Aeturnum (The Book of Adam 2) Read online

  Adam threw a questioning glance at Kevin before nodding.

  “So we’re just here to help clean up?” asked Kevin.

  Gurpreet nodded. “We need young muscle to carry bags and boxes out to the garbage truck. Since George knows about the Sentinel League again and most of the paperwork he collected was him trying to find out about the League, there’s no point in keeping it anymore. George will go through the boxes to make sure there is nothing important inside and you will carry the garbage out to the truck. I have a few things to do at home, so when the truck is full come get me and I’ll take it to the dump. Sounds good?”

  The boys nodded.

  “Great,” said Gurpreet. He turned to George. “Let’s get started. They’ll follow you.”

  George nodded and walked to his door. One step in, he opened the first box and rifled though the contents. A minute later, he turned back to the group and handed out the first box.

  “This one can go.”

  Adam was the closest one to the door, so he stepped in and grabbed the box. When he exited he wasn’t surprised to see that Kevin was next in line. Jimmy was behind Kevin, and Mark stood far behind Jimmy, looking as though he would rather be anywhere else.

  For the next hour they continued like ants taking food to the colony, although they were in reverse. Soon the truck was filled to the brim and Mark ran home to get his dad. When Gurpreet arrived, he took Jimmy and Mark along to the dump to unload, leaving Adam and Kevin behind since there were only three seats in the old truck.

  “I can’t thank you boys enough for all your help,” said George, so happy that he seemed to choke up as he was talking.

  “Don’t thank us too much, Mr. Fritz. We owe you,” said Adam.

  Kevin looked at him and raised an eyebrow.

  “Please, call me George…but I don’t understand how you owe me anything?”

  Kevin’s raised eyebrow agreed with George.

  “If it wasn’t for your warnings, we wouldn’t have ended up looking for answers and we would have ended up like Waldron and Langenburg.”

  George thought about it and nodded with a small smile. “You give me too much credit, Adam, but thank you.”

  Kevin nodded along with George, understanding Adam’s logic.

  “Anyway, we’re getting pretty close to the end of my boxes. Before the others get back, how about we sit down and have a Root Beer? I put some in the fridge to cool this morning. It was a good thing Mark didn’t know where I hid the last case or it would have been gone already.”

  Adam and Kevin laughed.

  George motioned for them to sit at the table. Since taking all the boxes away, the kitchen table and chairs had been excavated. The boys were now able to sit in spots where they couldn’t even see chairs before. The first time they had seen the table, they had been amazed at the amount of paper George had managed to successfully stack on top without the stacks toppling over.

  George brought two cans from the fridge, handed one to each boy and sat in his usual chair. The seat where George had sat down was the only spot that had been clear of boxes before the cleaning, although there were still a few blank papers and some pencils in that spot on the table.

  “You know, I used to enjoy drawing and sketching a lot – before I lost my memory, that is. Since I’ve been working with Elianora, I’ve started to do it again,” said George. “It’s quite relaxing.”

  “Do you have any of your drawings here?” asked Kevin.

  Adam was surprised that Kevin would even ask, considering how Kevin felt about George. This new George must have been winning Kevin over.

  George looked surprised too. “Yes, actually.” He reached over to the kitchen counter nearby and grabbed a small stack of papers, handing one to Kevin.

  Kevin looked at it with surprise. “This is really good,” he exclaimed, handing it to Adam. The picture was a drawing of Town Hall.

  “I did that completely by memory while I was…away.” He seemed to feel awkward about saying the last word. After a second, he shook off the feeling and handed another picture over. It was a picture of the Hotel, once again really well done.

  “You could sell these,” said Kevin, quite serious.

  “I don’t know about that…you think so?” asked George, sheepish.

  “For sure,” said Kevin. “I’d bet my parents would buy one. Do you have any farm scenes? They love those.”

  George was surprised by Kevin’s comments. His face broke into a wide smile.

  “You know, I think there’s a picture of a sunrise over the valley that I’m not quite done yet. Let me see,” said George as he flipped through the pages one at a time.

  Adam smiled. Seeing the happiness in George’s face made all the box-carrying worthwhile. It wasn’t every day that he got to see genuine joy in someone’s face.

  Adam watched as George flipped page after page onto the table. After he had gone through a few, something caught Adam’s eye. At first he thought he was dreaming, but after a few seconds it registered.

  “Stop!” he said, and George did.

  “Go back a couple of pages,” said Adam.

  George gave him a strange look and started picking pages back up again. After he picked two off the pile, Adam asked him to stop again. To Adam, the next picture stuck out like a coffee bean on a pile of sugar, but George and Kevin didn’t know why.

  Adam’s eyes widened as he realized what he saw.

  George had drawn the symbol Adam had seen in the fake Heartstone.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  George had a puzzled look on his face as he glanced at the drawing and back to Adam. Even Kevin looked confused.

  "What is that?" asked Adam as he pointed to the paper.

  The picture on the paper looked like a round figure eight with a triangular hourglass shape inside of it. A short line cut across the point where the two lobes and triangles intersected.

  "...I...I don't know," said George. "It's just a doodle I couldn't get out of my head."

