The Unlocked (Charlie Hartley Series Book 1)

by Stonebridge, J. D.

  The woman's voice was authoritative. The boy gritted his teeth and glared at Charlie like his eyes would emit laser beams at her. In defeat, he finally said. "Sorry, Jeanne."

  "Jeanne," a man's voice came this time. He sat behind the desk. He had thick glasses and a receding hairline. He looked back and forth from her to the paper in his hands. Finally, he placed the paper down and leaned towards her. "You're nearing your thirteenth birthday, Jeanne. And I regret to tell you that it is unlikely any of the families who come here will choose you in favor of the younger ones."

  "They might if you stop telling them I'm bad luck," she said bitterly.

  "No one is saying you are," the man tried to convince her, but she knew better.

  "Yes, they do! Everyone thinks I'm demonic or something. The other kids and even the adults around here."

  "Jeanne, what happened when you were a baby," he began but she cut him off. "I know the story, I’ve heard it thousands of times already! My parents' car exploded and the rescue team found me beside the road, unharmed. Now, why would people think I'm demonic if you keep telling that story to everyone who walks inside this place!" She stood from her seat and slammed the door behind her.

  Her sobs came next. It was dark and warm tears drenched the pillow against her face. She heard the door open and quickly she threw the blanket over her head and bit her lip to stifle her cries.

  "Jeanne?" A woman's voice tried to soothe her. Her hand stroked her back. "I'm sorry about what happened. I didn't think it would go that far," she explained and the young girl couldn't stop the sobs anymore. The pillow muffled her cries, and she held onto it like her life depended on it. Somewhere in her mind, she was convinced that it did.

  "Pray, my dear. God saved you for a reason."

  Light slowly washed the tears away and suddenly she was sitting alone in a cafeteria. Her plate was empty except for a few peas which she moved around with her fork. All around her were younger children excused for playing with their food. She was different though; she was turning into an adult and should start acting like one. Her fork pierced a pea harder than she intended. She checked and was thankful it hadn't crack the plate.

  Shuffling feet and voices came from the hall outside. Jeanne rose from her seat and exited the cafeteria to see what was happening. Half-running, she followed the women who took care of all the children in the place. A familiar face stood by the wall, wide eyed and mouth open. "Hilary, what happened?" she asked the girl.

  "Ms. Abigale. She was hit by a car."

  She was running in the halls now, her eyes frantically searching around. Around the corner, she saw a narrow door and reached for the knob. She entered the broom closet and locked the door. Then, she slowly slid against the door until she was on her knees. Arms wrapped around herself, she wept and mourned the only woman who had been nice to her in that place. All the others treated her badly or kept her at arm's length. Ms. Abigale was the only one who joyfully opened her arms to the young girl, and she was gone now.

  Alone in the closet’s darkness, she cried out her heart. Her chest ached, her eyes burned from the unstoppable tears. A drunk driver took away the only woman who cared for her, the only one who made her feel the joy of receiving love and affection. Another car accident changed her life for the worse. She muffled the sound of grief with her palm and shut her eyes tight. As she cried, she noticed the light bulb above her head flickering. She stood slowly and checked the switch. It was off. The bulb illumined brighter and brighter until it exploded, forcing her to leave the closet.

  "Physical assessment?" Her voice was deeper now, more mature. She skimmed through the form he handed to her, but there were very few details about what she was being recruited for. "Okay, not interested." She handed the form back to the man in front of her.

  "Jeanne, you're going to be an adult in a couple of years. You can't stay in this orphanage forever," the man with the receding hairline explained to her. "We're don’t receive the funds to send you to college, Jeanne. So please reconsider. It's a chance for you to have a good future."

  "And give up my dream of being a diner waitress?" she asked sarcastically.

  The man shook his head in disappointment. "Not everything in life is a joke, Jeanne. Please, just think about it. Hilary has already signed her form; so should you."

  The unknown spawned fear in her heart when the scene shifted again. She rode in the car’s backseat with Hilary beside her.

