“What is it you wanted of me, doctor?” The young prince finally commanded of the sickly thing in front of him. Frederickson lifted his face slightly and peered at Julien from under his brow. He cleared his throat audibly and began to speak.
“There was an incident at the previous site, milord. The king’s advisor happened upon us in the middle of our procedure.”
His normally cool expression heated for a moment in surprise as Julien considered the implications of what he’d just been told. He had always known that his father’s interference would be forthcoming. It was only a matter of time, but this was much sooner than he had expected or prepared for.
“You mean Arden found you? How did he even know? What did you do with him?” There were too many questions to give voice to.
“We dispatched him, of course, my liege.” The doctor replied as calmly as if murdering one of his countrymen was as common for him as having breakfast. “How he found us, I do not know.”
“Did he have a chance to tell anyone? Did he tell my father?” Julien barely held the panic from his words. This newborn revolution would be over before it began if his father brought the whole of his attention to the matter.
“I cannot be certain, milord. I don’t believe so. We searched him and found no communication devices. He appeared almost as shocked to find us as we were to see him.”
“What did you do with the body after you…dispatched him?”
“He had caused quite a ruckus upon his discovery of us, so we stripped him of clothes and identification, leaving him at the site while we evacuated.”
Julien mulled over this little tidbit of bad news for a moment. Even if Arden was acting alone and had told no one of his movements (and the man was too smart for that), his absence would quickly be noted. His father would move the heavens to find out what had happened to his closest friend. It wouldn’t be long after that that the king would uncover his oldest son’s involvement in the matter.
“We need to move up the timetable, doctor. Do you have a progress report for me? How close are you to completing the project?”
“Well, milord,” the doctor began, almost giddy with excitement, “we’ve successfully engineered the neural blocker that will suppress the reasoning center of the brain. The subject will be extremely susceptible to outside control and have virtually no inhibitions towards violence and hostility. We’ve added an additional adrenal stimulant to enhance their aggression. Pain will not slow them down. They will keep attacking whatever it is you command of them until they spit their dying breath.”
The doctor paused and began to fidget, his hands rubbing nervously together.
“And what of the genetic manipulation, doctor?” Julien demanded impatiently, struggling to keep his temper in check.
“That’s where we’ve had some difficulties, milord.”
“What do you mean, difficulties? Doctor, you assured me that you could manipulate human DNA to mirror our own, give them the gifts we enjoy. Without it, how can I recruit an army and retake our homeland if that army cannot survive the journey?”
“Yes, milord, I realize I said that. Unfortunately, the human genome has proven resistant to the sudden mutations that we introduce to it. The subjects are converted for a brief period, but their cells inevitably begin to break down from the stress of the change.”
“So, you’re telling me it can’t be done?” Julien asked.
“No, no, my prince.” Frederickson stammered. “I assure you it can be done. My theories are sound. I just need more time to stabilize the transformation and eliminate the immune response. Even now we’re working on different approaches to the problem.”
“How much longer?”
“One, maybe two, more attempts to correctly synthesize the formula should be sufficient.”
“You have one, Frederickson, one more try. And make it happen. I need to shore up support for the cause and convince the others to come over to our side. For that to happen, they will need assurances, proof that what I have promised can be done. This is important, doctor. Do not fail me.”
Frederickson nodded his comprehension and Julien considered everything he’d been told for a moment before adding.
“To be on the safe side, doctor, pack everything up and go to the next site. Leave no tracks, but be ready. I will contact you in two days.”
Without waiting for a reply, Julien turned on his heel and left the cabin with Darius in tow. He had much to think about and plan for.
“Darius?” he asked when they had returned to the beach.
“Yes, my liege?”
“Once we get back, I want you to organize a search party. In all likelihood, Arden did not come here alone. If my father has sent a contingent, they will need to be holed up somewhere and my guess would be one of the topside staging areas off the coast. We’ll need to check them out.”
Even as he said the words, the young wannabe monarch felt a sense of déjà vu. There was something familiar here, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.
“What shall I instruct the men to do if they find something?” The question derailed his mental train of thought.
“Report back to me. If the king is coming after me, I would like to leave him an appropriate message.”
“Yes, my lord.”
Bothered by the turn of events, Julien waded into the water. The surf lapped roughly at his ankles and splashed up his legs. As his mind churned over this new information, his body soaked in the rejuvenating effects of the sea. He felt renewed, energized. With each crash of the waves, the complications seemed to wash away.
This is going to work. I will be king. Nothing can stop me.
With that, he dove under the tumultuous surf and disappeared into the depths.
Chapter 5 – Another Day in Paradise
It was long standing tradition and a rite of passage for the incoming seniors at Beach Side High School to meet at Paradise Beach on the first Thursday of summer vacation. It wasn’t limited to just seniors though. Most times, the graduating class would attend as well as kids home from college, plus a smattering of juniors and sophomores. Pretty much anyone who could get a ride.
As far back as middle school, students looked forward to this big blowout, hearing tales from their older brothers and sisters. The tradition was so old that no one in Inlet Cove could even remember when it had even started, but they all remembered their own senior beach party, usually more vividly than their entire high school career.