  Adam paused before deciding to tell George why he was so interested in the picture.

  “Do you know about everything that happened here last year?” asked Adam.

  George nodded. “I’ve been told what happened in the Radome caves.”

  “Did you also hear about the fake Heartstone and the message inside of it?” Adam asked again.

  George’s eyes narrowed. “I heard about the fake Heartstone, but nothing about a message. What does that have to do with my drawing?”

  "When I connected with the fake Heartstone, there was a message inside saying that the real Heartstone had been stolen. I saw that picture at the end of the message," said Adam, pointing at the drawing. “I had assumed it was the symbol of whoever took it.”

  George looked confused. “How can that be? I saw this in a dream and couldn't get it out of my head. It wouldn't let me sleep so Elianora suggested that I draw it to get it out. I’ve got no idea where I would have seen this before,” he said.

  “Did she recognize it?” asked Adam.

  “If she did, she hid it well,” George replied.

  Silence filled the kitchen as each of them was lost in deep thought.

  “Have you talked to her about it?” Kevin asked Adam.

  Adam thought it over for a moment. “I described it to her that night, and she didn’t say anything about it. I forgot about it until after we heard about the escape, so I asked her again. That time she just told me it doesn't mean anything and changed the subject.”

  “So you think she knows more than she’s saying, then?” asked Kevin.

  Adam nodded.

  “But how is it in my head?” asked George. “Am I the one who took the Heartstone?” He was visibly disturbed by the thought.

  Adam and Kevin looked at each other. They had been thinking the same thing, especially since George used to be Number 2.

  Again, they sat in silence. George seemed to become more and more uncomfortable with his thoughts.

  Adam could s
ee that it was beginning to really bother George.

  “Well,” said Adam, “you were Number 2 after all, so I would think you would have known a lot of the things that Elianora does. It’s probably just a coincidence that this popped up in your mind instead of something else. I don’t think it’s anything you need to worry about.”

  George considered this for a few moments and nodded his head, a slight smile returning to his face. “Yeah, you’re probably right. I have had quite a lot of things popping into my brain. It’s not the first thought that’s kept me up at night either.”

  The sound of noisy brakes bringing an old vehicle to a stop caught everyone’s attention and took their mind off of the picture.

  “They’re back,” said Kevin, standing to look out the front window.

  “Are you done your drinks?” asked George.

  Kevin handed his empty can to George while Adam guzzled the last of his. It burned as he drank it fast, and as soon as it was empty he handed it over to George.

  The door opened and in stepped Gurpreet, Jimmy and Mark.

  “We’re ready for the next load,” said Gurpreet.

  George held up a finger, signalling Gurpreet to wait, and then pulled a couple of cans of Root Beer out of his fridge.

  “We’ve had our break already,” he said, referring to himself, Adam and Kevin. “Now it’s your turn.”

  Mark rushed to the table the second he heard the word break and saw the Root Beer in George’s hand. Adam and Kevin left their spots so the others could sit, and George placed a can in front of Mark and Jimmy once they were both seated. When George offered a drink to Gurpreet, Gurpreet thanked him and declined.

  “I thought you were all out of Root Beer,” said Mark.

  George smiled. “I have hiding spots you don’t know about Mark,” he said in reply.

  Gurpreet shook his head at Mark, then spoke to Adam and Kevin. “Since you’ve had a break, let’s continue hauling boxes.”

  They nodded and followed George to the remaining items. After another half an hour of hauling and sorting, George informed them they were done.

  “I can’t thank you all enough,” he kept saying, almost teary-eyed.

  “No problem, George,” said Gurpreet, “but do you need any more help? It is your first day back here in over a year? You probably need some groceries.”

  George considered this for a moment. “Yes, I guess I probably do,” he said slowly.

  “Well,” said Gurpreet, “How about this: I’ll take Kevin and Adam with me to the dump, since I took Mark and Jimmy last time,”

  Mark did a fist pump and said, “yesssss,” happy to get out of that job.

  “Meanwhile, Mark and Jimmy can take you to the store and carry all of your groceries back here while we’re gone.” Gurpreet ended the sentence with a big smile watching Mark’s fist pumping end abruptly.

  George looked like he was trying to make a difficult decision. Gurpreet must have understood why.

  “The League is paying for everything you need. The store already knows that. You just make sure you get everything you need – food, soap, paper towels – everything. You have help, so use it.”

  Mark groaned, maybe a bit too loud. Gurpreet gave him a stern look.

  George looked as if he were about to cry until Gurpreet held up his hand in a stop signal.

  “The only condition is that you have to help the League if we need you, Ok? You don’t remember this, but you were one of the most generous people when you were Number 2, so this is just a small bit of payback.”

  George controlled himself somewhat, but still looked like he was fighting his emotions. He nodded in agreement, unable to speak.

  It was at that point that Adam realized just how much George must have gone through in the last year. He felt sorry for George and determined that he would help in any way that he could.

  “Well, let’s get going,” Gurpreet said to Adam and Kevin, “These guys have to get to the store.”

