“You sure can,” Scalpel takes my hands into his and gives them a gentle squeeze. “You saved his life, Cilla. I don’t know what happened, but he has some bruising on his throat where he was choking out. Sounds like he’s a hundred-a-day smoker at the moment,” he says, laughing at his own description of Brewer’s voice. “Let me get you a drink, and once you’ve had that I’m sure Pres will want a word with you.”
Watching Scalpel leave, I look to my left and raise an eyebrow at Bono who is leaning against the wall, or pretending to be at least.
*Are you okay, Cilla?*
“I think so, Bono. What happened?”
*Someone had a beef with Brewer from when he served in the military. Seems the asshole was a high-priority target on a mission, got taken out, and instead of moving on he’s been waiting to come after our man. You saved him, but don’t use all your energy like that again, Cilla. You know it’s detrimental to your health*
“Bono, I couldn’t watch someone die. Did you get rid of the disgusting man?”
*I did, and you know it was great being able to fight again. Now I know I can do it. I may become a knight in shining wings*
I don’t have time to respond before the door opens and Scalpel walks into the room with a tall glass of iced tea. “Drink this, and then I’ll take you to see Pres.”
“Thank you, Scalpel.” My eyes flick to the right and see a child skipping around Scalpel’s legs. I do my best to ignore it, but when she tugs on his trouser leg I sigh.
“Scalpel, do you have a child who has passed away?”
Looking at me with a frown on his face, Scalpel looks at me closely. “You mean, as in, dead, right?”
“Yes, I mean passed to the next life cycle,” I reply and look at him closely. “There is a child tugging on your pant leg. She’s thrilled to see you.”
Scalpel closes his eyes for a moment, then opens them with such a watery expression that I know he’s on the verge of crying. “She’s my baby sister. Her name is Samantha, and she was born with a hole in her heart. Before it was discovered and they could operate, she died.”
“I am so sorry, Scalpel. But she is dancing around, looking well and extremely happy.” Before I can say more Samantha tugs his pant leg once more. “Can you feel her pulling on your pant leg?” I ask him and watch as he concentrates.
Scalpel’s eyes shoot to mine and he gives such a soft smile that I know he has felt something. “Samantha says she is okay, and she’s going to move on now. She wants you to stop being so sad and maybe get yourself a lady and a baby of your own.”
A chuckle erupts, catching Scalpel and me completely off guard. The peace that enveloped him, which he hadn't expectedto feel, also brought comfort to Samantha, and she sang her farewells and expressed her love as she slowly vanished.
“She’s gone now, Scalpel. She was making sure you move on, find your happiness.” I pat his forearm before drinking the iced tea.
Once more the door opens and Brewer walks into the room, not pausing when he sees me but stepping right up to me and wrapping me tightly in his arms. “Thank you, Cilla. I would be dead if not for you. Thank you.”
You'd think Brewer smokes a hundred cigarettes a day based on his voice. The sound of his voice is deep and aching, and the way he swallows slowly reveals he's having a bit of a struggle. “Are you okay? Scalpel, is he okay?”
Brewer nods, but Scalpel speaks quickly, “He is fine. His throat is very tender and has bruising, but much more and he’d not be here with us now.”
“Let’s go speak with your president then I can go home. I need to get back to work. I really cannot afford to lose my job.” I hand the glass to Scalpel and follow Brewer out of the medical room and over to Tracker’s office. I’m not sure I feel right calling him President! I prefer to think of him as Tracker, but would like to know his true name, I’ll have to guess sometime and see if I can get a response.
Walking into and taking a seat in Tracker's office, I give Finger, Cap, Rides, and Hot Rod a smile of acknowledgement, then quickly get into what I know they are going to ask. “Okay, someone rushed up behind Brewer in the kitchen. I don’t know who it was, and I didn’t get a decent look before I threw out all the energy I could grab from my aura to stop the asshole choking Brewer to death. Bono was the one who came forward and did whatever he had to.”
Brewer, who had followed me into the office along with Scalpel, is nodding. “All I felt was a sensation of being choked. I couldn’t grab anyone because there was nobody physically there. It was fucking frightening I can tell you. It’s different when someone tries to do it and you can defend yourself, but I couldn’t.”
*I’ve been looking, and it was someone he killed when in service*
“Bono just said it was someone you killed when in service,” I relay to Brewer and watch him for any sign he’ll recognize who it could be.
“I don’t know, Cilla. When in war you kill the enemy but don’t even try to remember them, or you’d never sleep again at night.”
I give Brewer an understanding nod before giving my attention to Tracker. “I can’t explain how it works. I didn’t even know I could throw my energy to stop an apparition from doing something. In fact, I didn’t even know it was possible for them to hurt us, but it’s something that Bono will have to look into.” I frown Bono’s way and he’s nodding to show he’s listening and following the conversation.
*Yeah, yeah, I’ll speak to the higher levels and see what I can find out*
“Bono needs to up his fucking game or I’ll be killing Finger our Enforcer to go sort the fucker out,” Tracker snarls, but I can see his eyes twinkling with fun.
Finger gasps and asks in astonishment, “So, you’ll kill me to sort out Bono who is already fucking dead? You know you’ll have two dead assholes on that side then. Hm, maybe I could find your father and grandfather, or your mother?”