Zero to 165

by A. R. Moler

  "Do we have a backup plan if finding her proves to be a time consuming problem?"

  "Jonas has parents. If this takes more than twenty-four hours to even get going, I'll resort to flying them down here. They've already been notified anyway. I'd just rather deal with them on my terms back in Virginia."

  ***

  Backpack flung over his shoulder, Cam managed to get a last minute spot on a MAC flight from Norfolk to Pensacola. As the plane took off, he closed his eyes and let his thoughts drift. Jobs for Division P were unpredictable. Some were fairly easy, some not. On the surface this sounded like one of the easier ones. Find a woman who Captain Nightengale had a strong emotional attachment to and bring her to the injured man. The details gnawed at Cam a little though. Only because Jonas was Division P was there even an awareness that psi shock was a contributing part of his current medical problems. Only people like Peter and Mason knew just how badly this could affect the injured agent, and how much a lover or understanding family member was needed.

  That brought Cam's thoughts around to his own military existence, barring Division P intervention to notify Mason if anything happened to Cam, he was stuck with his own next of kin, his brother, Shea. That crazy bastard had taken seven weeks to get around to contacting Cam after his nearly fatal motorcycle accident. Cam wanted to be able to list Mason as his emergency contact, but hadn't yet dared approach that problem. There was political wrangling going on in DC to get rid of the insanely stupid DADT, but nothing more than some positive recommendations for its abolishment had happened yet. Cam wasn't holding his breath.

  ***

  The touch was unfamiliar, but it didn't hurt. He wasn't sure why. Jonas could hear beeping and the sounds of people walking but opening his eyes felt like an impossible task. He could tell there was someone's hand on his wrist.

  "Jonas? Come on, open your eyes for me," a male voice prompted.

  It was hard. He was too tired, too disoriented. There had been a lot of hands and every single one of them had felt like they were dragging claws through his body.

  "You're safe. You're in a hospital," the man said.

  Somebody squeezed Jonas' fingers. It took another eternity to force his eyes open. He saw a man with short dark hair in front of him.

  "I'm one of the Division P healers. My name is Mason," said the man. "I'm going to take care of you until we can get you back to Virginia."

  Jonas blinked. He thought he should probably nod or something but the thought slipped away as the world faded. He wished Sarah was here.

  ***

  Danny stepped back into the ICU cubicle, tucking his phone back in his pocket. "Cam's en route. Did I hear you talking to Jonas?" Danny asked, hoping for a more visible improvement in the injured man.

  Mason turned his head. "He was just barely conscious for a moment. His body's still struggling pretty hard. He had enough comprehension to realize my touch doesn't hurt, but that's about it."

  "It still sounds like a step in the right direction. You've been through the whole psi shock haven't you; back at the beginning of the summer, when that whole missile thing was going on?"

  "Yeah. Physically, I was hurt a whole lot less than Jonas, but I reacted pretty badly. Having Cam around… definitely helped me pull through it all."

  "If this woman is in Jonas' thoughts as messed up as he is, I think the emotions he has for her must be pretty strong."

  "I agree. You… have a… um… there's somebody in your life in addition to Peter, yes?" Mason asked.

  Danny smiled. "Yeah, her name's Jennifer. Peter and Jen and I… it's a good thing. Does the three-way thing bug you?"

  "No. It's just unusual."

  "I should introduce you and Cam to Jen next time she's down from Baltimore. She's amazing."

  ***

  "Mason?" said a familiar voice.

  Mason looked up from his weary focus on his patient to see Cam standing a few feet away. The man was wearing blue and gray digi-cams. A backpack dangled from one hand. Mason stood up and almost let himself cross the room to kiss his partner, but the comprehension of the uniform sank into Mason's head and he stopped himself.

  "You got down here pretty fast," said Mason. Cam stuck out his hand and gave him an oh-so-brief one armed hug. Mason sighed, internally wishing for more, but knew that wasn't going to happen, not in a Navy hospital.

  "Danny got me a last minute seat on a MAC flight," Cam said.

  "So did any box moving actually occur before you left?"

  "Two. That's all I had time for and they're dumped in the middle of your den. How's he doing?" Cam gestured toward Jonas.

