“We had someone come by to check on him,” my mother said. I nodded, understanding that she meant someone on a short list of physicians that we trusted. “The doctor said that Dad’s fine as far as he can tell. He’s just sleeping.”
“But there’s no telling when he’ll wake up,” my grandmother added.
“Can I see him?” I asked.
The three of them exchanged an odd look amongst themselves, and I sensed unusual emotions arising in each of them. It wasn’t anything that would make me think Gramps was in danger, such as anxiety or worry. It was more along the lines of bewilderment and stupefaction – as if they’d awakened and discovered a unicorn in the backyard. Before the silence got too awkward, however, Myshtal spoke up.
“Of course you can see him if you want,” Myshtal said. “But even though the prognosis is that he’s fine, he’s obviously not at his best and probably wouldn’t want you to see him this way – especially if there’s a chance it will affect how you go about your mission today.”
I frowned, contemplating. Seeing what Jack did to Gramps had certainly pushed me over the line earlier. (In fact, it wasn’t too far from my mind right now.) Whether I saw him or not, there was every chance that what had happened to my grandfather would have an effect on the mission. That said, I didn’t need to do anything that might put me more off-balance than I already was.
“Okay,” I finally said. “I’ll see him later.”
*****
I only spent a few more minutes with my family and Myshtal, then dashed to my room and called Electra. She answered after the first ring.
“Hello, sweet prince,” she said.
“Hey,” I said in response. “Listen, I don’t have much time, but I was wondering if I could come by and snatch a little joy.”
“Huh?” she murmured. “Oh! Oh, yes. Of course. I’m home now.”
I hung up and teleported to her front door. Electra snatched it open before I even had a chance to ring the bell. She closed the door and hugged me fiercely as I stepped inside – as if she never wanted to let me go. Eventually she did, however; stepping back and taking my hand, she guided me to a nearby loveseat and then pulled me down next to her. She then listened intently as I shared everything that had happened since I woke up. When I was done, she simply sat there quietly for a moment, plainly thinking about what she’d heard.
“You know,” she finally said, “I don’t often wish for the people I care about to fall flat on their face, but I’m glad you didn’t succeed with Jack earlier.”
I had trouble hiding my curiosity. “Why is that?”
“Because it was premeditated, Jim. It would have been murder. It’s like a cop going out with the specific intent to shoot a suspect. It’s one thing if it happens in the line of duty, but it’s something else entirely if that was the objective.”
“What everybody keeps forgetting is that I ultimately decided against putting him in the ground. I admit that if I’d seen him within five minutes of what he did to Gramps, I’d still be choking him. But again, the plan changed.”
“So let me ask you something,” she said. “Had everything gone as intended and Jack had slipped into a coma, what was supposed to happen then?”
“Huh?” I mumbled in confusion. “I’m not sure what you mean. The fight would have been over.”
“But Jack would have been in a coma, right?” Electra queried. “What was the plan for getting him medical attention?”
“Wh-what?” I stammered.
“He would have been in a coma, with all his organs shut down. Surely you had a plan for getting him treatment? Perhaps a team of paramedics standing by? Or maybe you’d teleport him to a hospital?”
“Probably teleport him,” I replied sheepishly. “To be honest, I didn’t think much about what would happen after.”
“But you knew your actions would have life-or-death consequences for him,” she said. “And it would have been premeditated.”
I frowned. As I’d told Electra, I really hadn’t considered what would have happened had I been successful during my last encounter with Jack. Without psychoanalyzing myself, there was undeniably a part of me that wanted him dead. But did I subconsciously realize what would happen if he’d gone into a coma and just blocked it out?
“Anyway,” Electra continued, “I’ll repeat my earlier statement and say that I’m glad you failed. I don’t need any more people that I care about locked up for no good reason.”
I simply nodded, knowing without asking that she was talking about her father, Vir. It wasn’t a subject that she generally talked about directly, so I showed my support by slipping my arm around her and giving her a heartfelt hug.
Chapter 88
The amount of time I had available to spend with Electra was short to begin with, and passed in the blink of an eye. We said our goodbyes (with me stealing one last kiss), and then I teleported to Mouse’s lab. When I popped up, my mentor and BT were there waiting on me.
“All set?” I asked.
“Ready when you are,” Mouse replied.
“My clones have everything in position,” BT added, “so we’re good on that front.”
“So, that just leaves one final detail,” Mouse noted. He then held out his hand to me, palm up. In it was a rectangular, wooden box. Mouse then opened the box to reveal a custom-fitted interior lining in which rested a narrow syringe with a barrel about six inches long and a protective cap over the needle. Inside the barrel, I noticed a peculiar, yellow-orange fluid.
“The neural blocker?” I asked as I reached out and gingerly took the box.
“Yeah,” my mentor answered. “It’s based on your synaptic patterns, as indicated by your crown, but – because Jack isn’t an exact clone of you – we attempted to broaden the effective range. Also, it’s geared to activate almost immediately
