Double Fated (Book One)

by C.K. Mullinax

  Chapter Forty Six

  I had just put Audrey back in bed when g-mom materialized, sitting in my computer chair.

  “G-mom…oh my g-mommy, where have you been??” I asked, landing in her lap.

  “Sweet Bunny Baby Girl, I’ve been on safari in the Tarrish Straights. I came right away, but you know the area is a blackout zone. And, the time difference between here and there is…

  “Wait, why are you shivering…what’s wrong? And, who’s that here with us?”

  My original goal was to calmly outline what happened, what action I took in response to each dilemma and the outcomes that were reached. The rational and lofty goal was never achieved because Tenacity exited and I welcomed ‘Hysterical Krista’ back on the scene.

  “My phone met a slimy wall, twice courtesy of Slim Sticky and his Huddle Idiots. I think my credit and debit cards were stolen by the demon masked brigade or the Polecat’s Henchmen, not that I saw any of them swipin’ anything. I don’t have any cash left in the safe or anywhere at all. There’s no g-mommy named credit card in that safe either and no contact info in this lonely, confining bedroom world. I’ve been an island, g-mommy…an island with partial guests and no spiritual siblings. I know I sound like Ember, but she hasn’t been anywhere near or around me that I know of.

  “Audrey, that’s my unauthorized guest, needs to see a Tarrish or Ava’shay physician. She got caught in a ‘Weaving’ or was ‘Weaved’…not the hair kind either. I don’t even know the right expression to express what she was having happen, but ‘Weaving’ is what Dirty Retractable Spike called it…so that’s what we’ll go with unless someone can explain it to us better! She wants to go back to her island sisters’. That’s what she says but she doesn’t mean it. I know because I was at that place and hooked for a few minutes before the lightning came and fixed me.

  “I can remember some of that visit, but part of it is blurry. The blurry parts will probably be the worst and get us caught because my escape…our escape was captured on Kodak but not in my head.

  “The phone Jarron brought me yesterday is already out of minutes. Nell had to tell me about the SizZling Jerkwads and the celeb guest Jerkwads that go with them. I had to explain why the Skeez got axed, but only because she was gonna hang up on me. I was wasting airtime minutes and she was gonna end the call…smoke break or no…favors only go so far.

  “And, I’ve been stuck in this bedroom, nursing Audrey and watching my watchers watching the house and scoping me every second of the day and night. Well, I managed to lose Momma-C’s posse, but I was wishing I hadn’t lost them in the end. The hospital was the only place I was happy to be at without them because they would’ve blamed her like Boo-Bear says. I’m not ever going anywhere, ever again without a Tray-sized protector or my mini-almighty g-mommy to take care of me….” I rambled, insanely – I stopped only because I was hyperventilating.

  G-mom made me put my head between my legs until I could catch my breath.

  “Now, now…you relax like that and just silently count…” she said softly and started to move away.

  I grabbed her shirt and held on for dear life.

  “Don’t…” was all I could manage to squeak out.

  “I’m not going away, Bunny of mine. You need a cold cloth because you’re burnin’ up. I also need to check on your friend, Audrey – you say? I won’t leave your sight…just calm down for me,” she whispered.

  “Krista, are you okay?? Who’s in there with you??” Becca shouted and started pounding on the door.

  “She’s still feeling under the weather – feverish and contagious. So, I’m not gonna open that door. This is her mom…I’m taking care of everything, now.”

  “How’d you get by me?” Becca questioned her.

  “Sweets, I’ve been scooting by without a trace for more years than you’ve been alive…”

  “Can I do anything to help you?”

  “Sure can. Think you might be able to steer everyone else clear of this room until I give you the green light? You know how girls are when they’re tryin’ to help out a sister. My little girl needs complete rest in the dark…”

  “Yes ma’am…I do know how they get…I’ll take care of it,” Becca stated and she was off to give my other sisters the order.

  “Thanks…you found…her hot-button,” I stated, weakly.

  “I meant what I said. You’re burning up and so is your friend…”

  “Guess that’s why I’m talking out of my mind and feeling my inner Tenacity…”

  “Tenacity Insistence Stewart, huh? Want me to reconstruct your birth certificate, again??” she asked with a giggle.

  I didn’t get a chance to answer her because the world took a spin and my body couldn’t keep up. I passed out…cold.

  “G-mommy!” I yelled when I came back to.

  “I’m here with you, my Bunny Baby…” she said walking up to the side of my bed and putting her hand on my arm to calm me.

  “Where’s here?” I asked.

  “You and Audrey are at our home in North Carolina. She’s in my bed and you’re in your room. This here is my friend, Doc…” she introduced me to the lanky, handsome older gentleman standing over me.

