“Are you absolutely sure you are gonna be okay for a few hours?” Destiny asked as she slung her purse over her shoulder. She stood in the doorway to her living room watching as Lola snuggled herself deeper into Malika’s side. They had just finished having a great breakfast french toast and sausage, as well as the donuts she ordered that morning. Destiny was going to head to The University of Chicago to and meet with Dr. Greene. To see if she was one of the people that had worked on Lola with Jessica. There was a chance that she was wrong but just to be safe, she wanted to make sure. She had many questions and she wanted answers to them sooner rather than later. Perhaps even find where Jessica was so she could either get her arrested and tried back on the island.
Or maybe it was time to put her six feet under.
Malika nodded her head laying down on her side so Lola could use her large frame almost like a couch. “We will be fine, Destiny. If anyone tries anything, I will make them regret their actions for the rest of there life. This little one will be fine.”
“Okay,” Destiny turned back to Lola who was starting to flick though channels on the television. “Lola I will be back before lunch, remember to listen to Aunt Malika, and if you need anything or something else happens. Just call either my number or the police like I showed you.”
“Yes ma’am,” Lola answered.
Destiny took a deep breath before looking in the mirror that was resting in the hallway. She was clad in jeans, a dark long sleeve shirt and a blue vest over that. Her golden gemstone hung proudly around her neck and she took one last breath before grabbing her keys off the hook and heading out to her car. Locking the door behind her, than unlocking it and locking it once more just in case. A minute later, after warming her car up from a night in the already cold Chicago weather. Destiny was making her way down the busy streets of morning Chicago traffic. Past the elementary and middle school, past the many large skyscrapers that called this city home. She used to spend a great deal of time at the University of Chicago. Especially when they opened a jepei studies course. SHe would be called in to give brief lectures and answer questions on behalf of her friend. Dr. Preston. She had not come here since Ebony had passed away. Mostly choosing to stay in her home only leaving to go to the store or pay a visit to one of the two businesses she owned that brought in a good bit of her income.
She eventually arrived at the large campus that looked more like a fortress than it did a college. White buildings with red bricked rooftops surrounded by short green trees that were starting to turn orange, yellow and red from the coming autumn. She walked past students that were heading to class, all bundled up in evening weather. A few students waved at her and greeted her with warm smiles, a few she remembered when they were just freshmen in a few lecture she had taught with Dr. Preston.
As she moved down the walkway towards one of these buildings where Dr. Greene should be giving a lecture in. Destiny heard a very familiar voice call out to her. “Well, isn’t this a pleasant and unexpected surprise!” Destiny turned and smiled as a a man came walking towards her. Older in his years, his brown hair starting to gray in certain places, his face tight and wrinkled, a new pair of round glasses hanging on his smiling face. He was wearing one of his many suits, this one being a light brown, and his matching shoes clicking on the ground as he walked over. He had a walking stick now but he still seemed to have so much energy and joy.
“Dr. Preston.” Destiny greeted as she gave the man a long embrace, taking in the smell of his favorite oak scented cologne. She pulled away and looked down at the shorter man having missed the warmth in his brown eyes. “How have you been?”
Dr. Preston replied, “I am still blessed to be here, you know this is my retirement year.”
“No kidding?” Destiny asked both surprised but glad that the man was finally ready to retire. “Well I know the campus will greatly miss one of their best professors finally calling it quits after what? 25 years here?”
“28,” Dr. Preston strolled forward and opened the door to the building for Destiny. “I was supposed to retire two years ago, but the school managed to convince me to postpone for two more years. My wife was not that happy at that but now she is gonna be stuck with me for a very long time at home, so I wonder if her tone might change.” He let out a hearty laugh that made Destiny laugh a bit as well. She had no idea how much she had missed this man until he was in front of her.
Destiny walked inside of the building grateful for a bit of company as she walked these dark brown hallways. Beautifully made and polished floors, the halls quiet and some chatter coming from doors that lead to large lecture halls. Mainland Colleges were much different from Tarun’s school. They had two large towers known as Tarun’s academy, one tower was for students in first grade to 8th, and the second one for high school and college level students. “What brings you to the university today?” Dr. Preston asked.
“I am here to actually speak with, Dr. Kayleigh Greene.” Destiny explained. “Do you know what lecture hall is hers?”
