Anarchist Knight

Chapter 5-Saying Goodbye

Tobal spent a lot of time talking with Adam. One afternoon he was helping set up a new display in the shop.

"Where does all this stuff come from", he asked? "How do you find things like this"?

The old man answered evasively. "They are just hand crafted items here on consignment. I know the people that make them and have an exclusive trade agreement with them. While I get a commission on each sale, I don’t really know the history of each piece".

He eyed Tobal speculatively and continued, "Several times a year I take some time off to restock my supply. When I’m gone Sarah takes care of the shop for me. That’s why I'm going to miss her so much when she leaves".

"Have you ever heard of Tavistock Educational"?

"Hmm, yes I think I have. Why", Adam asked?

"That’s my old school. I graduated from there", he paused and corrected himself. "I mean this spring is my graduation but I graduated early". "Anyway", he flushed, "last Halloween we had a costume ball and I was wondering if our theatrical department got it’s costumes from you" This shop reminds me of the costumes we were wearing".

Adam Gardner eyed him shrewdly. "Your uncle must do pretty well to send you to an exclusive school like Tavistock Educational. It’s a very hard school to get into and I’ve never heard of anyone graduating early from it. I’ve heard it’s real high society, not like your parents at all".

Tobal persisted, "Did the school get the costumes from you"?

Adam relented and said mysteriously, "Yes, they have an account with me and are one of my good customers. There are not many places that can afford high quality reproductions. I move in some pretty elite circles myself". Then he changed the subject.

Adam also proved evasive about the medallion, especially when Tobal told him that he had seen the same image as a tattoo on uncle Harry’s chest. Adam said there were some things he couldn’t talk about. Maybe later after Tobal completed the sanctuary program they could sit down and talk. It was just not the right time. There were some things that could only be told after he received the proper training.

"There are some things just too dangerous to talk about right now", he told Tobal. "I haven’t been to Heliopolis in over fifteen years and they think I’m dead. I want them to keep thinking I’m dead. I don’t know if things have changed and I don’t want to endanger Sarah when she is taking the Phase I training this fall".

"Tell you what", he said. " You come back here with Sarah after you’ve completed the sanctuary program and I’ll tell you everything you want to know". He looked hard at Tobal, "Will you trust me on that"?

Tobal didn’t have much choice. "I guess I will have to", he muttered dryly.

Soon after that the old man made arrangements for transportation to the closed city-state of Heliopolis. It was about 80 miles from the coast into the Rockys. Heliopolis lay in a sheltered valley between mountains and was hidden by hard wood trees, ringed with dense pine forests and shaded by snow capped mountains.

Tobal and Adam had one last talk in private before he left. Adam told him more about Heliopolis. It did not follow the accepted rules of the Federation. Tobal was reminded he would not have the same civil rights he enjoyed now. Heliopolis was a separate sovereign nation. He needed to be very careful.

Tobal was getting a little worried until Adam reminded him that Sarah would be coming next fall and she would need his friendship and help. It was a high honor to apply for sanctuary. No one was turned away but it was so secret few people knew they could apply. It was limited to word of mouth and generations of family members that had already gone through the training themselves.

Adam had been a citizen of Heliopolis before Tobal’s parents changed everything with their research. He remembered how Heliopolis had been before it became a closed city-state. His wife and two sons were buried back there and some day he wanted to go back and visit their graves. He was bitter about it because under the current political conditions he would never be able to go back. His older citizenship was no longer recognized and his life would be in danger if he tried. Sarah’s life would be in danger if they knew who she really was. She would come under a false identity. He hoped Sarah would be able to visit her mother’s grave. She didn’t know about her two older brothers and he needed to talk to her about them before she left. His voice faltered as he was telling Tobal these things. Tobal knew it would be very hard for Adam to share these things with Sarah.

There was not much else to say and Tobal silently gave the old man a hug. Then they went downstairs to find Sarah. It was almost time to go.