Savior (The Savior Series Book 1) (28 page)
Read Savior (The Savior Series Book 1) Online
Authors: A. King Bradley
MONICA SAT ON THE SHORE OF LAKE VICTORIA FOR SEVERAL minutes without a word. I stood in silence behind her as the grey haze of Lake Victoria’s thick layer of fog wrapped around us like a blanket. I had asked if she was okay, but she didn't respond. I turned my back to her and had almost given up hope when I finally heard her stand.
In less than a second I was by her side. It was hard for me to even look at her, but I knew that I owed her an explanation. I knew that I had to tell her the truth before I disappeared from her life forever. Soon I would join Wells' crusade against The Righteous, and something told me that he didn’t run the type of operation where you got to keep a steady girlfriend.
“What are you?” she finally asked, peering at me through teary eyes.
“I don't know,” I muttered softly. It hurt to hear her ask that question. The way she looked when she asked made me feel like I wasn't even human.
“How can you not know, Adam?” she asked, obviously frustrated by my answer.
“I wish I had a better answer, but the truth is, I don't know what I am. I used to think I was just a human with a peculiar condition, but to be honest, I'm starting to seriously doubt if I'm even human at all.”
“But what about your parents? What about your brother? Is he-was he like you as well?”
“They're not my real family. And I'm not Adam Reaper. Before my mother killed herself, she wrote me a letter. In the letter she said that one night my father mistakenly killed their six-month-old son, Adam Reaper, in a drunken rage. He was too drunk to remember, and PJ was too young. As my mother stood in the bathroom of the Quic-Mart, contemplating buying tools to bury the body of her dead son, she was given a small child by a mysterious woman. By the time my mother realized that there was something wrong with the child, the mysterious woman had vanished. In her note, my mother called the woman an angel and considered the child a gift from God because she had prayed for a way to hide her son's death in order to save my father, and just like that, she had it.”
“You were the child,” Monica whispered, her eyes wide with disbelief.
“Yes, but the woman was no angel. And I'm no gift from God. I believe that woman was my mother. My real mother.”
“How do you know if it's true? How can you be sure that she's not delusional?”
“Because I’ve seen his grave. I followed my mother into the woods and she led me right to it. As I stared down at the grave of the person whose life I had stolen, I finally realized why she was always so sad on my birthday. It was because it was really his day— an annual reminder of the treacherous web of lies that she had been spinning the entire time. It was the one day where her delusion of thinking that I was a gift from God was not enough to bring her comfort.”
“Do you hate her?”
“Yes, but as much as it hurts, I love her too. She could have thrown me away the second she realized that I was different, but she didn't.”
“How long have you known what you can do?” she asked quietly. My heart skipped a beat as she finished her question. I knew what she was really asking.
“Long enough,” I choked out as a tear trickled down my cheek. “Monica, I'm sorry I didn’t save him. I wanted to, but when I saw the look in his eyes when I snapped the seat belts, I froze.” My chin quivered as her eyes glossed over.
I hung my head as she placed her soft hand on my right cheek.
“My father died because of a car accident, not because of you. I don't blame you for his death,” she finally said.
If there ever was a person that I did not deserve, it was Monica Stripling. I had kept countless secrets from her and failed to save her father despite having the power to do so, yet she still forgave me. Even when she had every right to hate me, she acted as though she had no choice but to love me.
“Thank you,” I said as I pulled her into my arms.
“What are you going to do now?” she asked.
“I have to go away,” I whispered. Her body tensed, and she suddenly pulled away from me.
“Why? Why do you have to leave?” she demanded, her eyes wide with fear.
“Something’s coming, Monica. I can feel it. I've got to be ready for it.”
“But why you? You're just a teenager! It’s not your job to save the world!”
“Because no one else can do what I can. If I stay here, if I don’t help, they’re saying we could lose the country. From the way my brother spoke, I fear we may lose even more than that. There is nothing more that I would rather do than spend the rest of my life with you, but I’ve realized that I can either save the world or I can choose to enjoy it, but I can't do both.”
“Adam, you can’t go!” she whimpered as pearl shaped tears streamed from her wide, luminous eyes.
“But I have to. If I don’t-”
“If you do, you’ll die! Just like you do in my dreams!” she screamed, taking me by surprise.
“Your dreams? Monica what are you talking about?” I asked.
“In my dream, you die, Adam. We’re all gathered in that palace on Eden because of your funeral! Don’t you see? Eden is real. The Eden from my dream has to be the same one that your brother spoke about. It’s not a coincidence.”
“Monica, how can you have dreamed about me before you had even met me? You said your dreams started when you were younger.”
“I can’t explain it, but it’s true. I’ve had that same dream since I was twelve years old and every time it happens…every time I open my eyes and find myself standing before those people, I see your lifeless body lying on a table in front of me.”
“Monica, it’s just a dream. I can’t let that stop me,” I said firmly.
“But what if it’s not just a dream? What if it’s as real as it feels to me?”
“Then maybe I’ll finally have the answers I’ve been searching for. There’s a reason why I can do the things that I can do, and maybe this place has something to do with it. I need this, Monica. You have to let me go,” I said as I placed my hands softly on her cheeks.
“If you leave, then I’m coming with you,” she insisted.
“Monica, you can’t. It’s too dangerous. If something happened to you, I don’t know what I’d do.”
Her glistening eyes and quivering chin made it hard for me to continue to deny her, but I had to stick to my guns. She could tell by the look in my eyes that I was not going to agree to her coming with me.
