My Year Abroad

Chapter 9

"Wake up already!" Megan yanked Jordan to the floor.

"What are you doing?" Jordan flailed about.

"He's gone!" Megan pushed the note into his face.

Jordan took a minute to read the note, before putting his boots on.

"That sneaky bastard," Jordan smirked.

Jordan rummaged around for his keys and go-bag. While he was getting ready Megan was still reading silently. The minute she finished reading the letter it was torn to shreds. She began kicking Cameron's things and picked up the bat to break the tv.

"The longer you break things the farther he gets." Jordan was at the door with keys in hand.

"He doesn't have a phone to track dumbass!" Megan hurled a water bottle in his direction.

"Don't have to track him because I know where he's going." Jordan opened the door to start the car.

'How does he know?'

With the racket coming from next door, and a car starting outside Alice went outside to investigate. Not seeing Cameron around was a letdown, but it seemed weird to pop out suddenly. She pretended to check the mail before casually waving. Jordan had an infatuation with Alice for a few years now, but she never said much.

"We're gonna be leaving, but if you wanna use the apartment everything's still working." Jordan offered the keys.

"Where did Cameron go?" Alice asked.

"He's got a little trip planned for his birthday. We wanted to wait, but with the weather, it seems like a good time to beat the traffic." Jordan replied.

"When you see him tell thanks for all the help." Alice smiled.

'Why is she being so friendly.' Megan crossed her arms.

They loaded into the van and gradually made their way to the highway. No matter how many times Megan questioned their destination Jordan would shrug it off. He seemed to be driving leisurely down the street and even made a few stops to attain food. He found one market receiving a restock, and was loading up the trunk.

"And you say I'm wasting time." Megan scoffed.

"Trust me this is essential." Jordan continued loading the trunk.

"Are you shopping for a child?" Megan asked rhetorically.

Megan examined the absurd amount of snacks, and juice boxes covering the top of the cart. Rummaging through the trunk it was all junk food and several cases of water. She stayed outside to watch the car as requested but Megan realized now that it was a mistake.

While arguing about the food the empty roads became alive with vehicles. They appeared to be normal civilian vehicles, but they maneuvered across the icy roads effortlessly. Each of them possessed an unnatural tint typically found in undercover vehicles. Jordan still had reflexes from the day of criminal use and took quick note of their presence.

"Get in the car," Jordan demanded while slamming the trunk.

"Don't boss me around!" Megan retorted.

"I'll leave you here if you don't hurry." Jordan glared at Megan.

"F-fine." Megan quickly got in.

'He never acts like that.' Megan adjusted her seatbelt.

When the unusual vehicles hit the center of the town they split apart in different directions. They each had access to thermal satellites, state-of-the-art gamma, and RF detectors. If there were any anomalies in the area they would be easy to find.

"Why would they wander away?" Mika investigated.

"Still not sure one did. Most of them will return before the portal closes. We all have a strong desire to return home after all. The ones we find tend to lose their way back to the rift before it closes." Murphy stated.

"Why would visitors make a move like this?" Mika asked.

"That's what I'm struggling with. They normally go to drastic lengths to ensure their anonymity, and rarely go this close to large cities." Murphy replied.

"And a scouting vessel couldn't accomplish something of this magnitude," Mika stated.

"None of this adds up." Murphy sighed.

"Maybe he provoked them." Mika averted her gaze.

"Director Kurt is a crucial member of our organization. It's because of brilliant men like him that we can even defend ourselves. Our mission is to protect humanity, and you must never forget that." Murphy gave Mika a serious look.

'It still feels wrong.' Mika gazed at the screens.

They were near the highway when they got a ping, and both of them went into action. Murphy notified the others to create a perimeter as they approached the scene. The search party was quickly turning into a containment effort.

Leaving the limits of the city was Jordan's car. Not long after passing the next mile marker, a few choppers began sweeping the area. Megan was distracted, but the altitude they were soaring at was difficult to ignore.

'What's going on?' Megan glanced over her shoulder.

"I knew those weren't cops," Jordan stated.

"What are you talking about?" Megan inquired.

"Didn't you notice the roads getting busy out of nowhere and the illegal tint on every car?" Jordan looked in the rearview.

'Hope they don't turn around.'

"There's no way they would know already," Megan argued.

"It's worse than just a murder charge," Jordan replied.

"What's worse than that?" Megan asked.

"Being dissected, or becoming a human experiment is pretty bad," Jordan replied.

"You've seen too many movies!" Megan looked in the mirror.

"Those weren't cops, and you said he did something freaky. What do you think happens when they find out?" Jordan asked.

Megan couldn't think of a retort so she just turned on the radio. They learned the national guard was being mobilized to handle civil unrest. Megan found this odd since the problems occurred last night, and today the streets were relatively quiet. This caused Jordan's rambling to carry some weight.

Back in the warehouse, a team in hazmat suits was inspecting every inch of the premise. Standing over Jeffery's body were Mika and Murphy. They examined the fragments that were once Jeffery's arm closely. A team was circling Cameron's former bindings as their gadgets whirred erratically.

"It's a good thing we wore the suits," Mika stated.

Murphy approached the agents, and after a quick glance at their readings, he removed his helmet.

"That's a breach in protocol sir," Mika scolded Murphy.

"It's not at hazardous levels yet, and It's not like I got much time left anyway," Murphy replied.