Andrea struggled and fought as she was dragged along the corridor, trying to twist in her captors grip so she could see what was happening to Kate. She could just about see the other woman also being hauled forcefully along behind her, her head lolling alarmingly as the drug Dixon had given her took its toll.
When they got through the lab doors, Andrea finally managed to wrest herself free, using her powerful urge to help Kate to give her strength she didn’t know she had. She landed a punch on the man who held her before the other guards leapt in to aid him. Andrea frantically tried to hit out at them too, her arms and legs a frenzied blur of punching and kicking.
But she couldn’t sustain it. All of a sudden a fist broke through her defences, catching her painfully across the jaw. She fell to the ground, a series of kicks reining in on her now she was down.
“Stop!”
It was Kate’s voice ringing out, the men actually pausing in their assault at the commanding tone. Their eyes flicked to Dixon for confirmation as to what they should do, the dark man giving a small nod to indicate they should cease. One of them roughly picked Andrea back up, gripping both her arms from behind to stop her attempting any more resistance.
Andrea’s eyes immediately shot to Kate who was staring back at her, surprisingly alert given the drugs she had been pumped with. Though she could feel the pain from the blows, it was Andrea’s heart that ached much more as she despairingly held onto the blue-grey eyes across the space of the room, not wanting to lose the silent connection.
Eventually Dixon stepped across and broke her line of sight, Andrea attempting to crane her head so she could still see. “I presume you heard about my plans from a mysterious ‘tip-off’” Dixon noted as he stood before Kate.
“You fed them that information,” deduced Kate, “Why?”
“Because we wanted you to come. As much fun as it’s been experimenting on your…what’s the right term?…’special friend’?” He glanced over his shoulder to Andrea. “I thought it would be interesting to see what would happen with someone with some real power.”
“You do realise that Kaminski and the other superhumans will be here soon - she knows where you are.”
“But she has to come all the way from Scotland,” Dixon reminded her, “We’ll be long gone by then and they’ll have a hell of a lot more to worry about than our whereabouts anyway.”
Andrea could see the quizzical look on Kate’s face, unsure what expression Dixon might be returning since his back was to her.
“I suppose it won’t hurt to tell you, since I’m sure you’ve guessed some of it anyway. The two canisters over there,” said Dixon, nodding his head towards two small metal tubes, no larger than a drinking flask, “Contain a fresh batch of the agent that produces the gas you already saw an example of in the warehouse over five months ago. Only they contain roughly a thousand times the amount. I’m sure I don’t have to describe to you in too much detail what will happen if it’s released into the air or added to the water supply of a large city like London.”
Andrea didn’t need him to describe it at all, she had already seen it first hand in that warehouse – the agony and excruciating death of her colleagues.
Suddenly Dixon gestured to the guards to grab Kate and drag her to the energy device. “But enough of that, we must get on,” he said. Andrea could only watch helplessly as Kate was pushed backwards towards the waiting arms of the machine.
One of the men was attempting to fasten the restraint round her right ankle when all of a sudden he was knocked away by the blast of a concussion wave. The other man’s body swiftly followed his compatriot’s in sailing across the room.
Dixon eyes shot to Kate as she stepped down from the machine, the remnants of her concussion waves still floating around her hand. “But…but…how?” he said dumbly.
Kate held up a small needle in her other hand. “You’re not the only one who knows a thing or two about inhibitors. Luckily we also developed antidotes to them.”
“You knew it was a trap?”
“Not necessarily,” allowed Kate, “But I like to be prepared. I just had to wait for it to counteract your drug.”
“Very clever,” noted Dixon admiringly, “Shame it won’t help you.”
He charged at Kate, activating his forcefield as she tried to blast him. The pair of them spiralled across the room, Kate continuing to try and penetrate his defences as he in turn attempted to get close enough to attack. Kate’s waves cannoned around the room as they pinged of his field, crashing into the equipment and wreaking havoc. The man holding Andrea swiftly let go as one headed in their direction, Andrea having to fling herself to the floor to dodge it. Andrea would have been impressed by the sheer power and force on display if she wasn’t in danger of getting zapped by it.
From her position on the floor, Andrea could see Chadwick on the far side of the room, hiding behind a chair as the waves continued to ricochet wildly round the room, smashing everything in their path.
“Dixon you idiot!” cried Chadwick, “The gas!”
Dixon quickly glanced from Chadwick to the two canisters. “You take that one,” he cried over the sound of breaking metal and glass, “The other’s mine. You know what to do.”
