The Myth and The Guardian
Chapter 12

Once the plane reached its destination, Austin had to be forced to close the book and take a break from reading. He had only read six chapters of the novel, and he was already obsessed with the story. His fascination was not only because of the genius author of the story, nor simply because the story was unbelievably enchanting. The newest and main reason for Austin’s obsession was the similarities between Alexander, the main character of the story, and himself. Alexander was an orphan, a genius, and shared almost every thought that Austin was currently feeling within himself. Austin had to force himself to remember that the author was as gifted and probably used his own emotions to create this character. No matter what the reasons for the similarities were, Austin knew that he had to finish the book.

Austin reviewed the first six chapters during the long ride to the hotel they would all be staying in for two weeks. Alexander, the genius main character of the story, was adopted by people who, in his opinion, were extremely superstitious and believed in myths. The people were blessed financially and used their money to go on crusades searching for the unproven. The story in the book takes place around the family searching for “The Fountain of Youth”. They had been dragging Alexander on expeditions across the globe to replace clues to the fountain’s whereabouts, and they had finally found a solid lead. Their crusades lead them to South America which at first fascinated Austin because he was on a trip to South America.

However, this feeling of excitement disappeared once Austin remembered all the tales of the Fountain of Youth led those in search for it to South America. Austin recalled one of his favorite movies is actually about discovering The Fountain of Youth. “The Fountain” starring Hugh Jackman has scenes that are believed to take place in South America. Austin noticed that the book was causing his brain to jump from one thought to another, which is something that rarely happened to him. He usually had no trouble focusing on one thought at a time until he came to some conclusion, but now his brain was all over the place because of the book. This increased his fascination with both the novel and the writer, who Austin was planning on replaceing a picture of as soon as he got to the hotel.

Once they were checked in and settled at the hotel, Austin unpacked his laptop to search for anything he could replace on Christopher Cage. He searched for information on the writer using Google, but there was a surprisingly limited amount of information to be discovered. There were a few similar reviews of The Myth, places to buy the book, but nothing about the writer. He had his own web page that would have detailed his life, and Austin read the very short passage to discover the reason there was so little information about Christopher Cage. The passage ended by reading:

“Christopher Cage and his family went missing on his eleventh birthday, after a great deal of searching nobody was ever found. Police and friends of the family all presume that the family had a tragic accident, but the mystery remained unsolved.”

Austin reread the article again, but he could not believe that this was all he would ever know of Christopher Cage. All those previous hopes of learning about him, reading more of his books, and maybe meeting him were completely eliminated by this newly found information. The reality of being completely alone knocked the wind out of Austin once again. He sat on his bed for a while and felt angry for allowing himself to get his hopes up. He spent the next hour thinking of all the reasons being lonely was not as bad as it seemed. He sat there and talked himself into being comfortable with his own isolation one more time. The only comfort was knowing that he was not completely alone. He had a family and his girlfriend who he loved dearly, and he decided the feeling lonely was a little better than actually being alone.

Susan walked into the room and told him it was time to get ready to go to dinner. Austin just sat there lost in his thoughts for a moment before he noticed she was in the room. Susan walked over, sat beside him, and placed her arm around him.

“What’s wrong kiddo?” she asked in a motherly tone.

Austin, who rarely ever talked about what was bothering him, was suddenly compelled to confide in her.

“Well, it’s this book.” Austin replied so quickly that it caught them both of guard.

Susan looked at the book and then back at Austin with the same mysterious and worried look she had on her face before they left home.

“Well, what’s the matter with it? Do you not like it like you thought you would?” Susan said trying to hide her concern.

“No, the book is amazing. The character is similar to me and so is the writer to be honest.” Austin confessed.

Susan gave him a look that let him know to continue.

“I was excited about the character and even more by the writer. I looked him up because he is just like I am, a genius. He wrote this book when he was ten years old, and then he and his family went missing or died on his next birthday.”

