Chrystal Bones (Finding Home Book 1) (8 page)

"Have you always been this irritating?” Jake asked her. "Never mind, so you know what is going on. Saves me from telling you. What you don't know is Janie's going to give him the money if you haven't found Scotty by the time the forty eight hours are up. I don't trust this idiot to return Scotty. Even if he does, what is to keep him from trying this shit again."

Riley simply said, "Trust us. We will find Scotty and the LCA won't ever do this again. I can guarantee that.”

“LCA?" Jake sounded puzzled.

“Yes. It’s short for Lying Cheating Ass. Blue came up with it,” she told him. He gave a strangled laugh and hung up.

She turned to Blue, "He hung up on me. That was just rude." She narrowed her eyes. "You haven't been giving him lessons have you?"

Blue glanced at her. “I think he learned how to be rude on his own,” She paused. “You are in a mood. What is gotten into you today?"

"I'm not sure but it has been an incredible day. I connected with A.P. I know now how you and Leo feel. He is such a beautiful horse, but so hurt and scared. I fell in love with him. Then the connection with Scotty was so strong. I was actually able to talk to him. I know we will find him. Oh, I also drank several triple shot cappuccino’s so I'm kinda wound up."

“There is no kinda about it. You are wound up. You know you should not drink more than a couple cups of coffee a day.”

“Hey I knew it was going to be a long day,” Riley retorted. Riley on caffeine was worse than a toddler on a sugar high.

The rest of the drive home passed quickly. It was just after three am when Blue turned into the drive of the beach house. It was the first place she could call her own and she loved it. Every inch of the property was covered by sensors and cameras. No one could sneak up on her. She had an app on her phone to alert her if someone came by when she wasn't here. It was a large sprawling four bedroom ranch house with a three car garage.

Blue pushed a button on her phone and the garage door opened smoothly and soundlessly. She drove in and waited until the door closed and the lights came on. She and Riley got out of the car and went to the panel on the wall. Blue pushed in a series of numbers and when she heard a click pushed in another series of numbers. A small panel slid out of the wall. She stepped forward and a beam shot out and scanned her right eye. She stepped back so Riley could step forward and the beam scanned her left eye.

When everything checked out a computerized voice said, "Welcome home Blue and Riley. What is today’s password." "Twinkle, twinkle little star,” Blue said. "Voice verification complete." There was an audible snick as the locks disengaged.

If she had given the wrong password the garage would have been flooded with an odorless knockout gas that would effect everyone but Blue, even Riley would pass out. They entered the warm house and Blue immediately went to the room next to the kitchen to check the security cameras. Riley wasn't as conscientious as Blue about security but she understood her friends need to be safe in her own home before she could relax.

Blue returned with a grin on her tired face. "You are not going to believe this. I got a hit with the facial recognition program at a casino in Lincoln City. The LCA was seen entering the casino at 10:26 pm this evening and leaving at 2:59 am with a tall brunette. He played poker and walked away with six grand. No point in going there now but we know where to start looking in the morning."

She was right about the LCA not leaving the state to gamble. She knew he was an addict and had taken the chance to monitor all the nearby casinos. She hadn’t expected to find him so fast but she wasn’t going to argue with the results. It had been a long day and with very little sleep the night before Blue was exhausted. They would finish this in the morning and have Scotty back with his mom by nightfall. Well before the forty eight hour deadline was up.

Chrystal Bones Billie Jo Hanlin

Chapter 9

Jayden piloted the shuttle through the the satellites that surrounded the planet and into Earth’s atmosphere. He had timed the trip to make a night landing to lessen the chance of being seen. So far the stealth system was working perfectly. Dro had stayed onboard the Trilleion along with Sparks and Jos to monitor Earth’s communications and to warn Jayden if it became necessary. So far none of the satellites’ surveillance systems had detected them.

