The fifth floor was once a thriving convent, where the former owners of the hospital, Sisters of St. Frances, slept, ate and prayed. Now it was an empty room, stripped of everything, save for a single crucifix hanging on the wall over the doorway. The only illumination came from outside street lights, filtering in through old dingy windows. In the middle of the room were two large support columns, with a detonator attached to each. The terrorist set the timer on the last detonator, connecting it to an oxygen tank. The master plan was not to waste money on taking out this side of the building, where few people worked. It was just to get people’s attention, before the real explosion laid waste to the other half of the building. The half where over five hundred patients lay in various stages of illness, on eight different floors.
Just as the man finished with the last detonator, the police burst through the door.
*
Paul keyed the elevator to go down to the dungeon, where he let out two techs from the Bomb Disposal squad. The techs wore shard protective uniforms that looked more like an overstuffed coat and pants suit. Their helmets had a small area in which to see through, covered by a transparent protective shield. The base of the helmets fit inside a shell that came up like an oversized collar around their shoulders. Paul thought they looked more like turtles, and wondered how they could pick up anything, wearing those thick gloves.
They instructed Paul to stay back at the elevator, as they approached the first detonator, to give it a thorough examination. After conferring with each other, the first tech took out his tools, and a few lip sweating moments later, disarmed the detonator’s timer. Going cautiously, step by step, they disconnected the oxygen tanks from the wires, and shut off the valves. Once that bomb was secured, they moved to the next one, until all four bombs had been disarmed. Finally, they gave the all clear, and Paul entered the room.
The tech pointed at the tanks, “It was simplistic in its complexity. The use of hospital oxygen tanks was probably a money saver, but the detonators weren’t. Top of the line, very expensive, and deadly accurate. They have a small computer built in that, if not disarmed first, will detonate the tanks. Even shutting off the valves, first, would have still caused an explosion, because these detonators also have explosive accelerants in them that intensifies the blast radius. If you hadn’t found them when you did, this whole side of the building would have gone up.”
Paul swallowed hard, and told the techs to stand by, there might be more bombs on the other end of the hospital.
*
Satisfied that the last canister was secured, the bomber came around the column, and punched some numbers into the detonator. He froze in place, at the sight of the police bursting through the door. They screamed at him to surrender, until they realized his hand was on the detonator attached to the column. For a moment everything froze, as if the movie film had stuck in place. Nothing moved except their eyes, darting from the detonator to the terrorist, back to the detonator.
Then just as quickly, the film started playing again, gaining speed, until the film melted from the center out. The police began firing bullets into the terrorist’s body, a half second before he pushed the detonator button. The white‒hot ball of fire, exploded outward and upward, filling the area instantly, with raging fire and black smoke. For a few seconds, the air had imploded. Sound was completely gone, and a brilliant white light filled the room, swelling against the walls, until they exploded to release the pressure. The deafening sound of the blast came a few seconds later, echoing through the black smoke.
There was no sign of the terrorist. He had been reduced to ashes, instantly. Several police officers lay dead or dying, on the floor below. Bradshah, who had entered behind the police, was blown off his feet, into the farthest corner of the room. Shrapnel and bone protruded from his hip. Aidan, who had followed behind Bradshah, was lifted off her feet by the pressure wave, and thrown back into the hallway, against the wall, suffering a crack to her head. She fell to the floor, struggling to stay conscious. Her body was numb, her ears were ringing, and her legs were rubber. As the loud ringing in her ears began to dissipate, she heard screams coming from the room. Death screams, that she had heard before. The smell of gun powder, the screams of pain, and the smell of death, so completely overwhelmed her, that it caused her head to spin, violently. Memories exploded in her mind. Memories that had lain dormant, for over a year. In a matter of seconds, she re-lived every moment she had ever forgotten. And just as quickly, as the memories surfaced, they disappeared again, leaving only traces to be found later. The motion and emotion was too much for her, and she stumbled back, expelling the contents of her stomach.
