“Do you know anything about comic books?”
“Holt loves them. I think it’s the only thing she reads. So I’m somewhat fluent in nerd,” Lola said.
“Do you know who Dr. Manhattan is?”
“Big blue guy?”
“That’s like saying Darth Vader is just a dude with a cape, but yes, he’s blue. You look a little like the adult love child between you and Dr. Manhattan. I expect that to change as your bruising progresses. Vision, purple android, Gamora, green alien, Lego Batman. You get the idea.”
“So I look awesome, and you’ve got a nerdy side you hadn’t really exposed yet. That’s what you’re trying to tell me?”
“Right. I don’t know if I want to know what happened. But not knowing means I’m making things up, which I think is worse. Lola, I’m so scared. Please tell me this isn’t normal for you.”
“Hey, it’s okay to be scared. I was scared too. This isn’t normal for anyone. Come up here.”
Lola tried to scoot over on the bed to make room for Quinn, but she didn’t make it far before she gave up. “Pathetic. Defeated by gravity.”
Quinn didn’t point out it was more likely the severe beating that was causing her problems. Maybe Lola needed to believe that hadn’t slowed her down at all. For some reason Quinn found comfort in that thought. If Lola was avoiding thinking about it too, maybe Quinn wasn’t alone in her freak-out. She sat carefully on the edge of the bed, trying not to disturb Lola.
“Holy shit, Lola, you look terrible.”
A man stood in the doorway to Lola’s room shaking his head. He had a half smile on his face, but his eyes were soft with concern. “How many of them were there? Twenty? Fifty?”
The man came in and plopped down in the seat next to the bed. He grabbed one of the Jell-O cups on Lola’s tray and started eating. It looked laughably small in his enormous hands. Quinn hadn’t fully appreciated his size from the doorway.
“Hey, hands off my food, you big lump. And get out of the chair. That’s Quinn’s chair.”
“She looks pretty happy where she is. I’m Moose.”
Moose extended his hand. Quinn lost hers in his grip, but returned the handshake.
“You can spare a little of this hospital fare. You might have gotten your ass handed to you, but I had to respond to your panic alarm. I’m not even wearing underwear.”
“I’ll let Jose know,” Lola said.
Quinn found it endearing when Moose blushed.
“What is this panic alarm everyone keeps talking about?” Quinn asked. “The woman I talked to on your phone mentioned it too.”
“I forgot about that,” Lola said. “Which of the Wonder Twins did you get?”
Moose must have read the confusion on her face. “Did you feel like you were talking to a normal, calm human or a lit firecracker?”
“Oh, the firecracker, definitely.” Quinn wouldn’t have thought of that description herself, but it really was perfect.
“Dubs,” both Lola and Moose said.
“She told me to tell you Holt is on her way. With Isabelle, I think. And that she’s riled. She said you would know what that meant.”
“Fuck,” Lola said. She pinched the bridge of her nose between her thumb and index finger and then winced. “Oww, what did they do to my face?”
“Well,” Moose said. “What did you expect? This is you we’re talking about.”
“I know. Another thing I screwed up. She didn’t have to get on a plane to deliver that news.”
Moose stood up and moved to the side of the bed. “Excuse me for a minute,” he said to Quinn as he moved into Lola’s direct line of sight. Quinn didn’t have a choice but to move off her perch next to Lola on the bed.
“That’s not what this is about and you know it. You want to have a pity party because you’re lying in a hospital bed, fine, but don’t you dare try the pitiful fuckup routine with me. After George, you know perfectly well why she’s riled.”
Quinn was confused. Had something happened to that cute little boy whose pictures Lola had shown her? She was pretty sure she said he was Holt’s son.
“Did something happen to Holt’s son?” Quinn felt her adrenaline spike again. She still didn’t know why the men had come after Lola, or why there’d been a dead body in her lab yesterday. The idea of an injured child was too much.
“I’m going to get some coffee,” Moose said. “Pull yourself together before H gets here.”
