Not For Mortal Eyes: Chapter 2

                The silence was beautiful.
         The stillness of the trees, the sudden halt of the gusty October wind, the absence of beetles and crickets chirping in the undergrowth. It was like the whole world was holding its breath, biting its lip, and waiting for Lexi to come to a decision. Except she didn’t know what that decision was. Or what she was deciding exactly.
         Yes, the tranquil evening was an excellent backdrop to the turmoil that raged in her thoughts.
         Lexi sat in the familiar sag of an old makeshift swing set. It consisted of a long rope looped and strung up tightly to the low branches of a Hickory tree. The tree was older than her mom, older than her dad even and he was practically ancient. Almost forty-five. The seat of the swing was cut from a piece of its hardy timber. The old Hickory was a common landmark when she and her parents went hiking because the jade green tops stuck up among every other tree and could be seen from a good five miles away.
         Lexi, her parents used to say. Feel free to roam in the forest as long as you keep good safety in mind, but the second you can’t see this tree, you run back. Understand?
         Now she couldn’t help but wonder lay beyond it.
          The orphan drifted back and forth, dragging her slippers across the dry earth. Why didn’t her parents come back? I mean obviously they wouldn’t do this to her on purpose, but still.
How did they…die? Landslide? Avalanche?
Something else?
         Lexi had spent the remainder of her day and half the night shut up in her room, drifting between periods of heavy sleep and sessions on the couch with the TV on, numbly staring at a screen she wasn’t really watching. She couldn’t even remember the last time she ate. But she wasn’t an indoor gal by far. Something nurturing, something indescribably comforting always seemed present in the grass and sky, especially in the moments when her house walls seemed to close her in. It made sense since she had lived in this house her whole life and that house was on the very edges of an enormous forest. And not just a ten-or-so-trees type forest. The kind that campers get lost in for days or weeks. So before she knew what she was doing, at six AM she was sitting in her favorite place, under the shade of a tree that seemed older than the forest. Older than time.
         Still, her parents memory was inescapable, even in nature. Lexi had no idea whether that was a good thing or a bad thing yet. One minute she wanted to sit and drink in anything and everything her parents had ever touched, seen, or even mentioned. And at others, she wanted to close her eyes, block her ears and nose because every scent, sight, and sound could be tied back to them. It was incredible how present their absence was.
         
Lexi’s eyebrows knotted together.
         She more confused than anything. Something wasn’t adding up, a feeling that tugged incessantly at the back of her head like a comb through knotted hair. The nature of their death wasn’t explained to her. No one had spoken to her since the news was delivered. Who exactly were the people who delivered the news anyway? And while this wasn’t one of those small towns where everyone knows everyone, at least one nosy neighbor or other popped in a few times a week to catch up with her parents. Lexi wasn’t even going to begin trying to rationalize the whole stranger deal from the previous night.          
         So what was going on?
         Lexi peeled off her slippers, kicked hard off the ground, and let gravity do the rest. She always thought best in motion. Her legs pumped furiously, fresh oxygenated blood and rushing through her body and soaring so high that her toes tickled the tree leaves. What are the chances that all these things would happen at the same time? To the same traumatized person? She could sit there and speculate all day, but Lexi knew the real way to get answers.
         She let go of the swing ropes mid-flight and tucked into a practiced aerial summersault, rolling on contact with the ground. Pausing only to brush off the dirt clumps on her PJ shorts, Lexi broke into a familiar sprint towards her house. It involved crossing over a tiny creek with gurgling freshwater and a short picket fence with so many holes, you could crawl under it just as well as you could jump it.
         A taped note fluttered on her front door.
         Lex, it read.
         Out shopping. Come home before dark. Tanya.

         Weird, Lexi thought. That was unusually concise for Tanya.
         Lexi pushed open the door and stepped inside. The sight hit her like a physical force. She gripped her nails into wooden frame to keep from doubling over. The house looked the same. It smelled the same. It felt the same.
         So how could it be so different?
                An odd mix of fear and adrenaline and shock began somewhere in the pit of Lexi’s stomach as she ventured further and further into the strange building that was her home. It churned and brewed into an unpleasant concoction that left a bitter taste in her mouth.
The study room door was left slightly ajar. She put her ear to the wood and held her breath. All clear.
                The interior was exactly how it always was; tall bookshelves lined three of the four walls, a thick Persian rug was crushed under the legs of a large, mahogany desk that dominated the center of the entire room. The sharp scent of grapefruit and lemons engulfed the area. According to her father that was “the literal food for thought and perfect for a thought inducing climate” so he kept bags of those fragrances dispersed throughout the room. She briefly visualized her dad skimming the high shelves with his long fingers in search of just the right book, her imagination sharpening his every feature. Lexi cleared her head with a quick shake and set to work.
