Chapter 11

I spent the entire night asleep. Mom’s lap was just what I needed. Fighting and killing all those people was way too much for my little mind and body to get around. Imagine my surprise when I woke up in my own bed. Looking at my clock, I found I had been out for sixteen hours. Someone had taken me home and I never stirred.

“Good morning, Elizabeth Braddock!” It was Kyoko.

I screamed and pulled my covers up to my neck. “Kyoko! You scared me to death! How long have you been here?”

“I have been watching over you for ten hours now. I was concerned about you after the events of the past hours.”

“Why?”

“You have endured a change far more reaching than you know. You have reached balance with being a woman, but killing is never good for balance.”

“This I know. Thanks for reminding me.” I took a deep breath. “I’m having a lot of trouble with that, and with what happened to Tracy. I wonder if it will change her, you know, make her resent me?”

“I cannot answer these questions. But you can return to your quiet place and work these things out. Tracy is a strong person. She held out under torture for longer than her torturers would have been able to.”

“But that’s just it! It was useless! They already had all of the information they needed.”

“She didn’t know that. She thought they needed her to get information on you. They were playing a cruel game with her. A game you ended. She will be traumatized, but I’m sure she will be glad to see you.”

“So, Kyoko, Have you been ‘assigned’ to me?” I asked.

“In a manner of speaking. The Hand is a…complex organization. I have been assigned to assist you when you may need it. I am not your, how do you say, babysitter. The one known as Finn is more adept at that.”

I laughed. “Yes, it seems that is his role in my life, like it or not.”

Kyoko got up from the chair. “I will leave now. We are connected. I will know when you need assistance, and will be there. It is my duty and honor.”

She then “shadow walked" out of the room. That’s kind of spooky when someone else does it.

I got up, stretched and went to the bathroom. I really needed to pee after all that time asleep, but I really felt good. I guess I needed to rest. No dreams, just sleep.
Calling downstairs, I was glad to find that Mom was home. She came up.

She smiled and gave me a hug. “So, you finally woke up! I mean, it’s only 7:00 PM.”

“I guess I was pretty tired.”

“I guess so. We couldn’t get you to wake up, so we took you home at about eight this morning.”

“Is Tracy up yet?”

“Yes, she woke up at about two o’clock, asking about you”

This made my day. I bounced up and down in a totally girly display of excitement. “She did! Did you tell her I was okay? What did she say? Can I go see her?” Whatever was left of Brian was surely dead or completely embarrassed by now.

Mom held me by the shoulders “Easy, girl. She is going to be fine. She needs her rest right now, and you can see her in the morning.”

“What am I supposed to do until the morning? I just got up, for crying out loud!”

Rolling her eyes, Mom gave an exasperated sigh. “Okay. You win. Get dressed as quickly as you can and we’ll go to the hospital.”

I turned around and ran upstairs. “Let me take a quick shower, ‘kay? I promise to be fast. I don’t want her to see me all gross from just waking up!”

I took the fastest shower on record and still managed to get clean. My hair was a mess, so I brushed it out, put it in a ponytail and put on my pink ball cap. I put on some jeans, a tee and some trainers and I was ready to go. Grabbing my makeup case on the way out of my room, I sprinted for the car, where Mom was waiting for me.

Breathless, I told Mom excitedly “Let’s go!”

Mom laughed “My, my, Elizabeth. You must be eager to see her!”

Busily applying foundation, I replied, “I have to. She suffered so much for me. I have to talk to her. I won’t be able to rest until I know she doesn’t hate me.”

“I don’t think she hates you, Elizabeth, but I can see that you won’t be satisfied until she tells you herself, will you?”

Concentrating on the mirror as I was applying eyeliner I answered. “No, I won’t. And I can’t for the life of me understand why. I am so confused sometimes. I mean, here I am, trying to paint my face to look beautiful for Tracy, nervous I won’t be good enough for her. A few months ago, if my jeans and shirt didn’t smell, I was ready for a party. Why is that?”

“You are growing up, girl. Differently than anyone I know, perhaps, but growing up. I know exactly how you feel. All girls do. It’s how we are wired, and you’ll just have to get used to it. Don’t question it, just let it happen. Women are complicated beings.”

“What do you mean, Mom?”

“Let me explain it this way. As a boy, your brain was wired so you were like a waffle, everything in its little compartment. You could be mad one minute, and the next, moved on to something else. You were in another compartment. Girls, on the other hand are like a plate of spaghetti, with everything interconnected. Everything relates to something else. A bit chaotic, yes, but it makes us who we are. Not better, not worse, just different.”

“I see what you are saying. You know I do kind of feel like that. Thanks! That helps a lot.”

We pulled into the hospital parking lot as I was finishing my makeup. Tracy liked me very feminine, and I did my best in a moving car at night. I was sooo nervous. If she held anything against me, I would be crushed. I needed her

We stepped out of the elevator on her floor. Mom motioned me to her room. Butterflies were doing dive bombing runs in my tummy. Why was I so nervous?

“Do I look okay, Mom? I should brush my hair again.”

