EQUILIBRIUM - BK 2 Portal Chronicles

by Imogen Rose

  “Justin, I’m Agent Adams. I work for the FBI. Do you know why you’re here?”

  “Well, Dad told me it’s because of the missing kids, nothing to do with me!” he said insolently, rolling his eyes. “Glad someone took them, they’re a pain in the ass.”

  “I’m sure you don’t mean that,” Grayson said surprised at his son.

  Justin rolled his eyes again.

  “Justin, the main reason we brought you in, is because your hockey stick was found in the place where the kids were being held.”

  “His hockey stick?” Grayson repeated.

  Claire nodded. “Yes, a hockey stick scratched with your son’s initials.”

  “Why assume it was mine? Could belong to anyone with those initials,” Justin replied.

  “True,” Claire conceded. “But it could have been yours, right?”

  He shrugged. “So what?”

  “Well, the initialed stick was found where some of the kids were held hostage. Can you think of dark places where you may have left your stick? Or sticks?” Claire continued, trying to be patient.

  “I leave my sticks everywhere–the garage, basement at home, at the cottage, dressing room at the ice rink,” Justin mumbled. “I’ve got nothing to do with anyone gone missing! Simla and I’ve just been hanging out, that’s all.”

  “The cottage?” Claire asked.

  “Yes, we have a cottage a bit further up from the lake,” Grayson explained. “We use it on the weekends when we go fishing and stuff.”

  “Does it have a basement?” Claire inquired, ready for action.

  “Yes, it’s fairly small and unfinished. We use it for storage,” Grayson replied.

  As soon as she had got the address from Grayson, Claire dispatched a search team to the cottage. Then she turned back to Justin. “Justin, when was the last time you were there?”

  “A couple of weekends ago with Dad,” Justin answered. “Why?”

  “Are any of your hockey sticks in the basement?” she asked

  “I guess.”

  “When was the last time you saw Kellan, Arizona, Ella and Harry?” Claire continued, feeling fairly sure that Justin hadn’t a clue what was going on. He looked genuinely confused.

  “I saw Kellan, Arizona and Harry at hockey, Monday night. I may have caught a glimpse of Ella as well, but I can’t be sure. Why?” Justin asked.

  “Thanks for answering my questions. You may go now,” Claire said, getting up.

  “What about Simla? Should we wait for her?” Grayson inquired.

  “Her mom’s with her. I still have to talk to her, but you can wait for them in the lobby if you want.”

  After making sure that the search team had been deployed to the Weeks’ cottage, Claire made her way to the room where Simla was being held. She had been fully expecting another defiant and difficult teen, so was surprised to find a nervous wreck of a girl in tears waiting for her.

  “I don’t know anything,” Simla wailed as soon she saw Agent Adams.

  “What don’t you know anything about?” Claire asked gently.

  “About everyone missing,” Simla sobbed.

  “When was the last time you saw your father?” Claire asked.

  “I don’t know! A few days ago, maybe,” she mumbled.

  Erica had given Simla firm instructions not to mention anything about the portal or Wanderers. She had managed to pry from Simla that Raj had used her to get into Ames months ago, but that he’d not asked her to do anything else since then. Erica had been relieved that her daughter was not involved in her husband’s insane schemes. She had merely been sneaking off with Justin. Erica wasn’t too happy about that, either, but in the whole scheme of things, she was relieved.

  “Have you ever been to Justin’s cottage?” Claire asked looking at Simla.

  She had, but Simla was not about to confess to that. Not in front of her mom. Justin and she used it when they wanted privacy. She shook her head.

  “Dr. Sen, have you been to the cottage?” Claire asked looking over to Erica.

  ‘Yes, a couple of times for barbeques.” It was more than a couple of times. Erica spent a great deal of time with Grayson at the cottage. She didn’t want to say that in front of Simla, though. It was a great place to unwind.

  “Has your husband been up there?” Claire continued.

  “Yes,” Erica replied, wondering how the cottage was relevant to the missing children. Had Raj taken them there?

