by Jade Powers
BRYCE SPENT THE NEXT few days packing his room. Some of the boxes, he hauled in his mom’s car to the thrift store, some he stacked in his closet, some he labeled for the apartment in Miami and shipped through the post office. When he was done, the room was no longer his. It was a guest bedroom with posters and consoles gone. Maybe he had grown up.
He returned to Miami during finals week. This was home. Gail greeted him with a bear hug. Bryce breathed in the scent of her shampoo. That was when he knew he’d made the right decision. He would visit his family again in a few weeks, but for now he was where he needed to be, where he could be the most help.
He and Gail worked hard to prepare for finals. He had additional work from his week away and plowed through it, staying up late and trying to focus. Between worrying about his dad and Jana, keeping his attention on school work was next to impossible.
Neither Bryce nor Gail felt completely at ease with Jana’s situation. But Gail didn’t want to cause any more problems. Since Jana was okay and her needs taken care of, Gail didn’t see a way to get her out.
The Friday after finals Bryce got a call that his dad had opened his eyes and mumbled a few words. He whooped. As soon as he got off the phone Gail hugged him, and since finals were over, the hugs led to kissing.
Bryce picked Gail up. She giggled, but didn’t try to stop him. He carried her to bed. Her hair tickled his arm as he lowered her to the bed, capturing her mouth in his as he rose above her. Gail’s blue eyes drew him in like lodestones, and she matched him, kiss for kiss, tugging at his t-shirt.
“I’ve missed you,” Bryce said. His fingertips trailed along Gail’s skin. She nibbled at the base of his neck, doing all kinds of things to his anatomy.
“Hmm..hmmm,” Gail said, “Did you miss this?” Gail slid her finger along his shaft, and Bryce gulped air.
With a laugh cut short, Bryce groaned, “You have no idea. It was like going without water.”
“And this?” Gail stroked the tip of his penis and then softly rubbed his balls.
“You’re going to kill me slowly. I see that now,” Bryce said. The desire flooding his nerves with every touch brought him to the peak of satisfaction, out of reach, but just barely.
He said, “I may have missed you too much. If you keep on, I will have my release without satisfying you.” Bryce took her hand and brought it to his chest, then added, “Let me tell you exactly where and to what degree I missed you.”
Pulling her closer, Bryce kissed her nose briefly, “Your elegant and beautiful nose. I will tell you that in all of Washington State, there isn’t a nose I like better.”
Gail giggled when he kissed her again. She said, “I’m sure there are a dozen better noses.”
Bryce leaned his forehead against hers, his hands tangled in her hair, “Your eyes reflect the intelligence of a compassionate soul, sweet and smart, strong and good. When you look at me with those gorgeous eyes, I feel that there is one perfect thing in the universe...and that is you.”
Kissing Bryce lightly on the lips, Gail cuddled closer, her fingers brushing back his hair. In a husky voice, she said, “Tell me more.”
“Have I mentioned your feet?” Bryce asked with a rumbling laugh.
“Why? Do you have a foot fetish?” Gail teased.
Bryce raised and lowered his eyebrows a few times like Groucho Marx and said, “I don’t know. But it’s high time we find out.”
He caressed his way to her feet. She put a hand to her mouth to cover her squeal of laughter when he tentatively licked her big toe.
With a rueful smile, he said, “I fear, my Lady, that I do not have a foot fetish, although your toes are singularly well-formed and may I say I do like how cute that little toe looks.”
“You’re lucky I wasn’t walking all over the house barefoot,” Gail joked. She reached out to Bryce. “Now come closer.”
“Just wait. There is more to a foot than the toes.”
Although the foot rub he gave her was short, it was still relaxing. Gail closed her eyes and leaned back, enjoying the moment. When he finished, Bryce asked, “I haven’t put you to sleep, have I?”
With her eyes still closed and her hair fanned out across the pillows, Gail said, “Not a chance.”
“Oh, good. We never quite reached your shapely calves. I am also fond of your thighs, and your butt, and your back and...”
