The Traveler

Hollis took Route 1 along the coast, and then followed the two-lane highway that ran through Topanga Canyon. When they turned left at the Topanga post office, the road got narrow and very steep. Coastal oak and dense chaparral were on both sides of the road. Finally they passed beneath a wooden archway with the word CADIA painted on a vandalized sign and reached the top of the ridge. A long dirt driveway, eroded by flooding, led them to a gravel parking lot.

The buildings at the camp hadn’t changed in the last twenty years. The camp had men’s and women’s dormitories, an empty pool with a pool house, a water tank, and a large community center that was used for meals and church services. The long white buildings had red tile roofs in the Spanish style. Flower beds and a vegetable garden, once carefully tended by the Jonesies, were now overgrown with weeds. All the windows had been smashed and empty beer cans covered the ground. At the top of the ridge you could see the mountains on one side and the Pacific Ocean on the other.

Vicki thought they were alone until Maya and Gabriel came out of the community center and walked down to the parking lot to meet them. Maya looked the same: strong and aggressive. Vicki stared at Gabriel, searching for a change in his appearance. His smile hadn’t changed, but his eyes looked at her with a new intensity. She felt a little nervous until Gabriel said hello and hugged her.

“We were worried about you, Vicki. Glad you’re here.”

Hollis had gone to an army surplus store and purchased folding cots and sleeping bags for the two dormitories. A camp stove, water bottles, and canned food were in the kitchen of the community center. They used an old broom to sweep away some of the dust, then sat down at one of the long tables. Maya switched on her computer and showed them personal information about Americans their age who had died in car accidents. During the next few weeks, they would obtain the birth certificates of the dead people, then driver’s licenses, then passports for different identities. Eventually, they would cross the border into Mexico and look for a safe place to hide.

“I don’t want to end up in a Mexican jail,” Hollis said. “If we’re leaving the country, we’ll need money.”

Maya explained that Linden had sent thousands of dollars to America hidden inside an antique Buddha. The package was being held by an art dealer in West Hollywood. It was dangerous to ship money and pick up packages if the Tabula were searching for you. Hollis volunteered to guard the back of the building when she entered the front door.

“I can’t leave Gabriel alone.”

“I’ll be okay,” Gabriel told her. “Nobody knows about this place. Even if the Tabula found out, they’d still have to drive up that winding road. We’d see the car ten minutes before they got here.”

The Harlequin changed her mind twice during lunch, and then finally decided that it was important to get the money. Vicki and Gabriel stood in the parking lot and watched Hollis’s truck head back down the hill.

“What do you think about Maya?” Gabriel asked.

“She’s very brave.”

“Maya’s father put her through some pretty harsh training to turn her into a Harlequin. I don’t think she trusts anyone.”

“The Prophet once wrote a letter to his twelve-year-old niece, Evangeline. He said that our parents give us armor to wear and we decide to put on more armor as we get older. When we become adults, the different pieces of armor don’t match and they don’t protect us completely.”

“Maya is very well protected.”

“Yes. But she’s the same underneath. We’re all the same.”

Vicki took the broom and swept the floor of the community center. Occasionally she glanced out the window and saw that Gabriel was pacing around the dirt parking lot. The Traveler looked restless and unhappy. He was thinking about something, trying to figure out a problem. Vicki finished sweeping and was wiping down the tables with a wet rag when Gabriel appeared in the doorway.

“I’ve decided to cross over.”

“Why do it now?”

“I need to find my brother, Michael. I just missed him in the fire barrier, but maybe he’s in one of the realms.”

“Do you think he’s helping the Tabula?”

“That’s what worries me, Vicki. They could be forcing him to do this.”

She followed Gabriel into the men’s dormitory and watched him sit on one of the folding cots with his legs flat in front of him. “Should I go away?” she asked.

“No. It’s all right. My body stays here. No flames or angels.”

Holding the jade sword with both hands, Gabriel took long, deep breaths. Suddenly he allowed the upper part of his body to fall backward. The quick movement seemed to change everything. He breathed one last time and then Vicki saw the transformation. His body shivered and went completely limp. Now he reminded her of a picture she had seen of a stone knight lying on a tomb.