He had opted for a landing on the coast of Oregon since that was where the signals Idris had tracked originated. He set the shuttle down on a deserted stretch of beach between two small towns. They had watched the coast for the last several hours as they flew in and had seen no activity in this area.

The shuttle blended in to look like one of the giant boulders that littered the base of the sheer cliff when he settled it in place. Working quickly they secured the shuttle before rolling out their transportation. The air cars resembled Earth’s motorcycles enough that if anyone asked they would say they were a prototype being tested. Jos had added fake wheels but that was all that was needed.

There were still a couple hours of night left and they wanted to travel as far as they could. The plan was to avoid contact with the natives as much as possible. That meant traveling mostly at night and off road. Jayden looked at Idris and said, "Lead the way."

Idris took the chrystal out from under his shirt, he had no idea how this was going to work and could only hope Dro was right when he said it would lead him to Aaliyah. The glowing pulsing chrystal did nothing for several minutes then it lifted and Idris felt a slight tugging to the north. He looked up and exclaimed in excitement, "It is going to work like a locater. Maybe this will not be as hard as we thought."

The three alien men mounted the bikes and with Idris in the lead headed in the direction the chrystal led. Staying on the small strip of rocky sand between the ocean and the cliffside when they could, they kept a steady pace and made good time. Before the sun rose they stopped to rest for a couple of hours in a small cave. Wrapping themselves in thin thermal blankets they settled in.

Idris gave up trying to sleep and moved quietly to sit at the mouth of the cave. He watched the sky lighten and the waves crash against beach. He was going to see his sister today. He knew it. For once the universe was smiling on him. It was returning what it had taken from him and Shillidon. She had been through so much in her short life and he could not help but wonder what type of woman she had grown into. Would she recognize him? Would she be happy to see him?

Jayden and Vihan watched him from their spots against the wall. With a glance at each other they both rose and went to stand next to Idris. Jayden put his hand on Idris’s shoulder and squeezed. “Let’s go. None of us are going to get any sleep until we find her.” Without a word Idris stood and walked to the bikes followed by Jayden and Vihan.

Chrystal Bones Billie Jo Hanlin

Chapter 10

Blue and Riley lay on the floor head to head with Leo lying next to Blue with his head in his favorite spot, on her stomach. Riley clutched Turtle, the stuffed horse, in her hands. She opened her mind and once again concentrated on finding Scotty.

Blue opened her mind to Riley’s and together they followed the path to Scotty's mind. The connection was made much quicker this time and once again Riley was amazed at how receptive Scotty was. He was barely awake but he smiled when he felt Riley, "Hi, you came back." he said in a sleepy voice.

"I sure did. How are you doing little man?" she asked. "Okay, but I'm hungry and Daddy's been gone for a really long time."

"My friend Blue and I are looking for you. Do you have any idea where you are?"

"No. We drove for a really, really long time. I fell asleep and when I woke up we were here. I saw the ocean. I like the water, mom says I'm part fish. I'm not really, but mom’s silly sometimes."
He was so innocent,
Riley thought. She didn't think she or Blue had ever been that innocent. She kept him talking so Blue could trace where he was at.

When Blue felt Riley connect to Scotty she left her body behind and took her energy form. She was the only person she knew who could do this. She had read all the stories about Astral Projection but nothing quite explained what she could do. In this form she couldn’t touch anyone or anything but she could fly through any barrier.

She could see the wispy remnants of those who had died and lingered. For the most part they were harmless and would soon fade away. There were the occasional spirits who refused to fade. They tended to be responsible for all the ghost stories. Communicating with them was out. None of them had ever been able to see or hear her so she left them to the Mediums who could speak with them. No one but Riley had ever been able to hear her when she was in what she thought of as her energy form. Even then it took concentration to send her thoughts to Riley.

Floating near the ceiling she looked down and saw herself and Riley lying on the floor with Leo guarding their bodies. He wouldn't move until she was back in her corporeal body. In this form she could follow the trail of Riley"s mind seeing what she couldn't. She floated through the walls slowly, she didn't know how she could do this but it sure came in handy at times.

