Chapter Eight
Put it in Drive
The days went by fast. They were the best days of my life. A whole new world I hadn’t even known of opened up to me in the form of God’s word and the example of the man who was leading us into freedom.
One morning along the way, as I lay in the backseat, I quietly confessed my belief in the Creator. He had sent His Son to redeem me and I believed it was true.
The experience of life flowing into me with that acknowledgement of faith was life altering. Everything contained within this book was true and it was the framework by which I was going to live my life by from now on.
I learned to laugh again and even play practical jokes, of which Talaric was the victim. While he didn’t seem to like my antics too well he seemed to enjoy my mirth at his expense.
I shared what I had learned of faith in God with Rafael, but I got the impression that while he believed everything that I and Talaric told him to be true that he still lacked the genuine experience that I had with the Creator. Rafael would have to seek out his faith for his own one day, I couldn’t make the choice for him.
Talaric seemed happy with our presence and the spiritual transformation of my soul, but I detected an underlying tension that there was a lot that he hadn’t told us. Such as what he did, even though I wasn’t worried by what that might be, because I trusted him. But still it was an unanswered question between us.
It was raining; actually it was pouring rivers down out of the sky. We sat parked in the shelter of some trees waiting for the storm to pass by. Talaric was gripping the steering wheel tightly and I could tell that he was wrestling with something inside. I reached out a hand and laid it on top of one of his and he abruptly relaxed his death grip on the wheel. He glanced at me and I let him see I was open for whatever he wanted to talk about.
He looked back out through the windshield, “How far are you willing to go along with me?” He asked tensely.
“However far you want to take us with you.” I responded softly.
I watched a muscle in his jaw tick with tension as he continued staring ahead.
“What if it means that you and Rafael will both be placed in danger, even possibly killed?”
I continued to study him. He still didn’t get it.
“We’ve always lived under such threats. Why should it change now? The difference now is that I don’t have to fear death and if there’s life instead of death I want to experience it with you!”
I finished somewhat breathlessly wondering what he would think of my words.
He took my hand in his and kissed it softly and then looked at me again his expression serious, “If you come with me you’ll have to fight and possibly get yourself killed.”
I swallowed noting the seriousness of his statement.
“What will I be fighting for?” I asked softly, but resolutely wanting to let him know that I would do my part.
“The continued freedom of my homeworld.” He said softly.
I blinked and then blinked again. Had he said homeworld?
“You’re an alien?” I managed to choke out.
He grimaced slightly at my question, “Yes I guess so, but if you have some sci-fi movie image going through your head right now please stop! I assure you that I am not part bug or anything else.”
“Who will we be fighting?” I asked.
“Anyone from Earth trying to get through to my world and destroy it.”
My mouth was dry, “Why would people from Earth want to destroy your world?”
“Because they have been led to believe falsely that we pose a risk to them somehow.”
“What will we do after this fighting is over?”
He appeared speculative, “If we survive than we can make a place for ourselves here in hiding or if the opportunity presents itself we can go back to my homeworld.” He paused and then continued, “Or I could drop you off in a safer place with Rafael and you too can make your own way.”
That wasn’t happening!
“Were going with you wherever that is!” I said with passion.
He looked away from the windshield to me and I saw a lot of tension drain out of his features, “All right then. Your training starts now.”
He opened his door and got out. I stared at him in consternation, as he walked around the hood of the SUV toward my door.
Training?
He opened my door and with a grin he said, “Scoot over your driving.”
I stared at him in shock and then stuttered out, “But I….I’ve never driven a car before!”
“High time you learned then. Take it from me; it’s entirely possible to master the art of driving, even if you haven’t been exposed to it until later in life. Come on; move over, time is wasting.”
Reluctantly I crawled over the stick thingy that moved and settled into the driver’s seat. All the dials and readings glared up at me from the dash. I had no idea of what they were supposed to mean.
“Don’t worry about any of that for now unless you see a new one pop up, especially if it’s flashing.”
I gave him a look that said it all.
“What? It’s simple really. Adjust your seat and put it in drive, which would be that D right here on the gear shifter. The left pedal is the break and the right one is the gas.”
I did as he said. My nerves were completely shot already and I hadn’t even started moving yet. The vehicle started forward and I moaned out, “We’re moving!”
“Congratulations.” Came his chipper reply.
“Now give it a little gas.” The vehicle gave an abrupt jerk forward as Talaric finished saying, “Gently!”
Fifteen minutes later we were on our way. The speed thing in front of me said forty miles per hour. It felt more like forty thousand miles per hour. I clenched the wheel with a white knuckled grip, as I responded to every slight movement of the SUV off of the desired track on the road.
