Bittersweet Revenge
Part 1
Even though I knew it was
all an elbaborate ruse, I couldn’t tear myself away from how real it looked.
The flatline, the long steady beep, the solemn faces. I knew Nick was
breathing, but I had to reassure myself of it over and over. If I reacted this
strong when it was a show, I’d hate to guess how it would be if, God forbid, it
ever really happened.
Then Howie and AJ came
in. They’re reactions, seeing them break down like that, was almost
ovewhelming. I started to say something to them, but Brian put a hand on my
arm. He shook his head slightly and I nodded in acknowledgement. He was the one
with the plan.
I studied him closely and
determined that he wasn’t having any easier of a time with this than I was. He
was ghostly pale, shaking, and still crying. If there was one thing that made
my heart ache, it was men that were crying. Now, I was in a surrounded by them
with one of my closest friends on his way to the morgue. Yeah, I was definitely
struggling with this.
Deizel left the room for
a moment out of respect, along with the rest of the nurses and the doctor that
were involved. I glanced nervously at Brian, then Kevin. If Howie and AJ saw
Nick up close, they would know he was still alive. Who knew what would happen
then? It could blow the whole thing. Howie would probably be able to be a
little more discreet, but I could see AJ flipping out. I needn’t have worried
about that though. AJ pulled himself to his feet and attempted to go over to
Nick. He took one look, choked back a sob, and bolted from the room. Howie cast
a pained glance towards Nick, then us, before running after AJ.
“Shit.” Murmured Kevin.
He looked at Brian and
“Help...me...over.”
Brian whispered. I frowned at Kevin, thinking Brian really needed to lay down.
Kevin acknowledged me look and set his hand on Bri’s shoulder.
“No! I...need...to!”
Brian insisted as forcefully as he could. I knew why too. With this scheme, who
knew when he was going to be able to see Nick again anytime soon.
Kevin supported Brian
over to Nick’s bedside. Brian reached a hand up and gently brushed Nick’s hair
away from where it had fallen in his eyes. It was considerably longer than when
I had first met him. But, then, mine was too. Brian didn’t say anything, but I
could see his shoulders shaking. Then Deizel appeared in the doorway with a
wheelchair. Kevin helped Brian into it. Behind Deizel were two men in white lab
coats. They were there for Nick.
“No.” I whispered. I
wasn’t ready. I needed to be with him to make sure he was going to be okay. I
shakily went over to the side of the bed and wrapped my arms around him. I felt
a hand on my shoulder.
“Come on, Lizz. It’s
time.” Deizel said softly.
I took Nick’s hand and
squeezed it tight. Before I pulled away, I whispered in his ear, “It’s going to
be okay Nick. I know you can hear me in there. Keep fighting and dont be
scared, you’re safe now. I’ll see you as soon as I can. Hang in there. Love
you.”
Deizel led me out of the
room over to Kevin and Brian. I rested my hand on the handle of Brian’s
wheelchair, steadying myself. I wasn’t prepared to see the men wheel Nick’s bed
out of his room, a sheet draped over it. Over him. It wasn’t the first time I
had seen that and it was hard. I couldn’t help but break down once again. I
shielded my eyes with my hand, trying to stifle the sobs. Brian reached his
hand up and layed it over mine.
“We’re...going
to...get through...this...Lizz.” Brian’s words were strong, but I was still
scared. It was all so real and so much was at stake. We didn’t know the extent
of the damage Marcus inflicted on Nick and whether he, or his voice, would be
okay. He had to be okay, I needed him to be. Who was going to keep me in line
or get into trouble with me? Who else was going to be there for me like he was?
I had to believe he was going to be okay, because frankly, I couldn’t take it
any other way.
Marcus watched the scene
from the tiny closet, barely able to contain his excitement. Only moments after
entering Carter’s room, the tattooed one tore open the drapes and Marcus heard
him cry out like an animal, falling to his knees. Seconds later he tore out of
the room, followed by the other one. Next, a doctor walked out, face grim. Then
a nurse, also visibly upset and shaken. Marcus felt his grin widen. Then it
looked Brian and Lizz were saying their tearful goodbyes. “Boo-fucking-hoo.” He
muttered under his breath. The best part came when two men pulled a sheet over
Carter’s bed and wheeled his body out of the room. Marcus was elated. He
discarded his previous thought to leave and “disappear” for awhile and decided
to hang around and relish in everyone’s misery. Especially Brian and Lizz’s.
“Finally they got what they deserved.” He smirked to himself.
~*~*~*~
No words were exchanged by the two male orderlies as they guided the cart
carrying Nick down the halls towards the “staff only” elevators. They were told
the prioriety of the situation and that they were under strict orders to do
only as told to do. If they complied, they would be benefited with payment of a
bonus.
The elevator car stopped. There was already a patient cart on board, a body
that was also draped with a plain white sheet. When the doors closed, the
orderlies switched places and the ones that were taking Nick were now in charge
of a newly deceased patient.
As instructed, one of the men punched the button to take them up to the 10th
floor. When the elevator stopped on 10, the new orderly took the cart carrying
Nick and pushed it off the elevator and down the hall towards the nurse’s
station desk.
~*~*~*~*~
As soon as Marcus witnessed Nick’s friends as well as his sheet covered body
leave the ICU room, he quickly left the security of the closet where he had
been hiding and took the stairs to the basement floor, towards the morgue.
He could feel the rush of adrenaline when he saw the elevator doors open and
then the two orderlies pushing the cart down the hall into the cold and dimly
lit morgue. A sick smile played across his lips. His plan was coming into
place, his mother would be proud of the revenge he had finally delivered.
~*~*~*~
The remainder of the group gathered in Brian’s room. No one spoke as Deizel
helped Brian out of the wheelchair back into his bed.
“Has anyone called Bob and Jane?” Howie asked, his voice thick with emotion.
“I’ll be taking care of that,” Kevin quickly replied as he helped Brian
straighten the blankets out on the bed.
“It’s all too real, this is a sick dream,” Lizz said softly, tears still
slipping down her cheeks.
“The FBI aren’t doing a damn thing about any of this Marcus bullshit from day
one. I’m taking the matter into my hands now! I’ll cap the asshole,” AJ
sputtered through his tears.
Brian shot a look at AJ which was intercepted by Howie.
“AJ, calm down, this isn’t the time or place man,” Howie quietly reprimanded.
AJ jumped up from his seat and immediately started to pace the floor. “This
isn’t right, my god, can’t you guys see this? He killed....him,” AJ
stammered, not willing to say the name ‘Nick’ “and now, as far as I’m
concerned, the asshole needs to pay and I’m gonna make sure he pays out
quickly.”
The phone ringing stopped AJ during his rambling. Kevin scooped the phone off
the hook.
“Yeah,” he grunted into the phone.
“I see Carter didn’t make it,” Marcus began.
Kevin felt chills go down his spine as he listened to Marcus’s voice on the
receiver.
“I don’t trust any of you asses, so here’s what I need now. I need proof that
he’s dead.”
Kevin’s eyes narrowed as he listened to the madman’s ravings. “Proof? How do
you suggest I go about that?”
