“So what do we do now?”
Gabe asked, ready to take on the challenge of returning Sophie to her former self.
“Well,” Michael said pausing, trying to judge how to state the next part as delicately as he could.
“You can’t tell her anything of your relationship.
You have to understand from her perspective, she is about to have her ninth birthday party and at any moment her mom is going to come and pick her up.”
“So how do we get her to remember?” Gabe asked.
“We don’t.” Michael stated plainly.
“What?” Gabe gasped.
“Those memories are gone.
A wipe is just that, Gabe.
It wipes all memories away.
While we managed to wipe away the imprint the demon left on her mind, all traces of Rampart Manor are gone as well.”
“I don’t understand, she can’t stay like this.
We have to do something.”
Gabe pleaded.
Michael reached out and touched Gabe’s arm in an attempt to comfort him.
“I will work with her, explaining who we are and eventually break the news to her about her mother when I think she is ready.
In the meantime, you all should do your best at becoming her friend again and gaining her trust.
Can you do that?”
“Yes, of course, whatever I need to do.” Gabe replied.
“Look, don’t worry about Uri.”
Michael added.
“Sophie and he have been friends for a long time so this is hard on him, too.
He’ll get past it, alright?”
Gabe nodded standing and walking to the door.
“And remember Gabe, no mention of your and Sophie’s relationship to her.”
Michael reaffirmed.
“Gabe, wake up!” Uri’s voice filled the room as he ran to the bed, shaking his friend wildly.
So startled by the abrupt wakeup call, Gabe could hardly catch his breath.
“Huh?
Who?
What’s going on?
Is Sophie ok?”
He sputtered.
“Yeah, yeah, she’s fine but you’re about not to be.”
Uri said, grabbing hold of Gabe’s wrist and pulling him from the comfort of his warm bed.
“Come on man.
What’s going on?
I’m in my boxers, can’t this wait?” Gabe pleaded after discovering Sophie was in no danger.
“Here,” Uri said grabbing the nearby robe and tossing it in Gabe’s direction.
“Michael will be here any minute, put it on.”
Gabe slipped the robe on as he stretched, still trying to process what his friend was saying.
Rubbing his eyes he yawned and asked, “What do you mean Michael?”
Gabe outstretched his arms, releasing himself into a bigger yawn as his feeble attempt to tie his robe close gave way.
“Just what I said, he’s on his way.”
“Lay on the bed.” Michael commanded as he entered the room carrying a small, dark brown leather satchel.
“Michael!” Gabe shrieked as he scrambled to close his robe again.
“What are you doing here?”
“Uri didn’t tell you?”
Michael asked rushing up to Gabe.
In an instant Uri and Michael were pushing Gabe back onto the bed.
“I just got here.” Uri defended himself.
“Just relax.” Michael told Gabe.
He then walked around to the end of the bed and tossed the leather satchel onto it.
Gabe tried to sit up to see what was happening but Uri pushed him back down.
“Secure his hands.”
“Just lay down, man.” Uri stressed.
Before Gabe could comprehend what was happening, still groggy from just waking up, Uri pulled out a set of plastic hand ties.
“Seriously, this isn’t funny.” Gabe said becoming agitated.
In another moment Uri had Gabe’s hands secured to the bed post.
“What’s going on?
I mean it.
Someone better tell me now!” Gabe insisted, staring at Michael as he untied a string on the satchel, allowing him to unfold the hidden pouch of tools.
“Oh my God!
What are those for?” Gabe cried catching sight of all the shiny silver instruments.
Michael pulled out a scalpel and a long syringe with a tube on the end and began to make his way back around to where Gabe was laid out.
“No, wait, what’s going on?”
Gabe began to squirm.
“Hold him still!” Michael commanded.
Without a moment’s hesitation, Uri climbed up on the bed, sitting on Gabe’s legs.
“Please stop!
What are you doing?
Please don’t do this.”
Gabe was now screaming in hopes someone would hear his pleas and come to his aid.
Michael swooped in with great purpose, wielding the scalpel like a master.
He hovered over Gabe’s stomach for a moment, feeling around with his hand, pressing in various spots.
Ignoring Gabe’s cries Michael at last found the spot he had been searching for and pressed the scalpel into Gabe’s skin.
Gabe watched in horror as his blood began to spill from the wound.
Looking up briefly at Uri’s face, Gabe was then consumed by darkness.
******************************
Squinting his eyes, and licking his dry and crusted lips Gabe returned to consciousness.
“Are you sure you destroyed it?” Gabe heard Michael’s voice from across the room.
Then Uri’s in response, “Positive, there was absolutely nothing left of it.”
Gabe tried to move and realized his hands were now free.
He did his best to move slightly as not to arouse the attention of the men who had just assaulted him.
Gabe ran his hand down to his stomach, tracing the fresh bandages with his fingertips.
In that moment he realized it had all been real and in fact not a dream as he had hoped.
“Do you think they were able to pin point a location before we got it?” Uri asked.
“I really have no idea.”
Michael replied.
“All we can do is hope not for all our sakes.”
Gabe opened his eyes, trying to focus on where the voices were coming from.