“Will I ever see you again?” she finally asked, her shoulders trembling with grief as her tears continued to stream down her cheeks. It hurt to see her in so much pain, but in the end, I felt that I was doing the right thing.
“I’ll come back for you. When this is all over, I’ll find you,” I said, instinctively. Her eyes were still blurred with tears as she looked up at me, but the glimmer of hope that emerged within them let me know that I had made a mistake in saying that. I had no idea what I was getting myself into when it came to taking on The Righteous. Not only was I completely unaware of how long this journey would last, but I had no idea if I would even be capable of returning.
“Do you promise?” she asked as she gazed into my eyes.
“Yes,” I whispered. It felt like another lie, but in that moment I silently made a vow. For better or for madness, I would do whatever it took to get back to her.
MINUTES LATER, SHE WAS CLINGING TO MY BACK AS I BLAZED a trail from Lake Victoria to her house. I remember hoping that she would forget me. That would have made it easier for both of us. As I left her, I made her promise not to try to come after me, but I knew that she wouldn’t listen. As I stormed away into the night, something told me that nothing would stop her from finding me.
AGENT WELLS:
“MIKE, I KNOW YOU SAID NOT TO DISTURB YOU BUT YOU have a call from Jason Kilpatrick. He says it’s urgent,” chimed a voice through the speaker of my desk phone. This was Cynthia, my personal assistant.
She was the only person that I allowed to call me Mike. To everyone else, I was “Agent Wells” or “Special Agent Wells”.
“Send him through,” I replied.
“Will do. By the way, you sound stressed. Is everything alright?” she asked, her voice dripping with genuine concern.
“Saving the world is a tough gig, Cynthia. Being stressed out is a part of my job description,” I chuckled.
“Whatever you say, Mike. I’ll put Jason right through,” she replied.
“Thank you.”
“Hello? Wells, are you there?” Jason asked.
“Yes, I’m here. What’ve you got? It had better be important if you’re calling me on this line.”
“It is. I wanted to give you a heads up about The Reaper. He knows about Eden.”
My heart skipped a beat.
“What makes you think that?” I questioned.
“He told me that The Suspect mentioned it. He had questions, but I pretended not to know anything.”
“Why would he ask you? Does he know that you really work for me?” I asked.
“Of course not,” Jason boasted.
“Good. Let’s keep it that way,” I said firmly. “How much did The Suspect tell him about Eden? Does he know that it’s a planet?”
“I’m not sure. If he does, he didn’t mention it. I didn’t pry because I didn’t want him to get suspicious.”
“That was a good call. Nice work, Ace. I’ll take it from here-”
“There's one more thing, Sir,” he interrupted before I could end the call.
“And what's that?” I asked.
“He's not the only person that knows. The girl was present as well and now they both know that The Righteous isn’t from Earth.”
“I see. Keep your eyes open, Ace. I'll be in touch.”
“Thank you, sir,” Jason said before hanging up the phone.
I had taken a calculated risk by allowing The Reaper to accompany Ace and Echo on that last mission. Doing so had earned me his support, but at the risk of him finding out the truth about Eden and The Righteous.
In time, I intended to let him know about his people, but it had to come from me, not from an indoctrinated propaganda machine like The Suspect. He needed to hear my side of the story so that he would know that he was on the right side of this war.
It troubled me that I didn’t know how much he already knew. My only hope was that The Suspect had not told him the one thing that could sway his allegiance. For the sake of this world, I hoped that Adam did not yet know that The Righteous was his father.
END OF PART ONE
Ace, Reaper and Echo will return in:
SAVIOR: PART 2
Son of Eden
Coming in the Spring of 2015
“There is no mercy in darkness…there are only broken bones and captured souls.”
—The Righteous
AARON BRADLEY grew up in a tiny town in southwest Georgia. As a child, he would often turn to reading and art instead of wrestling his six siblings for control of their household’s lone television. What started as an alternate form of entertainment soon became his passion as he developed a powerful love for storytelling.
His debut novel, “Savior,” is a daring, complex, and unforgettable take on the Hero’s Journey that delivers a perfect blend of captivating action and suspense.
Follow A. King Bradley on Twitter at
@akingbradley
and Facebook at
www.facebook.com/akingbradley
for more updates and future releases from The Savior Series.
Back in 2006 when I conceived the original idea for “Savior” I could instantly tell that it had the potential to become some of my best work. It took me over half a decade to actually start writing it because it was one of those projects I didn’t want to start until I knew that I could do it the justice that it deserved.
In 2011 I finally decided to breathe life into the seed of an idea that I had created because not only had I become a much more talented writer, but I had finally acquired the support of the team that I needed in order to bring my complete vision to life.
Without the artwork created by the insanely talented Damian Bradley, the experience that I wanted to produce with Savior would not have been possible.
The same can be said about the Savior Soundtrack which was produced by my friend and former colleague Travis Schroder.
Thank you to Jessica King, Yvonne Bradley, Pat Bradley and Katie Cary for your countless hours of copyediting.
Also thank you to my beta readers, Joanna Warren, Shantae Chester, and Javon Toney.
Thank you to my frequent collaborator, Juan Lopez, for always pushing me to become a better writer.
And most importantly, thank you, my valued readers. I sincerely hope that you will enjoy the world that we have created with this project and I look forward to bringing you much more from the Savior universe in the future.
