Prodigy (Complete)

Chapter Fourteen

The guardian crafts moved in swiftly and silently as they assembled on the street below. About a dozen or so guardians remained on the street to stake out the perimeter while another group made their way up the staircase to Mara's old apartment.

Inside the apartment, Alex could not believe her eyes. She stared at her screen for a moment to make sure the object she was seeing was real. There's only one way to find out, she thought.

"Flashlight," she commanded. A dense beam of light shone from the end of her access pod as she knelt down on the floorboard and began searching for a loose screw or an edge to pry up. After an anxious analysis, she discovered a small notch in the wood that large enough to wedge her finger in. She lifted up the plank and set it aside.

Extending her arm out, she aimed the light downward, illuminating the tiny alcove in the floor. To her surprise, the strong beam of light caressed a small wooden box. Without wasting any time, Alex reached in with both arms and hauled the lost treasure to the surface.

The box was covered with a thick layer of dust, but was otherwise in good shape. She blew off the top layer of dust and then wiped the residual bits with her arm. She laid the box down on the floor in front of her and examined it carefully. There was nothing particularly unusual about it – there were no markings or labels to indicate who it belonged to or what it was for. Whatever was inside though, had to be important enough for it to be hidden in the floor.

Alex slowly opened the lid and saw what had been hiding all those years. She perused the contents briefly, but before she fully comprehended what she had uncovered, there was a loud crash from the other room that startled her. Following that, a stampede of footsteps echoed throughout the apartment, striking fear into her heart. Alex panicked and quickly sealed the contents in the box and placed everything back into the floor. She slid the plank over to cover it up just as the bedroom door was kicked off its hinges.

By the time she rose to her feet, the guardians were already funneling in through the bedroom door. Alex ran toward the window, pried it open, and slipped through onto the platform. The irony of the escape crossed her mind, but only for a second. She was now descending down the same emergency staircase as her mother had done nearly twenty years prior, but that's where the similarities ended. Once Alex made it to the street, she was surrounded by dozens of guardians. She had no choice but to surrender. A swarm of guardians surrounded her and bound her arms behind her back. She was placed in the back of one of the guardian transport vehicles and was taken to prison.

***

About an hour after Milo had written the note, Aris received a knock on his door. For a split second, he thought it might be Alex, looking to stay the night with him.

He approached the door and looked at the video monitor, but did not recognize the person standing on the other side. It was a young man who did not look too threatening so Aris opened the door.

"Can I help you?" he asked.

"Is your name Aris?"

"Who wants to know?" Aris asked.

The young messenger didn't say another word. He simply extended his hand to deliver Aris a message. Aris looked down at a piece of cloth that was being handed to him. As soon as he accepted it, the messenger walked off.

Aris continued to watch the man until he disappeared down a hallway. Confused, Aris closed the door and walked slowly back to his living room. He unraveled the cloth and read the message. 'Big brother is watching me, make sure our friend is safe.'

A concerning thought entered Aris' mind. If Milo went to the trouble to write this note and have some kid deliver it, Alex must be in danger.