The Visitors (16 page)

Seat number four next to Sir John was empty, and I looked over at the man in seat number five. This man had very dark brown hair, almost black, and glistening green eyes that reminded me of Noah. He didn't seem quite as angry with my presence as some of the others did. His name, I was told, was Sir Robert. In seat number six, the next-to-last seat, sat a man with red hair and brown eyes, Sir Damion. As he looked at Noah with a fascinated expression, I realized Sir Damion was the only one not staring at me. Finally, I looked at the man on the end closest to me. I automatically liked him as his features reminded me of my father: he had matching dark hair and a nose that turned up slightly at the end, just the way my father's did. The only real difference between him and my father was their eyes, as this man had twinkling blue eyes that could have lit up a dark cave. His name was Sir James.

Sir Andrew took his spot at the center of the table in seat number four, leaving Noah, Lucy and I standing awkwardly in the center of the room. “Noah, you have called this meeting today because you feel the need to talk to this group about your relationship with Jady, who, I must tell you all, knows much more about our society than any of the humans were given clearance to know. Jady, I understand that you are here to help him explain. Am I correct?” Sir Andrew's piercing eyes burned into mine as he addressed me.

“Yes, Sir,” I replied. I was immediately angry with myself for how unsure my voice sounded.

He didn't acknowledge the obvious fear in my voice, but turned to Lucy. “Lucy, I have asked you to come here because of your gift to read the minds of others. I will periodically be asking you for further clarification, so I need you to be focused on the minds of these two beings as they speak.”

For the first time, I saw Lucy's eyes. She didn't even look like the same person I had spoken to that night in the woods. Her eyes were distant and cold as she stared back at Sir Andrew. “Yes, Sir,” she answered clearly.

“Very well,” Sir Andrew said with a nod. “Noah, you may begin speaking.”

Noah sucked in his breath and let it out slowly. “Well, I guess I'll start from the beginning. From the moment I first saw Jady, something strange began happening inside of me. I experienced an attraction to her that was not supposed to be possible for members of our kind.” His forehead wrinkled as he continued. “With every ounce of strength I had, I tried to ignore it, and went about my life to the best of my ability. But those feelings persisted. Every time I spoke to her, the desire only got stronger. I wasn't sure what was happening, and suspected that she had a gift of some sort that she was using on me to make me feel this way. So, I finally confronted her in private, where I learned that she did not have a gift in the same sense that certain members of our society do, but she felt something for me as well. She taught me about the way members of the planet Earth live and the special bonds they form with each other. We continued to see each other privately while my feelings only continued to grow.”

The leader in the first seat, Sir Edward, interrupted. “I believe this meeting is a waste of our time. There is a glitch in your chip. We can fix it immediately and this will no longer be an issue.”

Sir Andrew turned to Lucy with a coy smile. “I'm afraid that's not the case, is it, Lucy?”

Confusion flashed briefly on Lucy's face, but she quickly regained her cool composure. “No, it's not.” She looked boldly at the table of leaders as she spoke. “Noah came to me one day and explained the feelings he was experiencing. He was confused and looking for a way to rid himself of them before he got into trouble. His desire was to be loyal to our society.”

I knew that was not exactly the way things had happened, but I appreciated her bending the truth in order to make Noah sound better. As she continued, I started to feel sorry for ever doubting her loyalty. “So, I took him into the lab and explained to him that, just as you suspected, there had to be a problem with the wiring in his chip. It should have been a quick fix, and as someone who works in the genetics lab, I knew exactly what to do. However, what I found left me absolutely mystified. I searched his chip for hours but found nothing. There were no wiring mistakes of any kind. His feelings should have been virtually impossible.”

Sir Andrew's eyes narrowed as he looked at Lucy. “And why didn't you report your findings immediately, following proper protocol?”

Lucy stiffened. “I wanted to fix the problem myself; I was sure that the issue was fixable if I just did a little more research. The last thing I wanted was to bother any of you with this small problem when there were so many other things to worry about while our guests were here.”

“Ah, but this ‘small problem' you speak of has escalated into quite an issue, has it not?” Sir Andrew shifted his eyes from Lucy back to Noah and me. “So the two of you have spent Jady's days here lying to everyone and sneaking around at night, and now you have come to us for what exactly?”

I knew that Noah had never once mentioned that our excursions had been at night. Ramona had been correct when she told us that Sir Andrew already knew all about us. If Lucy hadn't told him, and I was sure Luke hadn't told him, how did he know? Shuddering, I thought about him monitoring us as we thought we were being so sneaky.