  “I haven’t seen you since you were naked and wiggly…” he informed me, impishly.

  “Doc…really…that’s how you say hello??” g-mom playfully scolded him.

  “To your daughter, yes…figured I’d fit right into the family. At least, I didn’t tell her that fun little nickname we’ve got for your…” he reminded her and g-mom interrupted him with a delicate backhand.

  “Shut it now, Mister! Don’t make me take that stethoscope from you ‘cuz I’ll do it…”

  “I’ll give you the stethoscope, Liz and any other instrument in my bag if you catch my drift…”

  “Not in front of my little girl, you won’t!” g-mom exclaimed and they both laughed.

  “Krista, you should be feeling wiggly and right as rain. Ready to get up and retest your land legs?” he asked.

  “Depends, Doc…do I have the ‘naked’ to go with my ‘wiggly’?” I quipped.

  “Yes…but, it’s hidden under all those night clothes. No question about it…she’s your girl, Lizzy my love…”

  “Yes indeedy that there’s my Bunny Baby Girl and it’ll never change…” g-mom revealed.

  Everything seemed to be fully functional and healthy.

  “How’s Audrey?” I asked them.

  “That’s a bit of a sticky wicket…I’m sorry to say,” Doc told me.

  “Is the damage permanent?” I asked, not really wanting to hear the answer.

  “There’s no way to predict. Liz said she was exposed to a ‘Weaving’. I’ve never heard that term and I’ve been around a block a time or two in my nine lives. I treated her with an apothecary blend. She’s healthy but her brain has been affected.

  “It’s the oddest thing. She’s oriented and to talk to her, you’d never know there’s a problem. Well, as long as she doesn’t get worried or agitated she can carry on a normal conversation. But, she’s lost her basic instinctual drives. We have to tell her when it’s time to eat, sleep and eliminate. Before I figured that out, she almost made her bladder burst…not a good thing. We’ve got plenty to work with though.

  “She’s got a charming Southern accent…” Doc said.

  “That’s what you’re going with? The building blocks of her recovery start with the return of her accent?” g-mom questioned him, teasingly.

  “You know I think yours is so incredibly sexy…how’d ya’ think you got the only engraved mention in my little black book?”

  “Krista Baby, now you know why I’ve never introduced you to the man who gave you that clean bill of health all those years ago. He’s the best in the physician bizz but his bedside diagnoses’ are a little saucier than your average Joe Stetho…

  “Audrey does have plenty to work with. She knows her name and filled us in on some
of what happened. She was repeatedly assaulted, but she can’t remember the actual men and, heaven help us, women who raped her. She has a handsome little son named Tucker. She’s spoken to both him and her Aunt Angie on the phone…” g-mom told me.

  “How’d she get their number?” I interrupted and asked her.

  “I got you a new phone and the young lady at the store helped me restore your data. You had over a hundred messages and most are still waiting for you to field them, by the way. But, Jules left you a bunch asking about Audrey. I put two and two, together…

  “After I got Command to move you both and got Doc on the scene, I popped over to her house. Poor dear was sick with the flu. Of course, my magic tea did the trick…well, Aunt Tabby’s magic tea that is…” she offered and Doc interrupted her.

  “You were gonna get me…”

  “I know you want the recipe. I’ll get it for you…been slightly busy…” she told him.

  Doc kissed my g-mom and I averted my eyes to give them some privacy. Then, he excused himself to go check in on Audrey.

  “Now, as I was saying, Jules gave me the information I needed to get up with Angie. I brought you home because it was the only place I felt comfortable enough to leave you. And, I didn’t want to alarm our other family members by taking you to any of our other bedroom options. Your grandma’s been on safari with me all this week. She’s up to her eyeballs in commitments until the Hosting. I don’t even think she’s planned a minute to get some shuteye. I’m still not sure how she does that…

  “We took the kids on safari with us. They didn’t get any sleep either on Monday night. Zander promised he’d help get them down early on Tuesday night. Then, he and Quinn were going to play a fighting army of angel’s game on the giant screen in the media room with that big box…”

  “Do you mean they were going to play Halo on the X-Box?”

  “Yes, that’s what I just said. They have that angel war game. Luke and Mikey have another game for their box-X that’s more for their age group…”

  “Yeah, it’s their warm-up tradition. Right before they take off on their mancation, they rev-up their male hormones by playing marathon video games. Don’t guess any of the adults will get in much X-Box time with them this year…”

  “More like none…but, Zander and Quinn are going to keep the tradition alive and include the little ones…even Haven’s going to warm-up her hormones…heaven forbid. Zander and Quinn promised us they would save their, what they call hardcore gaming, until the children were taken care of.”

  “I’m sure they will…they’re both ultra-responsible,” I assured her and she agreed by nodding.

