“Tsk, tsk, tsk, language, dear boy, language!” Amos said, standing under a black umbrella against the tower door, his red eyes glowing in the muted light.
Trips grit his teeth, finding new strength in his anger. “Fancy a doin'? Cause I am so aimin' to please.”
“If you insist,” Amos slid a hidden foil out of his umbrella as he raised his side saber. “En garde!”
The three blades crossed in the deep puddle on Tower Hill. Rain swept through in icy gusts as Amos bore down using two blades against Trips.
Trips backed away, repeatedly lashed by Amos’ two sword assault. Undeterred, he swiped at the bleeding cuts across his neck and barked through the gale. “It's time to meet your maker!”
“Oh, but I have, and let me tell you, she was delicious.” Amos charged, their blades met, Trips staggered backwards, but held Amos off with the hilt of his sword, his bicep constricting, bulging through the Kevlar as he grit his teeth, pushing. Amos fell back panting. Trips thrust, and Amos arched his back, sending Trips plowing headlong into the puddle in a gruesome face plant.
Retching in the mud, Trips rose onto all fours. The wound on his side gushing blood. Amos raised his saber high and plunged down just as Trips rolled and shot the last arrow from his wrist-rocket into Amos’ chest.
Trips lay in the filthy water on his back as an Apache helicopter hovered, blotting out the sky. Troops on zip-lines repelled through the rain. Stinging pellets of water numbed his face as he blacked out.
Chapter 40: Alive
Snake lost his footing and slipped down the muddy embankment at Mount Auburn Cemetery in the freezing rain. He stopped at the base of a tree and checked Ami for damage. He’d managed to keep her intact. He cradled her in his arms, remembering his devastated friend.
By the time the troops swept through, Dewey had caught up to Snake. The two of them cheered. The zombies were gone, and Dewey had a theory that the Apache helicopters were herding them away. He guided Snake through the forest to his truck where they laid Ami in the backseat. Snake collapsed in the passenger’s seat as Dewey offered a blow-by-blow report watching the action through binoculars. At this moment, a gurney was being raised to a medevac helicopter hovering over Tower Hill.
“It’s him! They got Trips.” Dewey tossed the binoculars on the dashboard and thumbed his hand behind him starting the truck. “So how do we find him? And what should we do with her?”
Snake thought he heard Ami sigh as Dewey put the car into gear, but he dismissed it. He shrugged. “I don't know. I’m just glad they got Trips, man.”
Dewey pulled out into the street. “Use Ichiro’s scanner. It’ll pop up on the hospitals. I bet they'll go to MGH. We can take her there, too.”
Ami sat up and licked her dry, cracked lips. “You got a sweatshirt or something, Dewmeister? I'm freezing.” Dewey and Snake both jumped like cats clinging to the ceiling. The truck stopped dead, with the horn blaring. Ami touched her face. “I've got something on my face, haven't I?”
“She's alive!” Snake screeched, looking from Ami to Dewey.
“Fuck me, Ami. You were fucking dead!” Dewey whispered, holding his chest. He turned around in his seat and stared at her wide-eyed.
“Who knows what dead means anymore, huh?” She shrugged. “Labels like dead and alive are just so five minutes ago.” She crossed her arms. “I’m achy and fucking freezing, but dead?”
“Under the seat. There’s a sweatshirt…” Dewey said, glancing from Ami to Snake. “Dead is no fucking life signs. That's what dead is.” Dewey muttered, reaching for the ignition.
“Are you a zombie? Ami?” Snake asked, fumbling with a jackknife. “Are you?”
Ami rolled her eyes. “Do I look like a zombie?” She glanced at herself in the mirror. “Yeah, don't answer that. I'll explain, just take me home and call Ichiro. We’ve got to find out where they're taking Trips and make sure he’s okay.”
Chapter 41: Good Morning
Alexx pushed the bathroom door wide and pried the cellphone from Ami's death grip. She placed the phone on the counter. “Okay, let's get you back into beddy-bye.”
“Wonder if this is how Keith Richards feels,” Ami quipped as Alexx lifted her off the floor. “Talk to you later, Trips,” she called out as she slipped an arm around Alexx.
They could hear Trips tinny cough through the small cellphone speaker. “Back in a minute,” Alexx called out, tucking in around Ami. They crossed the apartment, and Alexx put Ami to bed. She closed the bedroom door and crossed back into the bathroom and picked up the cell phone. “You done?”