Noah and I were silent as Sir Andrew waited for an answer to his question. I glanced at Noah, who seemed to be frozen in place, so I decided to speak for him this time. “We would like for you to allow Noah to come to Earth with us when we return tomorrow.”

Sir Andrew and the other leaders began laughing, which infuriated me. “Impossible,” Sir Andrew replied.

“Why?” I crossed my arms and shifted my weight to my right leg. I suddenly felt small and helpless.

“Why? Because he's needed here,” Sir Andrew replied haughtily. “He has a job here; he belongs here. Your humans would never tolerate him on your planet. It would be much too dangerous for him to be there, for him and for us.”

“Sir Andrew,” Noah said quietly, “I have served this community for many years now without question. Please understand that I have enjoyed my time here and appreciate everything I have been given. However, I feel that I am being called to Earth. For whatever reason, I have been allowed to feel love for another being, when it goes against all the odds for our species. I feel that there is a bigger purpose for me, which goes beyond our society here. I'm not sure what it is yet, but I know that the universe has something else it needs me for. That might sound crazy, but it's something I feel in my heart. Every fiber in my being is telling me that I am meant to be with Jady, and it's not just for my own selfish happiness, I assure you.”

Sir Andrew was not convinced as he rolled his eyes and stared at Noah with a disbelieving smile on his face, but I could see some of the others considering what Noah had said. Noah obviously saw it too, and took it as his sign to continue. “Please, let me go, if only for a trial period. If I go there and do anything that you feel endangers this society in any way, I will come right back here and go back to the life I've always known.”

Sir Thomas spoke for the first time. “Noah, we could never allow something like this. You know too much, to put it simply. Knowledge of your chip would jeopardize us all. If they found out about it, they would dissect you like an animal. They would…”

“My intention is to disguise myself as a human,” Noah interrupted. “All my effort and energy would be put into blending in with them. There is already a plan in place to obtain the necessary paperwork, and we have a way to make my eyes appear cloudy. They would never have reason to suspect that I am anything other than one of them.” Noah was putting up a great fight. Inadequately, I just stood there, nervous and quiet.

I decided to step in and help him out. “The plan is foolproof. We would provide him with a place to stay and only a very select group of people would know the truth about him. He would never be pressured to share information that could harm your planet in any way.”

The leaders looked at each other, and for once, no one had an argument to bring up right away. I could see them mulling over what we had proposed as they stared at each other.

Finally, Sir Andrew turned to me. He began to speak, slowly and carefully, as if I was a small child who didn't understand why I couldn't have a puppy. “First of all, young Jady, there is no such thing as a ‘foolproof' plan when it involves humans. And besides that very important point, I'm afraid we have a problem with you as well. You have been given access to information that you could use to bring harm to all of us. Even if we trusted Noah to live on Earth for a time, there is no guarantee that
you
would not betray us in some way.”

From somewhere deep inside of me, confidence soared through my veins. My nervousness disappeared as I looked Sir Andrew directly in the eyes and responded. “Sir Andrew, I would never desire to share the private information I have learned here on this planet. While I have a great urge to explore space and see everything I can in the universe, to be quite honest, I know the destruction some of your advancements could bring upon our planet. Besides, I respect your privacy completely. If certain bits of information were leaked on Earth, it would not only be disastrous for you, but for us, too. I would never wish to be responsible for that; I give you my word that I will never speak of those secrets on Earth.”

Sir Andrew turned to Lucy. “What are her intentions, Lucy?”

Lucy turned toward me as she focused on my eyes. Her eyes appeared distant for a moment as she read my mind. After a short time, her eyes returned to normal and she turned back to Sir Andrew. “She's telling the truth. Jady is not a threat to us, Sir.”

The leaders began to stir as they started whispering to each other intently. Sir James, the man on the end who looked so much like my dad, stood up. “At this time, we would like to ask the three of you to step outside the room. Please wait in the hallway while we discuss your request. We will call you back in when we're ready.”

Without a word, Noah, Lucy, and I showed ourselves out the door, closing it tightly behind us. Once we were in the hallway, we slumped against the wall, side by side. “How do you think it went?” Noah asked as he looked back and forth between Lucy and me.

Lucy shrugged. “I think it went about as well as could be expected. As far as what they will decide, though, I have no idea. No one has ever requested to leave our society in its entire existence. You have made history, Noah.”

