Exposed (18 page)

Chapter Thirty

     “Excuse me, sir. I’m Charles Pierce. I’m looking for my daughter, Alyson Pierce. She’s supposed to be interning in this facility.”

     “Just a moment. I’ll be right with you.”

     “I can’t believe we’re here. In Geneva. The farthest I’ve ever been before is Disneyland. And this is nothing like Disneyland,” Jake said, looking around, trying not to be too obvious.

     “It is very beautiful here. Almost serene. This is the perfect place for her to be. The perfect place to relax and unwind. Especially after all she went through. She can breathe in deep and take in all the beauty. That is when she’s not trying to make some new discovery.”

     “This is the perfect temporary retreat for her. Emphasis on temporary. I couldn’t stand it if she didn’t come back with us.”

     “Yes, Mr. Pierce. Your daughter is here. She is on the second floor. Would you like to go up or shall I page her?”

     “I think it might be better if she met us down here. I wouldn’t want to startle her and have her drop something important.”

     “Very well. I’ll page her. You may have a seat over there.”

     “Thank you.”

     “Yes, thank you,” Jake added, following Charles to the waiting area.

      “Alyson Pierce, please come to the information desk. There is a visitor here for you.”

      Alyson cringed when she heard her name over the loud speaker. She squeezed the pen in her fist, her heart pounding like a jackhammer. Almost suffocating, her throat tightened as she sucked in her breath, gasping for air. The knots in her stomach punching her from the inside out.

     “How did he find me? I’m in another country! We got rid of the locator chip, didn’t we? What if he put more than one inside of us? He’s demented enough to do that. What am I gonna do? I have to get out of here. I have to tell Cassie. We can’t stay here anymore. I don’t know where we’re going to go, but we have to get away from here.”

     Alyson grabbed her keys, threw them in her bag, and tiptoed through the hallway. She pushed the emergency stairwell door open and bounded down, two steps at a time until she reached the exit. She ran, huffing and puffing, never looking back until she reached her apartment.

     “Cassie! Cassie! We have to get out of here. He found us! I don’t know how, but he found out where we are. Come on! We can’t stay here!”

     “Slow down. What do you mean he found us? That’s impossible. We got rid of the chips and he couldn’t have followed us.”

     “I don’t know how, but there’s no other explanation. Grab your stuff. We have to go now before he finds us again. He could show up here at any time.”

     “We can’t keep running forever, Alyson. We have to fight back.”

     “How? How are we going to fight back? I can’t! Let’s just go!”

     “What makes you think he found us anyway? Did you see him?”

     “No, but I didn’t have to. I was at work and there was a page over the loudspeaker. You’re the only person that knows I’m here. Who else would be looking for me if it wasn’t him?”

     “If he did follow us here, we need to protect ourselves. It’s time we stopped running and hiding.”

     “Do you have any ideas how?”

     “Did you see if he followed you?”

     “I don’t know. I was too scared to look back. I ran out the side exit and just kept running until I got here. I never turned around to see if he was behind me.”

     “If he did follow you, he’ll show up here soon. He’s not going to wait. We just have to sit tight. Grab that bat over there. If he tries to come here, we’ll knock him out. It’s two against one.”

     “What if he has a gun?”

     “Then we knock him unconscious before he can use it.”

     “I wish I could be brave like you, Cassie.”

     “You are. You just don’t know it. You survived everything that he put us through. That makes you brave.”

     “Only because you were with me.”

     “We’ll wait here for a while. If he doesn’t show up, then it probably wasn’t him.”

     “I’ll wait on this side. You stand over there.”

     Alyson clutched the bat with both hands, her fingers turning red, white knuckles jutting out. She stood, stiff as a soldier, holding her breath, waiting to pounce. The longer she waited, the more her hands started to cramp, but she refused to loosen her grip. Cassie stood on the opposite side of the doorway, facing Alyson, a Louisville slugger perched in her hands. As her arms fatigued under the weight, she occasionally let it drop to the floor, then picked it up and resumed her position.

     “I don’t think he’s coming,” Cassie said, trying to catch her breath.

     “Just wait here a little longer. I’m sure he’s going to try something.”

     “We’ve been standing here almost two hours. He’s not coming. It probably wasn’t even him. It could have been one of your instructors looking for you.”

     “Oh my... I can’t believe I put us through this for nothing. You’re right. It was probably someone from the institute looking for me and I ran out of there like some kind of crazy person.”

     Alyson eased up her grip on the bat and let it slide down to the floor. She was just about to put it away when there was a knock at the door.

     “I’m not crazy! He did follow me!” Alyson whispered.

     Alyson and Cassie grabbed the bats, squeezed them tight, and raised them over their heads.

     “Unlock the door,” Cassie whispered.

     “I’m ready,” Alyson said, flipping the lock as she chalked up on the bat, waiting to swing when he opened the door.

     The door creaked open. When a male figure stepped through the doorway, Alyson swung her bat, dropping him to the ground. She kept swinging blindly until she heard a familiar voice call her name.

     “Alyson! Drop the bat! It’s Jake!”

     She swung one more time before the words registered, then opened her hands, letting the bat fall to the floor.

     “Dad? Jake? Oh my... What have I done? Jake! Jake! Are you okay? Speak to me!”

     Jake groaned as he lay on the floor, barely able to move.

     “Please, Jake! Speak to me! I’m so sorry! I didn’t know! I didn’t know it was you!”

     “Alyson?” Jake said, his voice weak.

     “I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to...”

     “It’s...okay. Help me up.”

     “What are you doing here? What are both of you doing here? What about your father? What if he followed you? He could have followed you here! You shouldn’t have come!”