“I want to see the body at the funeral home, in his box,” Marcus replied.
Kevin immediately felt sick to his stomach. “Don’t you think it would be a
little difficult since this will no doubt be a private viewing!”
“Just do it or I start making some selections on my next victim,” Marcus
replied sweetly. “I will be calling tomorrow to get the details on the funeral
home. Remember, no funny stuff or I take a fan or two out.”
Kevin didn’t bother saying goodbye, he quickly slammed the receiver back down
on the cradle. Brian looked up at his older cousin questionably.
Before Kevin could tell anyone what the phone call was about, the phone rang
again.
“Yeah,” Kevin stated crisply into the phone.
“Why? How did this happen?” a voice sobbed on the other end of the phone.
It took Kevin a few minutes to soothe one of the PR managers for the group.
They ended the call with setting up a time for a mini conference to address the
details about Nick’s death and to make sure it was handled well in the media.
“Conference thursday afternoon at 4,” Kevin said as he gently hung the phone
up.
~*~*~*~*~
Nurse Georgia Shell immediately grew nervous when she saw the cart coming down
the hall. She knew that this was that patient that she had received a call
about and that she was totally in charge of keeping the identity secret and
that she would be compensated for her actions.
“Room 430 please,” she requested as she gathered up the materials she would
need to make the changes for Nick, switching his identity in the hospital from
Carter, Nickolas G to Carpenter, Jack A.
The orderlies quickly took Nick down the the room and lowered the side rails
and moved the patient from the cart to his new assigned bed. Wordlessly, Nurse
Shell pulled out her scissors and snipped off the pale green hospital ID
bracelet and quickly slipped the new one on Nick’s wrist. She placed some other
identifying information into a heavy brown folder and handed over to one of the
men.
“Incenerate this immediately.”
Hooking up all the machines to the patient and stepping back to recheck every
lead, every wire, Nurse Shell decided that everything was now in order. The
patient was breathing at 94% with oxygen. He looked stable for the moment.
~*~*~*~
The day continued on in
pretty much the same nightmarish fashion. I wanted to know who had called a few
moments after we had reached Kevin’s room. There were two phone calls that had
come in a row, but the first one seemed to really shake Kevin up. Not to
mention he looked pissed. I had my suspicions, but I didn’t want to bring it up
though until I was totally aware of how this plan was going to work. And I
didn’t want to ask while Howie and AJ were still in the room since they didn’t
know.
AJ had finally calmed
down from his raging. He had finally lowered himself into a chair, defeated. He
put his hands over his face and stayed that way for a long time. Howie had sort
of stared off into space and he seemed to be in a state of shock. Kevin had
spent most of the rest of the day on the phone and temporarily disappearing
from the room.
Brian worried me the
most. He looked so lost. Granted, he knew that his best friend hadn’t really
died, but there were still a lot of unknowns and Nick wasn’t out of the woods
yet. Nick’s sats had dropped and just having surgery where his oxygen levels
were messed with already, was precarious. Not to mention, he was under strict
orders to be kept totally quiet at the risk of his voice being permanently
ruined. I was scared to death he was going to wake up alone and be scared to death.
He wouldn’t be in a familiar room and there wouldn’t be any familiar faces to
reassure him. Last, we were playing with fire anyway with this plan. One little
slip and Marcus would strike. An innocent fan? One of us?
When Kevin had returned
to the room once, he suggested that Howie, AJ and I go back to the hotel. They
both argued and I flat refused. Obviously Kevin didn’t know me well enough yet
to know that I wasn’t leaving Brian or Nick. Howie relented first, seeing that
is was the best plan. AJ was a little slower to agree, but after much
convincing, he did reluctantly. I still flat out refused and with a long sigh,
Kevin gave up.
I glanced at the clock on
the wall. 10:53. Normally I would be wide awake, but now I was exhausted. The
pain in my ribs lessened to a dull throbbing, but my headache remained. Brian
fared worse. His color never really returned and he had barely uttered two
words since this afternoon. We were now waiting for Kevin to get back in here.
He had gone to walk Howie and AJ to the elevators.
“Need anything?” I asked
softly to Brian.
“Nick.” Came the
soft reply.
“I know.” I said, hoping
my voice didn’t betray the emotion I felt. “He’s going to be okay.”
Brian nodded and offered
a smile more for my benefit.
“Lizz, I really wish you
would have gone with them.” Kevin admonished as he strolled back into the room.
“You need to take care of yourself.”
I shook my head. I was
the least of my concerns right now. “Why haven’t we heard anything about how he
is?”
“Haven’t you ever heard,
‘no news is good news’? Communication about that is incredibly risky. I’m sure
they would have told us if something had gone wrong.” Kevin assured.
“Why didn’t you tell AJ
and Howie the truth? That’s cruel.” I tried to keep the accusing tone out of my
voice, but I couldn’t help it. If it were me on the other side, I would have
freaked.
“I hate it as much as you
do, but what choice do we have? AJ can’t keep a secret worth anything. If we
told them the truth, their reaction might have ruined the plan. Nick and who
knows who else’s lives are at stake. You want to risk that?” Kevin reasoned.
I hung my head. “I know,
of course I don’t. I just...I mean, doesn’t this scare you? We are playing with
fire!” I looked up, staring Kevin in the eyes.
“Hell yes it scares me,
but what choice do we have?” Kevin threw his hands out.
“I know, I know. We don’t
really. We have to do whatever it takes.” I sighed.
Brian didn’t say a word
through the whole exchange. He was the one who came up with this brilliant
plan, but I knew he was frustrated at not being able to do more. He was always
there for Nick and now he couldn’t be. Not as much as he wanted to be.
The more I thought about
Nick being alone up there, the more I decided that that wasn’t going to work. I
couldn’t help but play out in my mind what could happen when he would wake up
and no one familiar would be there. I made up my might, I wasn’t going to let
that happen. If he had woken up already, we were screwed. What was important
now was that he stayed calm to protect his voice.
It was another hour
before Brian finally let himself fall asleep. Well, I don’t think he really let
himself because he was fighting it, but his overtired body won out. Kevin feel
asleep a little later with his book still in his hands. I made myself wait
another half hour to make sure they were asleep. It passed agonizingly slow,
but when it came, I was ready. I slipped out of the room and took the elevator
to the first floor. Then I followed the signs to the ER. I knew it was usually
hectic enough in there that I would be virtually unnoticed. I was right. No one
gave me a second glance as I ducked into a supply room and grabbed a pair of
blue scrubs. I grabbed a mask and surgical hat too. I shoved it all under my
shirt, making me look slightly pregnant, and went across the hall into a
bathroom. I changed quickly, ditching my jeans and teeshirt. I was wearing the
green sweatshirt Nick had gotten for me for the press conference and I knew I
couldn’t leave that behind so I tied it around my waist. The mirror revealed
the dark bruise under my eye and the cheekbone underneath. The bandage covering
the nice hole in my head that Marcus gave me when he clocked me with his gun
was easily covered by the hat. Now I looked like a med student.
