So Close to You (So Close to You - Trilogy) (28 page)

Wes nods, then gestures for me to open it.

Inside are only two documents. One is a picture of Dean. He looks stern, an army cap pulled low over his head. The other is a document with “The Recruitment Initiative” typed across the top.

I skim the words as Wes watches silently.
The recruitment program has been established to locate and train soldiers and selected civilians to participate in missions related to the Montauk Project, specifically Tesla’s Machine. All recruits are taken on a volunteer basis with the understanding that these missions may result in failure
.

And then, at the bottom of the page:
The program was initiated by Sergeant Dean Bentley on special assignment. Volunteers are approved and selected at this time by Dr. Josef Faust and Lieutenant Dean Bentley
.

I grip the folder with both hands. “Dean … recruits?”

Wes doesn’t say anything, letting me put the pieces together myself.

“Dean isn’t going on the mission,” I realize. “Dean is
finding
the soldiers for the mission. That’s why his name was on the Project Hero mission statement. He was the one who found the subject for it.”

“There’s something else you should know.” Wes steps closer to me. “The Recruitment Initiative has two branches. One branch is called Retrieval and the other is Training. Retrieval is the process of bringing recruits in. All recruits, Lydia, not just the volunteer soldiers.”

“Kidnapping,” I whisper.

Wes’s jaw is clenched tight. “Training has four different modes: survival, tutoring, combat, and brainwashing.”

“The torture.”

“Yes.” His voice is blank as he speaks, as if he’s removed himself from the experience. As if it happened to someone else entirely. “Brainwashing is the first mode of training.” He leans down. “Do you understand what this means? The Recruitment Initiative is the program that snatched me off the street. They kidnap children. And Dean is responsible for it.”

I frantically shake my head, trying to block out his words. “But I saw the men whose photographs were in the folders in Dr. Faust’s office. They weren’t children; they were grown men. Dean might be recruiting volunteer soldiers, but he wouldn’t hurt innocent kids.”

“Lydia. You saw the room of children. It’s only a matter of time before Faust starts approving use of them—if he hasn’t already. The Montauk Project becomes more and more ruthless as time goes on. If Dean’s working for them, then he’s ruthless too.”

“Oh my god.” Wes puts out a hand, trying to warn me about something, but I don’t notice. “I never thought Dean Bentley would turn out to be the bad guy,” I say roughly.

There’s a small sound behind me, a tiny squeaking noise. I turn to see Peter pop up from behind a rock, one of his toy soldiers clutched in his hand. He stares at me in horror.

“Peter—” I reach for him, the folder in my hands falling to the ground. Peter whirls around and runs back into the woods.

“Did he hear me say that his father is a bad guy?” I whisper. Wes nods and I press both palms against my forehead.

I feel Wes’s touch on the back of my neck. It’s only a slight sweep of his fingers, but it’s enough to make me feel calmer. I lift my head, unable to erase the image of my grandfather’s face. He worships his father, he always has. What must he be thinking of me right now?

“Do you want to go after him?” Wes’s voice is soft.

“No.” I bend down and pick up the folder. “I’ll find him later and apologize. You and I need to sort this out.”

I think of all I know about Dean, what my grandfather has told me about his father. He was supposed to be a good man. I
thought
he was a good man. But now I’m not so sure.

Wes watches me struggle with my thoughts and says, “People get caught up in stuff like this for a lot of different reasons. He probably thinks he’s doing the right thing.”

I scoff. “Nobody could think kidnapping and torturing children is the right thing.”

His mouth twists a little. “I’ve met a lot of scientists at the Facility as I travel across time, and all of them think what they do is for the greater good. And sometimes it is.”

At my horrified look, his voice gets firmer. “Sometimes the past
does
need to be changed, Lydia. If you could stop a huge disaster from happening, and save thousands of people, wouldn’t you do it?”

I nod reluctantly.

“Do you know how many events like that I’ve stopped over the years, just by changing one tiny moment in the time line?”

“But, Wes, you can’t be advocating for what they do. They use children. They
torture
them.”

He turns away so that I’m staring at the hard angles of his profile. “I’m not saying I agree with their methods. But sometimes the world isn’t always so black and white. People can do bad to do good.”

“No.” I shake my head. “I don’t believe that.” I picture Dean at the picnic, his hand cupped around Peter’s head. “And I don’t believe that Dean could be kidnapping children off the street and then brainwashing them. Maybe he doesn’t know everything.”

Wes looks back at me. “Lydia …”

“He
doesn’t
, Wes. He might be sending soldiers on these missions, but he doesn’t know about the room of children. I know it in my gut.”

“How can you be sure?”

“I just am.” I look at the sky, where the tree branches weave together in the wind. The sound of the leaves rustling is oddly soothing. “I don’t know how to explain it. Dean is family. And if he could raise someone as kind and as loving as my grandfather, then he can’t be a part of something like this.”

Wes gives me an assessing look. There’s a war going on behind his eyes, and I can tell he’s wrestling with some kind of big decision.

Finally I watch as a strange peace settles over his features. “So what do we do next?” he asks, and his voice sounds lighter than it ever has.

I tilt my head at him. “We?”

“We.” He smiles slightly.

“You want to help me?”

He nods.