“Ah, Dr. Greene, a very bright older woman. Very liked by the students since her arrival two years ago. Firmer than most, but very much fair in her style. Her knowledge in physiology is next to no one else here at the moment.” Dr. Preston looked up at Destiny and an intrigued look appeared in her eyes. “Why are you going to speak with Dr. Greene?”
Destiny went quiet for a moment as she tried to think of a good reason to tell the older man. It wasn’t like she could just say. “I am here cause she might have had a part to play in turning a child into a weapon for the use of a friend turned enemy.” Instead she chose to say. “I was looking up an old friend of mine who I have lost contact with. I found out that she worked with a woman that shared Dr. Greene’s name. I just want to see if she is truly the same person, and perhaps might be able to shed some light on where my friend is.”
“What friend is this?”
“I believe you might have met her once, Jessica Eden. I think she came with me once when I needed another set of hands for your jepei history class.” The old man brought one of his hands up to rub his chin a bit.
“I do remember Jessica Eden, a very odd young lady if I remember correctly. Always seemed disinterested in what was going on around her. Like she was thinking of things weeks in advance.” The man turned down another hallway and led Destiny though a group of incoming students. A few greeting, Dr. Preston as they went. “How have you really been doing, Destiny? I have not spoken or even heard from you since your daughter’s funeral. I am sorry for your loss, that child was light that burned like no other.”
“I am doing okay, a bit more distant if I am being honest but I am getting better.” Destiny smiled at him, a sorrowful one but still a smile nonetheless. “I actually sorta adopted another child in the last few days.”
“Really now!” The man said with pure delight in his voice. “That is wonderful, truly wonderful. What is his or her name?”
“Lola, she is a jepei user like me but she has a few more kinks we are trying to help her figure out.”
Dr. Preston nodded his head at that. “Well, I know that if anyone could help her get better from whatever these kinks might be. It is one of the best mother’s I have ever had the pleasure of knowing in my long life.” Dr. Preston eventually came to a stop in front of a set of double doors. “Well this is Dr. Greene’s lecture hall, if you cannot find her in here. By all means stop by my office and I will gladly give her office number. I just cannot remember it at that moment.”
“It is perfectly fine, Dr Preston.” Destiny said as she gave the olderman one more hug. “Thank you for keeping me company after all these years. If you are ever free one day we should really grab lunch.”
“I would love that, Destiny.”
Once their hug was broken and they shared a wave. Destiny took a deep breath before pushing through the doors into a large lecture hall. The seats were mostly empty aside for a few students sitting with headphones on, some seemingly typing away on laptops or finishing a bit of work. Sitting at a table in front of this large room, was a woman. She looked the same as she did in the picture Destiny had looked at the previous night. A lot shorter than Destiny expected. She looked up from her computer and raised a surprised eyebrow at Destiny. She stood up, her long brown hair spilling over her shoulders and perfectly framing her round face. Her cheek’s a bit pink and round, her smile confused but welcoming. “Can I help you?” Her voice was older and now that she was closer. Her eyes were a bit sunken in and she looked tired.
Destiny opened her mouth a few times, trying her best to come up with what she needed to say for this. Finally she decided to just rip the bandaid off as she lowered her voice. “My name is Master Destiny Myers of Tarun Island. I am here to talk today about a young girl that has recently been put in my care.” As soon as Destiny said that, the woman’s eye widened but then softened, and Destiny saw regret starting to form in those dark green eyes. “Do you know a girl named Lola Summers?”
The woman gave a nod of confirmation. “Can we speak outside or am I going to be arrested?” She asked her voice barely above a whisper. “If so then I would rather speak to my lawyer first, though I don’t think it would do much.”
“I have no power to arrest you, I just want to talk.”
The woman motioned towards the door, and a moment later they were sitting at a table just outside of this part of the building. Another seven tables lined this wall, all of them being empty except for their. It was a bit awkward and Destiny did her best to keep calm as the woman mostly kept her head lowered in shame. “How is she?” The woman asked. “Lola I mean, is she doing good?”
“She only recently came into my care, but so far she is smiling and happy.” The woman let out a sigh of relief. “What is your relationship with Lola Summer?” Destiny reached into her purse and took out the file this woman had written on Mystic. “How did you even come into contact with her?”
