Jack turned away, not because he wanted to put his back to Noteworthy, but because he had a tear in his eye that he didn’t want the man to see. Skerren saw it and so did Allegra. Skerren put a hand on Jack’s shoulder and Allegra gave him a hug, shielding him as Noteworthy shrank away. “It’s all right,” Jack said, tossing his Smart-Paper history file aside. “I’m fine.”
“No, Jack, it’s not all right,” Stendeval said, picking up the file. “You deserve better than this.”
Jack wiped his eye and looked at Stendeval. “What do you mean?”
Stendeval examined Jack’s history file. “As I understand it, this piece of SmartPaper verifies you to be a Noteworthy, as confirmed by a positive DNA match.”
Jack leaned forward, impatient for Stendeval to get to
his point. “I know. That’s the problem. It doesn’t matter what I deserve. Blood doesn’t lie.”
Picking up on Jack’s mood, Stendeval sped up his explanation. “No it doesn’t. You’re right about that. But if you’re not satisfied with what this file is telling you about your blood, you need to ask it better questions. You need to get more specific.”
Jack looked at Stendeval as if he were a death row inmate hoping for a pardon from the governor. Stendeval held up the paper one more time, looked at it in the light, and then handed it back to Jack. “I think you’ll find this file confirms you are a match for Noteworthy
family
DNA, not Clarkston Noteworthy’s DNA in particular.”
Jack scanned the file again, looking at it like a child looks at a new toy. Stendeval was right. He’d just assumed the match meant Noteworthy was his dad, but there was no conclusive proof of that.
“I don’t understand,” Midknight said. “If Clarkston isn’t Jack’s father, who is?”
“I can answer that,” Hypnova said, stepping out of the crowd.
“Hypnova,” Oblivia called out from across the square.
She shook her head slowly, warning Hypnova to remain silent. “Secreteers do
not
share secrets.”
“I know,” Hypnova replied. “But since you expelled me from the order, I’m free to say whatever I want.” She turned to address the crowd. “Jack’s father is Clarkston’s brother. The black sheep of the family, one Solomon Noteworthy. Or as he is known today . . . Solomon
Roka
.”
Roka’s head snapped up. “What?”
“What?” Jack said at the same time, spinning around to look at Roka. They locked eyes in a shocked stare, then both looked over to Hypnova, along with everyone else present below the sphere. Jack couldn’t believe his ears.
Roka is a Noteworthy? And my father too? How is that even possible? Why didn’t he say something sooner?
Roka got right in Hypnova’s face. “What is this? More Secreteer tricks?”
Hypnova put a hand up in a silent plea for patience. “I told you, I’m no Secreteer.”
Roka balled up his fists. “You better tell me everything. Now.”
Hypnova looked Roka right in the eyes. “Long ago, you were in love with a member of the Clandestine Order.
The Secreteers disapproved of your relationship and tried to make you forget her, but they couldn’t do it. You loved her too much.”
“I know all that,” Roka said. “I told you, I remember Rasa. What about the rest? I’m no Noteworthy. I know who I am!”
“No, Solomon, you don’t.” Hypnova lowered her lips down to her palm and blew. A puff of purple powder went up into Roka’s face. The tiny cloud hit him like a prizefighter’s punch and he stumbled backward coughing. A sound that was equal parts surprise and concern ran through the crowd, but Roka caught his balance. He pressed his fingers to his temples and hunched over, rubbing his head.
Jack reached out a hand toward Roka. Hypnova turned to speak to him while Roka recovered. “Since Solomon could not be made to forget Rasa, the matriarch of our order decided to make him forget
himself
. She made everybody forget him. She gave him a new identity and sent him off into space alone. Sadly, your mother was lost in the first Rüstov invasion, Jack. Your father never knew about the son he left behind.”
Roka stood up straight and looked around with wonder
in his eyes. Hypnova had given him his memory back. His awestruck expression quickly turned to anger as he lowered his gaze on Oblivia. “You monsters,” he said. “How could you do this to me? To us?”
Oblivia’s face betrayed no emotion. “You left me no choice. A Secreteer’s duty is sacred. Our lives are pledged to the order. There can be nothing that distracts from that. Nothing.”
“You could have let her go,” Hypnova told Oblivia. “I don’t remember you going to such lengths to keep me in the fold.”
