Chapter 2: Monday, August 2, 2010

Monday, August 2, 2010

Kate’s eyes widened. “Really? What?”

“There’s some good news and some bad news. Let’s go someplace where we can get some privacy.” Jan took Kate’s hand and lead her out of the kitchen. “Boris, would you come and deliver the news?”

“Yes, ma’am,” he said and followed.

Jan, Kate and Boris sat at one end of the dining room table. Jake, who had been out of the loop when it came to Kate’s treatment for two weeks, decided he needed to get a feel for how things had progressed in his absence. He sat several seats away, out of Kate’s line of sight.

“Tell her, Boris,” Jan said.

Boris raised his eyebrows. “Everything?” he asked.

Jake sensed Boris’s surprise and read him. The investigator’s report had included several rumors that, if true, suggested that Kate’s mother had fallen very low.

“Everything that you know for sure,” Jan said. “No need to repeat anything unsubstantiated, but you don’t need to be gentle or sugarcoat it. Kate is strong enough to hear the truth.”

Boris pulled several pages of paper from his pocket and unfolded them.

“Jake asked me to find Kate’s parents. We only had their names and a three-year-old address. I couldn’t find them using the Internet so I hired a private investigator in Columbia, South Carolina. He found court records showing that Troy and Marie Stewart divorced in November 2008. Mr. Stewart was given custody of both children, Kate, whereabouts unknown, and Trevor. The family home was ordered sold and the proceeds split equally between Mr. and Mrs. Stewart.

“Through means not entirely legal, the addresses of the Stewarts’ new residences were discovered. Mr. Stewart is living with Trevor in a rented house at 2206 Locust Drive in Columbia. He’s currently employed by Columbia Tool and Die.”

“That’s where he was working when I was still there,” Kate said.

Boris continued. “Mrs. Stewart is living at 2141 Waverly Street, Apartment six, in Columbia.”

“Waverly Street? Why would she live there?” Kate said. “That’s in a crummy part of the city.”

Boris looked pained.

“Tell her, Boris,” Jan said. “Everything that is certain.”

“She is currently employed at Rabbit’s Pub as a cocktail waitress. She’s been there for the last two weeks. She is drinking heavily and has been unable to hold down a job for more than a couple of months.”

“Everything, Boris,” Jan said.

Boris looked down. “She and a man named Curtis Spinks were arrested in April for possession of crack cocaine. The charges are pending in the Fifth Circuit Court in Richland County. Mrs. Stewart is currently out on bail which was posted by Mr. Stewart. She is represented by Gaylord Bishop, a local criminal defense lawyer, probably also paid by Mr. Stewart.”

“Thank you, Boris,” Jan said.

“I don’t understand,” Kate said, her angelic features marred by a frown. “There were no problems at home. Why did they get divorced? Why is Mom living in the slums and using drugs?”

“Kate, darling,” Jan said, “it is not uncommon for parents to divorce when something happens to a child. As for the rest, it sounds like losing you has been hard on your mom.”

“But why would she be using drugs?”

Jake stimulated the nerves in Kate’s pituitary gland that cause the release of endorphins. Her eyes closed and she sighed. She smiled dumbly as she relaxed into her seat. Jake counted to five and then turned off the endorphins.

“Don’t stop,” Kate said. “It feels so good.”

Jan looked over at Jake with a touch of annoyance.

Isn’t it better if she understands what her mother is up against? Jake sent to Jan.

“Those were endorphins, Kate,” Jake said. “Do you remember when I did that to you before?”

Maybe you’re right, Jan sent. She turned to Kate. “Opiates like heroin and morphine stimulate the same part of the brain as endorphins. The sensation you felt, the sense of well-being, is the same thing your mother is probably seeking through drugs. When someone is in a lot of pain, the lure of anything that can relieve it is very strong. And not just for your mother. Look at how you reacted. Until you are fully healed, you are also at risk for substance abuse. I strongly recommend that you abstain from all forms of drugs and alcohol. If you don’t you will probably end up like your mother.”