“It’s complicated to be honest.” She answered. “Jessica Eden contacted me about six years ago. I stopped working for her two and a half years ago. She brought me in to work on a project of hers, she said that Lola was her child and she wanted to understand how special it was. It took me a long time to find out that that was a lie. We had a team of people, one for each of her seven personalities. I was brought in because they wanted someone more gentle to work with Mystic. As well as for my knowledge in psychology specifically multiple personality disorder. I didn’t know what I was truly getting into, until well I am sure you read about Mystic’s escape attempt. That is the last thing I wrote for Jessica Eden. After I heard what she was doing to Mystic, now I was raised with corporal punishment.” She let out a sadden chuckle. “Got my fair share of spankings going up, but that's different. What Jessica did was abuse, she beat Mystic senseless and then took a bit of anger out of Lola as well. I couldn’t live with myself after that, so I put my two weeks in and then left. Not after signing a lot of contacts with Jessica Eden, to not tell anyone what happened.”
“Are you willing to tell me?”
The woman nodded her head. “I am, because you are Lola’s mother and probably will be the only one that can truly get Jessica Eden behind bars or whatever punishment fits her crimes. Dr. Greene reached up and wiped her eyes of tears. “I am so sorry for my involvement in what happened to Lola Summers. I do not expect you to forgive me, you can hate me, just know that I am sorry and I will live with this sin for the rest of life. I wouldn’t even be surprised if God sent me straight to hell for helping harm a child.”
“I don’t hate you.” Destiny answered as she handed the woman a soft towel. “I hate my old friend more than anyone right now, but I don’t hate you. I can tell how sorry you are. I may never let you see Lola to say sorry for this, but just knowing that is enough.” Destiny let the woman dry her eyes before asking. “What was Jessica planning and do you know where I can find her or anything that could help me understand Lola?”
“I am not sure where Jessica is but I do have a name, the name of her organization that founded seven years ago. She called us Hat-Cha-La Cha-Da-Sha or Hebrew for New Beginning. All I know is that she wanted to know what Lola truly was, so she could control her or turn her into a weapon. She kept calling Lola her prize, her new beginning, it is what she gave us that name. As for my research on Lola, I don’t have anything anymore. Jessica took them from me when I put my two weeks in. However, I do have something that might be able to help you. I have tapes that I will send you, on conversations I had with Mystic while I helped her learn. Tapes that I made copies of just in case something like this happened.”
“Where are these tapes?” Destiny asked.
“I have them in a lockbox at my bank.” Dr. Greene reached into her purse and handed Destiny a key. “This will let you inside, it is number 1253. Mystic didn’t share a lot of things but she did let a few things slip. About what she is. All I can really say is that Lola somehow managed to give life to spirit animals, she has seven in total. All of her personalities are just animal spirits that when they take over her mind and body, they are able to make it into one that they want. Their injuries stay with them rather than Lola. It doesn’t make much sense, and I am not the one that can really help with that information. I just dealt with the mental state of them all, my main task was getting Mystic to relax and talk.” The woman wrote something else onto a piece of paper and handed it over to Destiny.
“Those are the names of the other people with high information on Jessica’s organization. I was the new girl so they didn’t let me know much.” Dr. Greene looked over Destiny’s shoulder, and the older woman could hear more footsteps starting to fill the area. “I am sorry, but my class is arriving but I am more than willing to talk more and more about this. I want that girl to have a good life, and I am glad that she has you.”
Destiny nodded as she stood up and offered the woman a hand. “Thank you for telling me this, and I will be reaching out sooner rather than later.” Once the woman had left the table after giving Destiny her cell phone number. She looked over the paper that she had been given, and it had six more names. Out of those six names two of them stood out like sore thumbs.
Blackthorn.
The Blackthorn family were the leaders of a more negative side of the jepei world. They believed that jepei users were meant to be above all others. They abused and mistreated their animal spirits, leaving permanent marks on them. They saw them as only weapon, their home was hidden deep in the Himalaya mountains. They worshiped their king, Lord Blackthorn the 15th. They controlled the black market, funded wars to move in and take over once the battle was finished. They even invaded Tarun Island a few years ago during an event that many jepei users called The War of the Port.
And Jessica had been working with two of them.
That only made all of this more complicated and put her and probably Lola is more danger than she originally thought.
111Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgK7JgWTw8r
