Encounter in Atlanta

by Ed Howdershelt

go of him immediately, which was just as well. The electricity had apparently scrambled his circuits a little and Cade had to try twice to get his legs to function properly. "Damn," he said. "How much juice do those lines carry?" Andrea said, "No idea, but it's enough to power everything for blocks in a commercial zone. We were kind of surprised to find you still breathing, Ed." As Mandi slapped dust and dirt off his clothes, Cade said, "So was I. Maybe the lines grounded out as they hit me. Maybe I didn't get a full dose?" "No," said Mandi. "I saw the end of that cable hit you twice. It didn't touch the ground either time." Shrugging with a bit less grace than usual, Cade said, "Well, then, I guess we don't have an answer. Let's head for the room. I could use a coffee." Andrea said, "Actually, so could I, I think." 'I could use a coffee,' Mandi repeated Cade's words in her mind as they headed downstairs. That was exactly what he'd said to Carter after dealing with Nassir, and he'd said it in exactly the same tone. She checked his heartbeat and respiration and found them ranging about normal, even as he descended the stairs to the top floor. To Cade, the incident was completely over, just as he'd completely closed the Nassir matter with those words. Were those words his... with a mental shrug, she inserted the word 'mantra'. Were they some sort of self-developed ritual or key phrase for closing the door on an incident? Cade offered to make the ladies some of his instant coffee as they entered his room, but Mandi opted for another glass of champagne and Andrea said she'd see what was in the fridge. "Ed," she added as he took his cup and his jar of instant to the sink, "I'm a research scientist, not an M.D., but I'd like to check you over for damage." Shrugging, Cade said, "Thanks, but if I have anything more than a few big bruises, it'll be there later. Right now I just want to sit down with a coffee and try to relax." Mandi read his pulse and respiration again and nearly laughed aloud. If he became any more relaxed, he'd be asleep. Cade saw her grinning at him in the mirror above the sink and she gave him an innocent look, to which he responded with a mildly puzzled look as he turned on the hot water. She checked her watch, swore softly, and looked at the alarm clock on the desk.

