by Brenna Lyons
* * *
By the time Kyla came out of the bathroom, Molly was winding down the stairs with Liz. Jason came in the front door, and everyone converged on the living room. Hugs and jokes were everywhere.
Joe looked at Liz. “Hey, you still haven’t apologized. You know her little talents saved your butt, just like I said.
Liz made a face. “Yeah, I know it. Thanks, showoff.”
Kyla waved back at her.
“Want to play a game with Jason?” Liz teased.
“It wouldn’t be fair. I know his mind’s in the gutter now. Different gutter—”
“Who says?” Jason interjected.
“That it’s in the gutter? We all know that, Jason,” Liz answered.
“No, I meant which gutter it’s in?” he asked with a hint of sincerity.
Liz jabbed him in the ribs.
Jason collapsed to the floor, feigning injury, and went into his Richard Jenni impersonation. “I said nothing, Madam. Nothing,” he protested to howls of laughter from the others.
Matthew shook his head. This was the type of teenage hijinks he’d always hoped Kyla would have engaged in. “Have you guys always gotten along like this?” he asked.
“No,” they answered almost in unison.
Kyla continued. “I threatened Eric’s life a few times. Liz and I had several verbal battles and came close to fistfights a few times. Jason was lusting after me for awhile before he got smart and realized Liz was interested. Gram had trouble keeping the peace sometimes, but we figured it out eventually.”
Matthew shook his head. “It sounds like it was a war,” he observed.
Jason smiled and pulled Liz down beside him on the sofa. “It was. Heck, I can name at least three times that Kyla was resisting the urge to punch Liz for some smart aleck comment at a stressful moment.”
“Oh, you were watching that close, were you?” Kyla asked sarcastically as she sat on Joe’s lap. “Quadruple that and you might be in the ballpark.”
“Hey, I wasn’t in the room with you twenty-four-seven. Give me a break.”
“As I recall,” Liz cut in, “the way you ended that game of twenty questions didn’t win you any fans.”
Kyla smiled. “I was done playing.”
“Where did you disappear to after you stormed out?” Liz asked.
“To puke,” Eric commented.
Matthew saw Kyla turn a sickly shade of gray as she nodded.
Jason sucked in his breath. “I’m sorry, Kyla. We pushed you way over the edge that day. I didn’t know it was that bad. I know Joe understands what happened, but the rest of us don’t. What was going on?”
Kyla laughed nervously. “I was having an argument with Heather,” she answered. “She knew Stacie was a traitor, though she wouldn’t tell me who it was. I couldn’t say anything I didn’t want a traitor to know.”
Liz furrowed her brow. “You were having an argument with your imaginary playmate?” she asked.
“No, I fight with—” Kyla looked at Molly, trying to decide how to phrase it.
Molly smiled. “I know who Heather really is. Tell them.”
Kyla nodded. “Heather is my real mother.”
Liz sighed. “Gives a whole new meaning to motherly love, doesn’t it?”
Eric looked at Kyla. “So, did you want to answer?”
Kyla groaned. “I wanted to, but every time I opened my mouth, Heather was there barking orders at me. And I thought it was bad when she was badgering me to give Joe another chance. By the end of it, I was dizzy, nauseated, and ticked off. It was all I could do to leave that table under my own power.”
Joe wrapped his arms around her. “Why did you?”
“Because the only other option was passing out, and my credibility was already on the rocks.”
“I thought you didn’t want to be credible?”
“I didn’t want to be more credible. I did want to retain the minimum of personal standing I had.”
Eric nodded. “Then I owe you another apology. By that time, I was convinced you were being difficult just to be difficult.”
Kyla waved it off.
Jason suddenly cut in. “Not to be crude, but I think I just figured out how to make you puke.”
Kyla made a face. “Thanks, but I don’t think I want to know.”
“I do,” Joe said.
Kyla shot him a scathing look, and Joe kissed her.
“Put her in a situation where she has to force herself not to pass out and she pukes to stay awake,” Jason told him.
Kyla dropped her head to Joe’s chest and groaned.
