The Koda Files Boxed Set - Books 1 & 2

by Ivan Bridgewater

  "I wish you’d come with me," I observed. "A lot of people who care for you, wish you would wake up."

  "I am awake," the child corrected. "You scare me!" The fog began to envelope the child again, and I reached out, and laid my hand on her shoulder. It was as cold as a corpse would have been. The fear emanating from the girl increased intensely. Almost screaming now, she shouted, "Let go of me!"

  I had been altering her body chemistry as we talked. I surged her neurological system with energy, and held on. Her heart rate went up, and I felt a surge in my own to match hers. With a shock, I realized we were heavily linked. I started to force myself awake, dragging Heather with me. She was screaming constantly now. I was nauseas, wanting to get sick, and empty my stomach.

  With a crash, my eyes popped open, and I was awake. Someone was screaming, and I abruptly decided to join them. I sat bolt upright on the gurney, and found the room in chaos around me. Objects were flying around on their own, and everyone in the room appeared to be running for cover.

  Across from me, sitting up in the bed, was Heather. She looked like the girl I thought of as Heather, with one exception. Her eyes were open, and a fire was burning in them.

  Koda screamed, "Heather! Stop it, you're going to hurt someone!"

  "Leave me alone!" Heather screamed. "I want to die!"

  Reaching across my chest, I jerked my pistol out, and shoved it in my mouth. I had very little control over what was happening, and, as if from a distance, a felt my finger tighten on the trigger. Then, time seemed to stop. Out of the corner of my eye, Koda crossed my field of vision, and snatched the gun from my hand. Then she was gone from my vision range, and the real world returned. The items that had been flying around the room dropped to the floor

  Lots of people were screaming now. Heather was screaming nonstop, and the noise was bloodcurdling. One of the doctors was screaming, because he had tried to leave the room, and got his fingers broken in the door jam. Doctor Masters was trying to calm the injured man down, and deal with Heather at the same time.

  My eyes locked on Heather's, and for just a split second, there seemed to be an instant of clarity. Then Heather's eyes rolled up in her head, she stopped screaming, and started to pitch forward, straight toward me. Reaching out quickly, I gripped both her shoulders, shaking her slightly, and loudly said, "Heather, wake up!"

  Her eyes fluttered, and she seemed to wake up. The fire appeared gone. She looked weak, but I saw a hint of life in her that wasn't there before, and she quietly whispered, "Help me!" Koda, and one of the doctors, were there instantly, and began to take Heather's weight off of me. She was going limp, as I held her shoulders tightly, and surged her system with energy. Her eyes seemed to come alive again. Once more, she said, "Help me!" in a husky, barely audible voice.

  Hearing Heather speak was having a dramatic effect on Koda. She was on the verge of tears, and I could see in the link that her mind was rapidly being overwhelmed. Without knowing why, I said, "Talk to her Koda!"

  "I love you, Heather!" Koda blurted out. Then she was crying too hard to talk. Seconds passed, and again, Koda said, "I love you!"

  Without hesitation, in a childish voice, Heather said, "I love you, Koda!"

  So much was happening. Lots of medical people coming in, and I felt exhausted. In a slow movement that must have appeared almost drunken. I slid away from Heather, and fell back onto the gurney. Lisa entered my vision range, and a blanket was pulled up over me. In seconds, I was being moved to a private room to rest.

  I was weakened, but I could sense my energy levels were quickly returning. Lisa was very insistent that I rest a short while, until my body stats settled down. I was fine with that. I felt as if I'd fallen down a flight of stairs.

  Perhaps ten minutes went by, and then Doctor Masters stopped in to check on me. She had a huge smile on her face, and asked, "How is the miracle worker doing?" It took me a second to realize she was talking about me.

  "I'm just fine," I responded. "How's Heather?"

  "She's in a lot of pain from using underdeveloped muscles," Doctor Masters responded. "But her vitals are strong, and I would say she's going to be alright." The doctor hesitated, and then said, "I’d like to talk to you when you feel better. I have a lot of questions about what went on in there."

