Kiss Me When the Sun Goes Down (46 page)

“Mercy, what are you doing up and around?  Should you be doing that?”  She looked horrified at the idea of me being out of bed and I realized I’d have an uphill battle. 

“I don’t know what they told you, but I’m not at death’s door.”  I used Detective Gates’ turn of phrase.  “Now quick, you have to help me get out of here before the nurse comes back, or even worse, one of the doctors.”  My feet moved swiftly, pushing the clunky, rolling IV stand back and plopping down on the edge of the bed.

“What?  That’s crazy, you almost died!”  Her eyes narrowed at me suspiciously and I could tell I’d have to talk fast.

“Oh, stop being so melodramaculous.”  I used one of our favorite words.  “Obviously I’m not dying, look at me.  Do I look like I belong in a hospital?”  To prove my point I stood again and did a slow pivot in a circle, but then ruined the effect when I had to turn back around in the opposite direction to keep the stupid IV from getting tangled up. 

“Mercy, they were talking about keeping you here for another week at least.”  Daphne shook her head. 

“I don’t care, I need to go home.  I’ll be fine, I swear.  I’ll explain everything when we get back to my place.”  I pleaded with her, the desperation growing with every moment we stood around talking about it.  She still looked largely unconvinced, so I played my trump card.  “Come on, Daph, you know I’ll do it with or without your help and I stand a much better chance of getting home safely if you take me home instead of dragging myself onto the bus...”

Her head tilted to one side as she studied me, and I gave her a mischievous smile.  The one I regularly used to try and cajole her into one of my scathingly brilliant ideas over the years.  I could practically see the wheels turning in her head, weighing the risks and possible outcomes, trying to decide if I’d really go through with the bluff.  We both knew I was stubborn enough to try it.  About a half second before she opened her mouth to reply I felt a rush of triumph.  “Okay, but if you die, it’s all your own fault,” Daphne grumbled, not looking at all thrilled by caving in. 

“Some of us are trying to sleep, y’all,” Beth called out in an overly saccharine voice, and Daphne and I traded identical eye rolls.  The woman hadn’t been so concerned with volume control when it had been
her
talking up a storm to the nurse in the middle of the night.

Overjoyed by the prospect of busting out of there, I beckoned her to me, whispering conspiratorially.  “You’ve got to get me something to wear.  I can’t walk out of here dressed like this.”  I gestured to the hospital gown that thankfully tied in a crisscross over the front instead of gaping open in the back like they did in the movies. 

“Where am I supposed to get clothes for you to wear?  Steal them from the lost and found?”  Her nose crinkled with distaste at the prospect of wearing someone else’s stinky, old clothes.  “Oh... I have an idea.  Sit tight, okay?”  Daphne’s face lit up in excitement, finally getting into the spirit of our escapade. 

“I’ll be here, just don’t take too long.” I nodded back, swinging my feet into bed in case Bryan came in to check my vitals.  No sense in alarming anyone before we were ready to fly the coop.  “And thanks, Daph.” 

“You’re going to owe me for this one.”  Her eyes gleamed with a touch of good natured avarice, and then she was gone.

I tried to relax as I waited for Daphne to come back, even glad to see Bryan show up on schedule to take my blood pressure, since it meant I’d have more time to make my getaway before he returned.  But my pulse was up, something he remarked upon as he tapped the data into the pad.  With all the adrenaline coursing through my system I wasn’t surprised, but I managed a noncommittal murmur in response. 

Soon enough I was on my own, and the moment the door swung shut, my gaze returned to the IV sticking out of my arm.  As soon as I hatched the idea of sneaking out of the hospital, I realized I’d have to deal with removing it on my own.  There was no way I could ask Daphne to take it out for me, she was squeamish enough over the idea as it was, and had never been one to handle blood or gore particularly well.  She was always the one to duck and hide her eyes during a gruesome horror movie or zombie flick, which meant I’d have to grit my teeth and pull it out.  How hard could it be?

Going with the
pull the Band-aid off quickly
school of thought, I peeled off part of the tape holding the needle in.  My teeth mashed against the inside of my lips at the pain that bloomed from the big patch of missing arm hair in the process.  After a deep breath or two, I gritted my teeth in anticipation of more pain.  Gripping the needle firmly, I yanked it out as straight as I could manage, pressing the bandage firmly around the wound to keep it from bleeding.  All in all, pulling the needle out hurt far less than removing the tape, thank God.

