“I can take them to the place,” the redhead offered.
“No, thanks,” Eve replied. “We will find the way by our own means.” —And she sketched a sour smile.
They found Caleb's mother's room sooner than they anticipated. Eve started to open the door slowly, when she noticed a bit of tension in her back and stopped.
“I'll wait here,” Tadhg said.
“Why?”
Tadhg looked at her with narrowed eyes and shrugged. Then he leaned back against the door, looking carefree, although it was clear that something was making him tense. He crossed his arms before his chest, immovable.
“As you wish,” Evelyn said.
Inside, the room was dimly lit. Evelyn found Mrs. Goodbrother lying down on her bed and covered by a white sheet on the lower part of her body. She slept. Evelyn's heart began to throb with accelerated agitation, like a caged bird. Renata was very emaciated; her skin was gray and rough at the corners of her lips and eyes. Her breathing was labored, even with the respirator she had over her mouth and nose. She had dark circles the color of a bruise under her eyes.
Evelyn approached her, and as she did so, she began to notice other things that at first glance hid the dim light. Like the lack of hair, visible thanks to the areas that did not cover the white cap; and how deep were the cheeks. Evelyn put a hand to her chest and took a deep breath to keep from crying. She recalled, in other times, Caleb's mother, more alive and beautiful, smiling and being nice. She had never seen her so consumed, not even when Mr. Goodbrother died.
“Evelyn.”
The voice came from behind. Evelyn turned, stifling her shock. Caleb was reclining on a piece of furniture at the other flank of the room, almost entirely covered by shadows. He straightened, languidly, and stood up. Evelyn just watched him approaching her.
“What are you doing here?”
“I…”
“You shouldn’t be here, Evelyn,” he muttered as if trying not to sound angry. He looked back at his mother, and sighed. Evelyn approached him, put a hand on his shoulder and cheek on his arm. Caleb remained impassive; then he covered Evelyn's hand on his shoulder with his. “There is not much time left.”
“What's your mother, Caleb?” Eve asked.
Caleb swallowed air.
“Cancer,” he replied in a feverish voice; his eyes were waterlogged with tears and trembling lips. “Today I forgot for a moment that she was here, sick and on the verge of death. Other days I had tried to ignore it. But today, as soon as I remembered it, I had to flee. Something told me that the agents were not going to let me get out of there.” He sighed deeply. “I have spent the last weeks at her side, without leaving her for a moment, fearing that...”
“Shhh,” Evelyn whispered. “Do not say more. I get it.”
Caleb looked at her.
“You came for me, right?”
Evelyn nodded.
“They have come with me and they are outside.”
“I can’t go with them, Evelyn.” Caleb took her with fierce sweetness around her shoulders; his gray eyes traversed her like a sword in the mist; his voice was a tangent plea. “Not now.”
“Caleb.”
“Do not.”
“You must come with us,” she insisted. “If you stay here, the pyxis could appear at any time, hurt you and your mother.” She looked at Mrs. Goodbrother. “Don’t do it for you, Caleb, do it for her.”
Caleb looked back at his mother. The eyelids trembled; the lips, too. They remained silent for a long time. Evelyn took his hand, and Caleb turned his eyes on her. His was an extraordinary gray, with a light blue ring. Evelyn was reflected in them like two mirrors. Caleb's hand closed tenderly on Eve's and sketched a smile. Evelyn also smiled, and had to restrain the urge to brush his face with the back of her hand. Their faces were as close as they could be to a kiss...
“Caleb,” said a brittle voice. Mrs. Goodbrother had removed the respirator of her own volition, and had it at neck height. Her lips were as pale and parched as those of a lost traveler in the desert, or worse. “Caleb, dear...”
Caleb moved closer to his mother and took her hand, the other hand, the one that did not hold Evelyn's. Eve had also approached the bed, so she was not required to turn her contact away from him.
“I'm here, Mama,” Caleb said, trying to calm his obvious discomfort with a smile as radiant and depressed as a sun hidden behind gray storm clouds. “And look who is with me.” He stepped aside so that his mother's field of vision could find the girl. “Do you remember her?”
