by D. B. Magee
“Shut up and drop the stick!” the soldier ordered. “Get up against the car. I’ll ask the questions, here.”
Seeing what his employer was going through, Bubba didn’t hesitate in the least when approached by the other soldier. He immediately pulled out and dropped his blackjack and pistol.
“You too!” The other soldier ordered Bubba, “up against the car!”
At the other end of the lake, William, Stacy and Lisa were all waiting apprehensively on the dock for Ryan’s return. As he neared close enough to see them, he grabbed the bag from his handlebars and held it up. The strong afternoon breeze whipped it around in his hand. “Mission accomplished!” he hollered.
“Woo! Hoo!” William shouted.
The girls both jumped up and down, cheering.
Upon docking and securing the Jet Ski, Ryan handed the plastic shopping bag containing the Frequency Glasses to Stacy. “Here you go, missy,” he said. “Project Spacebook is a go once again.”
“Thank you, Ryan,” Stacy said, the bag held close to her chest. “You’re a lifesaver.”
“My pleasure,” Ryan replied. “But now we’d better hurry and get these glasses back in the safe, just in case those goons decide to return.” With wet-sloshing jeans, Ryan led the group back to shore where he quickly retrieved his hat and boots from where he’d left them.
“You know,” William said, as Ryan re-dressed, “Not only should we lock these glasses back in the safe, but after what has just happened, maybe we should also disconnect the network until we can find the rightful owner and get their permission.”
“Disconnect the network?” Stacy said indignantly. “Are you kidding? People everywhere have a right to know that the spirit world really exists. And now that we’ve found these glasses, we have a responsibility to humanity to share them.”
“Responsibility maybe, but not the right,” William argued. “We just came close to losing something that isn’t ours. And who are we to decide, anyway? Maybe there’s a reason these glasses were locked away. Maybe they weren’t meant to be shared.”
Having just rejoiced in the return of the Frequency Glasses, as well as the belief that the unification of the living with the transitioned would be universally momentous, Stacy suddenly felt like it was all being stripped away, as if a great injustice was about to be incurred on two worlds. She dropped her head sadly.
“Maybe William’s right,” Lisa said. “Maybe we should try to find out who has legal claim to these before we make them public.”
Stacy lifted her head. “And just how do you suggest we do that?” she asked gloomily. “The inventor is dead and the journals didn’t mention any family. We can’t just start calling everybody named Finch—there’s probably thousands.”
Lisa put her arm around Stacy’s shoulders, trying to cheer her up. “Well, there’s still Ryan’s grandmother. She knew Mr. Finch when she was young—maybe she’ll know if he has any living relatives we can contact.”
Ryan strolled up, stomping his cowboy boots on tight. “Why do they have to be living? Lest y’all forgot, my great-granddad’s his best friend. I say we reconnect the glasses to the network in the safe and go see if he can put us in touch with this Mr. Finch, himself, and ask for his permission directly.”
Stacy’s demeanor instantly changed. “That’s a great idea, Ryan. Let’s go now!”
Everyone cheerfully agreed, and with the plan accepted the four friends began climbing the stairway up the side of the butte toward the house.
Lisa hustled up next to Ryan. “So, hero,” she said, “tell me, just how exactly did you manage to get the glasses back from those crooks?”
“Y’all have Willy to thank for that,” he said, looking over and giving his friend a congratulatory nod.
New Guardians
Unbeknownst to the children as they strolled up to the picket fence surrounding the front yard, a stranger watched their approach from the cover of the shady porch.
“Hello!” he called out, rising from the porch swing.
The kids halted in their tracks and gazed suspiciously at the tall shadowy figure on the veranda.
Thinking the thugs had returned, Stacy quickly hid the Frequency Glasses, still wrapped in the shopping bag, behind her back.
Ryan stepped up to the gate in front of Stacy. “Who are you, mister?” he asked, squinting against the bright afternoon sun.
