Last Chance Volume 2 - The Legend of the Hathmec: Planting the Seed

by Bradley Boals

  Matthew asked, “Speaking of Steven, did Amanda text you that Ms. Landrum was going to pick him up from practice today?”

  Addie checked her phone and saw Amanda’s text. She glanced into the dining room and saw that Steven was no longer at the table. “Where did he go?”

  No sooner had the words left her mouth than the sound of feet banging on the wooden stairs reverberated throughout the house. Steven had taken it upon himself to change for basketball practice and was ready to go. His red jersey shone brightly around the number 37 that was plastered on the front and back of it.

  Addie put her hand up to halt him, saying, “It’s still another four hours before I take you to practice, so just relax for a bit.”

  Matthew gave Steven a high five. “Are you still using the carrier stones on the other players during the practices and games?”

  Steven grinned. “I’m pretty good without them, but I’m awesome with them.”

  Matthew knelt down by the boy and said, “In most cases, I would never tell you to use something like the attribute charm to make you better at a sport. It isn’t really fair to the other players. In this case, though, it’s ok, because we’re just trying to stand out to Ms. Landrum.” Matthew patted Steven on the head and continued, “If it weren’t for you, Ms. Landrum would have never started talking to Addie. You’ve been the most important part of the team, buddy.”

  Steven smiled and ran back to his computer. He looked up to Matthew like an older brother, and anytime Matthew could make Steven feel good about how he had helped the group, he did. He sat down with the boy and played a game with him for a couple of hours until Amanda got home. She flew into the dining room as soon as she arrived and asked Matthew to come up to her room.

  Matthew told Steven to finish up the game, and Matthew followed Amanda up the stairs. He went into her room, and she closed the door behind him. His question—“So, you and Cameron going out tonight?”—had just escaped his lips when he turned and felt the embrace of his pretend twin.

  “Are you really ok? God, you scared the hell out of me.” Amanda released Matthew and took one step back. She wouldn’t look Matthew in the eyes as her face changed from a golden tan to a red flush. She grinned awkwardly for a moment as Matthew tried to determine what his next words should be.

  “I’m fine. No ill effects. I feel the same as I did yesterday and the day before.”

  Relieved, Amanda collected herself and now tried to cover her obvious feelings for Matthew.

  “I knew you would be ok. It just scared me to think that I would be left here without my partner in crime. Do you know what happened?”

  Matthew explained that he had never felt like that before. The health charm on Matthew’s Hathmec should have prevented anything like that from happening. “I guess it’s possible for someone wearing the health charm to have a momentary feeling like I had, but nothing that thorough. Maybe Walter didn’t explain the power of the charm completely.”

  Amanda found that hard to believe. “All the man does is study this stuff. I don’t think he would have left something like that out, unless he didn’t know it existed. Is it possible that something you were doing or something you were close to reacted with the Hathmec? Maybe that carrier stone you carry around from Connor did something to it.”

  Matthew replied, “I talked with Addie and Bryan about it, and they didn’t know of anything that could cause the Hathmec to react that way. I’ve been carrying Connor’s stone since we got here, and nothing bad has happened all these months. You’re right though. Maybe something happened that no one knows is possible. Maybe we just stumbled onto something.”

  Amanda stood in silence for a moment, and then she opened the door to her room and asked Matthew to leave. “We’re not gonna figure this out tonight. I have a few things to do before dinner, so if you don’t mind—a little privacy?”

  Matthew smiled at Amanda and made his way out of her room. The door closed behind him, and he took his time getting back down the stairs. He thought about the hug from Amanda and how worried about him she seemed to be.

  It’s hard enough for a fifteen-year-old boy to deal with affairs of the heart under the best circumstances, but Matthew’s situation was even more confusing. He didn’t know whether he should tell her everything or continue to keep his feelings to himself. The only thing he knew for sure was that he didn’t know anything for sure.

