Entry: 4

Entry: 4
   - Set...


   "Wait...The Smithsonian?" Liam asked. Uncertain he had heard right.
   "Like...as in Washington D.C? Near the White House?!"
Almera nodded and jumped up. She walked over to her closet.
She tugged a backpack off the top shelf. Liam was surprised to find that it was already packed and ready to go.
   "You keep a go-bag?" He asked. Slightly impressed.
She glanced up at him as she unzipped it.
   "Yeah. Don't you?"
   "Yes. But I've been at this longer."
   "You're point being?" She turned to Sage. Giving him a silent head nod, he jogged out of the room and into his own.
   "Wait, what are we doing?" Liam asked, still a little confused. Almera glanced up at him with a smile.
   "How on earth have you survived all these years with out someone who knows how to keep a plan in their head?" She teased.
   "Hey! I keep a plan in my head!"
The statement caused her to throw her head back and laugh.
   "Really? Well then I guess you can answer your own question."
She ran into the bathroom and grabbed a Ziploc bag and shoved her bathroom _____, then shoved them into the bag.
   "Wait, so we're just going to take a plane to Washington D.C., walk into the Smithsonian, and steal a historical document?" Liam asked.
Almera hesitated before nodding.
   "Only two things are wrong." She said. "We're not steeling it. We're borrowing it. Then once we're done with it, we'll give it back."
Liam nodded sarcastically.
   "Right. Because you plan on giving it back."
   "I do! I don't steel things. It's in the ten commandments. I don't steel." She snapped back in shock.
   "Right ok. And the second one?" He asked.
She pulled a leather jacket from her closet and a painful stabbing hit Liam's chest. It was the exact same brand and style as his own.
She shrugged it on while she watched him carefully. Then tugged her feet into her boots, her skinny jeans slipping into them with no problem.
She snatched a pair of keys off her desk and dangled them in front of him.
   "Who says we're taking a plane?" She asked with a cocked grin. "Get your go-bag." Almera slipped her bag over her shoulder and walked out of the room.

Mrs. Leavenworth knew what was going on when her daughter emerged out of her room with a backpack slung over her shoulder.
A silent tear slid down her cheek as Sage came out with a backpack as well.
   "Mom...We've got to go to Washington." Almera said slowly.
Her mom nodded and showed her bravery by keeping her emotions under control.
   "You found a lead?" She asked quietly.
Almera nodded.
   "Yup. We'll be back soon. I promise. And if we're not you can blame him." She knew the joke would make her mom chuckle, even if it did make Liam shift uncomfortably.
   "Just keep each other safe ok?" Mrs. Leavenworth asked. Stepping forward and holding her only family left in a tight embrace.
   "I promise mom." Almera whispered. Squeezing her mom back.
Mrs. Leavenworth nodded and let go of her daughter reluctantly.
   "Alright." She wiped a hand under her eyes. "Just be safe. And may God bless you. Return home quickly. And take care of Sage. He's only eleven."
Sage rolled his eyes and blushed as Mrs. Leavenworth kissed his cheek.
   "I will. Don't worry." Liam piped up.
Almera's mom nodded and gave him a hug.
   "You had better. Or so help me, you'll wish you had." She said with a strait face and a serious tone.
Liam nodded in acknowledgement.
Mrs. Leavenworth took a step back and smiled at the three young kids who looked to be ready for everything.
   "One more thing." She pulled at the collar of her dress and pulled out a chain with a key at the end.
   "This key goes to your father's warehouse. You'll find whatever you need there. Almera. You know the address. Make sure you take extra precautions and..." She stopped herself and sighed.
   "You know all of this already. Well, honey just be safe. And send me a call or...something."
Almera nodded.
   "Yes ma'am. I love you." She gave her mom a kiss on the cheek and headed over to the door. Sage gave a quiet thanks to Mrs. Leavenworth for all that she had done for him, then followed Almera.
She dashed down the stairs two at a time, landing in a soft thud. She took little notice of the boys following her as she moved down the street.
   "Where are we going?" Liam called out. Jogging to catch up with Almera.
But she didn't answer. She seemed intently searching for something, and didn't hear him.
   "Finn-"
She heard that.
Spinning around, she had him in a choke hold before he could react fully.
   "Don't." She whispered in his ear. "Call me that." She knocked his feet out from under him and let go of him. As he crashed into the floor, she walked off and into an abandoned warehouse.
   "You really need to stop calling her that." Sage muttered.
   "Why?" Liam asked, accepting his offered hand and letting the small boy pull him up to his feet again.
   "Because, it just reminds her of days that are over and gone. Ones that are never going to happen. She gets like this when ever she's reminded of her old life that she was forced to leave. So just keep your mouth shut."

