The Fix

by Apryl Summers

  “Well, then I guess I’ll see you in the van.” He nodded and disappeared back into the toxic fumes, putting his gas mask back on in the process. I made my way back up to my room and saw that the closet doors and the cabinet drawers were all wide open, and all of my things were gone. My books were no longer on my nightstand either. Mick was right. Someone had packed all of my things while I was talking to him. I sighed and went over to the window. I was going to miss the view. The wind was rustling the leaves in the trees and the sun was glinting off the river in the distance. It was such a calming view, one that I could lose myself in. I felt a hand on my shoulder some time later, and even though it was only Mick, I jumped about a foot in the air.

  “You ready to go?” His voice was soft, and it made me want to cry, but I couldn’t cry just because I was losing a calming view. I let him lead me out of the room and down to the van, which looked like a mobile fortress. It was was black, and the windows were blacked out. I was willing to bet that it was probably bulletproof too. I got in the backseat and leaned over to look out of the window. Mick sat next to me. Even though there were other guards in the van, not one of them made a sound. It was a little awkward, but it also meant that I was going to be safe. There was a car in front of us and a car behind us, and it sort of made me feel like we were in a gangster movie. It made me want to keep a constant eye out the window for suspicious activity, but part of me just wanted to rest my head against the window and take a nap. Maybe it would be like the first trip and I’d just fall asleep and wake up when we got there. I was still worried about Robert though, and I just had to know if he was okay. The guilt was weighing me down.

  “Hey, uh, Mick? You got a second to talk?” I didn’t know if he was cooking up plans to get more equipment or something, but he looked like he was deep in thought.

  “Yeah, what’s up?”

  I went back to looking out the window so he wouldn’t see my face. I was starting to tear up again. “Have you heard anything about Robert? How’s he doing?”

  Mick didn’t look at me, but he paused for a minute before he answered. “He’s, um, he’s okay. There isn’t much permanent damage.”

  I whipped around to face him. “What do you mean by ‘not much permanent damage’? What’s wrong with him?” The guilt came back tenfold. Whatever was wrong with him was my fault.

  “He lost some of the movement in his right arm, but with some therapy, he should be okay.”

  “Should? I don’t like the sound of that at all. How long will it take for him to use his arm again?”

  “We’re not sure. He has to wait until the stitches are removed before he can go to physical therapy. And that will take about another two weeks.”

  I knew that I had a selfish bone in my body, but it usually didn’t kick in in situations like this. Now it did. If Robert was so incapacitated, how was he going to drive me to the prison to get my conjugal visit with Harvey? I told him it would every two weeks, and if I went back on my word at the first opportunity, then how would he ever trust me? I had to figure out a way.

  “I don’t want to sound selfish or anything, but how am I going to get to the prison in two weeks to see Harvey?” I went back to looking out the window because I could feel my cheeks heating up with embarrassment.

  “I’ll take you.”

  I couldn’t tell if he was angry that I could be so insensitive, or if he was just upset that he had to take me to the prison. I decided to stay quiet for the rest of the ride. When the sky began to darken, we turned onto a gravel road. The road was only a couple of miles long, and in the gloom, the shape of a house rose out of the mist and gave me a bad feeling. I shivered, but it wasn’t from the cold. Granted, once we got out of the van it was very cold, but it just looked like every bad thing in the history of man could happen in that house. Mick led the way with three guards, and four stayed with me. I felt like a very important person being in the middle of a ring of armed guards. It took a few minutes for them to clear the house, and we watched as each room they cleared lit up. That was apparently their communication tactic. Once a room was cleared, they turned the light on to show their progress. Once the whole house was lit, the ring around me started to move towards the front door. We made it to the porch without incident, and once we were inside, Mick led me to a room in the back. The light was still on, and I could see that it was a bedroom. There were no ground level windows, but there was a loft with a staircase leading up to it. I could see that there was a bay window with a big window seat under it.