  Amanda opened her laptop and started typing. She stopped for a moment, backing away from her desk, and two small tears rolled down her cheeks as she looked toward her closed door. Shaking her head, she wiped the tears from her face. She returned to her laptop and spent the next hour researching a topic very dear to her.

  The rest of the evening was a little rocky. Everyone ate together, and Addie reviewed the schedule for the big dinner with the Landrums. It would be here before they knew it. Steven had gone to ball practice, and Ms. Landrum had dropped him back off at the house. Addie ran out to the car to meet them and had a nice fifteen-minute conversation with Sandra. The topics varied from casserole recipes to what Amanda might want for her birthday, Addie reported.

  “I think she was just trying to get some information for Cameron. You had told him that your birthday was in November, didn’t you?”

  Amanda replied, “He kept asking me about it, and I figured we would be gone by then, so I just made up a date. I don’t know why I didn’t just tell him my real birthday.”

  “Just for curiosity sake, when is your birthday?” asked Matthew.

  The entire table was quiet for a moment until Steven blurted out, “It’s December 18!”

  Matthew took a bite of spaghetti and garbled, “Good to know.”

  Addie told Amanda that Cameron’s favorite color was blue, so she needed to wear as much blue as possible. His mother had also mentioned that Cameron was a big comic book fan. “He loves superheroes, Amanda. I think he owns every comic book ever made.”

  Irritated, Amanda threw her fork down and said, “I know he loves comic books, Addie. I also know that he loves Chinese food and old horror movies. He also loves ping pong and girls with long hair. Just back off!”

  Addie replied in a lighter voice, “Calm down. I know you’ve spent a lot of time with this boy, but we don’t seem any closer now to knowing where the trans-x charm is than we were when we got here.”

  Amanda stood up from her seat and said, “I don’t see you getting anywhere with his mother. I don’t remember this entire mission being up to me.”

  Addie sat back and, with a bit more sarcasm, replied, “I just think it’s time you refocused your efforts on this boy and figure out what he likes. Maybe you’re not affectionate enough with him.”

  Amanda shook her head and her face turned beat red. “Look, I am not some prostitute that’s gonna sleep with this guy to get him to tell me everything about himself. That’s not gonna happen.”

  Matthew spoke up. “I have to agree with Amanda. I don’t think we should even be talking about anything like that.”

  Addie pushed her chair across the wooden floor. She had lost her patience. “I’m not telling you to sleep with him, but you can’t keep acting like he’s an afterthought. We’re too close, and for better or worse, you are the glue that’s keeping the Landrum family interested in the Chance family.”

  Amanda left the table and returned to her room. This was the first time that she and Addie had butted heads. She normally looked to her for comfort, not arguments. She would have no more conversations with the family tonight.

  Matthew toyed with his spaghetti for a few minutes before saying, “Don’t you think you were a little rough on her? She’s doing a great job, and we’ve both tried to get Cameron to tell us something about the charm, but it’s a difficult thing to do without just telling him everything.”

  Even Steven piped up. “Don’t be mad at Amanda. I think she’s really been missing our mom.”

  “Why do you say that, Steven?” asked Bryan.

  “November eleven
th is my mom’s birthday.”

  Bryan looked to Addie and said, “Let’s ease up on her, ok?” Addie sighed and said that she would apologize to her later.

  “We just need this dinner to go off without any problems. I know we’re close. Let’s just keep it together.”

  Matthew and the rest of the family stayed clear of Amanda for the rest of the night. Steven snuck into her room at one point and slept in the bed with her. It was a comfort for Amanda to know that one part of her family was still there. For much of the night, she had her arm around her baby brother.

  Matthew was surprised when he got downstairs on Wednesday morning and saw Amanda standing there, waiting for him so they could head to class together. “I figured you would have skipped class this morning,” he remarked.

  “Why would I skip class? We have Professor Landrum’s guest this morning, and I can’t miss it.”

