The Fey (4 page)

No work today. Alex, now Alyssa, was a
cartographer for the 734D Military Intelligence Division. Her
interest in maps, and habit of annotating them with interesting
details, became her career. She was even a Major with a department
of her own. Of course, there was no one in her department. Just
Alex. And her assistant. Some department.

She worked at home in her secure office with
a video link to her assistant and command at Buckley Air Force
Base. She had been to the base… see, she did leave the house… about
three months ago. Alex rolled over.

There was no reason for her to leave the
house today.

“
I know you are thinking
that there’s no reason for you to leave the house today,” Max said
walking into her bedroom. He pulled the covers from her. “You’re
wrong.”

“
Ah Maxie,” Alex said. She
gave him her best “you have to understand” face but he was having
none of it.

“
Get up,” Max said.
“Moping around does you no good. Plus you’re getting
fat.”

“
WHAT??” Alex jumped from
the bed. “What do you mean I’m getting fat? I’ve always been too
thin. I’m still too thin. Last time I checked I was less than 15%
body fat.”

Max laughed. He had tricked her from the
bed.

She plopped on the bed and he sat down next
to her. Resting her head against his shoulder, he put his arm
around her. The twins sat on the bed, in silent communion, until
Alex’s cell phone began vibrating in the pocket of her
bathrobe.

“
Love?” John asked. “I
know you’re still in bed.”

“
Actually your best friend
is here berating me about how fat I’ve become.”

John laughed.

“
I just wanted to let you
know that…”

The doorbell rang.

“
I scheduled the cleaners
this morning.”

“
You what?”

“
Love you too,” he said
and hung up the phone.

“
Go shower,” Max said.
Pulling and pushing, he got her into the shower. He went downstairs
to let in the cleaning service.

She sighed.

Her mind
flitted through John and Max’s encouraging words. What do you have
to lose? Try it for one day. You’re just bored. You can always come
home
.

She sighed.

If I don’t leave the house, how will I ever
get my vibrator?

Smiling at the thought, she turned on the
shower.

FFF

Six hours later

January 5 – 1:00 P.M.
Denver, Colorado

“
Alex!”

Alex looked over at her petite little sister
Erin. Erin’s green eyes were wide with laughter. Alex blinked.

“
What did I
miss?”

Alex began singing songs in her head, a
standard technique for surviving torture, during the two hour scalp
scorching hairdressing episode. Transformed into Alyssa, Alex was
now blonde, blue-eyed, and wearing an outfit that was fit for the
matron’s ball. That’s not to mention the
‘you-look-absolutely-fabulous’ makeup mask. Alyssa Kreiger was a
complete dud.

Erin laughed. She reached across the table
to hold Alex’s hands. Their mother, Rebecca Hargreaves, was talking
to a friend at another table.

“
I’m glad you left the
house,” Erin said. “I’ve looked forward to spending time with you
since you returned to Denver.”

“
Bed ridden?” Alex
asked.

“
Yes, I was hoping to
spend time in bed with you,” Erin laughed. “I just thought that we
could be friends now that we’re grown up and stuff.”

“
That sounds nice,” Alex
said.

“
First thing? I’m going to
take you shopping for some… er… decent clothing!”

“
If I had known that so
much shopping was in my future? I’m fairly certain I wouldn’t have
fought so hard to survive.”

“
Alexandra!” Rebecca said
sitting down next to Erin. Her hazel eyes were sparked in shock.
“What are you saying?”

“
I’m attempting a
joke.”

“
It’s not very funny,”
Rebecca said.

When Rebecca turned to order lunch, Erin
flared her nostrils and winked at Alex. Alex laughed.

“
I have some news,” Erin
said.

“
Are you done with
school?” Rebecca said. “Erin, that’s wonderful! Will you look for a
job at a pharmaceutical company?”

“
Actually, mother, I quit
school six months ago,” Erin said.

Alex blinked. That got her attention. Erin
had wanted to research infectious diseases since a friend of the
family died of Hanta virus when she was ten years old. She was a
year from finishing her Ph.D. Erin’s thesis research project was
underway.