  Chapter Twenty-four

  "What's the matter, Mandi?" asked Andrea. "Oh, I think my watch has been fried," said Mandi. "Its screen is blank." "Open it," said Cade. "If the battery isn't swollen, it may just need to be taken out and put back in to reboot the watch." "Would that really work?" asked Andrea. Tapping his own watch, Cade said, "It might. It does when a computer power supply's field blanks my watch." Mandi fussed with the watch for a few seconds, then said, "There's a notch on the back, but I can't get my fingernails under the edge." Cade stirred the instant coffee as he walked toward her, then he put the coffee on the desk, reached for her watch, and looked at the back. Flicking his knife open, he used the tip to pry up the back of the watch and tickle the battery out of its holder, then he slid the battery back into place and checked the front. Showing it to Mandi, he said, "There you go, ma'am. You've got numbers again," then he handed her the watch and its back and said, "I'm afraid to squeeze it back on. You do it," and slapped his knife shut to return it to its belt sheath. "Thanks," said Mandi. "I never would have thought of that. I thought the battery was dead." "May I see that knife?" asked Andrea. Cade handed it to her closed. She took it and looked it over, then -- holding it rather gingerly, he thought -- unfolded the blade until it locked open with a loud 'whack' that seemed to startle her a little. She looked up and asked, "Why didn't it sound like that when you opened it?" "I was holding it like a tool. You're holding it like a delicate antique. Things make more noise in a light grip." Mandi snickered as Andrea studied Cade as if wondering if she were being teased, then her eyes fell back to the knife. She still held it rather gingerly as she studied the brass bolsters, the wood between them, and short serrated region on the stainless blade. "It looks as if you must have put those serrations on the blade yourself. Why?" "They're better for cutting rope and thick stuff and I can use the last two notches to strip insulation off wires." She glanced up again and said, "They make the knife look mean. Nasty." Leaning on the desk, Cade sipped coffee and said, "Only if you're viewing it strictly as a weapon. Do you feel that way about serrated kitchen knives, too?" Andrea shook her head. "No. I guess I don't. How long have you been carrying a knife?" "Since I worked on a ranch when I was a kid. This knife or one much like it. Back then oil came in cans and beer cans didn't have pull-tabs. I had to be able to dig things out from under horseshoes, pound wire staples back into fence posts, and cut rope and leather. Got a wild dog with it once when he came at me by the barn, and I got to where I could throw it and nail rats in the feed bin." Making an 'eeewww' face, Andrea handed the open knife back to him as Mandi laughed and Andrea asked, "I trust you clean it really well now and then?" Nodding with a grin, Cade said, "Yup, sure do," and put the knife away. Mandi was poking buttons on the watch, setting the time and date. She looked up at the alarm clock, then pushed a button a few more times. "Done," she pronounced. "Only time will tell if it'll still tell time. I need to get moving, people. Cade, I'll turn you over to Andrea now and drop in on you next weekend if I can't find time during the week. Andrea, he's all yours if you're sure." 'Sure?' thought Cade. He'd thought it was a done deal. "I wasn't absolutely sure before," said Andrea. "I'm sure enough now, I think. Enough so to deal with him for a week, anyway. Besides, if I have to, I can always dump him back on you and come back to Atlanta." With a short laugh, Mandi said, "Oh, no. He's yours. I have to get an antique missile base ready to receive guests." She stood up and held out her arms. Andrea got to her feet and Cade did likewise as she went to Mandi and hugged her. "What?" asked Mandi, looking at Cade. "I don't get a hug from you, too?" Going over to her, Cade said, "I just wasn't sure you'd want one from me. I've been a bit difficult about things." After she hugged him, Mandi held him at arm's length and met his eyes for a moment before speaking. "Ed, I was worried about having made a mistake by converting you right up until you grabbed a stick and tried to save that woman. You kill people a little too easily to suit me, but you're just as quick to put yourself in harm's way for them. We'll work something out, I think." Pulling him close, Mandi kissed him, then released him and turned into a blur for a moment. The blur became mostly red and white before she solidified wearing her uniform. "You two stay put," she said with a grin. "I can find my own way out," then she blurred to the door, opened and closed it in a split second, and was gone. "It still amazes me how she does that," said Andrea. "Yeah, she's quick," said Cade. As he picked up his coffee and moved to sit on the bed, bolts of agony coursed through his shins and thighs. When he leaned to rub them, more agony shot through his chest. He froze for a moment to let the sensations pass. Moving to stand in front of him, Andrea said, "I saw that. I'm not asking you now, Ed. I'm telling you. I want to see how badly you were hurt." Cade looked up into her eyes and got momentarily lost in them, as before. She reached for his shirt buttons and he leaned to set his coffee on the night table, then stood up and started undressing. "I think I'm probably just bruised a bit," he said, opening his shirt. Andrea gave him a mildly exasperated look and said, "As if you'd know," then sucked in her breath as she saw his chest. Her reaction made Cade turn to see himself in the mirror and he saw the bruising that covered nearly all of his chest. "Well, damn," he muttered. "It got me good, didn't it?" "Mandi said it hit your legs, too," said Andrea. "Off with the pants, too. Do you know what electricity does to muscle tissue? It forms a cone of damage below the skin and..." "Yes'm," said Cade. "I know. I was a medic once." He toed off his boots and unbuckled his pants, then let them drop and stepped out of them. Andrea studied the livid bruisings on his legs, reaching to touch his thigh. Cade asked, "Um... Will you be getting naked, too, anytime soon, do you think?" With a small smile, Andrea said, "I want to check you out first. Does that hurt?" "No, but it probably won't hurt for a while, anyway. I expect to really star
t feeling them later tonight or tomorrow, when I'm on the road back to Florida and don't have anything