The only thing I knew was
that Nick was on the seventh floor now. Getting to him might be tough. Again,
no one gave me a second look as I nonchalantly headed to the elevators and to
the seventh floor. This was sort of the overflow floor. Normally not used much,
but during winter seasons when there was a lot more illness this floor tended
to be a little more occupied. It was pretty slow now. I hesitated when I got
closer to the rooms. This was top secret, how did I think I would get in? And
how did I think I was going to find out where he was? I couldn’t just ask! I
finally decided to wander and try to peak in the rooms. At least I looked
legit. I went all down one hall with no luck. I made it to the end of the second
hall the same way, starting to feel discouraged. When I started to push open
one door, someone materialized at my side.
“Excuse me, can I help
you?” The nurse looked at me critically. Her name tag read Georgia Shell.
“Ah, yeah I am looking
for a patient.” I said, trying to sound confident.
“Name?”
“Uh...my name is uh-” I
started to stammer.
“The patient’s name.”
I thought hard. Why was
she nervous? Had I found Nick? “Actually I was a close friend of a patient that
died today. I was very concerned about a friend of his who is also admitted
here. I don’t really want him to be alone when he wakes up.” I said carefully.
Her eyes widened
somewhat. “I-I recognize you. You’re...”
I nodded. “Shhh. Can you
help me? My friend shouldn’t be alone.” I let the desperation sneak into my
voice.
She nodded and motioned
for me to follow her into the room that I had tried to go into. “Should I
expect anyone else?” She whispered.
“No!” I whispered back,
almost too harshly. “I’m sorry. No one else, though. And I wasn’t here either.”
She nodded. “He hasn’t
woken up yet, but he’s been trying to. I am glad you are here, actually.” She
gave me a small smile before disappearing again.
The room was dark and I
walked slowly over to the bed. Nick lay there, oxygen canula on, shifting
around slightly. I looked at all the monitors that were on and was relieved to
see that all the levels were normal. I sank down into a chair and took his hand
into mine. I let out a long shaky breath, relieved and scared at the same time.
Relieved that I was here with him, scared by everything else. I desperately
hoped he would be okay when he woke. Kevin was going to absolutely ream my ass
when he found out about this. Yes, there was a risk, but being here for Nick
overrided that. I started to formulate a plan. I knew it was going to be
impossible to sneak back and forth. Way too risky. I had two options. One being
I would have to keep my distance from Nick. There was no way that was going to
happen though. That left one other option.
Go into hiding too.
I could get plane tickets
and fly somewhere to make it look like I disappeared. Like I just had to get
away. Then, come back under an alias and stay with Nick. I had some friends
that had just moved to
My thoughts were
interrupted when Nick stirred again. I squeezed his hand gently and was
rewarded with a weak squeeze back. I gingerly sat on the edge of his bed and
waited for his eyes to open. I didn’t have to wait long.
*~*~*~*~*
My throat was searing like it was being stabbed repeatidly with thousands of
knives. I sucked a breath in, which was a huge mistake and I wanted to scream
out in agony but something inside of me prevented me from attempting it.
I slowly opened my eyes and waited for them to focus as I scanned the room. There
was a figure sitting at the edge of the bed and I guessed it correctly that it
was Lizz.
“Sh-h-h, don’t talk hon,” Lizz quietly directed.
I frowned at the request but then I suddenly remembered that I had chose the
option of having my vocal cords repaired after drinking the tainted water that
Marcus had provided for me. I also remembered that the doctor had told me that
I would more than likely have to keep quiet until he had given me a “green
light” to begin talking once again. I was anxious to find out if the surgery
was successful, but again I was scared that it may have failed.
Damn, I was so tired, I never would have guessed that I would be completely
whipped by this. There were so many questions I wanted to ask Lizz, Lucky for
me, she had that “telepathic link.”
“You really need to rest up, Nick, you’ve been through some hell.”
She understood the look I shot at her.
“Brian is doing fine, he sends his love,” Lizz replied.
That wasn’t good enough for me. I could tell that she had been stressing
herself over all of this and she looked like hell. I know that she hadn’t been
eating, let alone sleeping through any of this. God, she looked awful for me
just coming out of surgery.
My eyes caught a calendar that was hanging on the wall. The date made me do a
double take. Okay, my surgery was done on Friday, the 19th. Why in God’s name
did the calendar have Tuesday, the 23nd. Did they have me snowed under that
long?
Lizz’s eyes followed mine to the calendar. She again read my thoughts.
“Drugs are great, aren’t they?” she lied.
I managed a weak smile back. I didn’t agree 100% that this was the truth, but I
was too sleepy to fight it at the moment.
“That’s it Nick, rest, it’s what you need,” Lizz soothed as she held my hand in
hers.
~*~*~*~*~*~
“Just where the hell did Lizz take off to?” Kevin demanded of Brian as he paced
the room, stopping once to look out the window.
“Hopefully resting,” Brian replied. His voice was growing stronger each day and
his prayers were answered when he woke up this morning and had his voice back
almost to his full potential. His voice would waiver when he talked for
extended periods, but at least it was coming back to him thankfully to the
speech therapy he had been receiving.
“Somehow I don’t completely belive that,” Kevin sputtered. “Well, since AJ and
Howie haven’t made it here yet, I’m going to fill you in on all of the details
of what’s been set up for the conference and the other facts. I was hoping Lizz
would have been in here to hear this.”
Brian nodded solemnly.
“Okay, I made funeral arrangements at Repath and Jennings Funeral Home in
“How are you getting around that?” Brian asked.
“It’s all been taken care of,” Kevin replied, glancing at his watch.
“The best of the best in the world that does wax figures did a body image of
Nick and I hate to say it, it looks so damned realistic, it’s spooky. You’re gonna
swear it’s him in that casket.”
Brian swallowed nervously.
“Okay, the “funeral” has been set up for this Thursday at
“Oh god, that must have been hard to do,” Brian replied.
“It was, Jane about lost it completely when I talked to her, but I managed to
calm her down before she got hysterical. They backed you up with your plan
Brian. They said it was the only way to protect Nick and anyone else from getting
hurt.”
Brian nodded, relieved that his parents would see it that way as well. He was
still worried about how Nick was coming out of all of this, if he was coming
out of this.
A quiet tap on the door, stopped Kevin from continuing outlining the plans.
“Yeah, it’s open,” Kevin stated.
Lizz popped her head around the door, and slowly emerged, dressed in wrinkled
hospital scrubs. “Hi,” she stated, her voice shaky from nerves.
Kevin immediately narrowed his eyes at her. “Where the hell have you been,
dressed like that!?”
Lizz flinched as the booming of Kevin’s voice assualted her ears.
“Oh god, you didn’t” he added quickly when he detected her nervousness.
“Don’t be mad at me Kevin, it was something I had to do,” Lizz defended.
“I’ve gone out of my way buying people off, making plans and ironing out
details and you go and do that just because you HAD TO?”
“No, Kevin, it’s okay, Nick’s nurse is cool with this,” Lizz replied, tears
starting to well up in her eyes.