“Rasa was different,” Oblivia said, dismissing Hypnova. “We hoped she would one day take my place as matriarch of our order. She was special.”
“Finally, we agree on something,” Roka said. “She
was
special. And now she’s gone.”
The head Secreteer’s expression softened slightly and she looked away. “I will say this. At the time you were . . . sent away, we didn’t know she was pregnant.”
Roka shook his head. “That doesn’t change anything. It doesn’t matter what you knew. The only thing that matters is what you did.”
Stendeval put a hand on Roka’s shoulder. “If I may, there is one thing that matters more.” Roka turned to Stendeval looking very much like a man not to be trifled with. Stendeval continued gently. “You have every right to be angry, but as you said, nothing can change what has happened. That is beyond all of us. At this moment, the most important question in your life is, what happens next? After all these years, the truth has finally come out. What happens now? That’s up to you to decide.”
Roka slitted his eyes, glowering at Oblivia. Jack watched him turn Stendeval’s words over in his brain, simultaneously enraged and overwhelmed by the revelation of what had been done to him, who he was, and who Jack was to him. When he finally turned to Jack, he looked like a man lost in the forest. There was silence for a moment. Jack didn’t know what to say. He didn’t know what Roka thought about any of this.
“I don’t believe it,” Roka said at last.
Jack looked at the history file in his hand. He offered up the SmartPaper to Roka. “I guess we could do a blood test to make sure.”
Roka took the SmartPaper from Jack.
He crumpled it up and threw it away.
“I don’t need that,” Roka said as he took a knee and put both of his hands on Jack’s shoulders. “What I mean is, I don’t believe I missed this. I spent years raiding Rüstov ships in the off chance that I might find her out there somewhere.” Roka shook his head. His eyes were welling up with tears. “Then I come home and I can’t even see her when she’s staring me right in the face.”
Jack looked behind himself. “What are you talking about? Where?”
Roka pushed Jack’s hair back from his forehead. “Right here. Your mother’s name was Rasa, Jack. Tabula Rasa. You’ve got her eyes.” Roka wrapped Jack up in his arms with a grip so tight it would have put Blue’s strongest bear hug to shame. It took a moment for the realization to sink in, but when it did, Jack hugged him back.
He hugged his father back.
Life on the Launchpad
The celebration lasted all night. The dead were honored, the heroes were hailed, and the people rejoiced as only people who have lived through war can. But not everyone in Empire City was joining in the festivities. In the midst of all the revelry, far away from the victory parades and festival goers, a ship was being prepped for takeoff. The pilot was Solomon Roka, and the ship was not his. He was “borrowing it” from the Calculan ambassador. Outside on the launchpad, Jack was talking with Jazen, Skerren, Allegra, and Blue while his father got the ship ready.
“So, how it’s going with your dad?” Jazen asked him.
Jack had to shake his head at the mention of the word “dad.” It felt so foreign, he didn’t think he’d ever get used to it, and at the same time, he loved hearing it. “It’s great,” he said. “I still can’t believe it. I mean, it’s early. We’ve got a lot to catch up on. We still need to get to know each other, but that’s what this trip’s for, you know?”
“A little father-son quality time,” Blue said. “I can dig it.”
“He’s telling me all about my mom, too,” Jack volunteered. It was horrible what had happened to her. Jack was sad that he wouldn’t get to meet his mother, but at least he would get to know her. Who she was as a person. Through Roka, he would know her, and that was something. After going through most of his life with nothing, he was going to take whatever he could get.
“Where are you guys going to go?” Skerren asked.
“Not sure yet. But we can go anywhere from here,” Jack said, looking up at the ship. “Anywhere.”
“Just make sure you come back,” Allegra said, giving Jack a punch in the arm.
“Take it easy. I will, I promise.”
“I mean it, Jack.”
“Don’t worry,” Jack told Allegra. “I have to come back to school. Roka—” Jack stopped himself. “I mean
Dad
is big on that. I’ve already missed a whole year. This is just a vacation.”
“A space-pirate who’s big on school,” Jazen said, scratching his head. “Who’d have thought that?”
“I told you . . . ,” Roka said, exiting the ship.
Jazen laughed. “I know, I know . . . you prefer adventurer or entrepreneur. Fair enough. I think adventurer fits the both of you. Never a dull moment with this one,” he said, pointing to Jack.
