“I’ll be back,” he promised. “You won’t be alone for long. I’ll see you again soon.”
He hoped. He prayed.
He resisted the urge to race down the steps, forcing himself to go quietly and listen. But his journey down was simpler, and when he reached the ground floor, he was relieved that there were no staff members smoking outside. He eased open the door, set the rock conveniently in its jamb to hold it open, and sped into the blackness of the forest.
In a few minutes he was at the car, and almost ran into Alex, who was standing by the door waiting.
“Ben. You okay? Rose?”
As quickly as he could, Fish explained the situation. “Dr. Prosser is at the barn and she has the antidote, Digibind, with her. I’m going to do my best to get it. Can you go up to Rose now? Try and get her down if you can and meet me at the barn.”
“No problem, I’m on it,” Alex tossed him the car keys. “You’re going after Prosser? Do you have a weapon?”
“Do you have a gun?” Fish asked, hopefully.
Alex bent down and drew something out from beneath his car seat: his katana, in its black leather sheath.
“No,” Fish said. “It’s not my weapon, and you might need it more than I will. You’ve seen their security guards.”
“Then take my yawara,” Alex said, slipping his katana’s sheath strap easily onto his shoulder and pulling what looked like a small wooden blade out of his pocket. “You can use it as a striking weapon, if you need it.”
“Hopefully I won’t,” Fish said. “But thanks.” He slid it into his pocket, a poor replacement for his missing gun. “Hurry up to Rose. Meet me here if you can, but only if you think she can stand to be moved. If I don’t see you, I’ll try to get back inside with the antidote. I hope to be back in a half hour. And we’ve got less than two hours to get her help.”
“No problem. Christ be before you, behind you, on all sides of you.” Alex nodded and melted into the woods before Fish had even turned away.
Hastily, Fish got into the car, jammed the key into the ignition, and turned it. Then he realized that there was an extra pedal on the floor. Alex’s car was a stick shift.
Gritting back the curses that seem to overflow in his mouth, Fish tried to figure out what to do. He didn’t know how to drive stick shift, but it was supposed to be easy. People did it all the time—he had no choice but to do it now. Resisting the urge to tear out his hair, he pressed on the clutch and tried to start the car as quietly as possible.
Suddenly, headlights flashed in his face, and a car roared to a stop right next to him. Trapped in the bushes in a stick shift car, Fish turned to face the enemy.
But the face looking at him through the window was Paul Fester’s.
“Paul?”
“Ben! What’s going on?” There seemed to be a lot of people in the car with Paul.
Suddenly Fish was overcome with suspicion. “Did Alex call you?”
“No,” Paul said. “We called him.”
“Then he should have told you to stay out of this,” Fish started angrily.
“He did, but we came anyway,” Kateri jumped out of the passenger side of the car and came around to Fish. “I know you were arrested, Fish. I called my hospital contact and she told me. And Alex said you had come here.” She stared at him intently. “Tell us what’s going on. We’re not letting you do this alone.”
He knew Kateri well enough to know she was adamant. “Okay,” he said, and suddenly found it hard to speak. “Rose is waking up.”
Kateri and Paul and the other faces stared at him. Kateri started blinking very fast, but her face was stolid.
“The whole thing has been artificial—she’s been put into a fake coma, if not from the very beginning, then from pretty early on. The problem is,” Fish took a deep breath, “The problem is that Dr. Prosser has just overdosed her with Lanoxin which will kill her in less than two hours at this point. But, there is an antidote, Digibind, and I’m going to get it. If you and Alex can get her out of that facility and meet me at the old barn, you could be in loads of legal trouble, but we might be able to save Rose from dying.”
“Do you want any of us to come with you?” Leroy asked.
Fish hesitated. The only person he would trust to be any help on this mission was Paul, but Paul was a paramedic, and Rose would need him. “No,” he said. “I’m doing stealth. I’d better go alone. You guys go to Rose.”
Paul was already getting out of the car. “Where do we go?”
“On the top floor, in the attic. Take the south staircase.”
“Why’s she in the attic?” James asked, getting out of the car.
“Alex will explain. Oh, and take these,” Fish thrust the medical paraphernalia—some syringes, gloves, medicines, and other bottles he had taken from the locked drawers in Rose’s rooms—into Paul’s hands. “Some of it might be the stuff they were drugging her with—maybe you can figure out something to do with it. It’s evidence too, by the way.”
“Great, excellent,” Paul said. “I’ll take care of it.”
Fish was getting out of Alex’s car. “Can I use your car to go to the barn?”
“Sure,” Paul said, and added, “It’s a stick shift,” just as Fish was about to ask.
“Great,” Fish said, running his hands desperately through his hair. “Does anyone else here drive stick?”
“No,” Kateri sighed. Fish looked at the others getting out of the car: James and Leroy, but they were both shaking their heads. Then,
“I can. Drive stick.” A small voice spoke from the back.
It was Donna.
Fish took a deep breath. “Okay,” he said. “Will you drive me? You know I’m a fugitive from the law. It’s not going to look…good on your record.”
Donna swallowed. “I don’t care,” she said in a low voice. “I’ll drive.”