  “Dr. Weeks and Justin are waiting for you in the lobby, thanks for your time.” Claire said abruptly, as she got up to head off to the Weeks’ cottage. The team would already be on their way over. She doubted that the kids would still be there, it was too much to hope for. The best she could hope for was some indication of who had been there, if anyone. Raj Sen was still missing. Was he somehow involved? Erica had mentioned that Raj was obsessed with Olivia. There must be more to this than him trying to get her attention.

  Three quarter ways to the cottage, her phone rang. There were no kids at the Weeks’ cottage. Claire was disappointed, she had hoped against hope that they would be there. She received a second phone call, from the lab this time, with the results for the ring. They had extracted a microchip.

  ~

  He knew that he couldn’t call Dr. Darley, although he longed to tell her that Ella was safe. Her phone was sure to be bugged. So, David called his mom instead.

  “Mom, I have Ella. Where should I take her?”

  “Bring her to our house, David,” Inez said. She was fairly sure it wasn’t being watched. “Is she okay?”

  “Yes, she’s fine. She wants her mom, not surprisingly. She’s confused, but in fine form. Hasn’t stopped prattling on for the past five hours, she’s a funny little girl,” David smiled.

  Inez could tell that he was exhausted. The traveling in itself must have tired him out. Taking along passengers twice in such a short time would have been draining. She was so proud of him. “Come home, honey.”

  They arrived half an hour later. David carried Ella inside, she had finally dozed off. He carried her to the couch and sat down with Ella still in his lap. He threw his head back, resting his neck against the back and stretched his legs. He was truly tired. Inez wanted to let him drift off to sleep, to let him harvest his energy. However, she needed some information first.

  “Honey, you look beat. I wasn’t expecting you to come back with Ella. I had no idea she had been transported across. Is Harry there as well?” she asked him gently.

  He nodded, his eyes closed.

  “Are they okay?”

  “No, Mom. They’re far from okay,” he said unhappily.

  Inez knew he was too tired to talk. So, she extended her thumb to touch his and he let the information flow freely to her.

  ~

  “Ollie, Rup, that was Inez on the phone. She is on her way over. She was very guarded, but I expect that’s because she knows our phones have been bugged. I guess she’s heard back from David and Kellan. Let’s hope so anyway,” Larry said, wondering if their homes had been bugged as well. It may have been wiser to meet Inez over at her place. She was on her way now, though. They would have to make sure to talk outside. He jotted his thought down on a piece of paper and passed it to Olivia and Rupert who nodded in affirmation.

  The three of them had made their way to Olivia and Rupert’s house after their chat with Agent Adams. They were exhausted, but too worried to rest. They’d spent the twenty minutes they had been at the house sitting waiting for the phone to ring, hoping for news of their children. They were ready to head to Ames.

  Olivia sat bundled up in Rupert’s lap, her head resting on his chest. Her eyes closed, her mind working furiously trying to figure out what to do next. She hoped that Arizona would come back with David and Kellan somehow. She didn’t even want to start thinking about the possibility that Dillard was now aware of the portal, of her life here. They needed to make their way to Ames. She put her lips up to Rupert’s ear and whispered into it softly. �
�Rup, tired as we are, we have to head over to Ames. I haven’t a clue if that will achieve anything, but we have to look, to try to find out what’s going on. We know that Arizona must have been taken through the portal, so we need to figure out who did it and why.”

  He nodded and whispered back, “We’ll go as soon as we’ve had an update from Inez.”

  As soon as they heard Inez’s car arrive, Larry, Olivia and Rupert walked outside.

  “We’re concerned that the house has been bugged, so let’s talk out here for a minute,” Larry explained.

  Inez nodded and launched right into the news Olivia had been waiting for. “David is back. He brought Ella home. She’s just fine.”

  “Ella! How? Thank goodness, let’s go to her,” Rupert and Olivia exclaimed in union.

  “We could, but let’s think this through a bit. What if you’re being followed? How will you explain Ella’s return to the FBI?” Inez asked.

