Encompassing (11 page)

CHAPTER 36

“Learning you have something great in your life can be oddly disconcerting, yet it feels like winning.”  --  from the book of Christina

“So this is my daughter?” Christina asks.  Concern on her face.

“Yes.”  Renfield focusing his eyes on Sara with concern.

“You love her?”  Christina asks.

“She understands me and I her.  It is complicated to you now, but you are the foundation of so much more than you realize, Christina.  How could I not love you too?”  Renfield responds, not taking his eyes off of Sara.  Then he turns to kiss Christina again.  “I know this is a lot to understand, but thank you for understanding.”

“Ren, was I tricked into this?”  Christina blurts out.

Renfield turns towards her again.  “I drew you to me that day because I know, deeply, all of this is right.  You and I are destined, as long as...”  Renfield trails off.

Christina stares into his dark eyes as if searching for more answers there.  “I love you.  Part of me wishes this were all simpler.  Part of me understands all of the chaos is your world, so I love that too.”

Renfield leans to kiss her.  She gives up her body to him.  He touches her face and tangles his hand in her hair as she lays back.  They melt in a moment of giving in to each other.  Their souls accepting each other.  Then Sara speaks for the first time, ”Mom, get a room!“

At the door, Solstice says, “Yeah, really?  I don’t need to see how I got here!”

Illumna says, “Do you want us to leave?  We didn’t know.  We just walked in to ask a question.”

Renfield looks at Illumna first and thinks to her, “Smart ass!”  Then he looks to Solstice and thinks, “Your old enough to have figured that out.”  Then he looks at Sara with apology written all over his face.  He sighs then replies to all of them, “Come on, jump in.  Group hug!”

Christina looks at Renfield in a moment of frustration but quickly realizes how great it is to be with her family.  She smiles realizing she is the matriarch of all the amazing girls hugging her.  She leans in and hugs them all strongly.   She grins.

Illumna says, “In the morning, he’s going to be a killer!”

Solstice adds in a flat tone, “We know.”

Sara moves for the first time on her own, enjoying the hugs, but whispers into Renfield’s ear, “You got your family together.  Now fix the world.”

Renfield looks at her and grins and whispered in reply, ”It’s what I do,”

Christina, overhearing says, “We know.”

CHAPTER 37

“Killing is not fun if you have a conscience.  In fact, it can be haunting later, but if it’s necessary it’s done with efficiency.  The first time takes a nudge and that is the time you wonder about the most.”  --- from the book of Solstice

“So you’re going out to kill and I’m supposed to sit here and work on this?”  Solstice addresses Renfield with resignation.  She was sitting casually in front of a laptop sipping coffee while Renfield was in the adjoining room working diligently on where he placed everything on himself.

“Stop reading me.  What you do now is important.”  Renfield replies

“She cheats on you!”  Solstice states bluntly.

“I’m aware, Solstice.  She’s your mother.  Look at all she’s been through!  You and I understand better, but don’t you think this is still very confusing to her?”  Renfield replies, while preparing.

“So you forgive her because you did it once?  It was because you weren’t sure if she would come back and we both know that.  My sister completely understands you.  She knows what to do and why.  She can’t even hear you like I and Illumna, but she still gets you.  Why do you still stay by my mother?”  Solstice vituperates.

Renfield pauses before answering.  Then he regains his standard breathing pattern.  “You said…”

“Maybe I was wrong, Dad!  Maybe I don’t know!  Wasn’t that your point in going through all of this?”  Solstice stands up and looks down at her mug of coffee.

“I never said I know all of the answers, but I listen to you because you listen to me.  I have faith in you, if you hadn’t noticed.”  Renfield stops, turns around and grins, “No pressure intended.  You do so much for the world.  Is it wrong that I’m impressed?”

“Illumna too!  Admit it!  She makes the other moves and yet you won’t just teach her to be like us!”  Finishing her sentence Solstice pours the coffee down the sink.

“You do!  Don’t pretend I don’t know.” Renfield fires back.  He watches the coffee go down the drain as Solstice rinses the mug.

Solstice turns and replies, “Did you just need Mom to get Sara to get Illumna?  Was that another of your elaborate plans?”  Solstice asks, voice raised as she sets the mug down and wipes her hands dry.

Renfield stops and turns to see his daughter’s face.  “When I met Sara I had no idea she was your mother’s daughter.  Even when Illumna was born, I didn’t teach her or tell her.  But you know how it works, eventually…”  Renfield returns to his perpetration.  Then he wonders at the motivation behind dumping the coffee.

“You would have known!  I don’t believe you!  Sometimes I think it was your vengeance on Mom!”  Solstice’s heartrate raises.  She hears Renfield thinking about the coffee.

