“I will. I may or may not be here. I may be at my own wife’s side. But I’ve already talked to Karen and Debbie about it, and they’ve essentially said the same thing. And Brad isn’t like you, driving all over the state. He’s working close by so he can be home with her at night. So far that’s been enough.”
“Good. We’ve had so much misery lately, we sure don’t need any more.”
“Agreed. And here she comes, by the way.”
Bryan changed the subject.
“There’s a group of ham radio operators that have agreed to take on the hunt for Sarah. They’ve promised to get the word out, and to call you guys if they find her.”
“We’ll keep our fingers crossed. Don’t you worry. It’s not ‘if’ we find her, it’s ‘when.’ Did you want to say goodbye to Sami?”
“Bye, Sami. You hang in there, tough girl. I love you.”
“I love you too, Bryan. You be careful out there.”
Chapter 26
Frank Woodard was on the security desk a couple of hours later when Mark and little Markie walked up.
“Well hello, Markie,” Frank told Mark Junior. “You look like you’re going somewhere.”
“Yes sir, Mister Frank. I’m going to see my mom at the hospital. I get to ride in a van.”
“Oh, you do? Wow! I wish I could ride in a van. Is this going to be your first car ride?”
“Yes, sir. Well, except for Daddy took me for rides on the Gator or the tractor. That was fun, but he says this is going to be even funner.”
Frank was happy for the boy, but sad at the same time.
Markie was eight now. He’d been born in the mine, not long after Saris 7 hit and they were waiting for the earth to thaw. After the thaw came, the group had restricted themselves to the safety of the compound, for it was still a harsh and dangerous world.
It was a damn shame that an eight year old boy still hadn’t had the opportunity to enjoy something as simple as a long ride in a car.
“So, what’s in the backpack, big guy?”
Markie took the bag off his back to show Frank.
“I have some cookies to give to Mom. Miss Karen baked them for me. They’re chocolate chip. She said I could have one on the trip, but not to give Daddy one. She said he’s getting fat.”
Mark looked at him and asked, “Did she really say that?”
Markie realized he’d stuck his little foot in his mouth and said, “Oops. Sorry, Dad. She said that was supposed to be our little secret.”
Mark looked at Frank and smiled.
“That’s all right. I’ll figure out a way to get even.”
Markie pulled other things from the small bag as well.
“This is her favorite nightgown ‘cause Daddy said she’s been asking for it. And this here is my hot wheels car because he said I could give her something that’s very special to me. And this…”
He pulled out a fistful of wildflowers, crushed and dropping petals all over himself and the floor.
“… this is the flowers that Miss Debbie and I picked for her. Do you like them?”
“Uh… yes. Yes I do, Markie. But don’t you think you should put them in some kind of container or something?”
“That’s what Miss Debbie said. But I said no, that they needed to breathe. If they don’t breathe they might die.”
Frank looked at Mark, who shrugged.
Mark said, “We wouldn’t want them to die, now would we?”
“No, I suppose not.”
Markie asked, “Do you think my mom will like them, Mister Frank?”
“Yes, sir. I’m sure your mommy will love them.”
“Yep. Me too,” he said as he stuffed the flowers back into his backpack, knocking most of the rest of the petals off.
“What else you got in there, little man?”
“That’s it, except for some bottles of water for me and my dad. Dad said anytime you go on a great adventure you have to take lots of water.”
“Your father is a very smart man.”
“Yeah. That’s because he’s real old. At least that’s what my Uncle Bryan always says. Is Uncle Bryan home yet?”
“No, sir. He’s still out there looking for your Aunt Sarah.”
“I hope he finds her. I love her. She always gives me millions of hugs and she always smells nice too.”
“He’ll find her. Don’t you worry about that. Is there anything you want me to tell him next time he calls in?”
“No. Not really. Just tell him I’m going to visit my mom, that’s about it.”
“Okay. I’ll tell him.”
All three of their heads turned as the words, “Wait for me, wait for me!” came rolling down the hallway.
It was Sami, running like she’d missed a train and carrying her own backpack.
“Sami,” Mark exclaimed. “Are you going with us?”
“Yep. I’ve been cooped up in here for too darned long without seeing my best friend. I went to Daddy’s grave this morning and asked him if he could do without me for half a day and he said I could go.”
Little Markie looked up at his dad and said, “Daddy, if I fall asleep can I lean on Miss Sami instead of you?”
“Well sure, if it’s okay with Miss Sami. But why?”
“’Cause she’s softer.”
Chapter 27
Hannah knew that Mark was bringing their son to visit. She’d been counting the minutes until the Army van was scheduled to arrive from the compound.
Sami’s visit, though, was an unexpected surprise.
Hannah was conflicted. When the three walked into her hospital room, she was sitting in a wheelchair next to the window.
And she didn’t know who she wanted to hug first.
Little Markie made the decision for her, running across the room at airliner-speed.
He applied the brakes at the last moment though. It was a good thing, because otherwise he might have sent both of them tumbling out the open window.
