Knowledge

  

  The research lab was hardly recognizable as an old farm. The outside had been slathered in polar white, the roof hidden by solar panels. 

  Inside, it was a similar story. 

  Sugar blue walls, low wood ceilings, vintage crockery, a vase of sunflowers. It was feminine, too feminine for a man in his mid twenties. 

  “Don’t mind the kitchen, it’s a bit of a mess just now,” said Scott, moving past the wood dining set to a door diagonal from them. “Come on, I’ve got things to show you.”

  Kate followed Scott through the delicate, retro kitchen. He pushed hard against the wood door three times before it gave way and opened.

  “Sorry, I’ve been meaning to fix that,” he said, coat swishing as he presented the next room to Kate. 

  She hesitated for a second, then moved out into the hall. 

  Scott closed the door behind her. 

  Stairs lead up directly in front of her, but Scott had other ideas. 

  “And now, just in here,” he said, going to a room to their right and down three doors. Kate was close behind. 

  The room was stuffed full of technology. She counted three Mac computers, two regular Macs and a couple of Dells in a row along sandalwood tables. 

  There were windows panning all the way around the room, but forest green curtains shut out the evening light.

  “I don’t usually open these curtains, don’t want to give people anything to steal,” said Scott, sitting quickly in a chair and swivelling round to a Mac. 

  “Don’t they overheat? There’s so many of them,” said Kate, standing behind Scott’s chair. 

  “I do have air-con, you know,” said Scott, flashing her a smile over his shoulder. “I may live in a farm but I prepared myself.”

  Kate gave an insincere laugh. 

  “Go on then, impress me with your research.”

  Scott glanced over his shoulder again, cheeks blazed red. 

  “Well, er, I don’t know, ask questions and I’ll tell you.”

  Kate thought about it. 

  “Tell me anything you’ve found out about the power.”

  “Anything? Well that’s broad but, well I guess I could start with the fact that I’ve put to bed a few myths about them.”

  “Oh?”

  “Yeah. The main one being the power peak. It’s been rumoured that the current builds to a peak every twelve thousand years. I’ve proven this theory to be correct.”

  “How do you know?”

  “Using calculations involving the tectonic plates and their positions twelve thousand years ago against the recorded behaviour of the harvest at that time, I’ve discovered that the power does indeed peak every twelve thousand years.”

  “You said twelve thousand years ago. You calculated back from this year?”

  “Yes. The next peak will build to maximum capacity within the next few weeks.”

  Kate stared at the screen without understanding it’s graphs. 

  So the power would be at it’s strongest in a few weeks’ time - what did that mean for the undead race?

  “Hey, your hands look really grey. Are you sure you’re feeling okay?”

  Kate instinctively clasped her hands behind her back. 

  “Um, yeah. No. I’m a bit cold. I’m very temperature sensitive, you know how it is in these old converted barns.”

  Scott grinned over his shoulder. 

  “Yes I do. Come on, you can ask more questions over a bit of dinner. I’m sure you must be hungry after all that field research. Literally. That should warm you up, too.”

  Kate gave a laugh. “Yeah, I’m starving. What were you thinking of making?”

  “I’m good at macaroni?”

  “I love macaroni,” said Kate sincerely. She released her hands, dropping them back at her sides. “Um, hey, would you mind if I stayed here for tonight? Out on the job, you know, I’m used to finding hotels a lot, but I have no idea where the nearest one is.”

  “No problem. This place has about three guest rooms,” said Scott, lifting from the seat. “Go on, you go sort yourself out in one of the rooms while I make dinner. Pick any but the one on the far left, that’s mine. But if you can’t sleep in the other rooms for some reason, you’re welcome to swap with me?”

  There was a recognizable eagerness in his expression. 

  Kate smiled gently. 

  “I’m a big independent ley hunter, remember? I’ll be fine, but thanks.”

  They moved just out of the room and back beside the gloomy stair well. 

  “See you in a while then,” said Scott, glancing her a smile before attempting to shoot into the kitchen.

   He seemed to have forgotten that the door was less than agreeable, and bumped his face off the wood. 

  Kate ran towards him, placing a hand on his coat. 

  “Are you alright?”

  “Yeah, sorry, fine,” said Scott, pushing the door with frustration and leaving Kate in the hall.

  Kate had scrubbed at her half rust, half grey hands until the skin started to peel. She rinsed with lashings of cold water before being called to dinner with Scott.

  The macaroni was definitely good, rich with goat’s cheese, garlic and fresh cherry tomatoes. 

  Once she’d finished, she helped Scott clear up and pretended to be exhausted. He stuttered her a goodnight, drying the last of the dishes as she left the room.

  She picked the room farthest from his. Not because she didn’t like him, but if Varjak found her in the middle of the night it was probably best that Scott didn’t hear their conversation.  

  The room was dark when she entered, and dark when she crawled into bed. The sheets slid over her like cold waves of satin. 

  She was about to fall asleep, having undressed under the sheets and thrown her clothing on the floor. 

  Tonight she couldn’t bear the idea of falling asleep, once again, to Ian. 

  With no Varjak around, she felt alone. Dreams of Ian would only amplify her distance from everything she was familiar with.

  She may physically have Scott, but she barely knew him. 

  Besides, by morning she’d probably be out of his hair and she’d never see him again. 

