CHAPTER SEVEN #2
After stopping to wash his hands, they were soon on their way back out of the bathroom to find Ellen had joined Renee waiting in the hallway. She was carrying a tray of food, and Rocko’s stomach growled in appreciation.
“Thought you might be hungry,” Ellen said. “It’s soup and toast, Renee said you needed something light to start.”
“Thank you, Ellen.”
The more he moved his body, the better Rocko felt. Once he was settled upright in bed, Ellen placed the tray in front of him.
“I’m off to the barn,” Ellen said. “The animals are coming tomorrow.”
“Shit, sorry, I took you away from that. I guess I wasn’t much help after all,” Rocko chuckled, knowing Griffin would be pleased at his failure. “How many days have I been out in total?”
“This is day four,” Renee said. “You eat, and I’ll return later to do more work on your back.”
“Thanks for everything. I doubt I’d be breathing without you,” Rocko said. He owed his life to the amazing woman.
“You’re the one who saved me,” she argued.
“To-mayto, tomahto.”
His stomach growled again. He couldn’t wait any longer, so he dug in with vigor.
Now only Apollo and he were left, but he was too hungry to attempt a conversation.
The soup was hot, flavorful, and chock-full of veggies, while the bread was warm and crusty, perfect, and in that moment, all he could think about was getting that food into his belly.
By the time he’d spooned out the last drop and dunked all his bread, Rocko was exhausted. Recovering sucked, but the alternative was being six feet under, so he should count his blessings.
“I can’t believe I’m beat again when all I’ve been doing is sleeping for days,” he said petulantly.
“Your body is healing. You’ll be up and moving again soon,” Apollo assured him with a grin.
“I hope so. I’m not used to being useless.” He was sick of talking about himself; he needed to change the topic. “Which animals are coming tomorrow?”
“Chickens, a couple of cows, and a damn donkey.”
“Donkey?” Why would they need a donkey?
Apollo rolled his head, looked to the ceiling, and let out a groan like a man who’d been through a battle.
“Yes. Ellen heard that the donkey needed a place to call home or its butt was headed to the dog food factory, and bippity boppity boo, we have an ass.”
Rocko burst out laughing, making Apollo smile. He liked the handsome man’s smile; he didn’t do it often.
“We all need a little ass now and again,” Rocko chuckled, making Apollo laugh even harder. It was deep and echoed through the room. Rocko liked it.
“So, I imagine I’ll be healed in time to leave.”
“There’s no need to rush it,” Apollo said.
“I thought we had decided on a two-week timeline?”
“That was before,” Apollo stated.
“Before what?”
As far as Rocko was concerned, they wanted his ass outta here as soon as possible.
“You risked your life for Renee, and—”
“And?”
“Now I’m positive your effect on me isn’t a trick or threat to my ability to function and protect my people.”
“So, even unconscious, I provided you with this calm. The same way you affect me?”
“Yes.”
Rocko wasn’t sure if he should be happy at this turn of events or even more offended that his word hadn’t truly been believed when they’d had their talk back in Rocko’s trailer.
“Get some sleep,” Apollo ordered while taking his tray, reminding Rocko of how Brick spoke to his team of SEALs. “Renee will be in later to work on you some more.”
Rocko was too exhausted to carry on this discussion, but he was damn sure he’d be revisiting it once he was back in fighting shape.
As he drifted into a deep sleep, the memory of Apollo’s deep laughter filled his mind, betraying his internal struggle, but he didn’t fight it and let it lull him to sleep.
***
Apollo
He watched Rocko’s eyes close, waited a moment in case he woke up, and after several minutes forced himself out of his bedroom.
Griffin was waiting for him a few feet down the hall, and he motioned for his friend to follow him downstairs before speaking.
He didn’t want to chance waking Rocko with their talking.
When they were far enough away from the bedroom, Apollo turned to Griffin to find his friend smirking.
“Why are you so happy?” Apollo asked. “You’re never happy.”
“Because I haven’t heard you laugh like that in a very long time, my friend,” Griffin said. “Also, I now know why you’ve been behaving strangely around our visitor.”
“Strangely?” Apollo stepped back and thought about the last time he’d laughed before Rocko came to the compound. Huh. It’s been too long, I can’t remember.