  “I don’t know,” Rupert said. “How did she end up at your place? How did David find her? Where?”

  “It’s a long story,” Inez said. “As you know, David took Kellan back to see Arizona. She was still at her house in Princeton when they got there. While David had been gone, someone had dropped Harry and Ella off at the house as well. They had been dropped off sedated. Kevin arrived at the house while they were all there and they were trying to figure out what to do when they were seized again. David has no idea who by. They were forced into a black van, by men he’d never seen before. Kevin asked David to transport Ella back to us safely. So, they’re at my house. Ella is fine, unharmed, but probably very confused. I haven’t spoken to her. She’s had a long journey and fell asleep not long ago. I left some of the Elders to watch over them.”

  “Elders?” Olivia asked.

  “Wanderer leaders,” Larry replied. “You both obviously have to go and see Ella, question is how to get you there unnoticed. We also have to figure out how to explain Ella’s reappearance to the FBI.”

  Olivia nodded. She took Rupert’s hand and leaned into him. Her baby was back, but she was still missing two of her kids and Kellan. Missing them in another dimension, another time. She may never see them again. She shuddered.

  “Ollie, it’s going to be okay,” Rupert whispered into her ear, stroking her head gently. “Let’s find a way to get to Inez’s house.”

  Larry’s phone rang, startling the four of them. What now? Larry listened intently as Agent Adams explained that they had extracted the microchip and she had emailed him the file that it contained. She was on her way over.

  “That was Agent Adams,” Larry said, as he brought up the email on his phone and handed it over to Olivia and Rupert. The note was short and to the point.

  I want the blueprints. Email them to me. I will release the kids as soon as I get them. Raj Sen

  The blueprints. Why hadn’t she guessed? Olivia had been so sick with worry that the obvious had eluded her. She would never have guessed that Raj Sen was behind this, though. Erica’s husband, that was so strange. “Blueprints, what does he want those for?” Olivia whispered, looking at Larry.

  “They could be worth a small fortune. Olivia, the technology you’ve created has such huge implications. The portal could be used for so many purposes.”

  She knew all that, of course. What she had meant, was what did he, Raj, need them for. I guess the obvious reason would be that he had a buyer. If so, he had already shared the existence of the portal with others.

  “Well, let’s head to Ames and email the blueprints over right away,” said Rupert. “No time to waste.”

  Olivia nodded. “It will also be easier to make our way to Inez’s house from Ames without being detected. So, you email the prints, Larry, and I’ll go over to Inez’s house with Rupert.”

  “Okay, I’ll call Agent Adams and tell her to meet me at Ames instead,” said Larry, as they dove into his car and headed off. It was decided that Inez would meet Olivia and Rupert at the far fire exit, so they could leave with her.

  Olivia’s thoughts were crashing around in her head as they made their way to Ames. They knew that Raj didn’t have all the kids anymore. Ella was free. He had Arizona, Harry and Kellan. And Kevin. But Raj wasn’t even here. They were in a different dimension.

  “Larry, the whole email thing isn’t going to work,” she mumbled.

  “I know,” Larry replied. “Unless he is working with someone at this end who has a way of communicating with him. I doubt that though. It’s more likely that something went wrong and he was forced to head through the portal.”

  “Yes, and Ella is back. And I’m sure he wasn’t planning to have Kevin in his custody. I’m sure his plans went wrong somewhere,” Olivia replied.

  “Rupert, you still good at hacking into systems?” Larry asked.

  “As good as ever,” Rupert replied. “What do you need me to do?”

  “Rup, you didn’t tell me about this particular gift,” Olivia asked bemused.

  “I have many talents,” he said, and kissed her gently.

  “I need you to stay with me, Rupert,” Larry interrupted. “Ollie, you’ll be ok heading off on your own, won’t you?”

  “Yes, of course. Remember not to call me. Our phones are bugged. I’ll have Inez make contact with you somehow to give you an update,” Olivia added.

  Agent Adams was already waiting for them when they arrived at Ames. Olivia was going to have to give her the slip somehow and head off with Inez. She had to get to Ella.