Sage's lecture was cut short by the sound of an expensive engine revving.
Liam's jaw slacked as a flash of silver and black zipped past him with such speed that it sent his hair flying and his jacket flapping in the wind behind him.
There was a screech of breaks and suddenly a silver and black sleek sports car was idling by the side of the road.
With Almera sitting in the driver's seat.
   "Hop in." She said, her voice coated in pleasure and fun.
Sage ran over and opened the passenger door, hopping into the back seat. Leaving the front seat open for Liam. He took it rather reluctantly, but was eager to see this car.
   "You....you own a Ten11 Sports Car?! Sense when have you had the money for a Ten11 Sports Car?!" He asked, hopping into the seat and closing the door behind him.
She didn't wait for him to get his seatbelt on before she hit the gas peddle.

Liam was slightly surprised by how well Finnley controlled the car. She was as calm as all get out. She drove it with ease, and a slightly heavy foot.
She had let the windows down at Sage's request and with her hair was left to fly around her face.
She reached into a cup holder and pushed on her white rimmed sunglasses.
   "Can you put on some music?" Sage asked.
Almera sighed.
   "Sure. What do you want to listen to?"
He was silent for a moment before deciding.
   "TobyMac?"
Almera sighed and shifted in her seat. She pulled her iPod out of her back pocket and set it in the player on the dash board.
She set it on shuffle, and scoffed when 'Gone' rolled through the speakers.
   "Could it get anymore uncomfortable?" She mumbled.
While Sage was in the back bouncing around and singing with the song, Almera was getting a headache.
   "How did you afford this car?" Liam asked.
Almera chuckled.
   "Lets just say I have my resources."
   "Well that's not reassuring." Liam stated.
She laughed.
   "Has anyone found you?" Liam asked.
Almera shook her head.
   "No. Not really. When I think someone has, we always move."
   "Well can't you just use your power in order to see the where their going to be?"
She shook her head.
   "No. The future is always changing. Nothing's set in stone. I can only see what a person's going to do if they have already made the decision. I can't if they haven't."
At first, Liam thought he got it. Then he realized, he really didn't.
   "What?"
She groaned.
   "Never mind."
She found herself tapping mindlessly on the steering wheel.
   "You guys are insane! Why are you always at each other's throat? I mean come on." Sage jumped in. "You're going to be stuck with each other for a while now, get use to it."
Almera struggled to keep her laugh under control. The same with Liam.
But soon, they both just burst out laughing.
   "It's one thing from a parent..." Almera managed to say.
   "But another when it comes from an eleven year old." Liam finished.
Sage rolled his eyes and sat back in the leather seat.
   "What ever. Hey where are we going?"
Almera jerked the steering wheel suddenly, sending all of them slamming into the side of the car.
She slammed her foot on the break and the back of the car came spinning around till they came to a complete stop.
   "Here. We're going here." She answered. Turning the engine off and stepping out of the car.