                Two briefcases leaned against a leg of the desk and an accordion file sat on top of it. It was leather bound and would probably win an award for the most official looking file keeper if they actually gave out lame awards like that. The front label read: Living Arrangements and Planning Logistics For: LEXI ANNANDALE. Lexi unlatched it and methodically took out its contents.
                New life, here I come.
                Blank. She flipped the document over and scanned the other side. Blank. She pulled out another sheet just to be rewarded by another spotless white surface. Her breathing and heart rate spiked as she raced through the other stacks.
                Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank. Blank.
                The only document with any actually writing on it was an expired McDonald coupon tucked in one of the file folds. What were they “discussing” then? Are these the documents they said they spent hours pouring over?
                So what were they really doing?
                Lexi swallowed down the rising lump in her throat. If she had any qualms about rummaging through the people’s stuff before, it had done a complete disappearing act by then. Something stank alright. And it wasn’t the grapefruit/lemony potpourri.
                She reached for one of the suitcase on the ground. This one was plain, almost as if it designed to blend into whatever background it was placed against. There was a three number combination lock, but the person who last opened it foolishly (or purposefully…?) left it on the correct numbers.
                The case popped open. Lexi dug through the neat stack. Half of it was news clippings of random natural disasters and articles. UNEXPLAINABLE EARTH QUAKES one entry read. TENS OF CHILDREN MYSTERIOUSLY DISSAPEAR another one read. The weathered print crackled under her touch. What this had to do with Lexi and her situation was beyond her. The other half of the papers were in a strange language. Lexi stared hard at the symbols. What seemed so familiar about those? Had she seen them before? She absently traced along the swooping patterns. Greek? Farsi? Chinese? A weird blend of all three?
                Footsteps echoed from down the hall. Lexi was so absorbed in thought she almost didn’t hear them. She hurriedly crammed the papers back in the bland briefcase and threw it beside its pair. The doorknob turned.
                Lexi shoved the blank sheets of paper back into the accordion folder and feigned innocence when the door opened. She grabbed a random book off the shelf and pretended to be deeply engrossed.
                “Oh, Lexi,” the woman said. She was clearly surprised to see her and was again accompanied by the straight faced man. “I didn’t know you’d be here.”
                “Just reading,” Lexi replied. It probably would’ve been more convincing if the book wasn’t upside down.
                “How are you?” she asked.
                Lexi set the book down and raised an eyebrow. Was she being serious? Her parents died a day ago and now there may be some deeper, conspiratorial something going on. How did she think she felt? But the woman’s voice was layered with sincerity, so the acidic reply died on her lips.
                “Better,” she replied instead. The returning smile seemed genuinely warm.
                “Glad to hear it.”
                There were a few seconds of uncomfortable silence as Lexi took them in again, in a new light. They were definitely the two people who first gave her the news as they stood in the doorway in place of her parents. The woman was dressed in more normal attire than the ancient, otherworldly looking threads she first appeared in, but her toned arms and defined muscle still showed through the body hugging blue blouse and straight-cut denim jeans. Even without the regal clothes, something about her presence almost wanted to make you bow or salute.
                The other man was beside her too, just as stoic and cold as before. The ominous briefcase still dangled from his right hand.
              “So…where am I going to be living? In some orphanage? With an estranged great aunt in a cabin somewhere?” Lexi asked.
              “The arrangements are still being made,” she said. Liar. Lexi had to bite her tongue.
                The man touched his ear lightly. The ethereal woman nodded imperceptibly-- maybe it was just a head twitch. “We’ll be going for now. Do take care of yourself, Lexi.”
              “Wait!” Lexi yelled. She scrambled for a question that would really stump them. Force them to reveal they were frauds. And then what? she thought.
                One step at a time Lex.
              “You never told me your names. You know mine, but I don’t know yours.”
              The woman smiled again like that was answer enough, and followed her partner out of the doorway.
              Lexi craned her neck and peeped from out of the study. The two were already down the hall. They left presumably for their car or whatever mode of transport they had used to get here.
              By walking down a dirt path through the woods?
              Okay, now Lexi was thoroughly freaked out, her curiosity peaking. She had reached a crossroads.
              One that drastically tore her life into two totally separate directions.
              And she had literally seconds to choose a road.
If they weren’t really here for her, then why were they here at all? She obviously couldn’t trust them. So could she trust that her parents were actually dead? If not, then where the heck were they? 
              Lexi ran her hand through her long hazelnut hair like she expected to fish out the answers from the fine strands. 
