The Fey (31 page)

“
How is Clarissa?” Alex
asked moving her eyes in an effort to wake up.

“
Oh Clarissa. She is so
blonde, beautiful and very fun.”

“
Are you actually smacking
your lips?”

“
You’re hallucinating,”
Raz said smiling.

“
Did you go dancing?” Alex
asked.

“
With you and John. You
don’t remember?” Raz asked.

“
What is John’s last
name?” Alex asked. “I keep asking people but no one will tell me.
Am I married to you?”

“
Kind of,” Raz laughed.
“Open your eyes Alex.”

“
How can I kind of be
married to you?” Alex said. She opened her eyes and felt a blast of
pain from the light. She closed her eyes again. “Ouch.”

“
We’re
partners.”

“
Oh right, we’re partners.
We are very close. I know where you are at all times. You know
where I am at all times. How come we don’t have sex?”

“
That’s a very good
question,” Raz laughed.

Alex opened her eyes to look at him then
laughed at the look on his face.

“
It would be like having
sex with my sister.”

“
You are having sex with
my sister,” Alex said.

Raz burst out laughing. “They told me you
were very high, I just didn’t believe it. I’ve seen you drink
bottles of whiskey and not get this stoned. Come on, let’s get up
and walk around.”

“
What about our
possessions?” Alex asked in a loud whisper.

“
They are locked
away.”

“
Oh great,” Alex
said.

Raz pulled her to standing and they began
walking up and down the aisle of the jet.

“
You know, when Jesse was
on Ketamine, he became crazy angry.” Alex said. She weaved down in
the aisle at Raz’s side. “He’d stomp around screaming and swearing
at the walls. Matthew? He’d roll up in a ball and giggle, like a
little kid being tickled. I’d tell you what Troy does, but I
promised him on pain of death that I would never tell a soul. Me?
I’d hallucinate for a while, usually about Minnie and Mickey Mouse,
then fell asleep.”

“
I’ve wondered if someone
had your file,” Raz said. He snatched at her shirt to keep her from
walking into the wall. “When was the last time your reaction to
Ketamine was tested?”

“
Three years ago? I think
my tolerance has changed after all those surgeries.”

They walked in silence down to the cockpit
then turned and walked back. Gasping, Alex stopped walking. She put
her hands to her face as her eyes welled with tears.

“
Honey, what happened?
What’s wrong? He pulled her into his arms.

“
I had this dream that
Claire made the most beautiful dress for me,” she said into his
shoulder. “I’ve never seen anything so beautiful.”

“
I think that happened,”
Raz said.

“
Oh,” Alex said. “That
means… Oh… I think I’d rather go back to sleep.”

Breaking from his embrace, she plopped back
down in her seat, crossed her arms, and closed her eyes. Raz made a
face and pulled her to standing again.

“
Let’s keep walking,” he
said. “We can handle everything if we’re awake.”

“
How many people did I
kill?” Alex asked.

“
Two not counting the guy
who fell off the stairs,” Raz replied. “You shot one in the
forehead and broke the other’s neck. Ben said you did it Chuck
Norris style–reverse roundhouse kick.”

“
Chuck Norris’s victims
get up at the end of the work day and go home.”

“
Ben gave the police your
body armor and explained what happened. There will be an inquiry,
and we’ll have to spend some more time in Paris to clear it
up…”

“
Now you are smacking your
lips.”

“
I’ve become very fond of
the flavor of chocolate crepes,” Raz said, “and
Clarissa.”

Alex laughed.

“
Ben said it’s no big
deal. The men are non-nationals, no passports, Interpol most wanted
list, exactly what we expected.”

“
Well, hopefully they get
their virgins.”

“
I’ve never understood the
draw,” Raz said. He steered Alex away from another wall. They
walked back down the aisle.

“
Thank you for saving my
life.”

“
I don’t have any idea how
we found that hallway. Maybe it’s not me you should
thank.”

