The Yanti (15 page)

“Through Doren.”

“Yes. Doren is
a
foothold.”

“Why did you bring Doren to Greesh, if you knew the place was evil?”

“I did not know at the time, not until it was too late.”

“But then you disappeared. Where did you go?”

“May I tell you a secret?”

“Please.”

“It is not
where
I went.”

Ali understood in an instant.

“You escaped into another time?”

“Yes.”

“The past or the future?”

“One of those, yes.”

“You won’t tell me which one?”

“And spoil all your fun?”

Ali had to laugh. “You’re impossible. Maybe you are a machine, after all. Badly programmed at that.”

“There might be some truth in that.”

Ali froze at his response.

“Are you a cyborg? Part fairy? Part machine?”

“To take out a thorn, sometimes you need a thorn.”

She took a moment to consider his riddle. He was
too
fond of them.

“I am not sure what you mean,” she said finally.

“Consider it further. And while you do, perhaps I should go visit another chat room . . .”

“Wait! Stay here! I need some more hints. If I do go to the Isle of Greesh, will I find what I need to stop this war?”

“No.”

His response startled her. “What must I do then?”

“This war exists in two dimensions at once. You are only one girl. You can only be in one place at a time, and you’re trying to defeat an enemy that moves in both worlds at the same time.
Yes, Geea, go to the Isle of Greesh, if you can, and face what you feared to face before. Then think as your enemy thinks, and after you have done so, perhaps you will do as I have done. Then anything will be possible for you.”

“So you fight an enemy as well?”

“Yes.”

“The same one I do?”

“That is a question for Nira to answer.”

“Can I save the little girl?”

“You should ask if she can save you.”

“Nemi . . .”

This time he interrupted her typing.

“Go now, Geea, time is short, in your world. But if time grows shorter still, and you feel the need to call me, then do so, on one of those fancy new cell phones, the kind with the picture screens, and the Internet hookups.”

It was hard to type the next words. To say goodbye.

“I love you, Nemi.”

“You are love, Geea.”

Again, she noted he had not called her Alosha, as he had when he had communicated directly with her mind.

Ali logged off the computer and went out to see the others. It was not long before Cindy arrived, suitcase in hand. Hector, her father, and Cindy all understood that Sheri Smith was dangerous, but only her friend had seen the woman in action. When Ali started discussing moving to a safe haven, the men naturally started to talk among themselves. Was Ali overreacting? To answer their doubts, Ali took Hector and her father out back, and had them climb two hundred yards uphill into the trees. There was a huge boulder there, that she had discovered as a child. She stood beside it as they asked what she was doing.

“Nothing,” she said. “What were you guys saying about not leaving tonight?”

“We just think it’s unlikely Sheri Smith will be so bold as to attack us in our homes,” Hector explained. “All the suspicion would immediately fall on her.”

“She’s not worried about suspicion, not anymore,” Ali replied.

“Why not?” Hector asked.

In response, Ali reached out with her fist, transformed her fingers into a substance a hundred times stronger than steel, and pounded the boulder with her bare hand. With a deafening noise, it cracked in two. The twin pieces rolled down the hill on either side of the men—thanks, in large part, to the guidance of her magnetic field. The rocks did not stop until they smashed a cluster of tall pines. Ali smiled at Hector and her father, spoke in a sweet voice.

“While I’m gone, do you want to risk a visit by Sheri Smith?”

That quickly ended the discussion about staying.

They took Hector’s SUV, drove south. Ali sat silent for a long time, trying to feel if they were being followed. Yet there was no one there, and it seemed, at least for now, that Sheri had lost interest in Ali’s family and friends. Still, over Hector’s protest, she blindfolded Nira, who laid down in Cindy’s lap anyway, and fell asleep.

Cindy fretted about her parents. They would be looking for her again. Ali talked her dad into calling them, and telling them that Cindy was safe. The conversation went badly. Cindy’s parents threatened to call the police and hung up.

“Can’t say I blame them,” her father said with a sigh as he hung up Hector’s cell. Her dad had one of his own, but it was temporarily out of juice. Ali asked if she could see Hector’s
phone. She studied it, pleased at the nice screen, all the modern features.

“Can you get the Internet on this?” Ali asked Hector.

“Yes.”

“May I borrow it for the next few days?”

Hector was puzzled. “You’ll need it in the green world?”

Ali slipped it in her pocket. “You never know,” she said.

They drove south, over two hours, to a town called Hammond, where Hector got them a pricey suite with three adjoining rooms. By then Nira and Cindy were both asleep. Ali carried her old friend inside and managed to put her to bed without waking her. Hector took care of Nira. Once more, Ali explained to the men the importance of Nira not being allowed to look out any windows. She said they must tape over the name of the hotel wherever it appeared in the room: on the phone, on the towels—anywhere.

“Pretend Sheri Smith is sitting in her house and staring through Nira’s eyes and listening through her ears,” Ali explained. “That’ll give you some idea of what you’re up against. Any private discussions, don’t have them around her.”

“When will we hear from you?” her father asked, and she could see the fear grow in him as she donned a small daypack, stuffed with candy bars, two sandwiches, a bottle of water, a Bic lighter, and a Swiss pocket knife. She was not sure what she planned to do with the latter, but Hector had given it to her.

“I’m not sure,” Ali replied.

“You must have some idea,” her father said.

She gave him a hug. “If the Earth has not been invaded in the next two or three days, then you’ll know I’ve been successful. Other than that, I can’t say when I’ll return to this hotel.”

“But you’re going to see your mother first, right?” he asked.

“I’ll see her at some point,” Ali replied, not wanting to lie. Until she discovered how to remove the Shaktra’s
mark
, her mother was allied with the enemy. Ali recalled how her leprechaun friend, Paddy, had explained the Shaktra could incite any marked elemental to violence at a moment’s notice.