“Kev, back down, she’s only trying to help here,” Brian came to her defense.
“If anything goes belly up on this, it’s your fault,” Kevin growled.
Brian shot a dirty look at Kevin after the remark was made. “Don’t let him get
to you, it’s been rough for all of us.”
Lizz nodded slightly.
“So, anyway, how is Nick?” Brian asked cautiously.
Lizz’s face brightened through her tears. “Pissed that he can’t talk!”
“Oh god, that’s the best news I’ve had all morning,” Brian softly chuckled. “No
side effects from the carbon?”
“Nope, he’s ornery so he’s all good,” Lizz smiled.
“Okay, now I can fill you in on the press conference before Howie and AJ show
up,” Kevin interrupted.
~*~*~*~*~*~
Nick’s family pulled into the parking lot of the funeral home, as Kevin pulled
up behind them with AJ, Howie and Lizz. This was the plan that Kevin had set up
for them just in case Marcus would be scoping out the funeral home. The actual
arrangements were made from
The sounds of the awful piped in music added to the dregery of the situation.
Lizz could see out the corner of her eye a oak casket far away in a large room.
As they neared the entrance, she felt her stomach turn in knots.
’This isn’t Nick,” Lizz kept repeating to herself mentally. From far
away, her heart did a leap as she saw the wax mannequin dressed in a dark blue
shirt and patterned tie laying in the casket. As they neared the body, she felt
her heart catch in her throat. As much as she tried to convince herself that
this wasn’t Nick, she couldn’t push it past that thought. This looked like a
ringer for Nick....a dead ringer.
Nick’s parents had been told that this was all a staged death, Lizz wasn’t sure
about his sisters and brother by their reactions. AJ and Howie weren’t any
better.
After thirty minutes elapsed, the final test came into the room.
Marcus.
Kevin narrowed his eyes at the man that had caused all of this unwanted pain
and suffering. Suprizingly, Marcus had managed to clean himself up halfway
decently but his hair was still obviously greasy and combed back, the comb
marks leaving a trail from his forehead all the way down towards the back of
his dirty neck.
The true test came as Marcus approached the casket. No one in the room had
thought to touch the mannequin and Marcus appeared to be checking all the
details, the scars on Nick’s finger and his forehead, all recreated from photos
Kevin provided.
Kevin’s breath caught as Marcus reached down and touched the hands and then
sickly patted them.
“Farewell my friend,” Marcus softly said to “Nick.”
“Who the hell is that dude?” AJ whispered to Kevin.
“An old manager of Nick’s,” Kevin lied.
AJ bought the lie as he remained seated. Something about the man bothered AJ,
but he couldn’t remember where he had seen him. He decided since he had been
one of Nick’s manager’s, then that was probably where he had seen him before.
Marcus gave his respects to Nick’s parents and then quietly asked Kevin to step
out of the room with him. They barely got out the front door when Marcus pulled
out a cigarette and lit it, taking a deep drag from it.
“I really didn’t believe you at first, but now that I’ve seen it with my own
two eyes, I can relax. Carter is dead, his debt has been paid off,” Marcus
smirked.
Kevin could feel the bile rise in his throat. Marcus absolutely sickened him.
“But, I still want to see your conference this afternoon too. I am going to see
if my momma can watch it in prision,” Marcus’s face soured.
~*~*~*~*~
I woke up alone and bored. I grabbed the remote for the TV and decided to do
some channel surfing. I stopped at Mtv, decided that was better entertainment
than any soap opera could ever provide.
I was so damn bored I was doing all the typical things you do laying in a
hospital bed, counting the square tiles on the ceiling, 326 in this room, and
staring at the door hoping someone would come in and visit to relieve the
boredom.
I looked at the six IV bags that were hanging on the IV pole, wondering what
each of them were for. Bored with that, I flipped my ID bracelet around.
Carpener, Jack A.
I rubbed my eyes and then read it a second and then a third time. What the heck
was this about? Then an annoucement blasted over Mtv News:
”Kevin Richardson from the Backstreet Boys has set up a press conference
this afternoon at four. Mtv will have live, exclusive coverage from the
hospital.”
I immediately was wondering if something awful had happened to Brian, and I was
feeling the panic rise in my chest, forgetting about the weird name on the ID
bracelet. Then something was flashed on the screen that made my heart stop. I
was a picture of me with my name centered at the bottom and 1980 - 2001.
~*~*~*~*~
Never again. Funerals were something I was accustomed to, but this, this was
different. Of course, the major detail being that this wasn’t really Nick, it
was still different. I kept having to tell myself over and over that it wasn’t
him. Seeing his family and AJ and Howie react the way they did was
heart-wrenching. There were other people that I didn’t recognize there and they
were all in tears. I’m glad Brian wasn’t here.
Kevin sat one one side of me and AJ sat on the other. Kevin had informed me in
not-so-nice terms that I was not to leave his sight. After his verbal lashing,
I was not about to try anything...yet.
I don’t know what possessed me to look inside the casket. I never wanted to see
the person’s body because I prefered to remember them as they were when they
were alive. Maybe it was because I knew it wasn’t really Nick in that casket.
Plus it was sort of a morbid curiosity. After seeing it though, I sorta wished
I hadn’t. It scared the ever-loving shit outta me. Then I saw a familiar figure
walk up to the casket and my whole body tensed. I glanced at Kevin out of the
corner of my eye and saw that he was watching Marcus too. AJ leaned in front of
me to ask Kevin who that was and I held my breath. Kevin told him that it was
one of Nick’s managers and AJ leaned back in the pew, watching Marcus still.
When Marcus leaned over to touch “Nick” I started to get up, my blood boiling.
Kevin immediately put his hand on my knee, making me sit back down. He shook
his head and gave me a look.
I watched after everyone filed out as Marcus pulled Kevin aside. I tried not to
act interested, but I wanted to know what was going on now. Kevin walked back
over to where AJ, Howie and I were standing. He looked mad, but I knew better
than to say something at the moment.
“Okay, this is what’s going to happen. Lizz and I are going to go get Brian if
you two want to check back in at the hotel and get your bearings. Be at the
conference room at
Kevin didn’t say anything until we both got in the car. “He is going to watch
the press conference.” He said, the irritation showing through his voice.
“God, hasn’t he had enough? He isn’t going to leave is he? This is going to go
on until he is caught.” I shut my eyes and leaned my head against the headrest.
“Are you holding up okay?” He asked, his voice softer.
“Hell, I don’t know. It was awful. I knew it wasn’t really him in that...But I
kept having to repeat it over and over again to myself. Remember back when he
swallowed all those pills?” I rubbed my eyes. They had mascara rings under them
anyway so I didn’t care much about what happened to the rest of it.
“Yeah.”
“When I was sitting on that computer with him, I was so terrified that he was
going to go through with it and I was envisioning going to his funeral. Kevin,
that would literally kill me. I was so desperate to stop him that I didn’t care
about anything else. That’s why...I did what I did. And now sitting here, sort
of brought all that back. What it would be like if he were gone. I couldn’t do
it.” My eyes tried to fill up again and I stopped talking before I lost it
completely.