“Where the fuck were you?” Trips rasped.
Alexx raised a hand into the air. “Dude, I was asleep. Ami went to the bathroom on her own, like a grown up. I got her back into bed. What?”
Trips’ tone was harsh. “Alexx, dammit, she was on the floor.”
“I was asleep!” She turned and looked at her reflection in the mirror. “Wow.”
“So sleep in fucking shifts!” Trips suggested.
“Okay, I know, I'm sorry. She's okay.” Alexx leaned into the mirror examining her diminishing cuts and bruises. “I’m taking care of her. You worry too much.”
“Alexx, I don't know when I'll get out of here, so you have to keep her safe.”
“I am.” Alexx swiveled her head from side to side. A pink gash ran from her forehead down her right cheek. That was all that remained of the mauling she’d experienced in the tunnels. “Trips, I don’t even think I need plastic surgery.”
“You have to keep her safe. You understand me? He could come after her again.”
“Let’s hope he’s dead. I mean, you know what I mean. Dead dead.” Alexx stood back, taking in the whole picture. “I still look a little like a Picasso painting, but it’s way better.”
“Dude, you'll be fine.” Trips said dismissively.
“So how are you doing?” Alexx asked, checking her teeth.
Trips sighed. “I don’t know. They said the surgery went fine, but I just feel like shit. They still have me on meds and fluids and what, but they say I should be back on my feet in a few weeks. My stomach feels like a meat grinder and I’m hungry as hell.”
She turned around and leaned on the counter. “Still can’t eat?”
“No, and I’m starving. I don’t know, might get real food in another day or two. They say that every day though, and my mother is driving me mad.”
“Yeah.” Alexx pushed out her lips in a pout.
“Dad is flying in this afternoon after some subcommittee hearing. Mum’s gone for coffee. Thank god.”
Alexx picked up a bottle of Ami’s perfume, and sniffed it. “Your dad is coming?” Alexx smiled. “I like your dad.” She dabbed the scent on her neck.
Trips exhaled. “Oh, just stop, would you?”
Alexx turned around, leaning against the sink. “If I can get her in shape, think we can visit?”
“Yes. Do it.” Trips said.
Alexx barked a laugh. “Is that an order?”
She smiled as Trips changed his tact, trying to sound humble. “Just...look, just get her here. I've got to see her, and please, Ally, give her something to eat. Something hot.”
“Okay, I'll make something, then we'll see. I’ll give you a call. All right?”
“Keep me apprised. Every two hours.”
“Yes, suh.” Alexx saluted, marching into the living room.
“Shut it.”
“Yes, suh. Thank you, suh... Bye—ee.” Alexx hung up, tossed the phone on the table and checked on Ami. She was already asleep, snuggled into Mark, clutching her bear and wearing a thick red and white sweater. “Ah, yes, the almighty Scottish sweater,” Alexx said to herself as she crossed into the kitchen. Ami's cell phone rang. Alexx noted it was Trips. “What?”
“You keep forgetting. Don’t forget the laundry.”
“What? Oh, yeah. Okay.” They hung up. The cat wound around Alexx's ankles as she opened a can of tuna. She strained the juice into a dish and put it on the f
loor for the cat, then tossed black beans and tuna in a saucepan. She added dehydrated onion and hot sauce, and shrugged. It was something hot. She stroked the cat as it lapped up the tuna juice, then she added a shot of whiskey to her coffee.
“Ami? Mark? You want some breakfast?” Alexx asked, holding a tray in the doorway.
“Wow. Breakfast in bed?” Mark said, stretching. “You shouldn't have.”
“Does it smell good?” Alexx asked, looking at Ami.
Ami sat up and nodded as Alexx handed her a bowl. “Mm, I’m really hungry.”
“Little bites okay, honey?”
Ami nodded relishing a bite of the tuna and bean mixture. “Ichiro would love this Alexx, you should make it for him.”
“You’re kidding, right?” Alexx sighed, and took a sip of coffee. “We're still not on speaking terms.”
“You look human,” Mark said, noticing Alexx’s improvement.
“Thanks. It’s all Ami and her amazing healing abilities,” Alexx said, tilting her head at Ami.
