Beth Lizzie- Glad you liked the last chapter. And don't worry the boys will be found, soon in fact. As for Will proposing...maybe.
Loveroffanfics-I don't know if Alley will be getting married in this story -we have to save some plot bunnies incase I want to do another story- but if she does you can probably expect a double wedding. Alex is fine with her brother but I don't think she's fine now. It's going to start becoming apparent that though things seem okay on the outside these kids still have a lot of issues that they are dealing with.
phi4858- Unlike the last two chapters this one is not quite as peaceful. The action is starting up as the gang gets closer and closer to finding the boys. And yes Pete was mentioned as Tiger before. Glad you caught it.
CHAPTER 18
A CLUE
November 20, 2010
8:49am
Charlottesville, Virginia
Russell Family Home
Jeremiah unlocked the front door and entered his home. He didn't realize how much he had missed being home over the past few days he had been in Blue Cove. The mansion was the first place Jeremiah had called home and one of the few places were he felt safe. But every since his cousins had been abducted, home did not feel quite as safe as it once did.
"Hey Jer," Aaron said as he descended the steps, Andros behind him.
"Hey," Jeremiah replied unshouldering his backpack "Were's Alex?"
"Kitchen," Andros told him. "Jeremiah listen Aaron and I need to talk to you real quick." Jeremiah raised his eyebrows in a questioning manner.
"Andros and I were blasted last night by Alex. We had it coming," Aaron admitted
"I take it she isn't talking to you," Jeremiah asked.
"Actually she is. Uncle Lex talked to her last night. What ever he said made Alex forgive us. Kinda. But that's not what we wanted to talk to you about. Alex brought to our attention why you two are so close," Andros said uneasily, running a hand through his hair.
"Okay," Jeremiah said no emotion showing.
"Well. We just, you know... Wanted to say thanks...for you know...being there for our sister...when we, when we couldn't," Aaron said, both he and Andros were shuffling their feet not meeting Jeremiah's green eyes. Jeremiah let a ghost of a smile cross his face for a brief second. Andros, and Aaron at times could be like little boys.
"You don't need to thank me," Jeremiah told his cousins.
"Yeah well all the same thanks," Andros said.
"And Jer, we wanted to apologize as well," Aaron stated.
"For what?" Jeremiah asked, as far as he knew his cousins had done nothing to wrong him.
"FerbeinjealousofyournLex'sbond," The two boys said quickly.
"What?" Jeremiah asked not catching a word of what Aaron, and Andros had said.
"For being jealous for your and Alex's bond," The boys repeated.
"Oh okay," Jeremiah said and walked to the kitchen.
"You didn't hit your brother's again?" Jeremiah asked as he sat at the kitchen table next to Alex.
"No. Just yelled at them," Alex replied.
"Do I want to know?"
"We just got a few things out in the open," Alex answered.
"Speaking of getting things in the open..."
"You want to know about my dream," Alex finished for him. Jeremiah nodded his head. Alex looked down at her cereal bowl, there were small amount of raisin bran left in the bowl, next to the bowl was a napkin covered in raisins. Jeremiah shook his head, he had to admit that his cousin was an odd one, she loved raisin bran but hated the raisins, and she refused to eat cereal with milk in it, though she didn't mind a glass of milk on the side.
"When did your cereal bowl become your pensive, Dumbledor?" Jeremiah joked, after Alex had remained quite for a while.
Alex looked up at her cousin, and Jeremiah could see that she had been crying.
"Hey it's okay, you don't have to tell me," Jeremiah said taking Alex's hand in to his and wiping away her tears with his other hand.
"Yes I do. I wanted you here to I could tell you," Alex said. "It's that same stupid dream where I keep seeing Pete with that gun and he's killing two people. And now it's getting worse, each time the people are different. Sometimes it's Will and Alley, other times it's Momma or Daddy, once it was Jasa, and Jack, and... and when they were d-dead he laughed, and his voice was so hollow, and then he turned the gun on himself and pulled the trigger."
"Oh God," Jeremiah gasped now realizing why Alex hadn't been sleeping.
"Jer, what if it really happens?" Alex asked.
"We won't let it okay?" Jeremiah stated.
"You make it sound so easy," Alex said wiping away the rest of her tears.
