Xavier re-read the e-mail once again. It was all he had done that morning; over and over again he read the last e-mail that he had received from Remy hoping for some sort of clue to suddenly appear in it. The message was dated one year ago, it had been one full year since he had heard from the boy and still they were no closer to finding Remy. His search for Remy never revealed anything.
His resources and contacts coupled with Jean-Luc LeBeau's should have found the boy easily, but they didn't. Remy was either purposely hiding from them or someone must have hidden him so well that the boy didn't have the opportunity to contact anyone for assistance. Xavier prayed that Remy was hiding for some reason even though he knew the latter was more realistic.
By the time Remy had gone missing for a full year Xavier's communication with Jean-Luc had become constant. He felt as if he had failed Remy and sensed that Jean-Luc shared a similar guilt. He was reluctant to call their bond friendship, but was at a loss of what else to name it. Jean-Luc was very different from his son; while Remy hid behind formalities Jean-Luc expressed himself very directly. He seemed to be just as disappointed in Remy as he was concerned.
Xavier sensed Scott's worry before the man had even neared the door to his office. The knock was not unexpected, but he was reluctant to answer it. He didn't have any reassuring words to offer and he wasn't interested in explaining Remy to the man. Still, he was unable to turn Scott away so he called out giving the man permission to enter.
"You missed dinner," Scott's voice conveying his deep worry.
"I am simply not hungry tonight," Xavier explained as he failed to meet the other man's eyes.
"I have known you for years Professor, I know there is something going on," he insisted.
"I assure you Scott," Xavier replied, "all will be well tomorrow." It wasn't a lie any more than it was the truth. Tomorrow it would be a year and a day since his young friend went missing and although he would still be troubled, the lack of significance would make it easier not to dwell. "I wish to be alone," he said perhaps too dismissively.
"Of course," Scott replied immediately before turning to leave the room.
Xavier immediately regretted his tone, none of this was Scott's fault and he didn't mean to take it out on him. He looked at the phone once again and couldn't resist picking it up any longer. He dialed the now familiar number to Jean-Luc and was saddened when the man failed to answer it.
As predicted the next day allowed him to fall back into his duties and he finally accepted that the chances that they would find Remy had become very slim.
The X-Men grew to be an excellent team just in time it seemed. A new team of mutants had begun stealing research and destroying labs all across the country. They seemed to always be a step ahead of the X-Men no matter how quickly the team responded. Any glance that the X-Men got of them was fleeting at best for months. Their actions puzzled Xavier and his X-Men, their goal simply seemed to be to gather research. Witnesses always attested that they hadn't even seen the team and only a few casualties were ever found. It was truly puzzling and as the X-Men worked to find out who gathered the team, who led the team, or simply who was on the team; they encountered an endless cycle of dead-ends.
Then one day the team seemed to become arrogant and began killing everyone in their path. Several missions showed the same pattern; it seemed that the team had changed its tactics completely. It was a startling change from their earlier pattern of limited violence and the X-Men increased their vigilance. The team was difficult to predict, they seemed to randomly hit targets in various cities. In a week they would hit different research facilities in Atlanta, Detroit, and San Antonio. It was an unpredictable strike, but the X-Men stayed alert.
Finally their vigilance paid off and the X-Men reached their location before the team was able to disappear. They found Victor Creed arrogantly waiting for them and he introduced his team as the Marauders before they successfully fled through a portal that the X-Men had never encountered before. The X-Men had informed him that they couldn't identify the rest of the team, but it was a starting point that they would not waste. They realized that Creed must have been a new addition; he would not have been involved with the nonviolent group that had kept themselves well hidden earlier.
Through everything his unusual and indefinable relationship with Jean-Luc LeBeau continued as they contacted each other sporadically. Remy had been missing for over 16 months when he received the call from Jean-Luc informing him that the boy had been found. The man seemed to almost be threatening him as he informed him of the details of Remy's desperate visit. "You must stop searching for him," was the first sentence that Jean-Luc had uttered. The plea in his otherwise demanding voice was enough to convince Xavier of his sincerity.
"You found him?" Xavier questioned immediately.
"He needed my help," Jean-Luc admitted.
"Is he alright?"
"I don't know what went wrong." Jean-Luc said and Xavier clearly heard the hesitation in the other's voice. "He's running from one of his best clients."
"Perhaps I could help," Xavier offered.
"He should be out of the country by now," Jean-Luc admitted. "I waited 2 days before informing you, the man may be watching both of us."
"Who?" Xavier asked.
Jean-Luc paused but Xavier didn't mind his reluctance to explain. "Dr. Nathaniel Essex," he finally admitted. "Remy has known him longer then he has known you," Jean-Luc continued. "I didn't ask for an explanation, there wasn't time. Have you heard of the man?"
"No," Xavier admitted. "Remy and I never discussed his other clients. He made it clear that I was overstepping if I inquired."
"Nathaniel constantly had jobs for him and Remy never complained about the man. I've redone a background check on him and it reveals nothing unusual. I do not know what happened, but I have no doubts that my son was running for a reason. I shouldn't be telling you this," Jean-Luc admitted.
"I have no doubts that Remy would only run if he had good reason," Xavier replied.
"Will you see what you can find about the man?" Jean-Luc asked.
"Of course," Xavier assured. "If you speak with Remy tell him I can offer him safety."
"You would harbor him knowing that he is being targeted?" Jean-Luc questioned.
"Yes," Xavier assured. "He will always be welcome in my home."
"I should go," Jean-Luc concluded.
"Please tell him to come here," Xavier insisted again.
"I will," Jean-Luc agreed, "but I am uncertain if he will contact me."
Xavier placed the phone back down on its receiver slowly before sitting back and letting the information Jean-Luc had just thrown at him sink in. He was relieved that Remy had been found, but he was also unfairly sad that Remy had not come to him for help. It was ridiculous for him to be disappointed that the boy chose to come to his father.
He dismissed the thought quickly as he looked down at the name he had written on the pad before him. Dr Nathaniel Essex, it wasn't a name he was familiar with. If the background checks that Jean-Luc had done didn't reveal anything then he had doubts that simply running a new one would give him any more information, but he had to try. He and Jean-Luc were both powerful and influential people so many of their contacts were the same, but he quickly thought of anyone that Jean-Luc wouldn't have contacted.
A background check revealed very little just as he had anticipated. Dr. Nathaniel Essex was a private physician specializing in internal medicine whose current residence was listed as Boston Massachusetts. The picture that accompanied the file revealed a man of middle age who easily looked professional and demanding. The man's background revealed that he had moved from coast to coast a few times, but nothing about the relocation was unusual or suspicious. However if he was an honest doctor as his file claimed then he wouldn't have needed the skills of the thieves guild. As ridiculous as the idea sounded, Xavier wondered if it was Remy who had altered the man's records.
Essex, the name wasn't common and he was sure that he hadn't heard it before. The man in the picture looked unfamiliar, but the picture could have been faked. He could have been a complete illusion, a fictional name for a fictional character, but why use an odd name like Essex? Why not use a name like Smith or Miller? Why go through the extreme of having a complete persona created to mask some hidden identity. What could he possibly be hiding that Jean-Luc didn't find? More importantly, why was Remy running from him?
He was troubled by the questions floating around in his head, but failed to find a quick answer to any of them. He almost laughed as he realized he would have requested Remy's help with something like this in the past. He had always been reluctant to involve the X-Men in anything relating to the young man, but now for the first time he considered who would be able to help him find some answers.