The Diamond of Freedom Page 4

  “Thank you, Uncle Don, but we have to go now. I hope we can meet again when we’re not pressed for time. I’d love to pick your brain.” I smile at him and he returns the smile.

  “I’m sure you would, Calli. You two better be careful. Now that you’re suspects in that gas station robbery, you’ll have—”

  Chris cut him off. “You know about that?”

  “Your faces were on national television this morning. It’s not every day a robbery is blundered so badly. Two suspects keel over and die at the scene, one develops an instant case of encephalitis and is now in a coma, another is knocked cold and doesn’t remember anything. Two others—that’s you two—disappear in a flash, literally, and are nowhere to be found. The clerk claims those who escaped weren’t part of the robbery, but the police say that fleeing the scene shows guilt. The whole story is quite fascinating, but don’t worry, I know you’re innocent.”

  Chris rubs his brows hard. “Thanks. We stumbled upon the robbery . . . and we did flee the scene.”

  “I figured as much,” Uncle Don replies.

  We say our goodbyes to Uncle Don and thank him for his generosity. The time has come to close the pocket watch and summon Maetha. Hopefully she’ll arrive before Freedom.

  Chapter 3 - Properly Placed Pawns

  Chris asks, “Where should we go to contact Maetha?”

  “I’m not sure, but it makes sense to go somewhere private or secluded.”

  “Well, on our way to Uncle Don’s, I saw an old warehouse that looked abandoned. We could check it out.”

  The sun nears the horizon, and I estimate we have about an hour till total darkness. Chris must be thinking the same thing because he turns on the Pulse Emitter attached to his collar.

  We hurry to the large deserted building and find an unlocked door. We enter cautiously, look around at the spacious interior, and together decide the abandoned location will be appropriate. The line of windows on the west side of the building allows the final rays of sunlight to illuminate the interior.

  I turn to Chris and say, “I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I assume Maetha will bi-locate here once she senses my diamond, just like at the gas station.”

  “Well, do you think anything could go wrong?” The light from Chris’s emitter casts a glow across his face, revealing stress and concern.

  “There’s nothing to worry about, Chris. When a Diamond Bearer bi-locates, their powers are limited, and all we have to do is open the watch and they disappear. If Freedom gets out of hand, we’ll just open the watch.” I begin to unzip my front pocket.

  Chris moves closer, stands in front of me, and takes hold of my elbows. I look up and meet his gorgeous blue eyes and feel my insides melt. My eyes move to his mouth. His split lip from the truck stop robbery is healing nicely, but could still benefit from a get-well kiss. My attention is pulled away as he gently slides his hands down to my wrists and hands, halting them from the task of removing the pocket watch.

  He says, “Wait, Calli. I just want a moment alone with you.” He pulls my hands to his mouth and softly kisses my palms.

  My mind flashes with the realization we haven’t been alone much at all since we found each other again, and even that wasn’t many days ago. Yet, I feel like I’ve been with him for a lifetime.

  Chris leans closer, still holding my hands to his mouth. His soft gaze lets me know he’s about to kiss me. Instinctively, my lips part as my heart races within my chest. I can feel a distinct stab as my heart races with excitement. Even though it hurts, I ignore the pain. Chris lowers our hands, keeping them between us, and moves in for the kiss.

  When our lips meet, tingles and electricity shoot through my body, making me weak in the knees. His hot, sweet breath warms my soul. I don’t remember closing my eyes. In fact, I forget where we are and why we were here. I know the magic of this moment will linger in my mind forever.

  Chris pulls away slightly and rests his forehead on mine. “Calli, I’m never going to leave your side.”

  I smile and whisper teasingly, “Never say never, Chris.”

  “Okay. I will stay by your side forever.”

  “Forever is a long time.”

  “Not long enough.” His lips find mine again, and he kisses me briefly, then pulls back and drops my hands. “Let’s get this done, Calli. I have big plans for us once everything calms down.”

  “Oh, do I have any say in these plans?” I tease, as I pull the pouch out of my pocket and open the drawstrings. The pain in my heart from the over-excitement of the kiss concerns me. I need to heal myself with the diamond’s powers.

