It was like a nightmare. When you woke up, you were still caught in the terror of it all, every moment of it etched in sharp detail, but as the day wore on, the details began to fade. The one thing she remembered was seeing Jackson and not wanting him to be a witness to her death.
“You shouldn’t have had to see it,” Veronica said. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry,” Claudia said. “You have nothing to be sorry about. I screwed up. We should have gotten to you sooner. You left the message for me. I knew you were kidnapped but when Jackson wanted to keep looking after it got dark, I sided with the others to find a place to stay for the night. I shouldn’t have. We might have found you before they did that.”
“If you had, you would have ended up hanging there with me. Even if you got inside, you wouldn’t have been able to get us out.”
“I should have tried though.”
“You got there when it mattered. You were there to stop me and Travis from dying.”
“I hope all of them end up burning,” Claudia hissed out, clenching her hands into fists. “I hope that every freak left in that town overruns their walls and leaves nothing but bones behind.”
“Me too.”
“I just can’t believe that there are people out there like that. What the hell happened to them?”
“The world ended.”
The sad fact was there were plenty of people out there that had only kept their evil impulses in check because they would have to face legal consequences. Now with no government or laws, there was nothing stopping them from giving in to those impulses.
There was bound to be more than just the men at the Complex. There were probably groups all over the country, taking advantage of the good people that were left. They were just another product of the apocalypse to deal with.
She didn’t really want to philosophize about them. At the end of the day, the reason those men had chosen rape and murder as their life goals didn’t matter.
And her bladder was starting to complain that it was way too full.
“I gotta go to the bathroom,” Veronica said, trying to push herself up on the bed but Claudia put a hand on her shoulder.
“Quinton said you need to stay in bed. I can get you a bed pan.”
“I’m not going in a bed pan,” she argued. “I can walk to the damn bathroom.”
The memory of the argument she’d had with Jackson when he’d hurt his leg came back to her. She now understood why he had been so insistent about using the bathroom. There was something so humiliating about the idea of using a bed pan.
“Just help me get there,” she asked Claudia, who reluctantly agreed.
It was slow going, her entire body stiff and if she moved too fast, the wounds on her back screamed with pain. When she sat on the toilet it was a relief, not just as she emptied her bladder but also just sitting down. The short walk had exhausted her and by the time Claudia had helped her back to bed, she was ready to sleep again.
Claudia helped her get comfortable on the bed and then gave her more water, Veronica downing nearly half of the bottle and laying back with a sigh of satisfaction when she was done.
The sound of the cabin door opening had Claudia checking on who had arrived. Veronica recognized Jackson’s voice as he asked Claudia how she was doing.
“She’s awake,” Claudia replied. “If you’re here now, I’m going to go take a shower and change.”
“Brought some dinner for ya both,” Jackson said. “It’s on the table. Help yerself ‘fore ya go.”
Veronica listened as Claudia left and Jackson’s heavy boots crossed the floor to the bed.
“Ya okay?” he asked when he had knelt down so she could see his face. He looked exhausted, shadows under his eyes, but he managed a smile for her.
“Better,” she replied. “The girls?”
“Girls are good,” he told her. “Audrey’s here, takin’ a shower. Quinton sent everybody outta the clinic. Wanted the patients to get a good night’s sleep without everybody fussin’ over ‘em.”
“Good. I wish I could see Hannah,” she said.
“Won’t be too long, coupla more days of bedrest.” He reached out and took her hand, cupping it between both of his. “Ya sure yer okay?”
“It hurts,” she confessed, “But not as bad as it did before. I’m mostly just tired.”
“I can let ya sleep,” he said, starting to pull away but she held onto him.
“I don’t want to sleep,” she said. “Not yet anyway. Every time I go to sleep, I have to wake up and every time I wake up, I think the rescue was a dream and I’m still back there.”
He gnawed on his bottom lip as he stared at her, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed nervously and then he dropped his head to rest on their linked hands.
“I’m so sorry,” he whispered, shaking his head back and forth, his forehead brushing against the back of her hand. “I shoulda been there to protect ya. This never shoulda happened.”
“Jackson, you saved me. The only reason I’m here is because of you.”
His head stayed down and she moved to cup his cheek in the palm of her hand. He looked up at her and she saw the tears gleaming in his eyes.
They hadn’t had a chance to talk last night. Not real talk anyway. She’d been so out of it and her sore throat kept their conversation to a minimum.
“When I saw you, I thought you were a hallucination. Something you see just before you die, but you weren’t. You were real and you saved me.”
She moved her hand to cup the back of his neck, pulling him to her so she could kiss him. “Thank you.”
“Ya ain’t gotta thank me,” he replied, the corner of his mouth turning up in a smile. “How are ya doin’, really?”
She knew he wasn’t asking about her physical injuries now.
“I killed the man who did this to me.”
“Good.” He gave her an apologetic look. “Sorry, know ya don’t wanna hear it but I ain’t gonna lie. I’da killed him if’n ya hadn’t.”
