Chapter Eleven

by Steven D. Lee


Damage Control.

That was what he was doing for the longest time.  They had no idea how much he had to do to keep this project rolling.   None at all.

First, he had to deal with the inevitable call from Mrs. King.

He had to reassure her that her darling daughter needed a different environment in which to continue to get better.



It had been him who systematically weakened her links to her family.  It was him who fostered her sense of alienation and feelings of isolation.  It was him who re-sensitized her to the path.  How many hours had he spent PUTTING THE PLAN BACK ON TRACK!!!

Then the timetable had shifted.  And he was the last to know.  They were all in position now, but he was not invited!  When Mrs. King called him about her daughter going off with Keah then he knew he was being left out.

Not Anymore!

Mrs King.   Now there was a head-case.  She shacked up with Dominic Leeds fast enough after Kim's real mother bailed on her.   He didn't have to do much to Kim's relationship with her step-mom.   Nope.  It was headed down that road already.   However, telling Mrs. King that Kim needed constant supervision was one of his more brilliant ideas.  Not telling her it was because Kim would suicide, but just planting those doubts and being proactive.

No razors.  No belts.  Check in on her every hour or so.  Just make sure.  An ounce of prevention is worth....

If he had been given his time, he could have ensured Kim would do exactly what they....no what He wanted her to do with the door.   Oh yes.

Damn Keah!!!

Well, Tate was at least on his side.  He wasn't that hard either.   Tate, when you peeled back the surface, was selfish and self centered and had a hero complex.

You could do so much with self-styled heros.

It was easy to convince Tate that Keah and her brood simply misinterpreted the door.  They had taken the legend too literally.  They had to have a backup plan just in case.   He talked for a long time with Tate.  Finally convincing him that he was the key, the crucial part, the pivotal player that would ensure that this went the way it was suppose to go.

Tate would watch.   He would report.  He would give the good Doctor Gustafson some heads-up this time.

But his crowning triumph was Shane.  Tough.  Difficult in so many ways.  But the triggers were there.  They were in place.   A trigger for visions.  A trigger for violence.  A trigger for hallucinations.   A trigger for madness.   Each having been placed so carefully.

If he could have just published his studies on "Chemical Induced Learning States in Young Adults" he would have been awarded the American Psychological Association's Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award.  Heck, he would have won the Nobel Prize for Peace.   But it paid off.  If all else failed, he would activate Shane.  It would only take a series of words.   Just a phrase.  He didn't even need to be there in person.

BUT I WILL BE THERE!!!

The one variable was the door.  Of course.  And perhaps Brightlee.   She was unpredictable.  He didn't know what side she would come down on.  She was also immune to his charms, and his other skills.

Brightlee?  Who are you?  You don't fit into any of this.  

He had measured her.  She was partially sensitive, but only partially.  Yet, somehow, she had been welcomed into the project (over his objections!!)

He had heard from Tate of her dalliance into the seduction of Shane.  He was not the first.  Tate had been seduced as well.  But then Tate wasn't overly influenced by Brightlee.

At least not after I talked with him.

He would have to remove Brightlee from his projections.   Remove Brightlee permanently perhaps.

At least he could be sure of one things.  Brightlee and Keah were not playing on the same team.  If those two ever got together, it would make his job that much more difficult.   Luckily they acted like two female lions with each other.

His only real regret was that Keah was untouchable.   She was too pivotal.   She had already garnered Kim's trust in record time.   Oh yes.   Keah was his opposite.  She wasn't so much immune to him, but had the same influence and some of the same power.   She also had just as much to loose.  But she didn't have Shane's complete trust.  Oh no.   She did not.   She didn't have an ace in the hole like Tate.

He was still ahead in this game.   He was still bound to win.

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Gerard Gustafson adjusted his immaculate Safari republic shirt, brushed his shining, short cropped hair, and prepared to go back into the forest to retrieve Kim and Shane.   A last look in the mirror where he gave his reflection his best "Trust Me" expression and he was out the door.

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