Chapter Three
The sun was shining down mercilessly that day. San Diego got hot during the summer but this definitely had to be a record high for at least the last few years. The scummy public pools were filled to the limit with wailing babies and their mothers, younger children attempted to stay wet in numerous roadside sprinklers, and rowdy teenagers roamed the streets in deadbeat groups, looking for some sort of amusement on the stifling hot day
One person rather enjoyed the weather though.
Cole wasn't used to being able to just enjoy the sunshine. Normally he would resent it as much as the cities residents actually but his new assignment only required him to keep an eye on a man that was supposedly getting too close to discovering some top-secret information about Manticore. Cole had laughed slightly when he'd read that on his orders sheet. Any information about Manticore was top-secret. Just being an outside source and knowing of its existence was enough to get you killed. Cole hoped he'd be able to inadvertently dissuade the man to leave Manticore alone but X5-878 secretly knew he'd probably end up killing him in the end.
As Cole was deep in thought he didn't even realize as he walked straight into someone walking towards him.
"Excuse you!" the young women he'd ran into spat angrily after she'd fell flat on her butt.
"I'm so sorry!" Cole apologized, "Let me help you up."
He offered his hand, which the girl took grudgingly. As he pulled her gently to her feet Cole noticed something strange about the texture of her hand. Beneath his fingers he could swear he felt an upraised, circular scar that took up the majority of her palm. The girl seeming to realize something was amiss as Cole unintentionally continued to hold onto her hand a few seconds too long, yanked her hand away.
"Um, thanks," she said as she brushed off her jeans. For the first time she looked up at her helper. He was extremely handsome and fairly well dressed. That alone left her with no idea why he was in this neighborhood.
"Can I help you with those?" Cole asked referring to the bundle of papers she'd managed to keep a hold of even while she fell.
"No, that's fine. Uh, if you don't mind me asking, what the hell is someone as dressy as you doing in the worst part of town? You realize you're just asking to be mugged."
Cole, a bit surprised by the girl's bluntness, smiled in return to her question.
"Well, he replied, "actually I'm kind of lost. I guess I took a wrong turn somewhere along the way. You wouldn't care to help a guy out would you?"
The girl raised an eyebrow.
"How do I know you're not going to mug me?"
Cole's smile widened.
"You don't. But I look pretty harmless don't you think?"
"Yeah," she joked in the same good humor, "Even I could probably kick your ass."
Cole watched her as she smiled and, suddenly, something in his mind started screaming alarm at him. There was something about her face. About her eyes...
She was beautiful. Pale blonde hair complete with sparkling gray eyes on a petite yet well-muscled frame made her one of the most "perfect" looking normals that Cole had ever seen. But that wasn't what had set the alarm off in his head. No, it was something else.
Her large eyes, even though they were at the moment alive with happiness, had something else hidden away within them. It reminded Cole way too much of himself. A certain fear, an anger perhaps. Her eyes were way too old to be on such a young person...
Almost at once, a wave of nearly suppressed memories came rushing over Cole all at once.
A little, bald-headed girl, dressed in nothing but a thin gray nightgown being strapped down to a chair with one of her skinny arms extended onto another table where it too was secured. Her screaming in pain as a scalpel was dug in a circular pattern around the palm of her hand. Manticore officials discussing how she was the only one of any of them to scar. Her looking at her big brother in terror as he, along with the rest, was put through the same ordeal. Her giant gray eyes watching his. Eyes that encompassed way too much fear and anger for merely a child.
Jondy...
Cole didn't seem to realize he'd been staring until the girl, no, Jondy cleared her throat, a bit impatiently.
"Uh, sorry," he stammered out, mentally slapping himself for acting so peculiar. "What'd you say your name was?"
She smiled slightly.
"Well, actually I didn't," she paused for effect before continuing, "It's Joanna. And you are?"
"Philip," Cole replied smoothly. He tended to keep his alias name the same whenever he went out on missions. Once he'd tried to call himself Cole but, when that got back to Manticore, let's just say Lydecker was less than thrilled that X5-878 still referred to himself by his old name. He knew better than to do that again.
This time he would have to be really careful. Jondy wasn't dumb and she would catch on quick if he dropped any clues that the normal person on the outside would never be able to make any sense of. He also couldn't allow himself to get to close to this women that one minute ago he'd been flirting outrageously with, hoping to find a little quick romance while he had the chance. Now he had to make certain he didn't get to know her well enough to even stick in her mind. It was safer for both of them that way.
"You know, on second thought, I think I passed my hotel about two blocks back. You really shouldn't bother," he lied quickly, hoping she'd buy it, "Besides, I'm stronger than I look."
"Are you sure? Really, it's no problem. And I could help you look out for more people to run into on the way."
"Ha, ha," he replied jokingly, "No, seriously, I think I can find it."