  "There was no physical damage," I observed. "It was a classic case of hysterical paralysis, brought on by witnessing her parent's death. The more time that passed, the more entrenched her mental defenses became. She has deep seated issues related to surviving her parent's murders, but nothing a year of doctor’s care won't fix."

  The doctor nodded silently, taking in my comments. I could tell she was ready to leave, but she stood looking at me oddly. After a few seconds, she said, "I was told you're a professional assassin. May I ask, is that true?"

  I reflected for just a moment, and then said, "It was a long time ago, but once, yes. I used to be a paid killer."

  She stood there for a second, thinking. Then she said, "You missed your calling. You're a hell of a doctor!"

  I started to laugh, but Doctor Masters and Lisa were not amused. Lisa quietly said, "Half the staff of this place think you can walk on water at this point. Word travels fast among doctors when a miracle man appears."

  "I'm not doing any kind of miracles," I assured them. "It's the enzyme I was exposed to, and this stupid ring I put on."

  "As a doctor, I can tell you there is a medical term for that comment," Lisa said. "We would call it bullshit!"

  "I can't help that," I replied. "Helping Heather wasn't a miracle. It wasn't much more than talking to her."

  "You were under for six hours, Mike," Lisa whispered. "We thought... I thought we had lost you both!"

  "You developed a nose bleed four hours in," Masters noted. "It was from a brain aneurism. You were self-healing, but it was pretty nerve-wracking, all the same."

  I wanted to crack a joke, but I could see the two doctors were in no mood for that. "It needed to be done!" I stated dryly. "If I’ve been given these abilities, don't act surprised when I put them to use."

  Doctor Masters just shook her head, saying, "I just want to say thank you! I'm glad you're doing okay."

  The two women doctors both began talking, and walked out. I laid there trying to clear my head, and focus my thoughts.

  Chapter 8

  A Relaxing Drive

  It appears I dozed off. When I woke up again, it was almost noon. Tim was sitting, watching me, and when I looked up, he smiled, and said, "Good to see you finally waking up. Lisa told me to watch you while she stepped out. She'll be right back."

  "I feel like crap," I remarked. I sat up, and slipped my legs over the side of the gurney. I sat there, debating standing up.

  "You're taking too many chances, Mike," Tim suddenly blurted out. I looked up at him, and could instantly tell he was on edge. "We've lost Harold, and Shooter. We're dropping like flies, and I'm getting tired of attending funerals!" He broke eye contact, looking at the door as it opened, and Lisa walked in with Kathy.

  "How's Heather doing?" I asked. "Will she be okay?"

  "That's hard to say at this point," Lisa replied. "At the very least, she has months of rehabilitation ahead of her. Koda is with her constantly, and that will help." I started to really wake up, and Lisa quietly added, "Koda asked to speak to you when you feel up to it. Needless to say, she is pretty grateful."

  I grunted, and said, "Probably lucky I didn't make things worse!"

  "The girl was in a vegetative state, Mike," Kathy asserted. "That's about as bad as it gets."

  Lisa gestured toward Tim, and said, "We're going back home. Are you going to stay here, or head back to Kathy's?"

  "I'm going home as soon as they let me," I replied. "I'm ready for a few days of inactivity."

  "You need to talk to Koda and Doctor Masters before you leave." Lisa instructed me. "They should be here any second."

  "I'll stay with him," Kathy noted. "He keeps getting into things when I leave
him alone." She had a huge impish smile on her face, and it was obvious she was having fun at my expense.

  Lisa just smiled in response. She looked over at Tim and asked, "Are you ready?" He nodded yes, they both folded space, and were gone.

  Without skipping a beat, Kathy said, "You could have let me know what you were planning!" I didn't need to read her mind, to know I was in trouble. The sound of her voice told me everything I wanted to know.

  "I didn't say anything, because I didn't want to scare you," I said truthfully. "All my life, I've fought the animal instinct to kill. It's an evil thing buried in each of us. I suddenly find myself a life saver instead of a life taker. I intend to do as much good as I can, before I'm sent do whatever it is I'm being prepped for."

  'Wow!" Kathy said. Then she just stood there. Several seconds passed, and she finally continued, saying, "It's hard to argue with that."

