“So, where does this leave us?” Sara asked.
“Depends on what our priorities are at this point?” Dr. Hennigan asked. Her mother and grandmother pondered the question.
“Liquidation of the target seems too risky and too public,” Deborah said. “Do you agree, Mother?” Sara nodded.
“As such,” Sara started, “our primary concern must be asset retrieval. We need Ethan Bond’s cell phone. If we can’t retrieve the asset, it must be destroyed.”
“I agree,” Dr. Hennigan said. “I’ll fly to Houston immediately and oversee this op myself.”
* * * *
Ethan
Ethan shifted uncomfortably in the chair beside Blayne’s bed. He insisted on staying by Blayne’s bedside all night, even after the night charge nurse tried to have him leave since it was “after visiting hours.” Ethan had politely looked at the woman and said, “No.” The nurse had threatened to call security on him. Still, Kira had come into the room like a white knight and informed the nurse she was Blayne’s lawyer and that Ethan had every right to stay in the room as she rattled off some legal precedent that included the words “national security risk.” He had sort of figured Kira was bullshitting, but the nurse had thrown up her hands and left.
Around six a.m., Kira left to go home and prepare for the day. Before she went home to shower and change, she’d gotten Ethan a cup of coffee, which was already getting cold on the bedside table. Ethan looked at his watch.Damn, it’s already seven-thirty. Ethan stretched in the chair. Sitting up straight, he rolled one shoulder forward, then the other. He arched his back and let his neck fall backward before twisting it from side to side in its own set of stretches.
“Good morning, sunshine,” Blayne said as Ethan stretched.
“Hey, you.” Ethan smiled at Blayne. “How are you feeling?”
“Like I was shot,” Blayne said, giving Ethan a weak grin. “But other than that, I’m hunky-dory. You?”
Ethan rolled his eyes and joggled his head back, “What am I going to do with you?” Blayne shot him a goofy smile but said nothing. “As mother used to say, ‘you don’t want to be the boy whose face froze like that,’” making his own goofy grin right back at Blayne. “I’m a little stiff, but sleeping in a chair can do that to you.”
“You could have hopped into bed with me. There’s plenty of room up here for you,” Blayne joked as he gestured to the narrow hospital bed.
“Oi, old people! There’s a minor in here!” Jamie said from the other side of the curtain.
“Oi, young’n. No autographs for you!” Ethan joked back. He stood up, walked around the bed and drew the curtain back so Jamie could see into their side of the hospital room. “And how are you doing this morning?” Ethan asked.
“Better than he looks,” Jamie quipped, hooking a thumb in Blayne’s direction.
“Ouch!” Blayne said, narrowing his eyes in fake anger. “Is that how your mother taught you to respect your elders?”
“Breakfast,” an orderly said, entering the room with a cart. The orderly put a breakfast tray in front of Jamie and Blayne.
“What did the hospital gods bring us this morning?” Jamie asked, smirking. Jamie dramatically lifted the foil cover as Ethan looked down. There was some kind of omelet with cheese on top, a couple of wedges of fried hash browns, a blueberry muffin and a small cup of fruit. There was also a carafe of coffee, a carton of milk and a small glass of orange juice.
Before handing Ethan a tray, the orderly looked around as if engaging in some kind of dastardly conspiracy. “Don’t tell anyone,” the orderly said with a wink before backing his cart out of the room.
Ethan returned to his chair and sat down with his tray on his lap. The three dug into their breakfasts. Ethan couldn’t remember the last time he’d eaten. Still, the hospital meal was not half bad, even if it looked grossly institutional.
The three chit-chatted for a few minutes as they ate their respective breakfasts. “Jamie,” Blayne asked, “when is your mom coming back?”
“She had a class this morning, so she left around six a.m. after bringing a coffee to Ethan.”
“You were awake?” Ethan asked.
“Yep, kept my eyes closed so you two could think you were talking in private.”
“Sneaky little one, aren’t you?” Ethan said with a half-grin. Jamie stared back at Ethan with a smile and forked another bite of egg into his mouth.
“The innocent ones are always the most trouble,” Blayne said.
When they finished their breakfasts, Ethan helped stack their trash on one tray to make it easier for the orderly when he came back by the room. Almost like clockwork, there was a knock on the door.
“I was getting everything tidied up for you,” Ethan said, turning his head as the door opened.