The room was silent for a few beats after Moose left. Quinn wasn’t sure if she should be the first to speak. She was overflowing with questions, but now didn’t feel like the time for an interrogation.
“Holt and Isabelle’s son, George, is named after George the First, my brother. He was one of Holt’s best friends when they were kids. Holt, Moose, and George. I followed them around everywhere and drove them nuts, but Holt always looked out for me, especially after George died.”
Quinn saw the same look of raw pain on Lola’s face she’d seen the first time she’d asked Lola about George. She’d been asking about Holt’s son, but now she knew why Lola had reacted the way she did to the name.
“Sweetie, I’m so sorry. What happened?”
“I’m not sure I can right now, I’m sorry,” Lola said.
Quinn understood, but couldn’t help feeling slightly hurt that Lola wasn’t willing or able to share her brother’s death with her. She doesn’t have to relive past trauma; she’s got plenty of present trauma to keep her busy. Give the woman a break.
“I dropped out of high school right after George died, but Holt wouldn’t let me come work for her until I got my GED and turned eighteen.”
“So that’s why you were so skittish when we were talking about what college you attended?” Quinn asked.
“Well, yeah. It was a little intimidating talking to a PhD when I never finished high school. Now that seems like the least of my worries. I get kidnapped too, apparently. Very charming.”
“They’re just letters,” Quinn said.
“With a lot of meaning behind them,” Lola said, looking unconvinced.
“True, but your Lola Walker, GED means a lot too. It means you worked hard after something awful happened in your life to finish what you started. You had a goal and you worked to achieve it. That’s the same thing my letters mean.”
“You’re full of it, but I’m weakened so can’t argue. Besides, for the first time in hours you don’t look shell-shocked and terrified, so I’ll take it.”
“Do you ever get used to it?” Quinn couldn’t imagine a life filled with such danger. She thought having cops in the family was bad.
“Getting kidnapped? If it ever happens again I’ll let you know.”
“No, all of it. Dead bodies, kidnapping, the violence and horror. Because I’ve been part of this for a very short time and I’ve spent the entire time in a constant state of severe anxiety. The scientist in me wants to see a scan of my brain because I bet it looks like Times Square, and the human in me wants to hide in a panic room for the next month.”
“I wish telling you that my job is usually not all that exciting would be helpful, but I know all evidence is leading you to a different conclusion. I’m going to keep you safe. I promise you that, and then I will let you lead a normal, non-scary life.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Quinn didn’t like what Lola was implying.
They didn’t have a chance to talk further. Moose popped back in.
“Holt’s inbound. And she doesn’t look happy. You prep Quinn?”
“Is there any way to do that?” Lola asked.
“Not really,” Moose said.
Lola looked at Quinn. “This is going to get a little loud. Help me get up.”
Quinn started to protest Lola’s insistence on getting out of bed, but realized it was better if she helped her instead of letting her do it herself. A moment later, a human tank engine and the most beautiful blonde Quinn had ever seen entered the room. Well, the tank engine barreled in, the bl
onde walked in calmly, like a normal person. Lola was trying to stand tall even though Quinn knew it was agony in her current condition.
Quinn positioned herself between Holt and Lola. “I’m Quinn Golden. You must be Holt.”
“I need to talk to Lola,” Holt said. “What’s she doing out of bed? She looks like shit.”
“That’s what I told her,” Quinn said. “But she insisted on getting up since you were here. Visiting hours can wait.” Quinn saw Moose’s eyes bug out and a look of surprise and what she hoped was respect cross the other woman’s face. That wasn’t the look on Holt’s face. Quinn couldn’t describe it, but explosive was the best she could do. She was briefly scared.
The woman behind Holt put her hand on Holt’s shoulder and turned her gently. She looked at Quinn. “I’m Isabelle. Just give me a minute.”
Quinn couldn’t hear what Isabelle said to Holt. She was speaking quietly in her ear, holding one hand and running her other through Holt’s hair. Holt nodded and rested her forehead against Isabelle’s. The transformation was incredible. The tension seemed to evaporate from Holt’s body as she relaxed.