Chadwick made a dash from his hiding place, snatching up one of the canisters and heading for the door. Meanwhile Dixon and Kate were still battling one another, seemingly unaware of what was going on around them in the swirl of concussion waves that enveloped them. Knowing it was up to her to do something, Andrea hauled her weary body from the floor and ran from the room in pursuit of Chadwick.
…….
Kate sent out another fierce blast, hoping that if she pummelled Dixon enough his guard would finally slip. She was dimly aware of Andrea running out after Chadwick, but had her hands too full with the other man for the time being to go after her though she desperately wanted to. She had seen how weak Andrea was and she was scared what might happen if Andrea actually managed to catch up with her former lieutenant. Kate must have been more distracted by her concerns than she realised, as suddenly something solid cracked her on the chin, sending her crashing back onto the floor.
Dixon didn’t stop to gloat, seizing the other container and running for the same door Chadwick had already escaped from. Kate fired another wave, but it smacked into the door as it swung shut behind Dixon. The force ripped the door from its hinges, sending it flying out into the corridor beyond.
Kate charged after him, knowing she had to stop him before he got the chance to release the gas in the open air. She fired blast after blast as she saw him ahead of her, the man scooting round a corner and up some stairs. Kate leapt up them two at a time, Dixon continuing up and up, obviously heading for the roof.
When she barged out of the final door at the top she stopped dead in her tracks. Dixon was standing in the middle of the flat roof, his hand on the lid of the canister as he shot her a nasty smile.
……..
Andrea ran along the corridors, each step more laboured than the next, but knowing she had to keep going. If she didn’t catch Chadwick then there would be many more people meeting the same fate as MacKenzie, Humphreys and Walker. Luckily the sound of his running feet alerted her to where he was, even though she couldn’t see him ahead of her. They had already gone down a couple of levels and Andrea had to wonder where Chadwick was leading them.
She got her answer when his steps ceased and she found herself at the top of a ladder overlooking an open room with a turbulent waterway running through it. Below her Chadwick had the canister in his hand, poised to take the lid off and dump its contents into the swirling waters that would lead out into the city’s system. Knowing she had no time to lose, Andrea flung herself off the top of the ladder, tackling the burly man to the ground. The canister flew from his hand and bumped across the stone floor, away from the water. Andrea tried to get up to grab it, but Chadwick had recovered from his initial surprise, seizing her foot from his position on the ground. She stumbled, falling onto her hands, but managed to kick out at him with her bare feet at the same time. She thumped him in the face a couple of times, but still he held on.
He clawed his way up her body, trying to grab onto her flailing arms. Andrea caught him a couple of times across the jaw before he found purchase.
“When are you going to learn you won’t beat me?” he asked, pulling her up onto her feet with him.
“Never,” she spat definitely, mustering her fast-fading energy to knee him in the groin.
As he doubled over in pain, she knew she didn’t have much time. The longer they fought the less likely she was to win. With the anklet still negating her powers her energy reserves were dangerously low. So far she’d allowed adrenaline to carry her on, but that would only last so long. Sooner or later that would fade and then she’d be running on empty, in no fit state to fight anyone, let alone a trained soldier like Chadwick with her weary body.
Andrea dashed for the canister, but Chadwick was already up again, and with one resounding blow sent her flying over the edge into the water. The water was shockingly cold, and Andrea choked it from her mouth as she staggered to her feet, wading into the shallows where the current tugged at her sodden trousers. Another splash close by told her Chadwick had also jumped down, no doubt to finish her off. She supposed she should be grateful he was focussed on her and had forgotten about the canister for now.
Her gratitude didn’t last long though, as another punch landed on the side of her head, sending her back down into the churning torrent. Before she could get up Chadwick’s hands were on her shirt, clutching it and forcing her below the surface. Andrea gagged as the water entered her mouth, grabbing onto Chadwick’s arms to try and gain some purchase to drag herself up.
Suddenly Chadwick himself pulled her torso out of the water. Andrea coughed a couple of times, trying to gulp in as much air as she could, uncertain when he would shove her back down again.
“You really have been a pain in the arse, you know,” snarled Chadwick, “You lost me my job and now you’re trying to fuck things up for me again.”
“Glad to be of service,” replied Andrea, attempting to get her feet onto the ground under the water. The current buffeting her really didn’t help, her whole body starting to ache from fatigue now.
“But it’s time to put you out of your misery,” he added, thrusting her straight back into the murky water.
