Paradox (Travelers Series Book 2), Page 2

  “No, I suppose not. And the girl?” By the time he arrived at the Thornberry residence, Cooper realized his daughter, Jaime, has also gone missing. For both her and Etta’s sake, he hoped she wasn’t in any danger. Even in this time, they still don’t know what happened to her. It’s as if she somehow got lost in the shuffle within realities.

  “No, no word yet.” Her eyes softened. “I miss her you know? It’s been years since I last saw her…since that night at Thornberry’s. And here we are, seven years later and we still have no intelligence as to her whereabouts. So my best guess? Everything goes as planned.”

  “Well, I suppose that’s a good thing. We’ve plotted and planned for so long, it’s nice to know where we stand.” Any disruption in the timeline could have been detrimental to their plan of attack. Things would certainly be different and the Council would have had to scramble to come up with a new plan—not that they would know if the timeline of events had been altered, of course.

  “Hmm,” she murmured. “You informed my past self about us.” Etta quietly rose up from her chair and slipped her arms around Cooper. “Did I take it well?” She teased. To her, it seemed like it was just yesterday, Cooper telling her about their marriage. She remembered how scared and excited she was to hear he was more to her than just a man sent to rescue her.

  Even though he couldn’t see her, with her face nuzzled against his chest, he could feel her smile. “I think she’s in denial. But I’m not concerned. I know how it plays out,” he said this with a grin of his own.

  “You could have waited to tell me you know. You didn’t have to spring it on me after a night like that.”

  He chuckled. “Sorry, I couldn’t help myself. Besides, I knew no matter what surprises she,” he kisses the top of her head, “I mean, you are dealt with, I’m always positive about us. No timeline or reality can change that.”

  Etta untangles herself from his embrace and looks at her husband. “You’re so sure of that, huh?” Her face showed no emotion, pretending to be annoyed.

  “Yup. There’s nothing I’ve ever been more sure of,” he said, calling her bluff.

  He was rewarded with a smile and the feel of her warm hand as it slipped behind his neck, pulling him closer to her. Their lips touched gently at first, then fervently, as if they could somehow make time stand still, for at any moment, their world could soon collapse.

  “Good. ‘Cuz I’d have to whip your hide if you ever thought otherwise,” Etta finally said, breaking her hold on Cooper. “Now, back to the business end of things, I think it’s time to activate the troops.”

  Chapter Three

  The Modern Prometheus

  After breakfast, everyone goes their separate ways, which only leaves me and Cooper to clear the table. I’m grateful for the chore, as it gives me an opportunity to bombard him with my usual litany of questions. I’m still having trouble looking him straight in the eye, after what he told me last night about being married, but I still want to take advantage of the time we have together, since I have roughly twenty minutes to freshen-up before my first session with April.

  “So you’re from the future, huh?” I ask. Over pancakes and bacon, my dad was still apprehensive about the whole “from the future” discussion, so Cooper gave up trying to convince him after awhile. But even if he is from the future, it still doesn’t explain why the real Cooper in this reality is older; then he’d be from the past. This truly is going to be a dizzying conversation if he ever gets down to explaining things to me.

  “Look, I’ll tell you what, I’ll finish clearing the table so you can finish getting ready before you meet up with April. I’ll come back when you’re done and answer any questions you have,” he offers.

  “Promise? You aren’t exactly known for understanding the concept of full disclose,” I argue. When I first met him, he was all half-truths, but when you were brought up thinking you’re an orphan and a hunky guy comes along to whisk you away to a whole new world—literally—you’re willing to take a few things on faith. Not so much now, I suppose. I want answers and I don’t care if he is my boyfriend (he has to be my boyfriend if he’s going to be my husband, right?), I’m not going to give him the chance to blow me off anymore.

  “I promise.” He gives, what I assume, is the Boy Scout honor salute. “Oh, by the way, the pajama’s you have on are sexy as hell.”

