Part 15 (2/2)

Mrs. Forrester lay in the far bed of a double room. The near bed sat empty, the hospital-issue sheets folded back with tight precision. The mauve slatted blinds had been pulled open and weak rays of natural light fell across Mrs. Forrester's bed. Her eyes were closed, but she was no longer surrounded by a flotilla of machines.

Mantis sat by her bedside. Abbey found her breath coming in strangled bursts. His silvery locks swept back from his forehead and gathered around his shoulders in an array of controlled curls. He wore a navy suit, well-cut, and of fine material. High cheekbones gave his face a sculpted aristocratic look, and when his eyes came to rest on the new arrivals, Abbey could see they were a cerulean blue, like the barest shallows of a tropical ocean. He wasn't as old as she'd originally thought from the gray hair. She guessed just over sixty.

Dr. Ford didn't hesitate on his trajectory. ”Ah, Sylvain, so nice to see you.”

Mantis nodded. ”Paul. I've been wondering when you might show up.”

Dr. Ford stopped at the end of the bed, resting his hand on the tan blanket that covered Mrs. Forrester. It seemed like a casual move, but Abbey noted that his fingers curled into the depths of the blanket. ”How is she?”

Mantis shrugged. His eyes suggested a look of sadness, as if he actually cared about Mrs. Forrester. ”Hard to say. It was an ischemic stroke. She can move and see, but still can't speak or understand. The next two days are critical, but she could make a full recovery.”

”Were you with her when it happened?”

The turquoise eyes narrowed slightly before Mantis's face relaxed into a broad smile. ”Yes, I was.” He looked beyond Dr. Ford, at Abbey and Caleb. He nodded. ”Caleb, nice to see you again. And I a.s.sume you must be Abbey. Pleased to make your acquaintance. You can call me Sylvain.”

”How do you know who we are?” Abbey's words hung in the air.

The blue eyes widened fractionally. ”Why, Francis told me about you, of course. You are, I believe...her lawnmowers. She speaks quite highly of your yard work.”

Abbey folded her arms. ”You must be very good friends for her to tell you that.”

Mantis smiled this time. ”Francis and I are, and have always been, good friends.” This seemed directed at Dr. Ford, who appeared to visibly chafe.

But Mantis leveled his gaze back at Abbey. ”And where's Mark? I a.s.sume it was you who liberated him from the home he was staying in. Where have you put him?”

Abbey opened her mouth to reply but Caleb stepped in. ”Like I said before, we don't have any idea where Mark is. Why are you looking for him?”

”As I explained before, Caleb. As an old family friend, Mark is my responsibility.”

”We'll let you know if we see him.”

Mrs. Forrester began to make a sputtering noise. Her eyes had opened sometime during the exchange. She took in the a.s.sembled crowd, her face impa.s.sive. Dr. Ford and Mantis both reached for one of her hands on either side of the bed, each glaring when they realized what the other was doing. Mrs. Forrester tucked both her hands under the blanket.

Dr. Ford spoke first. ”Francis, the children told me what happened. I'm so sorry. Do you need anything? Water, ice, the nurse, magazines?”

”She can't answer you,” Abbey whispered.

”I know, but it's still best to talk,” Dr. Ford whispered back. ”We should probably get the nurse to check her vitals or something.”

”Righto,” said Caleb, heading out of the room. Abbey felt suddenly paralyzed, alone with these two strange men and Mrs. Forrester. The two men were smiling at the woman who lay on the bed. Mrs. Forrester nodded slightly at Abbey and Dr. Ford, and then everyone just stood or sat. Abbey tried to give rea.s.surance with her eyes that Mark was okay, but she wasn't sure how to do that, and even less sure Mrs. Forrester would have any capacity to interpret the look. The IV infusion pump whined in the background, delivering its predetermined dose of something into Mrs. Forrester's hand.

Mantis stood up and looked out the window over the parking lot. Abbey prayed Simon and Mark weren't visible in the car. Mantis turned back with a hint of a smile and an arched brow.

”Still driving the Sidekick, I see.”

Dr. Ford flinched slightly and joined Mantis at the window. He stared out at the lot for a few seconds and then nodded, as if to himself. ”Some of us aren't as inclined to abuse the opportunities we've been afforded,” he said.

”What is the point of the opportunities if you don't take advantage of them?” replied Mantis, returning to his seat next to the bed.

Abbey glanced at the clock on the wall. It was 4:47. They needed to get home soon.

”Well, you've done well for yourself, Sylvain. I hear you have a new business. What is it? A revolutionary new operating system? Isn't that what your website says?”

”Yes, that's correct.”

”Is there a lot of compet.i.tion in that field?” Dr. Ford asked. He widened his eyes and blinked a few times, making him look more like Richard Simmons than ever. Abbey expected him to break into aerobics at any second.

Mantis appeared unfazed. ”Why, yes. There always is, of course. But we aren't worried.”

”I see. Been to the stones lately?”

Mantis smiled more broadly, revealing a golden tooth in place of one of his molars. ”They seem to be in working order.”

Caleb returned with a pink-clad nurse. She surveyed the gathering and went to Mrs. Forrester. She drew Mrs. Forrester's wrist into her hand and checked her watch. She glanced back at the group around the bed. ”Only two visitors per patient. Two of you are going to have to leave.”

Dr. Ford stood. ”We were on our way out anyway. I have to take these children home.” Abbey wondered if he'd placed a slight emphasis on the word 'home'. He smiled at Mrs. Forrester, pulled a notepad out of his backpack, sketched something in it, and handed the notebook and pen to her.

He waggled his finger at Mantis, who had leaned over to look at the drawing. ”No peeking. Don't you know it's rude to read someone's mail?”

”We'll be back tomorrow,” Dr. Ford said, patting Mrs. Forrester's bedside. He nodded at the notebook and patted the bedside again, as if to inquire if she needed anything. Mrs. Forrester tore the first page out of the notebook and crumpled it up, placing it under her blanket.

She moved the pen slowly and deliberately across the page, ripped off the piece and handed it to Dr. Ford. He glanced at it, nodded, folded it in half, and placed it in his backpack. ”All right then, we're off. Always enlightening to see you, Sylvain. Just make sure you keep in mind the most important rule. Lex parsimoniae. The shortest distance between two objects... The stones aren't about opportunities.”

Dr. Ford turned and walked out of the room.

Abbey and Caleb followed.

Abbey trotted along beside Dr. Ford. ”Should we really leave her...with him?”

Dr. Ford smiled. ”She was one of the most powerful witches around in her day. Far more capable than Mantis with his striving sleight-of-hand hokus-pokery. She'll be all right. And besides, I slipped a bag of pot into his bag. I'm pretty sure there'll be an opportune time to call the police and report it in the next little bit. Should keep him busy for the next day or so, I hope, since we're on a tight timeline here and all. Tomorrow, you said?”

”Yes,” said Abbey.

”What did she draw, anyway?” asked Caleb.

”A camel,” answered Dr. Ford, pressing the elevator b.u.t.ton.

”A camel? What do you think that means?” said Caleb.

The elevator doors slid open. ”Haven't the foggiest,” said Dr. Ford as he stepped inside.

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