“But it felt so good. It was such a—I don’t know—such a relief.”

“Relief is the right word,” Jan said. “You are in nearly constant psychological pain. Even though you’ve come a long way, you have quite a bit of healing ahead of you still. Until then, any substance that induces that sense of well-being could be addictive.”

“I’ve got to go to my mom,” Kate said. “She needs help.”

“I agree that something needs to be done,” Jan said. “The most likely cause of her problems is your disappearance. Knowing that you are alive and recovering will relieve her pain and may help reduce her dependence on drugs.”

“Good. When can I go?” Kate asked.

“First, let me make something clear,” Jan said. “If you go, you can’t stay there. If you lived with your mother, you’d be two addictive personalities reinforcing one another.”

“I understand. So what are we going to do?”

Jan looked over at Jake.

“We’ve talked about this before,” Jake said. “The danger to the rest of us is too great if you tell your parents about us. But we’ve still got to do something for your mother.”

“Kate could send mail with no return address or call her mother on an untraceable cell phone,” Jan said.

“But would it be enough?” Jake asked. “Jan, if you were in Kate’s mother’s shoes would you be content to get a letter or a call that lacked specifics and didn’t allow you to follow up? Neither of those options would help her mom as much as a face-to-face meeting would. Worse, she might call the police and that would restart the search for her.”

“You are right about that,” Jan said, “but there are problems with a face-to-face meeting, too. Either of her parents would be within their rights to take custody of Kate. They might call the police to report her reappearance. That would be even more likely to bring the authorities down on us.”

“I only see one solution,” Jake said. “We have to take Kate to South Carolina ourselves. We could intervene if the Stewarts try to call the police.”

Jan nodded. “Not only would that keep the police from getting involved, but we could oversee Kate’s interaction with her family.” Jan turned to Kate. “What do you think, darling? Would you be willing for Jake and I to go with you to manage the situation?”

“You won’t take control of them, will you, Jake?” she asked.

“I won’t let them call the police,” Jake said. “But other than that, I won’t do anything to them that you don’t agree to.”

“Then I want to go,” Kate said.

“Jan, what if Kate decided to stay?” Jake asked. “Has she made enough progress to leave us?”

“Let’s find out. Boris, would you and Jake step down to the other end of the table? I’ll have Jake release his controls on Kate. Jake, you might warn the others that there may be some noise.”

“Right. Give me a moment.”

Jake told everyone but Christine what was about to happen. He asked Julie to take Christine to the pool and, hopefully, outside of earshot.

By the way, Jan sent to Jake, while you were gone, I found a circuit in Kate’s brain that’s partially responsible for her anger.

Show me.

Jan sent some energy to one of Kate’s amygdalas, illuminating a pathway in the medial region. Jake saw that it had been ringed and rendered inert.

“I know you’re talking about me,” Kate said snappishly.

“Good,” Jan said. “If it makes you angry, use it, just like we’ve been doing every day. Detach from it. In a minute, Jake will take out the blocks. You know that you will feel strong anger. I want you to maintain your detachment when it hits you.” She looked over at Jake. “You might as well do it now.”

Jake removed the rings around her medial amygdalas.

Kate fixed Jake and Boris with a glare and shrieked, “You cocksucking faggots!”

Boris knocked his chair over as he jumped up, poised to defend himself.

“You don’t deserve to live, especially you,” she screamed, pointing at Jake. “And if I ever get the chance, I’ll make sure that you don’t!”

“Kate, darling, focus on the anger,” Jan said. “View it as a phenomenon. It’s something that’s happening in you but is not a part of you. Pull back from it if you can.”

Kate glared at her. “I appreciate everything you’ve done for me, but don’t push it. These ... these animals should be in cages. No, they should be put down.”

Jake restored the rings to Kate’s amygdalas and reset her anger to a level she could control. Kate collapsed and broke down in tears. Jan grabbed her and held her close.

