Parallel (Travelers Series Book 1)

  Alex must have ESP—which by now wouldn’t surprise me if he does—because he greets me at the door.

  “Hi, Etta. You look beautiful.” If he realizes I’m wearing the same dress from the Spring Fling he doesn’t mention it. I’m sure it’s tacky, showing up in the same cocktail dress that he only just saw me in a few weeks ago, but it’s the only one that I liked out of the dozen or so dresses hanging in my closet.

  “Wow, looks like your mom went all out for this event.” I watch as several servers dressed in white went around passing out hor d’oeuvres. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I know the distinction between parties that serve appetizers, versus an event like tonight—this function is totally high class.

  Alex snorts. “At a grand a plate, I hope so.”

  Holy crap! I’m glad I didn’t have a drink or I would have choked. A thousand bucks just to eat dinner at the senator’s house? This is a little extreme, not to mention way out of my league. So instead of spewing a nonexistent drink, I smooth my dress of imaginary wrinkles out of nervousness.

  “Don’t freak out. These fundraisers are pretty boring actually. People just come as an excuse to network and drink the free booze,” he assures me. “Besides, Jaime is going to be here soon.”

  Relief floods over me and Alex slips his arm around my waist for added reassurance. He leads me towards the backyard that’s been transformed into an outdoor dining area. It looks like a completely different place than when we trashed the place a few days ago. Senator Stewart must have some very big connections that include even the highest power; the weather holds out and it’s a beautiful night to hold an outdoor event.

  I haven’t been here five minutes when Alex abandons me in a crowd full of strangers to assist his mom with the guests. I thought I’d be with him the entire time, not left to my own devices, making conversation with strangers. So while Alex runs off to help his mom, I wander over to the hot buffet. Ahead of me in line are two attractive looking women—who look like they’d be more at home at a fashion show than a political fundraiser. I can’t help but overhear as the two women giggle and gossip in front of me. Eavesdropping isn’t something I normally do, but with my dad still missing, I’ve made it my mission to keep my ears open throughout the evening in the hopes of finding information on his whereabouts. I seriously doubt these two models are privy to top secret government intelligence, but it is Washington politics we’re talking about after all.

  The blonde with the black cocktail dress giggles first. “I hear he’s the next up and comer. Something to do with bio-warfare. He’s too gorgeous to be a science geek.”

  “I wonder if he’s married?” The other model-like-waif inquires. Her dress looks like its better suited for a teenager, not a woman trying to land a husband.

  But the woman in black is determined. “From what I hear, he’s single and the most eligible bachelor in Washington. I’m going to introduce myself.”

  I watch in fascination as the woman in the slinky black dress gets the courage to approach the man standing next to the bar. His back is to us, so don’t have a good view of his face, but I’m enthralled by the scene playing out in front of me. I’ve never seen adults act like high school kids and I have to admit, I’m totally amused.

  The woman slinks over the bar and stands patiently as the object of her affection is preoccupied, conversing with some older man. She waits until there’s a break in the conversation to make her move. She taps him on his shoulder, which catches his attention and that’s when I actually get a full view of his face.

  Coal colored eyes that demand to be blue. Cooper!

  But something isn’t right. He looks…older. I slowly make my way over to the bar in order to get a closer look. Neither the Cooper-look-alike, nor the woman is aware that I’m standing just a few feet away from them. Now I’m able to get a better look at him. There is no doubt in my mind about who he is. Only, he looks to have aged about ten years. What the hell is going on?

  “Hey, Etta. There you are.” Alex comes over to my side. “I thought I lost you there for a second.”

  “Oh, hey, yeah. Looks like your mom’s event is a big success.” I’m a bit distracted by the couple, while trying to talk to Alex at the same time.

  I finally avert my gaze long enough to notice Alex’s anxious expression. “Come on, my mom’s dying to see you again.”

  I just hope I don’t say the wrong thing in front of the senator. Alex appears oblivious to the situation and seems excited about showing me off. I’m a bit curious to see how the introductions will play out. I know from the journal that Senator Stewart has already met me before and I’m not sure if I’m up for an encore, based on her reception of me the last time we met.