It made sense he’d think she didn’t want to hear that. She’d attributed the breakdown she’d had weeks ago to killing the man in Virginia. Of course he’d think she’d be regretting killing Crawley. Jackson wouldn’t know it was the exact opposite.
“I’m not scared of what I’m capable of anymore. If I hadn’t been willing to kill him, so many worse things would have happened to me. It’s a kill or be killed world out there.”
“Ya sayin’ ya don’t wanna go out there no more? Don’t think anybody’d blame ya.”
“No, I’ll go out there again. I’m not afraid, but we have to prepare Audrey for it.”
“Ya can’t really want her to be leavin’ the island after all this.”
“She’ll have to one day,” she said. “If things go the way we want, there’s going to come a time when us adults aren’t going to be capable of going out there anymore. I know what it’s like out there for women and girls. Audrey needs to know how to protect herself. I won’t let what happened to me happen to her.”
“What do ya want me to do to help?”
“You’re not going to argue with me about it?” She was surprised. She had expected him to put up a fight, tell her that Audrey was too young, that they’d be the ones to protect her.
“Ya ain’t gotta tell me what the world is like out there,” he replied. “Hell, even in the old world, I’d want her to know how to kick ass. Now, there ain’t no way we’re lettin’ her be vulnerable to assholes. So what you wanna have her do?”
“Keep learning how to shoot, practice at it until she can pick off a headshot from fifty yards away. Learn how to fight dirty and when to go in for the kill. Hell, if any of the CIA crew can teach her how to make a bomb, I’d be happy. She’s been learning how to fight the freaks, keep herself from getting infected. I want her to learn how to fight people.”
“Ya sure ya wanna put that on her? I ain’t sayin’ I disagree but she’s still barely thirteen.”
“And
that’s why she needs to know. That age makes her a prime target for those sick fucks out there.”
“Alright, I’ll talk to Mendez ‘bout it,” he said. “She’s a scrapper, she’ll know where to start.”
Veronica was relieved that she and Jackson were on the same page. She didn’t have it in her to debate it right now.
There was a soft knock on the door and when Jackson answered it, Veronica heard Audrey asking if she could see her.
“Let her in,” Veronica called out and she heard Jackson tell Audrey to wait a second before he came back to the side of the bed.
“Ya want me to cover up yer back?” he asked.
“No, she needs to see it.”
The time for sheltering the girl was over. They had promised that they would be honest with her and this was part of it. She needed to know about the kind of people that were out there and what they were capable of doing.
He called out for Audrey to come in and Veronica heard the girl’s soft steps as she crossed to the bed.
She heard Audrey gasp, obviously seeing the state of her injuries, exactly what Veronica wanted. Let it be burned into her memory, proof of what people could do now.
“Are you going to be okay?” Audrey asked, her voice shaky. Veronica reached out and took the girl’s hand, tugging a little to bring her into her line of sight.
“I am,” she said. “It hurts but it’s nothing that I won’t heal.”
“What happened?”
“We were attacked and kidnapped by a group of men. They did this to me to punish me.”
“Why?”
“Because they rapists and killers,” Veronica told her, pulling no punches. “They are evil men with no conscience or morals. That’s why you are going to get back to training with Mendez tomorrow. You’re going to learn how to protect yourself from men like them.”
Audrey glanced back at Jackson, who was standing next to the dresser, arms crossed over his chest. He nodded at her, offering up his silent agreement with Veronica.
“Are the men going to come here?” she asked, her voice tinged with fear.
“No, they don’t know where we are,” Veronica reassured her, “But there are going to be other people out there like them. None of us know what is coming so we have to be prepared.”
Audrey nodded and Veronica patted her hand. “How were things here?”
“Scary,” Audrey admitted. “I was worried about you guys when you didn’t come back.”
“I’m sorry you had to go through that.”
“It’s okay. I’m sorry that you got hurt.”
Veronica pressed a kiss on the back of Audrey’s hand. She was a kind girl, the horrible things she had seen not taking its toll on her. She had a good heart, which Veronica should be proud of, but all it did was make her worry that it would leave Audrey vulnerable. She didn’t want to strip that kindness from the girl but she needed to be harder.
She couldn’t fight back a yawn, her muscles in her neck and jaw protesting at the movement. The yawn ended in a painful yelp and Jackson stepped forward.
“Think it’s time for ya to rest again,” Jackson said. “Audrey, go get Quinton to bring back some painkillers for her.”
Before Audrey could stand up, Veronica waved a hand at them. “No more painkillers. They screw with my head. I’m just gonna sleep.”
Jackson seemed ready to argue but then thought better of it, asking Audrey to cover up the food left on the table on her way out.
“I’ll be out on the couch. Ya need anythin’, give me a shout.”
She rubbed at the bruises on her throat and let out a thready chuckle. His cheeks darkened with embarrassment as he realized what he’d said.
“Maybe I can find ya a bell to ring ‘stead.”
“Don’t go,” she said. “Stay here.”
“I don’t wanna hurt ya.”
“You didn’t last night,” she said, remembering the comfort of his warm body stretched out on the bed next to her. She needed that grounding presence again.
