"Vin," Caeli caught his attention quietly as he began to close the back door.
"Yes?"
"I need a minute to talk to you about…"
"Hey, are we about ready to go? I think the crowd has figured out where you went Dr. Erickson. They are getting a little too close for my taste," Private Burks unknowingly interrupted.
"I'm sorry, Honey. I think it's going to have to wait a little bit. We need to get moving."
"It's ok. I understand."
Vin squeezed her hand supportively and then joined the driver up front.
They were underway within minutes, following a clear path to the left of the dock and around the buildings. The driver turned off the main road and made his way into a park area with a single, two lane road that ran its length.
"I'm Vin Harding, and this is my wife, Caeli," Vin began to introduce everyone, but as he looked back at Caeli, he stopped short. She had her feet pulled up in her seat and her arms drawn across her stomach. She was sweating profusely, her face was red, and her eyes were squeezed shut as if she could force her condition to improve.
"Caeli, are you all right?" Vin turned in his seat and reached back to place his hand gently on her arm. Her skin was hot to the touch.
"I don't feel well," she whispered without opening her eyes or moving, except to cover his hand with her own, acknowledging his concern.
Salma leaned forward and placed her hand on Caeli's shoulder. She closed her eyes and tried to discover the nature of Caeli's problem. To her surprise, she was not able to read anything from Caeli. It was as if someone was blocking her efforts.
"Caeli, are you trying to prevent me from using my gift on you?" Salma inquired silently.
"No. Of course not; if you can help me, I would greatly appreciate it."
"I'm sorry, but I can't. I cannot sense anything at all from you right now. That's very odd."
"Do you think it has anything to do with my new development?"
"Do you refer to your gift or the possibility that you're pregnant? Either way, I honestly don't know. It would be a safe bet that something about you is interfering with my ability. But, don't worry. I still know how to practice medicine the old fashioned way."
"Salma, is she all right? What's wrong with her?" Vin asked after waiting what he deemed was long enough.
"I can't be sure, Vin. It could be the flu or the effects of prolonged exposure. I will examine her more thoroughly when we get to the hotel," Salma answered.
"Thanks. Caeli, can I do anything to make you more comfortable?" Vin asked, hoping to provide some means of easing her pain.
"Not unless you happen to have a bottle of water. I'm thirsty."
"I'm sorry. We'll find something for you the first chance we get."
Caeli nodded slightly in response, and Vin continued his conversation with the driver, frequently checking on her. He introduced Ben and Salma, and then explained a little bit of the situation in which they found themselves. The driver, Private Nathan Burks, seemed to take it all in stride, assuring Vin that he would get them safely to their hotel as quickly as he could.
There was only one other vehicle on the road; about half a mile behind them as they rode along without incident for fifteen minutes. Vin chatted with Nathan, who checked in once with his commanding officer during that time. The young rookie mentioned the truck behind them during his report, but indicated that there were no problems.
Caeli sat quietly. In fact, she had not said a word since the first time Vin checked on her. She was now leaning over with her head against the door. Whatever illness she was fighting was getting worse. Her head was pounding and her stomach was turning cartwheels. Her fever could probably start a small forest fire. If this was the flu, it was certainly the worst one she had ever contracted. When she could no longer contain the building nausea, Caeli reached forward and placed her hand on Vin's shoulder to get his attention. When he turned to look at her, Vin immediately knew that she was going to be sick.
"Please stop the car," she said in a voice barely more than a whisper.
"I'm sorry ma'am. I'm not allowed to do that. This is supposed to be a nonstop…," Private Burks' reply was cut short by an unexpected jolt.
A second later, the van slid to the side of the road and came to a sudden stop as if a giant hand reached out and pushed the vehicle out of its lane and into a brick wall. Vin reached over, threw the gearshift into park, and turned the key off. He hopped out of the door and opened the side door for Caeli in the next instant, his dark hair blowing in the wind. Surprisingly, neither Ben nor Salma were disturbed by the sudden shifting. It was almost as if they were held in place by an unseen hand.