“Jason,” Joe snapped. “I was kidding.”
Jason grinned. “I know.”
* * *
Liz and Jason stayed until after dinner. Eric stayed until after Molly went to bed. Kyla saw Eric offer Joe a gun on his way out the front door. Joe glanced up the stairs and back to Eric. He shook his head with an air of finality. Eric waved to Kyla and walked away.
Joe walked back to the living room, using his crutches to steady his gait. “Are you as beat as I am?” he asked her.
Kyla nodded.
She started toward the stairs, but Matthew called her back. “Kyla, can I speak to you privately for just a few minutes before you go up?”
Kyla looked at Joe, her heart pounding. “Joe? If you’re okay?”
Joe nodded to her. “Sure. I’ll see you upstairs in a few minutes.”
Kyla returned to the chair near the doorway. She did her best to relax, but something in Matthew’s stance made her distinctly uncomfortable. “Okay, what’s up?” she asked.
“Are you protecting me?”
Kyla sighed. “I protect everyone, if I can. It’s what I am.” She shook her head. “Is that wrong?”
He shrugged. “Maybe. Maybe not. My point is, I’m not Molly. I feel helpless when I don’t know what’s going on. I don’t want you to leave. I want you to talk to me.”
“What do you want to know?”
“When did you have a hundred and five degree fever and why?”
“I had a sinus infection on Easter Sunday. I spiked sometime in the afternoon and dehydrated. Gram started an IV and gave me some serious antibiotics to break it. Joe stayed with me until I was lucid again.”
“Easter? The romp in the freezing dew probably didn’t help much, I’ll bet,” he commented dryly.
Kyla grimaced. “Jason or Liz?” she asked.
“Both.”
“No, it didn’t. My system was already overtaxed, and the shock of it probably sent me over the edge.” She shook her head. “Joe’s sweatshirt saved my life. If he hadn’t changed my clothes—”
“How many times? How many times did I almost lose you since Easter weekend?”
Kyla counted them off in her mind. “Twelve,” she answered. “That includes the ones you already know about. Some were closer than others.”
Matthew turned pale, and tears welled in his eyes. “My God. Why didn’t you ever tell me?”
Kyla shrugged. “Why? Would it make you feel better? Would it give you peace?”
“No, but—”
“But what? Hurting you for something you couldn’t have stopped, something that’s over and done with?”
“How many times did Joe save your life?”
“Two times alone and five times with the help of others.”
“What about the other times?”
“For three of them, I was on my own. The other two, I owe to other people.”
“Like who?”
“Harris. He shot Howard to keep him from shooting me. Of course, he had an ulterior motive.”
“Joe let you call us even though it could get you killed, but you hung up without finishing the call?”
Kyla felt a tight band around her chest. “There are a few things I don’t really remember. I remember standing there with my hand on the phone. Joe was there. He was always there when I needed him most.” She smiled. “He held me until I lost consciousness. The next thing I re
member was waking up in his arms in almost the same spot the next morning. He didn’t leave me.” She smiled through the tears.
Matthew nodded. “I need to know something. The answer won’t change anything, but I need to know.”
Kyla nodded warily.
“Did you or Joe ever kill anyone? Personally?”
She shook her head. “No, we didn’t. Neither of us ever took a life.”
“Okay, give me a hug and go see your husband.”
Kyla didn’t move for a long moment. “I never wanted anyone in trouble, Dad. Most of all, I wanted Joe and my family safe.”
“I know that. I think you did the best anyone could in that situation.”
Kyla hugged him and went upstairs. She laid her head against the door for several minutes before she went in. Joe looked up from the bed and his faced darkened. The tears fell. Kyla crossed to the bed and crawled in beside her husband.
Chapter Thirty-nine
July 1st-5th
Breakfast the next morning started out quiet. Kyla could tell that Joe was still upset with Matthew, but he hid it well.
Molly suddenly spoke up. “Kyla? I forgot to ask you something.”
Kyla smiled. “What, Molly?”