  “This is going to be your room. The bathroom is through that door over there, and your luggage will be brought in the morning. I hope you like it.” I thanked him and he hurried out the door. I looked around and saw that there was a large bed under the loft. The blankets looked like they were brand new, and the pillowcases still had creases in them. I shucked my clothes and crawled in under the blankets. It was so warm and fluffy and I was so tired that I fell asleep in minutes.

  ***

  When the sun came in through the window, it lit up my new bedroom. I had been dreaming of Harvey, and we were settling down together in a nice Victorian house, getting to know each other over the years. I was in a good mood to say the least.

  I got up and went out into the hallway to see if anyone else was up. I saw three of the guards hauling in large monitors and cooling towers. I supposed it was part of the equipment that Mick said he was going to buy new. I followed them and saw that the door to the attic had a secret door in the wall that they were taking the equipment to. Well, now I knew where Mick would be. I went back towards the front of the house and almost ran into Mick.

  “Whoa there. Watch where you’re going.”

  I blushed. Mick always knew how to make me uncomfortable at the drop of a hat.

  “Sorry. I was just trying to find my luggage. I wanted to unpack.”

  Mick looked at me for a few seconds more, then called out to one of the guards who was going back to a U-Haul van sitting in the driveway. He came over immediately and Mick told him to grab my luggage for me. I followed him out, I wasn’t going to stand next to a grouchy Mick, and besides, if I helped it would take less time. We went to the car that had been behind us on the drive and the guard popped the trunk. He was one that I hadn’t seen before, so I had no idea what his name was. He grabbed the big suitcase and let me grab the smaller and much lighter duffel bag that I used as a carryon bag when I traveled. We went back to my room and he asked me if I needed anything else. I told him no and thanked him for helping me before he ran to help Mick again.

  9

  I was just finishing up pulling the last few things out of my suitcase when there was a knock at my door. I wasn’t really in the mood to get lectured again, so I briefly considered lying in bed and pretending to be asleep. But I knew that wouldn’t work, my curiosity would kill me. I braced myself for a potential lecture and opened the door.

  I thought someone was playing a joke on me. I was about to call out down the hallway, but as I took a step out into the hallway, my foot hit something. There was a small wooden tray, with a plate on it. On the plate was a sandwich, neatly cut in half, a little bag of cookies, and a can of Sprite. There was a little note folded up under the plate. I looked up and down the hallway again, but I didn’t see or hear anyone.

  I took the tray into my room. The first thing that I did was take the folded slip of paper out from under the plate. It simply said that this was going to have to suffice for dinner, since no one had had a chance to go grocery shopping yet. I didn’t know what I was expecting, but I was pretty disappointed by the note. I curled up on my bed with the tray and a book. I ate the sandwich and cookies and drank the soda, but I still felt empty inside. I should have been over the incident from earlier in the day, but a part of me kept replaying it in my mind and it was making bile come up from my stomach into my mouth. I was still angry at the way I had been talked to and treated, but I knew that there was nothing that I could do about it. I went back to reading afte
r I put the plate on my nightstand. I must have drifted off without realizing it.

  When I woke up the next morning I saw sunlight filtering through the window of the loft, and I could hear birds singing outside. I felt so at peace that I didn’t want to get out of bed at all. I just wanted to listen to the birdsong and bask in the sun’s rays. It made me wonder if the guards would take kindly to my requesting that they move my bed up to the loft. I knew I probably shouldn’t ask though, considering that we had to pick up and leave just because of me. They didn’t come right out and say it, but I knew it was my fault. I could tell that they blamed me for it. Maybe I should just run away from the safe house and take my chances. That way I wouldn’t have to see those glares and feel like an outsider in the house. The more I thought about it, the more I liked the idea. The only problem was that I knew that I would get caught before I made it off the grounds. If only I was better at being stealthy…

  ***

  Time went by and I felt like a prisoner.