     “Alyson, slow down. Calm down,” Charles said, helping Jake to his feet and onto a chair.

     “We came to tell you it’s safe. You don’t have to hide anymore. You don’t have to run away. You can come back home,” Jake said.

     “Are you crazy? Are you insane? Your father will...”

     “My father can’t do anything anymore. He’s dead.”

     “What?” Cassie asked, trying not to sound too happy.

     “Your father is...dead? Are you sure? Maybe it’s just a trick. He gets you to believe that he’s dead and we come out of hiding and then bam!”

     “It’s not a trick, Alyson. He’s not pretending. I was with him when it happened. He’s really gone. He’ll never hurt you or anyone else ever again.”

     “So, it’s true? We’re really free?”

     “Yes, that’s why we’re here. To bring you home again. You do want to come home, don’t you?” Jake asked, his eyes fixated on Alyson’s.

     “Home. I never thought... I do, but...”

     “What’s the matter, Alyson? Life can go back to normal again. Well, sort of. I know things have changed, and a lot has happened, but my feelings for you... My feelings are... I love you. I don’t want to be without you. Please come home with us.”

     “I want to, Jake. I really do. Wait a second. How did you find us? How did you know this is where we’re living?”

     “We went to the facility. They paged you, but you never showed. We got concerned so I spoke to the director of the program. I told him I was your father and he said this is where the interns are living. The rest, well, you know the rest. Anyway, a lot has changed since you’ve been here.”

     “So, it’s really safe for us to move back? We can go back to living a normal life?”

     “Yes, Alyson. I know adjustments will have to be made, but you don’t have to be worried anymore. Nobody is going to try to hurt you again.”

     “Can you make the nightmares go away? It’s been a little better since we’ve been here. They’re happening less now than when we first got here, but if I go back, back to where it all started,... It’s just too much. I don’t think I can. Not yet,” Alyson said, tears starting to form.

     “But I miss you, Alyson. I love you. Please come home.”

     “I want to, Jake. But not now. I need time.”

     “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to pressure you.”

     “It’s okay. I’m just not ready. I’m not the same person I used to be. I’m not that girl who laughs at all your goofy jokes. I don’t even remember how to laugh. It’s been so long. I’m still trying to learn how not to be afraid all the time. Every time the phone rings. Or there’s a knock at the door. Or a page announcing my name over the loudspeaker. I don’t know how to not be afraid. I want to be who I was. I just don’t know if I ever can.”

     “Don’t you still...”

     “Of course I still love you. But it’s more complicated than that.”

     “No, it’s not. We can work through these things together.”

     “I can’t just go back to the way we were. I’ve changed. I can’t be who you remember.”

     “I don’t expect you to be the same. How could you? You’ve gone through so much. We’re both different people than we were a few months ago. But my feelings for you haven’t changed. My feelings for you will never change.”

     “I can’t leave here, Jake. I have a new life now. I’m doing important research. We’re working on groundbreaking techniques that could revolutionize the way we treat certain diseases. I’m making a difference here. I couldn’t do that if I went back with you.”

     “Then I’ll stay here with you. There’s nothing back home for me if you aren’t with me. I’ll get a job and I’ll find a way to make it here. Please, give us a chance.”

     “You would stay here? For me? You don’t know anybody else here. Where would you live? How would you live?”

     “I don’t know, but I’ll figure it out. I have some money from my dad’s life insurance policy. And I could sell the house. Anything I have to do. I just can’t go back to living without you. Please say you’ll try. Give us a chance.”

     “Dad? Did you know about this?”

     “I knew about his feelings for you, but moving here, this is the first I’m hearing of it.”

     “I don’t know what to do.”

     “This decision is all yours, Alyson. Jake is a good man. He’s proven that. Whatever you decide, I’ll support you.”

     “Alyson, the man flew thousands of miles to be with you. He’s willing to give up everything to move here so you can be together. The only thing you have to decide is if you still love him. Do you?” Cassie said.

     “I..I guess we better find a job for you if you’re going to be living here,” Alyson said, a smile forming on her face.

     “You mean it?”

     “Yes! I don’t want to live without you, either. I’ve missed you so much,” Alyson said, hugging Jake tightly.

     “Careful. I’m still kind of sore from where you beat me within an inch of my life.”

     “Sorry,” Alyson said, loosening her grip.

     “Don’t you dare let go. I’ve waited too long to feel your arms around me again. I can deal with the pain,” Jake said, wincing and smiling.

     “What about you, Cassie? Are you going to stay as well, or do you want to come back with me. I know your father is missing you something fierce.”

     “I’ll go pack my things. I miss him, too. Alyson, I’ll never forget you. I’ll come visit whenever I can. I’m going to miss you. I feel like I’m leaving a part of myself behind, but I need to go back home. I miss my friends. And my old life.”

     “I understand. I’ll try to visit after my internship ends. I’m going to miss you, too. And Dad, I wish you could stay here, but I know you have a life to get back to. And a new wife. You and Samantha need time alone. Starting a marriage with a teenage daughter could put a real strain on a relationship.”

     “You know you’re not the typical teenage daughter.”

     “Yes, I know. Oddly enough, being a clone makes me unique. There aren’t too many of us,” Alyson said, unable to stop smiling as her fingers remained interlaced with Jake’s.

     “You know you always have a home with me and Samantha. If you ever want to come back.”

     “I know, Dad. Maybe someday, but not now. I can’t explain it, but this is where I need to be. New country. New life. It’s a chance to start over fresh. And now that I have Jake, I can move forward with someone by my side.”