The door swung open and I looked up nervously, hand clamped over my wrist guiltily.  It was only Daphne, her face glowing with success as she plopped a duffel bag on the end of the bed.  “I was going to try to get to the gym later,” she beamed, unzipping the bag to pull out a pair of lycra workout shorts and an oversized t-shirt. 

I would have been happy to wear clown pants at that point if it meant a chance at getting out of there, and immediately tugged them on.  Relieved that none of the physical activity made me the least bit weak or woozy, I slipped on her sneakers that were thankfully just a little snug, but fit otherwise, and I tugged my hair up into a messy ponytail. 

Daphne had taken up a vantage point by the door, ready to distract anyone who came through.  She darted a furtive glance over, her shoulders dropping in relief as she saw me zipping up the duffel.  “Ready?” 

“Ready.”  I was nervous as hell as we stepped out into the hall.  After a brief check, we started walking slow but steady for the elevators at the end of the hallway.  It was tempting to look at the nurse’s station on the way out to see if we were noticed.  Instead, I kept my face turned away, putting Daphne between me and the desk in the hopes she’d block me at least in part. 

Once inside the elevator we both dissolved into a nervous fit of giggles, and I felt a huge hurdle had been surpassed by leaving the floor.  On the ground level, no one paid us any mind and it was a quick shot out to the parking lot.  I was pleased to note I still felt no fatigue or dizziness, but the colors...  They nearly overwhelmed me once we got to the crowded lobby.

Auras of all hues glowed softly around each person in a riot of colors that dazzled my eyes.  Daphne caught my dazed expression and shot me a look.  “Are you sure you want to leave?” she murmured, a pucker of worry appearing on her brow.

“No, I’m fine.  It’s not that, it’s... something else.  I’ll explain later, I promise,” I hedged, not knowing quite how to explain the phenomenon anyway.  Out in the car I took a deep, steadying breath, noting my hands shook slightly, but I figured it was from the adrenaline. 
We had done it!

“Holy smokes, I can’t believe we just did that!”  Daphne looked amped as she started the car and I couldn’t help but smile in return. 

I wasn’t very talkative on the way back to my apartment, but Daphne didn’t seem to notice or mind, singing along with the radio.  She’d always been an upbeat person, bubbly and good hearted, and I’d always admired and envied those qualities about her.  I’d always been more cynical, skeptical, but I liked to think my heart was still in the right place. 

We balanced each other out pretty well.  She kept me from getting too broody and down when things didn’t go my way, reminding me about the good things in life.  In turn, I kept her from floating off into the clouds when her naiveté got the better of her and threatened to lead her into making a mistake.  Like the time she’d wanted to accept that ride home from those rocker guys with a van just because they had a cute puppy.  I loved her to death, but sometimes she had no common sense.

My eyes drifted to the sidewalks, still sparsely populated in the early morning.  Spotting auras gave people watching a whole new dimension and I studied them, looking for a pattern to the colors. 

My eyes landed on a familiar face, and I stared dumbstruck as I spied my mysterious stranger, not four blocks from the hospital!  He was tall, like I remembered, and he had the same long brown coat he wore in the alley and in my dreams.  Oddly enough, he had that disheveled look one might associate with the homeless or someone who was down on his luck.  But not dirty, not like he lived on the streets, he just seemed out of place. 

The same golden aura surrounded him like a full body halo, gleaming brighter than the average person on the street.  This time it didn’t flicker and crackle like a bug zapper, but was steady and solid, much stronger. 

He walked with both hands shoved deep in his pockets, the breeze blowing his unruly curls down over his forehead, making my fingers itch to push them back to get a better look at his face.  We were close to passing him when he looked up, his azure gaze locking with mine.  I turned in my seat, staring as we drove past and he turned as well, holding my gaze until we disappeared around the corner. 

That time I hadn’t imagined him, I was as sure of that as I knew my own name.  And he knew me too, or at least was as interested in me as I was in him in that brief contact.  Part of me wanted to ask Daphne to turn around and go back, but what would I say? 
Hey, remember me from that alley the other night? 
Or better still,
were you in my hospital room holding my hand?
It sounded looney tunes just thinking about it, and my mood turned broody for the rest of the way home.

