“That a boy.” Carol patted his shoulder. “I knew you were a bright one the minute you walked in.” She nodded to Broussard who stepped to the side and opened the lab door for the young man. “Have a wonderful day.”
The yeoman rolled his eyes as he stepped into the hallway.
“Did you seriously just try to blackmail the Navy?” Kevin chuckled to himself. “What a stupid thing to do.”
She turned and gave him a hateful glare. “You aren’t concerned about our coworkers and where they may have disappeared to?”
Kevin shook his head. “I don’t give a rat’s ass about them.”
Carol nodded, her smile returning. “And what if they’re being treated less than nicely?”
“Still don’t care.”
She leaned across the work table and eyed him. “What if it were you instead of them?”
Kevin paused and gave her a sidelong glance. “I would…uh…I guess I wouldn’t know would I. Because…”
“Face it,” she pushed past him and reached for a set of beakers, “I’m right and you know it. We need to know what happened to them and why they were separated from us.”
Kevin shook his head, his eyes rolling again. “If you insist. But I promise you they won’t bring them back just because you tell them to.”
“As long as they’re safe and being taken care of, I don’t care if they come back. And by the way, Kevin…you’re right about one thing. You’re not one of the cool kids.”
Trevor opened his eyes. He could feel the sweat dripping off him. He pulled the covers back and gently lifted Patricia’s arm from his chest. He slipped out from under the child and pulled the blankets back up over her tiny body.
He held his hands out to the side and let the cool air evaporate some of the moisture. “Good heavens girl. You feel like a furnace.”
He stepped into the bathroom and noted that the tub was nearly two-thirds full, the water a slower trickle than before. He twisted the knob shut and sat on the edge of the tub.
He knew that the sponge bath would be rather shocking after having slept next to a nuclear reactor but he dipped one of the rags into the chilly water and squeezed out the excess. Even though he expected the chill, he still jumped when the rag first touched his skin.
He did his best to scrub clean. He double rinsed the rag after washing his feet and armpits. He had taken one of the deodorants that he had pilfered, but he knew that they worked best when starting fresh and couldn’t mask a stench that was already there.
He glanced at Patricia, making sure she was still in bed, then peeled off his boxers. He gasped when the cold rag touched his nether region but he knew it could be a long time before he got this opportunity again.
Trevor scrubbed clean then toweled off in the bathroom. He held the towel up to the dim light coming from behind the curtains and saw no obvious dirty streaks. He smiled to himself, assuming he did an adequate job.
Trevor tip toed past the bed and set his pack on the small dining table. He fished out his clean clothes and dressed in the darkness of the room.
After he pulled on his boots he dug through the small, pink Hello Kitty backpack that he’d packed for Patricia. He pulled out clean socks and undies then compared the clothes she had worn to what was in the backpack. “Other than a bit of dirt from sleeping on the side of the road, they’re still clean.” He decided she could keep wearing what she had. The longer he could save the fresher clothes, the better.
He folded her clean clothes and stuffed them back into the pack. He turned to check on her and found her standing behind him, her big, bright eyes staring at him.
Trevor startled and held a hand to his chest. “Christ, girl! You about did me in.” He sat down clumsily into the chair beside the table and gave her a smile. “You sure stand out in the dark.”
She simply stared at him.
Trevor slumped in the chair and studied her. “Do you understand what I’m saying to you?” She remained like a statue.
“Give me a hug.” He stared at her and she stared back. He sighed then opened his arms. “Give me—” She stepped into his open arms and tucked her face into his chest.
Trevor held her, rocking back and forth slightly. His mind played through the events of the past few days. To him, it seemed as though her mind processed what she saw, rather than what she heard.
If he took her hand and pulled, she followed. If he pointed, she looked. If he put food to her mouth, she’d eat. If he opened his arms…
He pulled her back and stared into her eyes. “Please tell me you understand me.” She stared back at him blankly.
He pointed to himself. “Trevor.” Then he pointed to her. “Patricia.” She watched his hand but made no effort to speak. “Trevor,” He tapped his chest. “Patricia.” He tapped her chest.
Nothing.
Trevor slumped in his chair and gave her a weak smile. “It was worth a shot.”
She stepped forward and placed her hand on his chest and looked at him. He sat up slowly, his heart hopeful. She pulled her hand back and touched her own chest.
Trevor nodded slowly. “That’s it.” He held her hand to her chest. “Patricia. Say it with me now…Pa-tri-cia.”
She looked up at him and met his gaze but her mouth made no effort. He sighed again and gave her a bittersweet smile. “You’re breaking your old man’s heart here, sweetie.” He sat up again and pulled her hand to his mouth. He kissed her knuckles gently and gave her a big smile. “You’ll get it. We just need to have patience.”
He stood up and walked her to the bathroom. “I know this is going to be really cold, but, we need to finished scrubbing you up.
