Alex Luthecker sat at the kitchen table of his Terminal Island apartment, reading the New York Times. The family was no longer hunted, and after an arrangement with the city of Long Beach, they were allowed to live at the complex in the shipyard next to the Long Beach port. At least for now.
The Department of Justice had moved on Coalition Properties quickly, mostly due to the momentum of outrage by the populace. After PHOEBE had leaked the details of the Coalition’s crimes to every smart phone, laptop, and news organization across the globe, there was absolutely no stopping it.
Alex avoided all electronic media, as it still gave him horrific headaches, but he had recently started keeping tabs on world events via printed media. And today’s headlines in the New York Times were written in bold letters:
COALITION PROPERTIES UNDER INVESTIGATION FOR FRAUD, TAX EVASION, RICO, AND SANCTIONING MURDER.
“The firm declares bankruptcy in an attempt to survive countless criminal and civil charges.
Congress considers immediate removal of the firm’s corporate charter, commonly known as the death penalty, as it continues its investigation.
This looks to be the end of the world’s largest corporate entity and weapons contractor.”
Below the headlines were photos of Coalition Properties board members being led away in handcuffs, along with former Coalition CEO Glen Turner’s mug shot.
Luthecker folded the paper and tossed it onto the table. He sat there a moment, remembering the days when he would avoid the newspapers along with other interactions with information, including people.
His inability to discipline his mind was what originally pushed him into the shadows. But it had always been people he avoided more than anything, as the patterns of the choices that created their destinies overwhelmed him.
All of that changed when he met his mentors, Winn and Mawith and finally Kunchin. Their collective efforts had forever changed him. They had given him purpose. They had given him others to care for. They helped him accept responsibility for who he was and how to use his gifts to create change in others.
But none of it would have happened or meant anything without Nikki. Making the choice to save her life that fateful night in Club Sutra, in turn, had saved his own. For Alex, she had become his anchor. With her love for him, with her belief in him, he no longer feared his impact on others. He understood its importance and took responsibility for it.
And for the first time in Alex Luthecker’s life, he could see into his own future. It was at Nikki’s side. Along with one more thing he saw in his future.
Alex got up from the table, walked across the kitchen, and stepped out onto the balcony that looked over the courtyard.
He watched as Yaw led the day’s martial arts practice with enthusiasm. Chris, Camilla, Masha, and Joey were all there and he took note of the newest student, Rika Muranaka, and the steely-eyed look of determination she displayed as she tried to follow along.
She would do well here, Alex already knew. The family had grown, and it would continue to grow.
Yaw felt the gaze, looked up, and saw his best friend standing on the balcony. The men smiled and nodded to one another. There was an understanding between them that their work was not yet complete, and the movement would not be stopped. They had collectively changed the arc of the momentum toward a more hopeful future, and the sense of that course correction was palpable in the air. For all of them, there was excitement about what lay ahead.
Alex stepped away from the balcony and moved through the apartment, stopping at the doorway of Maria’s bedroom to bear witness to the future.
He looked past the myriad of stuffed animals and storybooks to the small desk in the corner where Maria sat behind a computer monitor, her young eyes locked on a screen filled with lines of code.
Nikki was kneeling next to Maria, her right arm gently placed around Maria’s shoulders, as the creator of PHOEBE taught the ten-year-old how to code.
“How’s she doing?” Alex asked Nikki.
“She’s talking to PHOEBE in a language that I can barely understand. It’s unbelievable how fast she’s learning. She’ll be beyond me before too much longer. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“It’s good to know the kids are getting along,” Alex said to Nikki, before turning to Maria. “Are you having fun?”
“Uh huh. We’re talking about searching the world to find people just like you and me.”
“That’s very good, Maria. But would you like to take a break and go outside to play?”
“Yes! Can I bring Nala?” Maria asked, in reference to her favorite stuffed animal, the well-worn tiger that had accompanied her all the way from San Salvador.
Maria never seemed to go anywhere without Nala these days.
“Of course you can.”
Maria carefully sat Nala beside her on the blanket as she and Alex had lunch in the park. It was a beautiful day, without a cloud in the sky. The grass in the park was a brilliant green, and the square was filled with several people—ranging from families enjoying lunch together in the shade of the trees to teenagers throwing footballs around—and one dog catching a Frisbee. For Alex, it was a moment of peace and beauty frozen in time.
“Do you want a sandwich?” Alex asked Maria.
“Maybe later,” she answered as her eyes moved across the people in the park, her attention locked on every detail of the symphony of human interaction that unfolded before her.
Alex in turn watched Maria with fascination as her young eyes recorded it all as fresh and new, and it made him smile. In Maria, he had found something he had never thought possible, a kindred spirit in abilities. But unlike him, she would have a guide to teach her from the beginning.
Alex Luthecker made a promise to himself that he would hold Maria’s hand every step of the way as she learned to accept her unique gifts. He understood that this would be the most important thing he would ever do…that he and Nikki would ever do.
He put his hand on her shoulder gently and whispered in her ear. “Tell me, Maria, what do you see?”