“Yes,” Griffin answered. “At first, I was concerned you’d been compromised by thinking with your smaller head.”
“Fuck you, there ain’t nothing small about me,” Apollo growled as he reached down and readjusted his manhood.
Griffin broke out into a fit of laughter, bringing a smile to Apollo’s face.
“Has it been that long since either of us has laughed?” Apollo asked.
“Yes. Sadly, we haven’t had that much to be happy about.”
“We never do.” Sad and brutal facts.
“So, do you want to tell me about this effect you two seem to have on each other?” Griffin asked.
“I’m not sure how to explain it. The first time I felt this calm wash over me was back in the restaurant when Rocko walked in.”
“What did it feel like?” Griffin asked.
Apollo turned and headed toward his office, where they could have this conversation in private. Griffin followed. He waited until his second-in-command shut the office door before continuing.
“Initially, it confused me. I was suspicious, not sure how or why it was happening. Typically, my body and mind are wrapped tight. Spinning with thoughts and plans, ready to move at a moment’s notice.”
Apollo sat behind his desk, resting his arms on the worn wood.
“Yes, I know the feeling well. You can never relax; you can never let your guard down. Shit could hit the fan anytime.”
“Yes. That’s how we survive. Never truly feeling calm, but with the illusion, it makes us safer instead of simply exhausted.”
“Rocko stops this in you?”
“Yes, and at first, I believed it was intentional. An attack. Attempted takeover of my ability to lead and a threat to all of us.”
“Of course, hell, I would have been ready to tear him limb from limb until I had answers.”
“Upon further investigation, I suspected Rocko had no idea he was having this effect on me. Then, when we were checking out the speed boat, Rocko admitted that for some reason, he felt more at peace here at the compound. That’s when I started connecting the dots.”
“That you were having the same effect on him,” Griffin answered. His second had a keen intellect and was a master of strategy.
“Yes. That night, I spoke to him at his trailer and confirmed my suspicions. Rocko admitted that he’d been experiencing a few strange anomalies being near me. With his supercharged memory, Rocko’s mind never shuts down, and I suspect he’s using alcohol to dull the constant noise in his head.”
“Yeah, I noticed a few empty bottles left in his trailer when we went over to collect some of his belongings during his recovery.”
“As it happens, whenever I’m near him, his thoughts calm.”
“Same as he does for you. Are you sure he’s not simply playing you?”
“The fact he still had the same effect on me when he was unconscious and near death proved he wasn’t.”
“Definitely not controlling it then, but does it have any unwanted side effects?” Griffin asked.
“None. My response time, thought processes, and abilities have remained unchanged.”
“So, let me get this straight,” Griffin said, leaning against the wall. “Rocko not only saved my sister’s life, but also provided you, the leader of our team, with a type of peace, allowing you to perform better in our mission potentially.”
“Well, I guess if you had to put it some way, that about sums it up,” Apollo said, unsure if he liked that explanation fully for some reason.
“Well, then we’ll have to make sure he sticks around,” Griffin stated.
“Changed your tune, huh? You’re the one who couldn’t wait for him to leave.”
“Yeah, well, he could prove useful to us,” Griffin said. “And he saved my sister’s life.”
Apollo knew his old friend well. There was no way Griffin would ever admit to being wrong about someone, even though he clearly had been. This was as close as he’d get to saying Rocko might be a decent guy after all.
“We’ll pick this up later. Let’s get everything ready for the livestock arrival,” Apollo said as he stood and headed for the door.
His world had taken a couple of major turns of late, and he still wasn’t one hundred percent sure how to handle it.
***
Rocko
Apollo’s office was conveniently directly below the bedroom Rocko was currently recovering in. He’d awoken to a conversation filtering up through a vent beside the bed. It seemed Apollo hadn’t realized conversations held in his office could be heard in his bedroom.
Initially, Rocko had wanted to prove himself useful to this new team to find his place, but now that Griffin and Apollo had determined him to be of use, it all felt wrong.
In truth, he wanted to be wanted by these people, not simply be a means to an end.
Sure, you can stick around because you help our leader perform better.
Damn. Now what?