Kateri beamed at her. Pushing back the door with a trembling hand, Donna got into the front seat, and Paul, after pulling something out from behind his seat, gave her the keys.
Noticing that James and Leroy were also carrying long objects in the darkness, Fish said, “Don’t tell me you all brought your swords?”
“Okay, we won’t,” Paul pulled his out of its sheath, and so did James and Leroy. Three silver blades gleamed in the darkness. “But we wouldn’t go to war without them.”
Fish sighed. “Wonderful. Well, I suggest you don’t kill or maim anyone with them or this mess will be worse than it already is, even if we do save Rose.” He looked at them all for a moment, struck by the fact that, medieval obsession or no, they were willing to jump into this dangerous, unpredictable situation. “Pray for this to work.”
“We already are.” Kateri gave him a quick hug before backing away from the car. “I got a call from Bear. He was looking for you. When I told him you were arrested he said to tell you he was on his way down.”
At least that was good news. “Thanks Kateri.” He turned to Donna. “Okay, let’s get to the barn.”
23
...and though the thorns let him pass through unhurt, they closed behind him as he passed...
Hers
Rose knew she had surprised Fish, and she couldn’t help smiling even as she felt a sense of loss washing over her as he moved away into the far off shadows. At least I finally told him I love him, to his face... But she felt even more in a dream world, once he had left. Unable to do anything but pray, she waited.
Dozing, she drifted in and out of the water until soft steady footsteps grasped her attention. Then she heard the door slowly open, and a new person shimmered through the water. Alex O’Donnell. She could recognize his stocky figure, long ponytail, and gleam of an earring even in the shadows of the water.
“Rose, my lady,” Alex sank to his knee courteously, and spoke in a whisper. “You are looking very well. I am here at Ben’s request, to guard you.”
She had to smile, but could only give a faint one. Even so, Alex’s face creased into a broad grin.
“Good to see you again, Rose,” he said quietly. “Do you think you can move—?”
He cut his words off with a sharp breath, listening. An instant later he was moving away in the darkness. A few moments later, he came back.
“I think it was only a tech,” he said quietly. “I’ll wait to bring you down until the coast is clear. Hold it—”
Again he was still. This time, straining through the waters, Rose could hear something too. Like distant thunder.
Alex slowly rose, pulling a sword noiselessly out of nowhere. The echoes of the footsteps rippled around him as he moved into an attack position.
Then the footsteps were at the door. Silence. Alex didn’t move or breathe, but the water shimmered.
Then—
“Alex?”
“Paul?”
The door cracked open and all sorts of big and short and tall shapes seemed to tumble in. Next thing Rose knew, Kateri Kovach was bending over her, her lips pressed tightly together but her eyes bright and happy. “Rose.”
Even though the tightness that had drawn itself across her chest when Fish left had not relaxed, Rose felt a surge of relief.
“I didn’t think Ben would send you all in,” Alex was saying in some bemusement. “I guess I’m glad for the backup.”
Lightheadedness washed over Rose suddenly, and she felt herself fading. She returned with a start to find Paul Fester chafing her wrists.
“Can you hear me, Rose? There you are. Sorry to keep you awake, Rose,” Paul whispered, “But it’s best if you can stay with us.” Rose felt his warm hand on her forehead.
“How is she doing?”
“Seems stable,” Paul said, “Want to move her now?”
“In a minute. What are those medicines, Paul? Can any of them help us?”
“Doesn’t look like it,” Paul said, lifting up a small bottle. He seemed to be trying to read the tiny print in the dim light. “I think this—phenobaritol—is a kind of barbituate.” He paused at the next drug. “Now this is odd. This one’s sodium pentothal.”
“What’s that?”
“Basically, it’s used by authorities as an interrogation drug—it lowers the inhibitions against talking so you can get information out of someone that the person would normally keep secret. That’s really weird that Ben found it in Rose’s room.”
“Actually, it explains quite a bit,” Alex said quietly. “But none of these are poison antidotes?”
“No, none of them is Digibind. I don’t know what some of these are. And I don’t want to give her something if I don’t know what it’s going to do to her.”
“We better get out to the car and meet Ben then. I’m going to turn off the lights. Everyone, get used to your night vision. Kateri, you help Paul carry her. James, you go first and make sure the coast is clear. Leroy, you next. I’ll be our rearguard.”
Before, her friends had seemed like shapes hovering in water. Now they vanished before Rose’s eyes into the blackness, but she could still hear them. Yes, at least she could hear, and more clearly. The silver needle that had clouded her senses was gone, for now, but she could feel herself starting to become less coherent. She closed her eyes once more and prayed that Fish would come back soon.
“Here’s the backup plan,” Alex said quietly. “If anything goes wrong, Paul, you get Rose back up here. The rest of us will try to keep the way clear for Ben to get back up here with the antidote. James, Leroy, and I will stay outside the attic to wait for Ben and make a distraction, if we need to, so he can get by. But if we can’t do that, Paul, you’re the last line of defense here, since we need you for taking care of Rose. Don’t take any risks. Okay?”
“Right, chief.”
“What about me?” Kateri asked, a touch irate.