I could feel the tension that gripped my face. Beads of sweat popped out on my forehead. Rafael’s voice was a surprise, as I thought he had been sleeping.
“After she’s done can I drive?”
In unison both I and Talaric said, “No!”
Rafael’s sigh was loud in the silence of the SUV.
A little while passed and Talaric abruptly said, “Well it looks like you’ve got the hang of it. Just stay on this road for the next hundred miles.”
He reclined his seat all the way down and put his hands under his head. I darted alarmed glances at him and then back to the road repeatedly.
“What…… What are you doing?”
“I thought that would have been obvious. I’m going to get some sleep.”
I glanced at his reclining form truly alarmed now.
“But you can’t do that! I might need you!”
“You’re doing just fine. See you in a bit.” He said setting his hat over top of his face.
Hours later I was beginning to feel more comfortable about driving. I had even felt relaxed enough to loosen my grip on the wheel some. I tried using just one hand like Talaric did, but that wasn’t for me quite yet.
I had even kept from waking my snoring companion on several occasions, but I was going to wake him soon. The little mile marker thing showed that the hundred miles was almost up and I had seen some road junction signs a while back. As if seeming to read my mind Talaric sat up.
He didn’t say anything and I was just about to ask him if he could resume driving, when he exclaimed loudly pointing into one of the rear view mirrors, “Didn’t you see that kid! I think you flattened him!”
“What!!!” I screamed as I slammed both feet down onto the brake pedal.
The vehicle swerved right and then left before it came to an abrupt seat belt jarring stop. My eyes frantically searched the rear view mirror, but I couldn’t see anything behind us. And then of all things I heard laughing.
I glanced at Talaric. He was literally shaking with suppressed laughter and then he broke out into loud guffaws and I realized the dirty trick he’d just played on me.
My temper boiled over and I swatted him hard on the arm. I might as well have been a house cat swatting away at a lion for all the effect I had, which only frustrated me further. I jammed the gear thing into park and got out of the vehicle. Slamming the door hard behind me I stormed off a few feet breathing hard in a mixture of remembered fright and the heat of my own anger.
Talaric’s arms came around me and I struggled halfheartedly for a moment and then stopped.
“That was uncalled for! You should be ashamed of yourself!” I huffed out.
“Uncalled for huh?” Came his words from somewhere near my right ear.
“Yes!” I affirmed strongly.
“Well since we’re on the subject of things that were uncalled for how about we review over some of the pranks of the past few days. Let me start with yesterday morning. I dumped most of my uneaten bowl of oatmeal on the ground, because you said you’d seen a green tree snake slither into it. Further study revealed it to be a green bean with a lima bean stuck to the one end of it. It was artfully placed in the bowl too I might add. And then there was this morning when I shoved my foot into my boot, only to find that it had been filled up with water. Whether that one was you or Rafael I’m not sure yet.”
I gave a small spurt of laughter, “That was Rafael.”
“But you watched him do it didn’t you?” I nodded my head in confession to my complicity.
There was a pause and then he said, “I do apologize for scaring you like that, but I’m still glad that I did it.”
“That doesn’t sound like an apology to me! Why are you still glad?” I asked curiously.
He turned me in his arms and in the evening shadows I saw his eyes were lit up like blue fire.
“Because I got to see how beautiful you are when you’re mad and all riled up.”
Then he kissed me hard and passionately. I melted against him loving the passion and desire that I knew he felt for me.
Abruptly he stepped back out of arms reach and somewhat dazed I heard him say, “Last one to the car is the driver!”
He was gone in a flash headed back toward the passenger side of the SUV.
The rat!
He would pay for this big time! I relaxed and had to smile realizing how nice it was to have someone to kid and play around with. Someone that I could be myself with. Talaric was a blessing that I thanked God for every day.
I opened my eyes, as a repetitive noise penetrated the foggy realm of sleep that I had been enjoying. What was that noise?
I blinked, as the morning sun brought the waves crashing to shore directly in front of me into sharp focus. Talaric had said that we would reach our destination in the morning.
We were sitting on a beach!
The lapping water of the waves was nearly up to the SUVs front tires!
I got out of the SUV and stepped onto the wet sand in search of Talaric. He was rummaging through a bag on the sand. He pulled out a rubbery object and a small cylinder that probably contained a gas of some kind.
“Good morning Evangelina.” He said not even bothering to look up, as his fingers remained busy sorting through a maze of steel cable and other tackle.
“Good morning.” I responded somewhat absently in return.