Ami smiled taking another bite of her breakfast. “Aren’t you going to eat, Ally?” She asked noticing Alexx only had coffee. Alexx wrinkled her nose and shook her head.
Mark piped up, excitedly, “Oh my God, forgot to tell you. Got the call. Peeps are heading back to New York.”
Alexx turned toward him. “So Amanda is good to go?”
“Totes, and you should come visit me! We'll go dancing.” Mark said, taking his bowl to the living room laptop and turning on music. He yelled over the music, “Both of you.”
Ami rolled her eyes, and shook her head, swallowing. She nodded her chin at the living room door. “He still hates me.”
Alexx shrugged. “Well, you stole his boyfriend.”
Ami's phone rang. Alexx picked up, and turned away. “Oh, hey, yeah, um, it’s me.” She hung up and placed the phone on the charger. “I gotta go downstairs for a minute. Mark, can you sit with Ami?”
“You guys I'm fine. You okay?” Ami asked Alexx.
“Yeah, be back in a minute.” Alexx smiled. “Let’s go see Trips today, okay?”
Ami smiled and nodded. “Awesome.”
Mark arched an eyebrow as Alexx passed him in the living room. “It's him, isn't it?”
Alexx flushed and nodded. “Yeah.” She shrugged. “We’ll see. Maybe he’s returning a tee-shirt or something.”
“I told you he’d call,” Mark said. “Any excuse means he misses you.”
Alexx skipped down the stairs, then stood on the granite stoop in her bare feet looking up and down the street. “Where the hell are you?” She slapped her forehead. “Oh, crap and I forgot the fucking keys.”
“Got you covered, babe,” Ichiro said, smiling. Ami’s keys dangled from his index finger. “How you doin'?”
“Oh, hey. I didn't see you,” Alexx said, flustered.
“Yeah. I can do that.” He leaned against the wall of the building, studying her, and smiled. “I'm a Jedi Master, remember?”
Alexx blanched remembering the insult that cemented their breakup, that Jedi’s weren’t real. She tucked a curl behind her ear, changing the subject. “Thanks for bringing the car back. Did you see him?”
“Yeah.” Ichiro sat down on the stoop. “Trips is doin’ okay.”
Alexx nodded. “We're going later.”
Ichiro tilted his head at the vacant space next to him. Alexx sat down beside him. He whipped a leg behind her, pulling her close. Her body tingled as he gripped the nape of her neck and his hot lips crushed hers. A few moments later, she pulled away from their kiss. “I’ve missed you bunny rabbit.”
Ichiro raised an eyebrow, and smiled. “Bunny misses his hole.”
“God, Ichiro.” Alexx shook her head. “Way to wreck a moment.”
“It's true. Come over tonight.” He whined. “When I realized how it was, listening in on the comm...” Ichiro sighed. “C’mon Alexx. Come over.”
Alexx stood up and cracked her back. “I can't leave her.”
Ichiro stood up. “Mark's here.”
She put her hand on the door handle. “He's going back to New York. I should get back up there.” She looked at Ichiro over her shoulder and grinned. “Trips screamed bloody murder at me. You want to see her?”
Ichiro nodded. “Yeah, okay.”
Alexx yanked on the aluminum pull opening the glass door. “She's a little freaky.”
Ichiro followed her into the vestibule. “She's always freaky.”
Chapter 42: Assessment
Ichiro had made it to visit Trips in the hospital, but it had been nearly three weeks, and Trips still had not seen Ami. Bored with NFL football, he flipped the channel to soccer on ESPN-2, slurping up a bit of drool. His usually sharp blue eyes were glazed over, his strawberry blond dreads were a knotty mess, and his beard was beginning to have a life of its own. Dewey burst through the door and stepped toward the windows taking in the view of the Charles River and the caravan of troops scurrying into formation on the baseball field along Storrow Drive. “Stylin' private room, dude.”
Trips crossed his arms behind his head and stretched. Then crumbled. “Oi, aye. That's a no go.” His father rose from his seat, folded his newspaper and straightened his pressed jeans.
“Oh, sorry. I didn't know you had company,” Dewey said, taking off his Bruins cap and swiping at his hair.
Edwin Kentigern smiled as he muted the television, and fluffed his son's pillows.
