"Max says she had a gun on her and shot Bennie in the leg. She had one of them little derringers. Max says the girl is really pissed."
"Oh my God, I'm surrounded by morons!" Manuel screamed.
"So where is she at now?"
"Oh yeah, the boyfriend goes all hero, and jumps in the van to save her. Bennie slugs him and knocks him outa the van, at like, forty miles an hour. I heard he's in a coma at the hospital now. They don't know if he's gonna make it, or not.”
"Which means that the bitch is going to be hanging around there for a while." Manuel said, “So she thinks she coming for me, does she. I got a little surprise for her!"
David found himself in a field of wild flowers. In the foothills before him, he saw the roan stallion herding his mares. The snowcapped peaks of the Rockies stood in the distance. Even without knowing precisely where he was, he knew it was Montana. It had always been that way with him. He always knew when he was home.
The blond-haired girl was crossing the field toward him in the distance. The white flowing dress she was wearing shown brilliant in the Montana sun. He squinted to try to make her out.
"Kit!" he cried out, and broke in to a run.
As he closed the distance, he realized that it wasn't his Kit, and his euphoria turned to bitter disappointment. He walked around the girl, looking her up and down.
"Who are you?" David asked the girl.
The girl smiled at David, approached and took his hand.
"I'm Emily," the girl said, "I'm Julia's daughter. David knew who Emily was. Kit had told him all about her dream visitor.
"So I'm ...," David asked, afraid to say it.
"Dead?" Emily finished his thought, "No David, you're not dead." The girl plucked some clover and started to string together a daisy chain of them.
"So if I'm not dead, where am I? This looks like Montana."
"It's the Montana of your memories, and the Montana of your dreams. There even a little bit of Kit's imaginings mingled in there. You've told her so much about it, she dreams about it too.”
"Where is she? Those guys pulled her into the green van. I have to get to her, save her." David said, with panic rising in his voice.
"Kit is fine, David, she crashed the van and got away. She was unhurt. She's holding your hand right now.”
David looked down at his hands holding them both in front of him.
"No, she's not," David said, now getting angry at the blond girl.
"David, close your eyes, feel with your heart."
David closed his eyes. It was true; he could feel Kit's hand holding his. He had memorized that feeling, the shape, even the warmth, were familiar.
"Why can't I see her?"
"Because you were hurt trying to save her. You're in the hospital, Kit is at your bedside, praying for you to wake up.”
"Will I wake up?" David asked.
"Patience David, if your love for each other is pure, anything is possible.”
The fields of wild flowers, the mountains, the stallion and his mares, all began to fade; then the blond girl. Her last words echoed in David's mind. "Anything is possible," she said.
Chapter 33 - Shootout in the ICU
Kit remained steadfast at David's side. Three days passed. Julia tried repeatedly to get her to go home and rest, but she refused. She slept in the chair next to him for short periods, but never for more than an hour or two at a time. Joel often sat with her, and Jessie too, but Julia was her almost constant companion.
"Why doesn't he wake up, Julia?" Kit asked her.
"He will Kit! You just have to have faith." Julia said.
"You mean like, in God!" Kit asked her.
"That couldn't hurt, but at least, faith in David."
"I believe that he knows you're here with him, and the last thing he wants to do, is leave you. You know that boy loves you with all his heart!"
"I love him too, Julia. I don't know what I'll do if...,” her words trailed off.
Jessie came into the room and stood beside them.
"Julia, I think it would be a good idea if you took Kit to go get something to eat. It's okay; I'll stay here with David."
"No," Kit protested, "I'm not hungry. I can't leave him."
"Kit, listen to me!" Jessie said, as she bent to look into her eyes, "you're not going to do David any good if you get sick yourself. You need to take care of yourself, so you can be strong for him."
"She's right, Kit," Julia agreed, "let's go get something to eat. I promise we'll come back in an hour or two."
"I suppose," Kit finally agreed, "but you have to promise to call me if there's any change, Jessie."
"Of course, Dear, I promise!"
