The Brother

Chapter Two

The room was just the way Jace had left it the last time he searched. It still smelled like Jonathan, or so Jace thought. He fought hard to hold back his tears and looked around the room.

There was a queen size bed to his left and a bedside table to its right. Jace went to the window at the far end of the room and drew the curtains back. Light poured in from outside, but it wasn’t much, the dark clouds had covered the sun.

Jace could hear the sound of the distant thunder as he turned to face the collection of books his brother kept in the bookshelf gifted to him by their father. The books weren’t arranged in any order. There were mystery novels, biographies, travel journals and a couple of books from college.

Next to the bookshelf was a study table on which his brother’s laptop rested. A few days ago, Jace had searched every single file in the laptop, with the hope of finding something that could give him a lead on his brother’s whereabouts.

He felt like he heard a beep. Just a single beep that lasted less than a second. He turned around eager to find the source. For some reason, he headed towards the bow that was hanging on the wall just above the bed.

He remembered the day he and Jonathan had won it. It was a summer camp contest with groups of two facing off each other. Jace and Jonathan were a single team. Jace was 12 at that time, and his brother was 16. They were very good in archery and Jace remembered that they didn’t celebrate extravagantly, probably because they were certain of the victory.

There was a lightning and the sound of distant thunder that followed it, bringing him back to reality.He could see the layer of dust sitting on the floor. It had been a long time since he had last cleaned the place.

Jace pushed his thoughts away and focused on finding the source. Maybe I just imagined it? Jace thought and turned toward the bookshelf to start searching for clues that were overseen. He had gone through three books, expecting to find some sort of writing that would at least elevate his confidence of finding his brother when he heard the beep again, only this time it lasted a couple of seconds.

And he heard it again. I’m not imagining this. What the hell is it? He nervously thought and spun around to find the tip of the bow shining bright red. Unsure of what he’d find, Jace slowly moved toward the bow, praying to God to help him. He slowly unmounted the bow from the wall and observed it.

He found the source of the light. It was appearing from a tiny hole at the tip of the bow with the red glow coming out of it like a laser. Jace clearly remembered that there was no hole when he and his brother had won it. Not knowing what to find, he squinted his eyes to help his vision sharpen, or so he thought, when he found a small gap that ran along the circumference of the bow about an inch from the tip.

Without thinking twice, Jace tried to twist the bow and tried to separate the small portion of the bow with all his force. He heard a c***k. He could see that the small portion he separated was a hidden compartment. He found a button at the larger end and pressed it with all his might, praying for the best.

And what he saw was something he had never expected to happen. The small section opened up completely. Like a bat spreading its wings, he saw the dark interior had a red button which was producing light. And there were engravings all over the surface. Engravings from a language he couldn’t understand.

What’s the worst that can possibly happen? Jace thought as he pressed the button, bracing for any kind of surprise. But there was nothing. Well, that’s the best case scenario.

He was glad that nothing bad happened. A small voice in his head had suggested that the thing in his hand might explode. 

And before he could even think of anything, he felt a strong pull on his right hand. Alarmed, he looked at his right hand or what was left of it as it had seemed to have vanished into thin air. He could feel the force increasing and his hand slowly getting invisible. First the wrist, then all the way into the elbow. He could feel his biceps being swallowed, but he couldn’t utter a word. He felt like a spectator, watching the show from a distance.

He felt a sharp pain in his abdomen. Like being stabbed by a knife. He opened his mouth to scream but no sound came out. He tried to wriggle himself free and felt another stab at the back of his neck. He tried to touch the region with his hand, but he couldn’t move it. He felt like he could no longer take the pain. He could feel the blood flowing in his veins, his heart banging against his chest as if trying to escape from the body.

The force of the pull had increased, Jace involuntarily closed his eyes as he lost his strength and plunged into darkness glittered with the stars of the night sky. And then he felt light. Lighter than air, he felt like he was floating mid air. He felt a sharp pain in his head and he finally blacked out.