“
That’s what Ben
said.”

“
We ran down the hall. You
were so pale… and your secondary ID tag was gone. Everyone’s
secondary tag was gone. We thought you were dead. Ben couldn’t feel
your pulse. We were…upset. Ben went into the room to see if anyone
was alive. I was standing guard in the doorway when I thought at
least I can bring your body home to the family. I kneeled down and
kissed you. You opened your eyes then said my name. Do you
remember?”

“
I only remember you
carrying me through the room full of people. Where was
that?”

“
The police were at Le Fee
Verte when we arrived. Someone killed the clerk and a few of the
patrons who tried to help her.”

“
What? I had a
conversation with the clerk a few hours ago. She was making me an
absinthe.”

Raz shook his head.

“
Today? The blonde clerk?
Tall? I’m sorry, Alex, that was a hallucination. She was killed,
stabbed, two years ago. I carried you through the shop then you
begged me to stay with you. You kept saying ‘he’ll take me if you
leave’. Any idea who ‘he’ is?”

They were at the end of the hallway again,
near the cockpit. Alex began visibly shaking. The information
triggered a physical flashback, Alex stopped walking. Holding her
close, Raz pressed her against the wall and whispered, ‘just
breathe, just breathe.’ She stood shaking in his safe arms until
she caught her breath and nodded. He stepped back. Taking her hand,
he led her back down the aisle.

“
I stayed with you until
you went into surgery in Germany. Then the Army made me leave. The
Admiral locked security down tight. They wouldn’t even let your
father see you. They barely let Zack fly you. I met your helicopter
when you arrived at Walter Reed. But after the first surgery, you
never awakened.”

“
Thank you for taking such
special care of me,” she said.

Looking deep into her eyes, he smiled then
stroked her face.

“
Tell me about Samantha.”
Alex tried for a neutral topic.

“
I like Samantha,” he
said. “We’re just getting to know each other which is fun. It’s fun
to have the desire to get to know someone, you know?”

Alex nodded.

“
I think she likes me. We
enjoy similar things and know different things. She spent an entire
day showing me around the Denver Art Museum and I spent a day
touring her through the Smithsonian.”

“
In
Washington?”

Raz nodded. “We’re meeting in New York City
for a show in a month or so. I’m her date to the Fey Team
anniversary ceremony. She’s such an adult, your sister. She expects
me to be available when we schedule time and otherwise knows that
I’m doing other things. It’s nice.”

“
But not love,” Alex
said.

“
No, it’s not love,” Raz
said. He held her eyes again. “And that’s nice too.”

They walked down to the end then turned.

“
How are you
feeling?”

“
Crappy. I’d like nothing
more than to go to my home, take a bath in my bathtub and sleep in
my bed.”

“
I know,” he said. “We
have to run you through medical at Buckley then we’ll head back to
the hotel for a bath.”

She nodded then sighed.

“
It’s a lot,” he said.
“Why do you think this hasn’t broken you? I went through less than
this and completely fell apart.”

“
You watched your wife and
her lover jump from the North World Trade Center Tower on 9-11. You
were less than fifty-feet from where they hit the pavement. That’s
a bit more than losing your home…”

“
And family and husband
and job and team and health and…”

“
Bees. That’s what makes
me the most mad. They killed four of my beehives.”

Raz smiled.

“
I guess I’m still Max’s
twin. That’s who I am.”

“
They’re coming for
Max.”

Alex nodded then smiled. “It will be
interesting to watch them try.”

“
There isn’t a file on Max
Hargreaves.”

Alex nodded.

“
Let’s get steaks
tonight.”

“
I’ll take you anywhere
you’d like to go.” He caught her hand and turned her toward him.
Holding her eyes, he added, “my love.”

He raised his eyebrows and Alex laughed.

F

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Nine hours later

September 29 – 3:21 A.M.

