The Emperor

by N. M. Brown

  Hot liquid splashing across the couch as Queenie sprayed his tea down himself. “He did? I mean… what – what did you- what was your answer?”

  Now that surprised Echo. Did the Detective fancy himself a Nurse? Sage certainly thought so as she quirked her lip at Queenies response. “I told him I wasn’t interested.”

  “Oh.” Queenie tried not to smile, but Echo could see the sigh of relief flood out of his body. Naughty, naughty McQueen. Whatever would the Mrs say? “Did he take it well?”

  Sage barked a laugh, and Echo drowned out the conversation. It was boring; easy cat and mouse which was high school stuff. Instead Echo watched their body language, something that rarely lied and spoke volumes.

  Both were sat facing each other, but there was at last five feet between them; completely invested in one another and their conversation, but a distance kept with unspoken words. The chemistry between them was to remain unspoken but that would only simmer until someone turned up the heat. Echo would happily volunteer, of course.

  Sage kept bobbing her head every time she paused, not because her attention wavered, but because she didn’t want Queenie to read into her expression and the emotions pouring from her eyes. Queenie of course was doing the same, looking over her shoulder or glancing away, not wanting to read and not wanting to show.

  Echo could have vomited. They were two teacups on one of those stupid fairground rides; turning and turning, looking for one another but as soon as they caught a glimpse, they shot off again, spinning out on their emotions and the uncertainty. Suddenly, one teacup stalled to a halt and Echo watched, marvelled as Queenie shut down, his whole-body deflating and his eyes turning flat that far from dream like.

  “What is it?” Sage asked, and Echo tuned back in. She was pleased to watch the Nurse scoot forwards, bringing them closer. With a delicate hand, she placed in on McQueen’s; a light touch, one that screamed ‘I'm here with you.’ It was a good tactic on Sage’s part, but Echo knew what haunted the Detectives eyes.

  Speak now, or forever hold your peace, Echo thought, watching Queenie raise his head, or she just might have to speak for him. “Nothing. Nothing. Its-… It’s nothing.” Smiling he gulped another mouthful of tea, “So, work’s crazy, are you fitting time in for study?”

  Echo smiled wickedly. Till death do you part then.

  But Sage, unaware of the inner turmoil her lover was going through, babbled on. “It’s great. I’m finding the studies so interesting. This week, we’re studying a case called ‘The Wild Girl of Avalon’.”

  Sage took some more tea before continuing, but Echo was already half asleep. “It was the case of a small pre-teen girl who was found in nature preserve which went on for miles. She was thought to have been living in the wild for years. The study went on to develop the bases for ‘natural experiment’ and the question of nature verse nurture.”

  McQueen looked impressed, or was that a frown in his face, Echo couldn’t tell. In fact, the more she tried to focus, the more the world changed shapes. Blackness creeped on the edge of her vision and she was suddenly very aware of her legs, or to be more precise, aware she couldn’t feel them.

  Slowly sinking down, she hit the ground with a thud and the unstoppable need to vomit crashed into her like a wave. Turning her head to the side, she spewed, the acidic waste burning again. It wasn’t until she threw up again, did she realise someone was rubbing soothing circles into her back. Echo groaned as she saw Sage.

  Thumping foots steps soon followed and Queenie’s bare feet came into view. “What is it? Why’s she groaning? Is she ok?” he asked.

  “She’s fine. I don’t know how she got out of bed though.” Sage explained, stepping round the vomit. “She must have a concussion of some kind. Getting out of bed to fast in her condition… I can’t believe she even made it to the door.” The preppy Nurse continued to flap.

  Echo laughed to herself, knowing she’d been at that door a lot longer than either of the two love birds realised, but that was fine with her. She’d play that card when it would be nice and painful. Waving away Sage as she tried to clean Echo up, she looked the Queenie with a glare. “Where are my clothes?”

  But he was shaking his head. “You don’t need clothes Echo; you need to go back to bed.” He tried to lift her, as if he could pick her up and physically put her back in bed.

  “Get off me.” Echo ordered, getting increasingly annoyed. Infiltrating on all their dirty little secrets was fun, but being coddled was a step to far, “Just give me my clothes Queenie. I’m going home.” She ordered again.

  Speaking of home, Echo was suddenly wrecked with horror as she tried to see what time it was. If she was late to evening service after already having a stern word… Echo wasn’t about to fail her family twice. “Let me go.”

  “Echo, McQueen doesn’t have your clothes. I had to cut them off you to get a look at your injuries. I-,”

  Echo stilled and turned to look at Sage and wished she was stood so she could tower over the snivelling girl. “You fucking cut my fucking clothes off!” she screamed. “Do you have any fucking clue how expensive those clothes were?”