Susan, who looked relieved suddenly, rubbed Austin on the back and gave him a hug.

“Let me guess, you were feeling less alone when you realized there are others like you out in the world, and now that you have found out he is dead you feel alone again?” Susan asked accurately.

Austin was shocked at how quickly she put the pieces together.

“Well, yes. I am not miserable or anything so do not worry. It is just that I would give anything to belong to something and not feel alone anymore.” Austin said in a rather sad voice.

“Austin, sweetheart, you are very special and that means not many people will ever be able to relate to you and your gifts, ideas, and accomplishments. I know that is hard to accept, but please remember that you can talk to Frank and me about anything. We love you kiddo, and we will always be here to listen anytime you need to talk. You may not be part of some secret club for people as smart as you, and you may not ever meet anyone else who will understand how difficult it is to be you. Although that is a sad reality, I hope you remember that you do belong to this family, and we are lucky to have you. We may not all share your intellect or intelligence, but we share your love, honey. So, I promise you that you are never alone as long as we are here.” Susan said in a very convincing and matter of fact tone.

Austin could not believe how easy it was to talk to Susan. He wished he would have come to her about more of his thoughts.

During that very moment, he really believed what she had just told him. Suddenly, he did not feel as bad as he had previously felt. She gave him a smile and got up to walk out of the room.

“Wait.” Austin said before he could stop himself from talking.

“Yes, do you have something else you want to talk about Austin?” Susan replied.

Austin got up and walked over to her and gave her a hug.

“Thanks for the talk ,mom, I really needed it.” Austin said in a grateful voice.

“Anytime kiddo” Susan replied with tears in her eyes.

“Can we eat pizza for dinner tonight?” Austin asked smiling.

Susan opened the door and nodded yes before leaving the room. Frank walked in front of her before she could close the door behind her.

“Hon, I told Austin it was okay for us to have pizza for dinner tonight. Is that okay?” Susan said wiping tears away from eyes.

“Sure” Frank replied. “Susan, you hate pizza” Frank said in a whisper.

“I know, but he called me mom. What else was I supposed to say?” Susan said happily.

Austin was now more focused on bonding with his family than thinking about the book during dinner. He did not know how to describe this new found feeling of affection for his family.

“His family.”

That was the first time he had thought of them as his own family. The compassion and concern that Frank and Susan had been showing him recently was no doubt the reason for his new emotion. He could not resist the temptation to make jokes and act like a playful ten or eleven year old around them. Susan and Frank were enjoying the bonding more than anyone else, but Chris was his usual uninterested self. Austin wanted to ask him why he felt so awkward around him, but decided to wait for a more appropriate time to have the discussion. He was sure the opportunity would present itself once Susan and Frank became distracted by work. In the meantime, he would bond with them and read his book.

“So, how’s the book, champ?” Frank asked with great interest.

“Oh, it’s great. I only have another ten chapters to go before I am finished with it.” Austin replied.

“Well, you certainly must be interested in it to read it so quickly. I do not think I would be able to think about reading if I were your age and on a trip in another country.” Frank added in a somewhat playful tone.

“I am excited about this trip, but my mind is drawn to the book in a way that I cannot explain.” Austin replied excitedly.

“Well, that is certainly saying a great deal about the quality of the novel especially coming from you. However, your mother and I think it would be a good idea to take a break from the book for a while and do some sightseeing while we are here. You should try to get as much from this trip as you can before we have to leave.” said Frank.

“Yes, you are always locked away in a room with your nose in a book. We just want you to enjoy life and have some fun while you are here. Go out and meet some people, who knows, you may meet a friend or two.” Susan added.

“Okay, I get what you two are hinting at, and I promise I will try to have some fun like a normal kid for once. In fact, I can probably finish reading by the end of the night and start having fun with other people first thing in the morning.” Austin said with a smile.

“Sounds good” Frank and Susan replied at the same time with identical worried looks on their faces.