“She’s the only one that can do that to her,” Lola said. “It’s beautiful the way they love each other.”
“I love the way you stood up for me, but I do need to talk to Holt.” Lola must have sensed Quinn’s misgivings. “I’ll be fine. She’s all gruff huff and puff.”
As if by telepathic understanding, Lola stepped forward and Holt stepped out of Isabelle’s embrace. They moved to the back of the small hospital room to talk. Quinn joined Isabelle and Moose. Holt started motioning to the bed. Lola was shaking her head emphatically.
“This should be fun,” Moose said. “These two have never been good at talking to each other.”
“I think they communicate their feelings through grunts and shrugs. And something’s been eating at Lola since before she left,” Isabelle said.
Quinn was torn between wanting to interrogate Lola’s friends and eavesdrop on her conversation with Holt. The decision was made because Holt’s and Lola’s voices were now raised loudly enough to be heard clearly.
“Get back in bed,” Holt said. She pointed at the bed again as if Lola might have forgotten where it was.
“I’ll stand, thanks.”
Quinn knew Lola must be close to falling over. She wondered why she wasn’t doing as Holt suggested.
“Lola, you stubborn ass, you’ve always picked the weirdest battles since we were kids. Last chance. Get in bed.”
Lola didn’t say anything, but made no move to the bed either.
“Fine,” Holt said.
Quinn wouldn’t have believed it possible if she didn’t witness it with her own eyes. Holt moved so quickly Lola didn’t have time to defend herself. Holt scooped her into her arms and carried her the few steps to the bed as easily as if she were carrying a child. Although Holt looked angry, she held Lola with tenderness and lay her on the bed gently, obviously mindful of her injuries.
“Can we talk now?” Holt asked.
“Are you going to dump my ass back in bed if I get up again?”
“Yes.”
“Then let’s talk,” Lola said.
“How are you?” Holt asked.
“I’ll be fine. A little worse for wear right now, but I could go another couple rounds if I needed to. They admitted me for observation, but I think it’s because I didn’t look so hot when I arrived and they felt like they had to.”
“I’ll put all of that through the bullshit filter and assume you are in pain, feel terrible, and are glad I dumped you back in bed. Moose is getting the rest of the team on the line so you can do a full debrief, aren’t you, buddy?”
“Sure am,” Moose said. He stepped out to place the call.
“But right now, you and I need to talk about what part of ‘I’m your first call’ you didn’t understand.”
Quinn started forward to tell Holt she was the one who placed the call, but Isabelle stopped her.
“Let them work this out. I don’t know what this is all about, but it’s been building for a while.”
“You said call. I did. Well, Quinn did,” Lola said.
“No, Lola. I said I was your first call. You called Dubs. I didn’t save George when I had the chance, and that’s a debt I’ll be paying you for the rest of our lives, but I can’t lose you too. Not George and you. I was out of my mind worrying about you. Isabelle came because, well, you know how I get. She’s the only one who could save this state from me. I would have torn it apart to get to you if I had to.”
“You don’t owe any debt to me,” Lola said. “You caught the guy who killed my brother.”
“Exactly. I caught the guy who killed your brother. He shot George the First standing right in front of me. I didn’t do anything to stop it. Now’s not the time to talk more about the foundation, but I was serious when I said you have the potential for so much more.”
“Potential? What potential?” Lola asked. “Look at the mess I’ve made.”
“What mess? There’s no mess. There never has been. You don’t work alone, Lola. You’re part of my team. We rise and fall together. You know that. A year ago you helped me teach Dubs that.”
“No,” Lola said. She pushed Holt in the chest, shoving her back, away from the bed. “I almost got Dubs killed last year. She was cleaning up my mistake. My mistake almost cost you little George. I know why you didn’t want me out here, but I’m the one with a debt to pay. I’ll keep paying it until the slate is clean. You’ve been looking after me my whole life. I owe you for that.”
Quinn thought Holt looked stunned, but she recovered quickly. Lola was crying.
