I Remember You

by Mairsile Leabhair

  “So, what’s the plan?”

  “Well, first I’m going to take the soap,” her eyes twinkled mischievously, as she took the soap from Aidan’s hands, and began lathering her lover’s breasts, “then I’m going to kiss this breast first,” she kissed Aidan’s left breast, and then suckled the tit, causing a spark of desire in Aidan’s abdomen. “Then I’m going to kiss this other breast,” she moved her fiery hot lips over to the right breast. As she manipulated first one breast and then the other, Vicky used her free hand to place Aidan's hands on the rails on either side of the shower.

  “Then my plan is to kiss my way down,” she began kissing just under the breast, and down to Aidan’s well‒toned stomach, lathering it up as she went. Then she pulled Aidan’s pelvis toward her, and massaged her butt cheeks.

  Aidan gulped, “Oh God, your plan is working!”

  She looked up at her lover, “There’s one major piece of the plan I need to work on. Hold on, honey, it’ll just take a few minutes.” She slipped her fingers through the red thatch of hair, to Aidan’s clit, and began slowly, purposefully, enticing the sensitive organ. She could feel Aidan was close to climaxing already, so she pulled back, prolonging the anticipation, thinking, Turn‒about is fair play. “No, the plan isn’t quite finalized yet, just a minute more, honey.”

  “Oh baby! I…, I think it’s…, a perfect plan now!” Aidan could barely speak, because as she tried, Vicky would tease her with an aggressive rub, then relax, and rub again.

  “Almost ready to reveal my plan honey, one more little adjustment,” she pushed hard against the organ, and Aidan bucked, almost letting go of the rails. “Be careful honey, don’t let go of the rails or my plan won’t work.”

  “Oh God, this is torture,” Aidan shouted to the heavens.

  Vicky moved to position her shoulder under Aidan’s outstretched arm, and held onto the rail, effectively holding up her lover, “All part of my plan, dear.” Finding an ear close at hand, she inserted her tongue, then teased her way down to the soft spot just under the ear. While Aidan was distracted with that sensation, Vicky pushed, until Aidan unabashedly cried out in surrender.

  “Oh baby! Oh God!” Aidan held onto Vicky, until she could catch her breath again. “Damn, baby! I like that plan of yours!”

  “It is a good plan, isn’t it honey?” She was pretty proud of herself. In the short time they’d been together as adults, it was always Aidan who initiated their love making. It felt good to be able to surprise her lover.

  “There’s the fighter I fell in love with, all those years ago.” Aidan stepped out of the shower, and began to towel off.

  “Will you help me?”

  Aidan began toweling her off, “Are we still talking about sex, or something else?”

  “Something else. I need you to find out who that bastard mole is, and get them out of my hospital.”

  “I’m already on it, kid.”

  Vicky’s blue eyes sparkled with encouragement, “I knew you would be. I had a feeling it was bugging you, as much as it was me.”

  “What’s bugging me is that the authorities aren’t doing anything. They should have at least a fucking clue by now.” Vicky grinned, as Aidan lost herself in verbal speculation. “Hell, Paul and I have already narrowed it down to two employees.”

  “Who do you think it is, Aidan?”

  “I think its Jack, and Paul thinks it’s Ken.”

  “Oh…, really?”

  “Yeah, it’s just a gut feeling on both our parts, but some things aren’t adding up. Don’t say anything, okay? It’s all speculation, at this point.”

  “No honey, I won’t say a word, but are you sure it’s not Barbara?”

  “Barbara?” Recognition set in, and Aidan laughed, “You mean that nurse who came onto me, when we pretended to break up?” Vicky nodded her head, as Aidan draped the towel over Vicky’s shoulders and wrapped her arms around her, “I love that you were jealous, even though you knew it was fake.”

  “You might have been faking, but she wasn’t. And I wasn’t jealous of her, I was jealous that she could be closer to you than I could. Still, I admit that I wanted to scratch her eyes out.”