“Hush, darling. You did wonderfully. I’m very proud of you.”

Kate sobbed for several minutes.

“It was so strong,” she said between sobs. “I couldn’t control it. It was too powerful.”

Jan held her until she finally calmed.

“Kate, that was amazing,” Jake said. “I’m very proud of you, and Jan, too. I never thought I would see so much improvement in a single month.”

“Improvement?” Boris said. “That was the most frightening thing I’ve ever seen.”

“A month ago she tried to kill me when we did this test, Boris.”

“I’ll take your word for it that she’s better.”

“It’s obviously still strong,” Jake said, “but if you had been there the last time you would see how much better she’s doing. For one thing, she did a good job aiming it at us.”

“That’s a good thing?” he asked.

“Before, she was angry at everything. Now she’s controlling it well enough to only direct it where it makes sense. Did you see how she treated Jan with respect even though she was enraged with us? I think Kate’s progress is nothing short of miraculous.”

“That’s nice of you to say those things,” Kate said tiredly, “but I was out of control.”

“No, not really,” Jan said. “Jake is right. You were angry, but you were able to stop yourself from acting on it.”

“I wish you didn’t hate me so much because you’re my hero,” Jake said. “You are battling a force within yourself that’s very strong. I suspect that you’re doing something very few people have ever been able to do.”

“I don’t hate you now,” Kate said. “Well, I do think that you’re pathetic and contemptible, and I wouldn’t turn my back on you if you were tied down. But I don’t hate you.”

Jake chuckled. “I’ll take what I can get. Maybe next month you’ll only think I’m a jerk.”

“Kate, darling, you do see that you’re not ready to end your treatment, don’t you?”

“Yes, Jan.”

“With that understanding then, I say we should take you to see your parents as soon as possible.”

“Can we go right away?”

“It would be cruel to put it off,” Jake said.

“She can’t fly commercially without an ID,” Boris said.

“We’ll have to charter a plane then,” Jake said. “Jan, can you go?”

“I don’t think Mark will object when I explain the circumstances.”

“I’m expected at Jerry Amos’s law office in the morning,” Jake said, “and again on Thursday. We can leave tomorrow afternoon and come back the next day. Boris, will you arrange for the plane?”

“Do you want me to come, boss?”

“No, I don’t foresee any danger that Jan and I couldn’t handle. Besides, there’s someone here whose feelings are hurt because you keep ignoring her. Maybe you should work on that while we’re gone.”

Boris looked down but didn’t say anything.

“Then it’s settled,” Jake said. “We’ll leave at one, tomorrow afternoon. Boris, get me the details when you’ve made the arrangements.”

“Yes, boss.”

“There was one other thing, Jake,” Jan said.

“What’s that?”

“Kate’s been having nightmares the last few nights.”

“Did this just start?”

“The first one occurred in the middle of last week. She’s also had one each of the last two nights.”

“Let me take a look.”

Jake swept through Kate’s mind, looking for the nerves that ran from her amygdalas to her cerebral cortex, the ones that he had ringed six weeks earlier. Yes, new nerves had formed which circumvented his rings.

I expect you’ve already seen this, Jake sent to Jan.

Jan threw him a smile. We only need to bring the newly formed fibers into the ring, Dr. Fielding.

That’s what I’d do, too. Why don’t you go ahead and operate?

Jake watched as Jan destroyed the old ring and formed a new, larger one that brought in the new nerve fibers.

You are getting very comfortable doing neurosurgery, doctor. I’m impressed.

Thank you, doctor, although neurosurgery is a term with some unattractive historical associations. We’ll have to come up with another name for it. After all, it’s not really surgery.

“Kate, sweetheart, I think I’ve dealt with the dreams,” Jake said “It’s been five or six weeks since the last fix so we can probably expect you’ve got that long before I have to do it again. That means the next time won’t be until September. Tell me when it happens again.”

