By Aaron Fitzgerald

I remember a light shining in my eyes. I felt weak and I couldn’t recall my name. I heard a voice echoing in my head. It sounded like what you hear when standing in a large cavern. I was slowly regaining consciousness. As my eyesight became clearer I could make out a hand holding a light. She was shining it in my eyes as my mouth formed the words.

“Where am I?” I heard myself say.

The nurse switched the pen light off and put her hand on my forehead. “You have a fever,” she said.

I sat there for a long moment as she took my temperature. Who the hell was I? Where was I? How did I end up here? I could hear beeping sounds and the scuffling of footsteps. Voices buzzed in the background. I glanced around. There were white cupboards, a sink and a box of latex gloves. It took me a few moments to realize that I was in what I vaguely remembered as a hospital. The nurse finished taking my temperature.

“Your temperature is one hundred and three degrees,” she said.

I tried to raise my arms but for some reason they were restrained. I lifted my head and looked at the restraints and then back up at the nurse. She didn’t give me a hint of concern and left without a word.

I was suddenly overcome with dizziness and had to close my eyes to relieve it. When I opened my eyes there was a police officer looming over me. The badge on his chest glimmered off of the florescent lights. He was frowning at me and I knew that I was in some serious trouble.

“What’s going on?” I managed to whisper.

“You tell me,” he replied with a stern tone. “You beat the shit out of three police officers and it took five of them to subdue you.”

What in God’s name? I was at a loss. I had no idea what was going on. I was waiting until he would laugh and tell me it was all a joke but he didn’t. He just kept staring at me like I was a lizard. Fear enveloped my entire being and I knew that things were going to get worse. That’s when I felt a stinging sensation on my ankle. This was happening too fast. I needed to get some time to clear my head and figure this all out.

“We didn’t find an ID on you,” the officer said. “What’s your name?”

I shook my head at this question. “I don’t know.”

I thought there was a hint of a smile on his face but I’m sure it was all in my head. I just laid there gazing at him, hoping he would give me a hint of sympathy, but none came.

***

I overheard two policemen conversing and was able to ascertain that they were taking me to county. They didn’t say much to me, as if I was a sack of potatoes to be delivered. One of the officers read me my rights as I sat there helpless. I was told to sit up as they took the restraints off of me and tied my hands behind my back. I felt cramped in the back of the police car as they headed downtown. The stinging sensation on my ankle sprang up again and I lifted my leg. It was a tattoo of a phone number. A voice inside me suggested that this phone number was relevant. When they booked me I would get my phone call and I knew that I had to call that number.

I told the guard I wanted my phone call as he pushed me into a room with other inmates. I sat there in my jail garbs as people mumbled angrily under their breath about being incarcerated. I was in there for assault and I boasted about it to the others to keep them from intimidating me.

After an hour I got my phone call, with a police officer watching me. I punched in the number from memory.

“Joshua!” a woman’s voice cried through the receiver.

“Who is this?” I demanded.

“Be ready when you’re in the ambulance.” I heard the female voice crackle through the earpiece.

What was she talking about? I was about to ask her when the line went dead. I stood there for a moment, pretending I was still listening, while I tried to solve this riddle. I had to hang up the phone to keep the guard from getting suspicious. I was given a bit of information from the guard. I was going to be transferred to a psyche ward and I was going to be ready for whatever was going to happen.

They wheeled me into the ambulance with my wrists in restraints. Obviously they thought I was dangerous. Did I really beat up several police officers? The ambulance pulled away from the police station and made its way downtown. My heart thumped with anticipation as the hum of the ambulance engine droned in the background.

Suddenly I heard the crunching sound of a vehicle colliding with the ambulance. The ambulance lurched sideways and came to a screeching halt. Once the van steadied itself the medic opened the back door to the ambulance to find a young blond woman pointing a gun at him.

“Get out of the truck! “she barked.

The medic nodded, put his hands over his head and climbed out of the vehicle. She knocked him unconscious and then looked up at me.