I step closer to him and lift the tan folder. “How did you get this?” I ask slowly.

His eyes drop down at the movement. “I broke into Dean’s office in the Facility.”

“Why?”

“Because I knew you needed more information,” he says quietly.

“You did this for me?” I can’t keep the surprise out of my voice. “I thought, after last night …”

“Lydia.” He steps closer. “Last night was a mistake.”

“You didn’t mean to kiss me,” I say flatly.

“That’s not it.” He looks at the ground. “I didn’t kiss you because I was trying to get you to do something. I kissed you because … I wanted to.”

My breath catches.

“I’m not good at this,” he says, his voice hoarse. “I don’t know how to deal with … feelings.”

I step closer. We’re almost touching.

“I don’t think that’s true, Wes.” I’m finally starting to understand the magnitude of his actions. “You went into the Facility for me. You took out this file.”

I lift the folder again. “What about the butterfly effect? What about all your beliefs?”

“I don’t believe in what you’re doing, Lydia.” His voice has lost that uncertain quality. “I’ve seen what can happen when people mess with the past. But I thought about everything you said last night. You keep fighting so hard for the people you love. You’ll do anything, even if it means risking your own future. I’ve never seen anyone act like that before. That’s why I want to help you.”

His words flow through me, warm and comforting. I let go of my anger, of my fear, of all the unanswered questions I have about Wes. He is going against all his beliefs to help me.

I still don’t know why he helped me the first time I stumbled into him. I don’t know why he followed me into the past. But, surprisingly, I don’t care anymore. I usually insist on knowing the truth about everything. It’s what led me here in the first place. But for Wes, I’m willing to put that instinct aside to be with him.

He catches my eye and I start to lean in to him. We’re only inches apart when the folder I’m holding scrapes against his arm. I pull back, flustered.

“Dean. We need to concentrate on Dean.” I clear my throat. Wes smiles slightly.

“He’s in the Facility right now,” I say. “He wasn’t supposed to disappear until tomorrow, but something changed. I think I might have already altered the time line.”

Wes’s eyes narrow, and his rubs his jaw again. “That’s not good, Lydia.”

I frown. “I don’t know how much time Dean has left. I need to find him tonight, before it’s too late.”

“What are you going to do once you find him?”

I sigh. “Warn him about his disappearance. Hope he believes me.”

“He might not,” Wes says. He looks skeptical.

“I don’t know what else to do.”

“Do you have any proof?”

I shake my head, feeling defeated. “And now I also need to warn him about the Recruitment Initiative. He needs to know what’s happening—or what’s going to happen—with those children.”

“If Dean doesn’t already know about the kids—”

“He doesn’t,” I cut in.

Wes gives me a look. “
If
he doesn’t already know, he still might not want to hear about how his project is corrupt. He might not believe you about any of it.”

“Wait.” I reach out and grab Wes’s arm. “If I can show him the room of kidnapped children, then he
has
to believe me. He won’t be able to deny it after he sees it with his own eyes.”

“Lydia.” Wes looks alarmed. “You can’t forget all about the butterfly effect. Showing him that room could produce a huge change in the time line. If the Recruitment Initiative is gone, then my role in the Montauk Project disappears completely.”

“But if the recruits are dismantled, then won’t you have a better life?”

He grits his teeth and the movement makes his cheekbones look even sharper. “That’s a big if, Lydia. My life may not be perfect, but I don’t want to chance an unknown future.”

I meet his eyes. “You said that if anything in the time line changed, then it wouldn’t affect us because we’re outside of it. That means you’d still exist, even if the Recruitment Initiative was destroyed. You’d be free, Wes.”

He looks at me and there’s something hopeful and raw in his expression. “If I can give you that life, then I will,” I say. “I
have
to do this, for you and for my grandfather. It’s a risk, of course, but isn’t it a risk worth taking? Especially if you could leave the Montauk Project behind forever?”

He frowns, but I can see that he’s thinking about my words.

“Fine. We’ll sneak into the Facility tonight at midnight. You can warn Dean, and then …, Lydia, once you save Dean, there won’t be any reason for you to stay in the past.” His voice goes soft, hesitant. “Will you let me bring you back to your own time, after this is over?”

My gaze swings involuntarily toward the Bentleys’ house. He’s right: I said I would leave this time period once the business with Dean was over, and it will be tonight. But am I ready to leave yet?

I think of my family on both sides of time. This has been an adventure, but I can’t stay here forever, and I know that Wes won’t rest until I’m back in 2012. Leaving won’t be easy, but this isn’t my life. It’s time to go back home.

“Okay,” I whisper.

He smiles. “You should go talk to Peter.”

Of course, Peter. I had forgotten about him overhearing me. I need to make it right.

“I’ll be here at midnight,” Wes says, stepping away. He half smiles, then disappears into the trees.

Finding Peter isn’t as easy I thought it would be. I check inside the house, around the yard, and then I start to search the woods.

I eventually spot his small, dark head behind a boulder. I walk through the underbrush until I’m facing him. He won’t look at me, just looks straight ahead into the forest. I can see faint tear marks running down his face. My stomach clenches tight.

I crouch next to him. I’m still holding the folder, and I set it down next to me on the damp ground so I can rest both hands on my knees.