Julia took Kit to a nearby cafe. As they sat, Kit was quiet and Julia knew that her mind was back at the hospital. Julia ordered a grilled cheese sandwich for her and Kit. Ten minutes later, Kit's sandwich still sat uneaten in front of her."
"Kit, please, you have to try to eat something."
Kit grudgingly picked up the sandwich and took a bite.
"There, happy!" she said, a lost look in her eyes.
"I'm not the enemy!" Julia told her. I'm just trying to help any way I can."
"I'm sorry, Julia; I know! I just don't know what to do, how to make it better.”
Just an hour and twenty minutes had passed when Kit and Julia returned to David's hospital room.
"Any change, Jessie?" Kit asked.
"No Kit, no change," Jessie answered.
"If it's okay with you two, I'd like to be alone with David for a while," Kit asked Julia and Jessie.
"Of course, Dear," Jessie said, placing her hand on Kit's shoulder.
"Sure, Kit," Julia added, "I have a few errands to run. I can come back later this afternoon."
"Thanks," Kit said, almost a whisper, "thanks, both of you."
Julia and Jessie left David's room and started down the corridor.
"I’m really worried about her Jessie," Julia confessed, "she's taking this so hard. I don't know if she could stand losing him."
"Now look here, Julia, you need to put those thoughts out of your head. You have to be supportive and positive. You ain't going to be no help to her, if you fall into the same funk. I know it looks bad, but she needs you, and whatever happens; that's not going to change."
"Jessie, anybody ever tell you," Julia said, "that you are a very wise woman?"
"Oh pooh," Jessie said, humbly, "it's just a lick of horse sense. You don't live as long as I have, without picking up some of it."
Manuel Vargas made his way to the hospital laundry room. His eyes scoured the room. A female employee started approaching in his direction. Manuel ducked behind a row of clothing dryers to avoid detection. The female employee passed by him. Manuel noticed a large basket on wheels containing some hospital scrubs. He rummaged through them, found the least soiled he could, and folded them under his arm. Leaving the laundry, he located a restroom, entered one of the stalls and changed into the scrubs.
Kit sat stoically at David's bedside. His hand felt slightly cold now, and she worried that it might be a precursor for some serious problem. It was that way for her. Any change, however slight; would send up red flags in her mind. The man in hospital scrubs entered the room. She was used to the normal comings and goings of the doctors and nursing staff, now barely noticing them. The man, stood at the center of the room, raised his scrub's top and removed a gun.
"Oh, poor girl," a voice said, tauntingly, "Is your boyfriend going to die?"
Kit knew the voice instantly. The memory of her first meeting, the night her mother died, left a permanent record; it's tone and inflection was seared in her mind. Kit instinctively rose from her chair and moved away from David's bedside. Manuel stood in front of her; his pistol aimed at her head.
"What are you doing here?" Kit asked, venom in her eyes.
"Now that's not very nice," Manuel said, with a bitter edge, "I just came to pay my respects. You don't look happy to see me, Kit."
"Don't be stupid, there are police and security all over the hospital," Kit said, "You won't make it out of here."
"Now I don't agree, Kit. These clothes make me look like I belong here. After I kill you, I just stroll out, and no one's the wiser. I got your little message. "Don't look for me, I'll find you," you said. Well, I wasn't going to wait for you to find me!"
Kit turned slightly to look at David. Her hand slid into her right pocket, the pocket holding the derringer. She suddenly realized that she hadn’t reloaded it since the kidnapping attempt, so she only had the one remaining round in the chamber. She was using her body to hide her actions, hoping that her movement would go unnoticed by Manuel.
"Watch it, Kit," Manuel said, "I know about your little popgun. Keep the hand out of the pocket. No, come to think of it, take out the gun, just two fingers, set it on the floor, and kick it over to me."
Kit turned back facing Manuel, and removed the derringer. As instructed, she held it with two fingers out in front of her.
"Kit, that is so cute. You got an itty-bitty gun," he mocked, "now slowly, set it on the floor and kick it over to me."