“I know, Lizz. But just keep telling yourself that he is here now and he is
going to be okay. Try to pull yourself together before we get to Brian’s room okay?”
He said softly.
I nodded, thankful again that Brian didn’t have to see that. When we got to
Brian’s room, Brian was already ready to go. He was wearing street clothes and
other than looking a little tired, he looked totally normal. I knew him well enough
by now to tell that he was stressed and very nervous. That made two of us. He
looked up at us when we entered the room and I whistled at him. He blushed
slightly as he always did when someone payed him a compliment.
“It feels weird to not be in sweats.” He laughed.
“How are you feeling?” Kevin asked.
Brian nodded. “Better. I haven’t heard anything about Nick so I guess that is a
good thing. How long before we have to go downstairs?”
“About a half hour.” Kevin replied. I took a deep breath. It was do or die
time.
“Um, I made a decision.” I said quietly.
Brian and Kevin turned their attention to me and Kevin narrowed his eyes. Okay
die.
“I was thinking about this when I was in with Nick. He can’t stay alone like
this. You both know as well as I do that he can’t. Between trying to recover
phsically and emotionally too...Anyway, Iamgoingtogoundercoverwithhim.” I said
the last part in a rush.
“Absolutely not. That is way too dangerous.” Kevin interrupted.
“It’s just as dangerous to have him go through this alone. You know as well as
I do that we don’t have much of a choice here. I can make myself disappear. I
know people that can help me do that. I can get a new name, change how I look,
whatever it takes and I will stay with Nick. Make sure nothing happens and
stuff.” I was almost pleading. The more I thought about this, the more I
realized the importance of this.
“Lizz, think about what you are saying here.” Brian said softly.
“Are you ready to put your life on hold for who knows how long?”
“Bri, come on. I flunked out of school already from missing so much class. I’ve
pretty much cut off all my friends here in town because I don’t even know what
to say to them. I can’t talk about this stuff and I didn’t want them to see me
when I was such a wreck. I am sure I lost my job by now too. They can’t keep my
position open forever. I can’t stay in this town anyway. It’s a small town and
everyone knows everything about everyone else. I won’t be able to have a normal
life here again.” I ticked the things off with my fingers.
“I’m sorry...” Brian’s voice grew even more quiet.
“Now don’t start that. I didn’t mean for it to sound that way. No one asked for
any of this to happen, but it did and no one can change that. There isn’t any
other place I would rather be right now than with you guys. And especially
Nick. You know this needs to happen.” I stared both of them in the eyes.
Brian sighed in resignation first. I knew he would see where I was coming from
here because this was usually his roll. He knew how bad things could get and
now any good to be alone. I think he knew that I needed Nick too.
Kevin cast a glance to
Brian. “Don’t tell me you are considering this.”
“We have to...”
Kevin still shook his
head. “You know how risky this is?”
“I’ve already got it
figured out. One of my best friends lives in
Kevin finally sighed and
tipped his head back. “Geez you are as stubborn as Nick. Maybe worse.”
My eyes lit up. “So I can
do it?”
“Like you said, what
choice do we have?” Kevin reminded.
Brian gave me an
encouraging smile. I could see the mixture of relief and worry in his eyes. I
know my feelings mirrored his. Kevin’s echoed hung in my ears, “If anything
goes belly up on this, it’s your fault.” This was a huge risk, but
not doing it could be even a greater risk.
We talked for a few more
minutes about it, laying out the plan before we went downstairs for the press
conference. We were going to announce in the conference that I was going to
We started down to the
room that was going to hold the conference. The hospital graciously let us use
one of their rooms again. I was as nervous as I was last time, actually
probably more so. One, there was the whole issue about us playing with fire.
Two, I knew it was going to be hard to see people’s reactions when Kevin told
them Nick was dead. Three, Nick wasn’t here. Last time he stayed by me the
whole time, knowing I was a bit of a wreck. This time I stuck by Brian. He rode
down there in a wheelchair, but left it outside the conference room, choosing
to walk in instead. Just before we went in, I stopped them.
“Wait, can I go to the
bathroom first? Will you wait for me?” I looked at them both.
“Yeah, go ahead, we still
have a couple minutes.” Kevin said with a smile. I bet he thought I was going
in to puke. I snickered to myself. I hadn’t eaten in quite awhile so there
wasn’t anything to throw up. I let myself into the restroom and went over to
the sink, taking a paper towel and wetting it with cold water. I layed it over
my face, hoping it would cool me off. Actually dunking my head under the sink
would have been preferable, but I didn’t want to look like a drowned rat for
the cameras. After I took off the paper towel I studied my face critically. The
black eyes were almost gone. There was only a light bruise under my right eye.
The huge bandage on my head was gone, replaced by a tiny little square. Much
better. Last, but not least, I wiped under my eyes, hoping the dark rings were
mascara instead of from being sleep-deprived. No such luck. Even makeup hadn’t
been able to really make my eyes not look so dark.
When I rejoined Brian and
Kevin, AJ and Howie were there also. Neither one of them looked much better
than they did a little while ago. This was not going to be fun. The room was
set up pretty much the same as it was before. The long table with the little
place cards. There were reporters in the room too and started snapping pictures
immediately. When we got closer to the table, I breathed a sigh of relief to
see that they had put me next to Brian. Kevin was talking to someone, as was
Howie. AJ, Brian and I all took our seats. I eyed my water bottle warily. Then,
in a sudden impulse I jumped up and grabbed all five water bottles and dumped
them in a trash can by the door. I wasn’t taking any chances. I got some
strange looks for that little stunt and I was sure a few cameras went off as
well. Kevin stopped mid-sentence and looked at me in surprise. Then he called
one of their bodyguards over and said something to him. I sank back into my
chair.
“I don’t care if I get
into trouble for that. Who knows where those bottles came from. Look what
happened last time!” I whispered harshly to Brian.
“It’s okay, Lizz.” He
smiled back. I thought I saw a hint of amusement in his smile and I had to
laugh.
“Okay so I probably
looked like a freak just now.” I muttered.
AJ even cracked a smile.
The bodyguard came back a
moment later with five new water bottles. “These pass inspection ma’am?” He
grinned at me.
I blushed. “Well yeah,
since I know where they came from now. Thank you.”
Then the rest of the room
filled up and people started taking their seats. Or standing at their seats,
rather. My stomach tensed up as the camera flashes got faster. I saw
~*~*~*~*~
I stared at the tv screen, not completely understanding what was happening.
This was all a bad dream and I desperately wanted it to end. Mtv was starting
up the press conference and I was anxious to hear what Kevin or any of the
other guys would have to say about this mixup. They were probably gonna clear
up the rumor that was saying I was dead. This was some sick joke that had gone
way too far.
The camera panned the long table where Howie, Kevin, AJ, Brian and Lizz were
setting quietly. I did a double take when I saw Lizz. She looked awful, she had
dark rings under her eyes and it looked like she was coming out of one hell of
a crying jag. I could tell by her actions that she was feeling the panic attack
I was fighting. I needed to calm down for her. Thank god Brian was sitting next
to her to help her. Last time we had a conference, I was there for her.