“You can fast forward to the love-making now. I am full to bursting with knowledge of my own greatness,” Gail joked, interrupting Bryce before he could wax poetic about her neck.
“Then we are indeed ready,” Bryce captured Gail in a light hold, his tongue teasing. His fingers found her special sweet spot and tickled and teased until she was soaked with want.
“Yes, we’re ready. So ready,” Gail gasped, tugging on Bryce whose staff was thick and strong and ready for entry.
Bryce slid inside Gail, thrusting again and again until his seed spilled inside. The moment was good, a perfect union between two souls. Bryce couldn’t keep his eyes open. Spent with passion, he floated in a sea of calm. He fell into a deep and peaceful slumber only to be disturbed a few hours later by the sound of the phone ringing.
Gail ran for the phone before Bryce could get there. She said, “Hello?”
Bryce couldn’t help but think of his dad, that maybe something more had happened. Good news never came in the middle of the night. He pushed back the covers and scrambled out of bed, hurrying to the kitchen.
But it wasn’t about his dad. He heard Gail say, “Jana? Just tell me what’s wrong.”
The sounds that Bryce heard over the receiver were distressing. Jana cried with utter desolation. Jana said, “I don’t want to. I don’t want to.”
“Don’t want to do what? Jana, what is happening to you?”
“Please don’t make me do this. I don’t care if I see anymore. I don’t want to do what they say.” Jana’s small voice cried across the miles, and Bryce ran into the bedroom, threw on his shorts and grabbed his keys.
“Honey, I know you’re scared. We need to hurry before they know you’re gone. Is there some place you can hide? You’ll have to be really quiet.”
Jana calmed down a little. In a whisper she said, “I’ll try. If they can’t find me, I won’t be a robot.”
“Jana, I’m coming for you. Hide until we get there. No matter how close they are to your hiding spot, stay as quiet as a grasshopper.” Gail clutched the phone, her fingers white.
“Okay. I’m going to hide now. I love you,” Jana said.
“I love you, too.”
Jana hung up first. Gail covered her eyes with her hands and took three long breaths. Bryce wrapped his arms around her.
“Did you hear that?” Gail leaned into his embrace, but she held back her tears. Bryce could see her fight for composure, regain her strength and pull away. She said, “I have to help her. What can I do?”
“Get dressed. We’re going to get her.”
“What about Mom? Should I call her?” Gail asked as she hurried to the bedroom to get changed.
“No, if Jana is in trouble, we need to move now,” Bryce dug through the junk drawer and pulled out a pen and pad of paper. Then he scribbled down the phone numbers he had for Lucas, Drake, and Sven and stuffed them in his pocket.
Chapter 13
BRYCE DROVE, HIS FOOT pressing hard on the gas as he exceeded the posted speed limits. Every once in a while Gail would grab the handle on the passengers side and pump the non-existent brake. Bryce slowed down from time to time as they passed through areas that he suspected were heavily patrolled.
They made good time, but it was still a long drive. They pulled into the hospital lot during the wee hours of the morning. There were cars scattered here and there, staffers or overnight patients. Bryce parked in the parking garage on the first level, as close to the elevator as possible. He backed into the space. He said, “We may need to make a quick getaway. I have no idea what we’re walking into.”
Bryce handed Gail a s
ingle key to the car. He said, “I’ll carry Jana if we have to make a getaway. I have a second set of keys in my pocket, just in case.”
“Just to be clear, what we’re doing is considered kidnapping,” Gail said. She would do anything for Jana. She just needed Bryce to know exactly what she was setting him up for.
“Reconnaissance first. If it’s only a nightmare, we may be tucking Jana back into bed. I have the feeling this might be more, especially with that bastard, Kendall, involved.” Bryce felt a surge of rage every time he said the name.
“Okay,” Gail took a deep breath. She said, “I’m more nervous for this than for my exams.”
“Gail, this could be far worse than just police. If something bad happens, you have to be prepared to run for your life. I mean it. If they capture me and it all goes sideways, take the car and get out. Call the police. Keep safe.” Bryce jabbed the elevator. There were no maps or anything to follow. Gail remembered a bit of the layout and during the car ride had drawn what she could remember.