  "Scraping by. I've got him fairly stable but it wouldn't take very much to send him spiraling downward," Mason admitted. "It would be easier to cope at the complex, but the fastest we can get a plane capable of transporting a stretcher and the necessary equipment is tomorrow evening." Mason glanced at his watch. It was past midnight. "Actually I guess that should be late today."

  "You look beat. Have you eaten?"

  "Yes, mom. Danny's been keeping tabs on me every couple hours."

  Cam gave him a smirk. "So where's this magic bullet?"

  Mason pointed at a cart. On the top, along with a tote of medical equipment lay the object, inside of two nested zip-locks. Danny had protected the item from any further touching once he and Mason had decided it was an object of importance.

  "Is it okay if I touch Nightengale so I can sort out his presence from any others?" Cam asked.

  Mason had to think about that one for a moment. Cam was obviously psi. It shouldn't pose the same hazards as letting a head blind hospital staff member touch Jonas. "A light touch should be okay I think."

  Cam walked over to Jonas bedside and pressed a couple of fingers gently to Jonas' hand. He was silent and still for a minute before he lifted his hand away.

  "No harm done?" Cam asked.

  Mason put his own hand back on Jonas. There was only a slight waver in the stability of Jonas' nervous system. "He's okay."

  Cam picked up the baggies and carefully opened them, dumping the bullet and chain out into his hands.

  ***

  This had to be one of the oddest keepsakes that he'd ever used to try and locate someone, Cam thought as he looked at the slug. He closed his eyes and let his Talent explore the deformed bullet. There was an odd mix of connections attached to it, and it took several minutes for Cam to sift away the impression of Jonas' presence. Beneath, he sensed a female link. The bullet had significance to the woman, although Cam's ability to identify what that importance might be, was weak. She was neither close nor far away. It took another segment of time to try to decide what range he was feeling. It had to be east coast he decided, the pull would have been less if it had involved something farther.

  He laid the bullet and its chain down.

  "Any luck?" asked Mason.

  "Yeah, some. I need to let the information cook in my brain for an hour or so. I can tell you she's north of here, somewhere on the order of a thousand miles. Has Jonas been to DC in the past year?"

  "I don't know. That's a question for Danny. He has access to all of Jonas' military and Division P records."

  "I don't suppose you can take a break?" Cam pointed at Jonas.

  "Not really. If a nurse walked in here and started taking his vitals, I'm not sure it would turn out very well," Mason said.

  "Damn, the sooner you can get him back to the complex the better it seems. Where'd Danny go? Bathroom break?"

  "Coffee and a leg stretch I think. He should be back soon."

  ***

  When Danny returned, he called up Jonas' records on his laptop for Cam. "Nightengale was in Frederick, Maryland at Fort Detrick, on assignment for us about a month ago. Do you think he met this woman there?"

  "It sounds possible. Get me on a MAC flight to DC and I'll rent a car and drive the rest of the way," said Cam. It wasn't an ideal situation but it would probably be the speediest.

  "Finding a flight for
you could take at least a couple of hours," Danny replied.

  "Okay, do what you have to. I'm gonna go grab some food from the cafeteria. Mason, would it work to leave Danny here with Nightengale while he's making phone calls? He could keep watch, you really look like you could use a break." He knew Mason's body language too well. The man was pushing himself toward exhaustion. Healing could be a brutal taskmaster.

  Mason gave Cam a dubious look, so Cam walked over and laid a hand on Mason's shoulder. "If you burn yourself out, you're not doing Jonas any good."

  "I could use some more food," Mason grudgingly acknowledged.

  "I'll call you immediately if he's shows any change," Danny promised.

  Cam all but shoved his partner out of the ICU cubicle in the direction of the hallway. They went to the cafeteria, got food, and sat at a table as far from any other people as possible. Luckily, at two a.m. there were only a few other patrons.

  "You're gonna need sleep at some point," said Cam. He knew damn well that wasn't the only problem; he could feel Mason's intense desire to touch him.

  "Eventually."