Renfield looks back again.  “I didn’t know.  Please.  We’ve gotten this far in the right direction.  Let’s not go back to where we were.  That takes up a lot of time and neither of us wants to go through that again.”

“What if I had killed you?”  Solstice catechizes.

Renfield was instantly beside her, “Stop!  That woman asleep in the other room loves you as much as I do.  I know she’s why you’re here.  Think what you will of me, but deep down I know you know what has to be done and that I’m right.  It’s why you didn’t.  I’m your father and I know you love me in your own way.  I love you and I know you know that.  Just let it go.”  Renfield then turned because he felt Christina near.

“Actually, I’m not asleep, but maybe I’m in the wrong room.”  Christina said, moving a hand through her long and tangled hair.

Solstice and Renfield, as one, began cleaning up after their breakfast.  Crumbs were going into trashcans, cups were going into sinks, pans were being rinsed.

“What’s going on between the two of you?”  Christina asked.

In unison they answered, “Nothing.”

Christina grinned. Illumna hugged her from behind and whispered, “Good morning, Grandmother.”

Christina turned and hugged her and said, “So you’re in this too?”

Illumna responded, “What…sort of.  Those two have a long history.  I’ve watched it many times.  Let’s get breakfast.”  Then Illumna looks squarely at Solstice as she adds, “No coffee for me, please.”

As Illumna began walking into the kitchen Christina grabbed her arm softly and pulled her back.  She looked at her and quietly said, “I saw her try to kill him, but she knew he wouldn’t die.  Why where you there?”

“So that you would be here, grandmother.” responded Illumna and she continues into the kitchen.  “What are you in the mood for?”

CHAPTER 38

“The old adage hide in plain sight works.  Sometimes.  When it doesn’t the old adage fight or flight comes into play.”  -- from the book of Brady

“Brady.”

“Renfield?  What the hell are you doing here!  You need to stay gone!  Are you insane?  Wait, don’t answer that!  I don’t want to know!”   Brady looks around to be sure no one has noticed that Renfield is standing in his office doorway.

“We need to get somewhere.”  Renfield replied, ignoring the jab questioning his sanity.

“Hell no!  Do you know I’m in the middle of an inquest right now and I have no idea how to answer some of the questions?  I’d call you trouble, but I’ve seen.  I want to forget.  Understand?”  Brady began walking away quickly.  He assumed that if he left the confines of his office, Renfield would feel exposed and leave him alone.

Renfield leaned back against the wall and waited.

Brady came back, “What?  You do realize I have no resources to help you, anymore?  So what do you want from me?”  Brady waved a finger out at the rest of the officers all around them.

Renfield grinned and hugged Brady, “My friend.  Watching the news?”

Brady looked at Renfield, “OK, you do realize I knew you were going to say that?  Never mind, of course you know!”  He grabs Adam by the shoulder and pull shim into his office and shuts the door.  Quietly.

Renfield puts a hand on Brady’s shoulder and expresses, “Thank you.  I don’t have time…well, I suppose I do but we’re too far down this one with too much good to change again.  Here’s the plan…”

Suddenly Illumna was there with Sara.  She stared at Brady and said, “I’m your ride.”

At that Sara turned to Renfield and they met in a passionate kiss and ceased to be.

Brady confused said to Illumna, “What was that about, I thought…”

“That’s Mom.  I think you’re wondering about Grandmother.  That’s where we’re going Grandfather.”

Illumna reaches out a hand, grabs Brady.

Brady has a look on his face that clearly indicates no, however, Illumna ignores the look and almost instantly they both vanish.

CHAPTER 39

“True friendships last for no quantifiable reason.”  -- from the book of Brady

“What the hell just happened?”  Brady, disoriented exclaims.

Renfield walks over and helps Brady up.  “It’s complicated.  We moved a bit in time.  Technically, we didn’t even have that conversation.  Illumna is a short jumper in time but much better with space than her sister or I.  Actually, her sister is teaching her time.  She’s not good with long jumps in space either, but far more accurate than I or Solstice.”  Renfield puts a hand to his chin to consider his commentary and then nods as he decides it is a fairly good description.

“I seriously regret ever meeting you.  I have no idea what you’re talking about, but I have a job!”  Brady gets up looking extremely angry and on the verge of losing his temper, which was not previously so even keeled.

“What you’re about to accomplish will secure that, or you and I die.”  Renfield says, cup in hand as he walks casually around Brady.

“I seem to remember you’re pretty hard to kill.”  At that moment Christina walks in.  She stares at Brady for a few moments and then looks away.

Brady yells out, “Christina, what’s going on?”

Christina turns back and says, “Ask him, it’s complicated.”  She then gazes at the floor.  She looks over at Renfield for a moment, careful not to say another word.  Then she turns and leaves the room.

Renfield sighs and says, “So, we have to move.”