“I don’t want to leave you. Let’s just figure out what’s going on,” Gail said.
They had no information with which to make intricate plans. Bryce would have to hope that Gail would run when needed. Otherwise, no one would know they were there. The elevator pinged open. Bryce and Gail stepped in.
“The parking garage has a camera...so does the elevator.” Bryce pointed out. He didn’t sound surprised, but it was still a major problem if they did end up taking Jana without proper consent. Even if they dropped her off at her mom’s, there would be trouble.
Gail nodded. She said, “You don’t have to do this. She’s my little sister. You’ve only met her once.”
Bryce kissed Gail on the cheek, “Think of it this way. Some day I might want a future wife. And the gal I want to ask won’t say yes if I abandon her the first time trouble comes.”
“No one would blame you,” Gail said. She frowned as the elevator neared the third floor, “Was that a back-handed test to see if I would say yes to a marriage proposal?”
“Consider it a warning. Someday...when you least expect it,” Bryce joked.
The elevator dinged and the door opened to a populated nurses station. Bryce and Gail stepped out. It was far too obvious that they weren’t staff. Bryce stepped up to the station.
“Visiting hours are over.” The nurse said. She was alone behind a semi-circular desk with four other seats and computers. Bryce would have to assume that the nurse was not alone.
Bryce had learned something from Sven and Drake, his dad’s bosses over at AIT. He said, “I’m one of Kendall’s employees. I’m here to observe the experimentation with the new implants.”
The nurse looked up sharply. “He’s never sent anyone before.”
Shrugging Bryce said, “I guess there was some trouble with one of his employees. She just took off with a bunch of data. He wants to know if the project has been compromised and how far it has advanced.”
“But it’s the middle of the night,” the nurse said. She had stopped checking her watch or the monitors, and now her attention was laser-focused on Bryce. He wasn’t sure he liked that...at all.
Bryce rubbed his forehead, “I’m sorry. I was told they only did some of the procedures at night. I must have been mistaken. I can just glance in on the test subjects tonight and tomorrow morning I’ll ask the morning crew about their mind-tech.”
“No. The day shift isn’t involved in the testing. I’ve been told never to interrupt the tests or surgeries. Maybe I can slip you into one of the observation rooms, but the scientists have to confirm your identity before we will proceed to that point.”
Damn. Bryce knew it couldn’t be easy. He had expected her to ask for credentials which would be hard enough to prove, but if all of the scientists were familiar with each other, he and Gail were screwed.
“Fine. I’d like to view Jana Gantry’s procedure. She should be in recovery now, if I’m not mistaken,” Bryce guessed. Eventually he’d blow it and say something wrong. He really needed this conversation to stop and the action to begin.
“She’s...hmm, that’s odd. She hasn’t started yet. Let me call Doctor Basil.” The nurse picked up the phone and hit 4920. At least, Bryce thought those were the numbers from looking over the desk. Even though he wasn’t a football fan, he thought forty-niners and twenty yards to help remember the number. He ran the thought over and over until it was cemented in his mind. If he could find a guide, he’d know who the nurse called.
Bryce wished he could hear the other side of the conversation. The doctor certainly seemed flustered. The nurse said, “No, you did the right thing. I’m sure we don’t need to alert the entire hospital. It’s not like she is in the ICU or anything. I have a man and woman who are here to observe the procedure. Would you like me to hold them here or send them directly to you?”
Gail sighed so loudly that both Bryce and the nurse heard. It was involuntary. With the nurse watching him, Bryce didn’t dare send a warning look Gail’s way.
She put her hand over the receiver, “What department are you with, science or security?”
“Scientific research,” Gail answered at the same time that Bryce said, “Science.”
“Yeah they’re both in the science group. I don’t recognize them, but then half the time I don’t,” she said. She tapped her pen against the desk. Bryce wondered if she even knew she was doing it.
The nurse hung up and said, “Fourth floor. Stan will meet you at the elevator.”