  They ate swiftly and headed back toward the elevators. Cam noticed a housekeeping cart leaving a room and grabbed Mason's wrist, pulling him into the room. He made a quick glance for cameras or anything else telling and saw nothing. He flipped the lock on the door. Mason was standing patiently a few feet away.

  "You have something you don't want to say with Danny around?" Mason asked.

  "I don't want to say anything." Cam pulled Mason into his arms and held him tight. Mason practically melted against him, kissing him, hands bunching the fabric of Cam's shirt. "And Danny's not the problem," Cam whispered against Mason's mouth. "It's a Navy run hospital and fucking stupid regs."

  "Things are changing," Mason murmured, as his hands mapped every part of Cam's body he could reach.

  "Not fast enough and I haven't got quite enough balls to face pushing the limits."

  "I think your balls are just fine," Mason snickered. Cam could tell his lover was so exhausted he was getting punchy. Mason sobered a little. "I've been apart from you for barely twenty-four hours, why the hell does it feel a lot longer?"

  "Stress, hon', major stress."

  "We need to get back," Mason said.

  "I know, but give me ten minutes to just hold you. I think you need it."

  It was soft kisses and roaming hands and they both knew it wasn't going anywhere. When they carefully left the room less than fifteen minutes later, Cam thought Mason still looked overly tired, but more relaxed.

  ***

  Two MAC flights in less than twelve hours were leaving even Cam feeling run a little ragged. Learning to sleep on an aircraft carrier had its advantages; Cam could tolerate some pretty epic noise and vibration. He sacked out almost before the wheels were up. He'd need certain level of alertness when he got to DC.

  It took a bit over an hour to drive from Andrews AF base near DC to Frederick. Once Cam got there, he parked the rental car a few blocks from one of the entrances to Fort Detrick. It was a Saturday and there was no guarantee that the woman he was seeking worked for the installation. She could be a civilian, but somehow he thought not.

  Driving while actively "finding" was somewhat dangerous. It took too much of his concentration off the road and he'd hit a parked car once. Even walking wasn't without its problems; Cam was likely to run into telephone poles or other objects or people when he was focused on following the pull of whatever he was seeking.

  He locked the car and starting walking, one hand in his pocket holding the bullet.

  Cam ended up outside an apartment building. This felt like the right place. He looked at his watch. It said 0832. There was a chance either the woman didn't have to work today or that she simply hadn't left yet. Cam knocked on the door to the apartment that his Talent told him held what he was looking for. A trim muscular woman dressed in camouflage BDUs opened the door. She had brown hair pulled tightly back into a French braid.

  "Yes?" she asked.

  "Do you know a man named Jonas Nightengale?" asked Cam. There was little point in being anything other than blunt. She gave Cam an appraising look, taking in his own uniform.

  "Yes…He came to Fort Detrick on an assignment," she replied. "What's this about?" She sounded wary.

  "My name is Cameron Bradshaw. Jonas was seriously injured in a SEAL operation in South America." Cam watched the flicker of shock followed by fear cross the woman's face. "Can I come in?"

  She beckoned him inside and shut the door. They were standing in her living room. "He's… dead?" she said uncertainly.

  "No, he's in a Navy hospital in Pensacola. Um… I… have no idea what your name is."

  "Quilleran, Sgt. Sarah Quilleran. How did you find me if you don't know my name?"

  Cam pulled the squashed bullet on a chain out of his pocket and held it out to her. "With this." He felt a trickle of shock wash out from her. "Did Jonas ever talk to you about Division P?" It was something of a shot in the dark, but Cam didn't really have time to mess around. He extended his psychic senses, and got the definite impression Sgt. Quilleran was psi, too.

  "Yes." Her answer was hesitant.

  "I work for Division P, just like he does." Cam dug his federal ID from his pocket and showed it to her. She looked at the ID, but the bullet was what she reached for and took from his hand. That little brush of skin contact reinforced Cam's idea that this woman had some psi Talent. "Do you know what he does for Division P?"

  She nodded. "Is he… dying?"

  Cam felt the flow of anguish from her. He was subtly impressed that very little of that emotion actually showed on her face. "I really hope not. That's part of where you come into the picture. I'm assuming you have a relationship with him?"