  “What are your plans with Cameron tonight?”

  Amanda walked to the door and said, “We’re going to that party at the Sigma Alpha Phi house. It’s a big deal to him for some reason. He said you could come too, but you probably shouldn’t.”

  Matthew and Amanda had reached the car before Matthew spoke. “Why shouldn’t I? Will it be too much fun? I can party with the SAPs.”

  Amanda chuckled and started the car. “No, genius, but it won’t look right if you show up there by yourself. You’ll look pathetic. Besides, you’re only fifteen and you shouldn’t be at a college party like this one.”

  Matthew was first offended by the comment and then confused. “What do you mean I’m only fifteen and shouldn’t be at a party like that? You’re only sixteen. You shouldn’t be there either.”

  Amanda took off out of the driveway and defended her position. “Look, back home, I would go to a college party every now and then with Trey. He was a big deal in the area and got invited to the college parties. I know what they’re like, and I can handle what happens there.”

  She looked over to Matthew with a grin on her face. “You, on the other hand, would be like an elephant on roller skates. You aren’t ready for it.”

  Matthew disagreed. “Not only can I handle it, but I won’t show up alone either.”

  Amanda laughed at that. “Oh, please, now I know you’re kidding. You look kinda hot now and everything, but you have absolutely no game. By the time you got up enough nerve to ask someone to the party, it would already be over.”

  Matthew put his hand up and said, “You’ll see. I’ll be at that party, and I won’t be alone.”

  Amanda bit her lip and whispered, “I’ll believe it when I see it.”

  They didn’t waste any time getting to Professor Landrum’s chemistry class. As they waited for it to begin, Amanda started to point out girls that Matthew could ask to the party. “Oh, she’s cute, but I think she has a boyfriend. How about the girl in the back corner with the cigarette stain on her shirt?”

  Amanda continued tormenting Matthew and told him some of the things she might do at the party. “I think I’ll kiss Cameron on the neck tonight. That might get him talking about anything I want.” Clearly Amanda was still a little annoyed about the conversation at the dinner table the night before.

  Matthew gritted his teeth and asked her to stop. Amanda replied, “I’m just letting you know what’s gonna be up tonight. We’ll probably dance real close, and we’ll probably sweat on each other a bit. Maybe Addie was right. I just need to get closer to him.”

  As she finished her last comment, Shelby and Lindsey walked in and took their usual seats in front of Matthew and Amanda. Matthew stared into Amanda’s eyes, prompting her to ask, “What?” Without a word, he leaned over the table and tapped Lindsey on the shoulder.

  “Would you like to go to the SAP party with me tonight? I think it would be a lot of fun.” The girl looked to her sister and replied, “We would love to go!”

  Matthew grinned and said, “Both of you? You both wanna go with me to the party?”

  Shelby replied, “If you don’t mind. We’re both really good on the dance floor.”

  Matthew’s smile stretched from ear to ear. “That would be awesome. We’ll talk more after class.”

  The two girls turned back around in their chairs and hopped with excitement. Matthew could hear them chatting about what they would wear. Amanda was stunned at what had just happened. She punched Matthew in the arm, but the smile on his face couldn’t be altered.

  A minute went by, and Professor Landrum entered her classroom. She put her books and papers down on the desk and said, “I have a special treat for everyone today. One of the primary tenets of chemistry is the mixing of compounds, liquids, and gases to create a new substance or to cause a reaction. We are lucky enough to live in an area that caters to those tenets, as there are dozens of corporations and government agencies in this area of the country. One of those corporations is just a couple of miles down the road, and their primary business is the development and production of various types of immunization shots. I’m sure most of you have heard of Genesis.”

  Amanda popped Matthew on the knee and mouthed, “Genesis?”

  Professor Landrum approached the classroom door and opened it. “I am so happy to have one of Genesis’s top developmental chemists here to speak with our class. I would like to introduce Dr. Cassandra Jenkins.”