I literally held my breath as the conference began.
Kevin cleared his throat. As always, he was the spokesperson for the group.
Cameras were flashing continuously and video equipment was humming.
“Nick passed away on Monday due to complications from surgery. Private funeral
services will be held tomorrow in
This had to be part of some sick joke, I thought to myself as I stared at the
tv screen in disbelief. The camera angle widened and the whole table was shown
once again. By the look on everyone’s face, it appeared that they believed what
Kevin had read. The look on Brian’s face tore at my heart. He looked lost. I
wanted to scream at the tv, get through to someone that I was alive and
alright.
In a desperate move, I pulled the nurse call button out of the socket on the
wall. Within seconds, a team of five nurses came bursting through the door. I
was guessing once they saw that I wasn’t having a heart attack, all left but
one.
“What do you need?” the nurse asked as she plugged the call button back into
the wall outlet.
I stared at her for a moment. How was I going to relay what I needed to ask
her? Frustrated, I pointed at the tv. She looked in the direction I was
pointing and smiled and nodded.
“Yep, it’s Mtv.”
I narrowed my eyes at her. How could she even think I pulled a nurse button for
something that stupid. To hell with doctor’s orders, what did it matter now if
I kept quiet?
”They think I’m dead.”
I winced as I heard my voice. It sounded awful. I was shocked at how raspy it
sounded. It was hard to describe. It was like AJ going on 4 days without sleep.
I guess it would be like when you spent 3/4 of the night yelling and screaming
at the top of your lungs.
“Sh-h-h, Jack, you’re not supposed to talk, doctor’s orders.”
My eyebrows furrowed, I was growing frustrated with this nurse.
”Not Jack, I’m Nick.”
“I think you need to talk with someone. Please, just lay back and rest and I
will get someone to talk to you,” the nurse urged as she placed a hand on my
shoulder trying to force me to lay back.
I shook my head, she wasn’t going to play this game with me. I wanted answers
and I wanted them now.
”No, tell
“You need to calm down or I will have to sedate you,” the nurse replied, a
slight annoyed tone set into her voice.
That was enough to keep me quiet for the time being. I hated being sedated, I
needed to keep awake to find out answers.
~*~*~*~*~
updated:
The panicky feelings
eased slightly, catching my somewhat off-guard. It didn’t totally go away so I
knew he had to still be awake, but it wasn’t as persistent as it was when it
hit me. Brian was watching me out of the corner of his eye and I gave him an
uncertain smile, trying to convey that it was okay. He nodded barely and turned
his attention back to the interview. I tried to pay attention, but my mind kept
drifting back towards the viewing, the plans, and Nick.
“Lizz...Lizz??”
I snapped back to
attention. “Uh...yeah?” I stammered, flushing. The lady that was doing the
asking now was facing me and cameras were flashing behind her.
“Kevin said that you were
going to be taking a trip away from here to get a break from all this...” She
stopped, hoping I would elaborate. Normally I would clam up, but this was just
the opportunity I needed. I took a deep breath, trying to keep my voice steady.
“Yeah...losing Nick,
um...it’s hitting me pretty hard and I guess I really need to get away for
awhile. I’ve got some friends in
Brian squeezed my hand on
top of the table reassuringly. The lady nodded sympathetically and moved on.
~*~*~*~*~
Nick watched in horror as
Lizz told everyone about her plans. She was leaving?! Why did everyone think he
was dead? He could hardly barely stand watching her struggle to compose herself
as she tried to talk. He had to do something to fix this. The camera moved on
to Brian and Nick could only stare at the screen, his heart dropping, as his
best friend tried to keep his emotions in check.
~*~*~*~*~
The rest of the press
conference was a total blur. I couldn’t stay focused no matter what and I was
anxious to get to my flight and to find out about Nick. I had to get word to
him that I would be there soon and to hang on. Brian and I waited outside the
room while the other three guys were still inside with last minute stuff.
“Think it worked?” I
asked softly.
Brian shook his head. “I
almost believed it was all real. That is not something I ever want to go
through again. What about you? Are you okay?”
I nodded. “I just feel
really uneasy. It’s sort of coming and going. Like getting strong, then easing
up. I wish I could talk to him.”
“We can’t take that risk.
Your flight leaves pretty soon anyway doesn’t it?” Brian whispered back.
I nodded again. “A couple
of the body guards are taking me to the airport as soon as the rest of the guys
get out here, I guess.”
“You sure you are okay
with this?” Brian studied me critically.
“I’m scared shitless, but
I have to. You know as well as I do.” I sighed.
Just then Kevin came out,
followed by AJ and Howie. My heart went out to them, they looked so torn up.
It’s for the best, it’s for the best. I had to coach myself constantly that
this was the right thing to do.
“Ready?” Kevin asked me.
“Yeah.” I whispered. I
exchanged good-byes with everyone, promising to keep in touch, only Kevin and
Brian knowing I would be coming right back again. Leaving in the car with the
two guards was harder than I thought. I was afraid to leave the hospital, to
leave Nick. After going back and forth with myself a few times, I made my mind
up. I was going to call Nick’s floor when I got to the airport. Risky, yes, but
that was me, the big risk-taker. Once at the airport I let one of the
bodyguards take care of the details of getting the ticket and stuff. I told the
other one I need to make a quick phone call. I went to a pay phone while he
stayed close enough just in case, but far enough to let me have the privacy I
needed.
My hands were shaking as
I dialed the hospital operator. I asked for Nick’s floor and as soon as someone
picked up my mind blanked! What name was he under?! Almost in a flash it came
back to me. “I need to leave a message for a patient. Can you write this down
and give it to him? It’s important.” I thought furiously on what to say to keep
it secret, yet so he would understand.
“Sure, that’s no
problem.” The lady said pleasantly.
“Okay, here goes: ‘Dear
Jack Carpenter, I know you are probably a little lost, but trust me. It will
all work out. Stay out of trouble and I will see you tomorrow. Love ya, your
Shark.’” I tried to think of how to end it in a way that no one else would
know it was me. I didn’t want to say anything having to do with shithouse coon
because there were people that knew what that meant. No one knew about the
shark thing and I knew he would get that.
“Is that it honey?” The
lady affirmed.
“Yes ma’am. It’s really
important that he gets it okay?” I tried to stress it in my voice.
“I will deliver it
myself. Don’t you worry.” She assured me.
“Thank you so much.” I
hung up and walked over to where the guard waited.
“Your flight is boarding
in about 10 minutes.” He informed me. “Gate 25.”
The walk was short and
the ten minutes flew by. The guards stayed with me until I walked onto the
plane. Just before leaving one of them handed me an envelope. “Mr. Richardson
wanted me to give this to you before boarding. Read it on the plane.” He said
softly.
