24 - Peyton
PEYTON
Going into town felt like we were doing something illegal. Like we’d just broken out of prison, and were looking over our shoulder at every turn.
Still, it was wholly liberating, finally getting out of the villa and into the world again.
The busy streets were a bit overwhelming, especially after not having been around anyone but the boys for all this time.
The surging crowds did a good job of hiding us though, amongst a whole sea of colorfully-dressed people.
We passed a stall selling belts and bags, and I caught a glimpse of myself in its full-length mirror.
Big, floppy straw hat. Oversized sunglasses.
I’d braided my hair and tucked it in, and even covered my face with the kind of burn cream that only tourists who don’t realize the power of the sun might need.
Ripley came up behind me, and patted me on the ass.
“Donovan could walk right past you and not even know who you were,” he whistled.
“Keep moving,” Colson muttered, looking over his shoulder. “Less grabass. More situational awareness.”
“Relax, boss,” Ripley countered. “No one’s looking for a tomato with sandals.”
“A tomato?”
He shrugged. “Freshly boiled lobster, then?”
“You’re insufferable,” I poked him. “You know that?”
“And yet…” he bowed low, adding a smile. “Here you are.”
We continued walking, keeping our heads low as we weaved through the crowd.
My thoughts drifted to Theo, staying behind.
Somehow focused on keeping his head buried in the keyboard, while knowing his father’s time was running out.
My heart went out to him. I’d lost my father so quickly, my mother and I didn’t have time to process it.
I could only imagine mourning the loss of someone slowly, over time. Losing them piece by piece…
“There it is.”
Ripley jerked a thumb at some ramshackle, dockside bar. The place looked like it might collapse at any moment.
“Captain owes Theo a favor,” he murmured. “I’ll catch up with you.”
He tried to step away, but Colson already had him by the wrist.
“Don’t force anything.”
“Who, me?” Ripley grinned. “Relax. I’ll be subtle.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“That hurts,” he said, pulling away. He slipped one of the newly-purchased burner phones from his pocket and pointed to it. “Text me if you miss me.”
I giggled beneath the security of my hat, as Ripley melted into the crowd. Colson sighed and rolled his eyes.
“He’s gonna get us made,” he muttered under his breath.
I slid my arm around him, then adjusted my hat so I could put my head on his shoulder. Like a tired, sunburned tourist.
“Relax,” I told him, for the second time that minute. “Let’s get this done.”
A few blocks later we found the object of our search: a small pharmacy that was more store than stall. We ducked inside, where the smiling, white-haired woman behind the counter sold us butterfly closures, painkillers, and hospital-grade antiseptic. But I wasn’t satisfied.
“Pressure bandages?” I asked, pulling my silly glasses off.
The woman stared back at me questioningly for a moment, then nodded and disappeared through a curtain.
“Damn, Peyton.”
Colson began flipping through a colorful stack of Belize dollars, trying to look casual.
“Better to be safe than sorry,” I shrugged.
“I know. And it’s the only reason I risked bringing you here.”
He did his usual scan, finishing up by checking the door for the umpteenth time. Satisfied we were alone in the shop, he sighed.
“Why’d you really quit?” he asked. “The hospital, I mean.”
“I already told you. Donovan made me.”
Those steel-gray eyes weren’t convinced. Maybe because I wasn’t all that convincing.
“I’ve seen Donovan sway you in a lot of directions,” he said evenly. “But that man could never ‘make’ you do anything. We both know that.”
My eyes shifted downward, suddenly busying themselves with counting crumbling floor tiles. They were much dirtier than a supposedly sterile pharmacy had any right to be.
As far as distractions went, it was a shitty one.
“Alright fine,” I breathed. “You want the truth?”
“Only if you want to tell it.”
I looked up again, searching his eyes for even a shred of judgment. There was none.
“I’ve always been naturally smart,” I began. “School came easy. Grades, even easier. I ran full speed toward a medical career, because I convinced myself I wanted to help people. I didn’t look up again until I was a trauma nurse, assisting in a busy emergency room.”