Evelyn did not wait for Caleb's mother to remember her, except in those circumstances.
Mrs. Goodbrother's eyes were half-closed, and a little of the dark brown of her irises that Evelyn remembered from the past was barely visible; she smiled feverishly and opened her eyes as much as they allowed.
“Evelyn,” he said. “Little Eve.”
“She's not a little girl anymore, as you see,” Caleb said with a giggle.
Renata opened her eyes a little more. Evelyn moved another little closer to her; she leaned down and smiled.
“I have come to visit you,” she began.
“Obviously yes,” the woman said in a frugal voice. “Tell me, Eve, have you looked after my roses...?”
The door swung open.
“They're here!” Cried Tadhg, upset; he had the defibrillator in his hands. “They…!” He broke off when he finally noticed the woman in the bed.
That glow of passion in Tadhg's eyes went out like the wick of a candle blown by the wind. He walked towards them, his eyes always on Mrs. Goodbrother. Evelyn noticed the way Renata looked at him, her eyelids half closed, as if trying to decipher who this man was.
Finally, the future agent stopped in front of her. The look on his face was of ethereal pain, almost sharp as the blade of a knife, and his eyes had a heartbreaking gleam. What was the matter? Evelyn wondered—did he recognize Caleb's mother from the future?
During that moment, silence reigned. Caleb was so confused that he had not dared to speak or move; his hand was still holding Evelyn's.
“Who is he?” Mrs. Goodbrother asked in a feverish voice and nothing scary. The next question was for the stranger: “Do I know you?”
Tadhg stiffened like a concrete wall, stony. His eyes were flooded with tears, but he blinked quickly to hide that detail. He squared his shoulders and smiled as naturally as he could, and the gesture was moving. Then he sighed deeply.
“I don’t have the pleasure of meeting her,” he answered in his usual voice. “But I've heard many things from you, yes.”
Renata frowned slightly.
“What things?”
Tadhg looked down for a moment before answering:
"The apple pie you make should be considered one of the few wonders of the world,” he said, maintaining the smile. “And you told the story of Alfred & Yoli as nobody has ever done.”
“Both things were never a challenge for me, not even on time.” Renata smiled before turning her gaze back to Caleb. “Caleb, dear, why did you tell those things to...?”
Tadhg straightened as much as was humanly possible. He turned to Evelyn and Caleb.
“We must go,” he said, again alarmed. “There are pyxis'avalh in the building. Rhys has intercepted some and is holding them back. I have to get them out of here and...”
“No,” Caleb said.
“Do not?”
“No,” he repeated, turning back to his mother. “She needs me.”
“Caleb,” Evelyn said calmly. “Remember what we have talked about. If the pyxis'avalh discover that she is here, they will hurt her. We must go with Tadhg, otherwise we too will be damaged.”
Caleb looked down; then he took it to his mother and blinked in embarrassment. She had put on the respirator, at some point in the heated discussion, and looked at everyone with sleepy eyes. Caleb released Evelyn's hand for the first time and leaned over his mother, whispered somethin
g close to her before kissing her forehead.
Tadhg had already left the room, and Caleb followed him with haste, as if afraid to look back. Evelyn did not take long to reach them.
“Evelyn...”
The girl stopped and turned around.
The woman who lay in bed pulled the respirator away and looked at her with eyes that would break the heart of the hardest of men. Evelyn was not even half hard, so she had to make a genuine effort to contain herself.
“Yes?” She remained in her place, as close to the door as she was to the bed.
“Take care of Caleb,” she murmured in a thin voice.
Evelyn swallowed.
“Please do it for me.” She put on the respirator again, but her gaze remained in place.
Evelyn nodded.
* * *
There was a tense air outside the room. Tadhg was handing Caleb a bottle of ettalim and explaining how and with whom he should use it. Evelyn reached the defibrillator that had been delivered to her in the Agency before leaving and took the insurance off. The sound caused, attracted Caleb's attention.
“I want one of those,” he said.
“You are not prepared for,” Tadhg replied reluctantly.