Austin pretended not to notice it and changed the subject to the quality of the Spanish style pizza they were all enjoying.

Chris finally began to talk once they were all talking about the food, but Austin caught awkward glances from him after every few sentences. Austin’s mind began to wonder again about the true nature of his new brother’s dislike for him. Austin had decided to talk to him about it once they were in their room for the night. Chris suddenly announced that the Harding family was on vacation and staying in a nearby hotel. Austin already knew that this meant Chris would be out late with his girlfriend, Samantha. Austin decided that he would not let this interfere with his plans to replace out why Chris did not like him.

“Chris, I was hoping that maybe you and I could go sightseeing together tomorrow.” Austin interrupted.

Chris looked at Austin like he had never heard the boy speak before in his life. He looked at his parents and then back at Austin and finally spoke.

“Sure, sounds like a good idea, Austin.” Chris replied awkwardly.

Frank and Susan gave each other a very proud parent look. Austin thought they would break out the camera and start snapping photographs right then and there. Chris began eating another slice of pizza and did not say much for the rest of the meal.

They were all greeted by the Harding family as soon as they went back to the hotel. Samantha had come to see Chris, and her parents invited Susan and Frank to go out for some fun without the children. After assuring Frank and Susan he would be safe by himself for a few hours, Austin began to walk to the room alone. He was asked to return to the group of people as soon as he had made it to the elevator. Mr. Harding had a few questions for him while waiting on Susan to return from changing her clothes. Mr. Harding took a fascination in Austin because his nephew, Jackson, was Austin’s age, but he was not nearly as smart as Austin. After basically being quizzed on science and history by Mr. Harding, Austin was relieved when Susan returned downstairs ready to leave. Mr. Harding showed how impressed he was with Austin’s intelligence, and they all said their goodbyes to him. Austin went to the elevator and rushed to read the rest of his book. The rest of the novel was so impressively genius and familiar to his own life that Austin developed chill bumps.

“Alexander suspected his adoptive parents were hiding information about his past from him. They were always stopping their conversations when he walked in a room, keeping him from doing the simplest of activities, and following him when they did not think he was aware. He had deduced that it all had something to do with his unique mind and something they wanted him to remember. Alexander confronted them one day, and they tried to cover up their actions with even more lies. He was so angry, upset, and hurt by their actions that he decided to run away. They ended up chasing him which caused him to run through the woods in an effort to hide. He ran for as long as he could before his body was too exhausted to continue the escape.

Deep in the woods he noticed trees that formed a circle formation, and each had markings that were identical to the birthmark on his back. The birthmark that was shaped like the sun with a small partial moon on the inside of it. He noticed a large stone that rested in the middle of the circle formation. The stone was surrounded by vines and bushes which was the perfect place for him to rest and hide at the same time. After forcing his way through the bushes and reaching the stone, he sat down and tried to catch his breath. He had too many thoughts and emotions happening at once for him to focus on anything at all. He was so angry at his foster parents, so confused about the secrecy, and so hurt that they would keep anything from him after claiming to love him. He looked around to replace anything that could distract him from his thoughts, and he found something that raised even more questions.

On the very stone that he sat on was the image of his birthmark again. He could not figure out why he kept seeing his birthmark on the trees and now on the stone. He felt as if his head was about to explode from trying to figure out so many thoughts at once. He began to get dizzy and feel weak, and nothing seemed to be in focus anymore. He tried to stand up slowly, but his body could barely hold itself up. As he fell back down on the stone, his hand touched the image of his birthmark. He felt a sensation of falling, and the smell of old wood, decay, and water. He could not see, speak, or hear anything at all, but he felt as if he knew what was going to happen to him. As the sensation of the fall, the dizziness, and his thoughts became too much for his mind to handle, he passed out before anything else could happen.