“I'm okay, Dad,” Trips said, then hissed at his father in a low tone, “Stop, you're embarrassing me.” His father glanced at Dewey and picked up his paper. “Where is everybody? Fuck it, Dewmeister, where's Ami?”
“Ervin!” His father said, his blond brows knitting together in his long face. He let the paper fall in his son’s lap as he straightened his hospital gown and stroked his hair. “Honestly.”
“Sorry.” Trips said, batting at his father's hands. He sat up straighter. “Where are they, please?”
“They're comin',” Dewey said, watching Trips’ father. He smiled, looking down.
“Dad, this is Dewey Daud. Dewey, my father, Senator Edwin Kentigern.”
“A pleasure to meet you, sir,” Dewey said, holding out a meaty palm.
Ed grasped Dewey's hand with both of his. “The pleasure is all mine, sir.” He glanced at Trips and smiled at Dewey. “You did a fantastic job in the field. Ervin has told me a lot about you, and I am just so thankful that he has friends like you.”
Dewey blushed crimson. “Well, thank you, sir.”
“If I could offer you a medal of valor, I would. Expect an official letter of thanks from my office, but as a father, just let me tell you how grateful I am.”
“No need, sir. I have children of my own. I completely understand,” Dewey said, regaining his composure, and flashing an embarrassed glance at Trips.
“Please call me Ed. I've got to make some calls, so I'll leave you to it,” Ed said, handing Dewey the remote. Ed turned and pointed his double barrel fingers at Trips as he sauntered through the door.
“See ya', Dad.” Trips smiled.
Dewey smiled at the Senator and cocked an eyebrow at Trips. “You know you favor him.”
“Yeah, I know. He’s a shorter and older me.” He cracked a smile and pointed at the foot of his bed. “Read the chart. What's it say? When can I get the fuck out of here? Where's Ami?”
Dewey tossed the remote at Trips and took out his glasses to read the charts and machines while Trips chattered. Eventually, he got to something that interested Dewey. “Dude I'm totally sorry about the Raleigh. I'll make it up to you. Freaking great bike.”
“Don't worry about the bike, man.” He studied the chart and shrugged. “To me, looks like you’re good to go. Saline, antibiotics, a few more bags, probably, they’re done with transfusions. You’re eating and evacuating.” He fluttered the pages and looked up. “Think they’re going to release you.”
“How long's that take?” Trips asked, twitching. “Is she coming?”
Dewey shrugged. “Your blood pressure is stabilizing. Just chillax. You probably have to see the surgeon one last time to get cleared.”
Trips huffed. “Where is she?”
“Trips, just –” Dewey stopped talking as the door opened, and Ichiro walked in.
”Hey, hey, dude, somebody's here to see you.” Ichiro kicked the doorstop down and walked back into the hall.
“She's right behind us,” Mark said, as he and Snake slipped in.
Snake patted Trips face. “Lookin’ good, brother.”
Trips smiled. “Hah.”
Mark gave Trips a delicate hug.
“You look better, Mark,” Trips said, his eyes darting from his friend’s face to the door.
“Yeah, thanks. You look like shit, but you were right, she's amazing,” Mark said, straightening his glasses.
Trips smiled.
Alexx and Ami entered the room, wrapped around each other. Dewey put down the bed railing, and Alexx deposited Ami on the side of Trips' bed.
“Hey, sweetie, can I have a hug?” Trips asked softly, his long arms outstretched with snaking drip lines stuck in his veins. Ami hesitated, then crawled in next to him. Trips glanced from Ichiro to Dewey. Everyone was quiet and looked away as Trips rocked Ami in his arms murmuring in her ear.
Dewey cleared his throat. “Dude, we just came by, ya' know, to say hi.”
“Come on guys,” Alexx said. The five of them filed out into the hallway.
Dewey shut the door behind him. “Jesus.”
“They'll be okay,” Snake said.
“Awkward,” Mark tittered.
* * *
Inside Trips’ hospital room, Ami hopped off the bed and whispered, “Undress,” as she locked the door and ripped off her sweater. “Cameras? Are there cameras?”
“Whoa. Whatcha doin' baby?” Trips asked, sitting up, painfully. Ami checked the machines and monitors. He flushed, looking at her hurt places. “Ami, I'm so sorry this happened to you.”
Boston Under Siege (Book 1): Virus: Page 26