Caleb turned to Evelyn.
“You know how to use it?” He asked.
"Evelyn already killed Pyxis when you were in diapers," Tadhg said, and smiled at himself. This time his smile sounded forced. Evelyn narrowed her eyes.
“My father,” she explained to Caleb. “Do you remember...?”
“Yes, I remember that job Mr. White does,” Caleb said with a sly laugh.
A sudden burst broke the moment of calm. The emergency alarm began to resound. The corridors darkened and a reddish light began to shine gradually, like small splashes of red to black. Evelyn looked through that light at her two companions and raised the defibrillator.
Tadhg was also on the defensive. The corridor became chaotic; people ran from one side to another, the bustle was thunderous, screams and moans. Tadhg guided them. Caleb was a little behind the hurried pace of Eve and Tadhg. Evelyn turned a moment and took him by the wrist, like a mother pulling her child. Perhaps she had taken her promise to Mrs. Goodbrother too seriously. “Take care of Caleb.” They continued on to an elevator.
They went inside. The doors were about to close when a subject dressed in a white doctor's coat and black eyes suddenly fit between the floodgates, and prevented the closure. He launched himself at Tadhg. Tadhg raised one leg and pushed him, kicking the stomach, out of the elevator. Evelyn's little experience with the avalhs reminded her that it took more than a firm thump in the stomach to stop them.
Tadhg also left the elevator and charged against the pyxis’avalh. Evelyn caught a glimpse of that battle before the doors finally closed and the descent began. She turned to Caleb, who was crouched in a corner and as stony as a rock. His eyes were almost out of their sockets. Evelyn approached him, facing him, and stared at him.
Caleb blinked.
“Have you seen his eyes?” He asked.
“Yes.”
“He going to kill him?”
He meant Tadhg.
Evelyn nodded.
“We must get you out of here,” she said. “Can…”
The doors opened. The hall was chaotic. Red lights, and some white added, dotted the corridors. Nurses, doctors and patients ran from one place to another, with fear printed on their faces. There was an elderly invalid pushing his wheelchair by himself. Evelyn wanted to help him, but suddenly she noticed what was happening at the end of the corridor. It was Rhys, and he was facing a pyxis'olrut.
Evelyn took a deep breath, turned to Caleb and took his arm. They ran to the match between Rhys and the pyxis. Caleb stopped immediately as he spotted the creature. He opened his eyes and mouth a lot. Evelyn had the same impression when she saw an olrut the first time. The being who tried to pierce Rhys with his sharp fingers at that moment, in the center of the hall, was as tall as the ceiling, and thin as a lamppost. It face was as she remembered it: black, oval with an egg, and as bright as made of dark pottery; it had no eyes, which apparently did not represent any difficulty in trying to reach the quick movements of Rhys; and no mouth, except for a thin, barely visible line that seemed to be constantly smiling.
Evelyn and Caleb stopped a meter away from the fight. Sparks flew from a loose wire hanging from the ceiling near the olrut. He was moving languidly, trying to reach Rhys, who dodged, jumped, rolled and then kicked here and there. —Where is her weapon? Evelyn wondered. Either she had lost it or left it in the car. But Rhys was not a careless girl, far from it.
“Evelyn,” the girl called.
Evelyn held up the defibrillator with both hands and motioned for Caleb to back away. Rhys fell back after an onslaught from the olrut, who then turned its attention to Evelyn. The hand with which she held the defibrillator trembled. The pyxis'olrut moved with agility and extended its hand towards her. Evelyn pulled the trigger. The bright red line of the laser pierced the air and caused the hand and part of the olrut's arm to explode into hundreds of crystalline pieces like splinters. The pyxis arched back and opened the thin mouth with a pronounced “u”. Evelyn stepped back. Caleb appeared behind her. The olrut stabilized with haste and put its eyes back on them again. The defibrillator trembled so much in Evelyn's hand that it was impossible for her to shoot again with the same precision. The pyxis'olrut was advancing towards them.