“Didn’t really sleep last night,” he confessed. “Was worried I’d hurt ya on accident. I’m dead on my feet now, what if I’m out of it and roll over and hurt ya?”
“I’ll be hurt if you leave me alone,” she said. “I need you here. I don’t want to close my eyes and go back to that place. If you’re here, you can pull me back. Save me, just like you did before.”
“Alright, just let me wash up,” he replied and headed to the bathroom.
She relaxed on the bed, the pain in her back dulling to a throb that couldn’t stop her eyes from drooping closed. She fought to stay awake as she waited on Jackson but she must have drifted off because she was roused from her doze when the mattress sunk down beside her.
She struggled to open her eyes and gave a faint smile when she saw Jackson next her. He put his hand over hers, giving her a reassuring squeeze.
“I’m here.”
Her eyes drifted closed and Veronica let sleep take her freely, knowing that he was there to protect her.
Subject File #742
Administrator: It’s not your fault. Malcolm, seriously, it wasn’t your fault. You couldn’t have known and there was nothing you could have done to stop it.
Subject: My name. It was my name.
Malcolm could hear the squeals of the children before he could see them as he approached the north cove. It had him smiling and he turned off the path to the north point, deciding he’d take the long way around via the beach.
The kids were in the water, splashing around as they chased each other. Even though it was mid-September now, a late heat wave had come through and cranked up the mercury the last few days. If he didn’t have watch shift, he’d be tempted to join them in the water.
He let out a laugh as Mark dunked Matthew under the water, the boy pushing back to the surface with a squeal as he turned on his brother and dunked him back. It was good to see them out there playing.
It had been three weeks since they had come back from the Complex and it had seemed like such a slow road to recovery for the kids. They’d spent the first week in bed and then the second one tiring out with minimum activity. But now they were back to normal, acting like the ten year old boys they were.
Janet sat on the beach with Quinton beside her, the two of them holding hands as they watched over the kids. Malcolm was happy to see that they had managed to work things out between them. They were good together.
Things had settled back into the normalcy he’d come to expect here. The garden was thriving and Raquel and Lorraine had started canning what they couldn’t eat to preserve it for the winter. Despite the heat wave that made it seem like summer would never end, they knew winter would be here eventually and they needed to get ready for it.
He left behind the happy squeals of the children as he cut back into the trees and hiked over to the perch on the north point. It was cooler here beneath the shade of the trees, a slight breeze coming off the water to bring some relief from the heat.
“Shift’s over,” he called up when he reached the base of the tree and Veronica leaned over the edge of the perch to wave down to him.
She’d been taking as many watch shifts as they would give her. She wanted to prove that she was back to normal and he couldn’t blame her for that pride.
She’d spent a week laid up in bed, letting her wounds heal and going completely stir crazy. Though Quinton had cleared her of bedrest, he’d told her she still had to take it easy. Quinton had only cleared her to take over watch shift because it involved sitting instead of anything really physical. Watch shifts gave her something to do and a sense that she could contribute. Malcolm would do the same in her position.
“What’s on the lunch menu?” she asked as she pushed herself to her feet and even from this distance he could see her wince.
He knew that her wounds were still causing her pain but he learned after she’d snapped at him days ago when he asked, that he shouldn’t show any concern for her. She was tired o
f everyone asking her if she was okay and had let them know in no uncertain terms not to ask about it.
He admired her strength. She was determined not to let what had happened keep her down. She had gone back to having regular sessions with Angela. She was helping her work her way through it all, just like she had for the others.
There were times that he would wake up in the middle of the night from a nightmare of being back at the Complex. Stuck inside the concrete building, smoke filling the halls as it burned around him, unable to find the others to get them out. He could never go back to sleep after them, not wanting to find himself trapped back in that place.
They all bore scars of their time there but they were trying to put it behind them.
“Craig made quiches,” Malcolm said. “They’re really good.”
“Bless his culinary skills,” Veronica replied.
The radio on her belt let out a long beep followed by Elaine’s voice. “Malcolm, you on the line?”
Veronica handed over the radio and Malcolm frowned as he hit the call button. “I’m here. Go ahead.”
“I’ve got a man on channel 22 asking for you.”
“Who is it?”
“He won’t say. He will only talk to you. I can’t patch him through on this frequency. You’ll have to come to the clinic.”
“Alright, I’ll be there in a second,” Malcolm replied and then handed the radio back to Veronica. “You mind staying on shift a bit longer?”
Veronica shook her head. “It’s fine, but who could it be?”
“There are only two people out there who know to call on that channel,” Malcolm said. “I’ll let you know what’s happening.”
He left Veronica to the watch, hurrying down the path to the clinic. Sam and Darren had the channel and knew that they’d be checking in each day at noon. If either one of them was reaching out, something bad had happened.
No. There was no reason to immediately jump to something bad. It could just be that they needed something or maybe they happened to be in the area and were just checking that they were still out here.
The Complex (The Omega Protocol Chronicles Book 3) Page 47