Austin was so caught up by the story that he did not notice that he was running out of pages to turn. As he read the last page of chapter fifteen, his heart was racing with excitement unlike anything he had ever experienced. He turned the page to the last chapter and was shocked at what he found. The last chapter of the book had been ripped out by someone. Austin was so full of excitement and confusion that he let out a loud yell. He finally began to calm down from the hold that the book had over him, and he started to focus on the reality that he had been cheated. He was angry as he let his mind remember the face of the cashier in the antique gift shop.

He wondered how those people could sell something that was damaged and incomplete. He wondered why anyone would want to rip pages out of a novel that was as genius as this one. He could not figure out who would rip pages out of this amazing piece of literature that was hauntingly close to his own life. The only way to rationalize the missing pages was to assume that somebody’s children had ripped the pages out. Small children are known for destroying all sorts of items. Austin sat up on his bed and thought of all the possible ways the novel could have ended. Every thought he put in place of the actual ending proved to be horrible in his mind. He had to replace the ending and read it by any means.

Austin rushed to his laptop and searched for the book online, but it was not there for him to finish reading. All he could do was order the book and have it delivered to him. He suddenly became furious again as his mind returned to thinking of anyone destroying this story that was proving to be an obsession for him.

“Damn!” he yelled as he pounded on the table with both fists.

Frank and Susan suddenly came rushing into his room in their pajamas. They looked horrified as they ran over to him and looked around the room nervously.

“What’s the matter Austin? Are you alright?” They asked one right after the other.

As they repeated their questions over and over again, Austin let his anger get the better of him.

“Someone let their snotty nosed little brat of an infant rip the pages out of my book! Either it was a child or some retarded or selfish individual who thinks it is funny to screw up someone else’s hard work. I cannot imagine what kind of high school dropout would actually tear the pages out of a book and then sell it to a store, knowing someone would buy it. I know not everyone is given an abundance of intelligence, but I at least thought that the normal and overly simple minded ingrates would have enough damn common sense to know better than to ruin something that is perfect! What the hell is wrong with normal people and their simple little drunken mistakes that do not have enough brain power to color inside of the lines?’ Austin ranted out of frustration.

“That’s enough Austin!” said Frank “I do not know what has gotten into you, but you DO NOT talk like that at all. I will not let you develop a habit of insulting those who are not as smart as you simply because you are angry.” He added.

“That’s right, and I do not care how smart you are Austin, but you are still a ten year old boy and NOT allowed to use profanity or insult people who were not blessed with your mind.” Susan added immediately.

Austin did not know what to say to the tone they were taking with him. He had never heard them yell at him, and he certainly never expected it to happen. They were always so nice and polite as if they understood everything he felt. He looked at them both and noticed that the frightened look they had previously, had turned into looks of disappointment. As he looked at them, he calmed down and understood why they were so angry. He was more intelligent than both of them, everyone they knew, and anyone they would probably ever meet. He also figured that his screaming and yelling had probably scared them more than anything. As he regained his composure, he began to think like his normal self and apologized for his outburst. They all sat there and calmed down for a moment before having a talk about what had happened.

Austin spoke first and explained how he felt about the book, but someone had torn out pages. He then apologized again for his language and reassured them that he did not mean anything bad by what he said about normal people. They told him they understood that he was just upset, but that it was no excuse to say things like he did. Frank got on his laptop, ordered the book for him, and paid extra to have it shipped to their hotel in three business days. Susan continued to keep her arm around Austin and gave him one hug after another. Austin could tell that she must have been extremely frightened when she heard the scream and the pounding.

Frank broke the silence by saying:

“Well, the book will be here in three days champ, so just relax and remember what we told you.” Frank said in a fatherly tone. “Oh, and never give us a scare like that again. We did not know what was going on when we heard you scream and then the noise. You scared your mother half to death.” Frank added trying to hide the fact that his hands were still a bit shaky.

Austin could not believe how worried they were about his well-being, and he could tell they loved him more than he imagined. As they finally began to walk out of the room, Austin kept thinking about how much affection they had for him.