“That sort of thing just happens to smart people?” he attempted a smile.
“I guess.”
Colson could sense the rising tension in my voice. He stepped closer, and slid his palm into mine.
“On my last day, there was a terrible accident. This guy ran into the triage, blowing past security, with injuries so horrific it put half the staff into shock. But it wasn’t the blood,” I shook my head. “It wasn’t the injuries that got me.”
I took a deep, shuddering breath.
“It was the way he was screaming,” I breathed. “It—It didn’t sound human. It was just like… like…”
Like an dying animal.
Colson squeezed my hand reassuringly, as a shudder ripped through me. Something familiar in those eyes told me I didn’t have to elaborate.
Something told me he knew.
“I’d just never heard anything even remotely like that,” I choked. “I ran to him, and he grabbed me, pleading with me frantically. Begging me not to let him die.”
My throat closed, as I fought back the recurring sense of dread. There were no words.
“And he died,” Colson said gently.
“Yes,” I murmured, my voice barely above a whisper. “I just held onto him, as tightly as I could. I didn’t even try to save him. Because… because…”
“Because there was no saving him,” Colson finished for me.
I shook my head, crying. “No. There wasn’t.”
“You comforted him. You did what you could.”
“I tried! I—”
“No, you were there for him, Peyton. While everyone else stood around in shock, you stayed with him, and held him in your arms. You gave him whatever sense of peace you could, right up until his dying breath.”
Again, I got the sense that he knew. That somewhere, in some faceless, nameless place, he’d had to endure this same extraordinary burden.
“He was so damned young,” I finished, bitterly. “Just a kid, really. He begged me to do something, and all I could do was go home with his blood in my hair.”
Colson hugged me tightly, enveloping me in his arms. The warmth and comfort of his chest pressed against my face was overwhelming. Somehow, it drove back the screams.
The sound of a throat being cleared brought us both back to reality. The woman held up the pressure bandages for my inspection, and I nodded. They had built-in windlasses, just as I’d hoped.
“Do me a favor?” I whispered, as Colson paid the bill.
“What?”
“Promise me we won’t need any of this stuff?”
The big marine looked down on me, his expression solemn as he stiffened to his full, formidable height. I was asking for an impossible vow. I didn’t expect him to give it.
“I can promise you that Donovan and his men are going to need this stuff way before us,” he growled, stowing it away.
I smiled, wanly. “Good enough.”
Back outside, we walked the streets some more. Arm in arm, we kept a low profile. And that’s when I saw him.
A man, across the street, near a busy coffee stall. He wasn’t holding a coffee, though.
He was lowering his phone.
“Shit. Your sunglasses…”
I dropped my hat forward quickly, and used it as a shield while I slipped them on. I’d completely forgotten I’d taken them off!
When I risked looking up again, the man was still there. Only now, he was murmuring something into his phone.
“Move,” Colson urged. “Now.”
We moved. Casually at first, but then at a faster pace. The burner phone buzzed, with a message from Ripley. Colson held the screen out so I could see it.
Captain’s in. Boat’s ready on short notice.
Also, heads up. I think we’re being felt out.
My stomach sank. Colson’s hand on my hip urged me sideways, and down the nearest side-street.
“Ripley’s at the car,” he said, looking down at the phone. “Coast is clear for now. We need to get back to the villa, before we pick up a tail.”
I moved even more quickly, pinning my floppy hat down with one hand. The disquieting sense of being noticed hadn’t left me yet.
“I’m sorry,” I exhaled. “You were right. I shouldn’t have come.”
I thought about the beach, the villa, the wonderful sense of protection and comfort I’d felt, wrapped in three strong pairs of arms. More than anything, I just wanted to be back in the safety of our little, temporary home.
“What’s done is done,” Colson said, shaking his head.
He went to pull me even harder, but he didn’t have to. I was already running.
“I just hope Theo cracked that locket,” he murmured. “We’re running out of time.”