Using her shirt sleeve to wipe the bile from her mouth, Aidan looked around, and tried to focus through a pounding headache. Hearing the moans, coming from inside the room, spurred her into action. She ran in, to find a gaping hole in the floor, and half the roof blown off, parts of it still falling to the floor below. She yanked and tugged at Bradshah, who was on the verge of falling through the hole, pulling him into the hallway. She went back in, and repeated the process, two more times. Of the battalion that she had followed into the room, only three survived, and one of them was Bradshah.
*
Dear God, where is Aidan? Vicky stood in the front hallway, encouraging her staff to stay calm and move quickly, while she fought her own rising panic. She needed to see Aidan, to know she was safe. But, as bad as she wanted to go find her, she couldn’t leave her employees and patients. Suddenly, the ground rumbled beneath her feet, followed by a loud boom, like a cannon going off nearby. Sweet Jesus! The sound came from the direction of the Education Department. She had a sudden, terrifying chill run down her back, that wiped every thought from her mind except one. Where is Aidan? I have to find her! Just as she turned toward the Education wing, she felt someone grab her arm roughly.
An excited nurse asked, “Ms. Montgomery, was that a bomb?”
She saw the panic in the younger woman’s eyes, “Stay calm. Remember your patient. Get them out of this building, as quickly and safely, as you can.”
She helped the nurse push the gurney carrying her patient, to the main lobby, one of the exit points for the evacuation. After they were outside, she quickly glanced down the road to her right, and saw gurney’s lined up five rows thick. The sight terrified her, but the police, ambulances, and fire trucks, who were just arriving on the scene, eased her initial concerns. She turned back to the nurse, and touched her arm, reassuring her. Then she looked to her left, and saw smoke bellowing up from the education building. She immediately ran back inside, ignoring the nurse screaming for her to, “Stay out here!”
Coming off the elevator, Muham instantly knew something was amiss. He all but panicked when he saw two men, holding pistols, blocking the doorway of the education building. Shit… shit, SHIT! He turned his head away, so they wouldn’t see his face, and held his breath as he rushed past them toward the main lobby. Placing his hand on the butt of his pistol, he turned the corner into the horde of employees and patients, filing out the front door. The line stretch back through two hallways, effectively cutting off his exit. Then he saw her.
Vicky rushed back into the lobby, to help with the patients, when she looked up to see Muham holding a gun on a nurse. It was Barbara, the Employee of the Year, and when she saw Vicky, she screamed for help. The room froze, no one moved. Everything and everyone stood absolutely still.
Vicky’s mouth went dry, her hands trembled with fear. Still, she forced herself to take a step toward Muham, holding her unsteady hands out in a calming way. As she was about to say something, Julie walked up holding her cellphone. She was texting her husband to come pick her up. She looked up and saw what was happening, and let out a piercing scream.
Muham fired at her head, killing her instantly.
Vicky screamed, “No! Oh my God, Julie!” People scattered in a panic, some ducked from reflex, and others covered their patients with their bodies, to protect them. Vicky moved to help J
ulie, but Muham stopped her with a wave of his gun to Barbara’s head, who was close to hysterics.
In every crisis, there is a time of panic, and a time of clarity. Looking at Julie, bleeding out on the floor, Vicky found clarity. “Stay calm, people! Don’t panic!” Looking back at Muham, she accused, “You didn’t have to do that, she wouldn’t have hurt you!” And in every crisis, there is a time of fear and a time of courage, “I’m the one you want.” She found her courage. “Let her go, take me instead.” She took another small step toward him and continued, “You don’t want her,” pointing to Barbara, “You want me.”
“You’re right, bitch, I want you.” He shoved Barbara to the side, and grabbed Vicky by her hair. Using her as a shield, he roughly pulled her in close to his chest, his foul smelling breath exhaling across her cheek. He slowly inched her towards the front door. She fought him every step of the way, knowing that she was dead if she left with him.
“MUHAM!” Aidan yelled from behind him, “Let her go!”
Muham immediately slammed his back against a wall, keeping his gun in Vicky’s ribs, and one hand on her throat. He looked at Aidan, who was pointing a gun at him, and recognized her, behind the disheveled wig and beard.