Stepping down from the porch, the man emerged from the shadows. In his right hand was a pair of dark sunglasses, and on his left wrist a highly technical-looking watch. His stature was tall and his build, lean and fit, with ruggedly handsome facial features.
Looking the man over, Ryan noticed that he was about Granny’s age, casually attired, appearing respectful and composed—definitely not one of the goons he’d seen by the side of the road earlier.
“Come forward, children. Don’t be afraid,” the man said. “I have been waiting for you. My name is Jamie Finch.”
Hearing the name Finch, shock and surprise appeared on each of the children’s faces. For a long moment, they couldn’t speak. They simply stared at one another, unsure of what to say or do.
Jamie chuckled. “I can tell by your expressions that you recognize the name, which is why I am here: to talk about someone else with that name, my father, David Finch.”
“How do we know you are who you say you are?” Ryan challenged.
Jamie grinned approvingly at Ryan’s cautious nature as he pulled his wallet from his back pocket. “Here, see for yourself.” Flipping to his identification, he approached the fence.
Ryan kept the gate between the stranger and themselves, just in case they needed a moment to make a break for it.
Jamie displayed his driver’s license for inspection.
Cautiously, Ryan scrutinized the information and photo. “Okay,” he conceded, returning the wallet. “I reckon you are who you say you are.”
Jamie put his wallet away. “Would it be all right if we talk inside?”
Ryan looked to Lisa for approval. Lisa nodded and proceeded to lead everyone to the house and into the living room. It was a long room, combining a sitting room at the front and a formal dining area at the rear. In the living room, two sofas faced each other with a coffee table in between and end tables at either side of the sofas. Jamie sat on one of the sofas and Lisa, Stacy, and William sat across from him on the other. Ryan brought over a chair from the dining area, placed it by the end of the sofa near William, and mounted it like a horse, with his chest against the back rest.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve been in this house, Lisa,” Jamie said, looking around as if reminiscing.
“How do you know my name?” Lisa asked.
Jamie grinned omnisciently. “I know all of your names,” he admitted. “But I’m getting ahead of myself.” He put a hand up. “Let me start at the beginning.” Leaning back against the sofa, he got comfortable and proceeded to tell his story.
“As I’m sure you know by now,” he began, “David Finch, my father, invented the Frequency Glasses, which you all found. He originally created them to get in touch with his best friend, who had died . . .”
“Yeah,” Stacy chimed in, “that was Ryan’s great-grandfather.”
Jamie looked pleased. “I take it you’ve met Brian, then?”
“Ryan and I have,” Stacy again spoke up. “He runs SPAZ. Did you know that Ryan’s grandmother wrote a computer game based on his park?”
“I did,” Jamie acknowledged. “Ryan’s grandmother, Mary, and I are close friends. We pretty much grew up together. I know your grandmother, too,” he said to Lisa.
Lisa sat up attentively on the edge of her seat. “Really? You know Nana?”
“I sure do,” Jamie said. “It just so happens that your great-grandmother, Kim, was another good friend of my father’s, and when your grandmother, Sarah, was young, she was very sick and near death. Seeing she was afraid of dying, my father allowed her to use the Frequency Glasses to witness for herself th
at there was nothing to fear in the spirit world. This is how Ryan’s grandmother, Mary, and I became acquainted with her. She eventually recovered from her illness and the three of us became good friends.”
Delighted by one particular aspect of this information, Lisa grinned at Ryan. “Our grandmothers know each other. How grand is that?”
Ryan reached around and rubbed the back of his neck. “What a small world.”
“So what happened next?” Stacy blurted out anxiously, her expectant gaze fixed on Jamie.
Jamie paused for a moment, trying to recall where he was in the story. “Well,” he said, “after numerous visits to the spirit world, to visit Brian, Dad realized that the real potential of the glasses would be to serve mankind, and he decided that he wanted to share them with the world.”
Stacy and Lisa exchange excited glances. Stacy pointed to Lisa. “That was our idea, too!”
