by M. Lorrox
Lorenzo squeezes it—somewhat loosely, by a vampire’s standards—and flashes a Cheshire grin until he releases Eddy’s hand. “Stay in touch. Oh, and the other entrance to the metro is right here.” Lorenzo motions behind Eddy, then walks away.
Eddy watches him for a moment, then joins the crowd funneling onto the escalators heading down to the station.
A man leaning against a nearby wall holds a DC Apartments Locator flyer, then crumples it up, throws it on the ground, and steps into the crowd.
After each purchasing a few books, June and Beatrice walk toward where the shuttle bus will pick them up. Beatrice glances quickly over to June as they walk in silence, then she looks straight ahead.
“What is it?”
“Hmm? Oh, I was just thinking something.”
“I can tell that something is bothering you.”
Beatrice looks at her sideways and smiles. “Can’t slip anything past you, can I?”
“Nope. You can’t.”
She sighs. “Well, I was considering if I should tell you about something that happened earlier, before you found me in the courtyard. I had an interesting conversation with someone.”
“Oh, yeah?”
“Yes. The doctor who runs the infirmary in the hotel was walking through the courtyard, and she stopped to chat with me. She was looking for someone, and asked if I knew who they might be.”
June swallows hard. “Oh?”
“She described you, my dear. I think she’s looking for you.”
June stiffens and glances behind her to see if there’s anyone nearby. She sees a bench down a wing of the mall that leads to an exit. It’s empty. She looks at Beatrice. “Can we sit down for a minute?”
They walk over to the bench and sit. June smooths her hands over her jeans and studies the tiles at her feet. “Did she say why she was looking for someone that looked like me?”
Beatrice places her hand on June’s and squeezes it. “She was looking for you dear, she even described the clothes you were wearing the other day—on Tuesday, I believe.”
Great. “Did she say why she was looking for me?”
“No, just that she needed to find you. She said she had something very important to talk to you about.”
“Did you tell her who I was?”
“No, I didn’t.” She shifts on the bench to face June. “What did she want? I think you’re not telling me something.”
June lifts her gaze from the floor and almost cries. “I can’t tell anybody.”
“Why not?”
“Because I, they’d... I just can’t.” She pulls her hand away from Beatrice.
“I don’t mean to pry. But I will tell you, the woman seemed very genuine, and she seemed determined to find you.”
June groans. “Greeaat.”
Beatrice waits a moment. “I know that she’s one of the researchers working on Dr. Melgaard’s team—the researchers who discovered this vaccine... Is there any chance you might have helped?”
June looks first at her, then all around, thinking about what she should say.
Beatrice pats June’s hand. “Well, it’s a safe bet that she’s still looking for you. It might be best if we came into the hotel through the parking garage instead of walking through the front doors.”
June finds Beatrice’s eyes. “You are so wonderful.”
Beatrice stands. “I know; my husband tells me that all the time.”
June laughs.
“Maybe you should talk to her though.” Beatrice extends her hand, June takes it and stands, and they walk to the shuttle bus.
Eddy waits on the platform for the train to take him back to Virginia. The station is more crowded than it was earlier, and people keep bumping into him. A woman rushing toward a train going in the other direction brushes past him, and he turns just a little when she does. Out of the corner of his eyes, he sees a tall man wearing dark sunglasses.
We’re underground dude, take off the shades.
There’s an area with less people down a little way, and Eddy walks over there and pulls out his phone. He doesn’t get very good reception. He holds the phone up, but his attempt is pointless; he has no signal. As he watches and hopes it gets more bars, the screen dies, showing black, and in the reflection, he sees the man in the sunglasses again. Hmm. He decides to put on a soundtrack, so he fires up a playlist starting with “Switchblade” by Holy White Hounds, adjusts his earbuds at his collar, then slips his phone in his pocket. As the song starts, he checks that his leather bag is secured closed.