“You okay?” she asked me.

I wasn’t exactly sure how to take this question. Who was this woman? Why was she rescuing me? Could I trust her? As I lay there debating these options she climbed into the ambulance and freed me from the restraints. I took this as an answer to my questions and followed her out of the back of the van. Her pickup truck was rolling back away from the ambulance. She slid into the driver’s side as I climbed into passenger seat. She put the truck into reverse and backed up. Then she switched the vehicle into first gear and peeled away from the accident scene.

“What this hell is going on?” I yelled. My anger was justified. “Who are you?”

“My name is Taylor. I’m on your side.”

I didn’t trust her. “How do I know that?”

“When we get to the bank you’ll understand.”

I shook my head. “I don’t remember a bank.”

“You will. Trust me.”

I didn’t have much of a choice. Whatever was at the bank would probably solve his mystery, although deep inside I feared it would just deepen the plot.

She reached into the backseat and grabbed a folded pair of pants and a shirt and handed them to me.

“Put those on,” she ordered.

I wasn’t going to debate her and pulled the clothes on. I expected to bulge out of them but surprisingly they fit. I had a million questions but only one rose to the surface.

“What’s at the bank?” I asked with earnest.

“Your way out of here.”

***

It took us ten minutes to get to the bank. She was an expert at the wheel, weaving in and out of cars, making yellow lights, driving like a seasoned police officer. I guess I could have considered her attractive if my mind hadn’t been in a state of perpetual terror at that point. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest as she came to a screeching stop in front of the bank.

She turned to me. “Safety deposit box 305.”

“They’ll want ID.”

“In your back right pocket.”

A key fell out of the wallet as I pulled it out of my pocket. The ID said my name was Joshua Knight. I realized that I didn’t know what I looked like. I pulled the visor down and checked my face in the mirror. I did indeed look like the photo on the ID.

“Is that my real name?” I asked.

“It is here.”

I just stared at her for a moment, taking this in. “What do you mean here?”

“Just go.”

I pushed the door open and exited the truck. My legs were shaking as I ascended the steps to the bank. I passed through the glass doors into the lobby. A nice looking man at his desk greeted me with an innocent smile.

“Can I help you, sir?” he asked.

“I need safety deposit box 305.”

He nodded. “This way.” He led me down a hallway and into an office. There was a leather couch pushed up against a wall and a glass coffee table in front of it. A dresser drawer sported a coffee maker on top of it with a freshly brewed pot of coffee.

“Your ID sir?”

I nodded. “Yeah, right.” I pulled out the wallet and handed him the ID. He looked it over and eyed me with confidence.

“And the key?”

I handed him the key, wondering if he suspected something but his demeanor communicated that he didn’t.

“I’ll be back with your box momentarily,” he said and left.

I poured myself a cup of coffee, took a sip and set it down on the coffee table. This was crazy. What did the woman mean about my name being Joshua Knight here? Maybe she was some nutcase who escaped from a mental institution and was drawing me into some insane situation. I wasn’t going to jump to any crazy conclusions right off the bat and would wait to see what was in the safety deposit box.

The nice looking man entered the room again with the safety deposit box in his hand. He smiled warmly and set it down on the coffee table.

“Take as much time as you need, sir,” he said smoothly and left me alone.

I sat on the couch and stared at the box. The contents may have held answers, but also more questions. I knew there was no denying that I had to open it. I reached out and pulled the top off. Immediately, I noticed the gun. I picked it up and gripped it as an adrenalin rush pulsed through my body. Out of fear I put it down and reached in and pulled out two passports. Each one had my picture but two sets of names. Who was I? Was I Joshua Knight or Kevin Shores? Then I noticed the crystal. It was sitting in the upmost corner of the box, almost transparent. I picked it up and could feel the warmth of its touch. It seemed to have a calming effect on me. I sat there as the warmth filled my body. Then I felt fear. I dropped the stone on the coffee table.

