The Infected (Book 9): Proxy: War Day Page 14

  Brian felt slow for a second, and wondered if they had a second granddaughter that he didn't know about. If so, why would they both be named the same thing?

  "Um, what? I'm not sure I follow you."

  She walked, nodding as she spoke, taking him to the little table in the back of her store, then ran to get him a plate of food, while she handled some customers. He waited for her to come back, so they could eat together. It wasn't the world's busiest place, but the little coffee and donut shop did decent business now. It was popular, since the food there was high quality, and they had other things too. Sandwiches, and a little store that carried useful odds and ends.

  When she returned Mary gave him a very serious look, and didn't make him ask about it again. She was used to conversations not always being done all at one time.

  "It is true. The villain Tesseract is in love with our Bridget, and has been, since before she was born. It is for that reason he follows the Timberland witch, Devorah. She has promised him that on her path, he shall find the true love of his heart, the granddaughter of Rachel Chambers. There is only one child that meets that description in this world. So he seeks to win her hand, and heart."

  Brian thought he understood. Oh, he didn't believe it, but if the man had a first mode that worked in the right way, he might have been manipulated that way.

  "I see. Maybe. He's a bit old for her, don't you think?"

  That got his girlfriend to look away, her youthful face moving into a frown.

  "That is as it might be. What is age though, but a number? I..." She looked at him then, her eyes a bit dark and gloomy. "Brian, my heart, I am at least thrice his age. Those that bend space and time rarely age past the point we learn to walk in time. It is part and parcel to that skill. I cannot even know how long I have been in this realm, much less my true age. If any were to cast stone for being with one too young for them, I am not a being to do so. You are but a child compared to mine own years. Worse than the difference between Bridget and this villain."

  He'd sort of known that, but hadn't thought of her as being that well aged, really. About seventy, but Tesseract was at least sixty-something. Maybe older than that. Director Moore and Rachel were both in their seventies after all, even if the latter really didn't look it.

  Brian shrugged then.

  "Ah, but you see, this world has a great tradition of double standards. So I can love you without feeling bad about it, and still think that Bridget needs someone closer to her own age. It doesn't have to make sense. It's mainly about me feeling protective of her. Plus, as you keep pointing out, he's a villain. We have a long standing tradition of forbidding young girls from running off with that kind of person." It was true, after all.

  Mary nodded slowly, and started to smile, getting that he wasn't really concerned about her age. He was an adult after all. Plus, double standard. It only made sense. His granddaughter, who was a lot closer to his age than he was Mary's, needed some nice guy no more than ten years older than she was.

  "Of course, we also have a tradition of those girls running off with those very same bad boys, in order to prove their love and independence. I think we need to just trust in her good judgment on this one and not push her into it. I really don't like Tess that much. I'd hate for him to become family. It would make the holiday dinners too stressful, for one thing."

  Different worlds of origin or not, she got the joke and covered her laugh delicately. It was adorable, really. When she got her own food and sat, he started eating. It was rice, with vegetables and a thin brown sauce that was a bit spicy. The meal wasn't bad, and it was a full plate, so pretty filling.

  Just as she was finishing, having jumped up four times to help people during the quick meal, she smiled at him.

  "So, since you have the beginner's skill, you can live with me now? There is no reason for you to be trapped at that hole, suffering indignities to your person, in order to serve. I know that your duty is such that you must go to aid those in need, but... Can you not do that from here? I can perhaps help teach you other things that may aid? Skills that I'd not thought you had the ken or ability for, that it seems now you may? I'd thought you less that way than those of my family, but this... It is perhaps that you are truly more?"

  He cleared his throat, and nodded.

  "You are asking me to move in with you, right? I'm not misunderstanding that?"

  She laughed but touched his hand, from across the table.

  "Tis the way of it! What word do you have on the topic? Must you ask your other lady for permission? I can go and negotiate for you, if that is the way of it."

  Other lady? He didn't get that for a bit.

  "Wait, you mean Marcia? I suppose she is the boss now. I'm pretty certain she isn't my 'lady' though, in any meaning of the term." That was just silly.

  Mary smiled at him and shook her head.

  "No? Are you true to certain on that? I've seen how she looks at you, when I come to visit. There is jealousy in her eyes. I'd simply imagined that she was yours, and would not seek to estrange you from her arms. Nor is she the only one that seeks your heart. That you might come to stay with me for a time gladdens my soul, but... I do not imagine that will last forever. Eventually one or the other will be called away to other work. That is the way of things. But for a time, would you not consider my place as your own? You aren't hard to be around, after all."

  He nodded, "sure. That sounds fun. Of course I'm pretty sure that you're wrong about the rest of that, but I can probably stay with you at least part of the time. I... think I need to get a cell phone though. I can carry things now! I took a gun with me earlier. It really sped things up."

  She nodded, and finished her food, smiling. Then took his plate and put it in the sink.

  "Good. You should go to your work then, so you may come again later. I'll wait for you. Always."