  “Your grandma and I didn’t stay for breakfast on Tuesday. We just dropped off the kids at the House of Michael and took off adventuring.

  “Which, now that I’m thinking about it, did you erase your messages? I didn’t find a single text reply from any of them. Could your phone have one of those tech-like sicknesses?”

  “It’s called a virus and “no”. None of them have called or texted me all week. I can’t even get Zander to reply with a ‘boo’. I assumed they were too tied up…” I told her, while searching through my drawers to find something to change into.

  “Edie’s word of prayer might’ve been a little too potent for our married lovebirds. They must be running around like fury, making up for their one lost night of conducting business. Your grandma sent them all to their respective bedrooms under strict intimate coupling orders.

  “At last word, Ember was charting new shades of blushing and Jaysen was hiding behind her during the entire lecture. Those two youngsters have to be the most modest bride and groom in all the realms. They have two babies and have been married since they were teenagers. So, Edie ordering them to take one night, out of the whole year, to make love behind closed doors with no children to interrupt their intimacy isn’t much by way of a stunner activity…” she revealed.

  “Grandma wouldn’t have lowered the boom if Tray hadn’t regaled us all with their insanely busy schedules…” I stated, laughing at the memory.

  “We just gotta love our baby-Tray. But, Haven’s got him wrapped, forty ways to the sixth Sunday in every month. He went jumping from the fire into the eternal blazes below just so her lower lip would resume the preferred position.

  “I hope he had a memorable, passionate night with Willow. He certainly deserved it…Maker love his sweet, pure-hearted tender ticker…” she said.

  “I guess their one night off messed them up. But, I still can’t figure out why Zander hasn’t been keeping in touch…”

  “He’s been the appointed “father-figure” this week. The adults were already scheduled to take turns eating meals and getting kids to school, etcetera. That was before Edie forced them to take a few hours of alone time. I assume the adults have been rearranging…trying to make up for lost time. Zander told me and your grandma that he’d look after the kids during the week to help them out…” she told me.

  “Where’s Kyrann??” I asked curiously.

  “His boss, not that I’ve ever met the man, sent him on assignment. So, he’s not been a childcare option.”

  “I could’ve watched the kids. Why didn’t you ask me??”

  “Your schedule has been turned upside-down enough lately. All the parents had a system worked out. Zander is more than capable of filling in when they’re tied up. Quinn offered to help too and you know he’s amazing with the little ones. Between all those folks, grandma and I felt like our bases were covered. So much in fact that we stayed on safari when evidently, we should’ve stayed home…”

  “Now, I feel horrible. I interrupted your adventure…”

  “Let’s place our guilt back in the garbage can where it goes. Command finally got ahold of me and we only had an hour left anyway. Don’t worry…I didn’t mention anything to your Grandma Edie about you being in trouble. She’s got more than a feast to eat.

  “You and I will figure out this mess Audrey got herself mixed up in. Then, we’ll solve it like old times…you and me, together….” g-mom offered.

  “This is a much bigger mess than anything we’ve ever come across. And, this is something you’ve never heard from me, but here goes. We need some big strong male types to pull this off…”

  “That is new from you. Think our intervention can wait until after the wedding?”

  “No! It’s urgent that we do something…wait, what’s today?” I asked, frantically.

  “Sunday…bright and squirrely…the first 6:03 of the day on the East Coast…” she said, avoiding the word morning.

  “We’ve only got until tonight at 8:00! That’s when the doors open. We need guest stamps to get us in. And, we’ve gotta find some big male assistance with some massive channeling skills to protect us and them…” I demanded and would have continued to ramble, but g-mom silenced me.

  “Working yourself into a tizzy isn’t going to help anyone. You can explain and we’ll work it out. If your fever shoots up again, then the ‘we’ is nixed and I’ll be on my own…”

  “I feel fine…”

  “That’s what you told me to tell that moose living in my pocket when we got here. Your temperature was nearly 104. So, you’ll march yourself down the stairs and eat breakfast while you calmly tell me what you know and what we need to do. Then, if you can manage to keep the food down and stay cool, we’ll talk strategy.

  “Rising body heat, hysteria or even semi-frantic chatter means you’re on lockdown in this house with Doc and Audrey. You might be able to slip away from her clutches but Doc’s fifty steps ahead at all times, Bunny Baby.

  “Oh and Command won’t give you a ride anywhere, until I provide them with an authorization. So, you ready to ‘chill-wax’ over breakfast and an informative, casual discussion or should I use my retainer fee on the NC warden I affectionately called Doc?”

  “This Naked Wiggly Bunny Baby selects option number one. No need to
employ, yet another guardian to watch over me. NC is the only state of freedom I have left. Everywhere else, I’m surrounded…24/7!”