“
What are you saying?”
Rebecca asked.

“
I’m engaged,” Erin said.
The words seemed to drop onto the table.

Rebecca squealed and began peppering Erin
with questions. Erin blushed, looked down and shifted in her seat.
While Alex watched, Erin seemed to blossom and withdraw at the same
time. Something was not quite right. Erin looked up at Alex with
pleading eyes.

“
How exciting. Have you
set a date?” Alex asked.

“
Not yet,” Erin said. “I
wanted to get married in twelve hours, but he wanted to
wait.”

“
Thirteen hours,” Alex
laughed.

“
Only Alex is crazy enough
to marry someone she’d known for thirteen hours,” Rebecca
said.

“
And keep it a secret for
ten years,” Erin said. “I thought I’d just put it right out
there.”

“
And you are marrying….?”
Alex asked.

“
Christ Alex! Do you pay
attention at all?” Rebecca asked. “Erin is marrying that nice boy
Marcos Ruiz.”

“
I was just wondering
because….” Alex nodded her head in the direction of Matthew, who
was walking toward them.

Erin’s head jerked around to see Matthew.
She flushed bright red, then looked down, her hands moving
instinctively through her red curly hair. Erin and Matthew dated
off and on since she was sixteen years old. They were currently in
an “off” phase while Matthew was out of the country.

“
When did he get back?”
Erin said between her teeth.

“
Yesterday,” Alex said.
“He called me when we were at the old ladies’ boutique.”

“
The fashion consultant?”
Rebecca said.

“
Hmm,” Alex said. “He’s in
a martial arts tournament tomorrow and wants to spar. I invited him
to lunch. I’m sorry. I didn’t think it was a big deal. Have I met
Marcos?”

“
No,” Erin said with a
shake of her head. “No, you’d have to leave the house for
that.”

“
Don’t get up,” Matthew
said to Alex in Irish Gaelic.

“
Hello ladies. May I join
you for lunch?” he asked in English.

“
Matthew, of course,
please join us,” Rebecca said.

He leaned to kiss Rebecca’s cheek while he
stroked Erin’s neck with his fingers. Erin turned to look up at
him. Erin’s face flushed with longing, then something else,
something foreign to her vibrant sister, crept into Erin’s eyes.
Her eyes flashed with fear. Matthew’s eyes asked the question, but
Erin shook her head and looked away. He gave Erin a peck on the
cheek then sat next to Alex. Under the table, he reached for Alex’s
hand.

“
What a surprise,” Rebecca
said. “Erin was just telling us that she’s engaged.”

“
But it’s not done,” he
asked Alex in Gaelic under his breath. Matthew nodded slightly. He
smiled at Erin, continuing in English, “Congratulations
Erin.”

Erin squinted her eyes at Matthew then
looked away.

“
It’s not done,” Alex
replied in Gaelic.

“
So this is Alyssa?”
Matthew said. He turned in his chair to get a better look at
Alex.

“
She’s kind of a dud,”
Alex said.

Matthew laughed. Turning to Rebecca, he
said, “God, the eyes creep me out. What do you think?”

“
She’s beautiful,” Rebecca
said. “But you’re right. The blue eyes are a little
disconcerting.”

“
And the hair?” Erin
said.

Matthew touched Alex’s blonde locks then
laughed.

“
What a difference a few
years make,” he said. “Did you even wash your hair in
training?”

Alex laughed. She and Matthew met on a
martial arts sparring mat during their Special Forces training.
They became sparring partners and, prior to Alex’s injuries, won
every tournament they entered. Alex rotated in her chair to look at
him. He was now competing, and winning, without her. Like so many
things, life had moved on while she remained stuck in one
place.

When the waiter cleared the plates, Alex
asked Rebecca to help her to the bathroom giving Matthew and Erin a
chance to talk. Even with Alex’s slow movements across the
restaurant, Matthew and Erin were arguing when they returned.
Rebecca stopped for a loud conversation with an acquaintance to
announce their arrival. Squeezing Alex’s hand, Rebecca helped her
sit then insisted on ordering desserts to celebrate the
engagement.