  Reluctantly, I allow Alex to drag me away. I take a last glance at alternate-Cooper and the model, but they’re gone. Oh well, I’m sure I’ll catch up with them later. As we head over to where Alex’s mom is holding court, my mind quickly runs over the possible facts about the man I just saw: the man is too old to be Cooper and too young to be his father. After my obligatory meet and greet with the senator, I’m going to find out just who exactly he is.

  We approach Alex’s mom and I’m a bit embarrassed when Alex interrupts her just to announce my appearance. It seemed silly actually, I doubt she even cares whether or not her son’s so-called girlfriend is here, but I can tell it’s important to Alex. Although I don’t see why, given the way she treated me the night of the Spring Fling.

  “Mom.” Alex cuts in between his mother and some distinguished looking man. “Etta’s here.”

  “Hello Mrs. Stewart. It’s nice to see you again. Thank you for inviting me.” I thrust my hand out to shake hers.

  Her eyes flinch at my faux pas. I realize I addressed her as Mrs. instead of Senator. She recovers quickly and accepts my outstretched hand and shakes it gently. She studies me with cautious eyes and her gaze trails over my dress. Like her son, she doesn’t mention the fact that she’s previously seen me in the exact same dress only weeks before. “Yes, hello, Etta dear. I’m glad you were able to join us tonight.”

  “I’m glad I could make it.” I hope I’m done speaking to her. I don’t know what else to say. “Well, I don’t want to intrude any further, so I’ll leave you to your guests.” That’s my signal to Alex that I’m done mingling, while at the same time shooting an apologetic smile at the man we’d so rudely interrupted. I don’t even bother to ask about my dad. This certainly isn’t the right time to start asking about his whereabouts.

  Alex takes the hint. “Yeah, okay. See you later mom,” Alex says, steering me back into the throng of the crowd.

  “Where’s Jaime? I thought she was supposed to be here by now?” What I really want to do is take Jaime aside and get her opinion on the Cooper look-alike.

  “Dunno. She said she’d be coming with her parents. Let’s go find her.”

  We finally spot Jaime hanging out by the oyster shucking table. She sees us approaching and waves us over.

  “You actually eat them raw?” I can’t imagine eating raw oysters or even cooked oysters for that matter. They looked like slugs. I watch Jaime in fascination as she squeezes off a bit of lemon and adds a dab of cocktail sauce before slurping up one of the slimy creatures from its shell.

  “You don’t know what you’re missing,” she says, licking her lips. “You’d like it if you tried it.”

  “I’ll pass.” That’s just gross. I saw something on the Food Network once that said the slimy things are actually alive when you eat them.

  “Ladies, if you’ll excuse me for a moment, I have to go check on the booze. The last time my mom had an event, we ran out of scotch and it wasn’t a pretty sight.” He takes off in the direction of the house.

  Under different circumstances, I would have been annoyed by Alex leaving my side again, but I have Jaime with me now and I’m glad to have a moment alone with her. I quickly fill her in on what I saw earlier. “Let’s go find him. I swear, he looks just like him.”

/>   She polishes off the last oyster on her plate—ick—and thanks the guy who got stuck with the unfortunate job of shucking and follows me as we go in search of old-man-Cooper. It doesn’t take long to locate him. We find him huddled over in the corner of the yard, alongside what looks to be some very important looking men. Then again, anyone who’s over the age of forty looks important to me. Even Jaime’s dad is there. The men appear to be in deep conversation.

  Jaime pokes me with her elbow. “Oh my gawd, you’re right. It’s him, only older. What the hell, you think that’s his dad?”

  “Nah, too young I think. I want to get a closer look at him.”

  Jaime pulls my arm back in order to stop me. “You can’t. What if he recognizes you?”

  “Why would he? There’s no way it’s the same Cooper. He’s probably a relative or something. But it’s going to kill me not knowing.”

  “How are you going to get past the old geezers? They look pretty intense.”