The only drawback in her mind was that her body was completely defenseless. If someone got through Leo all they had to do was kill her body and she would be trapped in this form. She didn't know how long her spirit could live without her body and she really didn't want to find out.

She flew north until she was a few miles past Lincoln City. The trail veered off to the east away from the ocean and into a wooded area. She came upon a small rundown house with the windows boarded up. The vegetation had almost taken over any yard it might have once had. She could see a faint path where someone had tramped through the grass to the front door. She flew around the house checking to see if they were alone before floating inside.

In the bedroom she found a small boy curled in a sleeping bag. He was chattering about his horse ranch and how when he grew up he was going to race horses because he liked to go really fast and horses could run faster than he could. Blue smiled and wrapped him in her energy.
“He's a little chatterbox,”
she sent to Riley. She felt Riley's answering smile.

"It didn't take you long to get here. Is he in Lincoln?"

"A few miles outside of it. It will only take us a couple of hours to drive here. Stay with him until I get back in case the LCA shows up."

She thought about trying to give the boy some of her energy. He really shouldn't be as tired as he was. She rejected the idea for now. He looked healthy, just tired and dirty. It would be better for him if he went back to sleep until she and Riley could get to him.

When she got back she hovered over her body long enough for Leo to give her a snort and show his teeth. His way of telling her to quit delaying. It was always wretched forcing herself back in to the confines of a physical form but she took the hint and let her astral self seep into her body.

She sat up and gave Leo a hug with arms that felt so heavy it took effort to move them. Then she turned to Riley and nudged her at the same time she said, "Time to come back."

A few minutes later Riley opened her eyes. "He went back to sleep a few minutes ago. I think he will be okay until we can get there.”

"Call big brother and tell him to use that fancy helicopter of his to get down here. He can meet us in Lincoln." Blue tossed Riley's phone to her at the same time she picked up hers and stuck it in her back pocket.

They headed out the door with Leo on their heels.

Blue looked at Leo. "You can go but you're going to have to stay in the car. You know how people get,” she said opening the back door for him. She had removed the back seat of the Jeep Liberty and padded the floor for him to lay on. Leo loved to go for rides.

When they were speeding down the highway Riley called Cole. She told him what was happening and that they were on the way to pick up Scotty. He sounded genuinely happy but shocked that they had found Scotty so fast. Blue listened as arrangements were made to have the helicopter meet them at a clearing along the road a few miles outside of Lincoln City.

Riley pushed the disconnect button on the phone with satisfaction. "That will teach him to doubt us,” smugness oozed out of her pours.

"Uh hmm. Hold the smugness until we actually have the boy." Blue drove as fast as she could down the winding road. Slowing only when going through the few towns between her house and Lincoln City.

She pulled off the road and hid the jeep in the trees a half mile past the overgrown drive of the ramshackle house. Blue looked closely at every detail, every blade of grass. When she was satisfied that no one had come by in the time it had taken them to get here, she and Riley walked to the front door.

The door had a padlock on it that was so new it still had the shine on it. Blue kept watch while Riley went to work picking the lock. She was better at anything electronic but in this area Riley was the best. She could pick any lock not electronic that was made. They entered the house cautiously. Making sure to look in every room, every corner before heading for the bedroom the boy was in. This door had a sliding lock on the outside so Scotty couldn't get out. Riley opened it and they entered the room.

Scotty was sleeping peacefully, still curled up in the sleeping bag. There were a few empty cans of food and bottles of water set neatly in the corner along with a bucket for Scotty to relieve himself in. The room smelled strongly of urine and from the smell of the empty cans of food, Blue thought the boy had been left alone for at least a day, maybe two. One more thing the LCA had to pay for and she would be happy to make him pay.

Riley knelt next to him and gently shook him awake. His eyes were cloudy when he opened them. He smiled when he saw Riley leaning over him. "You’re here. Can I go home now?"