David could hear voices; his eyes had begun to open in barely perceptible slits. The bright light streaming into his window hurt his eyes. David could just make out the form of a man pointing a gun at Kit, as she started to bend down. David tried to move. His right hand slid outwards toward the edge of his hospital bed and felt something cold and metallic. He struggled to grip, the now-familiar shape, raised it, and fired at the man. David's first round hit the wall above Manuel. Manuel turned with a start and aimed his pistol toward the direction of the incoming fire. Again, David fired. The second round tore into Manuel's left shoulder, leaving him momentarily stunned. He again raised his pistol and took aim at David. Kit adjusted her grip on her derringer, raised it, and fired. Manuel's extended arm dropped at his side, his pistol fell from his hand. The 9 millimeter slug had entered the right side of his forehead. A stunned look came over his face as he slowly turned to look at the shooter.
"But you're just a girl!" were Manuel's last words, as he fell to the floor.
"David!" Kit screamed, "you're awake!" Kit flew across the room and threw her arms around him, kissing him all over his face.
"Ow!" he said, feeling a throbbing in his skull and grimacing slightly, "can't a guy get a little sleep around here?"
"You sleep too much already," she told him, her smile beaming, tears of joy streaming down her cheeks.
Kit now saw the bullet holes in the sheet that covered him; black gunpowder residue covered their edges. She folded it back; the 45 caliber Sig Sauer still grasped in his hand.
"Where did you get that?" she asked.
"I don't know," David said, genuinely puzzled himself, “I was just waking up and it kind of magically was in my hand."
"By the way, you missed. You never miss!"
"Hey, cut a guy some slack. I've been a little under the weather!"
The charge nurse burst into the room and nearly stumbled over Manuel's limp form. She tried to scream, but nothing came out. She ran out of the room, and moments later, hospital security men arrived, then the police and the coroner. Manuel's body was removed on a stretcher. The small pool of blood and the bullet hole in the wall remained the only obvious evidence of what had taken place. Jessie was next to arrive and came over to David's bedside. She saw the 45 still clutched in David's hand.
"I stashed that there for me," Jessie said, "From what you told me about that Manuel character, I wouldn’t put anything past him. I figured it wouldn’t hurt to be prepared if he or his goons showed up again to cause trouble. I had a hunch that it might come in handy. I just didn't know that you would be the one using it."
Kit stopped fawning over David long enough to reach across him and awkwardly hug her.
"Thanks, Jessie," she said, "you saved us both!"
"Sometimes, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," Jessie replied, with homespun charm.
Julia arrived just in time to see Manuel's lifeless body on the stretcher, now taken down the corridor. She saw the bullet hole in his forehead just as the orderly pulled the sheet over his face. Expecting the worst, she rushed into David's room to find him awake with Kit and Jessie smiling and talking to him. Julia wanted to ask what had happened, but she could guess, and was just too happy to pursue it.
Joel arrived, came into his son's room, and gratefully hugged him.
Kit took Joel aside to talk with him.
"The doctor said David's doing really well, and he should be able to go home soon. I was wondering, if it would be all right if he stayed with Julia and me for a while, until he gets back on his feet again. I would take really good care of him and nurse him back to health. Please, say yes!" Kit pleaded.
Joel looked into Kit's eyes and saw the love in them. He knew then, how much this girl cared for his son. It made his heart swell with happiness.
"Well, I think David might have something to say about it," Joel replied, seeing how his son looked at her, "but I think I can guess what his answer will be."
Chapter 34 – Montana
"Another pillow?" Kit asked.
"Sure," David responded, enjoying Kit's doting on him.
"I was wondering," she said, "if you might be up to a little party, that Julia and I planned. It’s sort of a celebration of your coming home, and my birthday."
"That's right," David groaned, "today's your birthday. I don't even have a present for you."
"That's okay, David; you're forgiven. Your home coming, and getting better, is the best gift you could have given me."