"Well I seriously think you have a problem with directions since you seem to steer on the wrong side of the street already. Come on, I'll show you hotel boulevard."
She had taken off walking before Cole could offer another word of objection.
Jeez, he thought to himself, who's trying to get into whose pants here?
"So where are you from?" 'Joanna' asked as they were walking.
"Me? L.A. actually. I know it's kind of sad. I grew up in a big city and I still can't find my way around another one."
Jondy laughed.
"Yeah, I've always had a pretty good sense of direction. Guess my parents really drilled it into me not to get lost on the way to the playground."
"Are you from San Diego?" Cole asked.
"Nope. In fact I'm originally a small town girl. I lived in some middle of nowhere town in Wyoming until I was about nine then moved to San Francisco with some relatives. I've only been living here about four months actually."
Cole nodded and inwardly smiled to himself at the way she had gotten around the question. To any other person that would have sounded like an everyday story but with the reference to "some middle of nowhere town in Wyoming" meant a very particular place for Cole. And then about how she'd moved when she was nine. Well, it hadn't exactly been moving. More like running away.
"Well this is goodbye," Cole said once they'd reached the steps of one of the hotels. It wasn't actually his, naturally, but he'd let Jondy think that.
"Yeah, I guess so."
"Hey, are you doing anything later?"
Jondy looked at him in amusement and shook her head no.
"Why do you ask?" she inquired hopefully.
"Thought I could make up for running you over earlier. Maybe take you out for dinner? Have a nice candlelit banquet in honor of such a beautiful girl."
Jondy smiled.
"I'd love that. Where should I meet you?"
"Hmm, you're choice. Besides," he added in a fake whisper, "if you can't tell, I'm a tourist. I have absolutely no idea where anything is."
Cole smiled as he received a laugh in return.
"How about I'll meet you right here at about eight tonight. Then we'll find somewhere to eat."
"Terrific."
They said their goodbyes and Cole watched Jondy stroll back down the sidewalk in the direction in which they'd come, from inside the hotel lobby. As soon as she turned the corner he found his way to the back door.
She'd be furious tonight when she discovered he wasn't coming and "Philip" would soon develop into a distant memory of the guy that stood her up. Cole was guessing that it didn't happen too often.
Before he hopped in a taxi, Cole took one more wistful glance in the direction she'd gone and smiled.
Then he remembered the direction his journey would eventually take him back too and the world once again seemed dark and filled with all the horrors that only an X5 could know.
The sun was shining down mercilessly that day. San Diego got hot during the summer but this definitely had to be a record high for at least the last few years. The scummy public pools were filled to the limit with wailing babies and their mothers, younger children attempted to stay wet in numerous roadside sprinklers, and rowdy teenagers roamed the streets in deadbeat groups, looking for some sort of amusement on the stifling hot day
One person rather enjoyed the weather though.
Cole wasn't used to being able to just enjoy the sunshine. Normally he would resent it as much as the cities residents actually but his new assignment only required him to keep an eye on a man that was supposedly getting too close to discovering some top-secret information about Manticore. Cole had laughed slightly when he'd read that on his orders sheet. Any information about Manticore was top-secret. Just being an outside source and knowing of its existence was enough to get you killed. Cole hoped he'd be able to inadvertently dissuade the man to leave Manticore alone but X5-878 secretly knew he'd probably end up killing him in the end.
As Cole was deep in thought he didn't even realize as he walked straight into someone walking towards him.
"Excuse you!" the young women he'd ran into spat angrily after she'd fell flat on her butt.
"I'm so sorry!" Cole apologized, "Let me help you up."
He offered his hand, which the girl took grudgingly. As he pulled her gently to her feet Cole noticed something strange about the texture of her hand. Beneath his fingers he could swear he felt an upraised, circular scar that took up the majority of her palm. The girl seeming to realize something was amiss as Cole unintentionally continued to hold onto her hand a few seconds too long, yanked her hand away.
"Um, thanks," she said as she brushed off her jeans. For the first time she looked up at her helper. He was extremely handsome and fairly well dressed. That alone left her with no idea why he was in this neighborhood.
"Can I help you with those?" Cole asked referring to the bundle of papers she'd managed to keep a hold of even while she fell.
"No, that's fine. Uh, if you don't mind me asking, what the hell is someone as dressy as you doing in the worst part of town? You realize you're just asking to be mugged."
Cole, a bit surprised by the girl's bluntness, smiled in return to her question.
"Well, he replied, "actually I'm kind of lost. I guess I took a wrong turn somewhere along the way. You wouldn't care to help a guy out would you?"
The girl raised an eyebrow.
"How do I know you're not going to mug me?"
Cole's smile widened.
"You don't. But I look pretty harmless don't you think?"
"Yeah," she joked in the same good humor, "Even I could probably kick your ass."
