The Adventures of Griffin
Copyright© 2026 by A Well Traveled Man
Chapter 1
Griffin Jayden Steele led an interesting life from the moment he was born. His father, Thomas Steele, was a biochemist, and his mother, Mia Bushi Steele, was a practicing psychology professor. When Griffin was born, a nanny cared for him while his parents focused on their professional lives. Sophia was Hispanic and taught Griffin English and Spanish while using the computer programs Mom had purchased for him.
They also had a cook, Kiki, who was Japanese and made breakfast and lunch, prepared dinner, put it in the refrigerator, and left at 3 p.m. She also taught Griffin Japanese during breakfast and lunch. There was a housekeeper/maid named Renee who came in twice a week. Weekends were family time, and his parents planned educational outings for Griffin. Museums, sporting events, science fairs, or visits to Dad’s work or Mom’s university.
During his first year, he learned to walk at three months and stopped needing diapers shortly after. Griffin was talking and learning languages, too. For his first birthday, they went to the mountains on vacation over the holidays. The university was shut down, so Mom was off, and Dad used vacation days to cover the days the company recognized as off. Griffin got to play in the snow, build a fire, and ride on a sled with Mom or Dad.
For his second birthday, Griffin’s parents flew him to Arizona over the holidays, rented a motorhome, and took him to the desert to expose him to nature. They found a remote campsite and went on nature walks, pointing out what everything was and what to avoid. Dad was an avid outdoorsman, hunting and fishing whenever his work schedule allowed. Mom was into yoga and had just enrolled Griffin in a preschool martial arts class.
On the second night at the campground, Griffin felt the urge to go outside after everyone went to bed. Once outside, he felt drawn to a hill, and when he reached the top, he lost consciousness. He could hear voices but didn’t understand the language. It was like he was in a dream, but he could see nothing. Then he lost his hearing and felt things being done to him, and finally went into a deep sleep.
Thomas and Mia Steele woke up the next morning to find Griffin gone. They saw his footprints and followed them up the hill. They searched for an hour, then called the Park Ranger. They organized a search party and used a helicopter to survey the area. After two days, they were about to give up hope when the helicopter pilot reported seeing Griffin with a wolf next to him. Thomas and Mia got into the ranger’s Jeep and went to the sighting location. There was Griffin sitting next to a hillside with a wolf beside him.
The ranger was about to shoot the wolf when Griffin hugged it, and the wolf gave him a kiss. The wolf took off into the brush, and Griffin got up and walked towards his parents. He was almost hugged to death, and then the questions started about why he left the motorhome. Griffin said he heard something outside and went to see what it was. He left out the strange voices and things being done to him and said he blacked out. When I woke up, I was in a cave with dogs, and there was a pool of water.
After drinking some water, I felt better, and one of the dogs led me out of the cave where you found me. Luckily, everyone bought the story, and the excitement ended. Well, most of it, and when they got to the motorhome, Griffin was warned never to leave again without telling someone. They moved to another campground and continued their vacation. At the end of the week’s vacation, they returned the motorhome and flew home.
Griffin noticed changes to his body right away, but didn’t dare say anything. Mom would rush him to the doctor, afraid he had caught something from the wolves. They just kept him company and protected him until his parents arrived. Things returned to normal with his tutoring from his nanny, Sophia, and Kiki, the cook, who taught him Japanese. Griffin tried to keep his newfound skills hidden, but Sophia told Mom he passed the program they were on. So he was studying from first through third grade.
Things progressed, and by the age of ten, he passed the high school exam. He took the ACT and SAT tests, and his parents were blown away by his scores. They were arguing over who gave him his intelligence, and Griffin said maybe it skipped a generation. That caused laughter and a few dinner rolls thrown his way. Then the subject of college came up, and his parents agreed he was too young to stay in a college dorm. They decided Griffin would attend Mom’s university and schedule his courses around hers so they could commute together.
Martial Arts were going well, too, and Sensi had been giving Griffin private lessons for 3 years. He advanced past his age group and wasn’t tall or heavy enough to train with teenagers. Griffin held back his strength, speed, flexibility, and power so he wouldn’t draw more attention. He knew he could take the teenagers and probably adults, too, in the right circumstances.
Then there were the occasional late-night trips to the park. Griffin didn’t know when or how often they were. It was just a sense, and he would go to a spot in the park and wait. Then he would black out and wake up on the grass early in the morning. Sometimes it hurt to move, and he struggled to walk home. But the pain and discomfort didn’t last long. Other times, he felt rejuvenated and jogged home. The visits to the park weren’t often, maybe once a year. One time, it seemed like two years.
By the age of fourteen, Griffin had dual master’s degrees in biochemistry and psychology. Unknown to his parents, he also had a master’s in computer programming. He earned them by taking online college courses and doing lab work at the university. His parents wanted him to follow them in their careers, but he wasn’t interested. But the knowledge from those courses would help his future business plans.
Last year, when he turned thirteen, it unlocked many useful skills. He could read minds and teleport short distances (under a mile). He had persuasive power and could quickly learn any foreign language. He could read almost as quickly as he could turn a page, and he had a photographic memory. The neatest thing of all is his recall of information. His brain organizes it, and it is available with a thought. What confused him most was his knowledge of advanced computers, programming, chemical compounds, electronics, and propulsion systems.
His martial arts skills advanced to the point that the Sensei told him to practice at home. He told Griffin to adapt his own form of martial arts using what he’s learned and his new skills. That shocked Griffin, as he hid it from everyone, but Sensei had seen through it. He gave Griffin the supply house address, so he set up his own dojo at home. Sensei warned him to practice in private and practice his “Spirit Walk” regularly. They bowed and said goodbye, with Griffin thanking Sensei for his training.
