Friday morning, once Ellen and Jessica reached their gym class, Karla was once again in her gym clothes while lying on a bench away from the other students with her eyes closed.
“Déjà vu,” Ellen said after seeing Karla lying there.
“Tell me about it,” Karla said without opening her eyes.
As Ellen and Jessica went to their lockers to get dressed, Ellen inquired, “This may be a stupid question, but if your grandfather can’t verbally communicate, walk or hold things, how does he… communicate with you that he needs something?”
“Thanks to advance technology, his mind is hooked up to a computer by electrodes at several points of his shaved head,” Karla began while opening her eyes and sitting up. “He just thinks about what he wants and the computer will verbalize it for him.”
“Wow, outside science fiction stories, I didn’t know that such of a device existed,” Ellen commented before she began to strip to her bra and patties.
“They’re expensive and this one is actually a prototype of the latest model,” Karla continued. “Oh and there’s a computer screen facing my grandfather, so he reads constantly and most of last night I spent scanning material into the computer for him. The material isn’t even in English or French so I have no idea of what I’m scanning.”
“Well, if it’s in Spanish, I might be able to help,” Ellen offered.
“It’s not,” Jessica replied while she was putting on her gym clothes. “In fact, I’m pretty sure that a lot of what he reads are from dead languages… or at least dead to the modern world. The only ones who know these languages are the linguists who study ancient languages.”
“And your grandfather is one of these linguists?” Ellen questioned while putting on her gym clothes.
“Our grandfather traveled throughout Europe, Asia and Africa while he was in his early twenties, and during his travels he had learned over six languages before the age of twenty-five,” Jessica said. “Two of the languages were dead languages.”
“Wow,” Ellen couldn’t help saying. “I’m doing okay in Spanish, but if I had to learn Spanish plus several more languages at the same time… there would be no way that I could do it.”
“Most people can’t,” Karla said. “And I think that the only reason that our grandfather can is that whatever he hears or reads once stays with him word-for-word for years.”
“Wow, that’s amazing to have that great of a memory,” Ellen said in an envious voice before a thought had occurred to her. “And interesting.”
“Interesting?” Jessica echoed curiously.
Ellen thought for a second before saying, “Oh, with how excellent your grandfather’s memory is, it suddenly occurred to me as to why Karla had claimed that your grandfather is a prisoner of his own body.”
Jessica shook off the last few things that were said before closing her locker and saying, “Well we’d better get out there.”
Ellen closed her locker before saying, “I’m right behind you.”
Jessica walked out of the locker room first, followed by Ellen and then Karla.
Everett was on the court, and when he saw Ellen stepping up with something on her mind, he asked, “What’s up?”
“Meet me at the track and field at lunch,” Ellen whispered.
Everett gave her a curious look while saying, “Okay.”
At the beginning of the second lunch period Ellen went to the track and field while carrying her purse, a notebook and a pencil. Everett wasn’t there yet and after she took a seat on the bleachers, she took out her phone from her purse and dialed it.
The phone rang a few times, and as Ellen saw Everett walking her way Harris answered with, “Hello.”
“Harry, it’s me—Ellen,” she said while watching Everett walking her way.
“What’s up, Ellen?” Harris asked.
“Earlier I learned that Leon Stone’s mind is hooked up to a computer by electrodes at several points of his head… of his shaved head and whatever he wants to say, the computer will verbalize it for him.”
“Okay,” Harris said in a tone as if he didn’t know where Ellen was going with what she was saying.
“He also has an excellent memory, and I’m thinking that if he had memorized a large number of incantations, then maybe Leon Stone himself might be responsible for stealing mental health from students,” Ellen suggested.
“There are trivial incantations that only require great focus and conscious thought,” Harris began as Everett was walking up to Ellen. “However, those incantations wouldn’t be powerful enough to steal health or mental health from someone else. In fact, I believe that the incantations that would steal health or mental health are vivacious incantations.”
“Okay, then what kind of incantations would only require great focus and conscious thought?” Ellen asked as Everett sat on the bench next to her.
Harris thought for a moment before saying, “Telekinetic ability is really the only one that I can think of at the moment.”
“Telekinetic,” Ellen echoed. “The ability to move objects with one’s mind, right?”
“Correct,” Harris confirmed. “However, there are people with a natural telekinetic ability who don’t need to mentally recite an incantation.”
“Okay,” Ellen said in an acknowledging tone. “Leon Stone is also a linguist and he knows a couple of dead languages. Karla told me earlier that most of last night she was scanning in pages of something that was written in one of those dead languages into the computer for Leon Stone to view on the computer screen. Could Karla have been scanning in incantations that were written in some dead language?”
“It’s very possible,” Harris confirmed. “Sorcery predates documented history and sorcerers were scattered throughout the world.”
“So there are more than four wizard lines,” Ellen quickly surmised while grabbing Everett’s full attention.