Andrea frantically grabbed at his arms, trying to loosen his hold as the icy waves swirled around her face. His grip was firm though and her fingers scrabbled uselessly at the material of his shirt. Her mind was screaming at her to do something, but her body was unable to respond, the weeks of torture and abuse finally taking their toll. She could feel the water seeping into her mouth, her reflex action to spit it out pointless.
This couldn’t be it! Not after everything, not after Kate had come all this way to rescue her. An image of Kate floated to the front of her thoughts now, just as her body floated uselessly in the water. Andrea clutched onto it, not willing to let it go, not yet.
With an almighty effort she planted her feet on the ground and thrust upwards, catching Chadwick completely unawares. He was catapulted backwards into the deeper water, giving a few desperate splashes before he was swept off down the tunnel into the depths of the underground system.
Andrea almost lost her own footing and tumbled after him, grasping for the ledge at the side of the pool to catch herself. Her fingers scrapped on the harsh concrete as she fought to gain purchase, finally hauling herself up from the water. Every movement was an immense effort. She was tired, so very tired. Once out, she immediately flopped down onto the hard floor, the water trickling off her clothes in a stream of haphazard rivulets. She merely lay there, breathing raggedly, that act now the only one her body was capable of.
………
“Aren’t you going to come and get it?”
Kate inched closer to Dixon, the warm summer breeze whipping at her hair on the exposed rooftop. The direction of the wind was to the west where Kate could see Docklands and the City off in the smoggy heat haze of the horizon. None of the thousands of people there were aware of just what imminent danger they might be in.
“You don’t want to do that,” she tried, desperately trying to think of a way to talk to him, at least until she could get close enough to tackle him.
“Yes, I do,” he replied with a laugh. “It’s time we announced ourselves to the world! Why should we have to hide away because of what the ‘ordinary people’ might think? This way there won’t be an ‘ordinary people’, just our kind.”
Kate wanted to tell him that the fact they were both mutants did not make them the same ‘kind’, but she bit her tongue, knowing now was not the time to antagonise him further. “We could sort something out,” she said instead, “Maybe you could come back to Duransay.”
Dixon laughed louder now. “What? After you all treated me so well last time?”
“We treated you fine, it was you who betrayed us.”
“Betrayed you, you mean.”
Kate flinched at the unwelcome reminder. It was hard enough seeing Adam after all this time as it was, without having to have her nose rubbed in her abysmal error of judgement. Seeing him here now, about to kill thousands of innocent people without a thought, she couldn’t understand what it was she had ever seen in him. He was so callous and cruel she must have been utterly blind or confused not to have seen it.
“Thinking about old times?” noted Dixon, breaking her thoughts.
“Not pleasantly,” Kate answered.
“I’m hurt, after all we shared,” he remarked sarcastically, “But I’ll tell you what, in the spirit of relationships past I’ll give you a final chance,” he added placing the canister on the ground and standing with his arms outstretched. “Come on, give me your best shot if you really want to hurt me.”
Kate stared at him, not quite believing he was giving her an honest chance.
“I don’t think you will,” he added, “I think you still feel something, certainly enough not to hurt me when I’m defenceless.”
There was the tiniest of pricks at Kate’s heart as she saw the barest glimpse of the man she had fallen for. The charmer with the winning smile. Then images of what he had done since came crashing in, the final of which was the sight that had greeted her when she had opened that cell door earlier – Andrea battered and bruised on the filthy floor.
“You know nothing.”
The concussion wave lifted Dixon right up off his feet as it hit him, sending him flying across the rooftop until he crashed into the wall of an outbuilding, the bricks actually shattering with the force of impact. Kate’s anger soared up within her as she flew at him again, blasting him with wave after wave, each one more powerful than the next as he desperately tried to fight her off with his force field.
Kate could sense it weakening, not letting up in her furious attack even when he was on the floor. Finally she stopped, grabbing him with her hand and dragging him to his knees. He looked groggily up at her. “It’s a shame we never got you in that machine,” he commented, “I wonder if you would have screamed like Andrea?”
Kate punched him in the face, a satisfying trickle of blood starting from his obviously broken nose. Dixon remained defiant. “You know the best part though?” he continued tauntingly, “When she would scream your name.” He laughed nastily. “Like you were going to somehow miraculously appear and stop the pain!”
Kate thumped him again and again, wanting to hit him with her fists rather than her powers. Wanting the satisfaction of feeling the damage she was inflicting on this evil human being. She had no idea how many times she hit him, lost to her rage. When her arms finally started to ache she stopped, breathing heavily as his battered body hung limply from her hand. Amazingly he was still conscious, and he made a hacking cough, fresh blood blossoming on his lips.