Brady looks at Renfield quizzically, “Move, I just got here and this is…”

Renfield interrupts, “Odd, I know, but we have very little time to do our part while Solstice does hers.  It will take Solstice years to finish, we have to put things in place NOW!

“Solstice?  What?  The thing we went to kill?”  Brady stats scanning for exits.

“She’s my daughter.  Did you really think I would kill her?  She is the hero, not me.”  Renfield is stern in his reply.

“OK, I don’t know what you’re talking about, but I’ll listen.  Do I have a choice?”  Brady inquires.  He looks at Renfield and then to Illumna.  Then he speaks directly to her, “What did you mean?”  Illumna ignores the question although she is very aware of what he is referring to.

Renfield walks closer to Brady, “Yes, you do know what I am talking about.  Hence Illumna doing what she does.  It was meant to give you time to decide.  Her clicks are short, so we don’t have forever for you to decide.  Sara already put something in place to give you more time, but not enough for you to sit around all day.”  Renfield explains.

“I’ve seen.  I believe you, Adam.  So if I’m in, what’s the plan?”  Brady states while being dismissive.

“Nice!  By the way, you’ll get promoted if you live.”  Renfield mentions. “However, that is questionable for both of us, despite my regeneration thing.  Follow me, you’re going to need more than that sidepiece, a LOT more!  By the way, good on you for watching the news, if we succeed you’ll be on it and I will not have been there.  Got it?”

“Yeah, I’m getting used to the drill, what are we going after now?”  Brady follows Renfield to a room and then watches as the floor opens.  His eyes grow slightly, but he finds it hard to be surprised at anything anymore.

Solstice, surrounded by monitors, turns and addresses Brady, “How’s life?”

Brady fights back his shock and asks Renfield, “Who’s that?”

Renfield laughs and explains, “That is Solstice, she” raising his tone “should be done with the first part of what she is working on that we need.”  He turns to Solstice and raises an eyebrow.

“I’m not slow unless you drug me.  Here’s what I have.”  She points at one of her screens and Renfield grins.

“That’ll work!”  He rubs her back in approval. Brady looks at the room and all of the gear in it and turns to Renfield.

“How did you get caught if you had all of this available to you?”  Brady’s face goes into a confused look.

“I had to be.  Otherwise you wouldn’t be here and neither would she.”  He gestures to Solstice.

“That’s Solstice?  She looks, ummm.”  Brady searches for the words, but how does one ask how the creature he saw in that cave is the same as the pretty girl now sitting in front of him typing away at a keyboard.

Renfield hears the thought and replies to it, “Brady, that was not her, her.”  He thinks about that response and considers a way to correct it.  “She had created that thing and took over it.”  He considers that response and realizes that doesn’t really explain either.”  Renfield waves a hand in dismissal and then says, “Okay, here’s the plan…”

“STOP!  I have a few questions.  What is that?”  Brady asks while pointing at one of the monitors.

“That’s for you. I was getting to that.” Renfield replied.

“Why did Illumna call me Grandfather?”  Brady looks at Renfield thinking, of there is any damned question he wants an answer to, it’s certainly that one.

“Don’t poke wounds.” Renfield responded.  “You and Sara can talk before we go.  I am fairly certain she wants to talk to you.  I know that the two of them, in your mind are older, but they remember.”

Brady looks at Renfield completely confused.  He considers a response, but decides it’s better to remain silent.  He sees the look on Renfield’s face and realizes that there are things that can injure Adam deeply and apparently he was or is going to be the facilitator of one of those things.  Then he corrects his thoughts as he looks at the two young women.  He thinks, “OK, was, but why do I not remember?”  Then he turns back to Renfield, “Ok, last question and then you can explain your plan.  Can I speak to Christina?  I need to know some things and I trust her assessment of the situation more than yours.  No offense, but…”

“That’s obvious, Brady!  That’s why when you called for support in that hell you called for her.”  Anger flashes on Renfield’s face, but he calms himself as fast as it comes and continues, “Illumna is your Granddaughter and my daughter.  I love my daughter.  The timeline is changeable.  I could insured that you never cross me.  However, had I done that, I wouldn’t have Sara or Illumna.  Tread lightly.  I consider you a friend, but there are times I consider killing you.”

Brady, still confused looks at Renfield trying to understand what he could be referring to.  Renfield snaps around quickly and calmly states, “Time is a confusing thing Brady.  Let’s just leave it at that and get this job done.”

Brady, still looking confused, wondering how he angered Adam to such an extent.  He knows Renfield to be a fairly calm person, even under pressure.  Brady does wonder what this whole thing is about, so he puts the thoughts about the dynamics of the social interaction aside and takes a deep breath.  Then he asks, “OK, so what’s the plan?”