“He’s awake.” Uri said rushing to Gabe’s bedside.
Instinctively, Gabe threw up his hands as if to protect himself.
“Stay away!” Gabe cried.
“Gabe.” Michael said approaching the bed as well.
“It’s ok, calm down.”
“It is so not ok!” Gabe cried out.
“You cut me!”
Michael slightly smiled, nodding his head.
“I had to.”
He then moved in closer.
“I mean it.
Stay away from me!”
Gabe shouted, crawling backwards in his bed, grabbing his fresh wound and wincing from the pain of the movement.
“Will you listen to him, idiot.” Uri pushed, aggravated by his friend’s response to them.
Michael lifted a hand as if to ask Gabe for a moment to explain.
Keeping a safe distance away from the two, Gabe sat silent, listening.
“One of our scouts came across the camp of one of Baal’s legions.
They overheard that the chosen one had been implanted with a tracking device.”
Michael explained.
“What?” Gabe cried.
“No way, I think I would know if I had a tracking device on me.”
“We think it was Artis who did it.
She had no idea what she was doing of course.” Uri added.
“I am telling you, nobody put a tracking device on me.”
“He said implanted dummy, not hidden on you.” Uri grunted.
“What?” Gabe gasped.
“Based on where we found it my guess is she fed it to you.
Must have slipped it into your food at some point.”
Michael replied.
Gabe continued shaking his head no in disbelief.
“My guess is since it was an internal tracker the clerics couldn’t sense it.
It had attached itself to the lining of your stomach.”
“No, I don’t believe it.” Gabe stammered.
“Believe it or not, I still went out and destroyed it after Michael took it out.
Nasty looking thing too, really dug itself in there good.”
Uri joked.
Gabe sank down into the bed, stunned by what he was being told.
He thought of Sophie and how vulnerable she was right now.
The last thing she could handle is running away from a blood lusting demon like Baal.
Had they not found the tracking device, which is exactly what would have happened.
“So are we alright?” Gabe asked, giving into the reality of what Uri and Michael were telling him.
“At this point we don’t think they knew your exact location, but we have the clerics doing double time on protection and cloaking spells.”
Michael reassured the boy.
“I’m so sorry.” Gabe moaned, consumed by guilt of the danger he had placed everyone he cared about in.
“You can be a real dumb-ass sometimes.” Uri laughed.
“This wasn’t your fault.”
Gabe nodded, his thoughts shifting.
“How is Sophie?” Gabe’s could only focus on her, even though he now had a fresh belly wound to occupy his mind, he was still consumed by her.
“She’s alright.
I’m going to work with her today.
Give her some background on who we are and try to explain more.
The good news is she has a lot of questions.
She hasn’t seemed to withdraw at all.”
Michael replied.
“Can I see her later today?”
Gabe inquired eagerly.
“You need to rest.” Uri suggested firmly.
“She needs more time, Gabe.”
Michael urged.
“Soon, ok?”
Gabe simply nodded; sad he had to wait even longer to talk to Sophie.
Two weeks had passed since Sophie’s wipe and each day without her in his life felt to Gabe like he was being deprived of oxygen.
He would see Michael and Uri all over campus with her.
Walking and talking.
He wished with everything in him that he was the one talking to her.
Michael had assured him the previous evening that today would be the day he could finally see her.
Michael had reminded him in a not so subtle way how important it was for everyone to hide Sophie and Gabe’s relationship from her.
She had just reached the point where she understood who the Guardians were and what the purpose of the manor was.
Each day, though, she had asked about her mother and when she would return to get her.
Michael was worried the truth about her would push Sophie’s already fragile mind over the edge.
Gabe wished he could take away the pain she was going to feel when she discovered her mother had already been dead for the past seven years.
Unfortunately there was nothing he could do.
It was hard for him to believe, but the last interaction he had had with Sophie was when she’d taken a hunk of flesh from his shoulder.
Though he had to hide their relationship, he at least found comfort in the idea that it would be his Sophie he would be talking to and not what he had seen when he returned from Iron Gate.
A couple gentle knocks roused Gabe from his thoughts.
He rushed over eagerly, throwing the door open.
Uri glanced up with a mischievous narrowed brow.
“Ready Romeo?”
“More than you could possibly know.”
Gabe said stepping into the hall and pulling the door closed.
“Alright, follow me.”
Uri stated, turning and walking down the long corridor.
“Michael covered all the rules and what not to talk about already, right?”
“Yeah, yeah.” Gabe grumbled.
Uri stopped and turned to face Gabe, “This is serious.
You can’t mess this up.”
“I know!” Gabe exclaimed defensively.
“I won’t.
I love her.”
“And she can’t know that either.” Uri reiterated.
“I know!
I won’t.
Christ, what is it with you and Michael?
I’m not going to do anything to jeopardize Sophie’s recovery.”
Gabe had requested Sophie and his first meeting be in the cleric’s gardens.
There was no way he would ever tell Michael or Uri this, but deep down he hoped Sophie seeing him in the place that meant so much to them would snap her back into their reality.
He was just sure that if there was any glimmer of a memory of them, their special place would do the trick.