“I can see she means a lot to you,” he noted between rasps, “More than I ever did.”
“You meant nothing to me, do you hear me, nothing!”
“I’m sorry to hear you say that,” he replied, “But not sorry to do this.”
Kate had completely forgotten about the gas canister in her all enveloping rage, but she saw it now as Dixon threw it across the rooftop. She hadn’t seen him pick it up again, cursing herself for allowing her hatred to blind her to the situation. She flung herself after it, but her despairing lunge came too late. The canister clanked noisily on the concrete, the lid flying off.
Only nothing emerged from it.
Kate snatched it up, looking inside. “It’s empty!”
Dixon’s laughter was insidious, creeping across the rooftop and worming its way into her ears. Kate swung round, stalking over to him and yanking him back up by his shirt. He had the temerity to grin weakly back at her as the blood continued to trickle between his teeth. Her fist was back and poised when he suddenly spoke.
“Aren’t you forgetting about something?”
Kate’s fist hovered before his face, the act of will holding it back immense.
“The other, non-empty, canister?” he reminded her, “Even if your girlfriend did manage to stop Chadwick there’s the small matter of the explosives wired to this whole building, set to go off in…ooo…about three minutes time.”
Kate stared incredulously at him, trying to take in what he had revealed. The building was going to go up in a matter of minutes and Andrea was still inside somewhere.
“Better hurry if you want to save her,” noted Dixon, seemingly reading her mind.
Kate dumped him on the ground, immediately turning and sprinting for the stairs. She could hear his laughter following her all the way down. Landing at the foot of the steps she cast her eyes anxiously around. Andrea could be anywhere in the huge building.
“Andrea?” she called out desperately, knowing it was pretty pointless but not having anything else to go on. The only reply was her own voice, bouncing off the walls. Kate tried to calm her racing thoughts and think – where would Chadwick have gone to release his canister?
Dixon had mentioned releasing the gas into the air or the water supply, and since this was a power station it probably had some connection to the latter of those for cooling purposes. Guessing that would be down below somewhere Kate continued on down the stairs to the bottom level of the building, surmising that she was now underground. She frantically ran along, calling Andrea’s name, periodically glancing at her watch as time slipped agonisingly away. The sound of running water filtered along the corridor to her and Kate quickened her pace, coming to an open room.
And there at the foot of the ladder she saw her, lying still on the stone floor, soaked to the bone and looking incredibly pale. Kate’s heart lurched painfully for the second time that day at the sight of Andrea unconscious. The only merciful things were that there was no sign of Chadwick and that Kate could also plainly see the unopened canister discarded on the floor close to Andrea. Kate leapt from the top of the ladder, gliding down to the floor using her powers, anxious to get to Andrea’s side as fast as possible. Once on the ground she could hear the reassuring yet faint sound of breathing coming from Andrea’s lips.
“Andrea,” said Kate gently, touching her sodden shoulder. The young woman’s impromptu dunking had served to clean off all the grime she had been coated in before and Andrea almost looked normal apart from the terrifyingly pallid shade of her skin and her hollow cheeks.
Slowly her eyelids struggled open. “Kate?” she registered, a tiny smile flickering across her face, “What happened to Dixon?”
“His canister was empty,” Kate answered quickly, “I left him on the roof to come and get you – he’s rigged the building with explosives.”
That seemed to spark some fresh life into Andrea, who forced herself up onto her elbows. “You have to get out of here!”
“We have to get out of here,” corrected Kate.
Andrea shook her head, “I’m dead on my feet, I can barely walk - I’ll only slow you down.”
“We don’t have time for a debate,” stated Kate adamantly, “I’ll carry you if I have to, I did it before.”
Kate glanced down at Andrea’s feet, cracked and broken from where she’d been running through the building without shoes. She had to fight back the sickness in the pit of her stomach on seeing the obviously painful damage. Just above Andrea’s right foot, Dixon’s device was still affixed tightly to her ankle, another surge of anger shooting through Kate on seeing further evidence of what Dixon had done.
“This might help,” suggested Kate, carefully taking Andrea’s leg in her hands. She took a moment to compose herself, not wanting to make any mistakes when directing her powers at Andrea. Then she intricately focussed a concussion beam onto the device with her finger, splitting it apart with ease.
“Thanks,” said Andrea, rubbing where the anklet had been, “Though even without that it’s going to take a little while for me to absorb enough light energy to replace what I’ve lost.”