“Okay. Thank you, Jake.”

“Now, let’s go back and join the others,” he said.

They filed out of the dining room. Alice and the senior women had returned to the kitchen. Jake read them to see what the outcome of their meeting was. Alice had moved quickly past the disbelief phase and had become excited about the prospect of becoming a mind reader. She was also pleased for the chance to get closer to Jake and his family. Jake was relieved.

In the kitchen, Jake took an open seat between Ellen and Kara. Kara laid her head on his shoulder briefly.

Jake looked around the table. There were people still hanging around the kitchen that he couldn’t talk in front of freely.

“I think I’m going to call a family meeting,” Jake said. “Kate, would you mind asking Julie to join us? It would help if you entertained Christine until we’re done here.”

Kate nodded and left the kitchen.

Jake turned to Brian. “Will you excuse us while we talk about some private matters. You, too, Annabelle and Maureen.”

The servants left without comment. Brian was irritated.

“I don’t want to hear about your stupid plans anyway,” he said as he stomped out of the room.

Jake shook his head.

“I’m sorry,” he said to Leanne. “I couldn’t figure out a diplomatic way to ask.”

“It couldn’t be helped. And this is too important to wait. I’ll smooth things out with him tomorrow.”

Julie walked in with a towel around her swimsuit.

“Let’s call the meeting to order,” Jake said. “I’ll start out by noting that the Revolutionary Committee has completed its coup.”

“You know it’s not like that, Jake,” Kara said. “We are completely loyal to you, and what we’ve done has been in your best interests.”

“Yes, I know. I just don’t see why we couldn’t have talked this out before involving Alice.”

“It’s really very simple, Jake,” Leanne said. “It’s those damnable principles you have, the same ones that make you a good leader, inspire our loyalty, and make us love you. They prevent you from making some hard decisions.”

“What are you all talking about?” Carol asked.

Jake turned to her.

“The Revolutionary Committee has decided to add another soldier to the Army of Jake. I know this is the first time you’ve met Alice and don’t know much about her, but she has the qualities that would make her a good mind reader and valuable member of our family.”

“Excuse me for interrupting, but what do you mean by your family and why do you have an army?” Shannon asked.

“I consider every person in this room to be part of my family. That now includes Alice since she was invited to join us today and has accepted.”

“I don’t even live with you,” Shannon said.

“Granted, although I would love it if you did. I share you Harrison women with Mark because I have to, and because I respect Mark. But that’s not the point. I am related by blood only to Ellen, but I’m linked emotionally to all of you. I’m committed to you all. Furthermore, you all know about my telepathy, and you know that I can make other people into mind readers. In fact, everybody here is a candidate to become a mind reader.”

“Of course, that’s old news,” Leanne said. “What some of you don’t know is why Jake needs an army.”

Leanne told them what Jake had learned about the Council from his father. Then she told them about the visits Jake had received from Elias Grubb a month before.

Boris, Ellen, Kara, and Julie all tried to talk when Leanne finished, but Jake spoke over all of them.

“It’s true what Leanne says about the Council, but I can’t agree with her conclusions. It’s looking like I may have problems with them, but they are my problems. This is not anyone else’s fight. These guys are experienced with telepathy, and they wield the power it gives them ruthlessly. I don’t think I can bring myself to accept their authority, but the consequences need fall only on me. The last thing I’m willing to do is put you all in danger when it’s not necessary.”

“Leanne, if we join Jake’s army,” Shannon asked, “is it certain death, or is this a fair fight?”

Leanne looked over at Boris.

“It depends on how disciplined and well-trained we are,” he said. “They’ve got an advantage in total numbers, but we’ve got some things going for us that I think give us the upper hand.”

“I have the same advantages acting alone,” Jake said.

“No, not all of them,” Boris said. “Not even the most important ones, Jake. You underestimate how much stronger a cohesive unit is than a bunch of individuals. With disciplined and coordinated teamwork you can rout them with much less risk to yourself.”