  “Agent Adams,” Larry acknowledged, and led them through the entrance toward his office.

  “I’m going to use the restroom, I’ll meet you at your office, Larry,” Olivia said, and squeezed Rupert’s hand before letting it go.

  “Right,” Larry replied casually, as he kept walking.

  Olivia could barely contain her excitement as she ran along the corridor, down the steps, through several other corridors and finally through the exit, and into Inez’s waiting car.

  “Inez, I don’t know how to even begin to thank you,” she said gratefully, looking over at Inez’s serene face.

  “There is no need,” Inez said. “Anyway, all this is partly my fault.”

  “Your fault? How?” Olivia asked puzzled.

  “I’m partly responsible for this whole mess with Raj,” Inez replied. “Erica is a Wanderer.”

  Olivia was dumbstruck. She had skeptically listened this whole Wanderer phenomenon, but had not given it much serious thought. So far, she’d been briefly told that Inez and her son, David were Wanderers–beings who could traverse dimensions and time. It was too mind boggling to accept or even to begin to understand. One would have to believe in the supernatural, in paranormal phenomena. That was totally beyond Olivia’s level of acceptance. She held her tongue, though. Inez was a wonderful lady, she was not about to anger her with her skepticism. So, she simply nodded and listened.

  Inez continued. “A Wanderer’s purpose is to learn. To that end, Wanderers are often assigned to human subjects, to learn from them. Erica was assigned to you. She’s been observing you for many, many years.”

  Olivia could barely contain herself. She clenched her jaws down to stop herself from exploding. She wasn’t sure what would come out of her mouth–peals of laughter, most likely.

  Inez, unaware of Olivia’s doubt, went on. “As you know, Erica is married to Raj. We were very unhappy when Erica came to us to ask for permission to marry him. He is a non-Wanderer; these unions seldom last. Even mine didn’t. Raj learned about your portal from Erica. Over the years, he has grown more and more obsessed with time travel, especially watching Erica do it so effortlessly. He’s developed a compulsion to be able to travel on his own. This and the need for wealth have become huge issues for Raj that have now culminated in this mess.”

  If she could somehow bend her mind enough to accept this mind-blowing version of reality, it would all make sense. It would all be so very simple then, Olivia thought to herself. But could she accept this explanation
? How else could Ella’s reappearance be explained? One possibility was that Inez was somehow involved with the disappearance in the first place. Perhaps Ella had been at her place all this time. Maybe the rest of the kids were there as well. Or maybe none of the kids were there and this was a trap to get Olivia alone. Maybe she was being abducted. Olivia squirmed in her chair uneasily. They were at Inez’s house. No going back now, she would find out what was going on sooner rather than later.

  She followed Inez in, looking around for signs of trouble. Everything appeared calm. It was deadly quiet on this isolated road. She stepped into the house behind Inez hesitantly.

  “Mom!” Ella shrieked, and threw herself at Olivia.

  “Ella,” Olivia whispered, as she squeezed Ella to herself as tightly as she could. Tears were streaming down her face. “Ella, let me look at you. Are you okay?”

  “Why are you crying, Mom? It’s ruining your makeup!” Ella admonished, wiping the tears off Olivia’s face.

  “Oh, Ella. I love you so. You’ve no idea how worried I’ve been,” Olivia whispered.

  “I know, Mom. I’m your ray of sunshine, you always say so.”

  Olivia smiled and pulled her ray of sunshine in for a long huggle, a hug and a cuddle. Then she scooped her up and sat down on the couch with her. “Ella, how did you get here?”

  “Oh, David brought me. He’s awesome,” Ella replied, looking over at David fondly.

  “David, thank you so much,” Olivia said gratefully.

  Ella continued excitedly, “David swooshed me out of the van and we landed in a field, with cows! We had to run out of the field so they didn’t eat us. Then we walked for ages. Well, David carried me. Then David got a car and we drove here. I tried to keep awake by telling David stories and singing show tunes.” A sad expression came over Ella’ face and a tear trickled down her face.