Kate nodded – she had feared that would be the case. Without waiting for anything further from Andrea, Kate wrapped her arms around the younger woman’s waist and pulled her to her feet, Andrea leaning heavily on her shoulder once upright. Kate grunted under the weight, added to by the pull of Andrea’s soaked clothes.
“How long did you say he’d set the timers for?” asked Andrea as Kate started struggling towards the ladder with her precious cargo.
“He said three minutes, but who knows if that’s true.”
“And when was that?”
Kate looked at her watch and then grimly at Andrea. “About two minutes ago.”
“We’ll never make it.”
Kate wasn’t willing to accept that. “Yes we will,” she stated, though her stooped walk suggested otherwise, “Come on.”
…….
Andrea used what little strength she had to pull up, knowing Kate was deluding herself.
“Kate!”
The name held a whole host of meaning in its simplicity. Andrea stared down at the smaller woman who was hanging onto her for dear life. Kate stared defiantly back, though Andrea suspected she knew deep down that Andrea was most likely right.
Finally Kate gave a resigned sigh, lowering Andrea to the floor and crouching down beside her. “All right I have another idea,” she offered, “We’ll wait here until the explosions go off and then I’ll use my concussion waves to create a sort of protective barrier around us.”
Andrea’s eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Have you ever used your power that way before?”
Kate shifted uneasily on the balls of her feet. “No,” she admitted.
“This is crazy!” cried Andrea, exasperated by Kate’s belligerence.
“No crazier than expecting me to just leave you here.”
Andrea held Kate’s intense gaze, the blue-grey eyes boring right into her and letting her know that there was no way Kate was going to abandon her. For the first time in her life Andrea knew without a doubt that here was someone she could rely on absolutely, someone who would willingly give up their own life for her. Andrea also knew with total certainty that she would do the same.
“All right, we wait,” she agreed, “Though we better protect this too,” she added reaching for the gas container.
Kate sat solemnly down next to her, crossing her legs on the floor and gently taking Andrea’s hands. She softly rubbed her thumbs over them, keeping her eyes trained downwards. Andrea could see the bobbing in Kate’s throat where she was swallowing nervously as the seconds ticked away.
“How long do we have?” asked Andrea, almost unable to speak with the weight of her heavy heart.
Kate made a last check of her watch. “30 seconds.”
There was no more time for anything else. Andrea leant forward, took Kate’s face in her hands and softly kissed her. The kiss held an unspoken desperate yearning as their lips melded together. A longing for all the promise yet fulfilled, for all the future that may never be seen. Andrea didn’t want to break the contact, but she needed to say something.
As she pulled back, she stared into Kate’s moist blue eyes, her own tears making it hard to see. “I love you,” said Andrea raggedly, knowing this might be the last chance she got to say the words.
Kate’s lips parted in response when suddenly there was a deafening boom. She got up just in time as the shockwave from the explosion hit them. Kate was almost knocked from her feet as the waves from her hands sprang outwards pushing back against the onslaught.
The roaring, crashing sounds were deafening as the fire and debris battered against Kate’s barrier while Andrea could only look impotently on. More explosions sounded around them and Andrea could see Kate grimacing at the effort of maintaining their only defence from certain death. The rain of debris was relentless, the air thick with smoke outside the barrier as it got ever darker. Kate let out one last anguished, determined cry before everything went completely black.
…………..
The faint, gentle rocking sensation was the first thing Andrea became aware of as she drifted slowly up from slumber. Opening her eyes, it took her a moment to recall where she was until the reassuring familiarity settled over her. It was Kate’s boat.
Andrea pushed herself up into a sitting position, seeming to have slumped into an ungainly sprawl on the sofa. A book plopped off her stomach onto the floor, and as she picked it up she remembered that she had been reading the novel before sleep had claimed her. She was slightly disconcerted by her new found propensity for dropping off in the middle of the day, supposing it would be a while before her body fully recovered from her ordeal at the hands of Dixon.
That had ended nearly two weeks ago, and she’d been under Doc’s close supervision for the first ten days of her return to the base. There had been times during that when she had come close to slapping the medic for his over-attentiveness, though she knew that he, and everyone else, were just worried about her. The labs and medical bays made her strangely uneasy, though, and as soon as she’d got the all clear she’d wanted to get off the base.