  “I would have paid money to see that.” Aidan grinned, suddenly amorous at the thought of it. “But baby, I assure you, she’ll never be this close to me.” Aidan turned Vicky around, and kissed her deeply, hungrily, with an added thrust of desire, as she envisioned Vicky in a cat fight.

  Chapter 17

  What makes a good team, is the trust they have in each other. They don’t have to consult before every action or decision. Each team member, intuitively knows what is expected and they do it. Following their instincts, using their creativity, and perceptiveness, they invariably come to a positive conclusion. Such was the case for the two woman team that was about to embark on a hospital saving mission, and heaven help anyone that got in their way.

  Revitalized and ready for a tough, tag teaming day, Aidan and Vicky arrived at the hospital. A quick kiss, and Vicky went straight to her office, while Aidan went to find Paul.

  *

  “Yvonne, call the team together, ASAP. We’ve got a hospital to save!” Vicky chirped over her shoulder as she entered her office, “Oh and good morning!”

  Yvonne laughed and thought to herself, you go girl!

  “Yvonne,” Vicky leaned out her office door, “I also need Breda and Doris in on this meeting, okay? Thanks.”

  *

  Aidan found Paul in his office, so she walked in, shutting the door behind her.

  “Good morning, Aidan,” he indicated the chair she was welcome to sit in.

  “Morning, Paul, got any coffee?” She walked over to Paul’s coffee pot and poured herself a cup. Taking a big gulp, she exhaled gratefully, and sat down. She wasted no time in saying what was on her mind, “Paul, I think you and I should do some investigating on our own,” she watched him for any signs of resistance, but all she saw was eagerness.

  “What have you got in mind, Aidan?” Paul was not one to stand around and watch, as other’s did the work for him. Any opportunity to feel like he could contribute was something he appreciated. Previous to the events of these last several weeks, the only action he had seen at the hospital, was a run‒away psych patient.

  She leaned forward and whispered, “I think the reason things are moving so slowly is because the feds have to go by the book. But you and I don’t have to. We have two people that we’re both suspicious of. I think we should check them out.”

  “Agreed.”

  “I’m going to tail Jack, and I was wondering if you would talk with Ken, maybe see what he knows?”

  Paul leaned forward also, and whispered, “Listen, I’ve got a buddy who can hack into Jack’s GPS on his car, and his cell phone, and tell you every place he goes. That way, you won’t need to tail him.”

  Aidan’s eyes grew wide with excitement. “I knew there was the technology, but I didn’t know you had the resources. That would be perfect, thanks.”

  He shook his head, “And also illegal.”

  “Oh yeah, didn’t think about that.” But the vision of Vicky’s forlorn face entered her mind, and her resolve remained firm, “You know what, it doesn’t matter. I just want him out of Vicky’s hospital. I know the feds will catch him, eventually.”

  “Okay then, I’ll make the call. Meanwhile, I’ll interrogate…, I mean, speak with Ken, and let you know what he says. At the very least, I’ll get the key back from him.”

  “Perfect.”

  “What else?” he asked, sensing Aidan had more up her sleeve.

  “I need to take a look into their offices. Can you be my lookout, and waylay them if necessary?”

  “No problem, I’d be happy to.”

  Her green eyes sparkled with intrigue as she thought, this is going to work, “Okay, here’s what we do,” Aidan gulped the rest of her coffee down, and tossed the cup into the trash can, without even looking.

  *

  Vicky walked int
o the conference room, where her team sat, waiting. She started her speech by bluntly saying, “We are all going to lose our jobs, in ninety days.” They looked at each other in shock, as she continued, “If we can’t get more patients in here, corporate is going to shut us down, and sell this building. Probably to our competition,” the ultimate insult, “and here’s what we have to overcome first, in order to get our patients back.” She threw the newspaper, with her picture on the front page, down on the table. Her team passed it around, gasping, cursing, and complaining. “We only have three months to save this hospital, and our jobs. So, let’s not waste time talking about what was done. Let’s concentrate on what can be done. First, let me tell you what corporate suggested, and get that off the table, right up front. They suggested that I prance Aidan around like our mascot. I informed corporate that was unacceptable. With that said, tell me your ideas for bringing the patients back to St. Frances.” She had always sought her team’s ideas and suggestions, not just because that is what she paid them for, but more importantly, because it allowed them to have a vested interest in the problem, as well. “Yvonne will jot down your thoughts, and then we’ll brainstorm on them. Who wants to go first?”

