Netminder

by Jeff Adams

  More screams in the hallway.

  Another, smaller, explosion went off. The building creaked.

  “The floor’s gonna give!” Split Screen shouted.

  Westside got to his feet and headed for the door. His personal safety must be more important that beating me.

  Part of the ceiling came down, and I heard a cry for help.

  Split Screen.

  I couldn’t see her. Dust and smoke filled the room.

  Creaks sounded all around. The building wouldn’t last much longer.

  “Winger?” Split Screen’s voice again, weaker. “Are you here?”

  “Yes.”

  I dropped to my knees. She struggled, trapped under rubble a few feet away.

  I crawled to her and one leg was covered in heavy debris.

  “I think it’s broken,” she said. “Maybe you should go before this gets worse.” She sounded bizarrely calm.

  “No,” I said firmly. “We go together.”

  I wouldn’t leave anyone else behind.

  I moved, staying low, and worked to uncover her leg. I heard more coughing and turned to find Cornerstone.

  “Let me help?” He started moving ceiling supports.

  In no time we had her free and supported between us.

  “Too much smoke. Where should we go?” Cornerstone said, sounding panicked as we got out of the room.

  “There’s only the one staircase so it’s the only option.”

  He didn’t question that.

  The narrow staircase was a challenge, but we made it. On the first floor, we headed toward the front door. Sirens blared, and red lights flashed as people scrambled out the door.

  We were blown forward, off our feet, by another explosion. As we hit the ground, everything got fuzzy.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  WHERE WAS I?

  This didn’t look like any hospital room I’d ever seen. No window. No tray table to go over the bed. The TV sat on top of a filing cabinet instead of bolted to the wall. It played Big Hero Six and that made me smile.

  I lay in a hospital bed, though, and an IV pumped fluid into my arm. A heart monitor beeped from behind.

  I could move. Everything hurt, but it was manageable. Nothing seemed broken. I peered under the sheet. I was in boxers with the monitor leads contacted to my chest.

  I fought going back to sleep. I had a lot of questions….

  I GENTLY shifted and felt a phone under my hand. Strange. I pulled it out. It wasn’t mine.

  As I tilted it toward me, a message flashed on the screen.

  Great that you’re awake. Text back. D-Man.

  Thank God.

  I quaked hard as a jumble of emotions crashed over me.

  Was it over?

  I tapped the screen and had a hard time seeing to type as tears filled my eyes.

  The door sprang open, and Eddie ran in.

  “Thank God. They kept saying you were okay, but I couldn’t be sure.”

  “Eddie, my God. How are you here?”

  He grabbed my hand, which was really all he could get to with the bed rails up. I wanted more, but for now this was amazing.

  I couldn’t stop the tears flowing—so much happiness knowing I was around friends.

  “D-Man will be here in a minute, and the doctor’s on the way to check you over.”

  He kissed my hand multiple times between each word. I tried to sit up, and he pushed buttons on the bed rail to raise the bed so I didn’t have to move. Once upright, he dropped the rail and I pulled on his hand to bring him close for a proper kiss on the lips.

  That calmed me more than expected.

  “Is it over?” I asked when we separated.

  “Excuse me, I’m sorry.” The doctor appeared in the door. “I was very glad to hear you’re awake, Winger. It’s been thirty-six hours since you were brought in and while the tests looked good, it was still a long time to be out. If you don’t mind…?” She looked to Eddie.

  “I’d like to stay if that’s okay.”

  “Of course. I just need room to get around the bed.”

  Eddie nodded and took a few steps back.

  “I’m Montgomery,” the doctor said. “How do you feel?” She started the tests with blood pressure.

  “I hurt… all over. And tired.”

  She nodded as she moved on from blood pressure to checking pupils, listening to my chest. The emotional outburst didn’t stop, and I wept while she worked.

  Coach came in and smiled as we locked eyes. “Winger, it’s good to see your eyes open. The doctors kept saying you were fine, but—”

  “I told him the same thing,” Eddie chimed in.

