Strange New Feet Read online

  Sue’s knees give out and she drops to the floor.

  *******

  That afternoon, Safia sits at the Nash Prison table. Her foot is tapping incessantly, raw energy that has no release. It is not confusion, but anger she feels as she waits. Bill meets her eyes immediately this time. He has heard the news. She doesn’t wait for him to sit.

  “Did you know?”

  “Yes.” He lowers himself, not breaking her glare, almost welcoming the anger rushing at him.

  “Why? Why didn’t you say anything? Tell somebody. How long have you known? Is that why you were sent there to live with them? You completely betrayed them…and us…everyone.” The powerful emotions begin to overwhelm her and she clamps both hands over her mouth and closes her eyes.

  “I knew when I went there.”

  He is going to be honest with her. She opens her eyes and blinks, a little shocked that there isn’t going to be a battle for answers.

  He seems relieved, his words spilling out in the space between them. “Part of the plan was to keep her a secret for as long as possible, to let her grow up. They wanted her to be aware of her situation so the impact would be greater. She would have a voice, an opinion and a new perspective on what it means to be human. I…I was just supposed to go there, befriend them and make sure she was ready to be revealed. But, I got to know her and Sue and god, they were great, you know? I mean, I really began to think the world of them, to fall in love with them both. Then the reality of what we had done hit me. This little girl and this loving mother were about to be put through hell. I mean hell. The world as they knew it would cease to exist…it would be ripped apart because of some damn idealistic idea. Suddenly, I just couldn’t let that happen. I knew that Sue could never find out what her daughter really was. It would kill her. And poor Olivia, she didn’t deserve to have the world hate her. She’s just so sweet.” He broke then, his head fell into his hands and sobs began to shake his frail shoulders. “So…damn…sweet.” The words come out on air pushed from heaving lungs. “I’m…so…sorry.”

  Reaching across the table, Safia rests her fingertips gently on his forearm. “Maybe the world won’t hate her, Bill. Maybe they’ll love her like we do. Bill, in Dr. Vogler’s statement, he said he was the only one who knew about this. Are you saying everyone knew?”

  “No,” he shakes his head. “No, just a few of us, just Dr. Mills, Shar and me.”

  “Okay,” she thinks. “Will you testify against Dr. Mills and Shar? They should be held accountable, too. Maybe it would reduce you sentence.”

  An eerie kind of calm softens the lines around his mouth. He leans back, signaling to the guard he is done. “Nothing can help Olivia now, Miss Raine. And my sentence? My sentence is self-imposed.”

  Chapter 15

  Lighting hits the ground right beside them. Olivia screams, exposing long sharp incisors, her eyes wild, her strong arms beating Safia’s back as she tries desperately to carry her out of the pelting rain. Her desperate shrieks morph into ringing. No, it’s a distant noise…separate.

  Safia’s eyes fly open, her heart jumps. The ringing is still there. Flinging the hair out of her face, she feels around in the sheets for the phone. She must have fallen asleep with it after talking to her mother last night. “Damn it, where are you.” Her legs are tangled up. Finally, she comes up with it and, falling back on the pillow, she forces sound through her dry throat.“Hello?”

  “Hey, hon,” Rita says. “I know you aren’t planning on coming in ‘til this afternoon, but there’s a problem. News of Olivia’s scheduled discharge today has been leaked. Just thought I’d warn you, you may want to use the back entrance. It’s a mad house in front of the hospital.”

  Safia’s heart sinks. “The press?”

  “The press, protesters, supporters…every freak in the city who can make a sign.”

  Safia rubs her eyes and glances at the clock. “But it’s only eight thirty in the morning. How’d this happen so fast?”

  “The press got wind of it last night. They’ve been camped out here, trying to sneak into the hospital, get information from whoever will talk to them. Local police have moved in to try and control things. Someone said CBN announced it in their eleven o’clock broadcast.”

  “Well, that was nice of them. Public servants and all, right?” Safia stares at the ceiling and then rubs her eyes hard, “Bastards.”

  “Yeah.”