  Yvonne stood beside the flip chart, ready to take notes, as first one executive and then another, offered up their ideas. Finally, after Yvonne had the last idea down on paper, Vicky praised her team, “Okay, those are some good ideas. So, let’s start brainstorming!”

  *

  Paul walked downstairs to Ken’s office. The ground floor still had the wall tile from the 1960’s, which made it look all the more depressing. Ken’s office wasn’t much better. A few diplomas, a bulletin board with a few notes on it, and that was it. True to his word, Paul interrogated Ken, asking him pointed questions about who requested the cleanup, who among his employees were told to go up there, and where was the key now. Ken answered all his questions without hesitation, mostly because Paul intimidated him to the point of compliance. He left Ken’s office with the sense that Ken was hiding something. He seemed too eager and too accommodating.

  While Paul was questioning Ken, Aidan was chatting with some of Ken’s employees. She was surprised when none of them even knew there was an old convent on the fifth floor. She asked them about Ken, and his working methods. The men seemed to think he was all right, while the women rolled their eyes and scowled. Aidan came away with a feeling that Ken was up to something, and that he most definitely was a prick.

  *

  “Bob, I like you’re thinking, on bringing children into the hospital, for a commercial,” Vicky delicately addressed Bob Plunket, Administrator over Labor and Delivery, “I understand what you’re trying to convey, but I think it’s a little to blatant, for what we’re trying to get across to the public,” then she looked at the rest of the group, and asked, “What does everyone else think?” Most of the group agreed with her, it could easily become a negative, in the public’s view, using children to convey that the hospital was safe from bombs.

  “Don’t give up Bob, keep thinking, okay? We all need to keep thinking.”

  *

  Aidan and Paul entered the administrative offices, and Aidan approached Jack’s executive assistant, Beth.

  “Is he in?”

  “No, he’s in an unscheduled executive meeting with Ms. Montgomery, this morning.”

  “Okay, I’ll catch him later, thanks,” Aidan left, just as Paul entered, and walked up to Beth.

  “Good morning, Beth, how’s everything going?” As he distracted her, Aidan walked to the back, where Jack’s office was, and using her security key, let herself in. Taking the two way radio off her hip, she brought it to her mouth, and clicked to speak, “Badge 99 is 10-6, over.” Aidan use the code to let Paul know she was in Jack’s office.

  *

  “Breda, tell me more about your tabloid idea,” Vicky looked at Breda Kelly, Director of Marketing.

  “Well, they’ve already published the picture of you lying on the floor, so it’s not like we can pull it back now. But we have to get that image out of people’s minds. Let’s put a spin on it, to show that you are, most defiantly, not down for the count. You’re on camera, holding the tabloid, and saying that very thing. You can speak to being a patient here, because you were one. As vulgar as it may sound, let’s leverage that, because it’s what people want to know.”

  “What does everyone else think of that idea?” Vicky asked her team, and everyone but Jack agreed.

  “Jack, what don’t you like about the idea?” she watched him closely, looking for anything that would tell her he was the mole.

  His reply was, “I just think it’s a waste of time. The public isn’t going to change their minds now.”

  She looked at him with contempt, as much because Aidan didn’t trust him, as because of his defeatist attitude. “Jack, would you please tell everyone what the latest patient count is, as of this moment? I want to show them how low our census has fallen, and see if they want to waste their time as well, saving this hospital.”

  He nervously looked through his papers, and then whined, “It’s in my office, I’ll be right back,” and excused himself.

