by Alexie Aaron
Burt opened his eyes, and the pain of his leg, although not as extreme as before, assaulted his senses and he groaned.
“I’m sorry to do this, but you’ve got to help us move you,” she insisted.
“I’ll do my best. Get me to my feet, er, foot.”
Mia and Audrey waited until Burt sat up before lifting the man to his feet. Mia acted as a crutch. Burt moved the five feet slowly and managed to lie down in the litter before the pain was too much and he fainted once again.
“Wuss,” Mia said.
This brought a guffaw from Ted.
“Careful, you’re next, Martin,” Mia said. She turned to Audrey. “You’ve got to go up there. Mike can’t lift Burt on his own. Murphy’s low on power…”
“Mia, catch,” Ted said from above.
Mia looked up just in time to see the small cube drop. She snagged it before it hit the ground. She handed this to Audrey, explaining, “Before you give it to Murphy, you need to switch it on here.”
Audrey nodded, sliding into the harness. “How do I work this thing?”
Mia showed her and was pleased to see how fast the researcher picked up the technique.
“Audrey is on her way up!” she called. While she waited, Mia adjusted the straps securing Burt in the litter.
“Mia, how are you doing?” Ted asked.
“Okay, I guess. I noticed that this transference of information is giving me a hell of a headache. No wonder Angelo has a hard time getting his people to volunteer to be field medics. It’s really cool, but it makes me cross-eyed at times.”
“If you’re cross-eyed to begin with, do they uncross?”
Mia stood and looked up at her husband. “You, sir, are asking for it.”
“I’ve been thinking…” Ted started.
“That’s always a dangerous thing, Teddy Bear,” Mia teased.
“No really, I’ve been thinking about our situation.”
“Go on.”
“I think we’ve been set up from the start. I think there is more going on here than simply one dude with a bone to pick with the Price Corporation.”
“And?”
“I think someone in the company is involved.”
“Kind of makes sense. Those security guards should have had the police come here instead of going down the hill themselves with the so-called prisoner.”
“We’re ready to move Burt now!” Mike called down.
“Drop down the harness, so I can help stabilize him,” Mia explained. “Please ask Murphy to come down once you have Burt moved to the bar.”
Mike did so, and between the three of them, they got Burt above the beams. Mia moved over to Ted.
Mia stayed in the harness. She anchored herself, giving her enough play to move along the rock without jostling Ted. He had landed on his side. The rebar penetrated his thigh, passing through an inch from his femoral artery.
“You were smart not to move,” Mia said. “I would have wigged out and…”
“No you wouldn’t have, Mighty Mouse.”
“How are you feeling?” she asked as she tenderly moved her hand under the hurt leg, determining how much room there was between the thigh and the broken cement slab.
“Not great. I’ve lost blood, and I think I hit my head on the way down,” Ted said.
Mia slid onto the slab behind him and examined his head. She didn’t like the look of the clotted wound on his head. She prayed there was no swelling or clotting going on inside his skull. Mia, once again, connected with the mages and let them work through her.
Ted felt so damn guilty. He had seen the faint tattooing on the back of her neck when she bent over to examine his thigh. Mia had talked about the risks of using her newfound power too much and how the birdman gene would tighten its hold on her physiology. What she was doing now for him, pretty much was sealing her fate. Mia Cooper Martin would end up with a full back of tattooed feathers.
“I’m sorry, Mia. I should have been more alert. Jake kept saying the data was wrong.”
“My darling, who’s to say that this thing I have isn’t a blessing? I can help you now because of it. How many mistakes have I made on my own? Somehow, there is always someone ready to help. As long as I come out of this with you and Brian, I’ll be happy, feathers and all. By the way, your head is fine. That monster brain of yours is housed in a solid skull.”
“What kind of bird will you chose to be?” Ted asked quietly.
“I don’t really know. My grandfather is a hummingbird, which is fast, but I’d prefer something scarier.”
“Do you have a choice?”