  “I don’t know. Look, I’m going to go find the ladies room while we wait for them to stop talking. Wait for me?”

  “Yeah, sure. But don’t take long.”

  Um, unlike some other girl I know? “Just wait, okay?” Even though I’m grateful she’s here, she really can be a pain sometimes.

  The bottom floor half bath is occupied, so I run up to the second floor and thankfully find a bathroom. I’m paranoid about locks—my OCD moment—so I flip the latch a few times to make sure it functions correctly.

  After I finish my business, I wash my hands and go to unlock the door. Damn, it’s stuck. I double checked the latch and it locked and unlocked earlier with no problems. Why isn’t it working now?

  Great, now Jaime is going to wander off and I’m going to have to go through the trouble of finding her again. I take a deep breath and try the door knob again. It still won’t budge. What am I supposed to do now? I can’t just bang on the door without bringing attention to the fact that I’m locked in the senator’s bathroom, so I drop the toilet lid down and sit. I need to think. I can always call Alex on my cell, but I’m too embarrassed to tell him I got locked inside the can, not to mention how beyond mortified I’d be if he has to ask his mom for help.

  Think Etta! Okay, it’s not my first choice, but it’ll have to do.

  I get up off the toilet seat and back up against the wall, facing the door. I focus my energy on the locking mechanism and try to jiggle it around, using my mind like a bobby pin. Since I can’t picture the inside of the lock, I explore the different possibilities: left, right, clockwise, counterclockwise. Open.

  Just when I start to think it’s useless, the knob pops out of the door frame and clanks on the tile floor. Oops. I think I exerted a little too much oomph in my focus. I’m so not telling Alex or his mom who broke their door knob. I’ll let them think someone else did it.

  Using the circular hole left by the falling knob as a handle, I pull the door open. As I make my exit, I run into someone trying to get in.

  “Oh, sorry, I didn’t mean to bump into you.” Of course there’s someone waiting outside to witness the door fall apart. Just my luck. I look up to see its Mr. Thornberry, Jaime’s dad.

  “What happened to the door?” He points to the broken door knob lying on the floor next to his feet.

  He’s going to rat me out anyway, since I’m the only possible culprit, so I tell him the truth. “The door got stuck and wouldn’t unlock. Guess I tried a little too hard to unlock it.”

  Jaime’s dad still gives me the creeps, just like he did before. No wonder she spends so much time at my house. I’d want to avoid him as much as possible if I were in her shoes.

  “I see. And how did you manage to break free?” He tucks his hands under his arms, waiting to hear my explanation.

  “A hair clip.” I give him my best smile as I slide past him down the hall. “See ya!”

  I can’t find Jaime fast enough. Now it’s time to get a better look at the guy who looks like Coop. While Jaime and I debate whether or not I should approach him, I see him head for the bar. Here’s my chance. Jaime stands back as I attempt to make a fool out of myself—again.

  “Oh, excuse me,” I say, purposely bumping into him. “Is it just alcohol at the bar or do they have sodas too?” I sound so lame, but it’s the best I can come up with. Somehow I doubt ‘don’t I know you from somewhere’ will work in this situation.

  The Cooper look-alike laughs. “If they serve rum and cokes, I’m sure the bartender has something appropriate for a young lady like yourself.”

  “Thanks. Hey, are you a politician?”

  “I’m a defense contractor actually. And yourself?” I can tell he’s just humoring me. He probably thinks I’m cute for trying to flirt with an older man. While the Cooper I know makes me shiver whenever he’s near, this guy stops me cold—the bad kind of shivers.

  “Oh.” I’m not sure what I was expecting, asking him what he does for a living, or even that he’d throw the question right back at me. “I go to Dominion Hall Academy.” I check the line and he’s one away from reaching the bar. I’m running out of time to ask any more questions. “So, do you have any kids?” Okay, that cinches it. I’m officially a loser. This guy knows I’m certifiably nuts by now. But I have to ask, just in case he is Coop’s dad. Maybe he’s an older brother or something.

