Pacific Station Vigilante (Book 2): The Negative Man [Stormfall] Read Free

could.
    We weren’t more than twenty feet away from the exit when the building began to collapse.  Dust and debris went into the air and whoever was unfortunate enough to be stuck inside probably had very little chance of survival.  It sickened me to think how many people just died needless deaths.
    Off in the distance was the perimeter fence that enclosed this research station.  “That thing’s electrical, but for some reason I doubt that to be a problem.”
    He tried to smile, but the situation didn’t call for happiness.  We ran over there and he was just about to do his thing when voices started yelling.  “Stop there!  The two of you on the ground now!”
    Three armed soldiers were running towards us, their automatic rifles ready to fire.  My worst fear had come true.  Jericho, he went from horrified kid to protector in an instant.  Using the electricity from the fence, he didn’t even think twice and directed it towards the oncoming gunmen.  They never knew what hit them as the burst fried them immediately.
    There was no time to go over what just happened, that for the first time in his life he had to kill someone.  Instead, I grabbed him and went back towards the fence.  The electricity seemed to no longer be a problem thanks to Jericho’s attack, so I went to work with my knife trying to cut us a hole.  I couldn’t work fast enough.
    When I managed to make a gap big enough for us to get through, I pushed the stunned teenager through and followed behind.  We ran off into the national park that was spread out beside the lab and waited.  As night began to lift and dawn approached, only then with daylight to help us navigate did I decide it was safe to leave.
    “We’re going to have to lay low for the time being Jericho, but I promise we won’t forget what happened today.”
    Gone from his eyes was the childlike innocence, replaced with confusion and even fear.  “I never want to feel this helpless again.”

Project Jericho 6 –
    16 Years Old
     
    Pizza was an easy thing to pick up on the way home.  It was quick and Jericho loved it.  He was busy doing his homework when I entered the tiny apartment.  “Food’s here.”
    “Did you get us pepperoni, dad?”
    I was no longer just Dr. Ellison Staley.  To keep our cover secret from the government, I was Eli Staley and this was my son, Jericho.  Fortunately, no one ever wrote down that the boy picked that name, so it made it easy to keep our cover.  In the two years since the incident, I’d found a job teaching math at the local high school and Jericho had already enrolled in college.  At sixteen, he was halfway through his junior year.
    The one thing I haven’t been able to get him to open up about is the night he killed those men chasing us.  I feared that if he never confronted that, he might end up even more damaged than what was to be expected.  I did what I could, but having lost contact with his mother and everything else; it was an uphill battle.
    My guilt also lay with the fact he didn’t blame me for anything.  I wanted him to yell at me, tell me I failed him, but he always just said, you protected me.  Why could he not see that I was part of the reason for his life?  I was there just as Cooper and the generals were.  No one forced me to do my job, but in the end, he never blamed me.
    “Hey dad, pizza’s getting cold.”
    “Oh, thank you.  Sorry, long day at work.”  I don’t know if he ever bought my excuses, but he never pressed me.  “How’s the course load coming this semester?”
    He pulled out a book on computer engineering.  “The professors try their best, but it’s not their fault they can’t keep up with me.  I’m basically teaching myself at this point.”
    The kid was a technical wiz and a genius to boot.  “Looking to graduate early?”
    “Nah, college keeps me entertained.  Besides, I want to make sure we’re safe before I up and leave you.”
    That was an inside joke between us.  It