"That's 'cause it is," Jeremiah said simply, and was happy to see Alex smile slightly. He realized then how truly close he was to his cousin. Jeremiah loved his brother and sister, he extremely close to Greg and Lissa, but Alex was the person Jeremiah knew he could confide in with out being judged.
"Grampa here yet?" Jeremiah asked shaking himself out of his musings.
"He's talking to Momma right now. Have you eaten yet?"
"Pop-tart before I left the house."
"Well why don't you eat now. I'll make you breakfast," Alex offered.
"Why are you sucking up?" Jeremiah asked.
"You flew down here for me," Alex stated.
"You're my cousin Alex. Almost my sister. There's very little I wouldn't do for you. I do draw the line a murder though," Jeremiah said, for a second Alex thought that she caught one of Jeremiah's rare smiles.
As Alex grabbed a bowl from the cabinet and a box of Kix's from the pantry she mulled over Jeremiah's words, and realized that his last statement was a lie. She knew that Jeremiah would kill for her, and it frightened her. Though Will had never told her, Alex knew that her bother had killed three men when he was younger due to Alley's 'death'. Alex knew that Will was still cooping with what he had done. Alex didn't want for Jeremiah to go through the same thing.
November 20, 2010
9:05am
Charlottesville, Virginia
Russell Family Home
"So how does this work again?" Aaron asked
"Just relax Aaron-Daniel," Sydney told his grandson, as he dimmed the lights. Aaron, Andros, Alex and Jeremiah were all seated in Jack, and Jason's room. Sydney felt that if the children's inner sense was to actually speak to the children about the whereabout of the abducted boys then the best place it would probably work would be Jason, and Jack's room.
"Focus on your inner sense. Open up your minds and listen to what it has to tell you," Sydney said.
"Use the force Luke," Andros whispered. Alex, Jeremiah, and Sydney scowled.
"Andros if you are not going to take this seriously than leave. Your brother's lives are a stake here. Act as though you care," Sydney reprimanded.
"Sorry Grampa," Andros said as his face flushed, realizing how childish he had been. Sydney began to repeat his mantra and the four teens let their grandfather's accented words wash over them, and lull them into calmness.
Alex's head began to feel heavy with sleep. At the same time the voices began to whisper. Alex did her best to focus, to fight but sleep, in the end, over took her.
She's six again, and back inside the Centre. Everything is gray just like in her DSA's. She is walking but has no idea where her feet are taking her. It's as though she's on auto piolet. She finds herself coming upon the elevators. Waiting for her is Aaron, Andros, and Jeremiah.
"Where are we going?" Alex asks the boys.
"Don't know?" Aaron replies, as he hit's the down button for the elevator. The elevator dings, and opens. The elevator is not empty. Inside is a man, wearing a EMS jacket.
"Cody?" Jeremiah says. He remembers the man. John Cody had been the man who had administrated CPR to Joanna Noonan. He had called her death, and then brought a distraught Adam to Ethan. Cody now worked as a doctor for the Jamieson Foundation.
"Cody," Jeremiah says again. But the man does not hear him. Reluctantly the four children get into the elevator. The children notice that a button is lit. A button that, even when the Centre was still around, never existed. The button read SL-27.
The four children exchange worried glances, as the elevator descends. The elevator dings again and Cody gets off, behind him Aaron, Andros, Alex, and Jeremiah follow. Cody stops and out of the shadows steps a man. And Alex wakes up.
Alex, her brother's and Jeremiah all sit up panting.
"What? What did you see?" Sydney asked them.
"John Cody, at the Centre. Talking to Mr. Parker," Aaron said.
"We need to have a little talk with Dr. Cody," Jeremiah said his voice heavy with anger.
November 20, 2010
1:05pm
Blue Cove, Delaware
Russell Summer Home
All of the Black Files, Jarod, Morgan, Sam, Ethan, Chris, Lex, Julia, Will, Alley, Jamie, and Jeff, were all crowded in to the tiny kitchen.
"Why Cody?" Will asked for the umpteenth time.
"Maybe we were wrong," Alex said.
"Don't doubt your inner sense. It has never led any of us astray," Alley said.
"So what do we do?" Jeff asked.