  The class started to clap, and a lady in her midforties walked into the room. She wore glasses and a lab coat just shorter than the pencil-style skirt that cleared her knees. Matthew and Amanda stared at the woman’s face and then at each other, and a sense of panic gripped them both.

  Dr. Jenkins looked around the room and said, “I want to thank Professor Landrum for that wonderful introduction, but I like to keep things light during these types of discussions, so please just call me Cassie.”

  Chapter 12

  READY AND WILLING

  Matthew couldn’t believe his eyes, but as Cassandra Jenkins discussed her past with the class, no doubt remained. This was Cassie. This was his Cassie from Travis, Tennessee. She sounded the same and moved the same, but she was thirty years older. While her words and mannerisms took Matthew back to his time in 1984, there were noticeable differences. This wasn’t the shy, awkward girl he had known just months earlier. She was a woman, she had seen the world, and as such she exuded confidence.

  Amanda leaned over to Matthew and whispered, “Is that who I think it is?” Matthew nodded with wide-eyed concern. Cassie described her time growing up in Travis with her twin brother, comparing her time as a child to the advances that had been made over the last thirty years. She explained her love of science and how she had come to work at Genesis.

  “I have always been fascinated with the human body and how it fights off infection and disease. Through my years of study, it has become obvious to me that the more we can do to prevent someone from ever having to deal with a disease or infection the better. While there are many scientists, doctors, and chemists working on the perfect mixtures of immunizations for the public, there haven’t been too many that have worked on the application side.”

  One of the students in the class raised her hand. “What do you mean the application side?”

  Cassie explained that her primary role with Genesis had grown on the application side. “We don’t want to rely on the needle for all immunizations. It needs to be easy on both the personnel applying the immunization and the person receiving it. Wouldn’t it be nice if a baby didn’t have to receive a booster shot? How about a one-size-fits-all application method that is pain-free and more effective over the life of the person receiving it?”

  Ms. Landrum interrupted and asked the class to hold their questions until the end of Cassandra’s presentation. “Ms. Jenkins will stick around to answer all of your questions, so please allow her to complete her presentation before interrupting again.”

  Cassie spent the next forty minutes talking about her life in all areas of science. She had graduated MIT with her brother. He had focused more of
his time on the space program and the exploration of the stars beyond our own galaxy. “He was just obsessed with Earth’s place in the universe. He spent more time studying the stars than I could ever count.”

  Cassie continued to push her topic of science and how important it would be to the human race moving forward. “You are the future of this planet. You will be the ones to continue the work that scientists like me have begun, and someday someone else will take over from you. Shoot for the stars and think outside the box, and you will be amazed at what you learn and what you can teach someone else. The future is bright.”

  As the presentation came to an end, Cassie asked, “Does anyone have any questions?”

  Without hesitation, Lindsey raised her hand and asked, “Where did you get your passion for science?”

  Cassie thought for a moment. “I had always been a math nerd, but in my freshman year in high school, I saw some things that opened my mind to the fact that anything is possible.”

  Matthew was confident that he and Connor were involved in most of those things that Cassie remembered. Both he and Amanda tried to avoid eye contact with Cassie during her presentation. It had been so long, though. What were the odds that she would recognize either of them after all this time?

  Ms. Landrum stood at Cassie’s side and spoke of the class. “This has been the most impressive class I’ve had in several years. I have a few students that are really impressing me with their retention and desire to do well in the study of chemistry.”

  She pointed out the twins that sat in front of Amanda and Matthew and complimented their work ethic and grasp of the subject. Shelby and Lindsey grinned at the professor but were a little embarrassed at being singled out. Cassie told them that it was nice to meet them and to keep up the good work.

  Ms. Landrum then turned her attention to Matthew and Amanda. She spoke of their impressive preparation skill and overall knowledge. “It’s almost like they know the answers to the questions before I ask them.”