“Thank you both.” I said
quietly. The butterflies were in full flight as I filed in line to get on the
plane. I had Kevin’s money, now the envelope, my cell phone, and my purse. That
was it. I found my window seat and was relieved that it wasn’t a very full
flight. No one was sitting next to me. A middle-aged businessman sat on the
aisle, giving me a polite nod before opening up his laptop. I stared at the
laptop, it bringing back the memories of how this all started. Me signing on
one day to find Nick on the other end, getting ready to end his life. From that
point on it was almost a never-ending rollercoaster of events. Who knew how one
incident would impact the rest of our lives. I shook my head as if to shake the
thoughts from my mind. I had to focus on the task at hand. In only a few hours
I would be someone completely different. I untied Nick’s sweatshirt from around
my waist and rolled it up so it was a half pillow as I rested my head against
the window, Kevin’s envelope clutched tightly in my hands. I watched everything
below me shrink until it couldn’t be seen anymore. The last thought I had
before I shut my eyes, was a prayer that Nick understood my note and everything
would be okay till I got back.
~*~*~*~*~
update # 2: 3/14/01 The jarring of the plane landing on the tarmack woke Lizz
up from her dreams. It took her a few moments to shake off the disorientation
but then she quickly remembered where she was and what her mission was.
Looking down she noticed that the envelope that Kevin gave her had fallen to
the floor. She scooped it up and tore it open.
Lizz,
This is very important that you contact me as soon as you have your new name
chosen. I can make some arrangements for you on my end and get your return
flight back here. I won’t be seeing you again until this matter is overwith.
I feel that since the funeral will be in Tampa tomorrow afternoon, it is
important that you get out of there ASAP since Marcus will more than likely be
watching the area. You can contact me on my cell phone at 407-396-6529 with the
details.
Good Luck,
Kevin
Lizz quickly folded the letter and stuffed it back into the envelope getting in
line to file out of the plane.
~*~*~*~*~
This show wasn’t ending and now they were showing a “time capsule” of my life
and accomplishments. Since there wasn’t any phones in ICU I couldn’t call my
parents or anyone else for that matter. I could get dressed and get the hell
out of here and go find Brian or someone and find out why they think I’m dead.
As I started to pull the covers off, a quick, sharp knock on the door stopped
me. Alice, my daynurse came bustling in with a slip of paper in her hand.
“Mr. Carpenter, I have a note from someone that said it’s very important that
you get it.”
Dear Jack Carpenter,
I know you are probably a little lost, but trust me. It will all work out. Stay
out of trouble and I will see you tomorrow. Love ya, your Shark.’”
I read that note twice before it clicked in. ‘Love ya, your Shark’. That was
Lizz! But wait a minute, how come Lizz was at that press conference and was
crying because I was dead? This was all too confusing and I was starting to get
a headache trying to sort it out.
“Is everything alright, Mr. Carpenter?”
I gave a slight nod. I mouthed the words “thanks” and laid my head back on the
pillow praying that the headache would go away and that I would get answers
quickly.
~*~*~*~*~
“Brian, I think the trip would be too much on you and it’s best that you stay
here and stay healthy so you can be discharged by the end of this week.”
Brian stared at Kevin as he listed the reasons why he shouldn’t fly to Tampa
for the funeral.
“But Marcus will be--”
“Marcus will be thinking you have to stay where you are because you’re not fit
to travel,” Kevin interrupted in a stern voice. “Now, I’m waiting on a phone
call from Lizz and then I have to set up her return flight. Once she sets up a
bank account, I will make sure funds are deposited since she will be with Nick
and he won’t have any access to his money.”
Brian watched as his cousin paced the room, running a hand through his dark
hair occasionally. This was taking a toll on a normally quiet and passive man.
He wanted to help but he was still dealing with limitations on his body as well
as he was sure Nick was.
~*~*~*~
“Take me to 34560 Apopka Vineland Road,” Lizz requested to the foreign cab
driver.
She stared out the window at the brownish colored grass along the highway.
Florida had been going through a terrible drought and everything looked dead
and dying. Just like the way her heart felt at the moment....dead and dying
out. Her thoughts drifted back to Oklahoma and the hospital where Nick and
Brian were at. She worried that Nick would be scared and confused at what was
going on and she prayed that what she needed to get done would be done fast.
She had called her contacts earlier before the press conference so they could
get the preliminaries set up.
“There you are miss, that’s going to be $26.90,” the cabbie stated in broken
English as he stopped the car in front of a small house.
Handing him $30 she mumbled a thank you and quickly exited the cab. After
walking up the tiny sidewalk, Lizz stood for a moment staring at the once-white
screen door. Within seconds of knocking at the door, she was greeted by a woman
who introduced herself as Amy.
“I’m Lizz, I.. I um called you yesterday,” Lizz stammered.
The woman’s face brightened. “Oh yeah I remember you now. You needed a complete
ID retool, right?”
Lizz nodded nervously as she silently wondered what the hell she had gotten
herself into.
“Okay, come with me.”
Lizz followed the woman into a room that looked like a miniature beauty parlor.
“Take a seat there.”
Lizz did as she was ordered and worried about what this woman was going to do
with her.
“Okay, I talked with your partner and he told me that we had to do some drastic
changes. If I could change the color of your skin I would but I will have to do
the next best thing love.”
Talked with my partner? Lizz quickly surmized that she had talked to Kevin.
Next she worried about what the hell he had planned for her.
“Okay, you might as well relax, cause this will take me a couple of hours,” Amy
directed as she flipped on a television set.
~*~*~*~*~
Shifting nervously in the chair waiting for the flight to be called for
boarding, Lizz glanced around the waiting area, wondering if Marcus was there
stalking and waiting for the guys to arrive. She knew that they weren’t flying
in until early morning, but Marcus didn’t know that.
“Flight 438, Oklahoma City, now boarding at gate 131.”
Standing up quickly, Lizz flung the carryon duffle bag over her shoulders.
Glancing at her reflection in the window, she could have sworn she was looking
at someone else. Amy had done an excellent job in changing her looks, her own
mother wouldn’t have recognized her.
Besides dying her once light reddish colored hair into a golden blond and
cropping it short, she was now wearing blue tinted contact lenses. An added
effect to her looks was a body suit that she had to wear under her clothes that
added an additional 25 pounds to her tiny frame. Because of that, she was no
longer able to wear any of her own clothes and had to go shopping right after
she left Amy’s. The suit wasn’t bulky, she just hated how she looked with the
extra weight.
“Thank you Ms. Allen, enjoy your flight,” the stewardess said as she handed the
ticket stub back to Lizz.
‘Ms. Allen, god that sounded weird,’ Lizz thought to herself as she eased
herself into her seat. Her new name was Katie Allen, 23 years old from Portland
Oregon. She prayed this would work. The test would be when she saw Nick.
