Chapter 9
Paul hadn’t moved from his bed for more than thirty minutes. He lay there, thinking over all he’d learned. The revelation that Dr. Abrams was a Walker was enough to think about all on its own. Even more so, though, was the fact that the doctor had chosen to entrust Paul with two of his deepest secrets. It made Paul’s head spin, the overwhelming question of why at the forefront.
Paul stood and began pacing. He always thought better when he was moving.
Why would Dr. Abrams share that kind of information so quickly? Paul had something Abrams wanted, that must be it. Or… Paul could do something that Abrams needed. The ‘ability within his ability’ that Abrams had talked about. It must be what Abrams was after. Somehow, whatever it was that Paul could do, it was valuable enough that Abrams was willing to risk telling his secrets to earn Paul’s trust.
So what was it? Once again, the issue had been discussed but not revealed. Every single person in this facility seemed to know what Paul could do except Paul himself. Why wouldn’t they tell him? Was he supposed to just ‘figure it out’? How was that supposed to happen when just a week ago, he hadn’t even known he was a Walker?
His pacing picked up and he felt himself getting angry. What right did these people have to hold back information that directly pertained to him? They didn’t even know him! And what about Lisa? She obviously knew what it was that he could do. If there was anyone at Astralis that he might be able to say he knew, it was her. She had claimed she liked him, which meant that she felt he was, at the very least, a friend. She, more than anyone else in this place, should feel an obligation to tell him what was going on. Or maybe it had all just been an act to get him to come to Astralis.
As far as Abrams was concerned, Paul felt certain that other Walkers didn’t receive the same rosy welcome he’d received, complete with a personal nighttime visit from the director.
First they practically kidnap him, and now he was supposed to believe it was all for his own safety, and they were the good guys all along? Maybe they were and maybe they weren’t, but he would decide that for himself.
Paul would not let himself be used, no matter what the reason. If he was as valuable as they made him out to be, he’d only do what they asked if it was on his terms.
Muttering to himself as he paced, he stopped to lean on his desk, putting both hands out to steady himself. Breathing deeply in an attempt to calm down, he was startled by a noise outside his door.
He held his breath, heart pounding. Were those voices? He’d been so angry and so preoccupied that he hadn’t noticed the growing sound from the hallway. It sounded like a group of people all talking to each other, talking over each other.
He went over on quiet footsteps and leaned his ear against the door, trying to make out what was being said, but only got snatches. He thought it sounded like the people he’d met in the commons room earlier, but he couldn’t be sure.
“… Carlisle’s still there…”
“… doesn’t even know…”
“… Abrams might’ve told him…”
“… I guess we’ll find out soon enough… “
And the unmistakable gritty voice of Hodge carrying over the rest, “… not a chance, he ain’t got a clue and even if he did he’s too much of a pansy to make the attempt.”
Now he was sure. There were Walkers out there, standing right outside his room, and they were clearly talking about him.
If he was angry before, now he was absolutely furious.
“Hey!” he yelled through the door. “You guys got anything better to do than stand outside my door and talk about me?”
The voices stopped and it grew very quiet except for one person—Hodge. His throaty chuckle carried through the door and incensed Paul even further.
“You think it’s funny that I’m stuck in here?” Paul yelled, screaming now.
Now Hodge was outright laughing. Paul heard Lisa hiss, “Stop it! It isn’t funny. It’s his first night. He must be so scared and confused. How can you be so mean?”
“I don’t need your pity!” Paul yelled, his stomach burning with anger. He slammed his fist against the door. “I can handle myself!”
Suddenly, everyone went quiet. Even Hodge was silent.
Paul slammed the door with his fist again. “Nothing to say? Yeah, that’s about what I figured.”
An entirely different, deep voice asked from the other side of the door, “Hello?”
That was Carlisle. That was definitely Carlisle. Paul pounded on the door again with both fists for good measure. He knew Carlisle couldn’t hear him, but he still wanted to get his point across to everyone else.
“Hello? Is there someone in there?”
Paul stood very still. There was no way Carlisle could have heard him.
Could he?
“Carlisle?” he asked. “Can you hear me?”
Paul counted to ten, waiting, getting only silence in answer.
“Carlisle!” Paul yelled. “Hello?”
Still nothing but silence from the other side of the door.
Frustrated, Paul punched the door one last time and turned away. He began to climb into bed to wait out the rest of the night, but stopped short when he heard the sound of a key in the lock and Carlisle saying, “Okay, I’m opening the door. If anyone is in there, please step back now.”
The lock clicked and the door opened. Carlisle stood framed in the entryway. Paul, who never had any intention of ‘stepping back now,’ was right there waiting. He quickly ducked past the Sentinel and into the hallway.