Mom looked at me with a smile. “You look beautiful, Elizabeth. Go in there and talk to her”

Walking to the door, I took a big breath and opened the door quietly. Dad was in the room reading something in the paper to her.

“Tracy?” I said quietly. “Can I come in?”

Sitting up in her bed, she held her arms out. “Betsy! Get over here and give me a hug!”

I burst into tears and ran over to her. I was careful to avoid the IV tubes, but I hugged her with all I had. I think Dad took the opportunity to leave.

“I’m soooo sorry, Tracy. I had no idea this would happen.” I cried, so relieved she wasn’t angry with me.

“It’s okay Betsy, I know. I know”

Not pulling back, I continued “You were so strong. Way stronger than I would be. I’m so proud of you. Can you tell me what happened?”

“I did give them a bit of a fight. They jumped me in the house. I didn’t reset the alarm when I came in. I was ready to take a shower and they burst in. I was in my bathrobe, and I nailed two of them in the junk. They tasered me, and the lights went out. The next thing I know, I’m hanging naked in front of those people and they are questioning me about you. Well I wasn’t about to put you in danger, so I told them to f off. I guess they didn’t like that, because they started wiring me up. They put electrodes over my eyes, boobs, and stuck one up inside me, and in front.”

I started crying again. “Those, those....oooohhh!”

She patted my back. “It’s ok, hon. Well, they started lighting me up, but I still wouldn’t give them what they wanted. It hurt like crazy, I don’t mind telling you. So you owe me and big time”

“Anything, anything you want. I owe you so much” She was being sarcastic, but I couldn’t see it.

She laughed. “I’m joking, girl.”

I pulled back and gaped at her, not expecting that. It was then that I got a good look at her face. Her eyes were swollen, black, and blood red. “Ohhh, baby. Do you still hurt? Your eyes look so sore.”

“Painkillers, Betsy. They are wonderful. And thanks, I know I look terrible.”

“You look beautiful to me.” I leaned over to kiss her. “I'm the one who looks terrible. I put on my makeup for you, and I cried it all off.”

“I wish I could see it.”

“What? Can’t you see? Why didn’t you SAY something?”

“Slow down. It’s a side effect of the shocks. They said my optic nerves were swollen, and My vision should come back in a couple of days.”

“Oh, my, God. Anything else you’d like to tell me?”

“My coochie is out of service for a couple of weeks, too. Completely numb. The bastards did a number on it. They really liked to see me dance when they hit that part of my anatomy. Perverts”

I started crying again. “Oh you poor thing. What can I do for you?”

“You are such a cry baby, Betsy. You can do one thing for me, though.”

“Anything, honey, anything at all.”

She got very serious. “Tell me you got them. Every last one of the perverted assholes”

I held her hand. “I killed them all, Tracy. In the worst ways imaginable. And I can’t help feeling terrible about it.”

For the first time since I got there, Tears started streaming down Tracy’s face. She whispered “Good”

She turned to me. “Don’t you dare feel bad about that. They crossed the wrong two girls, and they paid the price.”

That scared me. She was hurting inside. So was I. She was traumatized because of what was done to her; I was hurting because I did something that was repulsive to me. We needed some help.

“Tracy?”

“Yeah, babe?”

“Will you do something for me, and with me?”

“Sure. What?”

“I am going to counseling. Will you come with me? We both need to deal with what happened. I so scared of what I might become, and with what happened to you, I’m frightened of what you might become. Please, don’t say no.”

She looked at her hands, wrists bandaged. Quietly, she said “Okay.”

We talked for another hour, until I was kicked out by the nurse. I felt so much better when I left. Tracy and I would be okay, and hopefully, life would return to what would pass for normal.

Mom, Dad and I were in the lobby of the hospital. Dad was taking care of a couple of things. As mom and I were sitting and talking, a woman walked in through the front door. Tall, she was a striking beauty. She looked in my direction and walked over. “Elizabeth Braddock?”

“Yes?”

“Can I speak with you in private for a moment? It won’t take long.”

I looked at mom nervously. She took my cue. “What is this regarding? I am her legal guardian”

Its ok, Mrs. Moore. I’m with the government, Homeland Security. Jackie Gavin. I just need her for two minutes, and I’ll leave. Fair enough?”

Mom looked at me. “Are you okay with this?”

I looked at her and squinted, studying her. She was legitimate. “It’s ok, Mom. Thanks.”

Agent Finn was recalled to Washington. They have assigned me to you among others in this area. “I have some paperwork for you to sign. I am assuming you are still in the program. Right?”

“Yes, ma’am, I am.” I could sense she didn’t like that term.

“You don’t have to call me that, Psylocke. I like our code names.”

“You’re meta too?”

“Yeah, low level. Shape shifter. My real name is Jacob Gavin. You can call me Courier”

I smiled. “You’re very pretty, Jacob”

“Ha, ha. Courier will do.” Sign these forms, please. I’ll handle the rest.

After I finished, Courier said “I’ll be in touch, Psylocke. For better or worse, we are now a team.”

To be continued in Psylocke’s next book, Mind over Matter.