John Hawks - The Traveler

“Hollis is a mercenary. I don’t know how much he’s willing to sacrifice.”

Maya walked several times from the living room to the bedroom as if she was memorizing the position of the doorways and walls. Then she went into the bedroom and slid the blades of her two knives between the box spring and the mattress. Both handles were sticking out. If she dropped her hand down, she could instantly pull a knife from its sheath. Finally she got into bed, and Vicki lay on the other side of the mattress.

“Good night,” Vicki said, but Maya didn’t answer her.

Vicki had slept with her older sister and various cousins during vacations and was used to their restless movements. Maya was different in every way. The Harlequin lay flat on her back with her hands clenched into fists. It looked as if an immense weight was pushing down on her body.

When Maya woke up the next morning she saw a black cat with a white throat sitting on the dresser. “What do you want?” she whispered, but didn’t get an answer. The cat jumped down onto the floor, glided through the doorway, and left her alone.

She heard voices and peered out the bedroom window. Hollis and Gabriel were standing in the driveway, inspecting the damaged motorcycle. Buying a new tire meant a monetary transaction and contact with a business that was connected to the Vast Machine. The Tabula would know all about the damaged bike and activate their computer search programs to monitor motorcycle tire sales in the Los Angeles area.

Considering her next move, she went into the bathroom and took a quick shower. The finger shields that had gotten her through United States immigration were starting to peel off her index fingers like dead skin. She got dressed, strapped both knives onto her arms, and checked her other weapons. The black cat reappeared when she left the bathroom and led her into the hallway. Vicki was washing dishes in the sink.

“I see you met Garvey.”

“Is that his name?”

“Yes. He doesn’t like to be touched, and he doesn’t purr. I don’t think that’s normal.”

“I wouldn’t know,” Maya said. “I never had a pet.”

There was a coffeemaker on the counter. Maya poured coffee into a bright yellow mug and mixed in some cream.

“I just made some corn bread. Are you hungry?”

“Definitely.”

Vicki cut a thick slice of corn bread and placed it in a bowl. The two young women sat together at the table. Maya smeared some butter on the corn bread, and then added a spoonful of blackberry jam. The first bite was delicious and she felt a moment of unexpected pleasure. Everything in the kitchen was clean and organized. Patches of sunlight glowed on the green linoleum floor. Although Hollis had broken away from the church, a framed photograph of Isaac T. Jones hung on the wall beside the refrigerator.

“Hollis is going to buy some motorcycle parts,” Vicki said. “But he wants Gabriel to keep out of sight and stay here.”

Maya nodded as she swallowed her corn bread. “That’s a good plan.”

“So what are you going to do?”

“I’m not quite sure. I need to contact my friend in Europe.”

Vicki picked up the dirty dishes and took them over to the sink. “Do you think the Tabula know that Hollis was driving yesterday?”

“Maybe. It depends what those three riders saw as we passed them.”

“And what will happen if they learn about Hollis?”

Maya’s voice was deliberately flat and unemotional. “They’ll try to capture him, torture him for information, and kill him.”

Vicki turned with a dish towel in her hand. “That’s what I told Hollis, but he made a joke about it. He said he’s always looking for new sparring partners.”

“I think Hollis can protect himself, Vicki. He’s a very good fighter.”

“He’s much too confident. I think he should…”

The screen door squeaked open and Hollis strolled in. “Okay. I’ve got my shopping list.” He smiled at Vicki. “Why don’t you come with me? We’ll buy a new tire and pick up some food for lunch.”

“Do you need money?” Maya asked.

“You got any?”

Maya reached into her pocket and pulled out some twenty-dollar bills. “Use cash. After you buy the tire, leave the store right away.”

“No reason to hang around.”

“Avoid stores with surveillance cameras in the parking lot. The cameras are able to photograph license plate numbers.”

Maya watched Vicki and Hollis leave. Gabriel was still outside in the driveway, pulling the tire off the motorcycle’s wheel rim. Maya made sure the gate was closed, concealing Gabriel from anyone driving down the street. She thought about discussing the next step with him, but decided that she needed to talk to Linden first. Gabriel had seemed overwhelmed by everything she had told him yesterday. He probably needed some time to think it over.

Maya returned to the bedroom, switched on her laptop computer, and got onto the Internet with her satellite phone. Linden was either asleep or away from his computer. It took her an hour to find him and follow him to a safe conversation room. Using soft language that wouldn’t trigger Carnivore, she described what had happened.

“Our business competitors responded with aggressive marketing tactics. Right now I’m at my employee’s house with our new associate.” Maya used a code based on random prime numbers and gave Linden the address to the house.

The French Harlequin didn’t answer and after a few minutes she typed: “Understand?”

“Does our new associate have the ability to travel to distant locations?”

“Not at this time.”

“Do you see any indications of that ability?”

“No. He’s just an ordinary citizen.”

“You must introduce him to a teacher who can evaluate his power.”

“Not our responsibility,” Maya typed. Harlequins were only supposed to find and protect Travelers. They didn’t get involved in anyone’s spiritual journey.

Once again, there was a delay of several minutes as Linden appeared to be considering his response. Finally words began to appear on the computer screen. “Our competitors have gained control of the older brother and have flown him to a research facility near New York City. They plan to evaluate his ability and train him. At this point, we don’t know their larger objective. But we must use all our resources to oppose them.”

“And our new associate is our main resource?”

“Correct. A race has started. At this moment, our competitors are winning.”

“What if he won’t cooperate?”

“Use any means necessary to change his mind. A teacher is living in the southwestern United States, protected by a community of friends. Take the associate to this location in three days. During this time, I will contact our friends and tell them that you’re coming. Your destination is…” Another pause and then a long set of coded numbers appeared on the screen.

“Confirm transmission,” Linden typed.

Maya didn’t answer.

The words appeared again, this time in capital letters that demanded her agreement. “CONFIRM TRANSMISSION.”

Don’t answer him, Maya told herself. She considered leaving the house and taking Gabriel across the border into Mexico. That was the safe thing to do. A few seconds passed, then she placed her fingers on the computer keyboard and typed slowly. “Information received.”

The screen went blank and Linden’s presence disappeared. Maya decoded the numbers with her computer and discovered that she was supposed to travel to a town called San Lucas in southern Arizona. And what will happen there? New enemies? Another confrontation? She knew that the Tabula would be looking for them using the full power of the Vast Machine.