Taking over the conversation, Rebecca
chatted about their brother Colin and his wife Julie. Two years
younger than Max and Alex, Colin was Rebecca’s favorite child. His
siblings called him the “Golden Child” as a reference to his white
blonde hair and his special spot in Rebecca’s heart. Also a Green
Beret, Colin left the Army around the time of Alex’s injury. He now
had his own elementary school classroom.

Rebecca’s chatter did nothing to decrease
the tension at the table. Looking at Matthew’s blank face, she knew
that he was very upset. But her sister? She hadn’t spent any time
with her since she was seventeen years old. She had no idea what
was going on between Matthew and Erin. She slipped her hand into
Matthew’s hand to encourage him.

The waiter was placing their desserts in
front of them when a short, dark haired man stormed toward them.
Catching the movement out of the corner of her eye, Alex’s hand
went to the handgun she wore in a holster at her sacrum. Reading
Alex’s gesture, Matthew shifted. He was ready for action.

Noticing the change in Matthew and Alex,
Erin turned to see what they were looking at. Her back stiffened in
surprise then she jumped from her chair. Almost running down the
aisle, Erin used her hand to hold the man in place.

Alex flinched when he pushed Erin aside to
move toward the table. Erin caught his hand and he turned to look
at her. Alex couldn’t see what he said. She only noticed the look
of desperation on Erin’s face.

Glancing at Alex then Matthew, Rebecca
turned to see why they were staring.

“
Erin?”

Erin’s face shifted to a smile. The man
turned to Rebecca. His plastic smile and cruel eyes were not lost
on Rebecca. But Rebecca smiled.

“
The groom is here,”
Rebecca said. “Oh Marcos, how nice to see you!”

Holding Erin’s hand, Marcos came toward the
table.

“
This is my friend,
Alyssa,” Erin said, “and her boyfriend Matthew. This is my
boyfriend….”

“
Fiancé,” Marcos
interrupted.

“
Right,” Erin looked down.
“Fiancé Marcos.”

Towering over Marcos, Matthew leaned over a
little in order to shake Marcos’s hand.

“
Nice to meet you. Please
join us.” Matthew retrieved a chair from another table and placed
it at the end of the table. “Can you move over, darling?” he asked
Alex.

She shook her head.

“
I’ll help,” he said.
Pulling her to standing, he moved her chair over, then helped her
sit again. “Alyssa is recovering from an injury.”

“
You were in a road side
bombing in Iraq. Erin told me about you. Nice to meet you. While I
do not support the war, I believe it’s important to support our
troops. Of course, they need to be responsible for their own
choices. Their choice to be in the military; their choice to be
injured. It’s really that simple. We both feel strongly about
this.”

Alex blinked at the underhanded insult.
Prick.

“
Nice to meet you,” Alex
said.

Glancing at Erin, Alex was surprised to see
that Erin’s eyes glazed over. Feeling Alex’s gaze, Erin’s blank
eyes shifted to Alex.

“
How long have you been
together?” Marcos asked.

Matthew made a face then looked at Alex.
They laughed.

“
A long time,” Alex
said.

“
About ten years,” Rebecca
added. “Didn’t you meet at a training? Alyssa was dating Colin but
one look at Matthew and…” Rebecca shrugged. “I had hoped to have
Alyssa as a daughter-in-law.”

Alex’s eyes flicked to her mother. Rebecca
was no fool. Her mother played along to insure that her daughters
were not involved in a public drama.

“
Why were you holding
Erin’s hand?” Marcos asked. “Just a minute ago. I could have sworn
that you were holding hands.”

“
Were you hitting on
Erin?” Alex asked. She mock hit Matthew. “A girl can’t even go to
the bathroom.”

“
I was asking Erin if she
would keep a secret for me.”

“
A secret?” Alex
asked.

“
Alyssa,” Erin said.
Relief spread from her eyes through her body. “I promised not to
tell.”