"I have a team watching Cody. As soon as he leaves, we'll corner him find out what he knows," Sam said.
"Why don't you go to him now?" Jamie asked.
"We go now, we risk the chance of scaring off the boys abductors if their keeping a watch on Cody," Will answered.
"Not if we plan a distraction," Greg said grinning.
"What do you have in mind?" Marc asked.
"Brilliant," Lissa said reading her brother's mind.
"Why thank you," Greg replied.
"Uh can someone explain?" Jake asked tersely.
"Arkham," Jeremiah replied, monotonely.
"Brilliant," Jon grinned.
"What's Arkham?" Lex asked.
"It was a file, that I encrypted years back, when Bridgette tired to assassinate Mr. Parker. When I encrypted the file it sent a massive power failure through the Centre. Everything shut down. Elevators, oxygen, lights, everything," Jon answered.
"If you do that what about the people inside the Foundation?" Julia asked.
"We change the plan a bit. Sound off a fire alarm, that we clear out the building, but before the alarm sounds cut off the power to Cody's office and everything below the first floor," Rachael said.
"In our vision Cody went down to SL-27," Andros whispered.
"All of the sub levels below SL-5 have been sealed," Jarod reminded his son.
"We know, but that was where Cody was talking to Parker," Aaron stated. Tobias and Terra went to the living room where several laptops set on the table.
"What are you doing?" Jon asked the kids.
"Hacking in to the Jamieson Foundation's mainframe," Tobias asked.
"If there is activity going on in the lower sub-levels, they need power," Terra continued.
"Your tracing the power to see if any is being used in the lower sub levels," Jon said sitting down at one of the laptops.
"Give the man a cookie," Tobias muttered.
"Or better yet join us," Terra offered.
"Found them! North quadrant of SL-27!" Jon shouted ten minutes later. Morgan leaned into Jarod's chest as she kept her tears at bay. She was trying so hard not to let hope over take her. Morgan didn't want to be disappointed to find that he sons weren't there.
"The Arkham file is almost finished. I'll e-mail it to Cody, once he opens it, it will start shutting down everything," Will said. Morgan nodded her head. After twenty three days she was closer than ever to getting her boys back.
"Mom listen Alley and I need to take care of something real quick. We'll be back in less than forty minutes," Will told his mother as he and Alley put on their coats.
"Will I found it," Aaron said brings a blow torch to his brother.
"What are you two doing?" Morgan asked.
"Covering all bases," Alley replied. "Don't worry Momma."
November 20, 2010
1:05pm
Galway, Ireland
Adam walked to the bookstore quickly, it was quite chilly. He was in such a rush that he nearly knocked over a man carrying a armful of comic books.
"Oh man I'm so sorry," Adam said, and mentally kicking himself for dropping his Irish accent as he helped the man pick up the fallen books.
"It's alright kid," The man replied.
"You're American," Adam said, and his brain kicked into red alert. Had the remnants of the Centre found him?
"Born and raise. Names, Steve, Steve Kirby," Steve said holding out his hand to Adam.
"Connor Reilly, it's a pleasure to meet you Steve," Adam said. If this man was indeed for the Centre Adam didn't plan on making it too obvious as to who he was. "I see you're into the fine art of comic books."
"Can't get enough of them. I used to live on Carthis, and it was hard as hell to get my book there."
"C-carthis. That's the island that was hit by, what did they call it, the Devil's Storm, a few years back, Right?" Adam asked.
"Yeah it was. You're a bit too young to remember that," Steve commented.
"My aunt and uncle we're there when the storm hit. They told me about it," Adam replied.
"Oh. Well kid it was nice running into you. But I need to get back to my son, he has the flu," Steve told Adam.
"You have a good day," Adam said.
"You too kid," Steve said and walked off.
Adam didn't know why he was following the man, by all rights the boy should probably be running in the opposite direction, packing his bags, and getting the hell out of Galway. But instead Adam followed the man into the Bed and Breakfast, where he was staying. Adam kept to the shadows as he followed the man inside. He then debated several minutes on his next course of action. Adam decided he would return the following day and investigate Steve's room.
Up Next: The boys have been located. And the first steps are being taken to get them out. And make sure a traitor to the family doesn't get out.
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