Project Firestar - Nicole Y (ready player one ebook TXT) 📗

been messing with the radio trying to land on a good station, but so far there was nothing but commercials on every station. "Are you kidding me she out loud." and turned the nob to the radio off really hard in her frustration. "Hey don't do that Jane, I know you're frustrated but this is my car, not yours so please don't break my radio." Kim said. "Sorry Kim, I just hate commercials it's bad enough we have to deal with them on TV, but do we really need them on the radio too." Jane replied
When Kim pulled into the driveway Jane took in just how nice the house was. A beautiful two story brick home with double sided Palladium and bow windows and an ornate glass front door framed in teak wood. She thought to herself if this was her house she would have cautions on the door so no one could just look in, but when they got closer she saw that the door was frosted. "That's much better she said out loud. "Did you say something?" Kim asked. "No, just talking to myself." Jane answered. She also noticed that the door had double industrial dead bolts. "You don't see this very often Jane said. She turned to Autumn and asked her for the key Ben had given her. Autumn pulled the key out of her pocket and handed it to Jane. "Help me look for another Key." Kim said as she began scanning the surrounding area. "There might be one of those hide-a-key objects around here, like a fake rock or lawn gnome or something." "Seriously?" As Jane turned the first key and found that the second lock was secure she said " Yea, you would be shocked how many people keep spare keys near the front door." But the owner of this home didn't seem to be so careless. They looked everywhere, but couldn't find another one. "Now what?" Kim said. "Don't worry, I have tools for this kind of thing." Jane revealed as she reached into her bag. "Tools?" Autumn asked half expecting her friend to produce a hammer to smash the glass. Jane pulled out a set of lock picks. She paused and said "Every investigative reporter should have a set of these."
She had a big grin on her face. "Jane! you bad girl. What else have you been holding out on us?" Kim replied "I just hope that there aren't any alarms because I don't have tools for that." Jane added with a laugh. She put the lock pick into the lock and turned it and said "That's how it's done." When she pushed the door open a stack of mail that was against the door scattered across the polished granite floor of the foyer. Kim picked up envelope so she could see who it was addressed to and showed it to Jane and Autumn. "Mark Jones" Autumn read out loud and turned to her friends and asked "Who is Mark Jones?" Jane shook her head and said "don't know" then turned to walk into the living room. It was obvious that the house has been empty for some time. A layer of dust had settled on everything in the room. She also noticed newspapers laying all over the floor. Some of them dated back 5 years. "I thought I was a pack rat." she said to herself. She looked back at the girls and said "We should split up and look around for any clues. Kim you look up stairs and Autumn you can start in here. I'll check in the Kitchen." "What the hell do you expect to find in the kitchen." Kim blurted out. "You would be surprised what people throw out." Jane answered. "Your the expert." Kim said under her breath. And went up stairs. "I guess it's just me." Autumn said standing in the living room alone. She started looking for anything she could find that might be helpful to her, Anything that would help find Sarah. Nothing really stood out, but she did notice that there were no photos of any kind anywhere in this room. A house like this usually has at least a few photos hanging on the wall. Kim had found what appeared to be the master bedroom. It appeared to much like the living room Spartan and neat. A bed, night stands and a lamp, but nothing much else she moved to the closet and found only the unwanted remnants of what was probably a large wardrobe of a single man. Rows of empty hangers lined both sides of the walk in. She the bedroom frustrated and walked down the hall to what had likely been an office of some kind.. She noticed that Mark who ever he was had had left a desk and chair behind both coated with the same layer of dust that covered everything else. There was a painting of a cabin hanging on the wall. She moved to the desk and opened the top drawer. Inside was a small black date book, filled with expired entries. Near the back she found an appt that this Mark fellow had for next week. It read Dr. Marcus 11:15 am Feb.2, 2011
She flipped the book shut and headed back down stairs to see if Autumn and Jane had found anything. When she got to the bottom of the stair she saw that Autumn was on her way up. "Did you find anything." she asked Autumn. Autumn shook her head and replied "No how about you, did you find anything up there?" "I found this date book." Kim answered showing Autumn the book. "He made an appointment with a Dr. Marcus for next week."
