Finding You Again
Chapter Four
"Every time I think I'm closer to the heart what it means to be who I am. I think I finally found a better place to start. No one ever seems to understand. I need to try to get to where you are. Could it be, you're not that far?"
I Gotta Find You by Joe Jonas (Disney Records) from Camp Rock Soundtrack
THREE DAYS EARLIER
SECRET BASE IN THE JUNGLES OF ROMANIA
Concentrate. Breathe. Concentrate. Aim. Concentrate. Don't forget to breathe. Concentrate. Keep still. Concentrate. Aim.
Fire!
Eric smiled grimly as the bullet of the handgun hit home, right smack in the middle of the bull's-eye. Of course, he should have known he wouldn't miss. He never did.
Eric knew everything about a lot of things and nothing about others. He knew his name was Eric. He didn't know if he had a last name. He knew he lived in the jungle with his superiors. He didn't know if he had ever lived anywhere else, or if he had a family somewhere. He didn't know how long he'd been here. Maybe ten days. Maybe ten years. Maybe forever.
And he knew how to kill. If there was anything he knew better than anything in the world, it was killing. Of course, he hadn't actually killed anyone yet. That came after he completed his final test. But he knew how to kill.
He was the world's greatest assassin, and he hadn't even taken a life yet.
He could imbed a bullet in a person's chest, into the center of the heart from a mile away. He'd done it plenty of times, to some of their moving simulations. He could fashion a weapon from almost anything at hand. He could detach himself from reality, warding off pain and fear and distractions. He was unstoppable.
He couldn't wait until his first assignment. Then all those who doubted him before would know that he was, indeed, the best killer in the world.
Then they would pay.
PRESENT
BAYPORT
"No way!" Joline breathed, her heart in her throat. "Was that really…?" She didn't finish her question because she knew by Darren's stunned expression that she really had just seen her father.
"This isn't…like an old rerun or anything?" Joline asked tentatively.
Darren shook his head. "It's Live from D.C. And besides, if you looked at his face, you could see that he looks older than in any of the pictures that Dad has."
"Not much!" Joline protested. "He looks like he could be twenty-five! But how…?"
"Maybe it's just a look alike?" Darren suggested. "You know, someone who looks uncannily like your father but isn't? I mean, he's been dead for…"
"Fifteen years, I know. But…Darren, you saw him. You saw his face, his eyes. He even had that birthmark on the side of his neck." She gestured to a picture of her father. He had a tiny discoloration on the side of his neck, almost invisible. But Joline had spotted it.
Suddenly, Joline sat upright and whispered excitedly, "Wait 'till your Dad finds out!" She started to rise and go get her uncle, who was still waiting for Chet to finish his munching, but Darren grabbed her arm. "Jo, he's gone. Dad's not going to believe that we saw someone who has been dead for fifteen years. He's going to think that we're crazy, we're playing some sort of cruel joke, or we saw some double. Unless he shows up on the TV again, we're the only ones who know the truth…whatever that is."
Joline's face fell, but she nodded. "I guess I can't tell Mom, either, huh?"
"That's probably not the best idea."
"So what now?" Joline's eyes were alive with a spark of purpose and adventure.
"What do you mean?" Darren asked slowly, although he had a pretty good idea of what his younger cousin was thinking.
"We're not just going to sit around here while my dad is alive in D.C.! I have to know the truth! I have to find my dad!"
Darren sighed. "And how do you suggest we go about this?"
Joline thought for a minute, then grinned and pulled out her cell phone. "I'll tell Mom and your parents that I'm going to go over to Stacey's house for the weekend. You tell your Mom and Dad that one of your friends asked you stay a few days at his house. We'll call our friends and let them know we're going to D.C., and tell them to cover for us. Then we drive to D.C., find my dad, then get back before Tuesday—long weekend, remember? We don't have school on Monday."
Darren stared. "Jo, you're out of your mind!"
Joline crossed her arms and looked very hurt. "What's wrong with my plan?"
Darren smiled grimly. "If you can find a way to remedy all the malfunctions in this plan, I'll go along without another word." It was clear by his expression that he thought this impossible.
"Fine. Malfunction away."
"Number One: What happens when one of our parents calls our friend's house and asks to talk to us? Two: What makes you think our friends will stick to the story when asked a point blank question? Three: It's an eight-hour drive to D.C. I've got a restricted license. I can't drive past eleven, and even if I could, I wouldn't. It's too dangerous. And four: If our parents ever find out the truth, we'll never be ungrounded. Oh, and there's always the slim possibility that your dad isn't alive and that was just some freak misunderstanding or something."
Joline glared at her cousin, fire in her eyes. "Darren, my dad is out there! Alive! Maybe I'm wrong. So what? I'm willing to take that chance to find out the truth. Imagine if you'd never known your dad! You'd go out of your way to find out what happened to him, wouldn't you? If he was still alive? If he wanted to come home?"
Darren saw the pleading look in Joline's eyes and knew that he couldn't refuse. But—"Your plan is still very flawed."
"And I suppose you have another, O Wise Elder?"
"Actually, I do." Darren disappeared into the kitchen and came back half an hour later holding several hundred dollars and a big smile plastered on his face. As Joline stared disbelievingly, he grinned, "Pack your bags, Jo. We're headed to D.C.!"
~Emachinescat ^..^