  I glance down at my p.j. bottoms. They have cartoony yellow stars and clouds with smiley faces. I can feel my face turn red from total embarrassment. While I made sure my p.j.’s didn’t have holes in them, it didn’t occur to me to check for the childish factor. How is he ever going to consider me an adult, if I look like a little kid? It’s not like I picked these out myself. They just happened to be in my drawers. Maybe this is the catalyst that changes the timeline and we don’t get married after all.

  He sees my horrified expression. “Ah, I was just kidding around. You look totally cute,” he assures me. “Go on, I’ll hold the fort down here while you get dressed.”

  I ignore the last few seconds and pretend he didn’t say anything at all. “Okay, well, I’ll see you when I’m finished up with April. Hey, how long do you think she’s is going to hold me up anyway?” Don’t get me wrong, I’m grateful for the instruction, but I have a feeling it’s not going to be much fun spending the day with her. If it was up to me, I’d rather keep our relationship strictly academic, as in, within the confines of Dominion Hall Academy—at least there, the bell signals the end of class.

  “Don’t know, darlin’, but try to be cooperative with her. She’s here to help you.”

  “I can’t promise anything, but I’ll do my best.” How can I be cooperative with April when she obviously isn’t making an effort. But for Cooper’s sake, I’ll try. I’ve always had problem with taking the moral high ground and being the better person. I learned the hard way; you have to fight back when confronted and don’t take crap from anyone, or they’ll walk all over you. It’s a tough way to grow up, but it’s all I know.

  I head out of the kitchen, leaving Cooper to finish clearing the table. I take a quick glance at the clock on the microwave on my way out. Great. I only have about fifteen minutes before I have to meet April and I haven’t even gotten out of my stupid happy cloud pajamas.

  As much as I’m dreading my meeting with April, I do want to make a good impression. At the very least, to let her know I’m taking her position as my advisor seriously. I hope throwing on a pair of jeans is acceptable for my first session with her. I have no idea what she plans on covering today, but I think jeans are appropriate attire for any given situation. I’m pretty sure she’s not expecting me to change into my school uniform.

  After another go around of washing my face and a second pass at brushing my teeth, I’m starting to feel a bit more human. I stare at myself in the mirror and take a deep, long, hard look at myself. I don’t look like a girl who’s just spend the last week adjusting from a life in an alternate universe, nor do I look like a girl who was kidnapped and then rescued the night before. It’s just me, the same old Etta, with cheeks slightly pink from scrubbing. I know I’ve gone through some major life altering events, so maybe the changes are all on the inside.

  I stop staring at my mirror image, knowing I have to be downstairs soon. Now, where did I put my jeans from yesterday?

  With a few minutes to spare, I hurry down the stairs, taking two steps at a time. If April is anything like she is in class, I know I’ll be in big crapola if I’m late for our session. I’m in such a rush I almost eat it on the second to last stair, but I quickly steady myself just before I fall face first onto the main floor.

  “Etta, is that you?” I hear my dad’s voice coming from his study.

  “I’m alright,” I shout out, not knowing if he heard me fumble down the stairs. Talk about an embarrassing morning this is turning out to be.

  “Can you come in here for a moment?”

  “Uh, sure.” Well, if I’m running behind, I can just blame it on my d
ad. There’s no way April can fault me for spending quality time with him. While I’m still coming to terms with my feelings toward my dad, I still want to hear him out. He’s been absent most of my life, thanks to him, but I’m willing to at least listen to what he has to say.

  As I walk into the study, my first instinct is to go directly towards his desk. Only, my dad isn’t seated at his desk. I do a quick survey of the room and spot my dad sitting in an old wingback chair in the furthest corner of the room. It’s almost like he’s hiding from something—or someone.

  “Victor?” I was a bit emotional last night, after discovering my dad was locked up in Thornberry’s basement, that I immediately began to think of him in terms of my dad. But now, I feel a little uncomfortable about addressing him this way, especially since I hardly know the guy. So, while I think of him in terms of my dad, it’s hard saying it out loud for some reason.