Kate had been more than happy to bring her to the boat, though she suspected the other woman had forgotten just what a state she’d left the yacht in when she’d made the invite. When they’d stepped into the cabin area, Kate had hastily binned some empty bottles, but not quickly enough for Andrea not to see the whiskey labels on them. Kate had also had to clear away a jumble of clothes and papers from the sofa just so Andrea could sit down. When she had spotted Andrea looking inquisitively at her, Kate had been forced to admit that she’d been living on the boat prior to coming to rescue Andrea. She didn’t give many details, but her tone and the condition of the normally immaculate yacht were enough to tell Andrea that Kate must have been in quite a state at the time. A fresh wave of regret washed over her as she had realised that was because of her, sorrowfully recalling all the harsh words of that fateful day in the Scottish mountains. Andrea could see now that it was only a misplaced sense of protectiveness that had led to Kate not telling her about Dixon in the first place. Or maybe not that misplaced as it had turned out.
Andrea shivered slightly at the reminder of Dixon, attempting to snuggle further into her thick jumper. That was another unwelcome after effect of her incarceration – chills that seemed to strike without warning. Doc had reassured her that they would go away, pointing out that not only had her body been subjected to prolonged abuse, but also that she had lost a fair bit of weight as the result of it.
The smell of food wafted across the cabin to her now, and she saw something freshly cooked sitting on the kitchen counter. Smiling to herself at Kate’s continued efforts to fatten her up, she shuffled along the sofa and picked up one of the wedges on the plate. She wasn’t sure what it was, but it looked invitingly chocolaty so she took a bite. Whatever it was, it tasted fantastic and Andrea quickly devoured the whole thing, wondering how rude it would be to help herself to the rest of the plate.
There was no sign of Kate herself, Andrea presuming she was up top doing something boat related. Kate was doing everything she could for Andrea, though Andrea thought that maybe she was trying just a bit too hard at times. It was almost as if she was afraid of damaging Andrea if she asked anything too strenuous of her. They’d certainly not been intimate since they’d got back from London, even the kisses they shared being oddly chaste.
Of course Andrea wasn’t the only one who’d been affected in London, and Kate herself had also been subjected to some of Doc’s scrutiny after her efforts in protecting her and Andrea from the collapsing power station. When they had finally been dug out of the rubble of the building in one piece, the sight of Colonel Parsons and the rest of the superhuman team had greeted them. One person notable by the absence had been Anna Kaminski.
It appeared that the Colonel had finally stepped in and overridden the government official on hearing about Kate and Andrea’s predicament and Kaminski’s reluctance to help out. When it became apparent that Kate and Andrea had saved the entire non-mutant population of London from a gory death, his decision had been wholly vindicated. After a few formalities Kate soon found herself back in a job and back in command of the unit. Andrea had no idea where Kaminski had been shipped off to and she didn’t really care – the woman had dared to try and replace Kate and she deserved all she got.
The sound of footsteps on the short ladder to the cabin alerted Andrea to the fact that company was approaching. As Kate opened the door Andrea saw that, unlike herself, Kate was sporting clothes more befitting the season – a plain white vest top and khaki shorts with a pair of deck shoes on her feet. It was now just into September, but it was still sufficiently warm for the summery clothing. Kate smiled warmly when she saw Andrea was awake, the simple gesture doing far more to raise Andrea’s temperature than anything she had attempted herself.
“How are you feeling?” asked Kate, crossing to sit down next to Andrea.
“I’m feeling like I might go insane if you ask me that one more time!”
“I’m sorry, darling, it was just so…scary finding you like that, seeing what Dixon had done to you.”
“I’m all right, really,” insisted Andrea, attempting a soft smile, “Though your concern is touching.”
“I’ll never stop worrying about you.”
Andrea’s smile spread further. “And I wouldn’t want you to, despite any protestations I might make,” she admitted, “I secretly hoped you’d come and rescue me. Every day of those two weeks, that’s what kept me going – thoughts of you. And you didn’t let me down. Lucky for me you’re just so goddam stubborn and didn’t give up.”
“Me stubborn? I think I might have a sentence involving the words kettle, black and pot in reply to that!”
“All right, I might have to concede that one,” noted Andrea sardonically, “Did I already say how sorry I was for the awful way I acted and what I said?”
Kate made a show of thinking for a moment. “At least two dozens times,” she said eventually.
“Still it can’t hurt once more,” Andrea suggested before shaking her head ruefully. “I’m not sure how you put up with me sometimes,” she noted, “I know I’ve been a right pain in the arse at times this past few months, but I’m not normally quite this impetuous and hotheaded. It’s almost like there’s been too many things happening at once, and my judgement’s been a bit off. There was the accident in the warehouse, finding out that I had these amazing powers, not to mention the effect you were having on me! I was so intent on finding who was responsible for that accident that I didn’t stop to think I might be getting in over my head.”
