9. CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 9
“ T ell me again, from the top.” Gideon rubbed his temples, reminding himself to breathe as he processed the story Vik and Alana had just told him. “Try to remember everything you noticed, even if it seems an unimportant detail.”
He poured himself a shot of scotch from his private office stash, hoping it would help uncoil his now rigid back muscles. He tipped his neck and cracked it.
“We were standing on Front Street, not far from the river, about to step into a shop. Lexi was in front of us and had already gone in.” Vik cupped his own drink, still visibly shaken, as he and Alana sat across the big oak table opposite him. “Then, just as I told you, everything around us shimmered and changed, exactly like when we play the portal music, though we heard nothing of the sort. And suddenly we were standing there, completely gobsmacked, on a different Front Street in a different Philadelphia.” He took a swig and set the glass down, shaking his head.
“It was frightening and really dangerous.” Alana was still pale and nervous. “There were cars whizzing past inches from where we stood. Had the change happened just a moment or two prior…” She waved her hand, as if wanting to dismiss the thought.
“You were definitely in World Two?” Gideon asked, referring to the name his people used when discussing the other universe .
“I don’t know, man, I assume so.” Vik shrugged. “I mean, it had to be, right? As soon as we got our bearings, we hoofed it up to Taco Shots, which was right where it was supposed to be.”
Gideon nodded. It had to be World Two. “And you were able to walk right into the back there? Did it seem like you were expected?”
“Well, no,” Vik continued. “That big bouncer they have in the kitchen, Jimmy, was already gone for the night, and some other man was guarding the back door. He didn’t want to let us through at first. It was pretty late, and he didn’t know us. But Alana used some of her gentle words and he let us in.”
One of Alana’s talents was what she merely called the gift of gab, but it was more than that. Like others in their world with that skill, she’d mastered the art of persuasion using certain tones and modulations in her voice.
“What about Matthew?” Gideon asked. “You said he seemed quite shocked and was immediately helpful in sending you back here.”
“Yeah, he was. He arrived back at his club with the rest of the visitors just as we entered, and he seemed confused to see us.” Vik looked to his wife for confirmation. “Didn’t you think so?”
She nodded. “Yes, I’d agree. I sensed genuine surprise and concern from him.” She paused, fingers tapping at her chin. “Although, there was still a feeling of… something else underlying that. Suspicion on his part maybe? Perhaps even some anger?” She shook her head. “Whatever it is, he’s burying it deep. I’m sorry, Gideon, I don’t know any more than that. But he definitely wasn’t expecting us to show up, that much I’m sure of.”
Gideon pressed his thumbs to his throbbing temples and rubbed. “And you’re positive you didn’t see anything unusual tonight? Didn’t come into contact with someone unfamiliar?”
He clenched his fists, frustration mounting by the minute. There had to have been something .
“There were a lot of people out and about tonight, G. It’s Friday night, it’s warm and beautiful. But the only ones I paid any real attention to were Alana and Lexi,” Vik said.
Lexi. Even in the midst of this new stressor, her face rose up in his mind. Her face, her ass, the curve of her waist, the way the little pearl buttons of her sweater lay against her breasts…
Wait. What the hell? “ Alana, are you wearing Lexi’s sweater?”
Alana glanced down at herself. “Uh… yes, actually, I am. I forgot that I borrowed—”
“Hang on, G, you don’t think Lexi had something to do with this?” Vik interrupted.
“No.” Alana and Gideon responded together.
“It’s got to be a coincidence,” Alana said. “I can’t imagine what a sweater would have to do with this, and I would’ve sensed if there was anything suspicious going on with her.”
The three nodded agreement.
“Although…” Alana tipped her head, eyes looking off to a corner.
Gideon dropped his shoulders. “What?”
“Now that I really think back, there was something. But it’s distant, tangential. Like she walked through a scent and it’s now clinging to her.”
“She a psychic herself,” Vikkras said. “Maybe she’s blocking you.”
Alana pressed her lips in thought and then shook her head. “No, I don’t think so. I don’t think she had anything to do with this, Gideon.”
“I agree.” Gideon curled his fists on the desk, wanting it to be true. “She was as frantic as you when she got back here, and I could hear some of her thoughts. She didn’t have a clue as to what was going on.”
“You could hear her thoughts ?” Alana and Vik burst out together.
“Yes.” Gideon waved their question aside with his hand. “But that’s not what we’re talking about right now. ”
The couple turned to each other, their faces mirroring surprise, before Vik finally spoke. “Okay. So, we’re in agreement she likely had nothing to do with this. At least not directly. But then what was it?”