Cole watched her as she smiled and, suddenly, something in his mind started screaming alarm at him. There was something about her face. About her eyes...
She was beautiful. Pale blonde hair complete with sparkling gray eyes on a petite yet well-muscled frame made her one of the most "perfect" looking normals that Cole had ever seen. But that wasn't what had set the alarm off in his head. No, it was something else.
Her large eyes, even though they were at the moment alive with happiness, had something else hidden away within them. It reminded Cole way too much of himself. A certain fear, an anger perhaps. Her eyes were way too old to be on such a young person...
Almost at once, a wave of nearly suppressed memories came rushing over Cole all at once.
A little, bald-headed girl, dressed in nothing but a thin gray nightgown being strapped down to a chair with one of her skinny arms extended onto another table where it too was secured. Her screaming in pain as a scalpel was dug in a circular pattern around the palm of her hand. Manticore officials discussing how she was the only one of any of them to scar. Her looking at her big brother in terror as he, along with the rest, was put through the same ordeal. Her giant gray eyes watching his. Eyes that encompassed way too much fear and anger for merely a child.
Jondy...
Cole didn't seem to realize he'd been staring until the girl, no, Jondy cleared her throat, a bit impatiently.
"Uh, sorry," he stammered out, mentally slapping himself for acting so peculiar. "What'd you say your name was?"
She smiled slightly.
"Well, actually I didn't," she paused for effect before continuing, "It's Joanna. And you are?"
"Philip," Cole replied smoothly. He tended to keep his alias name the same whenever he went out on missions. Once he'd tried to call himself Cole but, when that got back to Manticore, let's just say Lydecker was less than thrilled that X5-878 still referred to himself by his old name. He knew better than to do that again.
This time he would have to be really careful. Jondy wasn't dumb and she would catch on quick if he dropped any clues that the normal person on the outside would never be able to make any sense of. He also couldn't allow himself to get to close to this women that one minute ago he'd been flirting outrageously with, hoping to find a little quick romance while he had the chance. Now he had to make certain he didn't get to know her well enough to even stick in her mind. It was safer for both of them that way.
"You know, on second thought, I think I passed my hotel about two blocks back. You really shouldn't bother," he lied quickly, hoping she'd buy it, "Besides, I'm stronger than I look."
"Are you sure? Really, it's no problem. And I could help you look out for more people to run into on the way."
"Ha, ha," he replied jokingly, "No, seriously, I think I can find it."
"Well I seriously think you have a problem with directions since you seem to steer on the wrong side of the street already. Come on, I'll show you hotel boulevard."
She had taken off walking before Cole could offer another word of objection.
Jeez, he thought to himself, who's trying to get into whose pants here?
"So where are you from?" 'Joanna' asked as they were walking.
"Me? L.A. actually. I know it's kind of sad. I grew up in a big city and I still can't find my way around another one."
Jondy laughed.
"Yeah, I've always had a pretty good sense of direction. Guess my parents really drilled it into me not to get lost on the way to the playground."
"Are you from San Diego?" Cole asked.
"Nope. In fact I'm originally a small town girl. I lived in some middle of nowhere town in Wyoming until I was about nine then moved to San Francisco with some relatives. I've only been living here about four months actually."
Cole nodded and inwardly smiled to himself at the way she had gotten around the question. To any other person that would have sounded like an everyday story but with the reference to "some middle of nowhere town in Wyoming" meant a very particular place for Cole. And then about how she'd moved when she was nine. Well, it hadn't exactly been moving. More like running away.
"Well this is goodbye," Cole said once they'd reached the steps of one of the hotels. It wasn't actually his, naturally, but he'd let Jondy think that.
"Yeah, I guess so."
"Hey, are you doing anything later?"
Jondy looked at him in amusement and shook her head no.
"Why do you ask?" she inquired hopefully.
"Thought I could make up for running you over earlier. Maybe take you out for dinner? Have a nice candlelit banquet in honor of such a beautiful girl."
Jondy smiled.
"I'd love that. Where should I meet you?"
"Hmm, you're choice. Besides," he added in a fake whisper, "if you can't tell, I'm a tourist. I have absolutely no idea where anything is."
Cole smiled as he received a laugh in return.
"How about I'll meet you right here at about eight tonight. Then we'll find somewhere to eat."
"Terrific."
They said their goodbyes and Cole watched Jondy stroll back down the sidewalk in the direction in which they'd come, from inside the hotel lobby. As soon as she turned the corner he found his way to the back door.
She'd be furious tonight when she discovered he wasn't coming and "Philip" would soon develop into a distant memory of the guy that stood her up. Cole was guessing that it didn't happen too often.
Before he hopped in a taxi, Cole took one more wistful glance in the direction she'd gone and smiled.
Then he remembered the direction his journey would eventually take him back too and the world once again seemed dark and filled with all the horrors that only an X5 could know.