  Today was supposed to be the day that I went to the prison to see Harvey, but I hadn’t talked to anyone in the house since the first day we’d moved in, and I wasn’t going to break the self-imposed silence that I’d lived with. It was getting later and later, but no one had came for me. Harvey was going to hate me for not being there when I promised I would. I curled up on the bed and thought about what must be going through Harvey’s mind right now.

  He must hate me more than anything else in the world. He will never trust me again.

  I thought I had lost any chance that I had to get back at Buruchi. I would never avenge my sister’s death. My tears started to fall, and I didn’t even hear my door open.

  “I’m going to be heading to Otisville soon, so I was wondering if you wanted to go with me?” My smile was firmly on my face before I turned around to face the owner of that voice. Robert stood in my doorway with a devilish smile. I ran down the stairs and jumped into his arms. He winced and I instantly regretted what I’d done. I backed off as quickly as I could, with my hands flying to my mouth, I could be such a ditz sometimes. How could I have already forgotten that he’d taken a bullet for me just two weeks ago?

  “I am so sorry! I didn’t mean to hurt you, I was just so excited to see you!”

  Robert chuckled. “It’s alright. It hardly even hurts anymore, it just stings every now and then, but I’ve gotten used to it.”

  It didn’t make me feel any better about hurting him.

  “Yes, I would love to go with you. Anything to get out of this house.”

  He must have picked up that there was some tension between me and the rest of the house, because that was the next thing that came out of his mouth.

  “So, tell me what’s been going on in the house since you got here? I sense a disturbance in the force.” He winked at me and I laughed. He was such a child sometimes.

  “Did you really just use a Star Wars reference? You nerd.” He took a step back and bowed to me. That just made me laugh harder until tears threatened to run down my cheeks again.

  “I will neither confirm nor deny that I have done any such thing. And that means you have even less time to get yourself ready. I’ll be waiting right outside when you’re done. We’ll talk about my questions in the car. After all, the walls have ears.” He went out the door and closed it behind him. I decided that the clothes I was wearing would be fine, I wasn’t trying to impress him anymore. He knew what I was there for, I was simply his coping mechanism until I could have Robert find a competent lawyer to get him out of jail.

  Robert gave me the once over when I stepped out of my room, giving me a look that said he was surprised at what I was wearing. I shook my head and he led the way to the car. I was hardly in the car before Robert pounced on me.

  “Okay, spill. What happened in that house?” I looked up from snapping my seat belt into position, and found him bearing down on me with a tell me everything kind of stare.

  “Alright, alright. Put the car in gear and we’ll talk.”

  He reluctantly put the car in drive, and once he focused his attention back out of the windshield, I started talking. “Mick and I got off to a bad start when we came here. When I left the first house, he was telling me that you were only doing your job and that I shouldn’t beat myself up about it. The problem was, when we came here, he and the other guards started to made it very obvious that they believed your injury was all my fault. It got to the point where I wouldn’t even talk to them because I felt like an outsider. I was spending more time looking out of the window than anything else. I don’t even eat with them, they just leave a tray of food outside my door three times a day. I don’t leave my room at all.” The tears were threatening again. I really was a soft-hearted woman. It seemed that my father had been right about that.

  “I can’t believe that Mick would do something like that. I thought he was a better man, I guess he’s just a bully. Maybe I should have a talk with him when I get back.”

  “No! No, that’s fine, thanks, though. What if I just went back to my apartment? I’m going crazy here. Please. I’ll be okay, I swear. Just give me a chance.” I shut my mouth with a snap. I was begging, and what was worse was that I sounded like a little girl that wasn’t getting her way. I dropped my head in my hands out of embarrassment.

  “I found a lawyer that can get Harvey out of prison. I’ve already interviewed him and he’s going to do an excellent job. I don’t know if I told you, but Harvey’s trial got moved up. It’s going to be in three days.”

