to be much longer, I’ll drive over. Both Harry and Arizona are home so I can leave Ella here with them.”

  “That would be great. It’s dark and lonely here, but I still have a few things to do.”

  Rupert chuckled, “Dark and lonely sounds good to me. I can work with that!”

  Olivia smiled as she turned the cell off. She slid her heels off again turning to the computer. She brought up the collider readings. The computations were still being analyzed. She wondered why the speed had to be increased. The collider had been acting up, however, increasing the speed was exciting. The new data may provide some initial insights into building transportable mini portals, something she had been dreaming about for years. Still, was this something she should be spending her life on at the moment or should she be concentrating on her core five and letting this project die?

  She turned back to her photograph, her core five.

  Rupert was and had always been the love of her life, the reason she took her next breath. She had met him over fifteen years ago in a pub in London. She had been there celebrating her best friend’s birthday. She had not noticed him at first, as he strummed his guitar by the bar. The pub was busy and smoke filled. She and her friends had a table in the corner. She was married and pregnant, and should really not have been subjecting her baby to this atmosphere. She had decided to stay for an hour and then head home.

  She had offered to get the first round so she could go home after that. It had been almost impossible to get through the crowds around the bar. She looked around for a possible route when a hand nearly grabbed hers but she avoided it. She couldn’t see who it was and hoped it wasn’t a drunk. As she reached the bar, she had turned to stare at the most hypnotic eyes she had ever encountered.

  It had been the eyes of her fairytale. The eyes that had drawn her into a future that had at first seemed incomprehensible, but one that she had now made real. Her friends had noticed her instant and powerful attraction to the stranger. They had all heard him say, “Ollie, I’m your Rupert,” before he left. “Careful,” her friend, Celia, had warned. “Don’t forget that you are married!” Olivia had looked down at her wedding band and decided that she had to let him go.

  There was a sharp knock on the office door, Rupert, Olivia hoped. She checked the computer camera and pressed the welcome buzzer.

  Rupert came in smiling, “How about a ‘special’ welcome message just for me?”

  “I’ll work on it,” smiled Olivia as she got up and flung herself at her husband. He carried her over to the couch where they sat silently holding each other. She was happiest like this, listening to Rupert’s heartbeat. Had it not been for the computer beeping at her again, she could have stayed in this position forever. She sighed and made her way back to her desk. It had to be a problem, at this hour.

  It was a message from the Larry, the Director of the program and her best friend. The message said that he would keep an eye on things, she could head back home.

  Olivia smiled and sighed with relief, “Rup, we can go.”

  “No hurry,” said Rupert beckoning her back to the couch. “This is a comfortable place to catch up.”

  She smiled as she sauntered back to the couch and made herself comfortable on Rupert’s lap. She rested her head against his chest so she could enjoy his heartbeat again.

  “How did Ella’s audition go today? She seemed really excited when I spoke to her. Too bad I’ll miss New York. I’m really disappointed.”

  Rupert stroked her hair comfortingly and kissed the back of her neck.

  “She did good! We may have ourselves a little star in the making. I do hope we are not tiring her out too much though.”

  Olivia recalled her conversation with Glenda earlier and asked Rupert if he had noticed anything amiss with Arizona. She repeated what Glenda had shared about Ariele and Arizona.

  “I am so scared. It’s all so perfect now. I can’t bear the thought of anything going wrong. Arizona has been acting strangely though, don’t you think?” She looked at Rupert with tears suddenly streaming down her cheeks. He gently brushed them off with his lips and looked deeply into her eyes.

  “We are us. We’ll always be. This is the right time, our time. I’m not going to lose you or our family.”

  She closed her eyes and remembered how she had worked to move mountains to be with Rupert.

  As she left the pub that cold October evening, she had felt a sense of deep desperation. She knew she had just let her lifeline walk out but what choice did she have? The ride from Paddington to Wimbledon on the District Line was monotonous. She had forgotten to pick up an Evening Standard to distract her. So her thoughts kept returning to Rupert and what he had said. She didn’t understand what he meant but she did know that he was her one and only soul mate. She would have to find a way to be with him. She gathered her trusted Kelly bag and her laptop as the train approached the station. She had a ten-minute walk home.

  She knew that her husband, Dillard, wouldn’t be home, he would still be out drinking with his mates. She didn’t feel any strong emotions when she thought of Dillard. They had met when they were both undergraduates at Cambridge. They had been married for eight years now. The marriage had more or less run its course before this pregnancy, but she had decided to stick it out for the baby. Dillard came from a very different background to hers. They had nothing in common and no emotional connection. She often wondered why she had stayed with him this long. She had decided that it was out of habit – a
habit that seemed so hard to break.

  Olivia tried to remember back to when she first met him. It had been Dillard who had come up to her at a university party and asked her to dance. He had seemed very sweet and attentive and she had been attracted to that. The attention was something she had lacked in her childhood and had always yearned for.

  They finished Cambridge and got married at the Town Hall in Paddington with no family present. They excitedly moved into their first flat. Both started working on their graduate degrees while they worked part time. There was never a physical or emotional connection between them. She could have lived with the lack of physical connection, however, the emotional disconnect become unbearable. She became more and more aware of Dillard’s arrogance and philandering. His sweetness disappeared all together as he experimented with drugs. She came to find him more and more closed minded over the years with no room to explore new things. Olivia found herself spending more and more time with her friends and at work.

  “Hey, Baby, what are you thinking about?” asked Rupert bringing her back to the present.

  She looked up at him and pleaded through her tears, “Tell me it’s going to be ok.”

  Rupert looked concerned now. “You are really worried aren’t you? I’ll talk to Arizona tomorrow and try to get a feel for what’s going on. Whatever it is, we will work it out. We’ll do whatever we have to, to preserve our family. We already have and we will do it again. After all, who was it who found me two years ago?”

  She nodded and slowly got up and pulled him to her, “I guess we better go and check in with the kids.”

  Rupert loaded his bike into the H2 and they drove back silently.