  “There are people who really want to see you.” Coach held up his phone and looked at the screen. “Snowbird, Defender, I’ve got Winger here along with a civilian and Montgomery.”

  He turned the phone, so it was widescreen and Mom and Dad filled the screen. I didn’t care about the louder sobs.

  Montgomery must’ve recognized the importance of the reunion because she stepped back. Coach tried to put the phone in my hands, but I shook too much, so he held it.

  My parents weren’t in much better condition. I couldn’t tell who held the phone, but it shook on their side, and they were both crying. Dad put his hand up on the camera for the virtual hug while we couldn’t talk. Eddie circled around to the other side of the bed and let me squeeze his hand tight.

  “Where are you guys?” I finally squeaked out.

  “Toronto,” Dad said. “I just got here last night to meet up with Snowbird. We’ll be to you within the next four hours.”

  Another emotional tidal wave rolled over me, and I clamped down on Eddie’s hand tighter while Coach put his free hand on my shoulder.

  “And where am I?” I looked between the screen, Eddie, and Coach.

  “This is Hanscom Air Force Base,” Coach said. “We’re about half an hour outside Boston.”

  I nodded. I had a rough idea where the base was.

  “If I could interrupt for a moment,” Montgomery said. “I’m sorry. Let me update you, and then you can continue. Believe me, I know how intense the last few days have been.” She paused for a reassuring smile. “Winger, your vitals are good. I want to do another CT scan now that you’re awake. If that’s clear, we’ll get you discharged.”

  “D-Man, could you turn the phone to the doctor, please?” Mom said, and he did as asked. “You’re sure? The explosion and everything?”

  “I assure you, Snowbird, that we won’t let him out unless we can give him a 100 percent clean bill of health.”

  “Thank you, Montgomery.”

  “I’ll let the nurse know to have you sent for the scan as soon as you’re done. If one of you”—she looked between Coach and Eddie—“can let him know so we can get that out of the way.”

  “Yes, ma’am,” Coach said. “We’ll handle that.”

  “I’ll see you after the tests, Winger, to explain the results.”

  “Thank you,” I said with a mostly even voice.

  She departed, leaving the three of us with my parents on the phone.

  “Did Westside get away? How’s Split Screen?”

  I had many questions, but I started there.

  “The mission, or whatever that was, doesn’t matter right now, Winger,” Dad said. “All that matters is that you’re okay.”

  I shook my head so vigorously that it hurt. “No. I have to know if they’re gonna go after anybody else.”

  “Winger, it—”

  “Westside was apprehended on site,” Coach cut Dad off. “He was injured escaping the building and taken into custody along with a significant number of the people who worked there. There was so much chaos that people were either too injured or shaken to try to escape.”

  I looked at him and didn’t know what to say.

  “When Locksmith and I had to move, instead of heading farther away, we came much closer, moving into the hotel on the other side of the park from where you were. Whi
le we’d lost the ability to talk to you, we still had the security cameras and heard the plans for the test. I knew we had to support you since I had no doubt you had a plan. I chanced reaching out to an FBI contact, and she got a strike team mobilized. Oh, and Locksmith ended up finding Eddie because he disobeyed my orders and slipped out to get coffee. Eddie’d gotten away from his Dad and came back to help you.”

  Unbelievable. While things went to hell inside, these guys were preparing to storm in. And Eddie. Wow. He’d come for me. I looked up to him, and he gave a shy smile and squeezed my hand gently.

  “And Split Screen?”

  “Her leg sustained severe damage below the knee.” He looked around and his brow furrowed. “She might lose it. She’s incredibly strong, though. She’s already working with Amp and Red Hat debriefing on what she knows and working through analysis of what was recovered from the building. She was moved to HQ in Austin this morning.”

  “I guess that’s good.” Even as the words came out, they seemed wrong. “I mean… I’m glad she’s….” What were the words here? She might lose a leg, so she’s far from okay. I closed my eyes to regroup and continued to cling to Eddie’s hand.

  “Winger,” Mom said in her soothing mom voice, “you need to rest.”

