The Antares Codex Box Set

by Bob Cooper

  “I am,” Aidan said.

  “Even if we win, you will still lose. Do you understand?”

  Aidan knew precisely what Tony was talking about. His days as a Citizen Guard were over, whether he goes to jail or not.

  “I will support this,” Aidan said.

  ***

  Tony walked down the hallway with the captain on duty. They stopped in front of cell 5032. As the captain fumbled for his electronic key, Acey slid off the bunk and moved towards the door.

  "I arranged for your bail—both of you. Let’s get out of here,” Tony said, holding the door open.

  Acey and Hillary wasted no time at the property clerk’s office getting their belongings and leaving the building. When they were clear, Acey gave Tony the napkin. He read it and shook his head.

  “Who gave you this?”

  “The guard that brought us our food this morning.”

  “Do you know him?”

  “Not really but I’ve seen him cleaning floors and delivering food. We need to see Raina and make sure she’s alright.”

  “They have a guard posted. Go to the hospital and check on her. I’ll find out who passed you the napkin. He might be of value to us in the future,” Tony said.

  They watched as Tony raced back into the building. They hurried to the hospital.

  ***

  Acey and Hillary arrived at the hospital as the nursing staff changed shifts. At the main station on the intensive care floor, the nurses busily updated patient statuses. There was a flurry of activity to get the in-coming staff up to speed. Acey saw the guards in front of one of the room and surmised that was Raina’s room. Hillary moved in closer to the nurses and listened intently to get more information about Raina’s status. She motioned Acey away while she secretly moved behind a pillar to hear the nurses better. Acey acknowledged Hillary’s plan, walked down to Raina’s room, and confronted one of the guards.

  “Would it be possible to see my sister?” she asked.

  The guards looked at her suspiciously and walked towards her.

  “You need written permission from the head nurse. Once obtained, you will be subjected to a search, and we will need to be present with you at all times,” he said with military exactitude. Acey shook her head to acknowledge the guard and walked down the hall. The nursing staff meeting was breaking up, and the new shift of nurses was taking their stations. Hillary rushed towards Acey.

  “They are moving her to a new secure location. The request came from someone in her family.”

  “Her family? She has no one except us. We need to talk to the head nurse,” Acey said.

  Acey moved to the station and asked to see the head nurse. A young nurse maybe a few years older than Acey looked up at them.

  “He is in a conference with doctors. Is there something I can help you with?”

  “Yes, I understand that my sister, Raina, is being transferred. On whose authority was that decision made?”

  The nurse fumbled with the computer to access the information when the head nurse came from out of nowhere. He saw the information displayed and quickly hid the information on the screen from everyone.

  “I’m sorry, we are not allowed to give out that information,” he said, giving the station nurse a dirty look.

  “But she has no family other than my Grandfather and me, and we did not request she be moved,” Acey shot back.

  “I’m sorry I cannot give out this information,” he said firmly.

  “But she’s my sister. I have a right to know,” Acey said furiously.

  “You will have to leave now,” he said motioning to the guards who were watching the scene play out.

  “Okay, we’ll leave, but can we at least see her now?” asked Hillary.

  “That’s quite impossible. She is in a coma and cannot see anyone.

  No sooner were the words out of his mouth, when one of the guards shouted down the hall, “Please come quickly. The patient is awake.”

  They all ran down to Raina’s room and found her thrashing as if she were having a seizure. Her eyes were open, and she tried to talk. Acey pushed in with the nurses, and fought with the guard to stay, but was shoved back outside. But not before she heard the doctor say, “She is coming out of the coma.”

  “She’s awake, “she screamed to Hillary.

  “Raina, we’re here for you. Do you hear me? Do you hear me?”

  Hillary tried to calm Acey as the guards physically threw them out of the building.

  “We have to let Tony know so he can tell Dirk and Aidan she’s awake, Hillary said.

  Walking down the steps of the hospital, Acey caught a glimpse of a janitor emptying the trash in the alley just off the main street. He motioned to her, nodding his head and looking around to see if anyone else was in the near vicinity. Acey slowed, but Hillary continued to race down the steps.

  “Hillary!” Acey called as she made her way towards him.

  Hillary turned to respond, but Acey was totally fixed on the janitor and slowly edged towards him. He saw her and continued to empty trash bins moving down the alley.

  “Acey, where are you going?” Hillary asked, but she got no answer—just a hand gesture to follow her.

  When Acey caught up to him, the janitor was pulling a full trash bag from a bin. Before she could get a word out of her mouth, he started to speak.

  “Listen to me and then leave quickly. I am a friend of Dirk’s, and I know that O’Malley is planning to make sure Raina never testifies. It will be much easier to kill her after they transfer her to the new location. You must make sure she is not transferred.”

  Acey hesitated for a moment, staring at the janitor as he faded away just as quickly as he came into sight. Hillary finally caught up but couldn’t get Acey’s attention. Then it came to her.

  “That’s him. In prison, he was the one who gave us the napkin warning us about Raina.”