Bryce and Gail stepped back into the elevator and Bryce hit the button to the fourth floor. The doors closed. He whispered, “If no one is there, run to the restroom. I’ll cover for you. Maybe he’ll continue on and you can look for Jana.”
“Good plan.”
The elevator doors opened. There was no time at all for Gail to make a sharp exit. A tall man in his forties, balding on top and hair going to gray, blocked the passage.
“Stan? Bryce Jones. We met at Kendall’s party,” Bryce said, lying about his last name. Had he used Langden, Stan would recognize his dad’s name. That was an association Bryce didn’t need just at the moment. He stepped forward and engaged Stan in a brisk hand shake.
Stand narrowed his eyes and said, “We’ve never met.”
“I could swear you were there.” Bryce shook his head. He said, “Anyway, I’m here to watch the procedure on Jana. I hear you’ve had a bit of trouble finding her. We have two great set of eyes here. We can help you look.”
“Wait here, please,” Stan strolled off.
Gail stood on tiptoe and whispered into Bryce’s ear. “He’s going to rat us out. Let’s go the other direction.”
Bryce watched Stan in his carefully controlled walk down the hall. It was too precise, as if he were waiting for them to make a move. Bryce said, “You go first, as quietly as possible. The first priority is to get Jana out. If you find her, take her to the car. Leave me here. I’ll tell them you had to go to the bathroom. It will buy us time.”
Gail moved with surprising stealth. Bryce was impressed. She looked once over her shoulder, and Bryce wanted to urge her on. Stan had continued moving in the other direction. He stopped at one of the rooms and was obviously talking to another person, although Bryce couldn’t see who.
Gail moved past the bathrooms, risking capture to get further down the hall. Jana’s room was on another floor, but Gail wanted to get some distance between herself and Stan. Bryce wished he could speak with her telepathically. He would tell her to hide now.
Finally she dipped into a doorway. Bryce started walking toward the room where Stan was still engaged in conversation. He had no idea how to proceed. Maybe if he’d been a real spy like his gaming buddy, Lucas, this wouldn’t have fallen apart so quickly.
“...need to find the girl. Just have security pick up those two and focus.”
“Excuse me?” Bryce said the words really loud so that they wouldn’t think he was eavesdropping, which he was.
“I told yo
u to stay put.” Stan was obviously a man who did not like being disobeyed. He turned three shades of red and looked like his was going to choke to death.
“I saw a girl down the hall. She was going for the stairwell. I thought you might want to know.” Bryce had to dodge out of the way when Stan pushed past him.
“Where?”
Bryce pointed in the opposite direction of the hall where Gail was now hiding. “That direction.”
“I didn’t hear the door,” Stan said. He snapped his fingers in front of the other man’s face, “Tully, are you awake? Watch this guy. Let’s not lose him like you lost the girl.”
The guard, presumably Tully, flushed until he looked like a cabbage stuck on a too-tight collar. When Bryce heard the door to the stairwell open, he leaned over and in a harsh whisper said, “What a dick!”
“He’s been on my case this whole time. Thinks he’s going to win the Nobel prize or something,” the guard said. He was a short man and bulky, a man who look like a rectangle.
Bryce said, “Don’t you hate working in the middle of the night. I mean, surely the day-shift knows that nights are up to something. It can’t be that well hidden.”
“Yeah. But they clean it up pretty well and keep the groups small,” Tully flopped into one of those hospital chairs that every room in a hospital has for guests of the patient. Bryce had hoped to get some momentum while Stan was away. Tully was too lazy for that.
“What happened to this girl?” Bryce hoped he sounded curious and not overly worried.
“No idea, Man. The thing is, the observation room has cameras on the door. Like massive cameras all over. There is no way that girl could have ghosted out like that. We show her on the camera coming in. We show everyone involved coming and going. But we don’t see her leaving,” Tully pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and wiped his forehead.
“There must be a phone in that room, the one she used to call out?” Bryce asked.
Of course Tully immediately glommed onto that. He said, “How do you know about that? We didn’t tell anybody about a phone call.”