  "What do you think it will be like?" Hilary asked, but all she focused on was not to get hurled out of the car. She wasn't used to being in a vehicle, and her string of unfortunate accidents spurred her to think of nothing but the worse. The vehicle slowed and turned to the right, entering the gate of GEN Laboratories.

  The flashback ended for Charlie as Hilary and Madison reached her side to help her. They grabbed their semi-conscious friend and carried her by the arms.

  "What about Jeanne?" Hilary asked.

  Madison stared at the flickering bulb that was Jeanne. "I don't think it's safe for us to touch her, much less bring her with us. Besides, carrying another one would just slow us down. We'll never get out of here alive. Plus, I'm creating two shields for the both of us, in case you go berserk on me too. I'm already over capacity, Hil."

  Hilary was unconvinced but deliberated what Madison said. "I'm sorry, Jeanne. We'll come back for you." The two ran as fast as they could while carrying the extra weight. They managed to get away before Amanda and the students deemed it safe to approach Jeanne.

  Charlie was jolted awake, seeing trees around. She spotted Hilary and Madison, staring at her intently.

  "Where's Jeanne?" she asked frantically.

  "We left her at ANDREI," Hilary explained.

  "What?!” Charlie stood up and fell back down due to severe dizziness. "I-I'm going to go back. I'll get J-Jeanne."

  "Charlie, think about that for a second," Madison reasoned. "By now Amanda has already reinforced security. The students are already standing guard around Jeanne."

  Hilary spoke up. "Charlie, I'm sorry, but Madison's right. It's going to be futile to go back there with just the three of us. I know we can be strong together, but right now we're at a disadvantage."

  "I don't care! I need to get my sister! Who knows what Amanda will do to her?"

  "Amanda won't hurt Jeanne," Madison responded. "She wants to preserve her and you know it."

  Charlie stood up again, this time maintaining balance, although her stomach lurched. "I'm sorry but I need to go back."

  Hilary and Madison both stood up. "If you're going, we're going with you," said Hilary.

  "I'm not. But if Hilary's going with you, her blood is on your hands if anything happens," Madison said. Hilary elbowed her in the side to make her stop talking, but Charlie had heard that same exact thing before.

  "Please, let me do this on my own. I don't want anybody to get hurt," Charlie begged.

  "You didn't abandon me back there, Charlie. I am not about to abandon you now," Hilary said firmly.

  Hilary won't make it out again. Amanda is just going to control her.

  "It's too dangerous for you, Hilary. You don't have to do this."

  "Yes, I do."

  I can't endanger Hilary's life. I don't have a plan either. I will probably die in the process if I don't think this through and then I will never have a chance to save my sister and be with her.

  Charlie had a rude awakening, and was suddenly thankful Madison and Hilary were there to stop her from marching right back inside ANDREI. "No, you don't. You guys were right, I don't have a plan and I shouldn't just march into war unprepared."

  "So we gather reinforcements first?" Hilary asked.

  With a heavy heart, Charlie nodded. Madison pulled out a paper where directions where scribbled. "Ms. Worthington gave this to me. We should follow her directions since we don't have any other choice."

  They followed the directions until they found the road where a truck awaited them. Madison and Hilary stayed behind a
s Charlie went to check the driver inside. Like Natalia said, there was a cartoon frog on the passenger’s door of the truck. Charlie peeked inside the window and, indeed, she recognized the driver to be the one who had given her a ride when she’d followed the students in their field mission.

  “You’re Brian?” she asked, and the driver nodded. Charlie motioned for Madison and Hilary that it was safe and they took off.

  It took them an hour and a half to reach their destination. Charlie felt antsy as the countryside proved to be deserted. Hilary squeezed her hand, signaling that she was just as nervous. The man got out and opened the tailgate for them. Charlie, Hilary and Madison hopped out of the truck. The old man knocked twice on the wrought-iron gate, then knocked again, thrice in rhythm. The gate unlocked of its own accord, the metal clanking loudly in the quiet. They were welcomed by a familiar face.