  Adam and Kevin headed to the door while Mark grumbled behind them. Adam chuckled to himself after hearing Mark, wondering if Mark would ever learn to be quiet when work was being assigned by his dad.

  They hopped in the old truck with Adam in the middle next to Gurpreet and Kevin beside the door. Gurpreet slid into the driver’s seat and slammed the door shut. The old metal hinges squealed in resistance. He started the engine, which ran smooth although loud, and shifted the truck into gear. Soon, they were driving past Town Hall on their way to the dump, a mile south of town.

  Adam couldn’t help thinking about George’s drawing during the short ride to the dump. How was it stuck in George’s mind? George must have been involved with that group in some way, either with it or against it, because of the trouble it was causing him to sleep.

  Arriving at the dump, Gurpreet backed the truck up to a deep pit in the ground that contained all of the other papers George had collected. They hopped out and began throwing the remaining boxes on top, but Adam was stuck in thought about George and the symbol – almost obsessing about it.

  When they had finished, Gurpreet got back in the truck and pulled it away from the pit while Adam and Kevin waited. While he was in the cab of the truck, Gurpreet fiddled with the glove box for a moment before returning to the edge of the pit. He was carrying a box of wooden matches.

  With a quick strike and throw of the match, the pile of papers began to burn. Old dry paper, having been stored indoors for years, started on fire easily and grew up to a large fire in a short amount of time.

  “We should have brought some hot dogs,” said Gurpreet with a smile.

  Kevin nodded back with a big grin on his face. Adam tried to do the same, but only managed a small smile. Gurpreet noticed right away.

  “What’s wrong, Adam,” he asked.

  Adam wasn’t sure if he should say anything, but decided to ask.

  “Well, when you were at the dump the first time, George showed us some of his drawings,” replied Adam.

  Gurpreet caught on right away. “And one of them was the symbol you saw in the fake Heartstone,” Gurpreet finished the sentence for him.

  Adam nodded, not completely surprised that Gurpreet already knew about the drawing.

  “I forgot that he had his drawings with him and might show them to you,” Gurpreet continued.

  “Can you tell me anything about that symbol? What does it mean? What does it stand for?” asked Adam.

  Gurpreet paused in thought, staring Adam in the eyes the whole time, making Adam uncomfortable.

  “Hop in the truck,” he said, jerking his thumb in its direction. He was avoiding answering any of Adam’s questions.

  Adam and Kevin looked at each other. Kevin’s eyes widened a little, and the two boys did as Gurpreet asked.

  Gurpreet stayed outside and watched the fire for a couple of minutes while the boys waited. Adam decided that Gurpreet was making sure the fire was dying down so that it didn’t jump out and start a grass fire when they left.

  Adam looked at Kevin and Kevin shrugged. For some reason, they felt that they should stay quiet until Gurpreet said they could speak again.

  Once the flames had died down, Gurpreet got back in the truck. He started the engine and they drove away, but once they reached the main grid road Gurpreet turned south instead of north toward town.

  Adam was pretty sure he knew where they were going.

  In a few minutes, the truck scraped its way through the tree tunnel leading to Elianora’s farm. Adam was nervous that his questions were getting him in trouble, as Gurpreet maintained a stoic silence the entire way.

  When they stopped, Gurpreet finally spoke.

  “I was told that if I heard you asking about the symbol again, I should bring you out to see her, so here we are.” He waved the boys out of the cab.

  Kevin opened the door and stepped out, and Adam shuffled his way across the seat following close behind. Gurpreet remained in the truck.

  “Just go in and tell her you saw t
he symbol at George’s. I have to go back and make sure the fire dies completely, but I’ll come pick you up in half an hour, ok?”

  The look on Gurpreet’s face made Adam nervous as he nodded in agreement. Gurpreet noticed and changed his expression to a smile.

  “Don’t worry – she just wants to talk to you.”

  Adam nodded again and closed the door, but Gurpreet’s sudden change in mood didn’t do anything to help the knot in Adam’s gut.

  The truck motor cranked to a start, and Gurpreet eased the truck back out the way he came. Adam looked to the house and then to Kevin.

  “After you,” he said.

  “Gurpreet didn’t say she wanted to talk to me, so, after you,” Kevin replied.

  Adam would have liked it if Kevin led the way, but he could tell that it wasn’t going to happen that time. He took a deep breath, held for a moment and exhaled it all again before turning toward the house and beginning to walk. Kevin followed close behind.

  He knocked on the porch door, stepped inside and called “Hello?”

  “Come downstairs,” Elianora called from far away.

  The boys took off their shoes and followed the voice. At the bottom of the stairs, the sliding door was propped open and they could see Elianora inside the cave beyond. She was sitting in a rocking chair near her bookshelf with a book in hand, reading. As they stepped into the cave, they noticed that all of her things were back to where they had been the first time they had seen the area.

  She looked up at the boys and smiled. “Sorry, I just want to finish the last part of this book.” She held up a finger for the boys to wait, flipped a page, read it quickly and closed the book.

  “That was quite good,” she said.

  She held the book up for the boys to see. They had expected her to be reading one of the books from her own library – the ones with strange writing on the spine -but the book she held up was a surprise. It was “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.”