I shoved the passports into my front right pocket and the wallet into my back pocket. I put the gun into my pants and covered it with my shirt. Then I picked up the crystal. For a split second I considered leaving it, but realized it must play a part in this game so I stuffed into my other front pocket.

She was waiting for me on the curb in the truck. Her face communicated calmness but her eyes burned with anxiety. I got in the passenger side and turned to her.

“I got it,” I said.

She nodded. I wondered if she was concerned about whether I got the gun, the passports or the crystal, but I was sure she knew about all of it. She pulled out into traffic and sped down the street.

“What now?”

“We have to get you to the gate,” she replied.

More riddles. I scowled and I think it scared her as I noticed her shifting in the seat. All that was needed was an intimidating look and a squint of the eyes. Where was she leading me? I had to know the answers.

“Where is this gate?” I asked.

She turned to look at me. “Four blocks away.”

“You know the truth, don’t you?” I barked.

“I know some of it. You’ll learn more on the other side.”

As she pulled into the parking garage of the mall I noticed her checking the review mirror. I’ll admit I was looking at mine as well. She cut the engine after parking the truck in a spot. We got out and hurried towards the entrance to the mall. It was a pleasant day, the sun was shining down and birds were chirping in the background. In spite of the nice day my soul was trapped in darkness. It seemed that every move forward escalated the amount of questions I had. Just when I thought an answer was about to present itself I was bombarded with more mysteries. It was as if the truth was a rainbow, always around the bend, but never reachable.

A woman exited the mall and walked past us with a crying baby in her arms. The noise of the crowded mall filled my ears as we entered the mall and walked quickly down the main hallway. A familiar song was playing through the mall’s speakers, although I wasn’t in the mood to think about music. My feet were matching her pace as we hurried through the crowds of consumers.

I gave everyone a suspicious glance. I knew I couldn’t trust anybody. The police were probably searching for me. They must have found the ambulance by now. A security guard was conversing with a teenager. I watched him carefully as we passed but he didn’t as so much as turn in our direction. I relaxed a bit as we headed towards a Macy’s but the anticipation of getting caught returned sooner than I would have liked.

The closer we got to Macy’s the more I could feel the heat of the crystal in my pocket. I could feel a tug of energy pulling me in the direction of Macy’s. I turned around and checked our rear and that’s when I saw the two police officers tailing us. I calculated that they were approximately one hundred yards behind and I could tell they were following us. We quickened our pace toward Macy’s. Two middle class yuppies passed by us giggling over some joke with shopping bags in their hands. The police began walking faster, at almost a slow jog. I knew they had made us and were closing in to make the arrest.

We entered Macy’s and by that time the crystal was practically burning a hole through my jeans. That’s when I saw it. What seemed to be a ripple in reality was forming in the makeup section of the store. I could feel myself being pulled towards it. Sparks began to flash from it as I approached it. This must have been what she called the gate. I pulled out the crystal and held it up to the gate. Lightening began to flash at the gate from the crystal in my hand.

“You need to go now!” she yelled.

I ran toward the ripple and felt a falling sensation as blackness closed in around me. It was almost like the feeling of being born. I was pushed through an opening into another dimension. I wondered if this course of action would lead me to answers.

***

The first thing I noticed was that my fever was gone. The gin and tonic was sitting in front of me at the bar. It took a few seconds for the memories to come back to me. That’s when I felt the warmth of the crystal in my pocket. I checked my pants for the gun and found that it was still there. I figured the passports were still in my pocket. I wondered if I should play it cool or bolt. I checked out the room with a quick glance and found no one looking suspicious. I determined I was out of immediate danger for the time being and took a swig of the drink.

That is when he sat down next to me. I can’t say he looked suspicious with his black dress suit and tie. One of the first things I noticed was his bald head. I glanced down to see a pen in his jacket pocket. He ordered a Mac N’ Jacks and relaxed. Once he had his drink he took a few small sips and then looked at me out of the corner of his eye.