  "Joshua?" Charlie sighed his name, exhaustion making her doubt her eyes.

  The man smiled and welcomed the girls, "You all look like you’ve been to war! Glad to see you in one piece.” He introduced himself to Madison and Hilary

  “I'm sure you have a lot of questions. Come in, I'll answer them all," he said.

  They were ushered into a big house that was modestly furnished. To her surprise, the old man who drove them also came in.

  "I forgot to tell you about Brian the day we first met," Joshua said, referring to the old man. "Meet our operative and all-around chauffeur."

  Charlie turned to him and shook his hand. "Thank you, for everything."

  Brian gave her a small nod and headed upstairs.

  "Brian has been maintaining a close eye on the premises since our team's inception. That's the reason why he was always around to give you a ride," Joshua said. "Please, take a seat. Make yourselves comfortable."

  Joshua led them past the living room to the kitchen where a mouthwatering aroma hung heavily in the air. The girls took seats but sat upright and stiff, unable to relax in the unfamiliar atmosphere. After the events of earlier, they were still strung up. Being in the house of a stranger didn't help calm their nerves, but the hearty meal of roast beef and mashed potatoes solved that for the famished girls. Over hot tea and scones, they listened intently to their host.

  "I'm Joshua Thomson, a former Laboratory Head at GEN Laboratories. I'm also partially responsible for the serum that unleashed your superhuman abilities. There were four of us. You know Amanda, and the other two were Charlie and Jeanne's parents. The serum was discovered through illegal means; we used materials and equipment meant for an official pharmaceutical project. We decided not to tell anyone else about our discovery for two reasons: first, we had violated the law, and second, we feared possible harmful side effects."

  "How did you know the serum was effective?" asked Hilary.

  "We used it ourselves. We had different ways of coping and, I guess, consciously trying to forget. I went back to GEN and drowned myself in work. Amanda went on a research sabbatical in Haiti." Joshua turned to Charlie. "Your parents moved away and we never heard from them again."

  "How did Amanda build the school?"

  "After she came back from Haiti, I noticed something different about her. She was never the bubbly type but she's not a glum one either. She didn't talk to me at all, or to anyone. Then one day, she burst out of her office with a smile on her face. Not the kind I was used to, but I was glad to see her fine so I shrugged it off. She was gone again for two days and when she came back, she had a proposition for me. Turned out she’d offered and sold the serum to the government on three concessions: One, no copies of the serum could be made without Amanda’s approval. Two, Amanda would be solely responsible for the first four years post injection or until subjects were ready to serve their purpose deemed necessary by government. Three, Amanda was to be declared Headmaster of the school to implement the program scientifically designed to develop and hone the students' powers."

  "And the government just agreed to all of her demands? The government I know doesn't back down like that, I mean..." Madison said, looking at her friends for reinforcement.

  "Amanda claimed to have a kill switch, sort of an insurance, that if things didn't go her way, she could cancel out the effects of the serum. I'd say that's a lie before, but residing in the laboratory could've allowed her to make one. Aside from that, Amanda appears to have no gain in going against the contract or the government."

  "Why did you leave GEN?" Hilary inquired.

  "I didn't want to, but..."

  "You committed suicide," said Charlie.

  "You're jumping to the last part of the story. I was part of ANDREI's creation. I designed the programs to help the students hone their talents, since I was, how would you put it... enchanted by Amanda. It was like being in a prolonged REM phase, really. I agreed to whatever she asked me to do. But when she left on a trip to Washington, D.C. and left me there, I realized I didn't want to be part of that. I was subjected to her hive mind like you guys."

  "So that's what it's called," Madison mused.

  Joshua nodded and continued. "I guess that's what was eating me up and why I felt so exhausted, because this small part of my brain consciously fought Amanda. I was an orphan too, you know. I went through the same pain of not being wanted. I found my place in the world, and the students at ANDREI wouldn't be able to do that because once the serum is injected, their fate is determined."

  "A fate we didn't consent to," Hilary said as she looked away.