What was he doing?
“Talaric why are we sitting on a beach?”
He looked up smiling mysteriously, “It’s a good spot.”
“A good spot for what?” I pressed.
“A pick up.” He said mysteriously and then he started inflating the rubbery objects, which turned out to be huge balloons.
The balloons immediately started lifting up off the ground taking the slim cable along with them. They floated at least eighty feet above the beach in the slight sea breeze.
They were fastened by a series of slim cables to all four sides of the top rack of the SUV. I didn’t know what to make of it. Talaric looked highly pleased with himself and I wasn’t quite sure why.
“What do you think?”
“What’s it all for?”
He winked and said, “You’ll see!”
I didn’t like the sound of that.
“Get back in.” He said motioning to my door and I obeyed.
When we were both seated he leaned across and buckled me in with another suggestive wink. He turned to Rafael in the backseat and shook him awake. Rafael sat up sleepy eyed and Talaric directed him to put his seatbelt on too. Satisfied, Talaric turned back around and put his own on.
Looking in the rearview mirror he glanced at Rafael and said, “Wouldn’t have wanted you to miss this buddy.”
Talaric glanced at his watch and turned to face forward gripping the steering wheel. I looked at the ocean in front of us.
The Apostle Peter had walked on water. Was Talaric going to attempt to drive over it?
My head slammed into the back of my seat and we were suddenly hurtling up into the air. I shut my eyes and screamed dimly aware of Rafael screaming and once again of Talaric laughing.
I had been in an elevator a couple of times in my life, which was the closest feeling to describing what I was experiencing, only this was a thousand times worse.
Talaric was patting my hand and saying something, “It’s okay. Calm down honey.”
Calm down!
How?
“What’s happening?” I screamed back.
He pulled the sunroof cover open and motioned for me to look upward and I did. My mouth fell open, as I saw the rusty fuselage of an old crate of a plane above us. The cables suspended between the balloons were hooked on the nose of the plane.
I glanced back to Talaric, “Are you crazy!”
“Sometimes.” He acknowledged grinning.
“Like now!” He said reaching up with both hands and slamming the sunroof glass so hard that the whole window popped out of the SUV and was gone in an instant.
Undoing his seatbelt he waited for a moment. Something that looked like a small harpoon shot through the open sunroof and lodged itself into the dash. I pressed back into my seat in fear. What was happening?
Talaric pulled something from the backseat and then shouting to be heard over the sound of rushing wind asked, “Do you trust me?”
I nodded.
“Put this on.”
He gave me a harness contraption and awkwardly I wiggled into it in the confined room of my seat space, as Talaric did the same. Talaric reached out and snapped several clips on my harness to the thin cable attached to the harpoon lodged in the dash. He pulled me out of my seat.
“I’ll bring Rafael with me.”
Before I had a chance to say anything he lifted me up and pushed me out of the top of the SUV. The wind caught me and blew me upwards and back along the line that led to the back of the plane.
My hair whipped around my face and the deep blue of the ocean glinted beneath me. I was scared, actually I was petrified, but I could still appreciate the beauty of the ocean and the crisp clean sky I was rocketing through somehow. Suddenly the back of the plane loomed alarmingly close and I feared that I would smash off of it at any second.
A huge black hand flashed out and grabbed a hold of my harness and dragged me into the back of the plane. Hands unhooked me from the cable and I was led to a bench, which I gratefully sank down upon. The bench felt solid. I needed solid right now.
“Thank God!” I moaned closing my eyes briefly.
Within moments I looked up to see Talaric at the back of the plane being hauled in as I had been. Rafael was strapped to Talaric’s front and it looked like Rafael was having the time of his life.
The cable we had been blown upwards on was unhooked and moments later I saw the dim undefined form of the SUV falling through space toward the ocean below. I stood up and moved to see whether Rafael was okay.
The back of the plane closed and I could hear once again. For the first time I noticed the crew of the plane. They were a menacing looking lot, but they seemed friendly enough, except for a short blonde girl, who was glaring daggers at me.
Her gaze kept going from Talaric to me and I could guess as to why she had hostility towards me. She’d have to get used to it. Talaric was mine.
Talaric spoke, “These are our new guests.” He said indicating me and Rafael.
“I expect them to be treated with respect and deference by all!” Talaric finished firmly giving the short blonde a hard stare.
The blond gave an exaggerated shoulder shrug and insolently saluted, “Aye aye Captain!”
I saw a muscle pulse in Talaric’s cheek, but that was the only indication of his aggravation that showed.
“This is Evangelina and her son Rafael.”
