JACKIE:

My mother and I chartered a private jet from the city to the tropics. Taking the slipstream was so much easier, but this had to be done in the here and now.

Grace closed her window shade and pulled an eye mask out of her purse. “I forgot to pack my favorite sandals. Bummer.”

A flight attendant greeted us. “Good evening, Miss Claudi. We’ll be leaving in a few moments. It’s time to create the flight log. DNA Identifier please.”

Grace scanned her finger on a key pad. It turned green. “My father’s legacy follows me wherever I go.”

The flight attendant moved toward me next. “DNA Identifier please.”

When my scan turned green, the flight attendant moved on to serving hot towels.

Once Grace and I were alone, I said, “Can we talk?”

“Not now, dear. I have a headache and need my beauty sleep.”

“Mom, please.”

She covered her eyes with her face mask.

The flight to Bennu was long, exhausting, and dull, especially with the lack of conversation. The longing I felt for my mother in the previous probability put my stomach in knots. Even though I grew up with her in this timeline, we weren’t close. The desire to connect gnawed at me. How could I break down her impenetrable walls?

Once in the tropics, we took a crotchety boat to get onto Bennu Island. An elderly Tinga met us at the dock and drove us to the Camp Claudi complex in a golf cart. We didn’t exchange words or even glances. He didn’t know me, but I was privy to his plight. The secrets from the other probability weighed heavily on me. I wanted to tell him that his son wasn’t attacked by a Bennu bird, but telling him what Life Rite did would only cause more trouble, so I kept that dark secret to myself.

As we approached the volcano, Beatrice’s castle tower presented itself, half-finished. Mark gave up on the project after she refused the treatment. The island was in disrepair, lacking the investment and attention it once had.

Grace smacked a bug, killing it against her neck. “God, I hate this place.”

“But mom, this is where you met dad.”

“Yeah, well… it’s also where we buried my mother,” she murmured.

Stolen story; please report.

I understood why it’d be hard for her to come back.

“What’s this place used for now?” I asked, trying to make small talk.

“Manufacturing and shipping,” Grace said coldly as we pulled up to the entrance of the complex. “Don’t act stupid, Jackie. Aren’t you a Junior Executive now? That’s a nice title for Father to hand you.”

“Ouch. That hurt.”

“You’re a big girl. You can handle it.” Grace wiped sweat from her brow.

Memories of the previous parallel life clouded my understanding of this one. I still suffered from a foggy mind. Grace’s biting remark was a reminder; she didn’t start talking down to me until after dad left. Maybe once they reunited, she wouldn’t project her miserable emotions on me anymore.

Tinga grabbed our luggage and started up the stairs toward the complex. Grace followed, but I pulled her toward the forest instead.

“What now, Jackie?”

“Come on. Let’s go this way.”

“Why? I want to freshen up. It was a long journey.”

I pulled her toward the forest.

“What are you up to, Jackie? You’re still acting weird.”

“Just come.”

“Where are you taking me?”

“You’ll see. Trust is the glue that holds families together, right?”

Grace sighed.

We walked through the thick brush, luckily both wearing sneakers. We knew this place called for casual wear. I preferred that to the tight dresses that made me look important in the halls of Life Rite, anyway. I always felt like I was playing a role, never comfortable in my skin as a Claudi. Now I knew why.

“This place is the annex of hell.” Grace complained as we trudged through the trees. “Why are we even here?”

“You’ll thank me later.”

We finally reached the village gates. Small houses lined the grassy knoll. Children ran around a group of women that practiced Ni Cree. They wore beautiful clothes made from Bennu birds.

A pile of Bennu eggs were tossed into a reaping machine by two men wearing dirty long-sleeved shirts, despite the heat.

One of the men turned around and squinted at us. Recognition filled his face. We hadn’t seen each other in years.

“Dad!” I ran to him.

Zayne aged gracefully. Fit with shaggy black hair, exactly how I remembered him. Light wrinkles hugged his kind eyes. The dirt under his fingernails glowed green from the Bennu eggs he harvested.

Most importantly, he hadn’t mutated into Firestorm.

“Jackie, my goodness! What you doing here?”

I ran into his warm embrace.

He whispered in my ear, “Why’s Grace here?”

My mother sauntered up to us and stopped several feet away.

“Hello, Zayne.”

He smiled as he breathed her in. “Grace… you look amazing, always.”

“You as well.”

A long, awkward pause followed their trite greetings. They weren’t going to make this easy. I would have to facilitate their communication. Instead of beating around the bush, I went right for the jugular.

“What happened between the two of you? You’re both acting like idiots.”

“Jackie, don’t speak to Mother that way.” He always protected Grace, no matter what.

I rolled my eyes and countered with, “Don’t you see? Everything can still work out. Dad, you haven’t morphed into Firestorm yet and…”

He cut me off. “What did you say?”

“You’re… you’re… human.”

“What you talking about?” he snapped.

“She’s been talking nonsense the whole way here,” Grace added. “And your English needs practice, dear.”

Zayne rolled his eyes. My parents were impossible! They acted like we hadn’t battled our way through the slipstream to save their love story.

“Listen, I know I sound crazy, but…” I remembered a clue to make them understand. “Come with me. I have something important to show you both.”