Sitting silently, I waited for them to come and get us. I knew as well as Noah did that they were going to decide to allow it; Ramona told us they would. That's not what I was worried about. The worry plaguing me was for whatever condition it was they were going to enforce. I had no idea what it could possibly be. My imagination, though it usually ran so wildly, was blank.

We must have sat in the hallway for hours, though we barely said a word. I was too scared that they could somehow hear us, even though the walls appeared to be soundproof as we could not hear them. Noah spent his time pacing back and forth outside the door, and then sitting down beside me against the wall, only to get back up and pace again. Lucy sat beside me, pulling on her springy red curls and letting them bounce back up repeatedly. The only thing I could do was wait for them to come outside with their decision. I barely moved as I sat pressed against the wall; I hardly even breathed.

Finally, the door opened. We all looked up, wondering who had come to get us, but found no one standing there. Gazing at each other, we didn't move. I bit my lip. None of us said a word, but we didn't have to. I didn't have to have Noah's gift to see the fear in their eyes. The terror on my face was obvious as well, I was sure.

After sitting there for a moment, seemingly frozen, Lucy smoothed her curls. “Let's go in,” she whispered. She put her shoulders back and held her head high as she led us into the room. I tried to appear as confident as she did, but I knew I didn't. My shoulders slumped as I faced the seven men who held our fate in their hands.

“Noah, we have discussed your request and have come to an agreement,” Sir Andrew said as Jady, Lucy, and I stood in the center of the room, facing the leaders once again.

I didn't respond; I couldn't. The only thing I could do was look into his eyes and wait for him to continue. He paused for dramatic effect, looking back at me with a smile that was beginning to curl up on the corner of his lips. For whatever reason, he was enjoying making me squirm.

Jady obviously couldn't wait any longer. “What's the agreement?” she asked meekly.

Sir Andrew did not turn his gaze from me as he answered her question. “We will allow Noah to live on Earth indefinitely, pending that he agrees to a minor request.”

I wanted to grab Jady and hug her. Even though Ramona had told me they would let me go, I had trouble believing it until I heard it for myself. Trying to hide my relief, I kept my expression serious. “I'll do anything you want.”

Sir Andrew nodded. “You should probably hear our request before you agree so quickly.”

I blinked a few times as I nodded my head. “Of course. What is your request?”

Sir Andrew continued to do all the talking for the leaders. “We're going to take away the honor you've been given. As I'm sure you've considered, if you do not age, your hidden identity will quickly be revealed.”

“Absolutely,” I replied. “I had guessed that would be one of the stipulations.” The truth was, I was relieved. I had already thought about what my life would be like if Jady continued to age and I was still the same seventeen-year-old I had always been. It didn't matter to me that Jady's appearance would change as she grew older and began to wrinkle and gray. My concern was that as she grew older, her body would inevitably give out, leaving me alone. All I wanted was to grow old with her so that we could experience everything life had to offer us – the good and the bad – as a team.

Sir Andrew obviously anticipated a more negative response from me. “How quick you are to give up such an important honor,” he noted. “I know I don't have to remind you how many society members would love to be in your position and have what you have been given.”

“I know that,” I replied carefully. “And as I told you earlier, I am grateful for the kindness you and the other leaders have bestowed on me during my time here. However, I am willing to make sacrifices if it means I am able to be with Jady.”

His eyes sparkled in amusement. “Okay, Noah. If you're willing to give up this honor, then we will allow you to go.” Jady grabbed my hand instinctively, squeezing it in excitement. I smiled and looked down at her as relief washed over my body. How could it have been that easy?

“Thank you all. I will be eternally grateful for this opportunity,” I said, bowing my head in respect. “Please inform me of the procedures that will need to be completed before my departure tomorrow afternoon.”

Sir Andrew tilted his head as he looked from me to Lucy. “Lucy, we have decided that you will be responsible for reversing the procedure that has been done.”

Lucy's eyebrows creased as she narrowed her eyes in thought. “Sir, I have never been instructed on how to reverse the procedure. I'm afraid I will not be able to complete the job accurately.”

Sir Andrew gasped in mock surprise. “You mean you've never been trained on how to take this honor from a being?”

“No, Sir,” she responded. “I can
give
the honor, but I am not familiar with how to take it away.”

Sir Andrew nodded knowingly. “Ah, but that's because there is not a simple procedure for undoing what has been done. In fact, it's only possible through one very complex procedure.”