“Sittin’ in the back seat, suckin’ on a switchblade…”
With his peripheral vision, he assesses his surroundings. Near me, we’ve got some college kids, some girls in yoga pants... DAMN... Someone in a suit, and a homeless dude. He notices a sign flashing a maintenance alert, then he turns and looks in the other direction at a sign showing the time until the next train. He sees the man, and the man looks away suddenly. Uh-huh. Suspicious much?
The train’s lights shine down the metal rails, and people lean to glance down the track. As it passes and slows, Eddy notices that each car section has three doors. When it stops, the middle door of a car stops almost directly in front of him. When the doors open, several people step off, and Eddy is the first to step on.
The man in the sunglasses gets on the train too, following Eddy through the same door. Eddy watches the man’s reflection in the windows at the far end of the train. Someone nudges Eddy from behind; it’s crowded by the door, and there’s room down the aisle to the left. Eddy makes his way down the aisle toward the front of the car, and more people pile into the train behind him.
Eddy’s new friend also moves into the aisle of the train, but in the crowd, he’s not as far forward as Eddy. When the train sounds the warning that the doors are about to close, Eddy asks a random person next to him, “This goes train goes to Maryland, right?”
The guy snaps his head to Eddy. “Wrong train!”
“Crap!” Eddy blasts past that guy and another couple that stood between him and the train car’s most forward door.
The man in the sunglasses turns to try and go back the way he came, but it’s very crowded. He pushes against someone. “Move!”
Eddy leaps out of the doors as they are closing, and he nearly gets his ankle caught. He lands on the platform and turns back to the train. He gives a thumbs-up to the guy that told him it was the wrong train, and watches the man in sunglasses out of his peripheral vision. He sure doesn’t look happy…
Eddy turns and calmly walks over to the other side of the platform while the train he was on rolls away. He checks a kiosk map of the metro system and finds a different route back to the hotel. Well, guess I’m taking the long way. He shrugs and walks up the stairs to a different platform. Who the hell was that guy? Was he really following me? For what, the ring? He snorts. Like I’d be dumb enough to bring it with me.
When Charlie finishes his meeting with the Council Guard’s senior officers, he notices a text from Sadie asking to see him. He checks the time and replies that he’ll let her know when he’s free. He returns to the room, changes into some sweats, and heads to the gym to blow off some steam.
As he’s walking in, he sees JD coming out of the locker rooms. “Hey man. JD, right?”
“Yup. Charlie?”
He nods. “Think you’ve got time for a spot?”
JD shrugs. “Sure, but I’m not sure you need it.”
They cycle through some exercises on the free weights. Instead of always upping the weight when it’s Charlie’s turn, he just does a set with three times as many reps in it.
JD shakes his head. “Damn, someday I hope to be able to pull that off.”
Charlie sits up after his last set of bench presses. “All that matters is that you keep making improvements. The numbers don’t even matter—they’re just numbers.” He stands up and moves out of the way for JD to lay down.
“Can’t argue with that wisdom, Bro-fucius.” His grin nearly reac
hes his ears.
Charlie shakes his head. “Wow.”
After a half-hour of lifting heavy things then putting them back down, JD crosses the line of bro-2-bro personal sharing with a simple question. “So, Charlie, tell me about yourself.”
Charlie clears his throat. “You first.”
“I went to college on a football scholarship, hoped to make it into the NFL. Studied education. I didn’t make it pro, but I did make it into tutoring special needs kids. Later, I picked up bodybuilding. That’s about it.”
Alright, three-quarter-truths engage. “I grew up in the mountains and always loved nature. I went to school to study environmental sciences, and when I was younger I did boxing and some martial arts. Did some competitive lifting and bodybuilding back then for a few years, and I guess I never lost the strength.”
“Where you from?”
“Near Asheville. You?”
“Originally around Detroit. My family left before the city fell to economics, long before it fell to the zombies.”
Charlie finishes his set and sits up. “Well that’s good, at least.”
“Asheville… That’s over near The Line, isn’t it?”