They found themselves standing in front of a large strip of storage units. All the doors were painted green, half of them were rusted and none of them looked like they hadn't been touched in years.
   Almera walked down the strip counting the units. She hit ten, and stopped.
   "Alright dad..." She muttered, yanking the key off her neck. "What have you got for me?"
She jammed the key into the rusted lock and turned it. There was a sudden shudder and then a panel jumped up on the concrete side of the door.
The boys were taken surprise by the sudden panel in the stone, but she wasn't.
However she was stumped when she saw that it required a code. She knew it would require a code but she really hadn't been thinking about it.
   "Do you know it?" Liam asked.
She bit her lip and studied the keypad in front of her. It lit up blue letters on a green screen. She tried typing in her mother's name, but it came up wrong. She then tried typing up her own name. There was a flash and she was suddenly faced herself.
She must have been around six. Quoting her favorite line from her favorite Disney movie.
Peter Pan. The scene where Captain Hook was yelling at Smee to go get...
   "Oh my gosh is that what you looked like when you were six?!" She pushed Sage away from the camera.
She quickly typed in the password.
   "Tinkerbell!"
There was a blink and the panel flipped back into the stone.
The green door rolled up.
The three stepped inside.
The door shut behind them.
Lights flickered on in their rhythmic humming. Revealing one of the most high tech warehouse full of the most high tech equipment any of them had seen.
   "Holy-"
Almera flicked Sage's head.
   "-mackerel." He finished quickly.
Almera shot him a look, but was more concerned with what was lying at her feet.
   "Who was your dad again?" He asked opened mouthed.
   "One of the most amazing and coolest guys alive!" Liam cried.
Something that he said set Almera's teeth on edge. But she pushed it aside for the moment as she walked farther into the storage unit.
   To the outside, it did look like an old storage unit. However, the inside was anything but!

Large HD Plasma flat screens hung on opposite walls, the H.U.N.T.E.R insignia bouncing across them like a lazy bouncing ball.
White lights ran around the rim of the roof, lighting up a large armory.

   "This has got to be the largest stash of weapons outside the agency!" Liam cried, astonished by the sheer number of weapons that could be seen.
There was a table to one side of the room, full of various hand guns under bullet proof glass.
The walls were slanted outward, giving the room a cylinder like feeling.
The farthest wall was full of machine guns, and the rest of it looked like a sort of bunker. It had six bunk beds, and a table with chairs bolted into the ground.

Following her instincts, Almera walked over to one of the sides of the room and ran her fingertips over the side of it. The panel shot open. It was really a drawer with more weapons. Only these were knives. She noticed something peculiar and picked up a piece of leather.
If she were in the medieval era, this particular piece of equipment would be called a gauntlet. And sense that was the only word for it she could think of, she went with that.
Slipping it back into it's place she shut the drawer again and sighed.

Both boys were going around and opening up random drawers, gapping at the contents, pulling a few out and swinging them around wildly. (Well, at least Sage did)

Almera sighed and wished she had a girl to talk to. She walked over to the small table and sat down, pulling her messenger bag around and opening it. She pulled out the piece of paper she had so many confused feelings about, and then a small picture from her wallet.
Her father starred back at her with a smile that made his eyes squint. It brought on a smile. One she hadn't worn for a year...or more.
Dropping the picture back into the bag, she rubbed her temple and tried to sort through the mess of feelings inside her.
God, I know I won't be able to get through any of this with out you. Please just guide us into doing what you want. Please Lord. It's going to take a lot, but I know you're patient, and thank goodness for that!

Liam watched Almera closely. She seemed to be in trouble. He could understand why, he had gone up and left her, then ignored her very existence for a year and then popped back up in her life out of the blue!
But she wasn't the only one.
He was still trying to get use to the idea of actually seeing her again. Most of the time he could ignore the confusing feelings. He had been for the past year. But recently, now that he was with her again, those feelings came back. Most of them were good. But one in particular wasn't. Guilt. He hated guilt. But he couldn't seem to get the right words out. He couldn't get two simple words out, and because of that it was killing him.
It's going to take more then words isn't it Lord? He asked, looking down at the knife he was twirling in between his fingers. I've got to prove to her I'm not going to leave her once she lets her walls down. I have to prove that I'm not going to hurt her again...
He sighed. After confessing that to his Father, he felt a sense of giddy peace about it.
Yeah. That's what I have to do...just...how do I do it?
He shook his head and set the knife back down. He couldn't go through all that right now, he had to work on what they were planning on doing in the immediate future.
   He walked over to Finnley, who looked to be hypnotized by a spot in the distance.
   "What are we going to do? When we get to Washington?" He asked. Snapping her back into reality.
She frowned at no one in particular as she thought.
   "No idea."
Liam gave a small smile, and rapped the table with his knuckles before he sat down in the chair opposite of her.
  "Why don't we just start off by looking at it? And locating it." He suggested.
She nodded. Once again hypnotized by something invisible to his eyes. He also noticed her fingering her left hand. He saw a flash of black and silver on two of her fingers and couldn't quite figure out what they were.
  "Ok..." She said quietly, nodding slowly. "Sounds good. Does this place have anything in here but weapons?" She jumped up from her seat and he noticed for the first time that she was wearing bright red high-top converse.
A smile touched his lips as the old Finnley he use to know started to show up again.