  “She’s right,” Dad quickly added. “Your job is to recover.”

  “But if Split Screen—”

  “I think you’ve got your orders, Winger.” Eddie had a certain mischievous glint in his eye that I wasn’t sure I liked. Did he enjoy using that name?

  I couldn’t rest until I asked the question that scared me most. “What about Shotgun and Doc?”

  That haunted look crossed Coach’s face again.

  Dad looked to Mom and then back to the screen. I tried to brace myself. “There’s still no word on Doc. But, Shotgun….”

  “No,” I said, quietly.

  Eddie gasped.

  My hand became a vise grip on Eddie’s and I pulled him closer.

  “I should’ve….”

  “You did the right thing,” Mom said, voice strained as she tried to keep it together. “We’ve seen… we know… you came home to a horrible scene and….”

  I sobbed. I thought I had no more in me, but a torrent unleashed, even though a part of me knew this news was coming.

  Eddie dropped the rail and sat down close. I got as close to him as I could with the stupid IV tubing restraining me. “I’m so sorry.”

  “You have to know how much he’d want you to be safe,” Dad said.

  “But he—” Words came out in fits and starts. “—needed me. I….”

  “Your 911 call got the ambulance there,” Dad said. “His injuries were too severe. Even if you’d stayed, he wouldn’t have—”

  “Did I stop it?” I shouted. Eddie flinched, but didn’t let me go. “Did the test…?”

  “Oh, Th—” Mom caught herself before she said my name. “You prevented the test. The building is mostly rubble, and from what Amp says, they didn’t even have the opportunity to start the test before all hell broke loose. And, with the agent list Split Screen recovered, we’re picking up Blackbird agents around the world who had a major hand in the scheme. Locksmith’s help was also invaluable. With the network map that he had saved separately, it allowed us to move on a number of locations where we found destroyed equipment.”

  Dad picked up. “It’s not clear if Blackbird is fully dismantled, but you dealt them a major blow in terms of infrastructure and personnel.”

  I nodded. I’d done what I needed to. I relaxed and dropped my head against Eddie’s shoulder.

  “Winger?” Dad finally asked when no one had said anything for a while.

  Another mission completed. Once again barely avoiding disaster.

  “I’m sorry,” I whispered. I looked back at the phone screen and their concerned faces stared back at me.

  “For what?” Dad asked.

  “All of it. None of it?” I struggled to sit up. “I don’t know. It was all so messed-up. Some of it still is. What about Shotgun? Doc? Mitch? My God. Mitch has no idea about me. About Eddie. Coach. If we’re okay. What have I done?”

  “You did absolutely the best you could,” Mom said. Tears ran down her face and I wanted to hug her. “The people working with Mitch say he’s still shaken but okay. He hasn’t been back to school yet, but he’s physically fine with his minor injuries healing. Since the building explosion story was on TV, he’s trying to find you and us. He wants to know that you’re okay, but there’s no information to give him right now. You should know, it was Mitch who told D-Man to find Locksmith.”

  I nodded. I did that way too much. My brain was scrambled with too much information so it was all I could do sometimes. But way to go Mitch.

  “Of course, we need to figure out what the official story is before he can know anything,” Dad added.

  We were quiet for a moment. Eddie’s hand soothingly rubbed over my head.

  “Do you think we could talk to Winger alone for a few minutes?” Mom asked.

  “You gonna be okay?” Eddie asked.

  I pulled back a little and nodded weakly, trying to be strong. I wasn’t sure I would be.

  He lightly kissed my forehead before he stood. I wiped a hand across my face, trying to dry it. It didn’t seem possible I could get it so wet from crying. Coach handed me some tissues from the side table.

  “When you’re done, you can text us on this phone.” Coach held up the phone I’d initially contacted him on.

  “Thanks.”

  He put the phone Mom and Dad were on in my hand and I kept it steady. Eddie kissed me one more time before he and Coach stepped out.

  “Sorry about that,” I said, wiping at my eye more with a Kleenex.