I should have felt fear, but I didn’t. I was going to play this out. He retrieved the pen from his pocket and started jotting something down on the napkin. I watched him with my peripheral vision as he wrote. Finally, when he was done he pushed the napkin over to me. The words caught my eyes immediately.

The man sitting behind you has a gun.

I turned my head to see a middle aged man dressed in a grey suit sitting at a table drinking a soda. After a closer inspection I noticed the handle of a pistol protruding from the inside of his jacket. I looked back at the bald man as he motioned for me to follow him. We got up and started making our way towards the exit when the man in the grey suit jumped up.

I didn’t even hesitate. I grabbed the gun and spun around in time to get off a shot. The bullet hit the mirror behind the bar and it shattered. Everyone in the bar screamed, jumped up and ran for the exit.

The man in the grey suit pulled his pistol from its holster and held it up. We were out the door as we heard the pop-pop of gunshots behind us. The bald man led me to a Mercedes Benz and we got in. People were still fleeing from the bar all around us. He started the car and pulled out into traffic.

“What am I supposed to do?” I yelled at the bald man. “What’s going on?

He glanced at me as he drove the car. I could see the honesty in his eyes. He knew more than he was saying. As far as I could tell he was on my side, but who knew. He was doing a brilliant job of fitting in with the other traffic. He drove the speed limit and used his turn signal. It didn’t seem as if anyone was following us. I still wanted answers.

“Who are you?” I demanded.

“I’m Gregory,” he replied. “You still have a job to do.”

I had finally had it. “What the fuck is going on? I want to know the truth.”

He kept his eyes on the road. “You’re supposed to stop it.”

“Stop what?”

“That’s all I know.” he replied. “I’m taking you to your apartment. You’ll find your answers there.”

I didn’t know whether to believe him or not. So far every clue had led to another question. I had no idea what was going on. Maybe something at my apartment would shed some light on this mystery.

***

Gregory informed me that I was Kevin Shores now, so I’d know which passport to use. My apartment was across town and my new friend doubled back twice to insure that we weren’t being followed. The overcast sky began sprinkling rain down on us. Gregory switched the windshield wipers on to a low setting. I realized my eyes were following the motion of the wipers as we drove through the city. I snapped myself out of my daze and figured I’d better not distract myself. Everyone move would count.

We pulled up to the apartment building as the sun finally broke through the clouds. I asked Gregory what my apartment number was and he replied with, “305.” I recognized that number. That was the number of the safety deposit box at the bank. Were these realities connected in some way? And if so want sort of connections were they? Gregory handed me two keys.

“The red one opens the door to the building and the silver one opens your apartment door.”

I exited the car and hurried up to the building. A couple came darting out of the apartment complex sharing an umbrella. I could hear them giggling over some private joke as I passed them on the sidewalk. I took one careful glance at them as they jogged across the street. I unlocked the glass door and hurried inside. It was just a little further to go to get to the bottom of all of this.

Once on the elevator I touched the tip of the gun handle, just as to feel secure. I hadn’t encountered any hostiles here yet, but I had just arrived. I made it to the door without seeing anybody. I pulled the key out of my pocket and unlocked the door to the apartment. I checked all the rooms immediately for any signs of the enemy and then sauntered into the living room. There was a widescreen television planted on an entertainment system. On top of a speaker sat a DVD with the words “Joshua or Kevin watch this” written on it. I put the DVD into the player and the video started. I wasn’t surprised at all that it was me on the video.

This is what I said to myself.

“If you are watching this video it means the second stage of our mission is complete. You have been living as Joshua Knight in an alternate reality in order to obtain our objective. The drug has worn off and now you are in a state of blocked memories. It will return over time. No doubt your aids have been helping you. They don’t know everything, but can help you complete your mission. There are others who know about the alternate realities. A senator, Marks Henderson, knows about the gates between our worlds. He wants to expose them in order to enslave both realities. He must be stopped.”