“Don’t be so hard on yourself,” insisted Kate, “We’ve all made a few mistakes these past months. At least you have strong convictions and determination, it’s just that it can veer into headstrong stubbornness sometimes. But I know I’m far from innocent where that’s concerned either.”
“True,” agreed Andrea, “It seems we’re both emotionally inept in a few ways, how will we cope?”
“I suppose we’ll just have to muddle through some way,” remarked Kate with a shrug, Andrea able to detect the humour in the tone, “You never know, we might be able to teach each other a few things. I’m willing to give it a go if you are?”
“Hmm,” said Andrea, stroking her chin in consideration as Kate narrowed her eyes at the hesitation. Kate had apologised many times already over the way she had kept scerets from Andrea, but it didn’t hurt to make her stew for just a moment. Finally Andrea smiled. “I think I can manage that.”
Kate rolled her eyes at the stalling, before getting back to what they had originally been talking about. “It’s just a shame both Dixon and Chadwick got away.”
“Yes,” agreed Andrea, “But I’ve done enough thinking about them for a lifetime, I’m sure they’ll get their just deserts one day.”
“Let’s hope so,” agreed Kate. She shuffled closer to Andrea on the seating, her hand coming to rest lightly on Andrea’s thigh though it didn’t go any further. “You found the fudge cakes then?” she noted.
“How did you…?”
“You have some chocolate on your lip,” pointed out Kate, reaching up to brush it off with her thumb. The gesture sent a small shiver through Andrea, a welcome reminder of former closeness.
“Sorry, I couldn’t resist,” remarked Andrea, wishing that Kate hadn’t dropped her hand away again.
“It’s all right, they were meant for you. And you should make the most of it since they’re about the extent of my home-cooking abilities. Consider them an alternative to a birthday cake.”
Andrea looked at Kate in some bemusement. “It’s not my birthday.”
“I know; I missed it,” said Kate sorrowfully, glancing away.
Andrea squeezed the hand on her thigh gently. “Don’t worry, it was hardly forefront in my mind either while Dixon was torturing me.” She instantly regretted the ill-judged words, seeing Kate looking pained at the reminder. “But thank you for the cakes,” she quickly added, “Perhaps we can think of them as just lovely cakes rather than birthday cakes?”
“Ah, I see, you won’t want this present then?” remarked Kate, producing an envelope and tapping it teasingly on her hand.
Andrea narrowed her eyes, happily seeing the cheeky half-grin that had replaced Kate’s former worried look. “I didn’t say that,” she said.
Kate’s smile widened, stopping the tapping and handing the card over. “It’s not exactly the most romantic thing in the world, but I hope you’ll like it. If you’d rather not think of it as a birthday present, then how about considering it an anniversary present?”
“And what anniversary is that exactly?” asked Andrea taking the envelope.
“Our six month anniversary.”
Andrea’s confusion was only deepening, her brow furrowing. “But we haven’t been going out for six months,” she reminded Kate.
“No, but it is six months to the day since we first met.”
Andrea smiled, realising that Kate was right – they had indeed first met on the 9th of March that year. How things had changed from that day when they had been frostily sizing each other up across a desk in an interrogation room.
Turning her attention back to the envelope she ripped it open, finding a booklet of tickets in the card inside. She read the text of the first one, a smile spreading across her face as she realised it was a season ticket to Liverpool. “How on earth did you manage to get this?” she asked in wonder.
“I have a few contacts,” explained Kate cryptically, tapping the side of her nose, “We did save the whole of London after all; I think we’re owed a few favours. You like it then?”
“Like it? It’s brilliant!” gushed Andrea suddenly, reaching over to hug Kate who looked slightly abashed, and not a little surprised at the embrace. “Though I will need permission to go off base every other weekend,” she added. They hadn’t actually discussed what the future held, though Andrea had always suspected she would find herself back on Duransay after her recuperation, it was her home now after all.
“Well, we couldn’t have you going unaccompanied,” started Kate thoughtfully, “So it’s a good job I got this as well,” she added producing a second set of tickets with a flourish.
“You brought yourself one too?” asked Andrea incredulously, “Who was this present for exactly?”
“If you’d rather take someone else they can have mine…”
“Funny! You know there’s no one I’d rather go with.”