  “Most of them,” he says. His tone of voice drops a bit, causing me to glance at him. The expression on his face shoots lightning bolts through my body once again, making my already weak knees nearly buckle. Something is dangerously wrong inside my body. I need to heal myself. Now.

  I slide the watch and diamond mass out of the pouch and separate the two, then place the diamond back in the pouch and into my pocket. The watch snaps shut as I apply pressure to the cover. My powers race through my body and conflict with Chris’s smoldering-gaze-induced enigmatic jolts that have ignited feelings I am still trying to label in my mind. The first thing I do is heal the pain in my heart and restore my loss of strength.

  I steal another glance at Chris and enter his mind with ease. I begin to see his future. Right away I can tell this future vision will take place in the near future, not years down the road. He’s distressed over something and arguing with me that leaving would be for the best. Through his eyes, I don’t have much to say in return. I only look extremely dejected. When he turns his back and walks out the door, his thoughts are that what he’s doing is nature’s will.

  “Calli!” Chris shakes my shoulder to pull me out of my vision.

  My attention is directed to three Diamond Bearers who have bi-located to our position. Their voices enter my mind, announcing their names: Avani, Merlin, and Aernoud. Four more Diamond Bearers appear: Alena, Hasan, Kookju, and Fabian. A loud crashing noise over by the door pulls my attention away from them. I see Maetha, Amenemhet, Neema, and Mary entering through the door. Amenemhet has knocked over a steel barrel.

  I say, “Are you bi-located, Maetha?”

  “No, dear.” She approaches me and wraps her arms around my body in a warm embrace. Maetha seems to fall against my body ever so slightly, as if her powers are gone . . . but that can’t be right. The watch is closed.

  “You’ve been following us?” I ask.

  “Not exactly.” Maetha pulls back. “I arrived in Miami this afternoon and have awaited the appearance of your diamond. I fear Freedom will arrive in person as well. He’s been following my position.”

  I turn back to the group to find eight more Bearers are bi-located to the group: Yeok Choo, Jie Wen, Chuang, Amalgada, Marketa, Rolf, Ruth, and Duncan. My mind automatically recognizes Duncan as the one who was responsible for helping take down the Healer clan referred to as vampires a few hundred years ago. He’s my closest, should-be-dead relative.

  Maetha says, “Calli, tell us what you’ve learned about the black stone.”

  I think for a moment then launch into my explanation. “The black stone is obsidian.” A wave of awe echoes around the empty building from the other Bearers, and a few murmurs of confirmation hit my ears. I continue. “This obsidian is different than any other outcropping for some reason. Its origin is from Obsidian Cliffs at Yellowstone National Park, which is guarded by park rangers and military personnel.”

  Hasan speaks up in his low baritone voice: “That explains everything, then. Freedom must have found the power-infused stone recently and is using his power within the military to guard the outcropping.”

  I reply, “Chris’s uncle told us obsidian is an absorber and that the Yellowstone variety is rumored to be exceptionally strong. The obsidian cancels powers, but only up to a certain radius—that radius depends on the size of the piece.”

  Neema asks, “Is there a way to prote
ct us from the power?” Her pitch-black hair with straight-across bangs and beautifully applied makeup reminds me of a Cleopatra movie.

  “I don’t know. The metal in this watch is able to contain the power when it’s closed, but short of traveling in a military tank, I don’t think we could feasibly protect ourselves by wearing metal.”

  Freedom’s deep voice echoes through the building. “Maetha, you decided to show up in person, I see.”

  I, along with everyone else, glance all around, trying to locate him, with no success.

  Maetha speaks in her normal calm voice. “Henry, the time has come for you to surrender your diamond.”

  “What?” he laughs. “I think what you mean to say is Calli is ready to surrender her shard to me . . . and don’t call me by that name!”

  Maetha speaks telepathically to me. Calli, he’s here and he has an obsidian stone. I cannot use my mind control on him, nor can I locate him. Then Maetha says out loud to Freedom, “Henry, the vote is unanimous. You must surrender your diamond.”