  "Precisely the reason why I wanted it to stop. But I couldn't do anything because I'm just a lowly citizen of the country; I was up against the government and the weapons they were creating: you and all the students at ANDREI."

  A shiver ran down Charlie's spine.

  "But I couldn't just let it happen. I had to do something to stop it, so I created a team of operatives to help me in my objective to rescue the students at ANDREI. Hilary, the day you thought Charlie saved you, was actually our first mission to retrieve a student. We weren't trying to shoot you, Hilary, we merely wanted to taser you so you wouldn't resist our attempt to rescue you."

  "That was you?" Hilary said, baffled.

  "Yes. That was Linda who was aiming for your arm."

  Just then a tall red-headed woman appeared in the doorway, making her way to the fridge to fetch a bottle of water. She looked at the girls and raised an eyebrow, particularly interested in Hilary, who seemed to spark her memory. "Hi," Linda said with a wave before disappearing.

  "The only way for us to get the students is during a field mission, because there is no way we could infiltrate both the laboratory and the school without acquiring casualties. And we're only a team of five."

  "There are five of you? But we met only two." Charlie said.

  "Actually, you've met four already. Brian, Linda, me and your guidance counselor at ANDREI," Joshua replied with a smile.

  "Natalia?” Hilary exclaimed.

  "We planted her there to deliver necessary information that could aid us in our operations."

  "And the fifth member of the team?" Madison asked. Someone tapped her on the back and a guy with brown curly hair greeted her. "Giorgio, computer genius and security breach expert at your service."

  Joshua continued. "As I was saying, I tried to leave but the guards didn't let me, so I settled for the next best thing: tip off an infamous leftist blogger.” His eyes moved over to Giorgio’s as he said it. “However, the government was able to intervene and the uploading of ANDREI files was aborted. By then I was already on the run, but the authorities caught up with me at the peak. When we reached the edge, I jumped off the cliff. The authorities came down, looking for me, making sure I was gone for good. When they didn’t find my body, they organized a water search and rescue which, of course, yielded nothing. They eventually assumed I was carried by the current to the falls nearby. I was declared missing for a year before I was officially declared dead."

  Giorgio piped in. "Joshua was declared dead and all records of his identity were era
sed from the United States Database, as if he never existed at all. I know because I checked. Kent was born to take his place."

  “Who’s Kent?” Hilary asked.

  “That is my new name. I go by Kent now,” he said.

  "I want to join your team," Madison said suddenly. "Made a lot of mistakes in my life. Better to make up for it now before I run out of time."

  "Me, too." Hilary declared. "My friends are stuck at ANDREI. I need to rescue them."

  "You're welcome to join our team, Madison and Hilary. I hope you don't mind me addressing you as such now that I know all of you. Natalia has given us sufficient information about the students at ANDREI."

  Charlie broke her silence. "We have to get my sister."

  "Yes, of course Charlie. But I can't guarantee you when," Joshua replied, apologetic.

  "Excuse me?"

  "Jeanne is Amanda's prized trophy and now that you've escaped, I'm sure she's going to ask the government for reinforcements. Plus, Amanda doesn't send Jeanne on field missions. In fact, the government doesn't know about her. She's keeping your sister for herself. I'm afraid she has you on her watch list now. We have to be extremely cautious from here on out."

  "What are you saying?" Charlie said.

  "I'm saying we might have to delay rescuing your sister for the meantime. Let the storm pass first and be smart about how we go about it."

  Charlie was crestfallen. She couldn't stand knowing her sister was still in Amanda's clutches and that it would take time before Joshua's team got to her. I will save my sister. I don't care if I have to do it alone. Charlie didn't speak up anymore and Joshua took this as a signal to escort them to their rooms.

  "You should all get some rest, you've had a rough day," Joshua said, leading them to a hallway with six doors on both sides. "Take your pick.” Madison and Hilary went to their respective rooms of choice, leaving Charlie in the middle of the hallway, unmoving. Something dawned on her.

  Charlie turned to Joshua, who was still standing behind her. "Do you have a phone I can use to call my parents?"