The Milestone Protocol by Ernest Dempsey (best books to read in your 20s txt) 📕

“I was lost on the street and ducked into an alley. I didn’t know where I was going to go, how I was going to eat. I probably would have died.”

Adriana and the others listened intently. Sean didn’t dare move. For all he knew, this guy had assumed the persona of Niki and was luring them into a trap. But why? He’s already sprung the trap, Sean reminded himself. Still, he couldn’t help but feel like they were listening to a serpent spewing lies about his past.

“But you survived,” she said.

“Yes. I survived. Thanks to the kindness of a stranger.”

“Assassinating a group of people in a parking lot hardly seems like a good way to repay that kindness,” Sean said.

Niki’s head barely inclined in acknowledgement of the statement. “It was that kind stranger who ordered me to kill you.”

Sean noticed the gun in Niki’s hand raise slightly. Adriana saw it too, as if a terrible conflict raged inside the young man’s mind.

“Doesn’t seem so kind when you put it like that.”

“I was thinking the same thing,” Tommy added cautiously.

“Who’s the stranger?” Tabitha asked.

Her brazen question didn’t distract Niki. He kept his eyes firmly locked on Adriana, not oblivious to potential danger from others, rather, a deeply rooted emotion kept him focused on her.

“The All Father found me that day,” Niki said. “He taught me everything I know. Through his teachings, his training and instruction, and through his blessings, I have become what you see now—an instrument of righteousness.”

Sean and Tommy shared a concerned sidelong glance.

“Righteousness?” Sean questioned. “Don’t get me wrong, but that sounds a little like cult talk.”

“Some call it a cult. Perhaps that was what it was before. We prefer to call it a Fellowship.”

Adriana felt her heart sink. The little boy she’d freed from a madman all those years ago had become a killer for a deep state threatening to destroy civilization.

“Niki,” she said smoothly, “who is this man you call All Father?”

“It’s a reference to Odin from Norse mythology,” Tommy answered.

“Tommy,” Adriana snapped, whipping her head around to fling a burning glare at him.

“Sorry.” Tommy slinked back.

“I know the mythology, Niki. Who is this All Father?”

“Your friend is right,” Niki answered. “His name is Odin, and he controls everything that happens.”

Sean arched an eyebrow at this response. “You’re saying he’s immortal?”

“I did not say that. Odin is not immortal. He is named after the All Father and does his bidding.”

Tommy huffed. “Sounds like you may have crossed the streams there a little bit, son. Norse mythology is very different from the cultures Thoth and Hermes came from.”

“Is it?” Niki asked, his tone as mocking as the derision in his eyes. “Or perhaps they are all the same.”

“Uh, what?”

“Niki,” Adriana interrupted, ignoring the sideshow conversations. “We need to get out of here. If you’re truly working for the Cult of Thoth, then the mere act of telling us as much as you have could forfeit your life.”

“They are not watching us right now,” Niki said, brimming with confidence. “I am the only one here.”

“Someone’s always watching, kid,” Sean said. “First rule you should have learned from…Odin or whoever this guy is.”

“Come with us,” Adriana said, gradually extending her hand.

The movement caused Niki to reflexively raise his pistol.

Adriana froze with her arm still out. “We mean you no harm,” she added quickly. “But he’s right. We need to get out of here. It’s only a matter of time until your benefactor comes for us.”

She could see the conflict still raging in his eyes.

“No,” he said, tightening his grip on the pistol. “I appreciate what you did for me. You saved my…You….” He broke down, and the gun slumped next to his hip.

“It’s okay,” Adriana said. She risked an easy step toward the young man, then another. Like a prowling cat, she moved to him until she was inches away. Then she reached out and wrapped her fingers around the gun’s barrel and wriggled it free from him as he sobbed.

“Everything is going to be okay now,” Adriana promised.

She lifted his chin with her free hand and stuffed the pistol into her belt with the other. Looking into his eyes, she smiled at him and then wrapped her arms around him and squeezed him tight.

Tears poured from her eyes now, and from his. At first, Niki didn’t know what to do. He hadn’t been hugged since the last day he saw his mother, and even then it had been superficial at best. His parents had never doted on the boy with physical displays of emotion, which had made his transition into a hardened killer that much easier for the man who’d saved him from the streets.

His arms felt heavy, but he managed to wrap them around her and pull. He squeezed her back as tight as he could.

“I wondered for years what happened to you,” Adriana confessed, waterfalls dumping from her eyes. “I prayed you were safe, that someone good took you in and gave you a good life.”

Niki choked on the statement. He breathed heavily, trying to get a foothold in the chaos of his mind. Finally, he stepped back and looked at her, then cast his gaze around at the other three who’d gathered around while he hugged Adriana.

“You must get out of here,” Niki said. “It’s not safe.”

“That’s what I was trying to suggest earlier,” Tommy chirped.

“Not helpful, Schultzie,” Sean drawled, ignoring his friend’s ire.

“You don’t understand. Something big is coming. What Odin has planned,” Niki shook his head, looking down at the ground for a heartbeat, “it’s going to be bad.”

Adriana’s eyes softened, and she put her hand on his shoulder. “We know what he has planned, Niki. And we’re trying to stop him. That’s why we’re here right now.”

His eyes drifted down to her jacket pockets, then back up to meet her gaze. “I have to take the gem back to Odin. He saved my life, too. I have spared yours. I still owe him a debt.”

“Saved your life?” Adriana scoffed. “Only to make