Lucy shook her head. “I'm afraid I'm not following.”

“Young Lucy, the only way to be sure that Noah will no longer have the honor is to remove his chip completely.” Sir Andrew's expression grew serious as he broke the news to her, but I could still see the sparkle of pleasure in his eyes. “Your responsibility is to remove the chip from his body.”

Lucy's eyes grew wide in horror. “But Sir Andrew, we both know what will happen when I remove that chip.”

Sir Andrew shrugged helplessly. “Unfortunately, that's a risk I'm afraid we have to take. We can't possibly allow him to go with the chip intact. That would be irresponsible on our part. His body is obviously capable of resisting our technology. If it's really a higher purpose that he's serving by leaving our society and going to Earth, his body will function without the chip. And if he wants to live among the humans, he will need to truly be like one.”

Jady's voice was shaky as she spoke. “Lucy, what will happen when you remove that chip?” I knew she already knew the answer to that question, but she asked it anyway, hoping she would get a more positive reply.

Lucy never broke her eye contact with Sir Andrew, her eyes still wide with disbelief. “He will die, Jady. This condition is a death sentence.”

I heard Jady's begin to sob, but it seemed distant. “Please don't kill him,” she cried over and over as tears poured down her cheeks and spilled onto the ground. “Don't do this. He can stay here. I'll go back alone and we can pretend this never happened. Please don't kill him.”

“I'm afraid that's impossible,” Sir Andrew said. “What's done is done. If he wants to go, he will have to comply with the decision we have all made.”

“Take me instead,” Jady pleaded through her tears.

“Jady, that doesn't even make sense,” I said as I grabbed her arms, but she pulled out of my grasp and stood directly in front of Sir Andrew.

“This whole thing is my fault. None of this would have happened if I would have left Noah alone. Please, take me. Just kill me, and he can go back to his normal life and you can pretend this never happened,” she blubbered desperately.

“Jady,” I said as I grabbed her shoulders from behind and turned her to face me. “I would never let that happen, and you know it.” She sank into my arms as she cried into my shoulder, soaking through my daily coverings and making my chest wet with her tears.

“This was a huge mistake, Noah,” she said miserably. “I never should have come here. No matter what I do, they're going to…”

“Shhh,” I hushed her as I stroked her hair. “Everything's going to be fine.” I took her face in my hands, not caring that Sir Andrew and the others were watching me. I made her look into my eyes as I kissed away the tears that soaked her cheeks. “Lucy is one of the best in her field,” I whispered. “I'm not scared of this procedure. It will be fine;
I
will be fine.”

Lucy spoke up when she heard my words. “Um, Noah, I don't have the first inkling of how to remove that chip and keep you alive. I will not perform this procedure. I'm sorry, Sir Andrew.” She turned to face him once again. “Please find someone else; I am not the person for this job.”

Sir Andrew ignored Lucy while he stared at Jady and me in awe. “Jady, you would be willing to give up your life so that Noah might live here with us?”

“Yes,” Jady replied solemnly at the same time I shouted, “No!”

“Fascinating,” Sir Andrew said with mesmerized eyes. “Just fascinating. I didn't think any humans were truly capable of valuing another being's life more than their own.”

“There's a lot you don't understand about them,” I told him with a glare, still holding Jady tightly in my arms. “But that's simply out of the question. Jady is not at fault here.”

Sir Andrew smirked dismissively. “Of course it's out of the question. But I still find it quite intriguing.” He turned to address the other leaders. “Perhaps we need to do some more research on these complicated humans. This is an unexpected twist.”

The leaders did not respond to his comment, but sat in silence. Sir Andrew turned back to me. “Noah, what is your decision? Do you want to go to Earth and risk your life as Lucy tries to remove your chip while keeping your organs functioning? Or do you want to let Jady go alone while you stay here, continuing in our society?”

Lucy started to protest, but Sir Andrew gave her one sharp look that shut her up immediately. “Lucy, I am not
requesting
that you do the job. I am
ordering
. If Noah decides that is the route he wishes to take, you
will
do the job.”

“Yes, Sir,” she said in a whisper, looking defeated.

“What will it be, Noah?” he asked me again.

I sighed. Either way, I was doomed. The way he presented it now, the choice seemed obvious. If I chose to go, I would die – if I stayed, I would live. But I knew that if I stayed here, I would still be dead tomorrow. Ramona had promised me that. And even if she was wrong, and I would live if I stayed, how could I go back to the empty existence I led before I met Jady? I would still be dead, if only on the inside. What was eternity without her?