  “They’re not going to leave her alone are they, Rita?” She almost chokes on the thought.

  “Maybe, eventually.”

  “That wasn’t very convincing,” Safia pushes the words out with an attempted laugh.

  “Yeah, well. That’s because I’m not very convinced.”

  “Okay, give me a half an hour.”

  “Call when you get here and I’ll run down and open the back emergency door for you.”

  “Okay, see you soon.”

  *******

  No taxi today. Jogging clears her mind, plus she has the advantage of looking like a jogger, which means that as she gets closer to the hospital, she will not be accosted by the press. It is a madhouse, just as Rita said—hordes of press trucks with satellite dishes, crowds of people shouting, waving signs, and lining the sidewalks. She can feel the collective energy blocks away. Keeping her head down, she turns left and jogs down a side street, with neat little rows of box houses squished together, until she comes to the back parking lot. There she stops, breathing hard, and walks through the sea of cars. In a few minutes, she comes to the backside of the gardens and weaves her way through the tall, neatly squared off bushes, around the fountain and lunch tables. Surprisingly, there are only a few officers patrolling the grounds and a few people in tight groups around the tables. She makes her way to the East wing elevator and punches in her code.

  “Oh, hey…you made it in.” Rita gives her a quick hug.

  “Yeah, no problems in the courtyard.”

  “Yet,” Dr. Ackers interjects. “Maybe we should release her early. Take her through the back courtyard before they start surrounding the hospital.”

  “This is just so insane.” Safia drops into a chair.

  “The problem is, we can’t have a large escort for her, or that will tip them off for sure.”

  “Maybe we should take them out separately. They don’t know what she looks like right?”

  Dr. Ackers and Rita share a glance.

  “What?”

  “She hasn’t seen the news,” Rita tells him.

  He sighs. “Someone snapped a picture of her here in the hospital. It’s kind of fuzzy, but it’s a pretty decent shot of her face. Good enough that she’ll be recognized.”

  “And the news showed this? They can’t do that. She’s a minor!”

  ”Yeah, well. We had Caden West call the station for Sue this morning and he talked to their attorney, threatening a lawsuit, trying to get them to stop showing it.”

  “What did they say?”

  “Their lawyer basically said that the laws are set up to protect…human rights. They said the courts would have to decide if she was human. Meanwhile, they feel they are protecting the public by exposing her.”

  “WHAT! They can’t be serious? She’s just a child. Protecting the public from what?”

  “They don’t care about the public,” Rita scoffs. “Or Olivia.”

  “What if we took her out in an ambulance?”

  “Maybe on a gurney.”

  “Not a bad idea.”

  “That would really scare her,” Safia says. “I just came through the back parking lot and there’s nobody there. We could put a hat on her, walk her out the back.”

  “My car’s parked back there,” Rita offers. “Sometimes the simplest solution is the best one.”

  “All right, let’s do it quickly. I’ll have Caden take Sue out separately. We’ll dress one of the smaller nurses in Olivia’s clothes as a decoy. You can meet up with him…where?”

  “How about Jiffy Gas off the Pen Street exit
. It’s far enough away, and we can just jump right back on the highway to get them home.”

  “Let’s do it.”

  *******

  “I like this elevator,” Olivia whispers, pressing her palms and the brim of the baseball hat against the smoked glass. “Can we ride it again?”

  “Well, we have to hurry so we can meet your mom at the gas station. But, you can come back to visit and ride it, okay?” Safia peers over her shoulder at the gardens below. Good, there are a few more people moving about the paths and gathering at the cement tables, but they seem to be just hospital staff and uniformed officers. She looks over her shoulder and nods at Rita. In a few moments the elevator stops and Safia takes Olivia by the hand and adjusts her hat so it sits lower, almost covering her eyes.

  “I can’t see,” Olivia giggles.

  “It’s okay, you just follow me. I’ll lead you.”

  Rita steps out first and slips on sun glasses. Safia follows, holding Olivia between them. Rita takes the path straight down the center of the gardens. They decided this would be safest so no one could see them if they were watching from the street.