“I didn’t want you out here? You owe me something? What the fuck? And how are you going to wipe that slate clean? By risking more and more until you get yourself killed? You think that will wipe the slate clean? Or make me feel better?”
“No, fuck you.” Lola shoved Holt again. They were shouting at each other now.
Isabelle closed the hospital room door after a nurse came around the corner and looked into the room. “Just a family disagreement,” she said to Quinn quietly.
“What about Holt?” Quinn asked. She didn’t know how to delicately ask if Holt would hit back if Lola escalated the physical confrontation. Even from a prone position, Lola was hitting Holt pretty hard.
“Holt’s okay. She won’t hit Lola. I don’t think she ever would, but especially not in her current condition. I wish she wouldn’t always let her friends beat on her to solve these family disputes though.”
“This kind of thing happens a lot?”
“Not this exactly, but there are a surprising number of situations Holt has managed to solve by getting punched in the face. Wait until you meet the rest of the crew. Then it won’t seem so weird,” Isabelle said.
Despite the censure in her words, it was obvious to Quinn how much Isabelle loved Holt and the rest of the crew she was referring to.
“Look,” Holt said. “I owe you, you owe me. Doesn’t really matter. What matters is I love you and you scared the hell out of me. Seeing you shot in the head was enough. Now this?”
Quinn felt a little queasy when she heard Holt say Lola had been shot in the head. How did a regular person survive something like that? How did that happen to a regular person?
“How about we focus on the case and when it’s over we can write each other love poems or arm wrestle or something,” Holt said.
“Whatever we decide, Isabelle’s the judge, and boxing isn’t an option,” Lola said.
Quinn saw she was smiling, but she looked like she was trying to hide it. Moose knocked and Isabelle opened the door for him.
“Deal. Moose, do you have everyone?”
“Ready for you, H.”
“All right. Anyone who wants to hear the details, come on over. Quinn, you’ve already lived this once. I understand if you don’t want to relive it. We can find a safe place for you while we debrief,” Holt said.
> Quinn appreciated Holt’s thoughtfulness, but she didn’t want to be outside this room. Holt looked like the kind of woman to have on your side, and Lola clearly cared for her deeply. The sheer size of all these people was also comforting. If the shit hit the fan, she could always hide behind one of them.
Max and Dubs, both of whom Quinn had spoken to previously, were on speakerphone. Lola gave everyone a full report.
“Near the end of my shift at CLA, Quinn alerted me to a problem in her research lab. She’d entered and found Kevin Garvey, deceased. I confirmed that information. His throat was cut. His body had been left in the lab, but he was obviously killed elsewhere.”
Quinn wanted to ask how she knew that, but decided she didn’t really want more details about that crime to add to the slideshow she already had playing on repeat every time she had a quiet moment.
“Anything else of note with the body?” Holt asked.
“No. But it felt off to me at the time. The location of the dump felt too convenient. My suspicions were confirmed earlier today during my stay with the CMC-15s. I was supposed to find Garvey’s body.”
“Max, everything you can get on the CMC-15s, please,” Holt said.
“Already working.”
Quinn was amazed at how calm everyone was discussing events that still had her fight-or-flight system in overdrive. Everyone here looked and sounded like they were talking about a midseason baseball game.
“Do you know why the CMCs took you?” Dubs asked.
“And why they let you go?” Moose asked.
“I’m a greeting card to Holt,” Lola said. “Hallmark doesn’t make ‘back off or else’ cards, so you got me. Their leader is a guy named Malcolm. He had Jessica and used her to get information on me. Oh my God, Jessica.”
Lola sat up and looked around frantically. She stopped at Quinn.
“Have you heard from Jessica?”
“No. She had her cell phone off all morning.” Quinn’s insides felt like ice. She replayed what Lola had said. They had Jessica.
Lola grabbed Moose’s shoulder. “You have to find Jessica. I got her out of the warehouse, but I don’t know what happened after that. I don’t think they followed her out, but she took one of their SUVs.”
Data Capture Page 16