  Echo tried to get her legs back under her, but everything was hurting. With each new struggle her anger was dampened, and her pain threshold lowered. “Just let-… just let me … go. I want to go…” She wanted anger to snap behind her words, but they were slurring, and her eyes were drooping close. She could feel her legs trembling underneath her and she felt as if her lungs were the size of a condom wrapper.

  “Stop it.” Sage ordered, stopping Echo once again from trying to stand.

  “Echo this is serious. You’ve been beaten. You’ve got a bruised kidney and your hand in swollen.” Queenie stressed. “You could have died. What the hell happened to you?”

  “Oh, is that all? I thought it was just a stubbed toe.” Echo suddenly felt very pathetic again. Sure, it had been a few years since she'd taken a beating - since before Adin died to be exact - but that involved broken bones, internal bleeding and concussions. A bruised kidney was pitiful; she had two after all.

  “I know you’ve been shot Echo, but this is across your whole body.” Sage joined, throwing her two-cent in. “You could throw a clot if you fell and hit your head. You’ve already thrown up from a concussion. You could have died, or worse-”

  “Worse than dead, Sage? Really, worse than dead?” Echo snapped. “Is this from your wealth of medical knowledge from years being a doctor?” Echo sneered and Sage smartly stepped back. “No, you’re a sad little Nurse with such bad skills, you’re going into the profession for the crazies and weirdos. I hope you like crayon scribbles, because that will be your life from here on out.”

  “Don’t talk to her like that!” Queenie quickly defended and in there lied the sweet spot and Echo was going to poke it. Hard.

  “How sweet.” she laughed bitterly. “Here comes the shining hero to save his, poor, distressed girlfriend? Does she know what baggage comes with your kingdom?” Echo snarled and finally push herself to her feet. Whatever wave of dizziness had just hit was gone, and as long as she didn’t have another until she was home, all was well in the world.

  Sage flushed and quickly darted her eyes to the coward Queenie, who of course, wouldn’t look at her. “She’d not my girlfriend Echo. You know that.” He said, almost through gritted teeth.

  Smiling wickedly at Queenie, she felt him physically take a step back. Yes, remember she thought, remember the bitch that she was; and no secret was too devastating.

  “Oh yes.” Now stood, Echo felt some strength fill her. Her mind had been focused on her pain, but now she could redirect it, strike where it would hurt, and she knew that would make her feel so much better. “Yes, of course she’s not your girlfriend and I guess Sage now knows that too.” Echo looked to the Nurse, pleased to see she looked more than a little hurt. Ah, but let her wait, Echo thought, there was more. “You should call that strapping Doctor back. I think he will be far more available than dear Queenie, will
ever be.”

  The blood suddenly rushed off McQueen’s face. “Echo…?” He said with warning, but McQueen should have known better. He should have begged.

  “McQueen, what’s she talking about?” Sage spoke up and Echo would give her some due, she didn’t sound like she was about to burst into tears just yet. Of course, there was always time.

  “Not very Catholic of you McQueen.” she whispered savagely. “A woman devoted to you with a ring still on her finger witness by the Lord above, all the while you play Doctors and Nurse behind her back? What will your holy God think of that?”

  “You’re married?” Sage gasped, now looking hurt and confused but there was steel in her voice. A strangled grunt escaped Queenies mouth, but at least he had the guts to look at Sage with an apology in his eyes. That gave him bigger balls than most men.

  “I -, I didn’t mean to… I wanted to tell you.” McQueen babbled. Echo buzzed with newfound energy as she watched the couple flake and fall apart. It was glorious. “It’s very complicated.” Queenie tried to cover but the silence grew as Sage still refused to speak. He took a step closer to her, his body begging and his eyes pleading. He looked so delectably pathetic. “She and I-… we’re not… It’s complicated. Yes, I'm married but, I don’t… I don’t know-,”

  “You don’t know?” Sage asked, trying to make sense of McQueen's rambling. “Don’t know what McQueen? Do you love her? Are you still together; plan to stay together? What, McQueen? What don’t you know?” There was some fire behind each question and Echo gave her points for that.

  “Sage…Ah-, …I,”

  “Don’t.” Sage said. One word. One strong, unquestionable command.

  “Sage, please.” McQueen repeated, moving to beg. “Sage… I know I was reclusive about my past – and I had my reasons. Anna and I… I meant it when I said it was complicated. But please, I… I really like you. I don’t know… Anna and I-… It’s complicated.”

  Coward, Echo laughed. All he was going to ask from her was time, time he couldn’t promise.

  “Oh, well that just clears everything up.” Echo dawdled. “I’d love to stay for more, but I’ll be going, now.” But as she moved for the door, she had to jump back when it swung in at her. Suddenly two guys swarmed in, barely looking out of their teens, each displaying the opposite reaction to the other.

  “Ah-... Hi, Echo.” One of them said, smiling before stepping to the side and placed the groceries he’d been carrying on the kitchen counter. “You’re looking better, but should you be up?” He asked but as he took in the situation, his face fell.