Markie held back as much as he could, giving her the gentlest hug he could muster.
“Daddy said I have to be careful. Because if I’m not careful my hugs could hurt you. And he said hugs aren’t supposed to hurt. I didn’t hurt you, did I Mommy?”
“No, little sailor. Your hug was perfect. Simply perfect.”
Tears welled in her eyes, and she fought them. She didn’t want to confuse little Markie or make him believe he really did hurt her after all.
The adults all waited patiently as Markie pulled each item from his backpack and presented them to his mother.
“And I brought you my favorite hot wheels car so you can put it on your night stand. And you can even sleep with it under your pillow if you want to. I do sometimes, and it doesn’t hurt it or anything.
“And here are some cookies that Miss Karen baked. I helped her. I stirred the batter and then she let me lick the bowl. She laughed because I got batter all over my face and in my hair. But she said it was okay. She said just to wash my hair extra good before I went to bed. And that was last night and I washed it extra good. I even used shampoo this time instead of bar soap. But I didn’t do it just ‘cause I had cookie dough in my hair. I did it mostly ‘cause I was coming to see you and I wanted it to be extra clean.
“Oh, I ate one of the cookies ‘cause Miss Karen said I could. But I didn’t eat the biggest one ‘cause I wanted to save it for you. On account of you haven’t had any cookies for awhile.
“Daddy tried to get me to give him one but I told him no because Miss Karen said he’s getting fat and didn’t need any cookies. Also because they were for you, except for the one I ate.”
“Miss Karen said your daddy s getting fat?”
“Yes, but last night he snuck into the kitchen and got a brownie. He told me to keep it a secret, so don’t tell anybody.”
Mark poked his young son in the ribs and said, “Squealer.”
Markie looked up and said, “Oh, sorry Daddy.”
“Oh, and these are for you too, Mom.”
He pulled out the flowers, which by now had no petals left at all.
“Oh, thank you, Markie. They’re simply beautiful! Did you pick them yourself?”
“Yes. Well, Miss Debbie went with me, but she let me pick them out because she said I should only pick the ones that were the prettiest and that I knew you would like. So I picked the pink ones and the purple ones because I knew that you liked pink and purple, on account of when we used to do my coloring books you used to always pick the pink and purple crayons because you said they were the prettiest ones in the box and…”
Markie was beginning to ramble on, but Hannah didn’t mind. Not at all.
Markie went on and on until he looked down and noticed the sad flower stems clutched within his tiny hand. The petals were all gone and the stems themselves were twisted and bent from having been put in and out of the bag several times.
A dejected look came over Markie’s face.
“Well, they used to be pretty. I’m sorry, Mommy. I guess I broke them.”
“Oh nonsense, baby. They are still the most beautiful flowers I’ve ever seen. I absolutely love them. And I want you to put them right there, in that flower vase, so that everyone can see them when they come into my room to visit me.”
“For the reals, Mommy?”
“Yes, sir. For the reals.”
Markie’s dejected look changed to an ear-to-ear grin and he shoved what was left of the stems into the empty glass flower vase on Hannah’s bedside table.
“Should I put some water in it, Mommy?”
Hannah almost said not to. That water would do nothing to help the pathetic stems in their current state.
But Markie was so enthused about the flowers she didn’t have the heart.
“I think that would be a great idea, honey. You can take the vase into the bathroom and fill it halfway. Can you handle it? It’s an awfully big vase.”
“I can do it, Mom. I’m a big guy now, remember?”
He picked up the glass vase and carried it with both hands toward the lavatory.
Hannah gave Mark a concerned look, and he read her thoughts perfectly. He walked behind his son, leaning over his shoulder and ready to grab the vase if Markie appeared to be losing his grip.
Hannah reached out her arms to Sami, who went to her and hugged her tenderly.
“How are you feeling, honey?”
“Well, let’s just say I’ve had better days. And you?”
“I alter between sleepless nights and days when I’m just happy to be alive.”
“Yeah. I can relate. That pretty much sums up my whole existence.”
“I’m so sorry. You know that I loved John almost as much as you did.”
“I know. He told me several times that if he ever gave me a sister, that he wanted her to be just like you. I told him, ‘Dad, I think your days of having children has passed long ago.’ He said, ‘Not true, honey… in fact, I’ve had my eye on Jessika for a long time, and I think she’s still single.’
“I said, ‘Dad, you’re twenty years older than her.’ And he said, ‘Honey, age is just a number, nothing else.’”
Hannah laughed and said, “That sounds like your silly father. Did you ever tell Jessika what he said?”
“Yeah, the very same day. It was too good to keep from her.”
“And what did she say?”
“At first she turned up her nose and said, ‘Ewww.’ But then she thought about it for a minute and said, ‘You know, he is a handsome man. I wonder if he’s a good lover…’”
Hannah said, “Oh, my God!”
“I know, right? I put my hands over my ears and ran out of the room. But you can bet I was watching both of them for the next few days. Just in case.”