“Not initially. I may never make a full transformation. I may just end up with wings, like an angel.”
“That would be cool.”
“Nah, I would be a freak, but I’m kind of used to that.”
“I love you, Mia,” Ted said. “Feathers and all.”
“I love you, Ted, brains and all,” Mia said and tenderly kissed him. She could feel his blood pressure dropping as she touched his neck. “Where is that ghost?”
“Nice, you’re kissing me and thinking about Murphy. How romantic,” Ted whined.
“You don’t understand. I was feeling your pulse in your neck and…”
“I’m just funning you,” Ted said.
“Ted, before you pass out, let me tell you what is going to happen. I’m going to slide my sword under you. Between Murphy and me, we’re going to cut through the rebar. We have to leave it in. Taking it out now is too dangerous. Then we will get you topside and then, hopefully, to a hospital.”
“Mia, if I don’t make it, don’t marry Mike.”
“I don’t intend to,” Mia said. “There’s not going to be anyone after you, Ted. I’ve had the best of the best. Any other man is going to be a disappointment.”
Ted smiled sadly. “You need to be loved.”
“And that’s why you’re not going to give up on me. You should have let me take care of you first!” Mia scolded. “How dare you do this to me?”
Murphy arrived, and while Mia kept Ted distracted, she slid the sword under Ted and motioned to Murphy what had to be done. The metal of the angel sword moved evenly through the metal without jarring Ted too much. Mia tenderly lifted the leg, putting a trauma pack under the entrance wound and taped it. Together, she and Murphy moved him to the litter and took him topside.
Mia pulled the shield out of the mechanism and allowed the doors to close. She heard a winding sound and a couple of thunks. She hoped the doors had locked, but no one in their team would be walking over that spot anytime soon. There was a door in the bar that exited to the outside. They would, when ready, leave through there. Until then, Mia would continue to nurse her husband.
Mia tossed Mike his jeans which she’d used to pad the litter. There was a bloodstain running down one leg. He put them on without a comment.
“That was genius, Dupree. I’m so impressed that I’m going to have sex with you right here,” Mia said.
“Wait,” Ted said, lifting his hand to object. “I’m not dead yet.”
“Oh, sorry. Can you wait, Mike?”
“I’m a little busy anyway. Can I have a raincheck?”
“Sure.”
Audrey was at a loss for words. She knew why the two of them were flirting. They were trying to distract Ted from fixating on how serious his condition was. It was an improvisation that was beyond her talents.
Audrey was impressed with how Cid was mending. Whatever Mia did seemed to set him on course. Burt was also showing signs of being able to sit up. His leg was still encased in the temporary cast.
“Mia, did you bring the shotgun?” Burt asked.
“No, I didn’t want to take a chance and spoil all this new decorating,” she said.
“Do we have any weapons besides your sword and Murphy’s axe?”
Mia shook her head. She looked over and asked the PEEPs camera, “Jake, inventory what Ted brought, and see if you can Frankenstein anything, please.”
&
nbsp; The camera light blinked twice.
“I brought Curly,” Ted whispered.
“You’re a genius. I think we can make use of him. Mike, do you think we can hole up in the lobby, or should we gather the equipment in here?
“I’m not nerdy enough to answer that,” Mike confessed. “Cid, Ted, Burt?”
“The lobby is too open. Too many windows and doors,” Burt said.
“If you guys are going to move the stuff, you better do it soon,” Ted said. “We don’t, as of yet, know who or what we’re dealing with. Remember to get the second generator. I’m surprised that Jake is still functioning; the first generator is running on fumes.”
Murphy pried the counter piece off the bar. Mia and Audrey carried it into the hall where they slid it over the trapdoor. The lobby was twenty feet down the hall from the trapdoor. Ted had the equipment set up on the near wall. Murphy went in first and tapped out his okay. Mia and Mike ran in and tossed as much as they could into two of the black transportation boxes and pulled them into the bar before returning for the rest of the gear. Audrey stayed with the invalids.