"Come on, Honey. Give me your hand." Vin helped her over to the side of the road and walked her into the trees where she could have a little bit of privacy. With her arm across her midsection again, the contents of her stomach, which were not much to speak of, heaved their way out. Vin held her long hair back and helped her stand as she suddenly became very weak and unsteady on her feet. He used his shirt to dry the sweat from her forehead as she rested against his chest when the bout had passed. A soft breeze blew through the surrounding trees and offered comfort to her overheated body.
"You are running a strong fever. The pain in your side has been almost constant and now this. Do you know what's wrong with you?" Vin's concern was growing. He could not remember ever seeing Caeli quite this sick before.
"I'm not certain. Salma is going to look at my cut and run some tests. Then I'll know for sure. Until then, we should get back. The others are waiting on us."
"Caeli, please Honey. What tests? What cut? Tell me what's wrong."
"Honestly, I don't know. I had a cut on my stomach from the crash, and I haven't been feeling well for a while. It feels like a really bad flu. Salma is going to run some blood work to find out for sure. You can hear the results as soon as I do, and then we can talk about whatever might turn up."
"Fair enough; but what if it's not the flu?"
"Then we'll deal with whatever it is. But, you know it's just my luck to get sick during vacation. Then again, maybe it is the toll of using my new gift. I truly don't know much about it yet. Plus, I am so very tired that I really can't even think straight. I'm sure I will feel better after I get some sleep. I just want to lie down and close my eyes. I trust Salma to fix me up, although, the sooner we get to the hotel, the better. Don't worry, Vin. I'll be all right."
Reluctantly, Vin accepted her explanation. He would ensure that Salma examined her. Of one thing he was certain; Caeli was not all right. They began to walk back to the van, but Caeli's shoe slipped on the wet leaves. Her feet slid out from under her as if she stepped on a patch of ice. Before Vin could catch her, she tumbled into a large puddle and then slid a few feet down a rocky incline. It took several moments before she could stop her descent and Vin could reach her.
"Wow. Today really is not your day. Are you ok?" Vin helped her up.
She nodded, but Vin discovered a rip in the sweatshirt material when he wrapped his arm around her back to support her. He glanced around to see how bad it was and saw blood dripping down her lower back. Taking a closer look, he noted a circular gash where she must have struck the edge of a sharp rock as she fell. The pool of blood on her sweatshirt was spreading fast.
"It looks like you smacked your back up against a rock. I think I saw a roll of paper towels in the van. I will see if I can get the bleeding stopped once we get back, ok?"
Vin helped her climb up the hill, and then, after getting a makeshift compress over her wound, helped her get situated inside the vehicle. He wanted very much to climb in beside Caeli and hold onto her, offer her some comfort, but he could not do that right now. Instead, Vin climbed into the passenger's seat and looked over at Private Burks with a hurried look on his face.
"Ready when you are, Nathan." Vin smiled politely, knowing Private Burks was still trying to figure out what had happened. Vin also knew that when the young solider told this st
ory to his friends, they would never believe him. Vin was mildly curious to know how the mysterious results of using of his gift to maneuver the vehicle would be written up in the young man's report.
"Sure." Private Burks started the vehicle without argument, and they were on their way again.
Their van was now the only vehicle on the road. The blue pickup truck went by while they were stopped. It would be long ahead of them by now. Vin continued to look back and check on Caeli frequently. He also glanced at the bench seat at the rear of the van to check on Ben and Salma. Ben partially stretched out across the seat, leaning his head against Salma's shoulder. Vin wished he could offer a similar comfort to Caeli, but at least one of them needed to be alert. Vin's instincts told him that more trouble lay ahead of them. Unfortunately, it wasn't long before his suspicion was confirmed.
