Star Runners: Revelation Protocol

Chapter 5

5

The radio discussed nothing but the recent car bombing in San Francisco; angry voices argued over the lack of preparation of law enforcement and whether or not the U.S. government had adequately protected the city. Austin turned it off just after they passed Macon.

The skyscrapers of downtown Atlanta glowed on the sides of the interstate, stretching high into the night sky. Traffic was mercifully light. After passing through the city, he took the exit for Marietta and for home. New gas stations had been built during his absence, continuing the erasure of green space in the growing suburb. He smiled as they passed the coffee shop, though, happy it still remained. Josh and Kadyn would be glad to know that they could meet for coffee again once they all were in town.

His stomach dropped.

Josh would not be coming home, and his parents had undoubtedly been notified of his mysterious disappearance in the Pacific Ocean. Austin knew it was a lie, sure, but it sounded better than the truth: His friend had been murdered by the Tyral Pirates along with every other passenger on board the freighter.

"Watch it, Stone,” Sharkey said, his eyes still closed as he tried to nap.

He adjusted his path slightly, pulling the car back from the edge of the road.

The floodlight over the garage sent a white beam through the late-night fog. The haze magnified the aura, filling the air in front of the house with a cloud-like vapor. A flurry of insects twirled around the light, fighting to get closer to the bulb. Beneath the gutter, the garbage can stood at the side of the house. The grass had been cut and no weeds crept over the edge of the sidewalk.

Mom had been keeping the house in good shape since he had been gone. Austin pulled the car past the house as Sharkey had insisted, driving down the deserted streets. The sun would not rise for several hours, and the house was dark.

Sharkey rested his hand over the holster beneath his blue jacket. He glanced around the road, his eyes darting from house to house.

Austin touched his chin, his fingertips cold.

"Do we turn back now?" he asked, his voice louder than he expected in the silence.

"Looks clear." He turned back from the window. "Let's go."

Austin turned around in the cul-de-sac and drove back to his house. He pulled into the driveway, killed the lights, and stretched. The fatigue of the long, boring drive fell over him.

"She's probably asleep," he said, yawning.

"I'm sure," Sharkey said, "but we need to wake her."

He reached for the door, but Sharkey grabbed his shoulder.

“Listen, we have to assume they’re watching the house right now,” he said softly. “Be ready for anything.”

“I got it.”

The cool, late night air washed over him as he opened the door and put on a light jacket from the duffel bag in the back seat. A few insects pulsated in the trees, a rhythmic and alien sound rippling through the night. A pair of moths pounded into the floodlight, spinning and twirling away into the darkness as they battled for the warmth of the light. Austin stretched again, reaching high into the air until his back popped.

Sharkey slipped out of the car, his gaze flickering around the yard. He turned around and glanced at the other houses.

"Let's go, Lieutenant."

"Yes, sir."

Austin walked toward the front door and knocked softly. After a minute of silence, he hit the door a little harder. From the front yard, Sharkey sighed and shifted his weight from one foot to the other. He hated to ring the doorbell so long after midnight, but he reluctantly pressed the dim oval next to the door. The bell rang bold and intrusive in the darkness.

He winced. "That's going to do it."

He thought of the Revelation Protocol Sharkey had explained in the car. Once the protocol had been initiated to citizens on a dark world, it was crucial to provide the remaining information quickly and efficiently. After getting the person or persons to a secure location, Sharkey said to stick to the "Ws" such as who, what, when, where, and why. He wondered how his mother would take all of this information. He balled his fists, thinking of the shadowy force that killed Ryan and wondered if they now hunted him.

Austin looked over at the garage door, the night he spoke with Josh on the phone about Star Runners coming to mind. His friend had just been suspended, and would soon dominate the servers which helped him earn his scholarship. After hanging up the phone, Austin had seen a shooting star before going inside. He remembered wondering if his life would ever change.

He grimaced. Everything had changed. He had looked forward to this moment, the homecoming, for so long. After all the studying and work he had put in, he had anticipated telling Mom about his degree, his scholarship, and his school experience even though he knew he had to leave out most of the details. Both of them had worked hard to get him into a school. None of this would truly be real until he told her.

The first homecoming had been delayed when he left Tizona for Tarton's Junction. That was bad enough. Nubern mentioned he might be able to eventually inform Mom about the Legion in order to possibly recruit her for a medical ship. While Austin couldn't wait to come home, see his old room on solid ground again, and visit with Mom, the possibility of giving her a life beyond this house of shattered dreams gave him hope.

And now when the homecoming had finally arrived, an explosion on the streets of San Francisco threatened to take everything from him as it had Ryan. Somehow, he knew Dax Rodon was behind these attacks even if others seemed hesitant to make such a connection. The reasons why were still unclear, but all that mattered was that his mother could be in danger. She wasn’t answering the door.

Was he too late?

He turned halfway around to look at Sharkey when the upstairs light finally switched on, followed by the hallway.

"She's coming," he said, almost like a prayer.

His mother stepped down to the foyer and paused. She moved a hand to her face.

Austin nodded. "It's okay, Mom. It's me."

The porch light came on, sending a blinding light into his face. Sharkey took a step back into the shadows in the yard.

The front door pulled back slowly. Mom stood in the doorway, her hair in tangles. She squinted as if trying to pry open her eyes, but they fought against it as she looked through the glass. She swallowed and rubbed her mouth while pushing back the storm door, revealing her yellow nightgown.

"Is that really you?" she asked, offering a weak smile.

