Voices – Page 84
There was quiet again, as they digested Starkings’ last statement. Jen had stopped weeping, but was still clutching John tightly. He wondered if she had been crying from fear, or sorrow, or simply relief that the secret was out and there appeared to be no immediate threat of jail.
Finally John said, “So you have others like us working for you?”
Starkings nodded. “Every major government on this planet has had a department of paranormal studies for decades.”
“And no one knows about this?”
“I wouldn’t say that… there are always rumors, conspiracy theories, that sort of thing. It’s difficult to prove. There are many, many layers of red tape.”
“You’re not from the FBI,” John said.
“No. It’s just the most convenient government body to use. I could say CIA, but that typically scares people. My department doesn’t have a name — at least, not one I can give to the public.”
“Are you… one of us?” Brian asked.
Starkings grinned. “No, I’ve no powers of my own. Just training. Your friend here, for example, might find my mind surprisingly difficult to read.”
“Are you here to offer us a job with your covert group?” John asked.
Starkings tilted his head. “Would you take it, if I did?”
“No,” John said.
“What if I told you that I could make all of these troubles disappear? No more media circus, no legal difficulties for Jen, no forced return to state care for Kevin. I could even convince Brian’s parents that the boy they saw on the news wasn’t their own.”
John was silent. Jen looked up from his chest, rubbed at her eyes, and said, “No.”
“You want to go on trial for a five year old murder, Jennifer?” Starkings asked.
“If I have to go to jail, then so be it. I’m not bargaining with the government for my freedom,” Jen said.
“If my parents will accept me for what I am, I’d really like to see them,” said Brian. “So your offer doesn’t do much for me.”
“If you put me back in a state home, I’ll be gone in two weeks anyway,” Kevin said.
“We can deal with the media,” John said. “That all you’ve got to offer, Starkings?”
Starkings’ grin broadened and he laughed. “Good. Good. Please remember that I began this debate with ‘what if’. No, John, I am not here to offer you a job with my covert group, though I’ve no doubt you’d all do well there. No, there is a larger problem that we think you can address.”
“This is getting old, Starkings,” Jen said. “It hasn’t been the best week, and we’re not all in the best moods. Let’s get to the point.”
Starkings sipped at his coffee and said, “First, I must ask one thing of you all.”
“Go for it,” John said.
“Call me Richard.”