And found himself staring at a group of six Walkers whose expressions varied from shock to pride to envy and, in the case of Hodge, open hostility.
All at once they started talking, asking him questions and congratulating him. Lisa stood back next to Hodge, beaming at him as the other four gathered around him, slapping him on the back and asking how he’d done it.
“I don’t know!” he exclaimed. “I honestly don’t know what I did! At least, well, I think what I did was make Carlisle hear me through the door, right?”
Juliet smiled at him, “You practically rattled the door off the hinges with all that pounding.”
“You should’ve seen Carlisle jump,” laughed Kenneth, “I swear I wish I could’ve gotten that on video! Nothing ever gets the best of him, but tonight you definitely did!”
“I did?” asked Paul incredulously, “So he didn’t hear me yelling at all, he heard me hit the door? But that’s impossible!”
“No,” replied Lisa, stepping forward into the group as Hodge scowled after her. “This is what everyone has been trying to tell you. This is why you’re special. You did something like this once before—you held a branch out of the way for me when we were in the cemetery in Radcliff. Do you remember?”
In his mind’s eye, Paul could remember moving the branch out of her way so they could sit down at the base of the big oak. At the time he’d done it without thinking, out of simple courtesy, but Lisa had obviously clocked it as the single most important event of the night.
“I do remember,” Paul said slowly, realization sinking in.
Lisa beamed her thousand-watt smile on him. Hodge’s scowl grew even more pronounced, if that were possible. Lisa said, “No one, at least no one known to Astralis, can do what you can do. There are stories of others, more like legends really, but no one knows if those stories are made up or true. Until now, that is. Now we have someone that can do it right in front of us.”
Everyone stood around Paul, silent. Parker and Kenneth gave him small nods, as if to convey respect. Looking from one person to the next, Paul wondered if they were waiting for him to say something profound—something that would tie the whole experience of having been present when he first showed his talent at Astralis together with some sort of resolution.
Instead of answering, he found himself unable to hold back a chuckle. The thought of him imparting some sort of wisdom to these veteran Walkers was ridiculous to the point of absurdity. He had no
idea how he’d been able to move that branch back in the cemetery and he had no idea how he’d been able to pound on the door. It hadn’t even occurred to him that it was possible at all.
Back in Radcliff, when he used to wander the streets, there had never once been a time that he’d been able to get anyone to take notice of him, no matter what he said or did. Now these people wanted him to give a speech or something?
Looking back into their eyes, he saw puzzlement at his reaction. He started to explain, but was interrupted by Carlisle backing out of his room and closing the door. Everyone watched as the Sentinel ducked his head inside and made two more furtive sweeps of the room, trying to puzzle out whether his ears were playing tricks on him.
“Doesn’t he know about us?” asked Paul to no one in particular.
It was Parker who spoke up in reply, “Oh I think Carlisle knows. It’s an odd arrangement here with him as head of security. Our Sentinels all know, of course, but Carlisle pretty much does his own thing.”
“I think we all assume that Carlisle knows, though,” added Juliet. “He’s been here a long time. Being head of security means he’s in charge of all the Sentinels when they’re in the building. There’s too much we do here that can only be explained with the truth for him to never have had questions... and since he never has questions, we just assume he knows.”
Everyone turned as Dittrich came striding down the hall, saying, “The less he knows, the better for him.” Smiling, he walked up to Paul and proffered his hand. Paul took it in an automatic gesture, returning the handshake. “I will assume that you’ve not disappointed your new fans tonight, seeing that you’re standing here in this hallway and not in your room. Well done.”
“Um, thank you?” answered Paul hesitantly. “I didn’t really do anything except throw a bit of a fit.”
“Oh I’m sure you did plenty,” answered Dittrich. Addressing the rest of the people in the hall, he said, “Now that you’ve seen what you hoped to see, I’m sure there are places you should all be. If you’ll excuse Mr. Bennett and me, there are a few of the basics we need to go over. Seeing that securing him in a room with a guard posted isn’t going to keep him from wandering the halls, I think we could all agree that he needs some information on how we operate.”
Nods and murmurs of agreement came from everyone gathered. Kenneth and Parker both made it a point to stop and shake Paul’s hand before leaving, congratulating him on his accomplishment. Juliet, Liz and Lisa all smiled and waved. The only person who made no effort to acknowledge him was Hodge. He walked straight-backed down the hall, not turning around or looking back as he rounded the corner.
“What is his problem?” Paul wondered out loud.