  “Uh, no, not that I know of,” he chuckles, amused by his own joke. The bartender interrupts, asking to take his drink order, so the man turns his back to me while he orders a scotch on the rocks. Alex wasn’t kidding about the scotch.

  Drink in hand, he starts to make his way back into the crowd. This is it. “Well, it was nice talking to you. My name is Etta.” I stick my hand out, forcing him to reciprocate.

  “The pleasure is all mine young lady. Cooper,” he shakes my outstretched hand. “Cooper Everett.”

  I drop his hand and for a moment just stand there gaping at the unoccupied space left by the man who shares the same name as Cooper. I can hear someone in the background.

  “Miss? What can I get you?” The bartender asks again.

  “Oh, nothing,” I start to walk away. “Just my sanity.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Time Travel

  Before we left Alex’s house last night, Jaime and I had agreed to meet up twenty minutes before physics class. I’m totally behind in my homework and my intention is to ask her for help before class, but after what happened last night, discussion of the mysterious man takes precedence.

  “I can’t believe that man was Cooper,” Jaime says. “It’s just not possible. Is it?” She seems genuinely perplexed. I’m glad I had her check him out for herself. If she hadn’t, I’d have to wonder if I’m just imagining things.

  “It just doesn’t make sense. The guy at the bar said he didn’t have any kids, but he’s the spitting image of him. Not to mention they share the exact same name. I think there’s more going on than Cooper’s letting on,” I admit. At some point I’m going to have to bite the bullet and let Jaime in.

  Her face turns all haughty like. “I knew there was something off about that guy! Why don’t you just ask him?”

  “You don’t have to look so smug. Besides, he doesn’t always answer his phone and I don’t even know where he lives.”

  Jaime ponders that for a second. “I thought you guys were good friends? He certainly knows how to find you,” she points out. “I’m sure he’ll show up eventually. He always does.”

  She’s right. Cooper always magically appears whenever I need him most. But given the circumstances, even this is all too bizarre. The man I met at the fundraiser seemed like a nice enough guy, but there’s something about him that seemed off. Could he really be Cooper? If alternate realities existed, is it possible that it is the same person, only from a different reality? But if that’s true, it can only mean one thing.

  I know I’m taking a risk by asking, but then again, it’s not like I’m actually going to reveal that alternate realities actually exist, s
o I ask anyway, “Hey Jaime, do you think time travel is possible?”

  This strikes her as hilarious. “Where did that come from? No, I don’t think it’s possible. Why? You think Cooper is from the future or something?”

  No, more like the past.

  “No,” I sigh. Bouncing theories off Jaime probably isn’t the brightest idea, but it’s not like I can come straight out and ask Cooper about it. At least not until I figure out a reasonable explanation for his look-alike.

  “Hey, do you want to sleep over on Friday?” Jaime has already become bored with the conversation and changes the subject.

  “I thought you wanted to go hot tubbing in Wintergreen?”

  “Yeah, about that. The folks put a kibosh on that one. So you do you want to come over instead?”

  “Like a slumber party?” I’ve never be to one before. Although technically, having lived at Dominion House with thirty other foster kids was like a perpetual sleep over I couldn’t wait to end.

  “Sure. You, me, a tub of popcorn, and a couple of chick flicks.”

  “I’m sure it will be alright with Aunt Maggie.” Jaime spends so much time at my house, I figure my aunt will want a break. Maybe this won’t be so bad. It will also give me a chance to get to know this Jaime a little better. Besides, a sleepover does sound kinda fun when she puts it that way.

  “I’m in,” I accept her invitation just as the bell rings, signaling the start of class. Now I just hope Miss Stone doesn’t call on me to share last night’s homework.

  No such luck. If I had the opportunity of taking the course for the whole semester, like the rest of the class, instead of being dumped here the last part of the year, I’m sure I could have figured out the assignment. And of course, Miss Stone decides to call on me to present my circuit diagram. I don’t know why they’re called simple volt meters, there’s nothing simple about them. So I slowly make my way up to the front of the classroom and I’ve got nothing.