“I can’t really answer that, but I will say that before Merlin’s time, the European, the African and the Asian sorcerers and sometimes their entire family were executed once the sorcerers were discovered. The Native American sorcerers, on the other hand, were highly revered as spiritual guides, healers and people with great wisdom. So there could be more wizard lines out there, but the four known wizard lines are all I know about that had made it to the modern times.”
“Gotcha,” Ellen said in an understanding tone.
“So is there anything else?” Harris asked.
Ellen thought for a second before asking, “What if Leon Stone had done a vivacious incantation prior to his stroke that would allow him to steal health or mental health from someone by only reciting something mentally?”
“Plausible in theory, but improbable in actuality,” Harris replied. “And I say that because a specific incantation layout would be required prior to reciting the incantation that would steal health or mental health from someone else.”
“Okay, well, could Leon Stone be using Jessica or Karla to set up the incantation’s layout while making either of them think that she was just decorating the room to his whim?”
“I seriously doubt that either Jessica or Karla would be naïve enough to set up an incantation layout without knowing that it’s for a ritual. I know that you think you see good in them, but you might have to face the fact that it may all be an act.”
“Right,” Ellen grumbled.
“Anything else?” Harris asked.
Ellen again thought for a second before saying sullenly, “That’s all for now.”
“Okay, well, I’ll see you at home later.”
“Okay, bye,” Ellen said before hanging up.
“There are more than four wizard lines?” Everett asked quickly.
Ellen shrugged before saying, “Four surviving wizard lines are all Harris knows about, but prior to Merlin’s time wizards were scattered throughout the world and they were being killed off when they got discovered.”
“Okay,” Everett said indifferently. Ellen ignored the tone. “So what was
Harris’s answer when you asked if Leon could be using Jessica or Karla without either of their knowledge?”
“Harris believes that if Jessica or Karla is helping, they are helping willingly.” When Ellen saw Everett fighting back a grin she continued with, “Okay, we might not have come up with proof of their innocence, but we haven’t found proof of their guilt either.”
“I didn’t say a word,” Everett defended.
“No, but I can see that smug ‘I was right’ grin on your face that you’re trying to hide,” Ellen retorted. “And you haven’t been proven right yet.”
“Something tells me that you’ll need to catch one of them or both of them in the act before you are convinced of their guilt.”
Ellen politely grinned before saying, “That would eliminate all doubt.” She then held up her cell phone. “I’m going to call the university.”
“You know the number?” Everett asked as Ellen went into her cell phone’s phonebook.
“I looked it up last night and stored it on my phone,” Ellen said while she scrolled through the numbers. “I added a lot of numbers to the phone, in fact. I made it where your number was first though.”
Everett grinned as he watched Ellen placed her call.
Within a short time, an office staff member answered with, “Armstrong Atlantic State University. Carman Jackson speaking. How can I assist you?”
Ellen identified herself and what high school that she was from before saying, “I would like to speak to the dean of the school.”
“Young lady, perhaps you should tell me what you want and I’ll see if I can assist you.”
“Okay,” Ellen began before taking a breath. “I am writing a paper on the students at your university with IQs above a hundred and forty, and I was hoping to get the stats on those students.”
“Explain what you mean by stats,” Carman requested.
“Their names, where they’re from, their actual IQs, their career goals…” Ellen got out before thinking of what else. “Their ages… are any of them absentminded geniuses… and anything else that could be useful to my report.”
“Okay, well, we—the staff members of the university— cannot give out personal information of our students.”
“So I won’t be able to get that information?” Ellen quickly asked.
“Hear my words,” Carman emphasized. “The staff members of the university cannot give out personal information of our students.”
“The staff members can’t?” Ellen echoed while mulling over Carman’s words. It then suddenly clicked. “But each individual student can.”
“What the individual student tells you willingly about him or herself is not our concern,” Carman added.
“Okay,” Ellen said. “Can you tell me how many of the students with IQs higher than a hundred and forty are living in the dormitory?”
“None technically,” Carman replied.
“What do you mean technically?” Ellen quickly asked.
“Last November, the university had acquired four adjacent houses through a donation. A month after that, those houses were turned into an off campus hall and that hall is where those students are residing.”
“Cool,” Ellen couldn’t help saying. “Could I get directions to the off campus hall? And hopefully, that hall has a better name than that.”
“The name of the hall is Stone Hall. It was named after the person who had donated it…”
“The generous donor of the hall wouldn’t be Leon Stone by chance, would it?” Ellen interrupted with. Everett’s interest was again piqued.
“Yes, I believe so,” Carman confirmed. “You know him?”
“I know his granddaughters,” Ellen said. “So can I get the addresses and the directions to Stone Hall?” Ellen wrote down the addresses and the directions in her notebook as Carman gave it. “Got it. Thanks for your help.”
When Ellen hung up the phone, Everett pointed out, “Jessica and Simon failed to mention Stone Hall to us last night. Do you still have doubts of Jessica’s guilt?”