"Yeah, a party sounds great," he said, "I'm just glad that the whole Manuel thing is behind us."
"You're telling me. I feel like some great big iron chain was lifted from around my neck! Maybe now I can focus more on my painting again. Which reminds me...?"
"Reminds you of what?" David asked, curiously.
"You remember when I walked in on you, when you were shaving in the bathroom, and you were naked?"
"Yes," he smiled, "Seems to me someone else got naked right after that, if I recall correctly."
Kit was surprised that David's recounting of that event caused her face to flush a little in embarrassment. By now, she thought she was more-or-less, immune to that.
"I was wondering, if you might consent to posing for me for a painting," she paused a few seconds, "naked!"
"Oh no, not that," David protested, "I'm not going to stand around in your studio, with my junk hanging out all day, while you paint me. No way!"
"Please!" she pleaded, "I'd work really fast. I'd be done before you knew it!"
"Wait a minute, this is bullshit! You've already painted great paintings of me, just from memory. Why would you need me to pose live, and naked?"
"I thought it would be sexy!" she said, almost inaudibly, realizing that she had been busted.
"I'm putting my foot down, Kit!" he said, trying to sound resolute.
"Ooh, I love it when you get all feisty!" she teased him.
"If you insist on painting me naked, you'll have to do it from memory; the results are not to be seen by anyone but you and me, and that includes Julia, and they are never, ever, to be offered for sale, for any reason, what-so-ever! Do you promise?"
"I promise!" she said, with a frown. "He never said anything about sculpting him naked," she thought to herself.
Over the next few weeks, David's recovery was rapid. Soon he was his original self again. He went with Kit to her old neighborhood to visit her friends and to stop by Antony's Pizza for a bite. Leaving, Kit noticed James and Javier rounding the corner. When they saw her, they froze in their tracks, turned around, and retreated the way they had come.
"Yeah, they both turned up around the time that Manuel left us. I guess that they figured that it was probably safe to come back." Alicia said.
Manuel was not the only criminal element in the neighborhood, but he was the most prominent and feared. There wa
s already an on-going turf war to see how Manuel's pie would be divided up.
Kit noticed the looks that she got from those that would try to succeed Manuel. It was a look of grudging respect, combined with uneasiness. Kit had changed the rules of the game. The neighborhood merchants would no longer pay protection, and an association sprouted up, its goal, to present a unified front to anyone who dared try to extort money or instill a sense of fear. Some would move on willingly, in search of easier pickings. Still others would be too hardheaded to take the hint. There would always be the ones who lived for conflict. These were the Manuels of the world. Kit realized this, and it weighed heavily on her mind.
"Oh oh," Alicia said, with a laugh, "Kit's thinking again."
Kit could not contain a slight smile in confirmation. Her girls knew her well, and Alicia, better than most.
"What is it, Kit?" Alicia asked. "Things are going pretty good now; the bullies are gone; the neighborhood hasn't been this decent since... well, since forever, and you're making big bucks with your artwork. And David, he's the cherry on top!"
Kit had to smile at Alicia's last reference; David was the cherry on top. He and Julia were the most important people in her life now, and it felt strange to realize that a year ago, she had yet to meet either one.
"I don't know Alicia, something's different. I think maybe I've outgrown the neighborhood. I'm not the same person I was even a year ago. Don't get me wrong, I'll always love you guys; I just think I need a change in my life. I can't see myself ten or fifteen years down the road, still fighting the good fight here. I want something better."
"That's okay, Kit; I understand. It's alright to want something better. You never belonged here in the first place. You and David were meant for bigger and better things! There's a great big world out there. No matter how big it is, New York is just a small piece of it. Go out there and get what you want; you deserve it. Follow your dreams!"
Kit's jaw dropped in stunned surprise. Usually, Alicia's concerns were pretty mundane. This philosophical side to her was new to Kit.
"Who are you, and what have you done with my friend?" Kit replied, smiling, suddenly taken back with her friend's uncharacteristically sage advice, "Was that from a movie?"
The Ghost Locket Page 21