              Cold dread that had been slowly filling her up like a ditch in the rain drained from her system only to be replaced by a stronger, less recognizable emotion. It burned, melting away any ice still lingering in her veins in fiery flash of heat. Being out of loop? Not fun. Now, when it concerned the possible death of her parents, it was beyond “not fun”.  It was not going to happen.
              Lexi thought back on the peach blossom in her room. Maybe it disappeared before she could pluck the last petal for a reason. Maybe fate was handing her back the reins she relinquished too easily. Either way, she wasn’t avoiding the question any longer.
              What was going on? 
              Time to find out.
              Lexi threw on a light coat and scribbled a quick letter to Tanya.
Gone out. Promise to be back around dinner.
              That was one promise Lexi never got around to keeping.

         Lexi brushed a wet strand of hair from her eyes.
         “What is up with this stupid weather?” she muttered and swatted at the pellets of water. Because that helps so much when battling the elements. “Life conspires against me, people conspire against me, and now the weather does too…” It wasn’t so much the rain that bothered her, but with everything coming crashing around her ears over the past few days, she needed to direct her frustrations somewhere.
At something that couldn’t fight back preferably.
         Visibility was low, but Lexi was still able to follow the mysterious pair out of her house and into the large grove of woods. Their footsteps sank into the damp soil making it easy to find them again when they disappeared behind thick foliage or large trees, but they moved with surprising speed. By then the sun was directly overhead, trying with no success to push out from behind the gloom of storm clouds.
         The pair was completely silent for most of the trip. The woman would hum a short tune from time to time and place her outstretched fingers on a nearby tree trunk. The man kept up the same, efficient stride.
         Where are they going?
         The ground greedily drank in the rain creating a slushy mess to slog through. She had to time her footsteps with theirs to avoid being heard. If she were anyone else who wasn’t used to multiple mile treks regularly, she probably would’ve quit a while back. But there was purpose in her every stride and intent in every step. She would see this to the end. Wherever it ended. Lexi glanced with growing unease over her shoulder. The old Hickory tree was fading from view. 
         There was nothing down this way. Well, at least nothing of interest. That wasn’t even an exaggeration. After another mile they would reach a small clearing, a rectangular area devoid of trees and shrubbery. From there it was either double back the way you came, hike through the more treacherous trail ahead (which no one ever seemed to do), or continue on a trodden path to Mr. Magil’s property. Mr. Magil was known for his pleasant combination of few visitors and a large shotgun collection.
         Lexi tugged her jacket closer against her body. Her breath formed a warm cloud that hung in the air like an unanswered question.
         As predicted, two miles later the thick mess of trees untangled into half a football field of tall grass and weeds. To her surprise though, a black car sat in the center of it.
         “And this is really how it’s supposed to be?” the man said without inflection. “The Company is not entirely convinced.” His expressionless demeanor was almost comical next to the dramatic rainy backdrop and sky that was ominously lit by the occasional lightning flash. But Lexi was in no mood to laugh.
         “Yes. At long last,” the woman replied. She sighed, just one long breath, and the forest almost seemed to sigh with her.
         “We don’t want this to happen,” he said.
         “You don’t have to.”
         Fine hairs along Lexi’s neck rose like hackles. Her skin tingled like the air was charged with invisible volts of energy. She glanced over her shoulder, at the tops of the trees. The Hickory tree was out of sight.
         She barely had enough time to scream.
A coarse sack was shoved over her head. With practiced fluidity, knotted ropes were tied around her wrists which were pinned painfully against her back. The material was too dark to easily see through and made the horror of being wrangled by six rough, foreign hands almost too much to bear. Lexi let out a heart-wrenching, blood chilling scream which was almost immediately squelched into a high pitched gurgle.
A strange material was slapped onto her mouth, smooth at first. But after a split second it sucked onto her skin, attaching at the lips. Lexi bucked and squirmed, attempting to worm away from the callused hands with steel grips. No good.
She spun around, aiming for a solid heel kick to the gut or chest, but her foot whizzed through cold air.
Whoa. Either theses kidnappers had razor reflexes or were about three feet high. An attacker snatched her ankle mid-air and knocked her off balance. Lexi’s skull hit the ground with a sharp crack. Her vision blacked for a terrifying moment. Pain exploded at the base of her head. Time seemed to slow. It dragged this horrible moment into what felt like hours. Lightning flashed. The clouds pelted raindrops at her head. She was completely helpless.
“Help!” she screamed around her gag. A final, muted cry of desperation. “Someone! Help me, please!” Who was she talking to? The sky? The empty trees?
Her parents?
Through the dark mesh bag, she glimpsed the strangest thing. Two tall figures stood in the clearing just as they did moments before, staring at the sky. The slimmer of the two turned to face Lexi. Her eyes were tinged with apologetic sadness.
And she smiled.