James (Teumessian Trilogy Book 2) (5 page)

Chapter

7

James didn’t want to return to the dorms, but didn’t know where else to go. His emotions were running high. He ran out to the training field, still clutching the bear in his hands. He made his way to the tree line and collapsed next to a large oak tree. James was fighting back tears. He hated talking about all of it. There was a part of him that wanted to believe she was his mother and that what she had said to him that day was true, that she loved him and wished she could be with him. The other part of him wished it wasn’t her and that his mother was still out there looking for him and that he would get to meet her one day. He had longed for a mother since he had never had a mother figure growing up. His father’s women would come and go. They were always nice to him, give him candy and tell him he was cute, but his father never kept any around long enough for him to attach to. James dropped his head back, resting it against the tree.

James heard footsteps approaching. He turned to look; it was Franchesca.

“Are you okay?” she asked him as she approached.

James straightened himself up, “Yes.”

“I saw you running from the admin building, are you sure?”

“I’m fine. I’m fine.” James replied, trying to hide the bear behind his back. “I thought you were in class?”

“We got done early. I saw you from the classroom. What happened? What are you trying to hide behind your back?”

“Chessy, trust me, you don’t want to know. It’s better that you nor anyone else know. Why do you care anyway?”

“Hey, I just saw you looked upset and wanted to make sure you were okay. I know what happened between you and Elliot. If you don’t want to talk about it, fine, I will leave you alone.” Chessy said as she turned to walk away.

James wanted to ask her to stay, but couldn’t. He just watched her walk away. James pulled the bear out from behind him and looked at it, he felt tears again. He wiped them away and buried his head in his hands.

James sat there for an hour before Greg found him.

“Hey man, you need to come back in. It’s dinner time, and it doesn’t look terrible.”

James lifted his head to make eye contact with Greg. Greg could see his red eyes.

He sat down next to James. “I don’t know what's going on or why you are so upset, but I can tell you this. They can only get to you if you let them. My granny always used to say, ‘Something in the milk ain’t clean.’ She always knew when something wasn’t right, and right now, I know something isn’t right here.”

James could feel the bear against his back and pushed back into it to try to hide it further, but knew it was pointless. He pulled it out and held it in his hands.

“You have to make a decision. Do you want to stay here and find out, or do you want out?”

James just stared at the bear, he averted his eyes so he wouldn’t have to look at Greg.

“You don’t look like the type to run,” Greg smiled.

James felt a slight smile come to his face.

“Come on, let’s go. Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone about the bear and I won’t ask about it either. If you wanna talk, I’m here, and if trouble comes your way, I got your back,” Greg said, patting James on the back.

James finally looked up, “They want to know about my mother.”

“Seems like an odd thing to be worried about. Who was she?”

“I don’t know. That’s the problem.”

Greg could tell he was pushing a sensitive topic. “Hey, don’t dwell on it, we will figure this out, but seriously, I'm starvin’ here. Let’s go eat.” Greg stood up and reached out his hand for James.

James took it and stood up. He brushed himself off and followed Greg back to the dorms. James’s mind was wandering back and forth from his past to his present. He shook his head as he walked. He needed to focus on the present and on his future. He wasn’t going to let his past define him.

Chapter

8

Rachel knew she had to report what James had said, not only to her boss in the CIA, but also to her outside employer. She sat in her office the entire afternoon trying to decide who to tell first. This was more involved than she thought. This boy had been through a real trauma. Rachel never got the chance to decide. Ray and John entered her office just before she could get ready to leave.

“We need to know what happened today with James,” Ray asked as he took a seat on the couch.

Rachel took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling.

“Rachel, seriously, he almost hurt another candidate,” John added.

“The boy is traumatized. He witnessed a murder and a suicide at four years old.”

John leaned forward in his chair. “Is he fit to continue?”

Rachel thought for a minute, “Yes, but he needs to be monitored closely.”

“I will have to take this up to the top, the President needs to know about this.” Ray said, standing up and walking out the room.

John just looked at Rachel as Ray exited. “You are lying and I know it. Ray may believe you, but I don’t.”

Rachel took a deep breath.

John continued, “He is unstable, and you lied to cover for him. Why?”

“He’s a good kid, he deserves a chance,” Rachel replied as convincingly as she could.

“Let’s hope for your sake and the rest of the candidates' that your faith in him is worth it,” John said as he got up and left the room.

Rachel dropped her head to her desk. “What have I gotten myself into?” she wondered. She heard her phone vibrating on the desk, glanced up and looked at it to see who was calling. Looking at the phone, she put her head back down, it was her other employer. She knew what they wanted, and she knew where she had to go. Her arm extended, and she answered her phone. “Yes, sir, I am on my way.” She hit ‘end’ and dropped her phone into her red purse, which she picked up off the floor next to her desk. She made her way out of her office and past Ray’s office as she left the building.

Ray saw her leave and glanced back to John who was sitting in his office.

“Did she just leave?” John asked, looking toward the door.

“Yes,” Ray replied.

“She is hiding something. I don’t think she told us everything about the boy.”

“I agree, but I am not going to push it. As of right now, we have orders from the top to have him here. Until I have actual proof he is a danger, I will follow my orders.”

John rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t want to see any of these kids get hurt. I feel like we are not getting all the information from the top.”

“It’s the CIA. Why are you surprised we are missing information? We have orders: train the candidates and get them ready for their mission. Let’s just stick to what we do best and what we know,” Ray said, picking up his pen and working on his papers.

“Okay, fine, so why do they go in for blood work tomorrow?” John questioned.

“We have orders, just make sure they are there for it.”

“Okay, okay, okay, but something is off, I just know it,” John said, standing up and walking from the office.

Ray watched him leave, then sat back in his chair. “I agree,” he mumbled to himself.

              Rachel drove directly to the warehouse. She entered the building prepared to give them the information they wanted, but she couldn’t help wondering why they wanted to know so much about such a traumatic thing. He was where she had expected him to be. She still couldn’t see his face and she didn’t really want to.

“What have you found out?” he questioned.

“I think the boy knows who his mother is.”

“You think?”

“He confessed to having witnessed a woman who claimed to be his mother kill another man and then kill herself in front of him,” Rachel said with a lump in her throat.

“So he believes she was his mother?”

“I believe he does, but he won’t admit it. Why does this matter? Who was she?”

“That is not for you to be concerned about. What else does he know about her?”

“Nothing. He says nothing. That is all he can remember about her.”

“Did he describe her?”

“Yes. She was dressed in leather, with blue eyes.” She could see the man leaning back in his chair.

“You can go. You need to do one more thing before your service is done.”

Rachel held her breath.

“You need to take his blood sample. Don’t let it get run with the others.”

Rachel wanted to ask why, but knew she wouldn’t get an answer. “Yes, sir,” she replied quietly. She turned and left. She knew she was really crossing the line now, but she was in too deep. Not doing what they ordered was too dangerous now. She had to continue playing along.

Chapter

9