  Except that she'd just told him she didn't expect anything to last that long, didn't she? It hurt a bit to hear, but he knew that in her mind that might be thirty or forty years, not next Tuesday. It was a long time, in potential. The idea that he might lose her... Well, that was real enough. He'd never been with any woman that long. Not even close. The best he'd done before that was about three months, with Karen.

  Thinking about that left him feeling a bit sad though. Kare was great, but things just hadn't worked out. Which might have been for the best really. It was hard to see, but in a lot of ways they were actually both too nice to be with each other. Relationships needed people that would contrast enough to keep the unit from becoming warped. Between Karen and himself, they could easily end up living for other people, giving away all they owned, and things like that. Compassion, and even self-sacrifice, were both good traits, but together they...

  Worked too well.

  Not that it had been a problem so far, but over time he could see that happening.

  If they'd stayed together. It had been nice, but also frustrating, since he'd had her little sister kind of living in his head back then. Now that she was gone, well, the fact was that he'd been too desperate, and he really should have never been more than a friend to Karen anyway. They had too much negative history to bother trying to work things out. He'd liked her, and maybe it was even love, after a fashion, but a lot of it had been about him not wanting to die alone.

  In the end though, that was just what pretty much had to happen, didn't it? The odds of him passing away in his sleep, as an old man, surrounded by family and friends... It made him smile. That should be his goal, after all.

  That wouldn't happen, but... Well, he did have a family now. Gotten in a strange way, but it was real enough. Scott and Bridget were actually related to him, and Charlot was his friend, as unlikely as that seemed. Rachel was his buddy too, he thought. Plus, he had Mary, for as long as she wanted him around.

  At some point he probably needed to get with his parents too, if only to let them know that the world didn't need him as a mathematical prodigy. It wasn't a fun idea, but soon enough it mi
ght be time to think about setting something like that up.

  They managed a hug and a long kiss before he left, making a point of getting to the front office as directly as possible. Wendy was back on the phones, and Penny stared at him when he came in, her face going blank. It was suspicious, but she wasn't doing anything wrong that he could see.

  After a moment he smiled, trying not to alienate her more than she could actually handle. The woman smiled then, and shook her head.

  "All hail the hero. Have you seen the news today? Even the hate station has said you aren't so bad today. I'm sure that will change, but that was good PR, getting that Gibson girl back. Not that you did it for that, but it's working anyway. Marsh told me about the whole thing with your armor and knife. What are you going to do?"

  It was a real point, and a thing he needed to take care of as soon as possible.

  "Well, first, I'm getting some regular body armor, and a few guns and regular knives. I think I can carry them with me, part of the time. Maybe not when I trade out, but the rest of the time? Then... Well, I think I need to call my old college roommate and ask him if he has any way to get more of it? I should have been keeping in touch with him. I was busy, but that's not a good excuse." Just the one he had.

  He was in front of the desk, which meant that Bridget came in right behind him, along with Doug and Sinclair. That was fine, but his granddaughter had her hand on the man's lower back. Not his behind, which showed restraint for her. That was the worrying part though. She was only sixteen and Doug was almost twenty-four, and she was clearly making an effort not to come on too strong.

  The other girl who was only a few years older, noticed it too, and shrugged at him.

  "Hey Brian. Saw you on the news earlier." Sinclair glanced at Bridget's hand again, but then looked him in the eyes directly. "We came to see what you all needed done here? Trying to pull our own weight and all that?"

  He wanted to tell Bridget to get her sticky little girl hands off of his best friend, but the fact was she was legal in that state, and he wasn't her father. Besides, while telling her to leave Doug alone might have gotten her to try for him even harder, his buddy would have made her stop.

  He was so much of a better catch for her than Tesseract that he really didn't want to mess that up. For his part, Doug had probably made up some kind of mental story about how she was just friendly. It wouldn't be hard to do, being the truth.

  On the good side, if he wasn't going to try and play the grandpa card, which he was nearly certain he couldn't pull off, then it wasn't his business really. Not unless he could steer her toward Tobin Peterson? He was currently seeing someone though, so that might be less than kind to Kerry.

  Rather than stick his whole foot in his mouth, or goad Bridget into helping him do that for real, he smiled at Sinclair, who was being helpful and seemed like a hard worker.

  "I need to get a secured cell phone. I'm moving in with Mary, but I can get to and from here now, when needed. So that will give me a way to be in touch all the time." He waited for Marcia to come out and yell about it, but all she did was hand him a large folder.

  "Mail call. This is yours. Mainly hate mail, of course. Now, where are you planning to be? At the donut shop?" He nodded, which got her to grin. It looked slightly sinister. "Perfect. I can't stand the things, but we have some big eaters here, and the Marine cooks can't get them enough to eat yet. Get with Mary and set up a daily order of ten dozen? You can bring them in, right?"

  That wasn't something he was sure of at all, but he could probably drive in most days. That might mean buying a car, but normal people did that, didn't they? It wasn't like he didn't have the money.

  "Sure. I'll get that going. You have to buy them though, and not try to get her to give them to us for free."

  She squinted at him, but didn't seem upset really. Just a bit silly.