  ***

  Aidan lay in his bunk, drifting in and out of sleep. He closed his eyes and thought of his father. A wrinkled face with a full head of white hair came into view. Aidan stared at him while trying to find something to say, but nothing came out. The image faded away as he heard footsteps approaching and the door opening. Tony smiled at him as Aidan slowly sat up on his bunk.

  “Good news—Raina is awake but still in bad shape,” he added.

  That was the first piece of good news he heard since taken into custody. Without her testimony, their case was lost. Still, he knew that if the others were found innocent, he would not be so lucky.

  22

  Hillary looked out from the rooftop of Acey and Dirk’s apartment. The place crawled with reporters and paparazzi. They had to sneak in through the garage service entrance. After a quick shower and a change of clothes, Acey assessed the food situation—most of it had spoiled since their hasty departure weeks ago. Protein bars, beef jerky, and vitamin drinks would have to do.

  “How about we get something delivered. I can call the deli downstairs and get two salads with tofu and cheese and fat-free strawberry vinaigrette.”

  Hillary turned up her nose at Acey’s suggestion.

  “I was thinking more of a double cheeseburger, fries and a cold beer,” she replied.

  Acey picked up the com link and ordered. Hillary logged in to her computer and looked at aerial pictures of the hospital. She saw many entrances into the facility, and some of them looked easy to enter. Since each one was monitored by security cameras, they had to be careful not to be recognized. Acey looked over her shoulder.

  “I think we can get in easy enough, but what do we do once we’re in?” Acey asked.

  Hillary continued to navigate through the hallways of the hospital via her computer view. It was pretty much open access until she came to the secured wing where they were keeping Raina. Guards stood at the entrance, and scanners were at the nursing stations. Frustrated, she gave the computer to Acey and stretched out on the couch. She was tired, hungry, and confused.

  “I don’t see any
way to get in there and get her out,” she said, leaning back and closing her eyes.

  Acey felt the same way, but she knew they had to act quickly before they transferred Raina. Both jumped when the com link buzzed loudly, and the delivery boy’s face appeared on the monitor. Acey looked to make sure he was alone and then opened the door.

  “Good evening, ladies. I brought the finest food made especially for you by my family,” he said wheeling in a cart with all sorts of food and beverages. The delivery boy’s exuberance caught Acey and Hillary by surprise. His youthful, tall, and lanky appearance looked out of character with the way he gracefully proceeded to cover their table with a checkered tablecloth and laid out the eating utensils in their precise positions. Then he stopped abruptly and stared at Hillary, then at Acey, and back to Hillary again. He smiled at Hillary until she felt uncomfortable and he looked away.

  “Hey, aren’t you two involved in that murder trial? Yes, I saw you on the monitor with that old man, Kirk something or other.”

  “That old man is my Grandfather, and his name is Dirk,” Acey shot back.

  “I apologize and don’t mean any disrespect. If it means anything to you, I believe he’s innocent, but that is going to be difficult to prove—especially with the defense’s star witness almost croaking in the hospital. But at least she is semi-conscious and eating some solid food.”

  Acey was furious.

  “That’s my sister in the hospital you inconsiderate dipshit,” she yelled in his face.

  “Wait a minute. How do you know she’s been eating solid food?” Hillary asked, stepping in between Acey and the delivery boy.

  He stepped back and smiled at Hillary again; this time his eyes locked on to her eyes and held her in a trance.

  “Well!” Hillary said, feeling uncomfortable —not because he was staring at her, but because his smile stirred feelings she hadn’t felt for a while.

  “Ah, well, ah my family provides meals to the hospital,” he said in almost an inaudible voice, his eyes falling to the ground.

  He picked his head up again and caught Hillary’s gaze. She eyed him, recognizing an opportunity.

  “I’m really sorry for being short with you. Look, why don’t you stay and eat with us. Acey has some good wine, and we can chill out.”

  Acey caught on to what Hillary was doing.

  “Yes, we need someone to talk to after what we’ve been through,” Acey said, moving closer to him.

  ***

  O’Malley sipped his second beer and looked at his watch. He’s supposed to have been here an hour ago. Can’t he do anything right, he thought. If he screws this up I’ll …

  “She’s stable enough, and they’re moving her out tomorrow afternoon,” Franz said, rushing to the dark corner tavern booth.

  “They’re moving her to the general hospital,” he added before O’Malley could yell at him for his tardiness.

  “That’s what I hoped. I want you to see someone I know, someone there who will give you some scrubs and an ID,” O’Malley said, handing him a slip of paper.

  Franz looked at it and then back at O’Malley.

  “Don’t worry; I’ll take care of it.”

  ***

  Hillary sat directly across from the delivery boy and watched him as he nervously fumbled with his cloth napkin on the table.

  “What’s your name?” she asked.

  “Billy,” he said, holding out his glass to receive the wine that Acey was pouring.

  “Actually, it’s William Bayberry the third. My family owns the Bayberry delis around town.”

  “Yes. There’s one by the University. I’ve eaten there quite frequently,” Acey said.