“Who’s Alice?” she asked.
Kyla stared at her. “I think you misfired, Molly. I don’t know anyone named Alice.”
“Yes, you do. You said so.”
“When?” Kyla asked her. “I don’t remember.”
“When we were in the office waiting for Leo and Joe. You kept talking to yourself and to Heather. Every once in awhile, you’d say, ‘Go ask Alice. I think she’ll know.’ Know what?”
Kyla buried her face in her hands, as Joe started laughing.
“I bet she talked about knights and queens and white rabbits, too,” he asked for clarification.
“Yes,” Molly said uncertainly.
Joe erupted in harder gales of laughter, and Matthew joined in.
“What’s so funny?” Molly demanded.
Kyla felt sick. Nothing was funny. The forgotten scene flooded into her mind.
She was sweating, and her stomach rebelled. She had never felt this bad in her entire life. Kyla tried to get to her feet, but landed heavily again. She wanted to get out, to lie down and go to sleep.
“No,” Heather told her, “Not yet. Not until you’re safe with Leo or Joe.”
“Heather, I can’t do this anymore. I want out. I’m going to die.”
“No, you’ll be fine,” she crooned.
Kyla shook her head, and her vision swirled in sick circles. “No, I’m not okay.”
Heather wrapped an arm around her daughter, and Kyla could feel the solid reality of it. “Sing with me. Take your mind off of it.”
“Sing what?” Kyla asked her.
Heather started singing and Kyla recognized the song immediately.
“And the ones that mother gives you don’t do anything at all,” Kyla joined in. She smiled weakly. “You have a lousy sense of humor, and I feel like shit.”
“Sing.” Heather patted Kyla’s shoulder. “Go ask Alice…”
* * *
“That’s classic,” Joe managed.
Matthew turned to Molly. “It’s okay, Molly. Your sister was a little punchy when she was trying to stay awake. That’s an old song.”
Molly shook her head. “I don’t understand.”
Joe stopped laughing long enough to formulate an answer. “Those men gave Kyla a shot with drugs in it. You understand that much?”
Molly nodded. “Yes, but why is the song funny?”
Joe smiled. “The song is about a girl named Alice who is given drugs and sees all sorts of strange things,” he explained.
“Like talking chess pieces?”
Joe nodded.
“And like Heather? Heather doesn’t normally talk to her like that, you know. Kyla didn’t know Heather could talk to her that way.”
Joe sobered. “Yes, Molly. I think you’re right.” He looked at Kyla, but she still had her face buried in her hands. “Kyla?” he called.
She didn’t respond.
Josie leaned toward her and called her, but Kyla still didn’t seem to hear. Joe reached out to her with his mind, but there was a wall-like structure between them. Kyla had never shut him out like that before. He stood and edged closer to her.
Molly touched her arm. “Kyla?”
Kyla bolted from the room.
Joe ran unsteadily after her. “Shit! Not again.”
He was sure he wouldn’t be able to catch her this time. Kyla tripped and skidded toward the stairs. She was scrambling to her feet again when Joe got a hold on her waist and pulled her back down into his lap breathlessly. Kyla tried to pull away, and Joe tightened his grip. This was much more difficult now that she wasn’t injured.
“Kyla, it’s me.”
She calmed slightly but she was still struggling.
“Calm down,” he told her.
Kyla seemed to remember where she was. She sank to his chest and started to shake.
Joe stroked her hair and rocked her as he had so many times before. “It’s all right. I’m not going anywhere,” he crooned to her.
Her shaking subsided quickly, and Kyla relaxed so completely that Joe thought she might have fallen asleep.
Kyla looked up at him. “No, just mulling it over. Think I’ll ever stop doing that?” she asked.
Joe smiled. “This one was much better,” he assured her.
“It was?”
“Well, you didn’t call me a bastard when I caught you.”
Kyla blushed. “I have a lot to apologize for, don’t I?”
“No, we just have to make sure that people don’t give you drugs. They seem to have a strange effect on you.” His smile widened. “Not that I’m complaining about you ending up in my arms. That part is sort of nice.”