He winced and focused on her pale skin, remembering when Dad had been coping with chemotherapy. Was she sick?

"It's me, Mom."

She lifted her arms and they embraced. She squeezed softly. Her body felt weak, frail like a paper doll.

"I, uh, I can't believe you are here,” she said. “Uh, I thought you were coming tomorrow."

Austin studied her. She blinked repeatedly, placing her hand on the door. Grabbing her forehead, she swayed. Her skin turned the color of freshly washed sheets.

“My head is pounding,” she murmured.

Leaping from the shadows, Sharkey shot past his mom without saying a word and stormed into the house.

Austin cradled her in his arms, and her head dropped onto his shoulder.

“Chief!” Austin yelled. “What is it? What’s wrong with her?"

"Get her to the street!" he yelled from the doorway. He moved onto the porch. “Now!”

He grabbed her wrists. "Come on, Mom! Move!"

He moved her through the cold grass wet with dew. She moaned a protest. He pushed her quickly, heading for the street. Sharkey hurried to her other side, lowering his shoulder to dip under her arm. He stood up, draping her hand around his neck.

"Come on!" Sharkey yelled.

An explosion blasted through the silence, the shockwave ripping through tree tops and knocking them onto the grass. Leaves, bark, and wooden splinters showered the yard in a fiery rain. Austin rolled onto his back and stared at the fireball that, a moment before, was his childhood home. A black cloud of smoke mushroomed into the night sky. He gasped.

Dad loved that house.

"Lieutenant," Sharkey called, already getting to his feet. "We need to move. Help me get her up."

Austin stood, shaking his head. He stared into the inferno, the orange flames engulfing his home. The roof turned black, smoke flowing through the broken windows. Lights came on up and down the street.

"What the hell was that?" he asked, unable to turn away from the fire.

"Stone!" Sharkey barked. "We need to move! Get her up!"

Shaking sweat from his eyes, he helped Mom stand. He placed her arm over his shoulder. She mumbled as they marched her to the car. Mr. Henderson’s garage light turned on, followed by Mr. Weaver’s on the other side of the street.

"Should we stay for the authorities?" Austin asked as they pushed her into the back seat.

"Absolutely not." Sharkey glanced at his watch. "It's already started."

Sharkey drove through the streets like a demon pursued them, screeching around turns with the skill of a Formula One driver. Mom tumbled across the back seat, her sense of balance non-existent. Austin grabbed the door handle, using his other hand to brace himself against the dashboard. Even with the seat belt pulled across his lap, Sharkey’s movements sent him sliding across the seat.

"I need you to give me directions to Kadyn's house," Sharkey said, his tone icy.

"She's not far," Austin said through his teeth and told Sharkey to take a left out of the neighborhood. He glanced back at his mother. "She going to be okay?"

Sharkey watched the streets, the lights playing across his face. "I don't know. She’ll have quite a headache for a while. Carbon monoxide poisoning will do that. Try not to worry. If we get her to some help after this, she should be okay."

"You mean like a hospital? How is that going to work?"

"We have resources all over this planet. We'll get there. We have to get to your friend first."

He looked back at his mother. Her eyes closed tightly, and her body folded into the fetal position on the seat. Her skin was pale and her lips trembled. He wanted to climb back and hold her, tell her everything would be fine. Despite the need to rescue Kadyn, his mind kept repeating the same, unescapable fact: If they had been a few minutes later, his mother would be dead.

"I'm taking it that wasn't an accident."

"No," Sharkey said. "It was not."

"These attackers caused a gas leak in my house?"

“Apparently. You know what I know.”

“What does that mean?” Austin slammed his hand on the door handle. “They almost killed my mom! What are we going to do?”

“You’re going to calm down.” Sharkey nodded forward. “I’m going to concentrate on getting us to your friend’s house.”

Sharkey jerked the wheel, cutting a turn so close he hopped a curb exiting the subdivision. The car tires squealed, and the back end of the vehicle fishtailed into the other lane. The tires kicked up water from the wet streets. The headlights beamed into the haze lifting from the pavement. Sharkey maintained an intense glare, his hands never leaving the steering wheel.

"I need you to open the glove box," Sharkey said, his voice low.

"What? Why?"

"Open the box!"

Austin flipped it open. A pile of papers topped with a state map fell out onto the floor of the car. "What am I looking for?"

"There should be a button to the left, directly under the jack for the MP3."

"I see it."

"Press it."

When Austin pressed the button, a shimmering light shot across the car. The air wavered like they passed under a waterfall. The hood glowed for a moment before it disappeared, revealing the street below. The lighting effect looked familiar.

"You have a shroud on this car?" He spun around, gaping at the road behind them. Water kicked high into the air by the tires now hidden by the shroud.

Sharkey nodded. "Of course." He accelerated, the engine straining at the effort. "The gas leak would have killed your mother and the authorities would have thought it was an accident. Our arrival forced these agents to expedite their efforts, hence the explosion. Your mother’s home was under surveillance, but there’s no way to tell if they were there or if it was done remotely."

Austin sank into his seat. “They were watching us?"

"Yes. They might be trailing us now. My guess is they were watching with a drone. If we had time, I would’ve searched the skies and shot it down. Whoever these agents are, they are definitely targeting you and your contacts. Once they have eliminated them, they will move on to the next Star Runner or Legion target. This is not theoretical anymore."

"Oh, my God."

Sharkey glanced at him. "Tell me where your friend is."