“Hors d’oeuvre, sir?” In a tuxedo and white gloves, an enormous eighteen-year-old, probably a football player from the local high school, held out a tray filled with tasty little morsels.
Jason peered down. “What are those?”
“Carmelized onions on crostini with Gorgonzola cheese, sir.”
Jason gave the kid a look. “Pretty fancy. You pick those out?”
The kid smiled. “The catering manager, sir.”
“I’m fine, thanks.”
“Ma’am?”
“Oh, thank you.” Lisa took one. “Mmm, delicious.”
The kid went back inside, and Jason shook his head at all of it. “Swanky affair, huh?”
Lisa nodded sadly. “Craig and Darryl would have loved it.”
“Yeah.” Jason exhaled, sadder than he could say. Then he kissed Lisa’s hand. “Look at my beautiful fiancée.”
She smiled at her new one-carat diamond engagement ring. A celebrity would have laughed at its size, but Lisa Barton absolutely loved her ring. She loved the man who’d given it to her even more. “Thank you, Jason. For everything.”
“Want a drink?”
“Sure.”
They entered the reception area, heading toward a tiny crowded bar when—
“Excuse me. Jason, Lisa?”
They turned. And so did their stomachs. It was Harry Ackerman, as cold-eyed and even-tempered as ever. “How are you two doing?”
With several reporters in earshot, the couple just stared at him.
“What do you want?” Jason said in a loud voice meant to be overheard.
Ackerman’s pleasant demeanor evaporated. “Everything here is my property. Every last thing.”
“It was nice seeing you at Darryl and Monique’s funeral, Harry.” This was also very loud.
Ackerman blinked. “Oh. Yes, I heard about that. I couldn’t make it.”
“But you didn’t send chocolates either.”
Ackerman started looking self-conscious. Jason was staring at him with palpable rage. He was the evening’s star attraction, and several reporters were beginning to take notice.
“You also didn’t make it to Craig and Phil’s funerals.”
Ackerman looked away, saying nothing.
“You remember Phil Martino, don’t you, Harry?” Again, more volume.
The eyes remained calm. “This is my news conference.”
“I said you remember Phil Martino, don’t you?” The entire room was watching them now.
“Yes, I remember him.” People Ackerman didn’t know were starting to give him angry looks. “Everything related to the discoveries you made while working for me is my property. It’s in the contracts, and I want all of it.”
“You terminated the contracts and voided your rights. My attorney assured me of that.”
Ackerman paused. “I didn’t think attorneys were your style, Jason.”
“They weren’t.” He glanced at Lisa. “My technical adviser suggested I get one. Take us to court if you don’t like it.”
“You son of a bitch. I will.”
Jason almost smiled. “Will you? Because I heard you had to declare bankruptcy and are under investigation by the IRS, too. You sure you have the financial resources for a lawsuit?”
Ackerman couldn’t retort. It was all true. One of his companies had defaulted on several loans he was personally liable for. To cover it, the banks had already acquired his stock and bond portfolios and were in the process of taking possession of his massive La Jolla home.
Jason thrust out a powerful hand, daring the man to shake it. “But thanks for coming by to congratulate us.”
Ackerman just eyed the hand nervously. And Lisa laughed hard in his face. Others didn’t know what was so funny, but they smiled. Humiliated, Ackerman stormed off.
Before Jason could put his hand down, someone else strode up and shook it. “Jason, it’s great to see you.” Bandar Vishakeratne looked excited. “I just flew in, but I must say these bloody appetizers are the best I’ve ever had.” He raised a tiny plate. “This one right here, I swear to Buddha, is called ‘miniature poppy-seed-and-chive buttermilk blini with onion.’ It tastes fantastic and it’s vegetarian.” He glanced at Lisa. “Do you believe it? Even at Princeton, they don’t serve appetizers like these.”
Jason and Lisa laughed heartily. Then Veesh leaned into Jason and whispered, “All joking aside, my sincerest congratulations to you. From the bottom of my heart, you deserve this, all of it, and I’m honored to participate.”
Jason shook the hand warmly. “Thank you very much, Veesh. By the way, have you met my colleague and fiancée, Lisa Barton?”
“Fiancée?” Veesh smiled. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lisa. You know, I’m sure you’re very accomplished; but I must say, I think you’ve landed a good one here.”
Lisa chuckled. Then Veesh excused himself and the pair returned to the balcony. It was so quiet out here, the sunset even more beautiful than it had been a moment ago.
Lisa turned to her husband-to-be. “Did I tell you how proud I am of you?”
“Lisa, we both—we all did this.”
“But you were our leader. You guided us. You even trusted us. You wanted this more than anyone, and… I mean it: I’m proud of you.”
“Thank you very much.” No one had said these words to him in his entire life.
He looked up at the sky. “Want to get liquored up after all this?”
She laughed hard. “Definitely.”
He studied the horizon. The creatures in the caves were long since dead. Hundreds of National Guard troops had descended upon the mountains north of Redwood National Park, then dynamited every passageway above and below the waterline. One dead specimen had been transported to Laguna Beach for the presentation tonight. Near the slide projector inside, the great body was covered by a nylon tarp and being guarded by four men with neat haircuts and concealed weapons.
As Jason stared up at the heavens, he saw none of their beauty. Despite his excitement over his and Lisa’s budding fame, he’d been troubled for months, speculating over what Craig Summers had once said that night in the cabin: What if a million Demonrays made their way to the land? Or just a few thousand? Or even ten or twenty?
“You OK?”
He turned to Lisa. “Fine.”
“What’s with the spooky look in your eye?”
“Nothing.”
“Really opening up to your fiancée, huh?”
He didn’t smile. “I’m worried, Lisa. I’m still really worried.”
They’d discussed this before. “About more of them coming to land?”
“Maybe a lot more.”
“You don’t know that’s going to happen, Jason. No one knows that’s going to happen.” She poked him playfully. “We’re about to give the most important presentation of our lives and then we’re getting married. Why don’t we think happy thoughts for a little while?”
He chuckled. Happy thoughts indeed. His life was so much better than it had ever been. “I’ll try to relax.”
She looked at him. “ You OK?”
“I’m great. I mean it. The best I’ve ever been.”
He seemed to mean that. She checked her watch. “We better get started.”
He looked up at the sky, black now, and he noticed the moon. “After you.”
They walked in. And the moon watched them go. Just as it had watched them come. Unblinking, the moon was still watching. Them, every one, every thing. It was watching a seagull hundreds of miles up the California coast. In the last moments of twilight, the bird circled the rolling seas below, looking for its final meal of the day. It spotted movement and dove down. But as it plunged in, it found nothing other than a strand of kelp that it had mistaken for a fish. The gull returned to the surface and floated lazily, staring at the place where the sunset had just faded into the oblivion. Then it pushed off and flew toward the shore.