Twenty Eight
When I make it home, I have a full house of women. My life has truly evolved into a hell. I once envied Spencer for having multiple girls after him. I regret that wholeheartedly.
But here’s the strange thing, after all the time I spent preparing myself to enter the apartment, nothing happens. When I walk in, all the ladies continue talking and greet me as though I were never injured. I wave silently. For a brief second, I open my eyes and take in all of their amazing color.
Before Angie looks over, I close them again. “What’s wrong?” she asks calmly. “Oh. We just had dinner. You didn’t tell us when you’d get here.”
She’s helping Hayley load the dishes. Though Hayley’s putting up a great front, she can’t speak. If she does, it’ll turn into rage or a flood of tears. That will likely cause the others to cry with her. I prefer the silence.
“I need a serious shower,” I stutter.
Cautiously, I stroll through the room.
“Cool. I’ll make you something for when you get out,” Hayley articulates loudly.
Angie holds Hayley’s hand sweetly. Carmen continues flipping through the channels and waves at me without turning around.
Hayley’s voice booms as she states, “I do want to say one thing.” That obviously took some effort, but she doesn’t continue. As a motivator, Angie elbows her in the ribs. The pain is enough to make her cough up the rest, “I was really proud when you kicked her ass. But here’s the thing, sweetie, you can’t keep going into matches looking to get hurt. I know you’re a tough guy and all, but you probably could have surprised her with a few punches and beaten her without any effort.”
Angie smiles and leans on the kitchen counter. “Nice, but stop telling him how to beat me.”
Now, Hayley’s too distracted to care about my recovery. She blabbers, “No. He needs to know. I never want to see you take that much damage on purpose again. It was fine against Arnold, but as you move up in the world, it’s going to be taxing on your body. That’s why....” her eyes water and she stares at the bandages.
“Okay,” I reply with a smile. “Wait, no. The punches really push me. It stirs up my blood and gets me motivated.”
Hayley rushes over to me shouting, “No way! You’re motivated by pain?”
“It’s all I know.”
“I hate to say this, but keep doing it. If taking a punch is what helps you up, go for it. But, dodge the ones near your face and vital organs. You can move around to avoid the direct hits while still feeling the attacker’s power.”
“That’s not a bad idea. Taking that blow to the back of my head was rough.”
“Exactly! Now go take a shower because you stink.” I kiss Hayley on the cheek. She screams with a magnificent smile and rushes back to the sink to wipe off the dirt. As I enter the bathroom she yells, “I still love the kiss, but you’re filthy.”
A few minutes into my shower, I hear a knock on my door. It’s Professor Gardezi and he’s looking for me.
I drain the tub and allow the bandages to dry for five minutes.
The girls make him a snack and cram onto the couch together. Carmen flips through the channels, but Hayley makes her turn back to the news. They’re showing my interview with Janet. Angie watches it intensively. She seems much more serious than I thought she’d be. It isn’t until she hears my final line about her and Seth that she finally breaks a smile. Hayley leans over and squeezes her shoulders gently.
Still drying my dreads, I walk out to greet my professor. “Hey Gardezi.” He laughs at my Texas Borders neonball shorts. I know he’s a Smogmen fan.
“Kay! Glad to see you’re doing okay, little man.” He slaps me on the shoulder affectionately.
“Thanks,” I cringe as the pain stretches across my entire body. When Gardezi folds his arms, I notice a really bad cut on his forearm that didn’t heal properly. Normally, he’d wear his long sleeved shirts down to his wrists, but he’s also the type of guy that enjoys showing off his battle scars. His sleeves are rolled up for a reason. “What happened to your arm?”
Gardezi slowly covers his right hand with his left and hangs his head. “That’s kind of why I came here. I want to apologize for the fight you had to put up and say I’m sorry for the injuries you endured.”
“No problem. It’s not your fault.”
“Actually, it is. I’m the one that put you on the search team.”
“So?”
“Didn’t you hear? Maria’s been locked up for creating those monsters and letting them free. I’m the one that had to capture her.” He uncovers his scar. I imagine that capturing that psychotic woman would lead to more problems than a grotesquely bruised arm.
“No. I’m sure Gonzales wouldn’t attack me. Plus, she couldn’t have made that many creatures.”
“She admitted that they were hers, but denies letting them loose.”