“You failed, Muham, you failed again!” Aidan screamed, tightened her finger on the trigger, “Let her go, and you might live.” Somewhere deep inside of Aidan, the desire to kill this man took over her very humanity.
Aidan stood in torn, bloody clothes. Blood that was not her own, but Vicky didn’t know that. She saw her lover bleeding again, and her mind clamped shut to all but one thought. She would not let her lover sacrifice everything for her again. Not this time. This time, she would be the one to make the sacrifice. As her childhood with Aidan, flashed before her eyes, she felt at peace, as if she were the little girl on the swing again, afraid of nothing. Higher Aidan, higher! She looked at Aidan with calm resolve, “I love you, Aidan.”
Aidan never took her eyes off Muham as she replied, “I love you too, Vicky.”
“Please, tell my parents that I love them.” Vicky’s voice was soft, but there was no tremble in her voice, and for the first time, Aidan took her eyes off of Muham and looked at Vicky, a scream working its way up to her throat.
Muham took advantage of Aidan’s distraction, and pointed his gun at Aidan’s head. “Bitch!” he shouted, as he squeezed the trigger.
In that same instant, Vicky elbowed him in the stomach, where his knife wound was still healing. The bullet came so close to Aidan’s head that her hair waved in its wake. Released from his grip, Vicky moved towards her lover’s arms.
But Muham wasn’t done. He raised his gun again, mumbled under his breath, and fired a second shot at Aidan.
Vicky turned in time to see Muham raise his gun. She flared her arms, and jumped out in front of Aidan, shielding her with her own body. The force from the bullet sent her flailing into Aidan’s body, then she collapsed to the floor.
“NOOOO!” Aidan screamed. A cold, silent, controlled rage overtook her. She raised her own weapon and fired, hitting Muham square in the forehead. He dropped to the floor like a stone, dead. Aidan sunk to the floor, beside her wounded lover, “Vicky!” she sobbed.
“Aidan…” Vicky coughed in pain, a trickle of blood oozing from her mouth.
“Don’t talk baby, just hold on.”
“I don’t think I’m going to be as lucky as you were, honey…”
“Don’t say that kid.”
Vicky struggled to lift her hand to Aidan’s cheek, as she whispered, “Thank you for remembering me in time. I love you, Aidan.” Her hand fell to the floor, her eyes closed, and her body went limp.
Aidan scooped up her lifeless body, “NO! God, Vicky! No! Don’t leave me, please, don’t…”
Chapter 15
As the whippoorwill gave way to the gray owl, and the crescent moon pushed the sun from the sky, the city’s residents prepared for bed. But while the city slept, the earth turned on its axis, and by the morning, had disentangle devious schemes, and brought to light unconditional love, for Aidan and Vicky.
“NO!” Aidan screamed, and jerked up in a cold sweat. Confused, she looked around, and realized she was still in the surgery waiting room, at the hospital. She looked at her watch. She had only been asleep for fifteen minutes. It was nearly daylight outside, and Vicky had been in surgery for almost two hours now. Aidan wondered why they hadn’t told her anything yet? What the hell is taking so long! The stress was too much, so she got up and paced back and forth. Lord, I know we don’t talk much, that’s my bad, but please, if you could see fit to help Vicky hang on, I sure would appreciate it. Thanks. Uh, Amen.
As Aidan finished her prayer, she noticed she was getting some strange looks from a few employees. St. Frances Hospital was almost an empty shell now. All the patients had been transported to other hospitals, during the night. But there were still a few employees who were anxiously trying to finish up, so they could leave as well.
She looked down and realized she was still in her disguise as Bill. But her beard and mustache were falling off. She took out the blue contacts, rubbed her eyes, then removed the disheveled blonde wig, and the mustache and beard, that were barely hanging on. She ran her hand through her thick auburn hair, and shook it free. Then she rubbed her face, where the beard had been glued to her cheeks.
Is Tom Bradshah still alive? What about the others? She knew they were alive when she pulled them to safety, but once they were out of harm’s way, her only thought was to find Vicky. And now, she needed answers, but Bradshah would have been the one to give them to her.