Although it was frowned upon, there was always beer and liquor to be had, absconded from liquor cabinets throughout the tiny town. Further down the beach, the stoners were usually fumigating their lungs. At least a few of them would pass out from their high and wake up hours later, lobster-red and bordering on sun poisoning. And, inevitably, someone could trace their unplanned pregnancy to that night. But, all in all, it was just the biggest teenage party in anyone’s memory.
Once on the sand, Jordan and Johnny sped ahead to pick out a prime spot for their stuff. Between them, they awkwardly carried the big 40 gallon cooler as well as the beach umbrellas that they had stolen from their own backyard. Next in line were Derrick and Carrie, his arm around her neck while he hefted an array of towels and blankets. Dylan, Jaime and Alex brought up the rear, making silent kissy faces at each other as they watched the couple in front of them and trying not to laugh out loud at themselves.
“Over here!”
Jordan’s voice bellowed over the shouts and loud music all around them. Johnny joined his older brother in waving the group over to their spot, near the water, but above the high tide line. Both of them had already discarded their shirts and were displaying their muscles with macho pride.
Jaime darted off, leaving the other two girls alone, eager to join the object of her unrequited adoration as he flexed in the hot sun. Both girls glanced at the other and rolled their eyes. This intricate dance between Jaime and Johnny had been going on for months now with no discernible end in sight. Jaime was too s
hy to voice her crush and Johnny too dense and too young to see it. Alex and Dylan both shrugged at the same time and turned their attention back to the impromptu muscle man competition.
Dylan couldn’t help but notice that Jordan had packed on some additional muscle since the previous summer. He had shed more of his boyhood and put on a fair amount of man. Her eyes had a mind of their own and were drawn to the contoured lines of his chest. Uncontrollably, her view continued downward to his carved abs and ‘V’ that disappeared into his low trunks.
She averted her gaze guiltily. She’d known Jordan like, forever, and he had always seemed more of a brother than anything else, yet the thoughts in her head right now were far from being sisterly. Sure, they had dated for a hot minute in the middle of their freshman year, but it had just been too weird, too familiar. It had ended almost as soon as it had begun, but neither of them had any regrets about it. She cherished the friendship they shared and hadn’t thought she’d wanted anything different or more from him, which made these carnal thoughts even more alien to her.
Still, that had been over two years ago and things changed. Both of them had changed. They’d gotten older. They’d grown into young adults and, from what Dylan could see, Jordan had grown in all the right places.
Of course, Dylan was well aware that this sudden infatuation could be a by-product of her own prolonged single-ness. She hadn’t been on a legitimate date in months. She was in desperate need of a status update and her current prospects weren’t exactly awe-inspiring. Perhaps she needed to revisit the Jordan thing again. Not today, but soon. Until then, there was nothing in the rule book that said she couldn’t look.
Unfortunately for her, Jordan wasn’t the only subject under the microscope this morning. From the corner of her eye, Dylan could see Alex studying her with an amused look on her face. She barely had time to groan expectantly before Alex baited her hook and went fishing. “Jordan’s looking mighty fine these days, don’t you think?”
Dylan shrugged and began to look elsewhere, anywhere that wasn’t Jordan or Alex. “I suppose so. I hadn’t really noticed.”
Alex burst out laughing, realizing she’d caught a ten pounder. “Girl, you may be able to fool the others. You may even be fooling yourself, but me, I know you too well. You have got the major hots for that man up there.”
Dylan eyed her best friend icily, shooting daggers of friendly death at her. She hated being called out like that and she considered lying about it for a second, but she knew that wouldn’t fly very far. Especially not with Alex, who seemed to know her better than she knew herself sometimes. “OK, so what if I do? I’m not going to do anything about it.”
“And why not? He’s hot. You’re hot. Go supernova together.”
“Funny. You know why not. Rule number one, don’t date your friends.” She answered, yet, as much as she believed her words, there was still something about them that rang false to her.
Alex quickened her pace enough to pull ahead, stepped in front of her best friend and stopped with her back towards the group. Dylan was brought up short by the obstacle and the serious look on her best friend’s face. “I know the rules. What I’m saying is maybe it’s time to throw the rule book out the window.”
“I can’t do that, Alex. It’d just be too weird and there’s too much to lose if it doesn’t work out.” She said, fidgeting slightly as her gear grew heavier. She really didn’t want to be having this conversation right now, or preferably ever.
“There’s also so much to gain. What if he is your soul mate? What if Jordan is your yang? I mean, really, I’ve never met two people so totally suited for each other. You like the same cheesy superhero and action flicks. You both listen to the same classic rock that my Dad listens to. You complete each other’s sentences. You never run out of things to say to one another. I never see you unhappy when he’s around.”
With the wind whipping through her hair, Dylan nervously pulled it from her face. She hated when Alex was right and hated it even more when the girl seemed to know her better than she knew herself. And any other time, she may’ve conceded her points, but they just hit too close to home and all she could say was, “I don’t want to talk about this.”