  Vicky didn’t need the report, she had already seen it this morning. She just couldn’t stand the sight of the sniveling coward, anymore. She turned to the rest of them and asked, a little too snippety, “Anyone else think this is a waste of time?” Vicky was visibly upset, but the rest of her team agreed with her. Saving the hospital was worth their time, and they said as much. “Okay then, back to what we were discussing. Breda, make it happen. John, you’re next, tell me about your idea.”

  *

  Aidan looked through every drawer, as quickly as possible, and noticed that one of the drawers caught on something. What’s this? she pulled the drawer completely out and held it up. She could see that there was something taped underneath it. Gently prying the tape loose, she unfolded the paper. It showed diagrams of each section of the hospital. Shit! Pulling out her cell phone, she used the camera app to take pictures of it. Then she heard two clicks on her radio. That was the signal to vacate Jack’s office, ASAP. Quickly, she taped the map back and reinserted the drawer, then rearrange everything back the way she had found it. She quietly opened the door, but froze in place when she saw Jack standing in the hallway, beside Paul. She heard him ask his secretary for some reports. When she handed the papers to him, he snatched them out of her hands, and scurried off around the corner.

  When the way was clear, Aidan snuck out of the office, nodding at Paul, as she headed towards the front door.

  They walked down by the education building, and compared notes. Both of them agreed that something wasn’t quite right about Ken’s involvement with the master key, and they needed to investigate that more. But Aidan had found conclusive evidence in Jack’s office that told her, he was the mole.

  “Jack had schematics of the hospital taped under his desk drawer. Circled on it were the same two spots where the bombs were planted. I took pictures of it on my cellphone, and put the diagrams back. He also had some phone numbers written down, that I think your buddy could probably trace. Paul, I think we’ve got our man,” Aidan concluded.

  Paul played devil’s advocate, “Unless it was planted there by Ken.”

  “Well, you’ve got a point there. We need to find out what Ken was doing on the fifth floor.”

  “How do you want to play it?”

  “Who told Ken to clean the fifth floor?” Aidan was trying to connect the dots.

  “He said Jack told him to.”

  “Paul, do you think they’re in it together?”

  “I think that’s a very good possibility.”

  “Okay, let’s think this through. Ken, who is new, and hated by most of the females here, is the Director of Environmental Services. He has access to most every room in the hospital, works with lots of cleaning fluids and chemicals, and…,” Aidan got a quizzical look on her face, as the answer hit her, “Shit, do you think‒‒”r />
  He finished her thought, “He was cooking drugs up there!”

  “We need to see the forensic report. It would confirm that.”

  “What about Jack? Do we wait?”

  She mulled it over, and agreed with him, “Yeah, I think we should finish with Ken, first. I don’t want to ruin Jack’s reputation, if we’re completely off base on him. Let’s go find Agent Greene, and get a look at that report.”

  *

  Chief Nursing Officer, Rebecca Collins, was next to expand on her idea. “Vicky, remember when you were selected the Person of the Year by the Women Exec magazine? Could we leverage that to bolster our reputation? Maybe tie it in with our nurses, somehow?”

  “I see where you’re going with that, Becky, and I like the idea. Let’s see if we can’t expand on that. Anybody?”

  Bob offered, “Well, you’re not picked as Person of the Year, unless you’ve got the longevity, and the reputation, to back it up, right?”

  Everyone agreed with Bob, so the team focused in on that idea, imagining different scenarios for consideration.

  *

  Aidan and Paul caught up with Agent Greene in the command center. For all intents and purposes, the Federal Bureau of Investigations had moved in after the bombing. They confiscated several empty patient rooms, two floors above the dungeon, and turned them into offices, to use during the investigation. In Agent Greene’s office, the same diagrams that Aidan had seen in Jack’s office, hung on the wall beside the nurses call switch, and the blood pressure monitor, with large red arrows indicating points of interest. Several telephones and laptops filled a table in one corner, while stacks of employee files filled another table. The wall mounted television was turned to the news channel, and several stacks of local and national newspapers looked like they had been read, and tossed in the corner. A desk had been placed in the middle of the room, with more files stacked neatly on top of it. The adjoining room was much the same, with even more laptops, computers and monitors, creating a hub for analysis and distribution.