Chapter 33

There is nothing quite as humbling as being forced to recognize and accept your own mistakes and shortcomings.

I sat on the backless stool before the small round table and examined the chess pieces arrayed over its top. I heard movement and looked up. Facing me across the table were my grandfather, my mother, Carlie and my dark shadowy self.

I looked back to the chess pieces. There were fewer of them than the last time I remembered. Izzy, Lilly and Peggy were off to one side with pieces that looked like Dr. Wills and Mr. Jones and my own piece was alone in the center, flanked by two large blood red figures without faces; lined up behind each of them were ranks of much smaller pieces of a similar color, equally faceless.

"I screwed up."

'Yes, you did.' Granddad said.

'You're young and you're going to make mistakes. It's to be expected.' Mom added gently.

"I let my ego get in the way. I thought I had everything under control. I should have listened to Jones. He said to keep my guard up."

'You didn't know there would be more than one.' Carlie said. 'You didn't know they'd try to take one of the girls.'

'Sure he did. It's the one thing we were most worried about, but he got cocky and figured the kid was all there was.' The darkness snarled.

"He's right. I got sloppy and arrogant. And because of me Peggy and Anya got hurt."

'You didn't hurt them. You may not have protected them as well as you could have, but you didn't hurt them.' Granddad argued.

'There is nothing you can do to protect them all the time, lover. You've got to accept that even you have limitations. No one can be everywhere; no one can anticipate every little thing that can go wrong. If you mean what you say about letting them live their own lives you'll have to accept the potential consequences.' Carlie admonished.

'Life sucks... but it's better than the alternative.' Granddad reminded me.

'We need to stop reacting to their plans and start making our own. They have power of their own and they aren't hesitant to use it against us. It's time we hit back and kept them off balance.' my shadow self advised.

'Much as I hate to admit it, he's right. The longer you wait, the more likely they'll try again. And the more chances they have, the more likely they are to succeed.' Granddad said.

'Stop them and put an end to this foolishness.' Mom said firmly.

'Destroy their credibility, destroy their power base, and destroy them.' Carlie agreed.

"Fine. Anyone got any bright ideas how I'm supposed to do that?"

'Stop waiting for them to come to you. Take the war to them.' the shadow snarled.

'Put on your camouflage and get behind their lines.' Granddad said.

'Pick 'em off from cover.' Mom advised.

'Crush them in front of their own troops.' Carlie said sweetly. 'When you're done with them, come to Dover and see me. There's someone I want you to meet.'

Huh?

I was trying to make sense out of that last sentence when the annoying electronic 'boop-boop' noise intruded on my thoughts and forced me back into the waking world.

Have I mentioned how much I detest that sound? It's enough to make me want to stop my heart just so I don't have to hear it.

Opening my eyes slowly I discovered that the room was dark, which was a welcome relief. I let my eyes adjust to the low level of light and looked around. To the left was the annoying machine that made the annoying 'boop-boop' noise, its little screen alive with a bouncing neon blip that danced endlessly across the backlit grid.

I suppose I should have been pleased to have concrete proof of my continued existence, but the dryness in my mouth and the pain in my chest and belly overrode any pleasure I might have felt.

On my right side was a tall metal stand with a pair of hooks on it, and from the hooks hung plastic bags, one half filled with what looked like pale blood and the other with clear fluid. Thin tubes ran from the bags to my right arm, disappearing beneath a heavy patch of gauze and white tape.

I looked around the room and saw a figure sitting in a chair next to the door. I linked with the person, ready to do terrible things if I didn't like what I found.

The annoying little machine started making more urgent and demanding noises.

The figure in the chair sat up straight and got to its feet. I felt the heartbeat increase and a sensation of relief spread thru them.

"You're awake." the man's voice said softly.

"I'm awake." I admitted. "Who are you?"

"I'm going to turn on the overhead light." He warned me.

He reached out and flicked up the light switch and the room filled with a blinding white florescent glow.

I blinked rapidly and refocused on the man. I'd seen this guy before, but I didn't know him.

"I know you, but I don't know you." I mumbled.

"We've never met, no. You met my partner in the park across from your father's house. You probably saw me sitting in the car."

I nodded my head. That's where I'd seen him, only a brief profile but enough to stick in my memory.

"You guys got stuck babysitting me again, huh?" I said weakly.

"Could be worse." he said lightly. "I could be sitting in a cold car in the middle of a snow storm watching some nut strip down and roll around on the ground."

"Ahhhh. So you've seen some of my finest moments."

"Well, they can't all be Saint Crispin's Day speeches, can they?"

"I don't see why not. Where are we?"

"Bethesda Naval Hospital."

"How are Peggy and Anya?"