  As the wine flowed freely, Billy came out of his shell and talked about the family business. His Grandfather started the company, and he was the next in line to take over when his father retired next year. Hillary kept her eyes on him, completely enthralled as Billy relayed his story. It’s highly unusual for Hillary to be so quiet, Acey thought. She definitely noticed the spark between the two. But was this just another one of her ploys to get him to help with Raina, or was she genuinely interested in him?

  “So, I’m not sure what I’m going to do about the business. I would like to pursue other directions, but I don’t want to let my family down,” he said, finishing his story.

  Hillary continued to study him, making him blush.

  “What are you thinking of doing?” Acey asked, trying to break the uncomfortable silence.

  “Well, I have a fine arts degree and a small studio where I sculpt. I took second prize in the Academy Art show last year. My dream is to open a gallery where I could display not only my work but other artists work in other mediums as well.”

  “What a coincidence. I too am an artist. I work in all kinds of mediums and would like to open a gallery,” Hillary said, coming back to the conversation. Acey let them continue to talk in detail about one another’s work. She had to find a way to enlist Billy’s help with getting Raina out before the transfer. She poured more wine as the conversation continued. They were in their own world. They moved to the rooftop to view Hillary’s work on the monitor via Hillary’s com link.

  It was getting late, and they were still going strong. It was nice to see Hillary as her old self again, but Acey had to get them back on track with the issue at hand—getting Raina out before the transfer. Acey walked out onto the roof as they turned and looked at her. Acey was about to speak, when Hillary got up, put her arm around Acey’s shoulder and directed her over to where they were sitting.

  “So we have a deal. I put you in contact with my friends at the Artist Guild, and you help us get Raina out,” Hillary said to Billy, giving Acey a reassuring nod.

  “Well, I don’t want to do anything illegal or hurt my family’s business,” he said.

  “All you need to do is to get us in, and we’ll do the rest,” Acey added.

  “I uh, don’t know uh…. If I … could do…this,” he stammered.

  “Look. You don’t have to do anything illegal. I realize we’re asking a lot, but you have to understand my sister’s life is in grave danger. We have no one else to turn to,” Acey pleaded.

  Billy looked at her and then at Hillary. Hillary smiled at him, and he melted.

  “Okay. Okay. Meet me in the underground garage at 6:30 tomorrow morning by the service entrance for my breakfast run. I can get you in as my employees. You will need to change your appearance since your faces have been all over the media.”

  “Thank you,” Acey said, sighing in relief.

  But Hillary didn’t say a word. She walked up to him, put her arms around him, and kissed him for the longest time until the heat generated by his blushing became very evident. Billy left in a daze. Acey looked at Hillary, who was still somewhere in dreamland.

  “Well, I feel kind of guilty with you putting on an act to coerce him into helping us,” Acey said.

  “Who’s acting?” she said.

  ***

  Her eyes fixed on the ceiling, and she focused on the dim fluorescent lights. The fog lifted slowly from her brain as she began to piece things together. She wiggled her toes, then her feet, and finally her legs, until she was satisfied that they were functional although weak. She then did the same thing with her fingers and arms, but that was a little more difficult with tubes stuck in her body. When she tilted her neck to see her surroundings, her head throbbed. The young nurse sat patiently at her bedside, observing her actions. Raina finally noticed her as she came into focus.

  “How long have I been here,” she asked?

  “I’m not sure. I’m new to this hospital, and you’re my first patient,” she said, holding Raina’s hand.

  “I’m starved. What’s there to eat?

  “We will be bringing you breakfast soon,” looking at the clock.

  She checked the chart to see if it was okay for her to have solid food. The chart said to introduce solid food slowly and check for patient tolerance.

  “Would
you like to try some applesauce or yogurt?” she asked.

  “How about some Huevos Rancheros with a side of refried beans and some espresso?” Raina asked.

  “I don’t think your digestive system is up to that yet,” the nurse laughed. “How about I clean you up a little since they’re moving you to the general hospital this morning?”

  With those words, Raina’s eyes widened, and she pushed herself up in the bed.

  “Where’s Dirk and Acey? What happened to them?” she shouted, startling the nurse.

  It was all coming back to her now. She had no idea if they were alive or dead.

  ***

  Billy pulled the truck as far into the garage as possible. The truck sat directly opposite the hospital service entrance. He watched as the guards checked credentials for those coming and going. He had seen it busier, but it still wasn’t going to be easy to get Raina out. In fact, it would be easier to get her out if it were busier.

  Hillary popped her head from the window in the back of the truck. Her short-cropped hair was tucked neatly under an orange cap with “Barberry Food Service” scrawled in dark, black letters. The orange matching coveralls were somewhat baggy and long, but she rolled up the cuffs and was able to walk without tripping. Acey looked identical.

  “This is not going to be easy,” he said, backing the truck closer to the entrance. “I will go in and register us with the guards. Hillary, you and Acey get these two carts off the truck and make sure everything is covered up. Then stay in the truck and keep it running. We’ll take her to my place. Study the map coordinates and familiarize yourself with the route because you will be driving, Hillary. Acey and I will go in and get her out.”

  Hillary wasn’t thrilled with that idea but acknowledged his instructions and moved to the back of the truck. As she opened the door, she could see Billy walking towards the guards.