  “Come, sit next to me,” he says, motioning me over to the far end of the study. He doesn’t seem to be phased at all that I addressed him by his first name. I guess he understands it might be too soon for me to start referring to him as ‘dad’.

  From what Cooper implied over breakfast, I have a feeling he know’s more than he’s letting on, but I’m not going to press the issue. He can either tell me what he knows or I’ll get the info out of Cooper. So, whatever it is he’s holding back, I’ll find out sooner or later. “As much as I hate to say this, I have to go meet—”

  He waves his hand, motioning me to sit. “April can wait. What I have to say is important.”

  I take the seat across from him and try to gauge his expression. He looks rather solemn and sad. This doesn’t look good. He better not be prepping himself to drop yet another bombshell. Like, Hey, guess what? You’re not really an only child! Or, better yet, Um, this is going to be difficult to say, but we have to send you back to the orphan reality.

  But what actually comes out of his mouth is, “Etta, I’m so sorry.”

  “For what?” I kinda have an idea of what he’s sorry for. He sent me away and while apologies are certainly in order, it may take awhile before I can truly appreciate his obvious regrets about the whole situation. He may appear sorry, but it doesn’t mean I have to forgive and forget so soon.

  “My goodness, child. For everything.” He throws his arms up in frustration. “I never meant for any of this to happen. For my daughter to be exposed to a life in another reality, to find out she’s some kind of science experiment, by my own hands no less. No father should have to subject their own child to what I put you through.”

  “Victor,” I cut him off. “You apologized last night, but I would like to know why.” What else can I really say? I’m torn between resentment and acceptance. I mean, yeah, my whole life up to this point has been a lie. I have powers I have only yet to understand, but he is my dad after all. All I’ve ever wanted is to be part of a family and now I have one. Sure, it’s like twelve years too late, but I have the rest of my life to spend and get to know my dad and my aunt. It may take some time, but if he can tell me why he felt the need to give me these questionable powers and send me to that horrible reality, I might be able to understand.

  He shakes his head. “It will never be alright. What I’ve done to you and the others wasn’t what I wanted my work to be about. My research was supposed to mean something. To help people. Not for power or destruction.”

  “Yeah, it’s pretty crappy to find out you’ve been a lab rat and then thrust into another reality, but isn’t there a way we can fix it? With the others, I mean.” I’m referring to the other kids my dad and Oliver used to further their understanding of the science behind psionics, or psychic abilities. That’s how I got my powers of telekinesis and astral projection. While I haven’t been fully briefed on the specifics of his experiments, he and Thornberry apparently figured out a way to alter the way our brains work by expanding their capabilities through the use of genetic altering drugs, or something like that.

  I can tell I struck a nerve. My dad’s eyes began to take on a glassy far off look. “You know, for awhile I thought what Oliver and I were doing was for the greater good. I’ve now come to the realization that what we were doing was nothing short of playing Dr. Frankenstein.” A hollow laugh follows the irony of what he just said.

  “You know Frankenstein?” I was under the impression the books I grew up with in my orphan reality did not carry over here in this reality. The two worlds are pretty similar, but many of the books and movies I grew-up with don’t exist in this reality. Which is a real bummer since I’m a total t.v. freak and can’t catch-up on all my favorite shows.

  He gives me a look of surprise. “Well, of course. Mary Shelley was one of the finest writers of her time. I am well versed in classic literature within many realities. It is a shame she never got the inspiration to write Frankenstein in this world. From what I understand, she never married Percy Shelley in this reality, in turn, never having had the opportunity to conceive the inspiration for the story. In this reality, Mary Godwin was still an influential writer, but not to the acclaim she achieved in various other realities.”