  The room was silent for about half a minute, and Kathy just stood looking at me. The concept of linking minds is still pretty new to me, but for a moment, I saw Kathy's thoughts. There was a jumbled wave of emotions involved, but mostly it was love for me. I do care for Kathy, and I felt bad that I didn't share the love she felt. I suddenly dawned on me, that I might be too messed up to fall in love.

  Of course, then I thought of Nancy, and remembered how love felt. Talk about a confusing emotion. Love defies logic. I stood up from the edge of the bed, and Kathy reached out to steady me. After a second more, she suddenly stepped close, and hugged me. She held me for a brief moment, but it wasn't a sexual kind of hug. It was the kind shared between to very good friends.

  When she stepped away, she had been crying. She turned her back to me, and moved away. In a husky voice, she asked, "What are we turning into, Mike? Are we even human anymore?"

  Without thinking, I said, "I think we're finally being allowed to be what humans were meant to be. The bad parts are burning away, and what's left, is pure. Not perfect, but free of what we think of as evil."

  At that moment, I realized Koda was standing in the room's open doorway. She stepped in, moved over next to Kathy, and stopped, apparently deep in thought. After a few seconds, she said, "I want to say thank you! It's not enough. I had almost given up hope. I met you, and everything has changed so much..." she broke down, and started to sob.

  Kathy reached out and steadied Koda, as I said, "It's not me Koda! It's the world around us!"

  "Bullshit!" Koda muttered under her breath. "It's you Mike! I’d be dead, and so would my sister! A lot of people would be dead, if it wasn't for your direct intervention. You're affecting a huge number of people by doing the things you do." Her voice had grown stronger as she talked, and when she really looked me in the eyes again, she finished by saying, "There are a lot of people that will follow you anywhere! Do you realize that?"

  Before I could reply, Kathy said, "Madias has been receiving requests from both the Guardians, and the Chosen. It appears that a lot of people want to be assigned to duty with you." Kathy hesitated, and then added, "He has been debating what to do about them."

  "I tend to work better alone," I observed without thinking.

  "I believe those days are over," Kathy noted pointedly. "You're getting ready to own an army."

  "But I don't want an army!" I said. As soon as I said it, I realized how stupid it sounded.

  Kathy openly giggled, and said "Tough! Quit acting like a natural leader, if you don't want people to follow you."

  My remark had amused Koda as well, and she said, "Your aura burns like a blinding sun. People can follow you through total darkness. It's a little late now to worry about all this. You're setting one hell of a standard for the rest of us to follow. Just keep doing what you’ve been doing. It's working great!"

  "I just wish I knew what the hell I'm doing," I groused aloud. "It just seems to all keep happening so quickly, there's never any time to think."

  "Maybe that's the trick," Kathy said. "Just keep doing what comes natural. Don't stop to think it through."

  There was a tap at the door, and Doctor Masters stepped in. She nodded at Kathy and Koda, and then addressed me, saying, "You are a very amazing man. Our other empaths are shocked with what you did. They're afraid to deal with patients we receive that are under mental distress. Comas, and things involving mental shut down, are currently deferred to the Magi. Even they’ve had only limited success. We have started using the word miracle among my staff when we refer to your visit."

  I grunted, and said, "I don't know much, but I know I'm not qualified to do miracles!"

  "Don't be too sure about that," Kathy noted rather sternly.

  "I'm no miracle worker!" I growled. It came out sounding a little too loud, and I felt a little sheepish right away.

  The doctor said, "Call it whatever you want. I think you did a great thing helping that girl, and I just wanted to say thank you." She smiled, turned, and walked out.

  "There goes another happy convert to the Church of Mike," Koda joked.

  "Stop that! It's not funny!" I snapped at her. It raised the hairs on the back of my neck hearing her joke like that. Koda broke off laughing, and quickly sobered.

  After a second, she quietly said, "I'm sorry Mike. It won't happen again."

  "I'm taking Mike home," Kathy interjected. "Are you staying here?"

  "Can I stay a few days, Mike?" Koda asked.

  "Of course," I replied. "Just promise me you'll not overtax your energy levels as you deal with Heather."

  "I'll be good, boss." Koda acknowledged, just starting to smile again.