What? I was supposed to assassinate a U.S. Senator? How could this be?

“I know you are wondering why I would want to do this. Well, this senator is close in the race for presidential election. He wants to become a dictator with control of both realities. We can’t allow this. On the dresser in your bedroom is the weapon to stop this.”

I paused the video and crossed into the bedroom. On top of the dresser against the far wall was a briefcase. I walked over to it and opened it. Inside was a high powered laser scope rifle. The video of me on the DVD wasn’t screwing around. Was this really what I had to do? Kill a politician? The whole thing sounded crazy. There was more on the video and I wanted to hear it all. I rushed back into the living room with the briefcase clutched in one hand and hit the play button on the DVD player.

“You need to jump back into the other reality now. Gregory will know where to go. Taylor will be waiting for you there. She’ll take you to your finally position. Good luck.”

And the video switched off.

I had no choice. This was who I was. I knew myself well enough to know that if I deemed this course of action necessary then it was justified. In the past few hours I had discovered that the world we know and take for granted wasn’t all as superficial as we perceived it. I knew there were two realities. I knew you could jump through them and now I knew who was bent on controlling them both. Yes, Mark Henderson was a threat to this universe, and I was going to stop him.

Gregory knew where to go. We peeled away from the apartment building and headed further downtown. I gripped the briefcase in my hand. He glanced at me.

“You know more than I do now,” he said.

“I can’t tell you what it is,” I replied.

“That’s what I figured,” he remarked and took a sharp right onto a one way street.

I asked him where the gate was he said it was on the subway entrance on fourth. He took another sharp turn down King Street and hit the gas.

“You don’t have much time,” he said loudly.

I nodded and burst from the car as the Mercedes screeched to a stop in front of the subway entrance. I bolted down the steps gripping the briefcase. I came to the bottom of the steps when I felt the warmth of the crystal in my pocket. It drew me forward and finally I saw the ripple opening up. A few subway passengers cried in fear when they saw the light from the tear in reality and ran past me. I stepped forward and was sucked into the light.

***

The tail end of the fever was still affecting me as woke up in the back of the taxi cab. The briefcase was sitting next to me as the cab pulled up to a hotel. The driver turned back to look at me.

“That’s twenty bucks,’ he said.

I pulled out a twenty and handed to him. I exited the cab with the briefcase clutched in my hand. I had a sneaking suspicion that the hotel was my destination. I pushed open the front door and approached the clerk behind the counter.

“Can I help you, sir?” he asked politely.

“There should be a room for a Joshua Knight,” I replied and handed him my passport.

He checked the name on his computer and handed the passport back to me. “It’s room number…”

“…305.” I said, cutting him off. He merely smiled and nodded as I made my way to the elevators.

I took the elevator to the third floor and hurried to the door. As a precaution I drew my gun and backed away from the door as I knocked. I didn’t hear an answer so I unlocked the door and burst into the room.

The woman who had rescued me from the ambulance was sitting in an armchair. She looked up at me without the slightest expression of fear. In fact it was more like she had been expecting me. I pointed my gun at her anyway.

“Put the gun down,” she said.

“What’s going on,” I demanded.

“You know what’s going on Joshua, otherwise you wouldn’t be here.”

I nodded. There was no denying it. My message to myself had confirmed everything. I was in this up to a foot and half over my neck line, and I knew it. I lowered my weapon.

“Looks like you got the briefcase,” she said.

I placed my parcel on the bed and opened it. I stared at the rifle, perplexed.

She saw the look on my face. “Don’t worry, you know how to use it.”

I laughed out loud and then choked on my voice. This was really happening. I knew I’d only have one shot at completing my objective. I snapped the briefcase shut and turned to her.

“Do I have to jump again?”

She shook her head. “No, the senator is here. Ten blocks away.”

I followed her out of the room and into the hallway. I heard a phone ringing. It was her cell. She retrieved if from her jacket pocket and put it to her ear. I heard her quietly say something and then she snapped it shut.

