Page 28

CHAPTER 28

THE COVER UP

Hidden Truths

Nothing fills the gaping abyss long abandoned.

Avoidance sustains the vacant heart allowing it to beat a hollow sound

While false comfort places blindfolds over my eyes.

To protect my vision, it says, yet all around danger surrounds me.

Or am I the danger threatening my comfort?

What lies beyond the emptiness?

Does it seek to destroy and remake me?

Or does it desire my capitulation?

Do I dare remove the covering and see the world

Or continue to hide and pray I’ve found happiness in this tenuous reality?

— JANINE MCFARLANE

Creative Gifts

Y olanda searched inside the training facility for Julian. She went from room to room scanning faces as quickly as her brain could process. When he didn’t appear anywhere, she jogged outside. She spied a familiar silhouette walking toward the dorms and raced to catch him.

“Julian!” She grabbed his arm and spun him around. The misery on his face threw her off. “What’s wrong?”

Julian glanced around, then led her to their secret fort. “They told me to pack my bags. A car will be here to pick me up in two hours.”

“But I thought they were going to give you until dinner.” Yolanda hugged his waist and hid her face in his belly. “It’s too soon.”

Julian wrapped his arms around her and squeezed. “I don’t want to leave either, but remember my promise.”

Yolanda nodded. “You’re my forever family.”

“That’s right. No matter where you are or what you’re going through, I’m always going to be your family. And when we’re older…”

“I’m going to make you my husband.”

Julian kissed her forehead. “And I’ll make you my wife.”

Yolanda pulled from his arms, her eyes gleaming like wet onyx. “I’ll help you pack and stay with you until you have to leave.”

The solemn pair walked toward the dorm, the weight of their sadness blanketed them. As Julian packed up his belongings, Yolanda reached out to him but pulled her hand back without uttering a word. She had something she needed to tell him, but his imminent departure meant he would suffer alone. She couldn’t abide that. She’d hold the pain on his behalf until a better time, not that there was such a thing.

Time and again, she fought the impulse to reach out to him and share what she discovered. In the end, Yolanda sat and listened as Julian painted a picture of their lives when they got out. It sounded like heaven to her. She loved Julian the way her mom loved her dad; wholeheartedly and unconditionally. That was why she never feared being separated from him despite not liking the circumstances.

Yolanda’s faith in Julian and his promises to her was stronger than steel and would last longer than Egyptian pyramids. He wouldn’t forget her.

“Alright, that’s everything, except this.” Julian took her hands and drew her close before pulling an object from his pocket. “In case you outgrow the one you’re wearing, I made you eight more; one for every year we’ll be separated.” He placed five grass rings in her palm and closed her fingers over them. “Know that when I give these to you, it’s not a mere promise, but a piece of my heart. You hold within your hands the power to destroy me and give me the greatest gift on earth.”

She placed her free hand over her heart and the hemp necklace lying next to her skin. “I’ll treasure these for the rest of my life even after we meet again.”

Julian took her free hand, retrieved his suitcase, and walked out of the dorm without looking back. As they waited in front of the orphanage, words failed them. When they spied the oncoming car, Yolanda pressed his hand and ran, unable to face watching him walk away. She didn’t want the last image he had of her to be with tears free falling from her eyes. She was supposed to be the emotionally mature one, never losing her cool.

But knowing she wouldn’t see him for years when she spent a part of every day with him was unbearable. And she wouldn’t let him see her pain. She found a spot where she could observe him from afar because no matter how devastating watching her heart walk away was; she needed to memorize this last image of him. He was tall, confident, and…sad. Despite his apparent conflict, Yolanda watched him load the car and enter it, disappearing behind the closed door.

This was the image she would use to endure, to survive until she met Julian again.

“Hey, Yolanda.” Chloe tapped her on the shoulder. “The administrator wants to see you in the main building. Are you crying?”

Yolanda turned away from Chloe to dry her eyes. “Why does she want to see me?”

Chloe shrugged. “Beats me, but she didn’t look too happy with you. What did you do?”

Yolanda studied her friend and considered sharing the secret she discovered with her, before discarding the idea. Chloe was too passionate to keep from accidentally blurting her secret.

“It’s probably nothing, but I better find out before they send a hit squad out for me,” she said deadpan.

Yolanda left Chloe’s side. Instead of going to the main building, she detoured into the wooded area, looking for the telltale signs she, Chloe, and Julian left behind. She made a stop at the maintenance building to get a shovel because she had to rush. She didn’t trust any of the adults, and not one that seemed unhappy with her. If the administrator suspected her of finding out the truth, Yolanda had to protect herself, and this was how she intended to do it.

When she found what she was searching for, she began to dig. The activity was easier now that she was tall enough to handle a shovel versus the trowel she used to borrow. She dug until the spikes atop the stakes stuck out. She removed enough to give her access to the treasure beneath, a tin can containing the last remaining memory of Julian’s father.

Yolanda unlocked the lid and sprang the box open. More than the watch sat before her, causing her to gasp. Inside the cold metal were the rings Julian outgrew. As much as she would love to pore over Julian’s treasure, she knew the administrator would be impatient.

She dug into her pants pocket, took out a sealed storage bag full of memory cards, and placed it in the treasure box before resetting the trap and covering her tracks. As she returned to the main campus, she looked down at her hands and the dirt under her nails. Despite knowing more delays would cause more of a hassle, she went to her dorm to wash away the evidence of her recent activities.

When she finally made it to the administrator’s office, Yolanda was as cool as ever.

The administrator didn’t greet her as she entered. Instead, she barked, “You have an assignment! A car is on the way to get you.”

Yolanda responded, “Is there a file?”

“Your driver will provide all the details to you.”

“What about supplies?”

“I assume if those are necessary, the driver will also have what you require. You should leave now. Your ride will arrive in thirty minutes. If you had come when summoned, you would have more time to prepare yourself.” She sat down, dismissing Yolanda, although the girl remained in the room long after the administrator stopped talking.

When Yolanda didn’t get the expected rise from her, she retreated. She now had less than twenty minutes to prepare for a task she couldn’t plan for. In the absence of information, she gathered her lock-picking tools.

Her driver arrived early. She got in the car feeling uneasy but not knowing how to avoid this trip.

“Do you have a file for me?” she asked.

“File? Oh, yeah. I’m supposed to hand it over in an hour.”

Her apprehension grew after his response and she set about making herself smaller while hiding behind the passenger seat. An hour into the drive, he handed her an envelope. She unwound the string closing the document inside.

One piece of paper fell out. On it, was a message.

Curiosity killed the cat, but I’m the one killing you.

At the bottom of the page, the administrator signed her name.

Yolanda crumpled the sheet and said, “Turn around?—”

A blast jolted her, causing her to bang her head hard against the seat. Confused by the sudden blast and unable to hear, Yolanda peered out of her window in time to watch the car tumbling into a ravine. Pain lanced through her head as glass shattered and metal crunched. Then complete blackness.