“There could be several reasons why Jessica didn’t bring it up,” Ellen defended.
“Name one,” Everett challenged.
“She didn’t think about it,” Ellen answered quickly. “Or she didn’t think that it was relevant.”
Everett thought for only a second before shaking his head and saying, “I’m not buying either of those.”
“Well… you outright blame Jessica’s grandpa for your grandma’s death,” Ellen retorted. “I’m not defending Leon Stone mind you… in fact, I believe you, but if it was my grandpa who you were blaming, I wouldn’t be forthcoming with information either.”
“Okay, fine,” Everett began. “You won that one.”
Ellen amusingly grinned before saying, “After school I want to go to Stone Hall.”
Everett nodded while saying, “I figured you would. Anyway, if we’re done here, let’s go get something to eat.”
Ellen gestured for Everett to wait a second while saying, “I should call Allyson and let her know what we’re going to do after school.”
Everett nodded before gesturing towards the notebook and requesting, “Can I see where Stone Hall is at?”
“Here,” Ellen said while holding out the notebook for him to take.
Everett took the notebook, and as he looked at it, Ellen scrolled through the cell phone’s phonebook.
“I know where Stone Hall is at,” Everett informed. “In fact, the bus… the city bus that picks up and drops off in front of the school also picks up and drops off in front of Stone Hall.”
“Cool, we have a way there,” Ellen said before pressing the ‘call’ button on her phone.
Chapter Twenty-One
Not long after school had let out, Ellen and Everett—while carrying their book bags—were stepping off the city bus in front of Stone Hall.
Ellen had her notebook out, and after comparing the addresses of the buildings to what she had written down, she gestured towards a row of houses while saying, “Those four houses right there.”
Everett pointed towards the closest one while suggesting, “We might as well start there.”
“Sounds good,” Ellen said before she and Everett started walking.
Once Ellen and Everett stepped up to the front door to the first house, Everett rang the doorbell.
Within a short time, a forty-year-old housemother opened the door and asked, “May I help you?”
Ellen shot the woman a confused look before saying, “I was told that this house belongs to Armstrong Atlantic State University.”
“It does,” she confirmed. “And you two are?”
Ellen and Everett said their names at the same time.
“Whoa!” the housemother uttered. “One at a time.”
When Everett gestured towards Ellen, she identified herself and what school she attended followed by Everett.
“And your purpose here?” The housemother prompted.
Ellen took a breath before saying, “For our high school assignment, we are writing a paper on the students at Armstrong Atlantic State University with IQs above a hundred and forty. We were told that those students live in this house and the three next houses, and we were hoping to ask those students some questions… to complete our assignment.”
“What kind of questions?” the housemother asked.
“Oh, uh, I made a list of what I want to know,” Ellen said while flipping to a page in her notebook. Once she found the page, she handed the notebook to the housemother.
When the housemother looked at the notebook, she read the following,
Things to ask: Name, age, city of where he or she is from, career goals, his or her IQ rating, is he or she absentminded.
The housemother took a breath before saying, “These questions look harmless enough. Okay. If any of them would like to answer your questions then it’s fine. So come in.”
“Cool. Thanks,” Ellen said. As Ellen and Everett entered the house, Ellen continued with
, “Are all the students of the four houses here?” Ellen saw the confused look that the housemother was giving her. “Oh… uh, by here I mean among the four houses and not on the college campus.”
“All of the students of this house are here,” the housemother said while Everett was shutting the door behind him. “I don’t know about the other houses, and each house has its own housemother.”
“So you’re a housemother,” Ellen verbally took note of.
“I am,” she confirmed. “My name’s Frankie.”
“Nice meeting you, Frankie,” Ellen said followed by Everett.
Frankie nodded with a grin, and before she could respond with more than that, Everett continued with, “So which house is Simon Mosley a part of?”
“I’m only familiar with the students from this house, and he’s not from this house,” Frankie said. “Anyway, I’ll take you to the students.”
Ellen nodded before she and Everett followed Frankie into a large room. The room was a living room that had been converted into a computer lab with ten workstations.
Once Ellen, Everett and Frankie stepped in, the seven students between the ages of fourteen and eighteen looked up from their stations. Three of the students were girls.
“Everyone, meet Ellen and Everett,” Frankie announced. “They are doing a high school research paper on all of you and they would like to interview each one of you.”
“With your permission of course,” Ellen added.
“Sure,” the seven students said in an uneven chorus.
“Thanks,” Ellen said before stepping up to the closest student and beginning her questions.
It took Ellen fifteen minutes to get the seven names and each of their information. Once Ellen got the information that she wanted with that group, she expressed her ‘thanks’ to them and said her ‘goodbyes’.
As Frankie was walking Ellen and Everett to the front door, Frankie said, “I informed the other housemothers about you two. So they know that you two are coming.”
“Thanks for your help,” Ellen said.
Legacy Page 35