  "That's a plan. We actually have our old budget. That's going to be strained, since we need a new facility, but we can get some grub in for the starving children. Oh, just a heads-up, President Lawrence called for you earlier and wants you to get in touch as soon as you can. He sounded ready to hand you your behind. Probably over the whole Braid thing. I didn't ask, since you know how it is, I'm not his poker buddy, or whatever you two have going on."

  He winced, having forgotten to call him. Then he had been kidnapped, so that was a pretty good excuse, as long as he didn't dawdle now.

  "Cool. I should get to that. Land line in your office?"

  She nodded, "secured, for now. Still, don't say anything you don't want heard."

  Brian looked at Sinclair and then Wren, who was watching them all very closely. She looked really young. Innocent too. So he explained.

  "That's just the way of things. From now on, no matter where you are, just assume that people are listening. It isn't always true, but even for office people here, it can happen. The best way to protect us all is to assume that it is, and not say anything that can hurt us. Oh... Also, we don't give a care if you want to have kinky sex or anything like that, so whatever you're into, just be open about it. Don't get too into drugs though, since we're on war footing."

  Marcia nodded, "damn straight. We need to get someone to be in charge of that. Probably one of the military officers, so that we don't have issues on that side of things. Chambers, you pick someone, and back them up in it?"

  There was a nod then, from the tiny red-headed girl, her pale skin perfectly smooth.

  "Got it. I'll get Johansen. He's one of the telepath/precogs. They aren't very good really, but they get some decent hunches from time to time. Between that and my sniffer, we can find almost anything here. So far I haven't noticed much. Some booze, but that's about it." Her hand was still on Doug's back, but held steady.

  Brian nodded.

  "Sounds good then. I guess I need to go and make that call while I check this mail out. I hope there's a seed catalog in it. We need some plants around here." If they'd grow.

  No one laughed, but he was kind of serious. Walking to the back he sighed, then set down the bundle, and dialed the correct number from memory.

  It rang three times, and a youthful sounding woman answered.

  "White House, this is Maggie, how may I help you today?"

  "Maggie? Brian Yi here. I got a call from the President earlier? I missed him. Is he available?"

  There was an excited intake of breath, and what he thought might be a sob. If so it wasn't that upset.

  "Mr. Yi! I'm so happy you're alive. Dad was... Well, it was pretty hard for a while. All those people. I know some of them, too. He isn't in right now. I... Don't think he will be until late. Can I take a message, or do anything for you?" She sounded youthful, and was, being sixteen now. They weren't that close, but she was a friend of Bridget's, he thought. Maybe Penny's too. They'd both been on her security detail for a while.

  "Um, not really. I'm just checking in to make sure things are all right, and so he can yell at me for telling everyone about the people from the alternate realities. You know, all that kind of thing. Do you need anything? I don't have my new phone yet, or I'd leave my number. Do you have the one for here?"

  "Well, my dad does, I'm sure. Or his secretary..."

  "I mean you, in case you need to get in touch with us about anything. It's never come up before, but you should memorize it, just in case." He had a feeling, and was about to try and con her into doing it, when he stopped, and simply let himself speak. "Part of my power is to kind of know the future. It can be vague at times, but this one could be really important. So make sure you have a phone with you, and memorize the number, in case you lose it. Here, do you have something to write with?"

  "Go." It sounded official, but kind of cute in her young voice, like she was pretending to be one of the secret service agents.

  When he was sure she had it down, he made a point of suggesting she call whenever she liked.

  "Even if it's just to chat. Or take part of the load off of your dad. No one here will mind,
not even the new Director. She's pretty awesome. Don't tell her I said that though, or she'll think I like her or something." Not that he didn't, but it was just a joke, anyway.

  "I can keep a secret. I have a lot of them. I can't tell you what they are, because, like I said..."

  "Heh. Good. Talk to you soon. Keep in touch." They both hung up then, and he made a note that Maggie Lawrence might be calling in at times for Marcia, who'd left the building to actually go do something for once.

  That meant he was on the phone when the next call came in for her.

  Before he could speak, a rather panicked voice came across the line. It was male and sounded both hard and scared, at the same time.

  "Turner! We need back up, Des Moines, Iowa. Five... Cat like things. They're taking the locals apart here! They aren't even going down under gun fire, they just soak it. We'll take anything you got." There was the sound of a war in the background. One that seemed likely people were going to lose.

  "I'm familiar with the creatures. They're biological constructs, roughly class four level. We'll send a team ASAP. Hold on..." He tried to remember what to do, and his brain shifted gears... Who he needed at the moment, was... Team Four.

  "Wren! Come here. Emergency!" It was real one and there was a clatter as a desk chair slid back. When she got to the door he just started explaining, hoping she knew who to call. Rather than turn, she held her wrist up to her lips, and spoke to the silver spider that pretended to be her watch most of the time.

  "You heard him. We need the whole team. Now." Her voice was less scared than his was, Brian realized.

  Then the man on the phone made a shocked sound and the gunfire petered out.

  "They're here. Thanks. Who is this? I was trying to call Marcia Turner..."