  The disembodied voice answers, “I don’t go by that name any longer. That man died when you chose my fate, Maetha. Calli can remove her shard and merge it with the rest and then hand it over. Her life will be back to normal, and she will be able to live as nature intended.”

  “No, she can’t,” Maetha says. “Her shard is living within her, but you can assign her the ownership of the rest of it, Freedom.” She puts emphasis on his chosen name.

  “Or I can kill her and take what’s mine.”

  “Good luck with that,” I mutter under my breath.

  “It’s not luck at all, Calli,” Freedom says. “It’s properly placed pawns like your boyfriend who will make it possible to get what I want.”

  “What are you talking about?” I turn and look at Chris, whose eyes are open wide. His face is as white as a ghost.

  Freedom chuckles diabolically. “You are naïve, young lady. You have a lot of growing up to do. He and his father work for me!”

  Chris lets out a strangled sound, and he quickly grasps his hand around his neck. Maetha’s voice enters my mind. I’m silencing him. Don’t be afraid. I saw Chris’s true intentions in his mind, and for right now it’s better he remains silent.

  True intentions? What?

  Freedom adds, “Once a spy, always a spy. He’s been acting his part extraordinarily well, wouldn’t you agree, Calli?”

  He’s playing with you, Calli. Maetha’s voice tries to calm me. Don’t let him get into your head.

  “Freedom,” I address him, “why won’t you show yourself? What are you afraid of? Your obsidian will protect you.”

  Freedom ignores me as well as the fact I know the identity of the black stone. He says, “Where did you get the Grecian Blue, Maetha?”

  She doesn’t answer.

  He continues. “I knew they weren’t myths, but where are the others? Are you hiding them from me? Are you hiding Crimson from me as well? You can’t hide for much longer, you know. For centuries you’ve breezed through the world undetected and anonymous. Cameras, video, and satellites hadn’t been invented yet. But now, with all the new technology, there’s nowhere on earth you can go where I can’t find you. There’s nothing you can hide from me. Nothing! I will find the Grecian Blue shards and I’ll find Crimson as well.” A door slams against its frame somewhere in the building.

  Chris exhales and coughs repeatedly for a few moments. Maetha must have let go of his voice box. “Sheez, Maetha!” Chris says in a scratchy voice.

  Maetha points at me. “Calli, open the large-stone side of the pocket watch.” She then orders Neema, Amenemhet, and Mary to do a perimeter search.

  I do as she ordered and feel my powers drain away. The bi-located Diamond Bearers disappear, leaving only Maetha, Chris, and myself in the empty warehouse.

  Chris coughs again and says, “Calli, I swear, I’m not working with him anymore.”

  “Anymore? What are you saying?” I can’t believe what I’m hearing. I ask in barely more than a whisper, “I thought you said he just works with your father?”

  “Well, he does work with my father. Some of the information I gathered was at his request, but that was several years ago.”

  “You made it sound like he was just another employee. Why didn’t you tell me this when you found out he was a Diamond Bearer?”

  “I don’t know . . . I was more worried about you and your health. I’m sorry, okay?”

  Neema, Amenemhet, and Mary enter the building empty-handed, and Maetha interrupts our conversation. “Calli, we must move now. You two can talk this out once we’re safe.” She turns to the other Bearers. “Go and do what we discussed earlier.”

  They nod their heads and leave the building ahead of us.

  We walk out into the muggy evening air. I have difficulty breathing due to the tightness in my chest. Panic sets in as I remember Chris suggested the deserted industrial building as the place to alert Maetha. Had he prearranged the meeting with Freedom? No, I can’t let my brain go down this road. If he’s still working with Freedom, then he . . . no! I have to stop thinking this way. Chris wouldn’t have set me up like this.

  Maetha walks briskly with us for several minutes till we reach a parked vehicle. I admire the silver, slim-line sports car which is dramatically out of place in this run-down neighborhood. Maetha produces a set of keys from her pocket and unlocks the doors with a press of a button. Chris opens the passenger door and hurriedly climbs in the back seat—if it can even be called a back seat—allowing me to sit up front with Maetha.