  She stared at the opposite wall. 

  She realized that she didn’t need to be alone. This was the first time she had been by herself, totally, in years. No Varjak, no James, no undead to stop her. 

  She could do what she wanted. 

  Kate could even go back to Ian Miller, right now.

  The thought stopped all movement. 

  Her eyes were fixed. 

  Absolutely, there was nothing to stop her long-distance appearing in Ian’s Barcelona home. 

  The idea dangled in the front of her mind like bait on a fish line. 

  There had to be some reason she couldn’t stop dreaming of Ian, right? What if this was it?

  What if she needed to go back to him in order to satiate the dreams, the unfinished business they had?

  It made sense. She’d never really gotten over Ian after all. 

  Should she go now?

  It was probably never a good thing to rush into a major decision, she thought. Plus, I would be betraying Varjak and the recruits. 

  If she went back to Ian Miller, she would essentially be telling the whole world she had moved to the ‘dark side’. Ian probably wouldn’t let her escape alive if she went back to him.

  Then again, she was undead. He couldn’t do very much to stop her disappearing, unless he had his own supply of Ben and Arnaud’s chemicals. A possibility. 

  She could still go, even if he wasn’t aware she was there. Just to be there for a while, sitting in the shadows, keeping out of his way. 

  Yeah, she liked that. 

  No black and white, no you’re on ‘their team’ just because you go to Ian’s house. 

  Yeah, it wasn’t that simple, especially not to her.

  So it was decided for Kate. Later in the morning she’d leave for Barcelona. 

  Then she would come straight back to Verona, Wisconsin, hopefully before Scott even realized she had gone. 

  The excitement was difficult to zone out, like a ping pong match in her chest as she tried to sleep. 

  On this night she found she didn’t dream of Ian, both a disappointment and a confirmation. 

***

  It was three minutes past five in the morning when Kate woke next. 

  The room was a sleepy mid-blue, perfect conditions for slipping away unnoticed. 

  Then again, even if the room was illuminated with strobe lighting she would have the same result. Scott was supposed to be sleeping down two doors down, after all. 

  She tossed the duvet back and slipped out. The window to her left touched ceiling and floor. When she stood in front of it, her reflection was full. 

  Her make up was a day old. The foundation had the consistency of warm slime. 

  Her eyes were okay, apart from the dried particles of mascara that had collected in her lower lash.  

  As usual, her hair was an unruly bounce of deep brown curls. 

  Perhaps it wasn’t the best idea to shoot off and see Ian right now. She had to make herself look semi-presentable. 

  She flitted outside the lab. 

  Time to take advantage of her abilities and go on a shopping trip.

  Flitting aimlessly west eventually brought her to a large town. 

  The sky’s papaya underbelly pushed against the periwinkle belt connecting night and morning. 

  The street she’d appeared in was empty and damp - only a man in his green khaki with a black dog was there, some distance down the road. The air was thick with hours of cold moisture on the sidewalks.

  Kate spotted a pharmacy next to the man passing with his dog. 

  She walked to its door, and waited until the man had passed a far corner. 

  Once she was inside, having successfully not triggered any alarms, she moved up the aisles to the make up counter. 

  She was invisible to prevent any cameras seeing her. Anything she plucked off the shelves she made sure was out of the range of the camera before using. 

  Hiding behind a counter, she wiped off the dirt on her face and beginning to paint fresh milky foundation on. 

  By the time she was done, her eyes were rimmed with ebony and her lips were creamed pink. 

  Time to go to Barcelona, she thought with a grin. 

  She moved outside the shop, checking around for people once again. The day was lightening around her. 

  Noticing no one was around, she slid out of invisibility. She’d streaked an unruly line of eyeliner up one side of her face - she couldn’t check a mirror inside the store. 

  She began to rub at it. She watched her black-painted fingernails move against her skin, folding it, smoothing it, in circular motions. 

  The streak began to fade, and her fingers slowed.

  They didn’t slow because she was done. They slowed because a thought had struck her. 

  And it annoyed her, because it was a thought she should have had some time ago.

  The power peak was building to maximum capacity in a few weeks. 

  The undead were planning to eventually take over the human race.

  What better time to do it then at the peak of their power?

  She gasped, dropping her hand. 

  They had two weeks to build resistance against the undead.

  How were they going to do that?

  Kate had to find Varjak. But if she left to search Verona in Italy, Varjak could appear here and they’d never find each other.

  No. For the next few days she would remain in the town, and try to make herself obvious to Varjak but hidden from the undead.

  She walked away from the door down the yellowing streets, walking toward the morning sun, waiting for her hero. 

Reviews

[w2de35657u687y4324rf]

Scott's farm lab is not very impressive for its function. I would say. You'd think such an effort would require insane machinery. I enjoy how you write his character's actions in to make us expect him of treachery. I would say you're fulling us, though. 
Are we really brooding over Ian again? By the stars, I loathe that ninny!
It's kind of cliche for Kate to find out, as soon as it is just about to happen, about the whole 3 weeks thing and the power. However, it will play out with an interesting dynamic: the losses are in large and the victory somewhat less bitter.
Good decision in the end for Kate. A bit of an obscure way of getting there, but no Ian makes a good Ian (because there isn't any Ian, of course.)