Watching Hodge, Dittrich sighed and said, “I’m afraid you’ve made a bit of an enemy through no fault of your own. Hodge is a strong Walker. He is the one who just about any of us would prefer as a Buddy on most any assignment, but he sees you as a threat on a couple of fronts. I’m sure you recognize that he and Lisa are an item. Hodge is a jealous man and Lisa has an obvious admiration for you. On top of that, because Hodge has the ability to make his voice heard while in the dream, he has enjoyed having status within the community of Walkers here. Now that you’ve come along, he feels that status threatened.”
Dittrich smiled and clapped Paul on the back. “Don’t worry, Paul. I have no doubt that you’ll win him over the same way you won over Lisa and, from the looks of it, everyone else.” Guiding Paul toward the elevators, Dittrich said, “So tell me what you know of Astralis at this point.”
Feeling a little unsure of how he should answer the question, Paul went with the safe answer. “I know that this is more than just a sleep clinic.”
Dittrich stopped and turned to face Paul square on, his voice very serious. “Paul, I was told by Dr. Abrams before we left Louisville that by this time tonight you would have a solid understanding of what goes on here. Never once in the time that I have known him has Dr. Abrams not done what he said he would do. I have no doubt that your welcome meeting in his office was much more information-filled than most new arrivals.”
Softening his tone and resuming the walk toward the elevators, Dittrich continued, “You can trust me, Paul. I know you’re a stranger in a strange place right now, and I know that everything and everyone here will take some getting used to. But, because of your ability and the opportunities that it represents for this organization, your level of comfort and trust is and will continue to be my number one priority. Dr. Abrams feels the same way, and we are willing to do whatever it takes.”
A little stunned by Dittrich’s open candor, Paul didn’t know what to say. The things he’d been thinking earlier were obviously right on target, but it didn’t appear anyone was going to bother sugar-coating it.
He had a specialized skill that made him valuable. They wanted not only for him to use it for them, but to want to use it for them. And they would bend over backward to make him feel that way.
He could take them at their word and fully buy in to their program, but everything had happened so fast. It just didn’t seem smart to jump in blindly.
Lord knows it would be easiest to just tell them he wasn’t interested. They’d spied on him for months without telling him, sent in Lisa as an undercover student in order to gain his trust, and then more or less kidnapped him to get him to their secluded mountain facility. He imagined explaining all of this at the lunch table and the reaction that Stephanie would have. ‘Get out, run, and don’t stop running!’ is what she would tell him.
But.
Paul believed in Dr. Abrams’ sincerity. Maybe not so much in Dittrich’s. There was just something … oily… about the way Dittrich presented himself. But with regard to Dr. Abrams, Paul recognized that same kind of immediate connection he’d felt after the first counseling session with Jeff. With some people, you could just feel it when they were good people, and Abrams was one of those.
“It is a lot to take in, isn’t it?” Dittrich broke into his thoughts. “Hard to know who to trust or even if there is anyone worth trusting when your life changes so much in so short a time.”
Paul just gave his usual nod without elaboration. Why say more when there is so much to say that can’t be articulated?
Reaching the elevators, they stopped. Dittrich laced his fingers together and turned to look at Paul expectantly.
Confused, Paul asked, “What?”
Dittrich indicated the elevator with a lift of his chin, “Well, I certainly can’t do anything here.”
Oh. Right. Elevators couldn’t be used by Walkers. Most of them, anyway.
Could he use his ability at will? Did he need to channel it somehow? There was only one way to find out. Paul reached out and pressed the button with the ‘down’ arrow on it.
The plastic button felt solid as iron—it wasn’t budging. A little confused, he pressed harder.
“I can’t.”
Eyebrows knitted together, Dittrich gently urged, “Try harder.”
Annoyed but still obliging, Paul tried the button a couple more times with no result. He took a step back, giving Dittrich a helplessly apologetic look.
“Hm,” was all Dittrich said as he turned on his heel and headed toward the open door that led to the stairwell.
Paul followed. He almost felt as if he needed to apologize.
Catching up to Dittrich, he asked, “So… if I can bang on a door I should be able to press a tiny plastic elevator button, shouldn’t I?”
“This is not unexpected,” replied Dittrich. “You need to spend some time with Hodge. The same thing happened to him in the beginning.”
“In the beginning of what?”
“When his ability to be heard by those outside the dream first manifested, he couldn’t control it either. He had to learn his trigger. He’s been able to teach Lisa how to do it with some moderate success. He should be able to help you.”
Paul made a sound somewhere between a snort and a guffaw, thinking that this was
turning out to be one hell of a first day at Astralis. Hodge was going help him? Doubtful.
Watchers of the Night Page 25