  "Fine!" I said. "I'm going home, and wait for the next disaster to break out." Kathy stepped close, wrapped her arm around mine, and we folded space for home.

  We arrived, and I went in the house feeling a lot better about myself, than when I left. Now that my task was complete, I just wanted to take a break. For the first time, in a long time, I simply wanted to rest. For the next several days, I took it easy. It had been a long time since I took any time off, and I thought of taking a nap, as taking a vacation.

  At midafternoon of the second day, Kathy tracked me down, as I slept on the couch in the corner of the command center. She jostled me awake, and said, "Get up! You're taking me out for some fun!"

  "Oh boy," I growled sarcastically. "Off to see the art museum are we?"

  "No," she said, smiling sweetly. "I just wanted to go for a drive on this beautiful, sunny, day, and I want you to go with me!" The last few words were delivered with a kick, and after a second more, she yelled, "Get up!"

  So, I got up.

  We went for a drive, in her little car. Kathy is a very sweet girl, but she drives like a lunatic. Her car has a fold down top, and it’s like sitting in a wind tunnel when you ride in it. Anything not nailed down, gets sucked out the window.

  In theory, I can heal my wounds almost instantaneously, but I was in no hurry to test it. Besides! It hurt like you can't imagine. We were finally forty miles away, at the beach, before I told her, "Stop here, I want to get out!"

  She swerved into a parking space, looked at me smiling, and asked, "Do I make you nervous?"

  "You scare the shit out of me!" I replied truthfully.

  We both started laughing, and then Kathy sobered for a moment, and said, "Let's get out and walk!" We were at a nice place on the beach, where a series of posh businesses were set up to fleece the local tourists. There was an overpriced restaurant, and spending money was one of Kathy's favorite hobbies.

  Walking along the store fronts, it was almost easy to forget all the things we had recently lived through. The sun was shining beautifully, and I allowed myself to relax, and take a few hours to rest.

  We finally stopped at a nice little place, and ate some fresh seafood. A few doors down, was an ice cream parlor, and we stopped for two chocolate ice cream cones.

  The entire area was packed with tourists, and as we came out of the ice cream place, I saw the carjacking begin. Two idiots with guns were trying to drag a woman out of
her van. I could see as I scanned the woman’s mind, that a small baby was in the back of the vehicle. The woman was giving them a real struggle for the van.

  The taller of the two men pistol whipped the woman, and she appeared ready to fall out of the van. I stepped in, and the tall man turned to me, and started shooting. It was a large caliber handgun, and the pain was incredible. Bang! Bang! Bang! He just kept shooting me. People were screaming, and running everywhere. The shorter man took notice of what was occurring, and he started shooting me. I must say, they were really pissing me off.

  I reached for my gun, and realized I had left it at home. That made me even angrier. I punched the tall man in the face so hard, his head swiveled at an odd angle, and he started to settle toward the concrete roadway. I grabbed his pistol, pointed it at the short man, and pulled the trigger.

  The gun I now held was empty, so it just went, Click, Click! The fear in the short man's eyes was overwhelming. I yelled, "Run away, before I reach over there, and beat you to death with this."

  The man bolted, and ran. The streets were empty by now, and the woman whose van was being stolen, simply drove off. She was scared to death, and wasn't waiting to see how long it would take the cops to appear. The tall man was laying on the ground sleeping soundly. Kathy grabbed my arm, and harshly whispered, "Come with me! We're getting out of here!" I just followed her as she rapidly moved up the street.

  We went about six blocks, and then turned up a side street. I could hear sirens working in our direction. We went about four more blocks, and arrived at a row of condos that faced the beach. Kathy stepped up to the first door, and coded in the key code. The door opened at once, and she shoved me into the darkened room, quickly moving through the entranceway, while slamming the door shut.

  Two seconds went by, there was a loud click, and the lights came on. We were in a luxury condo, and reading my thoughts, Kathy said, "If you're going to have a safe house, build it on the beach." As though to accent her comment, she walked over to a decorative wall panel, pushed on a section of the wall, and it slid back. A small closet filled with weapons lit up. With a casual glance, she looked at me, and said, "If you see anything that interests you, pick it up."