She pulled out the wand, stick, thingy, again and twirled it in between her fingers, then with a flick of her wrist and spinning on her heel she swept the room. Shoving it back into her back pocket she walked over to one wall and pressed her finger tips against it.
A drawer rolled out and she grinned as she pulled out the latest touch phones.
   "Heads up." She called as she tossed one to Sage, who barely just caught it. She then tossed one to Liam, who snatched it out of the air with no effort.
   "These seem to already be in sync with each other, so locating each other if we get lost shouldn't be a problem. It's updated with the latest satilite images, an amazing camera...ooh cool effects."
Sage snorted as Finnley went off topic, and Liam chuckled.
She looked up at both of them through her hair and cleared her throat.
   "Moving on. They also have video and recorder. Handy if we need it."
She laughed as she looked into the drawer further.
   "Some times...I really wonder." She muttered under her breath. Reaching into the drawer she pulled out her dad's old baseball cap. Sweat stains were still on the rim, and it still smelled like her dad. A tear came to her eyes as she remembered how he had gotten it.

They were at a baseball team, going to see the Blue Jays play. His favorite team. It was just the two of them.
A Daddy Date as she use to call them.
They ate foot long hot dogs, popcorn, and cotton candy. She was so sick the next day!
But the thing that made her feel bad was that her dad's home team lost the game.
It was the last game he ever went to.
So when she had her own money, she bought him a grey Blue Jays baseball cap and gave it to him to make up for the game.
He wore it all the time.

   "That's a really old hat." Sage stated bluntly. She chuckled.
   "Yeah it is."
   "It stinks!" He cried, pinching the tip of his nose as he walked away.
She jumped him and smacked him with the hat.
   "Tough!" She set it square on her head and stuck out her tongue at the little kid.
He made a groaning sound and walked off.
She laughed and walked back to the drawer.
This must have been his personal drawer. She thought as she saw the old frayed pictures of her and mom. She gave a smile as she looked at one of her when she was one, with chocolate cake all over her. She then noticed an old piece of paper that had her name on the front.

Liam noticed her brow crease as she pulled out a yellowed paper. It looked to be written a while ago. He could just make out the name on the front and his heart went out to her.
Her father has been dead for more years then he'd care to count. He had actually been his apprentice of a sort when he was younger and still working for H.U.N.T.E.R. But then he was called to heaven, leaving behind his wife and daughter who have been grieving ever sense.

Almera chuckled at the sight of her dad's horrendous handwriting and opened the piece of paper up.

Almera,
I know this wont make much sense, I'm not even sure if you'll get this
but I want you to know that, no matter how far away I may seem, I'm
always there to protect you. You never have to yell for too long, or too 
loud, I'll always hear you, and I'll always come running.


Remember that.


Love you Tinkerbell,




PS: Give the boy a break. He was just doing what he thought was 
right. He really is going to look out for you. I promise.

Finnley was stunned.
It was a little cryptic, and she wasn't quiet sure what it all meant. And how on earth did he know about Jay when this must have been written before he died?!
But it was those words, written by a man long sense dead, yet always watching out for her (and always will be), that they hit her, and sunk in.

Her eyes wandered slowly from Sage messing around with guns, pretending to shoot things, to Jayson who was watching her with a curious look.
He was looking at her with those same screaming silver-blue eyes that had first caught her attention on the race track so long ago. She knew back then that she would always be wondering how they saw her. And once she got to know the boy they belonged too, she just got more mesmerized by them.

Then, locked in each others gaze. Something clicked.
Something huge.
Something that would change the future.
Not just theirs.
But the worlds.
She would take a chance with him.
They would crash into each other, like there was no landing. And then...they both knew that the next thing would be up to God.
And the thing was,neither of them were scared to do it.