Griffin tried to get his parents to let him attend a different university for his doctoral degrees, but they said he was too young. Mom said The young women will seduce you for a chance to cash in on your potential, and I’m too young to be a grandmother. Dad said that’s what condoms are for, and Mom threw a spoon at him, causing laughter. Griffin didn’t want to get his doctorates but would do it for the freedom. Now he has to figure out how to cut the cord without hurting feelings, or devise a way to get free time.
So, he set up a dojo in the basement and practiced three days a week. He carpooled with Mom to the university and helped Dad in the lab a few afternoons a week. Dad’s company hired Griffin as an assistant researcher, so he got to explore some of his ideas with their supplies. Mom tried to get Griffin to sit in on some of her sessions, but he said I’m afraid of saying the wrong thing and activating a psycho killer. That caused a round of laughter.
On his fifteenth birthday, things turned south, but it unknowingly opened up an opportunity for Griffin. The CIA caught wind of a fifteen-year-old genius at the university and tried to recruit him. They sent a thirty-something woman and a man who was in his forties. After failing to recruit him, they tried his parents, who listened to their sales pitch. They claimed, under their tutelage, Griffin would rise to the stars and beyond.
Dad said Let me get this straight. You want to take my son to an unknown place and challenge him with ideas, tests, and problems. They said yes, and his parents said no, ending the meeting. Griffin read their minds, and this was their friendly way. The next step was to take him against his will and cover their tracks by making it look like a foreign government did it. After they left, Dad said it wasn’t over and that we needed to watch for strangers hanging around.
Griffin asked if he got to kill the kidnappers, and everyone laughed. Then Dad said yes, shocking everyone. He said if it happens, call me immediately and do it in a discreet place if possible. He looked at Mom and said We need to find a safe house for Griffin if things turn south. Mom asked Thomas about his grandfather’s hunting cabin, and he said that’s an excellent idea. The property is listed under a corporation, so it won’t be tied to us.
We’ll need to borrow a four-wheel drive vehicle and set it up this weekend. For all we know, they have us under surveillance. Then Dad got up and checked the table and chairs where the CIA recruiters had been sitting. It was clean, and he went to the garage with Griffin and inspected their vehicles. Both had trackers on them, and Dad said We’ll leave them on for now. They returned to the kitchen, and Thomas told Mia both vehicles had trackers.
She asked what they should do now, and Thomas said to keep our normal schedule but assume the house and our cell phones will be tapped. So, say nothing here or on the phone about our plans. Griffin said he would be right back, then exited the house and the property via the backyard. He circled the block and saw a plumbing van parked at the end of the street. He got close enough to read the minds of the two men inside. They were monitoring the house, and when the family left, they would plant listening devices and cameras.
Returning the way he left, Griffin reported a plumbing van parked at the end of the street. He asked if he could set it on fire, and everyone laughed; then Dad said no. We have to act like we don’t know what they are doing. It gives us an advantage when the time comes, and we ate dinner and discussed this weekend. After dinner, everyone said goodnight and went to bed. Griffin stayed awake, thinking about this situation and the freedom it could afford him. He finally fell asleep.
Griffin woke up after midnight, dressed in dark clothes, and walked a mile to a two-story house. Something in his head told him he needed something inside. Griffin quietly entered the kitchen and took out the two men at the table playing cards quickly and without making a noise. Two more were in the living room, but he ignored them and went to the basement. Griffin saw two men seated at a table using a counting machine and wrapping the cash in bundles.
They didn’t notice him as he “Ghost Walked” behind them and knocked them out. Duffel bags sat by the open safe, and Griffin emptied the safe and the table of cash. He quietly left by the kitchen door with the two duffel bags and jogged home. He put the duffel bags in the garage attic after removing three bundles of cash. Griffin knew the CIA would attack soon, and the cash would get him what he needed at the cabin. The problem was getting the two duffel bags to the cabin.
Mom and Griffin arrived at the university the next morning, and Mom went to her lecture hall. Griffin skipped his class and took a cab to Walmart. He bought two pay-as-you-go phones and two mobile hotspots. Then he got a package of stick matches, two cans of lighter fluid, a butane torch, two ski masks, a five-pack of gloves, and 100 feet of rope. On the way to checkout, he saw a hiking backpack and got it too. At checkout, Griffin told the cashier to ignore his age, and he left the store.
He took a cab back to the university and put the backpack filled with purchases in Mom’s trunk. Griffin arrived at his class just as everyone was leaving, so he went to the cafeteria for lunch. He already knew everything about the subject and could test out of class if his parents would let him. But they said he needed student/teacher interaction, so he was stuck. What they don’t understand is that no one talks to him because he is four or more years younger than them.
Then when he finished lunch, a man and a woman entered the cafeteria, and they weren’t students. Both tried to look young but were over thirty, and Griffin quickly left as they were scanning the lunch crowd. He sensed they would try something very soon, possibly tomorrow. He sat in on Mom’s last class to audit it, but he had already passed the course.
When the class ended, Griffin told Mom what he saw in the cafeteria, and they rushed to Mom’s Lexus SUV. They quickly left and headed home. When they arrived, Griffin reminded Mom about the listening devices and possible cameras. Mom asked where they would put cameras, and he said it depended on whether they were perverts. They laughed, and Mom punched Griffin in the shoulder, then went inside. He got the backpack out of Mom’s SUV, took it to the attic, and filled it full of cash.