Once the lobby had been emptied of PEEPs gear, Mia pulled the large piece of polished wood away from the trapdoor. She, instead, placed it just inside the bar to discourage anyone from trying to sneak in via the hallway. By the time they were finished, both Mia and Mike were exhausted.
Audrey had climbed up and pulled the cable out of the security camera on Ted’s insistence. If they were dealing with humans, then they didn’t need them spying on the PEEPs. She went over the information she had gathered on the Nowicki clan. They seemed like a very industrious, large Polish family. The original Cyryl Nowicki immigrated with the canal diggers prior to WWI. He purchased what was thought to be an untamable, steep-hilled hundred acres of land. The father started off with sheep, letting them graze. His son Junior leased the land to an hotelier from Switzerland. Together, they built the ski resort. They made quite a profit from the rich Chicagoans who didn’t have the time to venture to the ski resorts in New England. Junior’s son invested the money well, and when the ski cliental went west, they shut down the hotel but held on to the land. Junior’s grandson, the fourth Cyryl Nowicki, led a life of idleness until his mother died. Cyryl the Third remarried, and the second wife produced twin boys.
“Mike, you said that it was Cyryl Nowicki that threatened you?” Audrey asked.
“Actually, it was Mia he threatened. The ID the security guys pulled confirmed that. Why?”
“I’m just trying to put the pieces together. How did this go from a paranormal investigation to a hostage situation?” Audrey asked.
“It’s more than that,” Mia stressed. “You were intended to disappear forever investigating, and I was to be driven nuts, furthering the rumors of the property being unsuitable for people, especially families, to stay here. This Cyryl wants his property back, and he wants it badly enough to kill for it. If we find out why it’s suddenly become so valuable to him, then we will have most of our questions answered.”
“That pit you found us in, it wasn’t a natural cavern,” Burt said. “The iron beams reminded me of old mines. Possibly, it collapsed at one point.”
“It doesn’t explained the rebar-reinforced cement,” Ted said
“But couldn’t the cement be from the foundation of the hotel?” Cid asked.
“That’s a better answer. Maybe it was a basement that collapsed into the mine,” Burt said. “Could be an old mine that still contains something valuable.”
“Gold, maybe silver?” Audrey guessed.
“Not here,” Burt said. “It’s not impossible but highly unlikely. I’m thinking something that is quickly disappearing in the United States.”
“Copper,” Ted answered. “It’s an old copper mine. It probably was too expensive to run when copper was plentiful, but now that it’s scarce…”
“They tried to kill us over pennies?” Cid questioned.
“And wire,” Ted reminded him. “It cost us a fortune to wire the extension on the farmhouse because of the shortage.”
Mia didn’t like the way her husband was looking. She felt his forehead, and her worries were confirmed. “Ted, you’re burning up. An infection has set in. I don’t think we can wait to be rescued. That rebar has to come out now.”
“But, Minnie Welby MD, you’ve never operated on anyone before,” Ted said nervously.
“No, but we don’t have another choice,” Mia said. “We don’t even have access to the internet at this point. I’m going to have to give myself over to a mage, Ted.”
“Don’t. As it is, you’re already showing signs of birdman. The more you use it, the more the gene takes hold,” he reminded her. “Mia, I want you to have a choice.”
“Ted, my freedom isn’t worth it if something happens to you. Don’t you see? Without you, there is no me,” she said softly. “Let me do this for you. You’ve shared and sacrificed for me. It’s my turn now.”
Ted grabbed her hand. “I can’t talk you out of this?”
Mia looked into Ted’s eyes, and this told him there would not be any further discussion. Mia had already summoned the mage.
“Audrey, I need the highest grade alcohol you can find, some sterile dressings, and…” Mia listed the items she needed. She would use her own knife. She handed it to Murphy. “Please sharpen this.”
Mike helped Mia move Ted to the sturdy banquette table after washing it down with eighty proof gin. Audrey found some tablecloths still in the laundry packaging.