  As he gives me a brief history in British Lit, I remember being a little girl, before being sent to live as an orphan, where he would tell me stories about fascinating people and historical events. “You used to tell me stories like this,” I say. “I don’t remember much before I was sent away, but I recall bits and pieces the more time I spend with you.”

  “I should never have sent you away.” His head drops down. “I should never have done half the things I’ve done.”

  It’s not much of an explanation, but it’ll have to do for now. I’m late for my session with April. “It’s okay. We can fix it.” I don’t know how, but if there’s a way I can make things right, I’m going to try.

  His gaze is still in some faraway place I probably can never imagine, but I’ll let him deal with his own internal demons. I rise up from my chair. “I hate to do this to you, but I gotta go meet April. She’s going to kill me if I’m any later,” I say as I head out of the study.

  I take a last glance back at the brilliant man who is my father. Whatever he’s feeling, it looks like it’s aged him. Not that I know what he looked like before, but I can tell whatever guilt he’s carrying around has defeated him. I’m now more than ever determined to make things right. And unfortunately, the only way to do so is to cooperate and make an effort to listen to everything April has to teach me. She’s my advisor and if I want to learn about being a traveler, I guess I have to pay attention to whatever she says. Even if it means being nice.

  “You’re late.” April is already seated at the kitchen counter, looking annoyed.

  “Sorry,” I mumble. Why does she always make me feel like a total turd? She’s a guest in my house, not to mention I’m supposedly her leader in the other reality. Why do I continuously let her treat me like this? I have no control over how she responds to me in the classroom, but this is my house.

  I make myself comfortable at the head of the table. Earlier this morning we decided it would be much easier to work in here in the kitchen, closer to the coffee pot. Apparently, coffee is the one thing we share in common. I pour myself a cup from the carafe on the table and wait for her to begin.

  She taps her pen against the table, which is totally annoying. “We are wasting valuable time Etta, I hope in the future, you will be mindful of the time,” she chides. “I’m not here for myself, but rather for you. It would behoove you to make an effort.”

  “Sorry,” I say again. “So, where do we start? Do we get to focus on my powers? I think I’m getting the hang of the whole telekinesis bit, but the astral projection part is a bit unnerving.” My biggest fear is that I astral someplace and I never come back. I had a few years to adjust to being able to move objects with my mind through my powers of telekinesis, even if I didn’t understand it at the time, but astral projection is still new to me. I didn’t even know I was capable of doing it until I was trapped in Th
ornberry’s house.

  April looks at me with her usual demeaning stare and snorts, which I assume is her way of laughing at me. “What makes you think we’re going to work on your abilities?”

  “But I thought that—”

  “We start with the basics. From the beginning. Being a traveler isn’t about fancy powers, Etta. It’s about learning how to navigate the portal so we don’t screw up past, present, and future, not to mention the timelines of other realities.”

  Okay, I’ll give her that. “Aren’t they both related though? I mean, my powers and being a traveler?” Isn’t that why she’s here to guide me? My aunt already showed me how she arranges travels for my through a program she developed for my dad in order to allow him to travel and Cooper made traveling appear easy. So, why do I need a tutorial if it isn’t about my powers?

  Another snort. “No. The so-called powers you have are a direct result of the experiments your father conducted. It has nothing to do with being a traveler.” She says this with such distain, it’s almost as if she’s jealous.

  If she really wants my powers, she can have them. It’s not like I asked for these psionic abilities. Then again, her constant belittling of my abilities makes me wonder if she just thinks I’m a freak.

  “So, you don’t have any abilities like me or Coop?” April comes from the same reality as Cooper, so I just assumed she had some sort of power like Cooper’s telepathy. I don’t know if she was part of the drug trials, but it’s not a far-fetched assumption.

  “Of course not. That would be absurd.”

  Yeah, she thinks I’m a freak. “You don’t have to be all rude about it.”

  Her lips form a thin grim line. “I’m still your teacher. Some respect would be appreciated.”