“A chip off the old block,” Roka said. He patted Jack on the back. “What do you say, kid? Ready to hit it?”
Jack looked back and forth between Roka and his friends. He was ready, and at the same time, he wasn’t.
“Go on,” Skerren told him. “We’ll be here when you get back.”
Jack gave his friends each a hug and started toward the ship. “I hope you’re not leaving without saying good-bye,” a voice called out as a bright light flared up in the darkness. Jack held up a hand and blinked through the glare. Once the light faded away, he saw Stendeval standing in between him and the ship.
Jack shook his head with a smile. “No good-byes. That’s not what this is.”
Stendeval smiled back. “Fair enough. You won’t object if I merely wish you Godspeed on your journey?”
“I think I can live with that.” Jack felt Roka’s hand on his shoulder.
“Take your time, Jack. I’ll wait for you on the ship.” Roka nodded toward Stendeval as he passed him en route to the launchpad. “Stendeval.”
“Solomon,” Stendeval said, returning the nod. He watched Roka disappear into the ship. “He’s a good man, your father.”
“Yeah, he is,” Jack said. “Did you know he was my father when you sent him to break me out?”
Stendeval made a noncommittal noise. “Sometimes we need to simply let things run their course and trust they will turn out for the best. I find that when people like yourself are involved, they often do.”
“Yeah, about that,” Jack said. “You never gave me a real answer. All this time, you never once doubted me. Never. What made you so sure? How did you know?”
“Because I know you, Jack. I watched you a long time.
Longer than you know. I watched you grow up in that orphanage and saw a young man who refused to sink into despair, even as the world around him sank day by dreary day.”
“Did you really have to put me in such an awful place?”
Stendeval shrugged. “I believe I did. To keep you safe and prepare you for the struggles that lay ahead, I did what I had to do. I know it was a hard life, but there are far worse places than St. Barnaby’s Home for the Hopeless, Abandoned, Forgotten, and Lost. You spent the last year of your life in one of them.” Jack couldn’t deny that. Stendeval waved his hands, dismissing the matter. “Besides, I knew you could handle it. I had proof that you were capable of great things. In another life, some version of you fought the Rüstov, lost, and still battled his way across time to change everything. And succeeded, I might add! Everything that you survived, everything you were put through at such a young age, is what made you the person you are. That’s what I placed my faith in.”
A smile formed on Jack’s lips. “I’m just glad it’s over.”
Stendeval shook his head. “Nothing is over, Jack. Enjoy this time. You deserve it. Just don’t be gone too
long. It’s always been my experience that the world never stays ‘saved’ for very long.”
Jack nodded. “I believe it. Don’t worry. This place . . . this is home. I’ll always come back.” He took a few steps toward the ship but stopped a few feet from the main hatch.
“What is it?” Stendeval asked him. “Is something wrong?”
“No,” Jack said. “It’s just . . . I don’t know. It’s crazy. I haven’t felt like this in so long. Not ever, really.”
“Like what?”
“I don’t know. Like I’m free. Right now I don’t know what to do with myself. I finally got past the future, and for the first time in forever, I don’t know what happens next.”
Stendeval laughed. He put a hand on Jack’s shoulder and nudged him toward the open door. “Don’t worry, Jack. No one does. No one ever does.”
I keep putting the Jack Blank books next to each other and staring at them. Actually, that’s not true. At the time of this writing,
The End of Infinity
has yet to come out, so I took an advance copy of its cover and wrapped it around a copy of book two so I could see what they all look like together. I’m staring at that. I can’t help myself. It’s hard to believe all three books are finished. I wrote the first one four years ago, entirely on spec (no book deal, no agent). Back then, getting even
part
of Jack’s story published was a long shot. I was very careful to end things in a way that gave the reader closure, but still left the door open for more . . . just in case. I’m so grateful that things worked out the way they did and I was able to complete this trilogy. I hope you enjoyed the ride. There are a few people I need to thank for making the trip possible.
First off, there’s my wife. My
beautiful
wife, who makes all my insane dreams a reality. The love and support she
gives to me and to our family is one thing, but there’s also the fact that, for whatever reason, I just can’t seem to get good writing done when she’s not around. She’s my muse, and I love her for that and so much more.