Carmen interrupts, “Why would she shoot him with a tranq?”
“What?” Gardezi looks perplexed. He scratches the back of his head and keeps his eyes glued to Carmen.
She runs between us and removes a small device, no larger than my pinky, from her pouch. “When I worked on Kay, I pulled this out of his neck. It was invisible to the naked eye, but we found it during his first body scan. Seth ran tests on it and discovered traces of benzodiazepine and other powerful chemicals.”
Gardezi lowers his head and sighs as he removes the empty tranquilizer from her hand.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
He runs his finger across the needle on the edge of the device and while examining it. “Nothing. You mind if I take this and look into it?”
“You know who makes these, don’t you.”
“Yeah. Jules.”
“How’d you know it was Gonzales’ creatures with so many other scientist in the area?”
“I found out—after speaking with Jules—that she was upset you ruined the mission over some little girl. She planned to get her revenge.”
“How did I ruin the mission?”
Gardezi rests his large hand on the crown of my head. “You never brought back the computers and the lab was destroyed. Did Angie knock out your memory?”
“But you didn’t really want the computers. You wanted the location of the lab in Florida.”
Gardezi’s eyes light up. Even Atlas’ tattoo on his back shines momentarily.
“You have the coordinates?”
“We all have them,” I say while looking at the girls. “I texted it to everyone before we entered the building.”
A beaming smile stretches across Carmen’s watermelon lips as she removes her phone from her pocket. She enters the date of the mission and searches through her list of text messages. Then, she shows Gardezi the text I sent her outside of the building.
“Those are just random numbers.” He waves his hand to dismiss her phone.
“Yeah, but add all three text messages and you’ll have the coordinates for the location.”
Angie smacks me in the back of the head and flares, “You mean we never had to go in?”
“Ow. And yes. They told you and Monte to bring the computers, right? My purpose was to get you past security.”
Gardezi lifts me into the air and spins me around. “Well, I have a mission for you.”
“I bet you do.”
“Are you up for it?”
“Hell yeah. I need to get that information to prove Gonzales had nothing to do with the attack.”
“Why do you insist on that? You think Jules is behind it; don’t you? He’s not that bad of a guy. Someone could be setting him up too.”
“No. I’m just aware of how much she loves those animals. She’d never send that many after me. If she wanted revenge, she’d release the one she’s breeding on the seventh floor. She started feeding him mortal level barcodes still attached to their human hosts just to see if he could give me a challenge. Last I checked, he was four times your size and she often rides on his shoulders. It’s a twisted relationship.”
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br /> Gardezi slaps his hands together. “I’ll help you in any way I can. I’ll call the prison tomorrow and stop them from transferring her upstate until we get this cleared up. Make sure your team’s ready to go tomorrow.”
The second Gardezi leaves, Angie and Carmen back me into a wall with their fingers in my chest. They’re staring me down again and I don’t like it.
“Why didn’t you tell them about the coordinates?” Carmen inquires with pink cheeks.
“And what plan do you have rooting in your brain?” Angie adds while leaning closer to my face. Carmen pulls her back because she gets too close.
Turning to Angie, I remind her, “Monte was going to kill them once he got the information, right? I was giving them more time.”
She nods, and Carmen says, “But you didn’t answer her question. What plot do you have brewing?”
I bolt past the two women and rush into Hayley’s arms. Stretching out on the couch, I lean against my mom. “Only time will tell.”
Angie saunters over to us and punches me in the thigh. Carmen covers her mouth as I grab my leg and pant due to the throbbing pain.
I look to Hayley for protection, but she only giggles and rubs my head. “You should answer.”
The gladiator princess prepares to strike again, but I refuse to endure another punch. Quickly, I confess, “I was in the coma for too long and I’m sure time’s running out. I need to get closer to Monte because he really wants this information.”
Carmen eases towards the couch. “You’re going to use it as bait to draw her out?”
“Yeah. I have this addiction to the cave. I go whenever the pain is too much. It took me time to realize, but Eve’s just as addicted to its potential. She needs it to heal her arm.”
Angie sits next to Hayley and leans her head on my mom’s shoulders. The princess focuses her eyes on the television and confesses, “I told myself I wouldn’t work with the professors again, but if it helps you hunt down Eve, I’ll be there. Under one condition.”
“What?”
“When you fight her, let me help you.”