Gideon studied the faces of his friends as he thought. “I don’t know. But everything that’s happened today confirms I have no choice. Eventually, we’ll have to begin global discussions about whether or not to keep all the portals open for regular access to World Two, but for now, we must immediately shut down the Philadelphia portal until we determine what happened here tonight.”
“You’ll do no such thing,” said a new voice from the door.
Their three heads spun toward the man striding into Gideon’s office. Benjamin Smythe had a diminutive stature, but pure arrogance in his step, and they’d somehow missed his knock at the door. Or perhaps there hadn’t been one.
Gideon rose from his chair. “Benjamin.”
Vikkras followed suit and also stood, but none of the men extended their hand in greeting.
Gideon continued. “I’m unclear as to how you’ve already been made aware of—”
Benjamin waved a hand in dismissal. “Word travels fast when people disappear like magic off the street.”
Very fast indeed. Gideon wasn’t at all convinced that their fellow City Council member’s sudden appearance was merely the result of the town grapevine. For whatever reason, Benjamin had always played his personal psychic abilities close to the vest. While everyone knew of his skill with physical speed, Alana suspected his real talents lay in something less obvious, such as clairvoyance. One could only guess at what information had really brought him storming into the office.
Benjamin stood with legs wide, arms slipped into his pockets. “So, we’ve got another one of those holes . What did you call them before? Oh yes, a thinning of the veils .” He flicked a hand. “Just fix it, like you did originally, and carry on.”
“Just fix it?” Gideon’s face heated. “We have no idea if that’s what happened tonight, or if so, why it’s happening again. We believed putting the stable portals in place had fixed it. Besides, there are other issues at hand as well. It appears that many of our citizens would like the portal closed. They feel it’s becoming a threat to our society, and I’m inclined to agree.”
Benjamin leaned forward, slapping his palms on the table. “And just as many would like it to stay open. They feel it’s important for cultural trade. It’s important for business. And I’m inclined to agree.”
“Business?” Now Alana stood, her own fists curling with frustration. “That was never the point of the portal.”
Benjamin straightened, a smug smile spreading on his lips. “Funny, I can’t help but wonder how much money this club brings in on drinks and food because of the crossings.”
“The extra money we make on Friday nights doesn’t even begin to cover the cost of security and research on the other side,” Alana fumed. “Most of that comes out of Gideon’s own pocket and—”
Gideon cut her off. “I don’t give ten fucks about making or losing money.” His eyes narrowed as they bore into Benjamin. “What I do give a fuck about, is this city. Which I would think, given your involvement in both the City Council and the Portal Committee, you would too. How do we know this isn’t somehow the start of another rebellion?”
Though their civilization had decided centuries ago to reject resource-driven technologies and massive world growth in favor of a different path, it seemed that every so often a group would rise up, deciding they disagreed with the decision of their ancestors, and wanting to try the easier route that machines and mass production offered. The rebellions had always been quashed, but rarely before it cost them dearly in some way.
Gideon in particular knew something about that. He’d lost his parents in the last battle as they’d fought staunchly to protect the traditional life of his people.
“Which is exactly why I’ve come here tonight. I’m telling you, it’s better to keep it open,” Benjamin said. “Let them have their little black market for food and clothing novelties. Give them just enough taste to keep them happy and quiet.”
Gideon leaned a hip on the table, crossing his arms. “That’s Machiavellian.”
Benjamin shrugged. “It works.”
“And the purists who want the portal closed?” Vik asked. “The ones calling Gideon a traitor to our civilization?”
“Keep things under control well enough and they’ll grumble, but not much more,” Benjamin said. “They’ll only fight if the rebels rise up first.”
Alana sank back into her chair, her weariness showing. “In any case, we need more information. Whether what happened tonight is a question of physics or foul play, it would behoove us to know.”
Gideon stood eyeing Benjamin as they all waited to see who would give slack first.
Benjamin dropped his shoulders and flicked a hand. “Fine, fine. Do your little investigations for now if it will help ease your mind, but the portal stays open. Remember, you’re not the only one with the technology anymore, Gideon. If you close your club to crossing, someone will just open the portal elsewhere in town, with or without the Committee’s approval.”
Over my dead body , Gideon thought as they watched Benjamin disappear back into the main salon. But something felt very wrong here, and he sure hoped it wouldn’t come to his dead body.
His or anybody else’s for that matter.