  “The flowers smell pretty,” Olivia smiles up at Safia.

  “Yes, they do. See if you can count the pebbles, Olivia.” Safia feels a nervous twinge and needs Olivia to keep her head down. She knows Rita’s trying to maintain a casual pace to keep from drawing attention to them, but an urge to run is pressing up against her back and moving through her veins. She feels exposed. Stay calm. She takes a breath in through her nose and tries to focus, but the adrenaline is making her legs feel shaky. She stumbles, her toe catching the edge of a stone and lurches forward.

  BANG!

  Safia screams, her ears ringing from the explosion directly behind them and instinctively throws herself on top of Olivia. They both tumble to the ground. Now Olivia is screaming beneath her.

  “Shh, shh, it’s okay.” Safia has the girl’s face in both her hands now, trying to get her to open her eyes. She wipes an orange streak of mud from her face. “Olivia, open your eyes. It’s okay.” Olivia’s screams settle into whimpers as she pushes her face into Safia’s shoulder. Safia lifts herself up on one elbow, keeping the other arm wrapped protectively around Olivia, and glances behind them. Rita has crawled over.

  “Jesus, is she okay?”

  “I think so.” They are both staring at the chaos happening not twenty feet behind them. One man is on the ground face down, his arms pinned sharply behind his back by another man who has his knee pressed into the guy’s back. The black shape of a gun rests a few feet away. Uniformed officers are rushing toward them. They pull the guy off. Safia pushes herself up.

  “It can’t be,” she whispers. “Anders Grey?”

  The cops exchange words with Anders and then one of them cuffs the man on the ground. He’s not moving. The other is putting on rubber gloves and picks up the gun. Holding Olivia tightly to her chest, and with Rita’s help, she stands. Two officers are walking toward them. Anders is with them.

  “Everyone okay here?” one of the officers asks. “Is this the girl?”

  Safia nods, still holding Olivia close to her and stares at Anders. “Look, we’re just trying to get her out of here safely. If you need a statement or something, my name is Safia Raine and I work here. I’ll be back later. We just need to get her out of here.”

  “Okay, Miss Raine. Do you want us to escort you?”

  “I’ll do it,” Anders says. “Come on.” He places a light hand on the small of her back. She looks at Rita questioningly, not sure whether to trust him or not. He seems to sense her doubt. He leans closer to her, letting her look directly in his eyes. “You can trust me, Miss Raine.”

  Rita is looking back at the guy cuffed on the ground. He is still not moving.

  “Is he dead?” she asks.

  “Unconscious,” Anders answers, still holding Safia’s gaze.

  “Okay. Well, he did…do that,” Rita points to the guy. “I think he’s a good choice for a protective escort.”

  Safia wants to say no, that she doesn’t want anyone associated with A.R.N. near Olivia, but the fact is, he did just keep that guy from shooting them.

  “All right, let’s go.” She picks Olivia up and carries her the rest of the way to the car.

  Rita is driving. Anders is in the front seat. Safia can see his face in the mirror from her position in the back. He seems calm, but she notices he’s scanning every car that passes. He catches her eye in the mirror and she drops her head to look at Olivia. They have her lying in the back seat and she’s got her head on Safia’s lap. Her dry, frail hand is clutching Safia’s sweatpants and her head is tilted sideways so she can see out the window. White clouds. Empty blue space. What is she thinking? Does she know for the second time in her young life someone has tried to kill her? Safia shudders as the weight of what could have happened drops into her mind.

  “Thank you,” she looks up, “Anders.”

  He half-turns, so she can see his profile—the soft frown lines around his mouth, the white lashes transparent in the sunlight.

  “It’s not even close to being over.” His words have the quiet tone of whispered prophecy. Her world grows darker. She knows if what Kat and Reuben said about him is true, he understands more about violence and human nature than she would ever care to know. She almost gets angry with him. This isn’t what she wants to hear. She wants him to say that it is just that one man, one man with fear and hate in his heart. Everyone else will embrace Olivia. No one else will try to hurt her. She jerks her head to look out the window, blinking back the tears. She can see her dark eyes glistening in the window. Her hand is resting on Olivia’s chest and she closes her eyes, concentrating on the strong thump of her heart. Boom boom. Boom boom. She breathes deeply, exhales. Shutting out the steady hum of highway noise and controlling the path of her mind, she brings her own body’s rhythm in line with Olivia’s—slows it down, relaxes into the void and watches the blood flow in and out. In and out. When she opens her eyes, Olivia is resting quietly.