Dylan stepped around Alex and continued walking towards their group, angry at herself for snapping at her best friend and casting bad mojo juice on the day. As smart as she was, as mature as she could be, sometimes what came out of her mouth was just plain old teenage girl.
“Dylan, I’m sorry.” Alex said apologetically as she ran to catch up to her. “I didn’t mean to needle you about Jordan. I was just joking.” After a second, she added, “Are we OK?”
“Yeah. Yeah. We’re fine.” Dylan responded slowly, her mind tossing around what Alex had said. “It’s just…well, you’re right. If I hadn’t known Jordan for so long, I’d be on that like bees on honey.”
“No doubt.” Alex said and glanced his way. In all best friend seriousness, she asked, “So, what’s the issue?”
“Alex, honestly, I don’t even really know how I feel about him. I don’t want to jeopardize what we have for me to experiment with what I may or may not feel. It isn’t fair to him and he’d hate me for that.”
“I don’t think Jordan would ever do that to you, but I understand what you’re saying. And you’re right. You guys get down and dirty, things will change. But think about it from the other side. How many times have we dated someone and tried to turn them into our confidantes? Now you have the chance to take someone you know and who knows you and turn it into something greater. Or do you want another guy whose idea of romance is watching him play his Xbox for four hours?”
Dylan immediately understood the reference. Her last boyfriend, for a total of two very long weeks, had been Ethan Rasnik. His first love was his Xbox. His second had been his PlayStation. Between the two, she had quickly deduced that there was no room for her. She was mainly there to grab him soda from the fridge or heat up a Hot Pocket in the microwave. When she had finally had enough, she hadn’t even bothered to tell him. She just stopped calling him and going to his house. He didn’t seem to notice.
After a moment, Dylan shook her head without answering the question and shrugged her shoulders. “Forget about it. Today isn’t about my romantic problems.” She looked out on to the beach populated with her friends and classmates. “Today is about this.”
“All right,” Alex said, “but don’t think this conversation is over. Now, come on.” She looked at her seriously for a moment, then nudged Dylan playfully in the arm. Leaving her behind, Alex ran ahead towards the shade of the newly-erected umbrellas.
Dylan continued trudging through the hot sand, her feet sinking into the granules and dragging beach along with every step. Her eyes remained glued to Jordan, sweat glistening on his dark skin. His eyes found hers looking at him and he posed with flexed bicep. A huge dorky grin was plastered to his face. She couldn’t help but laugh at his display.
Jordan turned away from her, responding to something his little brother had said, and Dylan saw Derrick and Carrie right in front of her. She passed the two lovebirds, neither of them in any hurry to join the group. Hand in hand, they meandered along as if they were the lone occupants of the planet. Dylan had to admit to herself, albeit grudgingly, that they made a good looking couple and they seemed to have eyes only for each other. Of course, on the other hand, they could fight like cats and dogs when they got into it, too. Still, they seemed rather suited for each other.
Carrie had that All-American good girl/cheerleader look about her, although Dylan knew she was far from the angel she portrayed. Perfectly coiffed, short blond hair bobbed when she walked, framing her cover model face. Her eyes were the deepest blue, almost navy blue, made even deeper by her eye liner. Her lips were large and pouty, usually coated with bright red harlot lipstick. Although her cheeks were a bit gaunt, she had that allure that younger girls aspired to. Her figure was picture perfect with proportionate measurements and she was fully capable of bei
ng on a runway, although Dylan thought that she needed to eat more. She was only a cigarette and a line of coke away from being another anorexic supermodel.
But Dylan kept that opinion to herself.
As refined and plastic as Carrie was, Derrick was almost the exact opposite. Rough around the edges, his hair was always a tousled mess of brown. He was tall, towering over everyone at 6’4, and packed with the thick muscle of a quarterback. Where Jordan was wiry and more defined, Derrick was bulkier, although that seemed to be changing as well.
She’d met Derrick when Jordan had joined the football team in his freshman year and the two of them had become fast friends. Before that, Dylan had dismissed him as a typical jock: self-absorbed and a bit pompous. Sure, he was hot, but the light bulb above his head was a little dim. Not exactly the type of boy that she was interested in, dating or friends.
Then, one fateful night at a party after the first football game, she’d had the chance to hang out with him and realized her assumptions were dead wrong. While it was true that he was better on the football field than he was the classroom, she discovered he was an avid reader much like her, talking about their favorite books for an hour. He was funny and dopey, doing lame impressions and quoting science fiction movies. By the end of the night, she had developed the same crush on him that every other girl at school had.
That hadn’t lasted long either, but she still felt that underlying attraction to him and maybe even a hint of jealousy towards Carrie. In her little fantasy world and the more R-rated parts of her brain, she could almost picture herself running her fingers over his flat stomach as they trailed into his swim trunks. She would pull him closer to her, her open mouth reaching towards his…
Damn. Was there anyone in their little circle of friends that she didn’t lust after? OK, maybe not Johnny, but that was only because he was Jordan’s little brother and two years younger than she. That alone amplified the ick factor.
From the Blue Page 5