The van came over the crest of a hill, and Vin saw the blue pickup truck about a quarter mile ahead of them. It moved very slowly, as if it were waiting for them to catch up. When the driver of the truck noticed the van approaching, the truck's speed increased; though not fast enough. Both Vin and the rookie guardsman noticed the odd behavior.
"Private Burks, did you see that?" Vin asked for confirmation.
"Yes Sir. I did. They should have been long gone by now. If I didn't know any better, I would say they were waiting for us."
"How much further is it to the hotel?"
"Maybe another twenty five minutes, depending on the road ahead. Sometimes it floods in heavy rains like the storms we've had the last couple of days. Do you want me to try and get there sooner?"
"Not exactly; I want you to stay with the truck for now. Pretend like you didn't notice that stunt. Catch up slowly, so that we can see the truck clearly for a mile or so. Then I want you to back off suddenly. Make them think that we stopped again. I don't want them to be able to see us. Keep going, but stay out of their sight. Let's see how long it takes before they fall back to catch a glimpse of us again. If they don't, then we are both being paranoid. If they do, then we might have a problem. We might need to ask your colonel for assistance. Are you willing to give it a try?"
"Yes Sir. You know, it's probably a news crew. No matter how tight we keep the details on a blackout op, it always seems as if at least one reporter manages to get word of it. I would bet good money it's one of them trying to be the first with footage of the doctor's arrival. That was a pretty sloppy move; something a civilian would do. A professional would not be likely to make such a mistake."
"You're probably right, Nathan, but shall we try it anyway? At least we will know if they are actually watching us or not. Then, if necessary, we can worry about who they are."
"Sure. Sit tight." The Private did exactly as Vin asked, and the results were predictable. In no more than five minutes, the pickup truck lost sight of them and then slowed down to find out why.
"Well, at least now we know."
Vin tried to determine what the best course of action would be. He needed to do something soon. Caeli was sick, Ben needed further medical attention, and Salma was too preoccupied with tending to both of them to care about the potential danger that the protestors posed to her. Vin did not have time to worry about overeager reporters and their stories, and he had very personal reasons for his lack of tolerance for reporters of any kind.
"It would sure be easier if they got a flat tire," Private Burks mused.
Vin looked over at him. That wasn't a bad idea at all.
"Why don't you keep them in sight for a while? Let's see what they do."
Vin waited another ten minutes before taking action. Then, before they got too close to their destination, he stirred the winds enough to sling a two inch diameter tree branch, debris from the previous day's storm, into the rear tire of the truck. The broken limb hit with enough force to impale the tire. The truck weaved recklessly for a short distance, and then pulled off to the side of the road. As their van passed by, Vin saw two men moving toward the spare tire and preparing to replace the damaged one. They did not look like reporters.
"Gee, Private, are you some kind of psychic? You said it and it happened." Vin could not resist having a little fun with the young man. The astonished look on Private Burks' face made it clear that he was confounded by the strange events happening on this trip. The look amused Vin and eased a little of his tension.
"At least that will stall them long enough for us to get to the hotel ahead of them and get settled in our rooms. I don't know who they were or what they wanted, but that should stop them, for now," Vin stated the obvious.
"I should let Colonel Franks know," Private Burks replied.
"Yes, definitely, but let's have him meet us at the hotel. They will have that tire changed before your Colonel Franks can get someone dispatched to pick them up. We know they are following us, so let's use that to our advantage," Vin suggested.
"Good idea. I can complete my mission by securing the four of you. Then I can arrest them for hampering a military operation when they arrive at the hotel. It will look great in my report!" Private Burks' smile beamed as he considered the notion of such a successful mission. It would help detract attention from the odd events that he would also have to detail in his briefing.
"And if they turn out to be anything other than nosy reporters, you will let us know, won't you?" Vin asked. He wanted to ensure that he did not miss any important developments in case something more sinister was afoot.
"Yes. Of course, Sir."
"Good. Then perhaps now would be a good time to press that gas pedal a bit harder. We want to get there as far ahead of them as possible."