“Goodnight mom and dad, I love you guys.” Austin said as he turned off his laptop and sat on the bed.

“Goodnight sweetie, love you too.” replied Susan with those normal tears in her eyes.

“Goodnight champ, love you back” replied Frank in a proud voice.

They smiled at him and walked out of his room holding hands. Austin settled in his bed comfortably and thought about how lucky he was to have parents like Frank and Susan. He went to sleep that night with a smile on his face and feeling at home for the first time in a long time.

The next morning Austin woke up to the sound of Chris’s snoring. He was up two hours earlier than his alarm was set to go off, and had time to waste before his shower. He thought about trying to go back to sleep, but his mind soon returned to the book he did not get to finish. Eventually he decided to reread the last exciting part of the book in hopes of guessing the ending. After trying to do the impossible a few times, Austin soon had to accept the fact that even his mind was not capable of guessing someone else’s creative thinking skills. As soon as he was ready to give up, he noticed a single strand of hair inside the back cover of the book. He looked at the strand carefully and almost did not give it a second thought. He suddenly noticed a piece of a fingernail which told him all he needed to know.

Austin quickly smelled the strand of hair to confirm the theory that was starting to anger him more with each passing second. He was immediately hit with the strong odor of special shampoo designed to treat dry hair and scalps. He knew now that it was not a child who had damaged the book he was enjoying. The culprit was a woman, one who would rather have healthy hair than hair that smells sweet or fruity, and one who had a bad habit of biting her fingernails when she was extremely nervous, Susan.

“Why would she tear out the pages of my book? What did she not want me to read that was so horrible? Thought after thought rushed through Austin’s mind as he sat there growing more confused and furious. When did she even have an opportunity to tear out the pages?” He thought to himself.

Austin then remembered that she came up here to change clothes before going out with the Hardings. The “when” of the mystery was solved, now it was time to replace out the “why”.

Austin rushed to Susan and Frank’s room with every intention of finally confronting them about all of the secrecy. He pounded on the door until Frank answered it with a puzzled looked on his face. Austin walked in the room and saw Susan sitting in a chair wondering who was pounding on their room door so early in the morning. She smiled once she saw Austin’s face and greeted him by saying good morning. Austin looked at her and then back at Frank as they both gave him curious looks.

“Why did you do it? Why did you two tear pages out of the book? What is it that you do not wish me to replace out?” Austin asked in an angry tone.

Frank and Susan looked at each other quickly and then returned their eyes back to Austin.

“Please, just tell me the truth for once. I know about the notebook with the information about me inside, and I am tired of you two lying to me about something that is obviously important.” Austin added before they could try to play dumb about the accusations.

“How? How did you know?” Susan asked as if she was trying to hold back tears.

“I found a strand of your hair and a piece of your fingernail that you chewed off inside of the book.” Austin replied growing more annoyed. “

“You have to understand that your mother and I are trying to protect you.” Frank said sincerely.

Austin tried his best to control his anger for the moment.

“Protect me from who or what?” Austin asked immediately.

Susan was sobbing uncontrollably, and Frank seemed as if he was trying to gain the courage to tell of someone’s death.

“Please, have a seat Austin. What I have to tell you is not easy to hear or believe.” Frank said nervously.

Austin followed the instruction without question.

“We did not want you to read the last chapter of “The Myth” by Christopher Cage because the ending will destroy everything you know and believe.” Frank confessed slowly.

“What does Christopher Cage have to do with me? Is he still alive? Is he…my father?” Austin asked with a mixture of curiosity, confusion, and fear, trying to figure out what they were hiding.

“No, he is not your father. We honestly know nothing of your birth parents.” Susan said through her sobbing.

“Then what is it? What do he and his book have to do with me?” Austin asked becoming more frustrated.

“Austin” Frank said with great hesitation. “You are Christopher Cage.”