  “So, Anders,” she keeps her voice low. “How did you know that guy was going to…try that. How did you happen to be there?”

  “Intentions.I’ve learned to read them.”

  “Was he back there the whole time, waiting?”

  “Yes. Reading a paper and waiting.”

  Safia feels sick. God, they were so naïve. They just walked her right out in the open. Stupid. “But, how did he know? How did you know?”

  He watches a car with dark tinted windows with more intensity and then, as it finally rolls by, he turns in his seat to look back at her. Glancing down at Olivia sleeping peacefully, he keeps his voice at a low whisper. “The people out front, they are just there to be heard, to voice their opinion, try to change things peacefully. But, their numbers were large and growing. If anyone really thought about it, they would come to the conclusion that there was no way Olivia was going to be released through the front, through all those people. The back was just a logical choice. This particular man, he wasn’t carrying a sign, or even talking to the other protesters, bickering, nothing. He was walking slowly around the hospital grounds, finally settling in the back and picking up a paper that had been left on the table. I watched him read the same page for about half an hour. He was more interested in keeping an eye on all the back exits. He didn’t even notice me sitting directly behind him. He didn’t care about the cops walking by. Very single-minded. Nothing to lose. Very dangerous.”

  Safia thinks about Reuben saying Anders didn’t come around unless there’s trouble. He knew there would be trouble. They knew. “Did A.R.N. send you to protect Olivia?”

  “Yes.”

  Anger surges. “So they knew they were putting her in danger when they forced us to tell everyone about her. Nice people you associate with.” She pulls Olivia closer into her protectively. “So, she now has her very own personal terrorist bodyguard.” She watches his eyes drop and his jaw twitch. He turns away.
/>   Rita glances back at her, “I’m feeling kind of left out, here. Something I should know?”

  “No,” Safia whispers as Rita turns off the Pen Street exit. “But, it’s probably something Sue should know.”

  As they pull up and stop at the gas pumps, Safia sees Sue jump out of her car parked in front of the station. Gently, she begins to awaken Olivia.

  “Miss Raine?”

  Safia lifts her head in response. His eyes are a brilliant blue, glittering with afternoon sunlight. They are also intense and open, pulling her into an intimate space, dissolving her anger. “Whatever you think of me, I will protect Olivia with my life.” He gets out of the car as Sue runs up to it and opens the back door.

  “Hey, baby,” she smiles as Olivia, groggy, gets up and slides into her arms.

  “Hi, Mommy.”

  “You ready to go home?”

  Olivia nods.

  “Sue, there’s something I have to talk to you about.” She glances at Olivia.

  “Okay, come on, Olivia. Candy’s in the car waiting for you.” Safia follows her to the car. Anders walks a few steps behind them. They watch Olivia slide into the back and find her bear. She waits until Sue closes the door.

  “Who’s this?” Sue nods at Anders suspiciously.

  “Sue, there is more danger to Olivia here than we could have imagined.” She bites her lip. God, when will she stop giving this woman bad news? “A man made an attempt on Olivia’s life when we were taking her to the car. This,” she glances at Anders, who is scanning the parking lot, the pumps, the inside of the store. “Is Anders Grey. He probably saved her life. He stopped the guy. The guy had a gun.”

  Sue takes a deep, sharp breath. Her eyes are tired. She goes over and wraps her arms around Anders, who looks startled. “Thank you, Mister Grey.”

  “Sue, Anders has offered to help protect Olivia for a while, until all the press dies down and you two can live a normal life. But, there’s something about him you should know.”

  Anders is staring at her. He shakes his head slightly, but she believes Sue has a right to know the truth.