  “Do I know you?” Echo bitched, looking the guy up and down.

  She vaguely recognised his face… maybe. She couldn’t be sure. Plus, there was two of them, so she would have remembered twins surely. Ash blonde hair, chiselled jaws with dimples to die for, not to mention their bean-pole frame. She would have remembered them.

  “God, and to think we carried you up all these stairs.” The other twin spat, sitting on the countertop. He evidently hadn’t been carrying anything and was much more interested in growling at Echo. She decided she’d call him Asshat. “I had to hold your legs too. Far too close to your lady bits for my taste.” He sneered.

  Echo just shot him a glare, but before she could answer, the first twin – Echo would call Good-boy – regarded the rest of the room. “McQueen what’s going on?” The Nurse swiped away tears and Queenie looking desperate to fix it. He was only just holding himself back.

  “Nothing, Roman. It’s nothing.” McQueen answered, looking deflated and lost.

  “If this is what you call ‘nothing’ Queenie, I worry for your sanity. Being strung up by a serial killer for cheating on your wife must have been a ‘brown toast and oatmeal’ kinda day of excitement for you.” Echo mocked.

  McQueen opened his mouth to argue, or more likely to tell her to shut up, but heartbroken Sage was done.

  “No, you’re right McQueen. Clearly nothing is going on here. Nothing ever could.” Swiping up her equipment and coat, she shook her head as she held back tears. But by the time Sage was at the door, she only looked Echo with determination on her face. “I’ll give you a lift home.”

  “What?” McQueen cried in dismay.

  “What?” Echo asked in disgust.

  “Sage don’t. Please. I want to explain.” McQueen said taking a step after her as she swung open the door.

  “No. Everything’s been made pretty clear from me. You have a wife and this… this was all just a stupid, pathetic farce.” She answered in that cool, calm voice that was overlaying a growing storm. Before McQueen could even reach for her, Sage was gone and only the soft sound of her shoes on the stairs could be heard.

  “Well,” Echo said backing out the door, “Bye Queenie. I’m sure I’ll be seeing you soon, but don’t fret your pretty little head, I’ll pass on your undying love to the wife.” Giving McQueen one last fleeting look, Echo relished in his expression, one that could break a cherub’s heart.

  Poor, poor thing.

  XIV

  “Fuck McQueen. What did you do?” Roman asked, hefting the bag of apples higher and into the hanging fruit bowel.

  McQueen breathed through his nose and he centred himself again. He should have known better; God above he had been so stupid.

  Echo and Sage in the same room? Things never could have gone well, and it was all his fault. His stupid, cowardly fault. Why hadn’t he said anything to Sage? Why hadn’t he apologised and explained? She could have understood - would have understood if he’d just told her : I’m married but we’re estranged. I’m Catholic so divorce in close to impossible... But I like you, …but we can only be friends…but I need you in my life, your calming influence… but Anna will always be there too… Things could work out…

  Yes, that wouldn’t have been patronising at all, but it would have been a darn sight better than letting Echo explain. She’d enjoyed every second of McQueen miserable experience and he’d never wish violence on anyone in his life, but even he almost reached his holy limit.

  “I made a stupid, stupid mistake.” Was all he said quickly, collapsing into the breakfast bar stools, unable to stand any longer.

  “Stupid?” Reese asked, snorting. “You don’t say. I don’t think stupid quite covers it.”

  Roman, being the good brother and roommate, he was, slapped Reese on the leg, shutting him up. “Enough Ree. McQueen’s problems are his to sort out.” He said, sending McQueen a sad smile.

  “No, he’s right. What I did to Sage was terrible.”

  And the guilt ate at McQueen’s gut. Would she even talk to him again? But a darker, gut chilling thought ran around in the back of his mind, one he couldn’t say out loud... Should he want to talk to her again? He was married. Divorce wasn’t a future he saw for himself… so where did that leave them?

  “Well, I’d ditch the Nurse and ditch the wife and join the dark side.” Reese sang under his breath and into a packet of cookies he’d swiped from his brother. Roman growled and thwacked his brother again, but McQueen heard nonetheless, though he was thankful for Roman’s protection.

  “Look, I’m going to bed. I’ll have a whole load of evidence and paperwork to go over in the morning so I’ll just-… I’ll just head off.”

  Making an about-turn, he headed straight to his room where he paced, stripping off and falling into his bed. He immediately regretted it. The bed smelt of her, her sweat, hot spice and apples.

  Sitting up, he ripped the bedding off. Fuck Echo. Fuck her. Why had he cared? When she lay so broken on his bed, asleep, he didn’t know what to do. She’s looked so peaceful, so normal; her lips parted slightly and her brow unfurred. She wasn’t cursing, mocking. She looked… ordinary.