  “Don’t be,” Dad said. “We’d be worried if you weren’t crying. You’ve been through a lot.”

  “I think we all have.”

  They nodded, and Mom pulled Dad a little closer.

  “Can I ask what’s going on with Eddie?” Mom said. “D-Man says you two found him during Mitch’s rescue. Apparently, he helped you too. Is he trustworthy?”

  “I trust him.” Mom’s eyes narrowed a bit and her mouth went to a straight line. She didn’t like this. “He said he was forced by his father. The last time I saw him before today he was being taken away, and he suspected that his father might kill him.”

  “He’s in TOS custody,” Dad said. “We’re being cautious but giving him some leeway, like being able to see you. He’s cooperated with all that we’ve asked, and he helped D-Man secure the scene at the building. But….” Dad hesitated.

  “He got me through rough days,” I said in the pause Dad left. “He’s been through a lot too. He needs our help.”

  They traded a look I couldn’t quite read. I couldn’t blame them for not liking what I said. But I couldn’t deny how crazy happy it made me when Eddie came through the door first and how he held me as I heard the worst possible news about John.

  I yawned twice, pretty big. I quickly brought a hand to my mouth to cover it.

  “Sorry. That snuck up on me.”

  That got a half smile out of Mom. “It’s okay. We’ll let you go. Call the nurse, get the test done, and rest. We’ll be there soon.”

  “Do what your mom says.” Dad winked at her, and she nudged him. Dad made a fist and bumped the camera, but before I could return it, Mom pushed his fist out of the way, so she could do it too. She never did that, and it sent all the warm feels through me. I bumped twice back—once for each of them.

  “I love you guys.”

  “We love you too,” Mom said.

  “Can’t wait to see you,” Dad added.

  The screen went dark as they disconnected.

  Thank God they were safe and on the way.

  I texted on the other phone that could go for the scan. I missed the whole thing, though, because I was asleep before anyone came to get me.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  I WOKE up a couple of hours
later to find out the scans were okay and I could be discharged.

  I got to go to another room that was clearly thrown together quickly to be as comfortable as possible. It looked like a garage sale had been raided because nothing matched, but since it was a safe place to be, I was okay with that.

  Eddie had the room next door. While he technically had the designation of detainee, he had a similar room to mine, and he told me we had free rein in the hallway. A break room across the hall had a small kitchen with a fridge, microwave, a couple of tables, and a couch that had certainly seen better days given the slight sag in the middle. We wouldn’t cook a gourmet meal, but there was a vast array of takeout to order, and we could eat together.

  Even though I wasn’t detained like Eddie, apparently I couldn’t leave this hallway either, because they were keeping me out of sight. Only a handful of people knew I was on the base.

  Coach had more freedom and thankfully went shopping at some point. He bought Eddie and me fresh clothes—all the basics from underwear and socks to jeans, T-shirts, and hoodies.

  It felt great to get a shower, do some basic warm-up stretches to loosen up, and put on clean clothes.

  My stuff was effectively gone. Nothing from my backpack could be recovered from the building. No one had been back to the hotel to recover the few things that I had there and it had been decided to abandon those. As for the stuff at home, I suspected I’d never see it again. It probably didn’t even matter.

  Eddie, Coach, and I met up in the kitchen for a snack because I wanted food. My parents, meanwhile, had landed and were due any minute, and I couldn’t wait.

  “I didn’t even ask what happened with D… um, Locksmith?” It felt odd to call him that, but codenames were all we used here. Only Eddie was exempt.

  Coach nodded as he finished chewing one of the chicken tenders. “That kid’s amazing. His skills remind me of yours. Based on the debrief I’d seen after the work you did with him before, I wasn’t sure he’d be able to handle it, but he came through like a champ. He’d be a real asset to TOS if he’s at all interested.”

  Dean had been so jittery with what had gone down at the computer science fair. This time, though, he was mostly behind a keyboard and not threatened by a bunch of gun-wielding men. I needed to thank him because I was sure this would’ve ended much differently without him.