Downtown Denver, Colorado

Alex woke with a start. Her heart pounded
against her rib cage. She had no idea where she was or what woke
her. She was simply awake in the dark. Sitting up, she noticed that
she was in a hotel room. She patted the bed next to her. John
wasn’t there. Moving to sit on the side of the bed, she heard the
sound again.

The phone was ringing.

She reached to turn on a bedside lamp then
realized she didn’t know where the light switch was located. Her
hand fumbled around for a few moments before she gave up. Standing
up, she moved toward the light under the hall door and clicked on
the light.

Ah shit. The light brought a round of
Ketamine induced nausea and head splitting pain. There’s got to be
coffee here somewhere. She wandered into the bathroom, then heard
the phone ring again.

Ah well, they’ll call back.

Turning on the bathroom light, she blinked
at the bright light and grimaced at her reflection. She was wearing
panties and someone’s big T-shirt. Her fake hair was crumpled,
standing straight up in some places and flat in others. It looked
like she had gone to sleep with wet hair…

Oh right. Alex remembered that she was at
the hotel in downtown Denver. Her one bag of clothing was in Paris.
Glancing at the half open suite door, Raz was across the suite. She
nodded at her reflection. Turning on the faucet, she wet her hair
trying to flatten it out.

She and Raz went to dinner at Elway’s. They
ate steak, drank wine and laughed. Alex insisted they eat some
salad which they fed to each other. Raz ordered every chocolate
dessert on the menu. Groaning and laughing, they managed to eat
them. She smiled. She had such a good time with Raz.

When they returned, he ran a bath for her,
set his T-shirt on bed, then left for a date. She scratched her
head trying to remember who he saw last night. She could probably
just go across the suite to find out who was there. She chuckled to
herself.

The phone started ringing again.

Fuck.

Getting up from the commode, she went back
into the hotel room to look for the telephone. She had never used
the phone in this room. The clock’s red digital letters cast light
on the phone sitting on top of the desk . The phone’s over there!
Feeling like she had accomplished something, Alex picked up the
phone.

“
Hello?”

“
Hello my dear,” Eleazar’s
voice purred in Hebrew.

Alex set the phone down. Dropping into the
chair next to the desk, Alex stared at the telephone. She hadn’t
expected that.

She knew she should get Raz. She knew she
should call into command. She knew she should have the call traced.
She knew that she should not pick up the telephone.

But when the phone rang again, she picked it
up.

“
What do you want?” Alex
asked in Hebrew.

“
Now is that anyway to
speak to an old friend?” Eleazar purred.

“
You are no friend of
mine,” she said.

“
How are you
feeling?”

“
What do you want?” Alex
yelled into the phone.

The door to the suite banged opened and Raz
stood in the doorway wearing white boxer shorts. Walking over to
her, he wrenched the phone from her hand. He listened at the ear
piece then slammed the receiver down into the phone.

“
What the fuck are you
doing?” he said. “That was Eleazar. God damn it Alex. What are you
thinking?”

Leaning her elbows on her knees, Alex shook
her head.

“
Your mind is fragile from
the Ketamine.”

The phone rang and Raz pulled the phone line
from the wall. Alex looked up at him and blinked. She had no idea
why he was so angry.

“
I can’t help myself,” she
said. “I feel compelled to speak with him, to find out what exactly
it is that he wants.”

“
Alex, he planted that in
your mind. All of those phone calls conditioned you to want to
speak to him again. It’s classic psychological programming. You
know that.”

Alex nodded. Her cell phone began ringing.
She put her hands over her ears.

Realizing that his anger was also hitting
her fragile mind, he pulled her up into his arms. “Oh honey, I’m
sorry. Let’s do it together. Give me two minutes.”

When he released her from the hug, Alex
plopped back into the chair. Dropping her head into her hands, she
rubbed her forehead back and forth against her hands. She looked up
to see Raz return wearing blue jeans and talking on his cell phone.
She watched the muscles in his taut abdomen move side to side as he
walked toward her.