“Who was that?”

“Everything is in place.”

As we descended to the garage level on the elevator we tensed every time it stopped and passengers got off and on. I could see Taylor gripping her weapon inside her jacket as if at any moment someone would appear and attack us. Nothing happened though and we arrived at the parking garage in a few minutes.

Her truck was parked several yards away. Not only did I recognize the color I also noticed the bent bumper from when she collided with the ambulance. She unlocked her side, climbed in then unlocked the door on the passenger side for me. We both slid into place and she started the engine, switched to reverse and pulled out of the parking spot.

The sun glared in my eyes as we drove out of the parking garage and onto the street. I flipped the sun visor down and rubbed my eyes. All in all it was a lovely day, not the kind of day you’d be expecting someone to assassinate a U.S. Senator. We passed a park and I saw parents and children playing without a care in the world. How I envied them, to not know the danger I knew.

That’s when I spotted roadblocks approximately five blocks ahead of us. I could see the flashing of police lights. An officer stood in the middle of an intersection directing traffic. Taylor hung a left four blocks from the police and continued down a side street. She hit the brakes and pulled up to the curb next to a ten story apartment building.

“You know what apartment number is yours,” she said as I exited the truck.

I didn’t even answer. Briefcase in hand I entered the building and took the stairs to the third floor, as the elevator was out of order. I opened the door to the apartment and looked around. It was basically bare with few moving boxes sitting on the floor in the living room. Curtains hung over the windows. I crossed to the window in the bedroom and peaked through them. I could see the building where the senator would be pulling up to in his limousine any minute. It was now or never.

I set the briefcase down on the floor and opened it. I pulled the rifle out and tested its weight against my shoulder. Then I walked to the window, pushed it open and aimed the weapon on the building across the street. Ignorant followers of a corrupt politician were crowded around outside the building.

I peered through the scope. My cross hairs swept across the street, checking each car as they passed by. I could feel the sweat on my brow as the seconds ticked away. I had a feeling my whole existence had boiled down to this final moment. Destiny had brought me here. This was my duty. This man had to be stopped and I was the only one who could do it. That’s when I saw the limo pulling up to the cub across the street.

I saw secret service agents open the door to the limo after it pulled to the curb. The senator’s wife exited the car with a secret service agent escorting her. A moment later the senator emerged with two secret service men following him.

My finger pressed against the trigger as I watched the senator make his way towards the building. I could feel the destiny of two realities hanging in the balance while the senator made his way toward the entrance step by step. A car horn honked somewhere in the distance but it didn’t distract me. I was going to count back from three and then pull the trigger. Three. Two.

I heard a shot and I knew that it hadn’t come from my gun. I saw as the crowd break into a panic below on the street. People were running and screaming in all directions. The secret service agents rushed the senator into the limo and it sped off down the street.

That’s when I felt it. The gunshot wound in my shoulder. The rifle dropped from my grasp as I felt the pain. I fell to my knees. How did they know? I tried to stop the bleeding by clutching the wound. Somehow I managed to peer over the window. Police were scouring the area looking for the shooter.

I heard the door to the apartment burst open and the sound of footsteps enter the room. Grimacing, I turned to see SWAT soldiers run into the room. They yelled at me to get down on my knees. That’s when I heard a familiar voice come from behind them.

“Leave him alone with me.”

Taylor stepped in the room with her pistol drawn. The SWAT team disappeared outside the apartment as she kicked the rifle away from my grasp. She reached into her pocket and retrieved a silencer and screwed it onto her gun.

“Why?” I managed to say as she loomed over me.

“The plan worked. Now that an assassination attempt has occurred the senator will win the election. There will be such an amount of sympathy that now he will win the presidential race and both alternate worlds will be under our control. You played your part well Joshua.”

“The truth will come out,” I said while gasping blood.

“Gregory will be taken care of. No one will know.”

She pointed the pistol at my head and pulled the trigger.

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