He looked puzzled for an instant. "I don't know. Wait a moment and I'll have Mr. Jones come down and talk with you."

"Thanks." I rasped.

He opened the door and stepped out. I heard him speaking with someone outside the door then he came back in and shut the door.

"Mr. Jones will be up in a few moments. Would you like a drink of water? You're probably pretty dry."

"Yes, please."

He approached the rolling tray that stood next to the annoying machine and picked up an ugly blue/green plastic cup with a rounded cover and a straw sticking out of it. He carried it to me and tilted it enough so that I could catch the straw between my lips and suck down some cold water.

I released the straw and let my head fall back against the thin pillows. "Thank you."

He nodded and put the cup back on the tray.

There was a single knock on the door and my guardian whipped out his pistol and went to see who was there.

Mr. Jones came in and the other man put his pistol away and resumed his position in the chair by the door.

"You are going to make an old man of me if you keep doing things like this." Jones said.

"Sorry about that. I fucked up and let my guard down after the kid showed up."

"What kid?" Jones asked.

"A kid named Tim... he said he was Davenport's nephew... he showed up not long after you called. He was like me and tried to kill me. Said he'd killed before and his uncle told him I was dangerous and had to be eliminated. You won't find his body. Maybe some ashes beneath the snow on the front drive."

"Bloody hell!"

"I know, I should have called you right after it happened, but the weather turned and it was snowing and I got arrogant and figured I had everything under control. It never occurred to me there might have been more than just the kid. I only got worried when Peggy and Anya had been outside for a while. How are they?"

"One of the bones in her forearm was broken. It's been set and she'll have to wear a cast for a few weeks but otherwise she's fine. Anya took a nasty blow to the back of her head. Her skull was broken and she suffered a severe concussion, but the doctors think she's going to be fine. In fact, they're amazed at the rate of her recovery. Almost as much as they are at yours."

"She would never have gotten hurt if I'd been paying attention."

"No, you're wrong about that. Those men were pros. They knew what they were doing and if Anya and Peggy hadn't stumbled on them outside, they would have gotten inside the house and things could have been much worse."

"Things are bad enough now."

"I was surprised that you left one alive for us to interrogate. Well, two, but we could only talk to the one with no eyes. The other one, I'm assuming the leader, was stark raving bonkers."

"He held a gun to Peggy's head and tried to use her for a hostage."

Jones nodded. "And the blind man?"

"He put the knife in me. I was trying to get him to tell me where Peggy was."

"Any idea who shot you?"

"Probably the one holding Peggy, but I'm not sure. Doesn't matter anyway."

"I suppose not. You lucked out though. That bullet missed your spine by an inch and a half. You could have been killed or paralyzed. The knife wound was bad enough, it punctured your lung, but at least you had enough sense to leave it in and call for help."

"How are the girls? Are they safe?"

He leaned close and whispered very softly into my ear. "They are with the Doctor." He stood up and backed away a bit. "Anya is here, next door to you. We've got people in your rooms and covering the floor. No one gets in unless I or my people know who they are. So don't go Code Blue on me or you could end up in the morgue and you know how pissed off Dr. Wills would be if that happened."

I smiled at the man. "I'll do my best. Do me a favor, would you?"

"If I can."

"Tell Anya none of this is her fault. She did everything I could have expected her to. If I could get up I'd tell her myself."

"I'll tell her."

I nodded and fell asleep.

Loud voices outside the door brought me awake with a start. I looked around the room and saw that the chair was empty. I tore the wires that connected me to that annoying little machine off my body and climbed out of the bed on the side with the stand that held the twin bags that dripped fluid into my arm. Pushing it with one hand I moved across the room to stand next to the chair. I waited while the voices outside gained in volume and virulence. The door swung open and someone stepped in.

"The bed's empty." the man called back over his shoulder.

"Check the bathroom." someone else said.

The figure stepped fully inside and the door closed behind him. I reached out with my right hand and clamped a hand around his mouth and jaw. Linking quickly I flooded him with terror and fear. His eyes rolled back into his head while I continued to overwhelm his emotions. He stopped struggling after five seconds and I sat his body down in the chair.

Moving around him I opened the door and pushed the stand thru and followed it out. The man who'd been guarding me earlier was confronting another fellow. I linked with the man and crushed his feelings, ripping them out and filling the space with hopelessness and fear. He dropped to the floor. The guard turned at the sound of the door and saw me, then quickly turned back to watch the man in front of him fall down and start crying.

I looked up and down the hall. I didn't see anyone else that wasn't wearing white.

"What the hell is going on?" I demanded.

"Federal Marshals. They have a warrant for your arrest and came to take you into custody."

"Wonderful. Is Anya still in the room next door?"

"Yes. They only wanted you."

"How the hell do they keep finding me?" I wondered aloud.