Her father appeared to know that she was holding back information. He leaned over and kissed her forehead, whispered in her ear.

“You’re not just powerful, Ali, but wise. You’ll do the right thing.”

Ali nodded as she backed up. It was hard to meet his eye. So much longing in his face, for the woman he had loved and lost. Silently, she cursed herself for explaining how the souls moved from one dimension to another. Yet, had she not told Hector and her father the full story, they would have been unable to understand the true nature of the threat to Earth.

“Thanks for the confidence,” she said.

But he suddenly grabbed her, hugged her hard, and she realized his face was damp. “I’m scared,” he whispered.

“Mom . . .” she began.

“It’s not about Mom. It’s about you. You know, Ali, I can’t lose you. I’ll die if I do.”

It was her turn to reassure him. “Neither of us will die.”

Ali was not one for long goodbyes. She hugged her father again, and Hector, went outside, into the back of the hotel parking lot, looked around to make sure she was alone, and then soared into the sky. It felt good to have the night breeze on her face, to see the stars. She was very excited to be returning to the green world. She just hoped, for her father’s sake, and for Earth’s, that she’d be able to keep her promise to her dad.

Ali did not fly to the lower opening of the cave on the side of Pete’s Peak, the point where she had entered the tunnel the last two times she had climbed the mountain. Instead, she flew higher up, to the other entrance, not far from the actual summit. It was near here—five weeks ago—that she had completed her seven trials and realized that she was queen of the fairies. It was also here, yesterday evening, that she had killed Radrine, when she had thrown the dark fairy into the rays of the sun. As Ali landed in the snow near the opening, she saw the burnt remains of the dark queen and snorted in disgust.

Ali took out Hector’s cell phone from her pack and called Mike Havor. She did not know what she wanted from him, nor what he wanted from her. As if he had been anticipating her call, he answered on the first ring.

“This is Ali Warner,” she said. “How are you, Mike? I hope I didn’t wake you.”

“No, I was just sitting here watching a little TV. Or I should say I was listening to a favorite show. Few people realize how much the blind can get out of a program just by listening, although it helps to have a buddy nearby to describe the action sequences.”

“Do you have a buddy with you now?”

“No, I’m alone, Ali.”

It was silent at the top of the mountain, the wind still, and there was a two-thirds full moon high in the sky, casting a soft white radiance over the snowy peak. Overall, Ali felt the spot peaceful, yet there was a troubling undercurrent in Mike Havor’s voice.

“You told me after the meeting that you wanted to talk about what was going on at work,” she said.

“I did mention that, didn’t I.” He paused, acted torn over
what he should reveal. “Can I ask that what we discuss now remain between the two of us?”

“Of course. But may I ask a question before you confide in me?”

“Yes.”

“The first time I met you, I lied to you about my name. Why do you feel that you can trust me? I mean, what have I done to earn your trust? To you I must be some crazy thirteen-year-old chick running around with an overactive imagination and a big mouth.”

“An excellent question, and frankly, I’ve been sitting here asking myself if I should even talk to you at all about what has been going on at Omega. I don’t know you, not really, and I’ve known Ms. Smith a long time.” He paused. “Yet your allegations this morning—and Cindy’s—that murder has been committed at Ms. Smith’s home—these things have reinforced certain doubts I’ve been having.” He added, “I thought we should talk.”

Ali heard truthfulness in his voice. “What do you want to talk about?”

“For the last few months my boss has been taking sudden trips to Washington, D.C., and to Edwards Air Force Base, in Southern California. Each time before she left, she spoke to a certain man, a general, named James Kabrosh. When we first met, you said you played Omega Overlord a lot, and I’m sure you’re familiar with the character from the game. When Ms. Smith and I were perfecting the software for the game—that was six years ago—she insisted I name our hero after the general. At the time she didn’t tell me he was a real person. She just said, ‘I want this name used.’ She was adamant about it, if I remember correctly, but at the time I didn’t care. But later I
learned, from fans who wrote in, that he was a real person. Do you follow me so far?”

“Yes. What troubles you about General Kabrosh?”

“This is hard to admit, but when I heard he was for real, curiosity got the best of me, and I began to do a background check on him. I discovered that besides working at the Pentagon and at Edwards, he was in charge of dismantling a lot of this country’s nuclear arsenal. A pretty sensitive job, to say the least.”

“That’s putting it mildly,” Ali agreed.

“Then I discovered something even more disturbing. He did not come from money, nor was his wife’s family wealthy. Yet, in just the last year, he’s bought two expensive homes. One in Switzerland, the other on an island in the Fijis.”

“How were you able to obtain this information?”

“I’m a computer expert. Not to brag, but I’m a master hacker.”

“But, with your handicap, you must have someone assist you when you hack.”

“Yes. But I would rather leave his identity out of it for the time being.”

“Fine. Are you saying that what you know about General Kabrosh, the U. S. government doesn’t know?”

“Yes. He was very careful not to list the homes under his name.”

“Do you think Sheri Smith bought him these houses?”

Mike Havor hesitated. “I don’t know. I hate to think so. He would have had to do her an awfully huge favor for her to pay out so much money. She’s a billionaire, but she’s tight with her funds.”

“Ever met General Kabrosh in person?”

“No. An employee of ours did. A young man named Freddy Degear. He was only sixteen, but I hired him myself, he had a lot of energy. He came from out of town, but he was
obsessed with the computer game business, and he hoped to learn about it at Omega. But we mainly used him as a gofer—having him run errands for whoever needed them. Fred not only met General Kabrosh, he overheard a conversation between him and my boss. Afterward, he came to me about it, very upset.”