“They bleach this stuff to remove the stains and keep it white,” Audrey reasoned. “They are as sterile as we can get.”
The remaining items in the trauma kit would have to do. Mia needed something to suture the entrance and exit wounds. Ted pulled out a small spool of wire and handed it to Mia. She looked at it and handed it to Audrey who cut it into manageable lengths, dipping them in the gin.
When all was ready, Mia walked over and spoke to Murphy. “Once I start, I can’t stop. You have to protect us. I need Mike and Audrey to hold Ted down. You’re our army, Murph,” Mia said. “Cid has more energon cubes. Do not wait to draw power. Better to be overstimulated than to be less effective,” she counseled.
“You can count on me, Mia,” he promised.
Mia nodded and walked away. She pulled off her gloves and washed her hands before pulling on the plastic gloves Audrey had found. Mia stood a moment and closed her eyes. “Please send me help,” she asked. “My life for his,” she promised.
Chapter Nine
“What do you mean we can’t see anything?” Cyryl asked as he entered the security building.
“When you had us turn off the electricity, we lost the cameras,” Ray told him.
“What about the jammer’s generator?” he asked.
“You turn off the jammer, and that woman will be able to call for help. Besides, the generator can’t handle the system.”
“There’s the one powering the sound effects…” Ray started.
“Nah, let’s keep that going. We’ve got a day and a half to drive her over the edge. “I want you two to guard the exit routes, just in case she makes a run for it.”
“That pretty little thing, maybe she needs cuddling,” Carl said.
“There’s no time for that kind of stuff,” Cyryl insisted.
“It might push her over the edge,” Ray said. “We could crawl in with her in the dark. She’d probably think we were ghosts. As long as we don’t leave no evidence.”
“No!” Cyryl pulled out his gun and pointed it at Ray. “There will be none of that on my watch.”
“Look who’s taking the high road. You’ve got five deaths on your hands already,” Carl said.
“I may be a murderer, but I’m not a rapist. You leave that woman alone. Get your mind back on your jobs. Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, sir.”
~
Mia placed the gauze over the wound. The wire would allow the injury to drain. Mia placed her h
and on Ted’s forehead, pleased to feel that his body temperature had returned to near normal. At the beginning of the operation, Ted had passed out. The amount of alcohol Mike had him drink would have him sleeping for quite a while yet. Mia took a deep breath as the mage left her. She walked over to the bar and poured herself a drink. Murphy had moved to her and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. She looked sadly at her friend and shrugged her shoulders.
Cid looked at her, worried. He couldn’t help but hear Ted’s and her conversation earlier. He knew Mia, and he knew that she’d sacrificed a lot to stabilize him and Burt. He could only imagine what operating on Ted had cost her. She was dead on her feet. None of them were up for the long night ahead of them.
Mia walked back, drew up a chair, and put her head down on the table top next to Ted’s. Mike had raided the linen closet. He unfolded a blanket and started putting it around Mia’s bare shoulders. He stopped and stared at something. He pulled down the back of Mia’s tank.
“What’s this?” he asked, tracing his finger on the black feathers.
“My payment,” she said before she pulled the blanket over her shoulders and fell asleep.
Cid motioned for Mike to come over to where he was setting up the computer. “What’s going on with Mia?” he asked.
“She’s got a rad tattoo on her back just like Angelo’s,” Mike said. “Poor kid.”
“It could be her destiny,” Cid said.
“You know that this destiny will probably end up destroying her,” Mike said.
“It doesn’t have to. If her friends are supportive, she’ll adjust better. Her greatest fear is losing our regard. She loves us like family,” Cid insisted.
“I can’t help but wonder if she would have been better off if Burt and I had never gone over to April’s that fateful day,” Mike said.
Audrey walked over after checking on Burt.
“If it’s okay, I’m going to try and get some sleep. I’m dead on my feet,” she said.
“That’s not a bad idea,” Mike said. “I think I’ll catch some Zs while things are still calm.”