Kyla smiled. “I know why I never really wanted to try it.”
“What? Ending up in my arms?”
She made a face at him. “Drugs. You know I wanted to end up in your arms ever since the first time you offered me your hand to help me up.”
Joe stood awkwardly and put his hand down to her. “Here. Let me help you up,” he repeated.
Kyla put her hand in his and allowed herself to be pulled to her feet. Joe wrapped his arms around her waist.
“My knight in shining armor,” she breathed.
Joe kissed her. He heard Matthew moving away. Joe wasn’t sure how long the older man had been standing there, but he found it hard to be concerned.
Joe smiled at Kyla. “Want to find out what a knight wears under his armor?” he invited her.
“I thought you’d never ask.”
* * *
Matthew returned to the kitchen. Molly and Josie were still staring out the way Kyla had disappeared.
“Is she okay?” Josie asked.
He nodded. “It’s strange. It’s almost as if Joe has a magic touch. He holds her and talks to her and she— I can’t even explain it. I don’t know what just happened, but I know Joe was the only one who could make it right.”
Molly nodded. “Sometimes, Kyla only has fragments. When a chunk of memory hits her at once—Boom.” She clapped her hands together to punctuate the statement.
Josie looked at her. “Is that what happened?”
Molly nodded. “She couldn’t remember what happened in the office. She had to remember, and now she does.”
“What did happen in the office?”
“Kyla wanted to give up waiting for Joe and Leo. She was so sick, she thought she was going to die. She said she felt like—” Molly broke off and looked at her parents with a sheepish grin. “Can’t say that one.”
“Then what?” Matthew asked.
“Heather wouldn’t let her go. She held Kyla there and made her sing to make her feel better. It didn’t work that way, but it helped her stay awake. The Alice song was Heather’s idea. Kyla said she had a lousy sense of humor. I think Kyla l
oved her and hated her at the same time.”
“What made her run?” Josie asked.
“She needed comfort. She was confused and looking for Heather, but Heather wasn’t there. Joe was.” Molly hesitated and cocked her head as if she were listening to something. “What does wean mean?” she asked.
Josie glanced at Matthew in confusion, then back at Molly. “It means when a baby stops drinking her mother’s milk.”
Molly shook her head. “That can’t be right. I don’t understand.”
“What don’t you understand?” Matthew asked.
“Kyla needs to be weaned from Heather, because she’s leaving soon.”
“Does that mean that Kyla won’t be able to—” Josie waved her hand uncertainly.
Molly laughed. “No, it just means that she doesn’t need a guide anymore. She wouldn’t have needed one this long if it wasn’t for Briana. Kyla couldn’t learn to use her gifts when she was supposed to learn how to use them.”
Josie cut in again. “How do you know all this?”
“Sam told me,” she answered.
“Who is Sam?”
“My guide. Like Heather was for Kyla. Kyla was my guide until Sam was ready, but now she has a life to live of her own.” Molly sighed. “When I don’t need Sam…”
“What will he do, then?” Matthew asked.
“She,” Molly insisted. “She will have to go see the Ladies.”
“Does everyone have a guide?” Josie asked.
Molly smiled. “Everyone who needs one, I suppose. Some people don’t listen to their guide. That’s not good. Kyla didn’t always listen to Heather.” She smiled. “Heather was at the end of her rope with Kyla sometimes.”
“What are your gifts?” Matthew asked. He envisioned another budding Kyla.
Molly smiled. “Don’t worry, Dad. Sam says I have a keen empity.”
“Empathy?” Josie asked.
Molly nodded. “Empathy. I understand why people feel the way they do.”
Josie smiled. “I think I understand.”
Matthew looked at her sharply. What did she understand?
Josie met his eyes and continued. “Molly was Kyla’s anchor until Joe arrived. She wasn’t on speaking terms with Heather at that point. Who better to balance someone who has no connection to people than someone with a keen empathy? Plus, Molly needed a guide until hers was ready. Kyla was the perfect choice.”