“Yeah,” Lisa said. “We were going to put a website on the internet and share the signal from the glasses with the whole world.”
“Very ingenious,” Jamie complemented.
The girls smiled proudly.
Jamie continued, “A spirit organization known as the Spirits for Mankind, the SFM, in short, asked him to postpone his plan, on account the world was not yet ready for this revelation. They prophesied that there would be a better time for the unveiling of the spirit world, and at that time, a better-suited group of people to exhibit and maintain the glasses.”
Stacy and Lisa suddenly became disheartened at the thought of losing the opportunity of creating the Spacebook world network.
A silence fell.
Ryan took this moment to hop up from his chair. “Be right back,” he muttered.
Jamie waited patiently for Ryan’s return, while the others sat solemnly reflecting on this last bit of news.
A few moments later and hugging an armload of water bottles, Ryan strolled back in. “Thought y’all might be thirsty,” he said. “I know I am!” He set the bottles down on the coffee table, all but one that he proceeded to open and gulp down.
“So, like I was saying,” Jamie said, “at the request of the SFM, my father hid the glasses away until such time as mankind was ready — and the right group of people came along.” Jamie stopped, picked up one of the bottles from the coffee table, opened it, and took a few swallows. “Thank you,” he said, setting the bottle down again.
“If David was told by the SFM to hide the glasses away,” Ryan said, taking his seat, “how do ya reckon those thugs today knew about them?”
“Ah, yes, good question, Ryan,” Jamie said, after another drink of water. “Before my father ever met the SFM, before he even had the idea to share the glasses with the world, a janitor at his laboratory had seen them on a workbench during their development. They were temporarily left hooked to a testing machine while Dad went out for coffee. The janitor, being curious, looked through them and to his amazement witnessed his deceased parents. Needless to say, he told whoever would listen, including the media, who spread the story far and wide.”
“Nosy old janitor,” William muttered.
“After his meeting with the SFM,” Jamie said, moving on, “Dad left the public’s eye and went underground, hoping people would forget. For a few years, stories of his miracle glasses kept popping up as various people and reporters kept trying to find them. After enough time, however, interest finally died out, for the most part. There are, of course, a number of diehards who continue to look for them.”
Jamie sat forward and stretched. “Because of this, and at the request of the SFM, I became steward over the Frequency Glasses after my father passed. And needing to keep an eye on the glasses, I installed a surveillance system around the property and in Tree Root Cavern.” He smiled at Lisa. “That’s how I knew your names,” he admitted. “I’ve been waiting a long time for this long-ago-predicted group to present themselves.”
Stacy suddenly remembered that she still had the Frequency Glasses, and reached for the bag containing them. “Mr. Finch,” she said, “I guess we had better return these to you, then.” She walked over to Jamie and handed him the bag.
Jamie peeked inside and grinned in admiration. “I saw on the surveillance camera that you kids had lost these to the intruders.”
“We did,” Stacy said, her tone apologetic.
“We got them back, though,” William said proudly.
“Well then, that makes what I’m about to say, and do, that much easier.” Jamie closed the bag and handed it back to Stacy.
Stacy looked confused. “I don’t understand . . .”
Jamie suddenly put up his hand, halting all conversation, and tapped the earpiece he was wearing. “Go ahead,” he said. “Yes, that’s okay, they’re safe. Apprehend and return. Right, out.”
“You see,” Jamie said, resuming his conversation, “I came here today for two reasons. The first was to recover the Frequency Glasses.” He glanced around at the curious faces staring back at him. “It appears, however, that my help wasn’t needed. You four proved that you are perfectly capable of solving your own problems.” He smiled and gave the kids an encouraging nod. “And that makes me feel very confident in the second purpose of my visit, which is to turn stewardship of the glasses over to you. That is, of course, if you want it.”
“But, you said it was foretold that a better suited group of people were to take over,” Lisa said.
“Indeed, I did,” Jamie said, checking the time on his watch. “And you four are that group.”