Kate smiled, her handing coming back to rest on Andrea’s thigh. This time Andrea slid her own hand across, slipping her fingers between Kate’s. When Kate’s eyes came up to look questioningly at her Andrea merely leant in and placed her lips softly on the other woman’s. She could feel Kate’s warm lips yielding to her, no restraint in this particular kiss.
When Andrea pulled back Kate’s blue-grey eyes were staring directly into Andrea’s own from mere inches away, hopeful and alluring.
“But I can think of something I’d much rather have for my birthday stroke anniversary,” whispered Andrea.
The lop-sided grin on Kate’s face showed she knew exactly what Andrea meant. “Oh, by the way,” said Kate, her voice dropping to Andrea’s favourite husky level, “Back in the power station, there was something I didn’t get the chance to say.”
Andrea raised her eyebrows inquisitively.
“I love you too,” said Kate simply.
Andrea smiled, bringing Kate’s hand up and kissing it. Without any more words she pulled Kate gently to her feet and led her to the bedroom.
Callum Chadwick didn’t think he had been quite so nervous in his life as he stood in the dimly lit room. All those times he’d been in trouble in the army had never been as bad as this. At least on those occasions he knew that the worst that could happen would be a stay in military prison. That seemed like a walk in the park compared to what he might face any moment now; he was scared to even contemplate what might happen to him. The anxious sweat was trickling down his neck and on under the material of his shirt, the palms of his hands clammy as he clasped them by his side. Next to him Dixon looked as cool as usual, Chadwick not knowing how the man did it. He’d just got his arse kicked by Jarvis and made a complete balls-up of pretty much everything and he was standing there as if he didn’t have a care in the world.
Finally the door at the back of the room opened and a figure crossed to sit at the desk in front of them, remaining in the shadows for the time being. They didn’t speak immediately, Chadwick just listening to the sound of his hammering heart in the otherwise silent room. It was Dixon who finally broke the silence.
“I’m sorry about the cock-up with Hallstrom and Jarvis, he began, But if…”
His voice cut off in a choking gasp, his hands darting up to his throat as he struggled to breathe. Chadwick gulped in fear as the figure opposite rose from the desk, their hand outstretched in Dixon’s direction.
“You’re….sorry….?” they repeated slowly.
Dixon couldn’t reply, still gasping for air as his windpipe was invisibly crushed.
“You acted without authorisation and brought suspicion on the whole organisation and you’re ‘sorry’? Not to mention that you dared to kidnap Andrea Hallstrom of all people. Did you seriously think that I wouldn’t find out?”
Chadwick was trembling where he stood but risked a sidewise glance at Dixon, the other man now going a decidedly red colour in the face. Chadwick could see that he was actually also hovering a few inches off the ground, suspended in mid air as he went through the final throes of life.
“It’s too late for sorry, Mr Dixon. We do not tolerate failure, and you are most certainly a failure.”
Dixon let out one last strangled cry before his body went limp. The shadowy figure dropped their hand and instantly Dixon’s body crashed lifelessly to the floor. It was all Chadwick could do to maintain control of his bladder as the head of the figure now swivelled in his direction.
“And what of you, Mr Chadwick, are you a failure too.”
“Uh..uh..I…uh…” was all Chadwick could stutter in answer.
“We can’t lose all our loyal servants, so we’re willing to give you one last chance…on one condition.”
Chadwick was relieved beyond measure, willing to do anything if it meant he didn’t meet the same fate as Dixon. “What is it?” he asked.
“We want you to become one of us?”
“One of you?” he repeated dumbly.
“It’s an honour really,” continued the other person, “You will be the first to test our new serum that mutates the cells in otherwise normal human beings.”
Chadwick wasn’t liking the sound of this, but what choice did he have.
“What do you say?” pressed the figure.
“I’m not sure…” mumbled Chadwick
Suddenly his throat was tight, the figure’s hand was up again and now they were stepping round the table towards him. As they stepped from the shadows the light caught the brilliant golden colour of the woman’s hair. She was somewhere in her fifties, though even in his present situation Chadwick couldn’t help thinking that she was incredibly beautiful for an older woman. The fine contours of her face were held in an even expression despite the fact that she was presently strangling Chadwick using some unseen superhuman power. The only thing that gave even a flicker of emotion was her eyes. Their pale blue depths pierced into Chadwick with such venom that he thought that if the strangling didn’t kill him, they could well fry him on the spot.
“I said,” repeated the woman in a low, menacing voice, “What do you say?”
“Yes, Dr Hallstrom, I say yes!”