Suddenly, a laser pierced the oval skull of the creature right in the middle. The pyxis’olrut stiffened for a moment, then fell to the ground scattered on thousands of pieces of dark brown glass. Everyone looked back.
“You're good?” Tadhg asked Evelyn, ignoring Caleb's presence behind the girl.
Evelyn nodded and lowered the gun. He inhaled, exhaled.
“Yes,” he said loudly. “But…”
“I'm fine, in case anyone cares.” Rhys was getting up from where the olrut had thrown her.
Tadhg made a move to go to her, but stopped. The wire hanging from the roof began to slide down, sparking. Its movement simulated that of a snake. When the tip touched the ground, it let go of electric sparks. Tadhg stood before Evelyn and Caleb protectively.
“W-What is that?” Caleb stammered.
“It's a pyxis'szoth,” Tadhg replied, trying to point to the sparkling end of the cable with his defibrillator. Shooting. The cable zigzagged in time. It rose and sparkled. Evelyn and Caleb, startled, retreated a few steps until they touched the wall with their backs. Then the szoth began to waddle towards Rhys like the movement of a viper on the ground. Rhys did not seem terrified, but she took a couple of steps back. It was better to be safe than sorry. More sparks leaped from the ceiling. The lamps flickered white, red and blue light, and the alarm had stopped ringing. Tadhg tried another shot. Failure. Suddenly the snake reached Rhys with an impressive speed; more than impressive, fleeting.
Tadhg dropped the defibrillator on the floor and ran to his sister. The cord wrapped around the girl's leg. Rhys stiffened; she began to convulse and tighten so much that Evelyn feared she would explode. It was scary. And while that was happening, the lights blinked a couple of times before they went out completely and plunged them all into darkness.
* * *
After a minute, the light returned. Rhys was faint in the arms of Tadhg. The pyxis'szoth was shattered and diluted on the ground, motionless. The silence was absolute. Only the steps Evelyn took towards the brothers were heard. When she reached them, Tadhg had raised with his sister in his arms. He started to walk in the opposite direction, towards the exit.
“Where are you going?” Evelyn asked. Rhys was injured after receiving a strong electric shock, it was natural to be treated at the hospital. And it so happened that they were there.
“Come on,” Tadhg answered without stopping or turning around. “You will drive.”
The natural thing was to be treated her at the hospital, yes, but it was
not natural for a girl from the future to be hurt by a being from another dimension. Eve felt stupid. She ran after Tadhg, but not before glancing back to make sure Caleb was following her. He did it
“Where is it?” He asked. “He should let you see her here...”
“We can’t stay here any longer,” Eve replied.
Tadhg had already managed to open one of the back doors of the black truck and get into it with Rhys. Before closing the door, he threw Evelyn the bunch of keys. Eve still had trembling hands. Caleb suddenly stood before her and closed her hands in Evelyn's. She looked up and found herself with gray eyes so clear they looked like silver.
“Do you want me to drive?” Caleb offered in a voice full of tenderness.
Evelyn shook her head up and down and handed him the keys. Then she went around the car and got into the copilot's seat while Caleb closed the driver's door. Inside the van, the air was tense and cold.
“I thought you would drive,” Tadhg huffed.
“Evelyn is a little indisposed,” Caleb began.
“I'm not talking to you,” Tadhg agreed, and turned his attention to Rhys, whose head rested in his lap. “Come on! Drive now!”
Caleb obeyed. They left the parking lot as soon as possible.
Evelyn cocked her body to look back. Tadhg removed a lock of blond Rhys from her face. She was too pale, her lips were bruised and her eyes were lined with dark circles that she had not had before. Her hair had also been affected by the electric shock, because she had it frizzy to the point of looking like multiple bumps on her head.
“Still breathing?” Eve asked Tadhg.
“I wouldn’t be so calm if she didn’t,” he said. “When I pulled her towards me, I felt that her heart had stopped beating.” He breathed deeply. “Mine also stopped beating during those moments. Until, suddenly, she came back...”
Evelyn looked down for a moment.
“That thing that attacked her,” she finally said. “How did you manage to stop it?”
Days of Fury Page 13