As Vin finished his discussion with Nathan, he heard movement behind him. Caeli slowly worked her way forward to sit across his lap and laid her head on his right shoulder.
"Is everything ok?" Vin whispered and wrapped his arms around her.
"No. I don't feel right." Outwardly, she merely shook her head.
"Do we need to stop? Are you going to be sick again?"
"No."
"Ok. It's best if we keep going because Salma has uninvited company. With Ben injured, I'm trying to handle it without alarming her any further; and I don't want him trying to help."
"I understand."
"Can you tell me what's wrong? What doesn't feel right?"
"It's not easy to explain. I'll wait until we reach the hotel."
"You sure?"
"Yes."
"We're almost there. We'll talk soon, I promise." Vin kissed her warm cheek.
"Do you mind if I stay up here with you until then?"
"Yes, of course you can stay. I'm sorry, Honey. I really am. As soon as we arrive, you will have my full attention. I just need to make sure we actually get Salma there in one piece first."
"It's ok, Vin." Caeli smiled weakly still not lifting her head from Vin's shoulder.
The heat from Caeli's fever warmed Vin's skin as she rested quietly on him, watching the road ahead. The blood-soaked towels and wet clothes were adding to her discomfort. If she felt even half as miserable as she looked, then Vin couldn't imagine how bad her condition must be. As a general rule, Caeli tended to be considerably less talkative when she didn't feel well, and she generally denied being sick. The one thing that never changed was the fact that she always liked to rest on his shoulder, though normally only in the privacy of their home. For Caeli to volunteer that something was wrong and publicly seek the comfort of his shoulder, Vin knew she was in the bad shape that her physical symptoms confirmed.
As they rode on, there were several places where the recent storms had left large branches in the road. The tail winds, which were greatly helping their travel time, seemed to move the debris out of the way before they got close enough for them to become a problem. Once, Private Burks thought he might be forced to stop. The road in the distance appeared to be washed out for at least thirty feet. However, as they got closer, Nathan could see that, in fact, the road was only partially blocked. A six foot section in the center was
suddenly clear, as if the water were pushed back on both sides by invisible dams, leaving enough room for them to drive through to the other side.
This was turning out to be the strangest road trip the private had ever taken. When they finally arrived at the hotel, Private Burks went with them to check in and made sure all four were secured in a room before he took his leave and returned to the van to update Colonel Franks and wait for the reporters in the blue truck to arrive. The foursome, although each worse for wear in their own way, was relieved to finally reach the security and privacy of the hotel.
CHAPTER 17
Although there were two rooms reserved, Vin insisted that everyone wait in one until Private Burks left. As soon as he departed, Vin asked Salma to check on Caeli. However, Caeli had gone straight into the bathroom and requested a few minutes alone. Vin heard the water running in the sink and twice inquired if Caeli needed his or Salma's assistance. Both times, Caeli replied that she just needed a few minutes to let her stomach settle.
While Vin waited for Caeli to come out, he asked Salma if she could go ahead and find out where her and Caeli's luggage was being kept. Luckily, it had been sent ahead to the hotel by the first airline because the small plane assigned to the connecting flight was not spacious enough to carry large pieces of luggage. Vin wanted Salma to have one of the hotel attendants help her retrieve the bags. If possible, Vin needed Salma to ensure that several people knew she had checked into her room. He even asked her to stop and talk to a few of her colleagues. It was important for people to know that she was there, but not to be gone too long.
"Please Salma, it's important. I don't have time to explain everything right now. Bear with me a little while longer. I will explain as we go."
"Vin, are you sure that's a good idea? I'm not comfortable with her being out there by herself after everything that has happened today," Ben objected.
"And I really want to have a closer look at Ben's wound before I do anything else. Caeli did an incredible job with the internal healing, but the external damage still needs a bit of work. We may not need a hospital, but I do need to get him stitched up," Salma added.
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