“You’re our second-to-last line of defense, of course. That means you might have to sacrifice yourself to save Paul and Rose. Not normally what I’d allow you to do, but you understand the circumstances?”
“Of course I do,” she said, quelled.
“What about if Ben doesn’t make it back?” James asked.
“We’re going to have to pray he does make it,” Alex said. “And once he does, we need to buy time for the antidote to work. And we don’t know how long it will take. But this is critical: once the doctors here discover that Rose is missing, we have to stop them from getting a hold of her again. If they get her, they’ll either drug her again or let her die, or do something else to incapacitate her for good.”
“What about if they call the police?” James said.
Alex seemed to smile. “My guess is that they won’t call the police, not unless the situation gets out of hand. They’ll try to contain it, even if that means getting rid of some of us. After all, there’s at least a million-dollar black market industry at stake here. I think we’ll actually be in better shape if they do call the police. The more light on this situation, the better. However, if the police come, still try to hold them off as long as you can. If they get in here, the first thing they’ll do is to get Rose to the emergency room at Meyerstown, and that means she’ll either die or get the wrong kind of treatment. So, everyone understand?”
There were noises of agreement all around.
“Okay, we’re going. Remember, keep quiet. Everyone in place.”
Rose found herself swaying up in the air and leaned her head against Paul’s shoulder. She tried not to panic, but fortunately she was still disconnected from what was going on.
“I’m taking the steps slow,” Paul said in a hushed voice as they passed through the attic door.
They moved down the staircase in a careful, nearly silent procession, Rose at the center. Her hearing still muffled by the waters, Rose could barely hear the labored breath of their entourage and their shuffling steps. She watched James’ light-colored head bobbing slowly down in front of them, checking around each corner…
Then she saw him pause at the second floor landing, and then all at once, his head was bobbing back towards them.
“Back up,” Alex breathed, and this proved to be difficult as Paul twisted in the narrow space, trying to turn Rose around without banging her head or feet. In a moment they had her going the other way, and then the third-floor door banged open behind them.
“Hold it right there!” a rough male voice said.
Rose looked around to see a large shape standing between the shapes that were James and Leroy. Leroy didn’t miss a moment. His arms went around the man’s neck, and the next moment, the man sank to the floor.
Leroy rasped in a whisper. “Keep bringing Rose down.”
“Someone else is coming,” Paul said.
“Back up to the attic!” Alex hissed sharply. “Now!”
Paul and Kateri obeyed, silently and swiftly. Even Rose could hear approaching footsteps, and the next moment the third floor door was opening.
“What’s going on?” a second voice said, and, “Hey—!” as Leroy closed in.
“James, get these guys out of the way,” Rose heard Leroy’s voice float up. “If someone else sees them, we’re sunk.”
Alex halted Paul and Kateri at the door to the attic. “Clear the steps,” he said, sotto voice, to James and Leroy. “Then we’ll come down.”
“Right.”
Alex said to Paul, approvingly, “Told you Leroy’s judo would come in handy.”
They all waited, tense as Leroy and James moved the unconscious guards someplace. Just another minute, Rose told herself, and they would be going down and—
But then, everything went wrong. “Stop right there, you two,” a nasty voice said. “Drop him.”
There was a brief pause, then a rush of movement. Leroy must have rushed the guard, but then there was a strange buzz, and a simultaneous, horrible scream.
Rose found herself back in the attic being lowered onto the mattress. She could hear shouting, more movement, and angry voices.
“They got one of us,” Paul said grimly.
They kept straining, tryi
ng to make out the conflict below.
“I hear Alex,” Kateri whispered.
“And James,” Paul said. “They must have gotten Leroy.”
“What happened?” Kateri whispered to Paul after she caught her breath.
Paul’s voice came from the door. “I’m guessing, but I think they used a stun gun on Leroy.”
“What makes you think that?”
“I don’t think he’s wounded or—”
Kateri’s grip on Rose’s shoulder seemed to relax a little. “I hope not,” she said.
“Though something tells me these guys didn’t do it to be humane,” Paul said in a low voice. “I don’t think they’d particularly mind killing us.” He must have cracked the door, because Rose could hear voices suddenly.
“I said, you punks get down here now, or you’re going to get the same treatment as your friend. You want a killer headache? The kind that makes you throw up and wet yourself? If that’s what you want, stay put until we come and get you.”
“What are you going to do with Leroy?” Rose heard James’ voice, trying to keep steady.
“Just putting him in cuffs and bringing him down to the cellar. The director will want to talk with him when she gets back.”
“Why aren’t you calling the police?” Alex asked evenly.
“Oh, we will—eventually,” the man said. “Now, are you coming down, or do we have to come and get you?”
The voices suddenly stopped. “Alex signaled me to lock the door,” Paul said. “I guess we’re in for it now.”
“Should we barricade it?”
“No, we’ve got to keep it clear for Ben when he comes back. Rose, how are you doing?”
Rose was feeling worse by the minute. It must have shown on her face, because Paul leaned over her.
“I’m going to do some acupressure points,” he said softly. “Try to relax.”
She felt pressure on her ear and elbow, and somehow, some of the tremors inside her diffused. Kateri stroked her hand.