I looked Sir Andrew daringly in the eyes. “I choose to go.”

Sir Andrew laughed incredulously and clapped his hands together as Jady's cries became louder again. Lucy crumpled to the ground with her head in her hands. I remained standing as I looked into the eyes of each one of the leaders. They would not see my fear. It was alarming how nonchalant they appeared, knowing they had just sentenced me to die.

“Well, we need to begin the surgery procedures immediately,” Sir Andrew said in a business-like tone. “Lucy, you will be excused from your duties tomorrow. Instead, I will need you to stay up tonight and perform the procedure. It needs to happen as soon as possible so that
if
he survives, Noah can have the appropriate amount of recovery time before getting on the space travel transporter to go to Earth. The rest of us will get a good night's sleep, and we will check on you in the morning.” He turned to me and held out his hand to shake mine. “Good luck to you, Noah. No matter what happens, I will always remember your bravery in this moment. If a higher power is really on your side, I am confident this will not be the last time we speak.”

The other leaders filed out one-by-one, nodding their heads to Jady, Lucy and me as they left. I barely looked back at them. Sir Andrew was at the end of the line. “I have called a transportation means to pick you up and take you back into society. It should be outside, whenever you're ready.” With that, he walked out the door and left the three of us alone.

No one knew what to say as we walked somberly down the hallway and back out into the night, where our ride was waiting for us, as promised. We got into the transportation means and rode in silence until we arrived at the visitors' chamber. Though Jady and Lucy felt defeated, I didn't. I still clung to the hope I had inside. I believed there was a reason Jady and I had been brought together. This was all part of a bigger plan, a higher purpose.

Once the ride stopped, I opened the door for Jady as she trudged out into the darkness. I turned to Lucy. “Can you give us a minute?”

“Sure,” she replied, putting her head down.

I walked Jady up the path with my arm around her. Once we stopped just outside the front door, I turned to face her. “Well, this was definitely not what we expected, huh?”

“No,” she agreed as tears filled her eyes again.

“Jady, don't look so depressed. There is no reason to already feel beaten. As Sir Andrew said, if I am really supposed to be with you, my body will come through this just fine. Stay positive. There is something bigger at work here.” I gave her the most positive smile I could manage, but it didn't help.

“I meant what I said in there,” she whispered. “I would have taken your place if there was any possible way that I could. This whole thing is my fault.”

“Jady, how can you say that? Don't you realize what you've done for me? In the short time I've known you, you've changed my whole world. And you know what? If this is how it ends, I will never be sorry. I would rather have a short time with you than an eternity without you.” Hoping it wasn't the last time I would be able to touch her, I tilted her face up toward mine the way I had done before. “I love you, Jady. You made this life worth living.”

“I love you too, Noah.” She brought her lips to mine, once again taking my breath as her lips parted and I lost myself in the kiss. Any anxiety I had about what was to come was gone while I held her face in my hands. My whole body came alive with her touch as she wrapped her arms around my lower back and pulled me tightly against her. I moved my hands down her face to touch her neck, her shoulders, hoping to memorize the way it felt to hold her.

That was when I heard Lucy clear her throat from behind me, bringing me back to reality. “I'm sorry to interrupt, but Noah, we need to get started.” I nodded as I stepped away from Jady, my heart still racing as the blood rushed back to my head.

Lucy looked at Jady with a grave expression. “Jady, I will come over first thing in the morning, as soon as I have news for you. I promise you that I will do everything I possibly can to help him get through this alive.”

“I know you will, Lucy,” she said with a small smile. “There is no one I would trust more. Are you sure I can't be there with you?”

Lucy shook her head. “Honestly, I'd rather not have the added pressure. There's nothing you can do to help me, and I need my full concentration to be on Noah.” Jady nodded her understanding, and Lucy turned to me. “Let's go.”

Nodding to her, I turned one last time to Jady. “This is not goodbye. I love you. I
will
see you tomorrow.”

She grinned as the tears came back into her eyes. “I love you too. See you tomorrow.”

With that, Lucy and I hurried back into our transportation means. She tried to make small talk on the short ride to the genetics lab, but it didn't work. We both knew the outcome of what was about to happen. Finally, she gave up and sat in silence until we arrived. I tried to ignore the pure terror spewing from her body as we walked in unison into the lab to face the inevitable.