  "He's my boyfriend," she said bluntly.

  "Good." His response appeared to disconcert her further. "He's needs you."

  "I'm not a doctor. I'm a Sergeant in the Army and run security for TATRC. Not that I don't really want to be with him if he's badly hurt… Oh fuck, this has something to do with our psychic thing doesn't it?" she blurted out, obviously finally making the connection between Division P and Cam's presence.

  "Yes. In addition to the physical injuries, he's going through some pretty bad psi shock. One of Division P's healers is with him, keeping him relatively stable, but Jonas could really use somebody he's emotionally attached to. I think that person is you."

  Sarah sank onto the arm of the sofa. Some of her suppressed emotions were definitely showing through now. Cam could sense fear and grief. If someone had told him that Mason was seriously injured and lying in a hospital hundreds of miles away, he'd be damn near a complete wreck.

  "God… how bad is he hurt? How bad is the psychic damage thing?" she asked.

  "He has a head injury, a burn to half of his back, a dislocated shoulder and some gashes here and there. The doctor's who's with him has him stabilized enough that he might be able to be transported to Division P headquarters late this evening, but he was still classified as in critical condition when I left Florida." Cam watched her get up and pace nervously.

  "What can I do?" she asked.

  "Pack a bag and come with me right now. We'll drive straight to the Division P headquarters."

  "I have duty in two hours, and tomorrow."

  "I'll take care of that," said Cam.

  She gave him another long look, appearing to weigh her belief in him against the potential danger of being declared AWOL. "Jonas indicated that for all its hush-hush sort of status, Division P has kick ass clout."

  "Pretty much. I can solve your duty problems with a couple of phone calls."

  ***

  It took Sarah Quilleran a grand total of about twenty minutes to throw several changes of clothes in a bag along with toiletries and follow Cameron Bradshaw out the door.

  As they drove south toward Suffolk, Virginia, Sarah sat with the bullet in her hand.

  "Obviously that little piece of lead has
some importance to you and Jonas. I got the impression that you were the one who got shot, but beyond that I didn't really understand the rest of it," said Cam.

  "Do you… get the information when you touch things like Jonas does?" she asked, deflecting his question. Telling this man about putting herself in between Jonas and a bullet seemed too personal. How did you explain that you bet your life on the stopping power of a Kevlar vest so the man you were falling in love with didn't die?

  "Yes and no. I'm a finder. He does the psychometry thing. There's some overlap between us."

  "You're telling me an awful lot of information," Sarah said.

  "This classifies as an emergency situation. The healer who's with Jonas, he's keeping Jonas stable, but that's really just a short term fix. Jonas needs someone he cares about to get him all the way up out of the mess inside his head and back into normal reality."

  "And he pretty much sucks at doing it on his own," she murmured.

  "Did something happen between the two of you? I mean something where he needed you to help ground him."

  "Yes. He got hit by a large number of falling boxes in a warehouse while he was at Detrick working on an assignment. He probably had a concussion but he said taking him to the hospital would make it worse. He was really rattled by the whole thing; it triggered some kind of flashback to an injury in Kosovo."

  "And you connected with him, helped him," Cam said.

  "Yes. I don't really know what I did though."

  "That's okay, gut instinct counts for a lot."

  Sarah found Cam surprisingly easy to talk to, even if the topic was strange. She'd never discussed the psychic thing with anyone other than Jonas before. She finally sucked up her nerve to tell Cam about the bullet.

  "When Jonas was here on assignment, I… got between him and a guy with a gun. I had a vest on and Jonas didn't. I took a bullet for him," Sarah confessed. "I kept the slug for a while, then I eventually gave it to Jonas as some twisted version of a good luck charm. I guess it didn't work."

  "He's still alive, against some fairly intense odds. Maybe it did."

  ***

  The conversation between Cam and Sarah eventually lapsed into silence, and Cam let her be. He rationalized that she needed some processing time. It was probably hard enough that the man she cared about was seriously injured, but he sensed some real discomfort in her discussing the psi information with him. That wasn't unusual. It was a weird and awkward topic for someone who showed signs of only grudgingly acknowledging she possessed it, too.