  As we climb in the car, Maetha says, “I was driving around waiting to feel your diamond, and this is where I was when that happened.”

  She inserts the key and presses a button, starting the car. Maetha flips the car around with ease and merges onto a busy freeway, sliding through the traffic as if she’s been driving for years. I wonder how long it took Maetha to learn to drive. I don’t mean how many weeks or months to pass the actual test, I mean, how many years passed, after the invention of cars before Maetha decided she could benefit from learning how to drive.

  Maetha looks in the rearview mirror. “All right, Chris, tell Calli what she needs to know.”

  Chris launches in without hesitation. “I resigned being a spy, Calli. I don’t feed information to my father or Agent Alpha . . . or um, Freedom. Yes, I’ve known who he is for a long time, but I swear to you, I didn’t know he was working with Justin to gather the shards. I was just as shocked as you were to see him enter the room. I’ve never experienced a loss of my power until that moment when he had the pocket watch open. I had no idea he was a Diamond Bearer. I don’t think my father knows either. In fact, I don’t think my father has a clue about the diamonds at all. Please believe me, Calli.”

  “I believe you.” I try not to sound doubtful, but I can’t help it. I want to believe Chris.

  Chris adds, “Agent Alpha likes to mess with people’s heads. That’s what he’s doing with you, Calli.”

  Once he finishes speaking, Maetha pulls the car over in a parking lot and orders Chris to switch places with her. She instructs him to drive toward the municipal airport.

  With Chris behind the wheel, next to me, I’m comforted. I let my rational thinking reengage.

  Maetha pulls a cell phone from her pocket and begins punching in numbers.

  “Maetha, I thought you didn’t like cell phones,” I muse aloud to break the silence between Chris and me.

  “I don’t, but until I find out how Freedom is getting his information, I don’t want to bi-locate and tip him off to our plan. Amenemhet, Neema, and Mary purchased phones as well, so we can communicate in this rudimentary fashion.”

  “What about the others?”

  “Most of them are on different continents and can’t help us immediately. There is no point in having them connected in this way.” Maetha begins entering numbers into her phone. Her first call is apparently to a pilot because she gives a flight itinerary to be cleared which
includes heading to Washington D.C. for the first leg of our journey.

  I ask, “Since when is flying a good idea? I thought Homeland Security was an issue.”

  “I have a private jet that allows me to travel safely and securely wherever I need to go, and we don’t have to pass through airport security.” Maetha speaks into the phone to whomever she’s just reached, relaying the location of the rendezvous. She gives instructions to the individual on the other end of the line to pick up Deus Ex at a specific location and detain her until we arrive.

  Chris looks at me and says under his breath, “Why couldn’t we take the private plane to Miami?”

  Maetha ends her call, she says, “Chris, the plane was in California. I used it to get to California quickly so I could be present for the amulet reuniting. We ran back to Indiana instead of flying because I didn’t want to slow our progress by waiting for the plane to be able to fly. Plus it would have exposed the fact I own a private jet.” She then turns to me. “Calli, when you closed the watch and I detected your diamond, I sensed you were near death for a moment. What happened?”

  Chris shoots a concerned glance in my direction as he maneuvers the car through traffic.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I healed my pain, but I didn’t realize I was close to death. What gave you that idea, Maetha?”

  “I sensed the diamond shard was close to not having an owner. Were you injured?”

  “No, um, I was, well . . . excited.” I can tell my cheeks are turning red, and I’m relieved the interior of the car is dark.

  “Excited? Over what? Why would that cause you to be near death?” Maetha sounds genuinely confused.

  Chris takes over the conversation. “I kissed her.”

  “You kissed her? That’s it? I don’t understand.” Maetha leans forward so her face is between the front seats. “How does a kiss result in near death?”

  Chris answers smugly, “It was a damn good kiss!”

  The familiar lightning bolt shoots through my body again at the thought of the “fantastically good kiss,” causing a twinge of pain in my heart again. I say to Maetha, “My heart raced when he kissed me. That’s when I first noticed the pain. The discomfort intensified the longer we were together until I closed the watch and healed myself.”