Charlie nods. “It’s over that way. I hear on the news they’re pulling The Line back. It’s gonna be even closer to Asheville, soon.”
-clang- JD slaps another forty-five-pound plate on a bar for the leg press rack. “Hope your people get out of there—you know, before things get messy.”
Charlie shrugs. “I don’t really have anyone down there anymore. The whole clan came up with me, and we probably won’t be going back.”
JD nods. “Sad to say I’ve heard that a few times—the not going back bit.” He sits on the reclined leg press chair and lifts his feet up to the platform to lift. “Me and my family are lucky; we moved up here a long while ago, so we’re still all together.” He presses the weight up and disengages the safety catch. Shit this mother’s heavy! ...Don’t show it! He starts to press the weight.
Charlie smiles at his new friend. “Glad your family is safe. That’s all we can hope for these days.”
After JD wobbles out of the seat, Charlie sits down. He puts both feet on the platform, but only uses one to actually push the weights. Nice, now that’s more like it. “I think my legs need a little more work than my arms. I’m only going to do a double set.”
JD notices only one sole of Charlie’s sneakers is squashed against the plate. He shakes his head and chuckles. “You’re an asshole.”
When the shuttle bus returns to the hotel, Beatrice looks at June. “So, dear, how are we walking in?”
June stands and extends her hand to help Beatrice up. “Through the front door.”
She smiles and takes June’s hand. “Very well.”
Inside, Candace is staked out in the lobby. When she sees June, she jumps up and gleams. Then, embarrassed, she sits back down as June leads Beatrice toward her.
“Hello, Candace.”
“Hey you, I’ve been looking for you… I wondered if we could have a chat.”
June nods and drops Beatrice’s hand, glancing at her. “I’ll try and stop by later.”
Beatrice smiles and pats June on the back of her shoulder. “If not today, then tomorrow. Bye-bye, dear.” She walks back to the courtyard and her chess set.
Candace leads June into the room she set up as the infirmary, then closes the door behind them.
When Charlie returns to the hotel, he heads up to the suite and is surprised to see Sadie there. “Oh, you’re here! What’s the rest of your day like?”
She crosses her arms in front of her chest. “Nonstop meetings starting in about ten minutes, until six o’clock, when you have your mission briefing.”
Charlie takes off his shoes. “Oh, shoot, I guess I’ll see you after then?”
She nods and clears her throat.
Charlie stands and heads to the fridge. “Everything alright?”
She turns and leans on the counter. “No. I wanted to talk to you about this mission and what the High Council discussed after you left, but I see you had more important things to do.”
Charlie swallows some of his drink. “Sorry, I really needed to get some frustration out.”
Sadie sighs. “Well, now I have to head back downstairs. I would have really liked a chance to talk to you.”
“I said I’m sorry, and I am sorry. What else can I say?”
“Nothing.” She sighs. “Good luck at the mission briefing. Please take notes so you can fill me in.” She grabs a notebook off the counter and tears a bunch of sheets out. “Here’s my notes from your meeting and from the one after.”
Charlie takes them. “Thank you, dear.”
“Uh-huh.” She grabs the soft-sided briefcase from the table and walks out the door, nearly slamming it behind her.
Charlie winces. Whoops.
“Is Mommy mad at you, Daddy?” Minnie looks up from her book; she’s sitting with Skip on the couch.
Charlie forces a smile. “Only a little. Daddy was a dummy.”
Minnie tisks her finger at him. “Don’t be a dummy.”
Charlie nods and walks toward the bedroom. “I’ll try.”
Skip chuckles.
“Where are the kids?”
“June went to the mall, and Eddy is... Did he ever text you?”
Charlie stops and pulls out his phone. “Oh. I didn’t notice, but yeah, he did.”
Skip shrugs. “I told him to check with you or Sadie.”
Charlie rolls his eyes. “Thanks for trying. Kids’ll be kids.” He walks into the bedroom and closes the door, then checks the message.