She shivered from stress, as she looked down at the security guard uniform, she was still wearing. She was covered in blood, and bits of body parts, and she had a splitting headache. None of that mattered to her now. She had to know how Vicky was. It was pure luck that a surgical team had just finished doing a surgery, and before they could vacate, Vicky was wheeled in. Otherwise she would have been moved to a competitor’s hospital, and Aidan knew, Vicky would not have been happy with that at all.
“Aidan,” she turned around to see Paul coming towards her, “Any word yet, on Ms. Montgomery?”
“No, nothing yet,” she unhappily replied.
“Aidan, you really should go down to the ER, before everyone leaves, and get checked out. It looks like your head is bleeding.”
“What? Nah, it’s just a scratch. Besides, I’m not leaving until I know Vicky is all right.”
“I understand. That’s the same thing she said, when you were shot in the first terrorist attack.”
Aidan’s eyes glazed over with the memory. God, we’ve both been through so much, but damn it, this is not the end. We’ve got a life time yet, to live together. Please be all right, Vicky. I need you so much. Her anguish was too much, and she began to pace again.
“Paul, did Bradshah make it?”
“They took him to the hospital down the street, but the EMT said he’ll live.”
“Good, I’m glad to hear that. How many?”
He knew she was asking, how many were killed in the bomb blast, but he was not one to just blurt out a number. He had to give a thorough report first, as if he were still in the military.
“The blast took out the fifth floor, causing a lot of rubble to fall on the floor below. It also took out the ceiling and wall, but luckily there was nothing above that. The wall on the outside, facing the street, blew out, causing some cuts and bruises, but no deaths.” Taking a breath, he continued, “One of the terrorist was killed on impact, along with seven police officers. On the floor underneath the bomb, three employees were killed, and there were several injured.”
“Oh,” she mumbled, so many dead, so many injured, she thought, it’s like being back in Iraq.
Paul could sense her sorrow, “If you hadn’t found the first set of bombs, under the patient floors, it could have been a lot worse, Aidan. This whole side of the building would have been gone, and the death toll would have been horre
ndous.”
She rubbed the back of her head again, trying to relieve her headache. He’s right, the death toll would have been unreal.
Paul continued, “I saw the oxygen tanks they were using. There was enough O2 in them to blow half the block away.” He stated, wrapping up his report, and none too soon for Aidan.
“Yeah, we got lucky, didn’t we? Paul, do you have any aspirins?” It was too much for Aidan to take in right now. Her head hurt, her vision was blurry, and she was dog‒tired. Whatever energy she had left, she was saving for Vicky. She just needed to hold on, until she knew her lover was all right.
“Sure, let me get you some,” he headed towards the pharmacy, leaving Aidan alone. She wearily sat down, leaned her head back, and let her mind drift to a different time and place, a place of pure happiness.
“Uncle!” Vicky giggled.
“I can’t hear you, kid,” Aidan teased and tickled her some more.
“Uncle! Uncle!”
“I still can’t hear you.”
Vicky thought for a minute, “Oh! I LOVE YOU!”
“Ah, that’s what I wanted to hear.” Aidan leaned in and kissed her‒‒.
“Aidan.”
“Vicky?”
“Aidan, wake up, the doctor’s here,” Paul pointed to the surgeon who had just operated on Vicky.
“Ms. Cassidy?” the surgeon asked.
Aidan bolted upright, “How is she?”
“She’s going to be fine.” Dr. Roy Peterson, general surgeon, was still at the hospital after the evacuation, due to a difficult case he had been working on, at the time. As a result, he was the only surgeon left to operate on Vicky. “The bullet nicked her right ventricular, but I didn’t have to enter the heart, thank God! so she should have a quick recovery. She’s lost a lot of blood, and she’ll be weak for a while, but she’s a fighter. She’ll get through this.” What he left out of his report, was how Vicky crashed on the table, which sent him into a panic. He did not want to be the surgeon known for killing the well‒known and popular CEO.
I Remember You Page 23