Turning back to us he spread his hand to indicate the assembled group.
“Allow me to present to you my band of humble mercenaries.”
There were a series of snickers that Talaric silenced with a stern glance. Talaric began pointing to them individually.
A tall slim man with a mustache stepped forward, “Ronan O’Malley, general procurement officer. Gifted with the ability to survive just about anything and loves to blow stuff up.”
O’Malley tipped his hat at me deferentially and I nodded in return.
“Titus Orlandi, the muscle and often enough the brains of the outfit. A good man to have in any fight!”
I could see that! The big black man that made even Talaric look on the small side grinned big and made a courtly bow to me. I sensed that while he may be a terror on the battlefield that he also had a gentler inner nature. I instantly liked him.
“Catherine Roberts, she goes by Cat and she likes to shoot stuff. She’s our gunnery sergeant.”
The little blond still stared spitefully at me. I did my best to ignore her. I’d dealt with girls like her before. All they wanted was a fight, because they had to prove something.
“Roger Goodman, we call him Sparky, all-around tech guru and mechanic. He can fix anything.”
Sparky was on the shorter side and had the dullest expression on his olive complexioned face, as I had ever seen before on a man. Apparently there was more there than met the eye.
“And flying this rusty bag of bolts is Eleanor Rothfield.”
An attractive brunette poked her head out from around a seat at the far end of the plane and waved at me with a charming smile of welcome that forced me to give one in return.
“She’s British and as stubborn as they come. She can fly anything and she’s the best marksman of all of us.”
At those last words I saw Cat’s eyes narrow slightly. She would bear watching closely. Cat had all the signs of a backstabber.
Eleanor got up and walked back towards us. There was grace to her step and a sense of style, even dressed ready for battle, as they all were.
All of the crew were looking at Eleanor in alarm, as she made her way past them toward me and Rafael. Even Talaric looked alarmed.
Sparky was the first one to break, as he stuttered out, “Eleanor the plane? It… you… we don’t have an auto pilot function!”
She waved a hand away absently giving him a big wink, which seemed at odds with her sophisticated mannerisms.
“A good strap will do the ticket every time.”
The plane was being held on course and in the air by a strap!
She came to stop before me. Her eyes were frankly appraising and she glanced over at Talaric and gave him a big thumbs up and a wink that the rest of the crew didn’t see.
Talaric’s face flushed slightly at her obvious unspoken statement, as to who I belonged to. Eleanor surprisingly hugged me for a moment and then stepped back still holding onto my arms.
“Welcome to the Saratoga. Named admittedly for a low spot in the excellence of British history, but then I suppose you don’t know what I’m talking about do you?”
I had to nod in agreement.
“No matter. Your here, you’re one of us, and I do hope that you and I become great friends.”
I detected only genuine sincerity in her eyes and I nodded, “I would like that very much.”
“Good! Now do you mind me calling you Eva for short?”
“No I don’t mind.”
“Well Eva, how about this young chap we have here?”
She let go of me and squatted down in front of Rafael and asked in a conspiratorial tone, “Tell me Raffi have you ever flown a plane before?”
Rafael’s eyes got as big as dinner plates, as he shook his head no. “Would you care to learn? One can never start too young these days.”
Rafael’s eyes darted up to me pleadingly and I nodded, as I felt that he was in good hands.
Eleanor offered her hand to him and he took it as she said, “Well then step lively there and I will show you all there is to know about flying and in general surviving in the world we find our unlucky souls to still be residing in.”
They made their way to the front of the plane and were almost there when the plane started into an abrupt dive. Eleanor seized the flight stick that the strap had slipped off of and brought the nose of the old junker back up.
She called back to the rest of us, “I’ve got it! No need for alarm!”
The group around me collectively groaned and released their death grips from off whatever part of the plane that they had grabbed a hold of in their moment of panic.
Eleanor’s voice came trailing back from the front again, “Oh by the way, Sir, just where was it you wished to be flying off to? You neglected to mention it, Sir.”
“Africa.” Came Talaric’s reply.
“Very well Sire, ten, four, on needing the extra petrol reserves this time out. They do say the marsh flowers of the Serengeti our lovely this time of year.”
Talaric shook his head, “I’m afraid not this time Eleanor. Take us to Alexandria in Egypt and Eleanor?”
“Yes Sir?”
“Keep us on the low profile.”
“Right you are Sir! We’ll skip off the top of every sand dune from Morocco to the Nile River.” And thus I was introduced to the crew of the battered but proud Saratoga.
I was going to Africa. Surprises were never in short supply in my new life it seemed.