Mom/Dad, going to meet a guy in DC. Doing Research. Related to Sophia. Be back in the afternoon.
-E
Charlie sets the phone down. Maybe he found a relative? Hopefully the kid doesn’t get too emotional.
Charlie takes a shower, then he sits down to read through Sadie’s notes. Wow, these are thorough. Is she expecting me to do as good a job later? He smirks. She knows better than that. He skims the notes and misses a note Sadie wrote in a margin:
Charlie sees a big thick line and some text noting that the knights were dismissed. Alright, so what happened next?
He reads through her copious notes for a minute, then decides he should make some tea.
As he nukes some water, Skip takes a break and walks into the kitchen to join him. “Hey, bud, remember Katlyn?”
Charlie nods. “Did you get any sleep last night? You look pretty wrecked.”
Skip shakes his head. “There were three distinct times last night when I was afraid she was going to accidentally dismember me. It was...really crazy.”
Charlie laughs and slaps him on the shoulder. “You kids play safe now, you hear?”
Skip nods. “Listen though, I was hoping to see her later, for dinner. Think somebody else can be on Minnie-detail?”
“Sure, we’ll figure something out.”
-beep, beep, beep-
Charlie pulls the hot water out of the microwave.
“And have you and Sadie discussed the field trip tomorrow? It sounds like Minnie would have a blast. I could go as her chaperone and hang out with Katlyn at the same time.”
Charlie raises a finger. “Ah-ha! The true motivation reveals itself.”
Skip shakes his head. “No! It would be fun. Have you and Sadie discussed it?”
He pours the water into his teacup. “Not yet. I’ve been voluntold to go on a mission with the U.S. military tomorrow, so she and I have been preoccupied.”
“Oh wow. Yeah, I can imagine.”
Charlie raises the teacup with the satchel of green tea up to his nose and inhales. Tiny bubbles tickle the hot water’s surface, and a delicate scent rises. “Ah, that smells so good.” He returns to look at Skip. “I’ll talk to her tonight. You know what? Why don’t you send a text to both of us, so we’ll both have a reminder to discuss it later.”
“Sounds good.” Skip returns to Minnie on the
couch, and Charlie returns to Sadie’s notes in the bedroom.
Candace opens the door for June to exit the infirmary and steps aside. “Think about it, and June, thank you again. You’ve done so much.”
June walks out and gives Candace a half-smile. “Remember: please don’t call me at my number. Just text.”
“Of course.”
June walks down the hall slowly, thinking about what Candace told her. At first June was angry, but then, understanding. At least they don’t know about the sunlight thing. She walks to the courtyard to see if Beatrice is there, but she isn’t. June sits down where she normally does, across from where Beatrice normally sits, and she sets her bag of books on the table.
She stares for a moment, then texts Eddy to see if he can meet her. A few minutes later, June still stares, and her phone buzzes.
Just switching trains now. Won’t be back for another 20 or so.
Wow, I guess his lunch ran long.
K. Meet me on the roof.
When she gets up there, she does a lap around it. There’s only one other person outside with her—a vampire man who is vaping. She dodges the light as much as she can on her way to the same bench she rested on before, and she lays down on it in the shade. She pulls out one of the books she bought and starts to read.
Later, when Eddy arrives, he scopes it out through the windows of the elevator room. Then he takes another sip of his drink, then he walks over to her bench. “Wow, this is really cool up here. Is this where—”
She drops her book and glares at him. “Shush!”
Huh?
She sits up, making room for him to sit beside her, and whispers, “We’re not alone up here, and yes this is where I was.”
Eddy looks over his shoulder. Oh, that was stupid. He looks back. “Sorry I disturbed you, can I sit?”
She nods.
He sits. “So you won’t believe what happened after the meeting.” He shakes his head. “I’m not convinced, but I’m pretty sure that somebody was trying to follow me.”
She looks stunned. “Really? In the city?”