Luckily, Daphne had her emergency key to my apartment, and I wondered again if my purse was locked up at the hospital or down at Eden.  My cat, Mimsy, immediately came mewling for attention, but instead of tangling with my legs as she tended to do once I opened the door, she backed away as soon as she saw me.

“Come on, kitty, what is it? C’mere, Mims...”  I frowned at her behavior.  She sniffed the air around me carefully, her hackles raised.

“Maybe she smells the hospital?” Daphne shrugged, closing the door.

“More likely she smells me, I haven’t showered in days.”  I made a face, sighing with relief to be back in my own place again.  “I should probably take one now.”

“
You
need to get into bed, Mercy,” Daphne ordered resolutely, turning me by the shoulders toward my bedroom. “Just because I helped spring you from the hospital, doesn’t mean I think you should be running around all willy nilly.”

My lips quirked over that.  “Taking a shower isn’t exactly running around willy or nilly.  Besides, I don’t think I can rest until I wash away the smell of that place.  I don’t want to climb into my nice clean bed like this.”

“Nope, no shower until you’ve had a chance to rest from the trip home,” she insisted, and I could tell I’d have a hard time arguing her out of that one from the mutinous cast to her face.

“How about I rest on the couch then?”  My brown vinyl couch was surprisingly comfy and I liked to pretend it was made of real leather, it made me feel more stylish.  “I’ll lie here like a potato.”  I was already moving to plop down into my regular spot, and Mimsy followed, sniffing my ankles cautiously. 

“Well... alright,” Daphne relented after a moment, knowing my stubborn nature.  “But I’m going to make you some tea and then you can tell me all about what happened.  Matt wasn’t at all specific when he called me, and Parker didn’t know much more either.” 

My kitchen was open to the living room, the space separated by a breakfast bar, and we could talk easily while she put the kettle on.  There was a tiny balcony outside of the sliding glass door that the building manager laughingly called a deck, but there was barely enough room for two plastic chairs out there.  Mimsy liked to sit out there with me though, and the overhang from the apartment above kept the rain off unless it was windy. 

“You talked to Parker?”  My brows rose a fraction over that.  My boss was nice enough after you got to know him, but I hadn’t thought Daphne ever really spoke to him much before.

“Well sure, after Matty told me you’d been stabbed at work and the hospital said you couldn’t have any visitors, I went down there to find out if anyone saw anything.  He was too busy bitching about all the hassle the cops gave him about not having proper safety lighting out in the alley.  He wasn’t much help at all.”

Great, I had to contend with Parker being pissy with me when I got back to work on top of my missed shifts.  That sounded like fun.  “That figures.  I almost die and he’s worried about the bother of installing security lights,” I muttered. 

“He did seem worried about you, if that helps.  He was kind of broken up about it, guilty even.  I just don’t think he knew how to vocalize it.” 

Ah Daphne, ever looking for the good in people.
  I knew better, Parker wasn’t the sentimental type.  Hopefully I’d get a few more days grace period before I had to go back and face him, and with any luck he’d cool down by then. 

“Do you want blackberry or apple cinnamon?”  Daphne held up the boxes of tea, giving each a light shake when she mentioned them.

“I’ll take blackberry, thanks,” I replied, settling more comfortably on the couch and patting the cushion next to me, but Mimsy still gave me a wide berth.  “Stupid cat...”

“What?”

“Oh nothing,” I sighed, closing my eyes for a moment.  “This has been the weirdest week.”

Daphne made an inelegant snort.  “You crack me up, Mercy.  You get stabbed, spend the week in the hospital, almost die, and then talk me into sneaking you out of there, and you that’s all you can say?  It’s been a weird week?”  A shake of the head was given.

“You don’t know the half of it,” I muttered, leaning back against the couch.

“Okay, so tell me.”  Daphne returned to the living room, mugs in hand, setting them down on the coffee table.  Folding her legs under her on the couch beside me, she waited, eyes alight with anticipation.

I didn’t know how much to tell her.  I didn’t want her to worry, and I was afraid if I told her about my incredible healing or the colors I was seeing, she might try and talk me into going back to the hospital for more tests.  Or worse, call my mother.