Kim was about to ask Autumn if Jane was still in the kitchen when they heard Jane call out to them. "You guys, you should come take a look at this." Jane yelled out. They looked at each other. When they went to the kitchen they noticed that Jane wasn't in there. "Jane where are you?" Kim called out to her. "I'm down here?" Jane answered. When they got to the bottom of the stairs that lead to the basement they saw Jane standing in front of another door. "What is it Jane?" They asked. Jane stepped aside so the girls could see the door more clearly. "What the hell" Autumn said
"Yeah, that's what I said too." Jane replied. "It looks like a vault, but that's something you see in banks or in movies not in someone's house." Autumn replied. "How do we get in there?" Kim asked. " Jane looked at Autumn and asked "do you still have that paper with the combination on it?" "Yeah" Autumn answered then took the paper out of her pocket. As Autumn stood there waiting for the vault door to open. Her mind drifted momentarily and she began to visit a better time. She drifted back to the day that she had met Sarah for the first time. Autumn had been working for the dept of health and human services while she was attending the University of Texas and there were days when the stress overwhelmed her. She never realized that being assigned to family services would become so emotional for her. She often found herself wanting to adopt every abused child she came in contact with. And sometimes she found herself wanting to hurt those responsible for inflicting so much pain an innocent little kids. Her supervisor had once tried to help her with it after seeing Autumn crying in the ladies room after a molestation case that had hit her especially hard. Her name was Ruth and she had been there for a little over ten years. She had come into the ladies room and approached Autumn who was standing in front of the mirror watching her mascara run uncontrollably down her face. "I know sweetheart, I know." Ruth said as she placed a comforting hand on Autumn's shoulder. "Can I offer a little advice?" Ruth had asked kindly. Still unable to speak Autumn simply nodded. "It's a curse sugar. Your heart is just a little too big and every time you see a sweet innocent child in pain or in shock from what they've survived or been through it just breaks that giant heart wide open, I know I've been there. Now I know what I'm going to say will sound a little backwards, but I need you to listen and believe. If you want to help more you have to care less." Autumn had really thought that was a cold and calloused way of looking at things. But Ruth continued. "I know what your thinking, when did this old woman become so bitter and jaded. The old broad has just lost it and grown a heart of stone, Right?" Autumn let a little chuckle come to the surface and said "Something like that." In a quavering voice. "Well child I cant tell you how wrong you are. I learned the hard way that if you don't steel yourself and put up some defenses it will wear you down to the point you will not be able to help anyone. Case in point, your in here in the bathroom feeling all bad for that last little girl when right now there's another one waiting and who needs your help. But you've let yourself get drained and you wont be at a hundred percent when the next file comes across your desk. And that's not fair to anyone. Not you, not them and definitely not me cause I'm supposed to be on my coffee break and instead I'm in here mopping up your tears." Ruth said. Autumn laughed a little more and started getting a little strength back. Ruth smiled and said "And believe me child I love my coffee breaks cause they come few and far between." Ruth's kind words gave Autumn the lift she had desperately needed and after a quick cosmetic replication she had returned to her desk with a new attitude and determination. She had no more than returned to her desk when she was informed that the police had just arrived with a young girl. The child had been removed from her parents due to ongoing sexual abuse. The girl was in a state of shock and dismay. Unsure of what was happening the little girl was panicked. Screaming, crying and wildly uncontrollable. Autumn had never seen anything like it. The little girl was taken to an interview room, but she could be heard all over the office. Autumn first instinct was to look around for Ruth but then it hit her that Ruth would likely be gone for another fifteen or twenty minutes. After all she did like her coffee breaks child. Autumn briefly mused. A couple of other social workers had tried to help but they were both men and every time a man went into the interview room the girls screaming had only grown louder and her agitation grew. Autumn had no choice but to try something, anything before the girl hurt herself and they were forced to restrain her somehow. Then suddenly the screaming stopped. Autumn's first thought was the child had somehow hurt herself. She ran to the room and looked through the window. Inside was a woman. Autumn had never seen before sitting next to the girl who had not only calmed down but who was now smiling. The woman was facing away from the window but Autumn could clearly see that she was speaking softly to the child and the little girl was nodding and smiling. She handed something to the girl gently. The woman got up and started for the door. Autumn could now see that the woman was actually very young. No older than Autumn herself. Eighteen or nineteen at most. Beautiful auburn hair framed her doll like face. Her brightly lit green eyes noticed Autumn standing there at the window