“How come I never heard about this before?”
“I don’t know. You were caught up in raising Markie and running the mine and all that, I suppose. Anyway, they got the last laugh on me.”
“Really? How so?”
“They got together and compared notes. Jessika told him what she’d said and that it freaked me out a bit and they decided to turn the tables on me. So later that day they made sure that I saw them strolling through the mine holding hands.
“And they knew I always went back to my RV just before the ten o’clock lights out. So they laid in wait just outside my RV at ten, and when I came by they started kissing.”
“Seriously?”
“Yeah. That was before Jessika got really involved with Brent so she was a single chick at that time. Otherwise I don’t think Brent would have gone for their little charade.”
“So, what happened?”
“They kissed for a few seconds and then couldn’t stand it any longer. They both busted up laughing and couldn’t stop for several minutes.
“Then, when he could breathe again, Dad told me, ‘Hey! At least I didn’t slip her the tongue.’
“Then Jessika, with a straight face, looked at me and said, ‘But he slipped me something else last night.’”
Hannah’s jaw dropped.
“Oh, my God! What did you say?”
“I told him I disowned both of them. Him as my father and her as my friend. But then the lunacy of it all sunk in and I started laughing too.
“But I told them that if they ever told a single soul about their stunt I would strangle them both with my bare hands. I guess that’s why you never heard of it. I guess they were afraid that I really would.”
Mark and Markie returned from the lavatory. This time Mark was carrying the vase, since it was now considerably heavier. Despite Hannah’s instructions, they had filled the vase to the very top, and water was dripping over the sides.
Sami asked Hannah, “Why can’t men just follow instructions?”
“I don’t know. Because they’re men, I suppose. Why do men do anything?”
Mark had his own questions.
“Never heard of what? Who were you going to strangle? Who were you talking about?”
Hannah said, “Never you mind.”
Then she turned to Markie and said, “Honey, why don’t you have your daddy take you to the cafeteria and feed you some dinner? And make sure he brings back something for Sami, okay?”
“Mommy, you’re not gonna come with us?”
“No, honey. They brought me my dinner just before you guys got here. Go along now. Sami and I have some more visiting to do.”
Mark reached down and took his young son’s hand and said, “Come on, little sailor. I know when we’re not wanted.”
As soon as they were out of sight, Hannah turned back to Sami.
“So, what else have you been keeping from me?”
Chapter 28
Martel had a bit of a dilemma. He’d been able to convince the woman he’d brought back from the forest that they were husband and wife.
That the reason she didn’t remember him was because she’d hit her head and had amnesia.
And so far she’d bought it.
Or, at least, she appeared to.
But he didn’t want to keep her tied to the bed forever. Sure, it was convenient for… her main purpose. But he wanted more from her than that. He wanted her to cook and clean and wash his clothes for him.
And she couldn’t do any of that as long as one of her wrists was handcuffed to the bedpost.
He knew that the longer she lay there, unable to move, the more time she’d have to think about the story he’d fed her.
And the more time she’d have to try to remember.
He finally decided to free her.
Not completely. She’d still be his slave. She’d still be expected to submit to his desires, and to wait on him hand and foot.
But she’d be free to move about the house.
Martel knew he was taking a big risk.
He’d always been very good at manipulating the thoughts and actions of others. And he was a masterful liar. He once talked a used car salesman into buying his car, which was a piece of crap and which needed an overhau
l a week after the salesman bought it. But for that whole week the salesman was showing the car off to his friends and bragging about what a good deal he’d made.
Still, Martel had been out of practice for a while. First, he was in prison, and in administrative segregation most of the time. Separated from the other inmates for fighting and smuggling contraband and other prison no-nos.
But that wasn’t so bad. He didn’t mind solitary, because he seldom got along with anybody for any appreciable length of time anyway.
Then, after that idiot warden released the convicts to reign terror on the tiny town of Eden, he didn’t need to manipulate anybody.
He was big and bad and able to coerce people to do his bidding.
He wasn’t the biggest kid on the block, but he was certainly one of the meanest. Just a glare from his ugly mug was enough to make even the hardest of men do his bidding without complaint.
No lying or manipulation was necessary.
So Martel was out of practice.
It was possible that instead of playing the woman, that she might be playing him instead.
It was also possible that she didn’t have amnesia. That maybe she remembered everything. That she knew he was a brutal killer and wasn’t really her husband.
That maybe, just maybe, she was looking for her chance to get away, and would bolt as soon as she found it.
So in his mind he was taking a risk, yes. But he’d taken risks his entire life and was still standing.
And she damn sure wasn’t doing him much good chained to the bed.
He decided to remove the cuffs and let her roam freely around the house and the grounds.
But there would be stipulations.
It took her several minutes to find her land legs.
She was still weak from the blood loss, and from having gone several days without eating. While she was unconscious, Martel held up her head and slowly poured water into her mouth. She subconsciously swallowed it, but he didn’t give her any food for fear she’d choke on it.
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