  My eyes widened. The new lawyer would barely have any time to get spun up on the case! The district attorney had to be doing this on purpose. Whether it was for his own cruel amusement, or because Buruchi wanted Harvey in jail and out of the way, I didn’t quite know, but he was going to be free. I would make sure of that one way or another. Robert glanced over at me while I was having my inner monologue, and I could tell that he knew exactly what I was thinking.

  “Now don’t go doing anything stupid, Kelly. It’s not worth it. The lawyer will do his job, and that will be the end of it. I don’t want to hear anything about you getting involved with this at all, okay?”

  “You mean other than firing the lawyer he already had? I won’t do anything stupid, but I will get him out of there. That man is the best chance I have at avenging Penny. I want him out of there.”

  Robert nodded, and his voice softened when he next spoke to me. “I completely understand how you feel. Trust me, I do. But let the lawyer do his job. That’s why we’re hiring him, isn’t it?” He looked at me for confirmation. I nodded.

  “I want to be at the trial. I don’t care what Mick or the guards say. I want to be at that trial. I’ll wear a disguise if I have to.” The vehemence in my voice made it perfectly clear to Robert that I wasn’t kidding.

  He stared at me for a second or two, then nodded. “I’ll be back to get you for the trial, but you’ll have to get up really early. Court starts at eight, and it’s an hours drive. Longer if there’s traffic.”

  “Pick me up at six thirty.”

  Today was going to be the best day of Harvey’s life. I couldn’t wait to tell him what was going on. Maybe it would even spice up the visit.

  Robert parked in the small parking lot and I was led to the storage closet that had again been cleaned for our use. I tried not to let my excitement distract me as Harvey came in.

  10

  I was out of breath and still trying to get my clothes in order when the guards came to escort Harvey back to his cell. I hadn’t told him about the new lawyer, or the fact that I was going to be at his trial, cheering him on. I wanted to surprise him with it all when he walked into the court room and saw me in the front row. Some of my excited energy must have rubbed off on him though, because he was a complete animal today. I would need a long shower when I got back to the safe house, and then a longer ice nap. Those three days until Harvey’s trial were going to kill me. I didn’t want to go back to a house where everyone acted like the wor
ld’s problems were my fault.

  “Are you sure that I can’t just go back to my apartment? I don’t feel like being an outcast in that house again, even if it is only for three more days.” I don’t know why I was whining to Robert, it wasn’t like he could do anything about it.

  “Look, it’s only going to be three days, and think of it this way, you have to go to bed early on the last one so it’s really only two and a half. I’ll see if I can talk some sense into Mick. I don’t know what his problem is. It’s not like him to be so mean.”

  Oh shit. If Robert talked to Mick because I felt like I was being excluded, then he would probably get even more mad at me, and the situation would be unbearable.

  “You do whatever you think will help. I’m a prisoner in my own safe house, anyway. It doesn’t even matter. I still have some books from the last one that I haven’t read, so I’ll be entertained either way.”

  Robert chuckled. When I turned to glare at him, the chuckle turned into an outright laugh. He was obviously laughing at me for some reason, and knowing why really got under my skin because I couldn’t post a defense to it.

  “What’s so funny?” My indignant look only made him laugh harder. I could feel myself regressing back to my ten year old self, and I couldn’t help but cross my arms over my chest, and stare out the window.

  “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to laugh at you like that.”

  I continued to glare out the window as if he wasn’t even there. “It’s just that, well, you seem to be such a little spitfire, and then you get upset when the other kids on the playground ignore you.”

  That made me whip my head around. I was not some kid on a playground. I continued to ignore him, and Robert seemed to sober up.

  He sighed heavily. “I didn’t quite know what I was getting myself into when I took on the job to protect you, and now it seems that I haven’t even done that. You’re the one that’s coming up with ways to save Harvey and get back at Buruchi, even though it’s supposed to be my job. I feel like I’ve failed you.”