“How do ya figure that?” Ryan asked, thinking about how they’d messed things up so far.
Jamie took another swig from his bottle of water. “The SFM provided me with a number of criteria with which to identify the proper group. One was that the group was to be young. I’d say you meet that criterion.” He held up a finger and continued. “The next was that they were to get past all of the clues and security and actually gain access to the glasses. You’ve definitely done that.” He raised a second finger. “The third,” he said, with three fingers now in the air, “is that they have my father’s desire to share the glasses freely with mankind.” Jamie looked at Stacy and Lisa. “You girls have recently shared with me that you have such a desire — and a plan already in place, also.”
The girls smiled and nodded.
“And finally,” Jamie said, snapping his last finger up and then lowering his hand, “is that they willingly desire to be the new guardians.” He gazed inquisitively at each of the children, who by the looks on their faces and the nodding of their heads all seemed to be heartily accepting of the position and duty.
“Wonderful!” Jamie exclaimed. “Because I’m getting too old for this stuff.”
“But what are we supposed to do with them?” Lisa asked, looking at the shopping bag.
“Continue with your plan. The time is right, now. Just keep them safe. There will be a lot of people wanting to get their hands on them, once they find out they exist.”
“Why?” Lisa asked, once again fearful. “If we share them freely with the world, why would anyone want to take them?”
Jamie turned to Lisa. “I’m afraid that not everyone will like the idea of this technology being shared freely with the world. There’s a lot of greed and corruption that still exists in our society, and these glasses will represent power to anyone who controls them. You kids have good hearts and want to use the glasses the way my father had intended. Just stay true to that mission, and with the guidance of the SFM, you will succeed.”
“But what if somebody else comes and tries to take them?” Stacy asked nervously.
“Don’t worry, little one, I will still be around, and acting as overseer.” Jamie pulled out a business card and handed it to Stacy. “This is my private number. You kids can contact me anytime you need to.”
With a finger, Ryan pushed his hat up higher on his forehead. “Uh, what happens when you’re no longer able to watch over us?”
Jamie grinned confidently, “By th
en Ryan, maybe you’ll be ready to take over as overseer, and . . .” Just then a chuffing sound was heard outside. “Perfect timing,” Jamie said, interrupting his own sentence. “It sounds like my ride is here.” He stood and donned his sunglasses.
William ran to the screen door and pushed it open. The sound was loud now, as the rough shape of a helicopter’s shadow formed in the meadow below the butte. “You have your own helicopter?” he asked, almost choking on his question.
Jamie stepped out onto the porch with William. The rest of the kids hustled out behind him, gawking at the black, stealthy chopper as it descended. “Would you like to take a look?” he invited.
“Would we?” Ryan boomed.
Jamie led the way to a path in front of the garage that headed down to the meadow. This was the same path that Lisa had used in the past to access her dirt bike track. In fact, the helicopter had landed in the middle of the overgrown track, and was idling down.
As they approached the chopper, the side door slid open. Two armed men in camos sat guarding two other gentlemen with hanging heads.
William froze. “Those are the guys I saw in the house!” Ryan and Lisa moved forward, wanting a look at the intruders. Stacy decided she’d rather hang back with her brother.
An air of calm and confidence emanated from Jamie as he looked at the kids. “You don’t have to worry about them,” he said. “They won’t be bothering anyone anymore.”
Hearing Jamie near the helicopter, Mr. Smith looked up.
“It’s been a long time, Musrat — that’s Mr. Smith’s real name,” Jamie said aside to the kids. “I thought we deported you, years ago.”
“Argh!” Mr. Smith groaned. “What are you doing here, Ghost? This isn’t a matter for Homeland Security. I’m legal now. And my name is Mr. Smith.”
“Did you hear that?” Lisa whispered excitedly to Ryan.
Being preoccupied by the sheer awesomeness of the stealthy copter, Ryan didn’t reply.
Lisa continued to listen to Jamie’s conversation as he moved closer to the chopper.