I knew there would be no sleeping on this flight like there was last time. Pure
exhaustion had given me the chance before, but now I was wired. My hand kept
unconsciously traveling to the back of my head, through my new haircut. I
needed to stop that because it attracted attention that I was obviously
unfamiliar with this style and I wanted to blend in as much as possible. It was
probably shorter than I had ever had it before, but I was used to going from
long hair to short hair, seeing as how every time it got long, I chopped it all
off. Just not this much. Nor had I ever dyed it except for when I was ten years
old. I dyed it hot pink while in the hospital one time. About 20 straight
washings and a very pissed off mother later, I swore I wouldn’t do it again. My
new “body” was the weirdest. I felt bulky, but Amy insisted that I looked fine
and I “needed some meat on my bones anyway.” According to one of her many books
I was my ideal weight now for someone my age and height. I forced myself to sit
still and not fidget while I reviewed everything in my head. When the plane
arrived in OKC, my first stop was to a car rental agency. Kevin had already had
it all set up, all I had to do was pick up the car and the envelope that I was
told would be waiting for me at the desk. All of my personal stuff, my old
clothes, purse, drivers license was destroyed and everything I carried now was
new. Duffel bag, a pair of jeans, shirt and jacket stuffed inside, plus the
black pants I was wearing with the dark green blouse. My new black purse
contained my new license. My new face with Katie Allen and a fake address next
to it. I also had a social security card and some other odds and ends to make
my wallet look natural. Nick’s new license and S.S. card was in there too.
Buried deep in the duffel was the sweatshirt Nick had given me before the first
press conference. I refused to throw that away too, it bringing me an odd
comfort through all this.
The flight was over too
soon. As soon as I stepped off this plane I would have to play the greatest
roll in my life. I smiled sardonically at how the acting I had done in high
school was finally coming into use. I ran my hand through my hair again and
filed in line with everyone else that was exiting the plane. My heart skipped a
beat as I watched so many people around me get greeted by excited family and
friends. I felt really alone all of a sudden. I could pretty much disappear off
the face of the earth and I would be almost impossible to track down. Nice
thought.
The rental place wasn’t
very busy, so far so good. I had just barely made it in before closing time. I
can’t believe how close we were cutting it time-wise. We wanted to get me back
to Oklahoma as soon as possible so it was nonstop from the press conference all
the way back here again. I stepped up to the counter and a guy looked up from
some papers.
“Hey there, what can I do
for ya?” He grinned at me. His name tag read Chris.
I swallowed nervously.
“I’m uh Katie Allen, here to pick up a car I had reserved.”
He thumbed through a
stack of papers then opened a small door in the wall that revealed tons of
tagged keys hanging on tiny hooks. He selected two copies of the same hook and
dropped them into my hands. “You boyfriend said you needed two sets and he had
this dropped off for you.” The guy pulled a sealed manila envelope out from a
drawer. My cheeks flushed when he said “boyfriend.” I almost said, “nope, not
my type,” but thought better of it. I couldn’t keep from snickering at the
thought of me almost saying it out loud. Poor Kevin, I’d drive him to the funny
farm. That thought made it even worse and now I had to put my hand over my mouth
to keep from busting up. Thankfully Chris didn’t even notice.
“Follow me, I’ll take you
to your car.” He grinned again and I followed behind him. My walk still felt
funny, but I was starting to get used to the bodysuit. To my shock and delight
he led me to a black 2001 Jeep Cherokee. I almost died on the spot. My dream
car! Kevin was definitely on my good list now.
“Um, how long do I have
it again?” I asked, unable to tear my eyes away from the shiny beauty in front
of me.
“You’ve got it for the
next two weeks. If you need it longer, swing on by and we will hook ya up.”
Chris grinned again. “Have fun sight-seeing.”
I thanked him and climbed
into the car, shaking my head. Sightseeing in Oklahoma. Riiight. I folded the
manila envelope into my purse and followed the arrows that led to the main
road. Once again I relished in being able to drive. Especially in this car. I
pulled on my new dark sunglasses and checked myself in the rearview mirror.
Different, but kinda cool I guess. The drive to the hospital was too short, but
on the other hand I was anxious to get to Nick. I pulled into the parking lot,
noticing immediately the crowd. It was the same as before, except maybe even
bigger now. This time almost everyone held a lit candle. My eyes threatened to
well up into tears, but I forced it back. I didn’t need mascara all over my
face. Plus I had to play it cool.
I left the duffel on the
back seat floor, knowing the tinted windows would keep it pretty much out of
view. Slinging my purse over my shoulder I hastily walked inside. I guess I was
still paranoid that someone would recognize me. No one gave me a second glance
though. As I stepped onto the elevator I had an urge to push the button to
Brian’s floor. I wanted to make sure everything was okay and maybe get a little
encouragement, but there was no way. I went right on past and up to Nick’s
floor. When I stepped off the elevator my stomach knotted up in nerves again.
Was he okay? What would he say when he saw me? Was this all going to work? I
ducked into the one room restroom and locked the door behind me. Leaning
against the wall, I forced myself to take slow, deep breaths. I needed to look
cool, calm and collected. Everything I wasn’t. I stole one more look in the
mirror. Even my makeup was different. I usually wore only a little eye make-up
and lipstick. Natural looking brown and my favorite lipstick. Now my eyebrows
were dyed dark brown, I was wearing black liner, a shimmery silver colored
eyeshadow, a touch of blush and a darker shade of lipstick. It looked kinda
cool, but again, I had to get used to it. My eyes really stood out to me. I was
used to seeing an almost turquoisey shade of green, but now they were blue as
could be. I pulled my contact away from my eye and sure enough, the green was
still there. I don’t know why, but it made me feel better. Maybe a reassurance
that there was at least a little of me hidden away. still. Okay, enough
stalling...
I left the small area
that held the elevators and public restrooms and walked brusquely down the hall
to the nurses station. I recognized the same nurse, Georgia Shell, that I
talked to when I had snuck into to see Nick in the middle of the night. She
looked up at me as I approached and my heart jumped.
“Can I help you?” She
asked politely.
I let out the breath I
was holding. She didn’t recognize me! “Uh yes, I am here to see Jack Carpenter.
I’m expected.”
She nodded. “Room 430 to
your left.”
I thanked her and headed
towards the room. I knew she knew that it was really Nick, but my guess was
that no one told her who I was. I paused at the door the pushed it open softly.
There wasn’t any point in knocking since Nick wasn’t supposed to be talking. It
was pretty late by now and technically visiting hours were over, but that was
going to be the last thing to stop me.
The room was dim, but not
completely dark. As soon as he heard movement, Nick turned his head towards me.
Even in the poor light I could see, plain as day, the toll this had taken on
him. He looked like a wreck. Dark, lost eyes. Guarded look on his face.
Definitely shot nerves. I wanted to break down right there, but again, pushed
it away. He didn’t say anything, just watched me warily.
I walked closer to the
bed until I was right up next to him. Neither of us spoke and then he raised
his eyebrows questioningly. Not trusting my voice, I whispered. “It’s me.”
He stared at me blankly,
obvious frustration building. “I don’t know you.”
I stifled a gasp at his
voice. It sounded worse than mine after waking up in the morning. “You aren’t
supposed to be talking.” I admonished automatically, still whispering.
He glared at me and
started to respond to that, but I cut him off before he could. “Nick, it’s me,
Lizz.”
His eyes widened at being
called by his own name for the first time since he had woken up. I started to
relax, thinking we were on the same level now. I didn’t expect his reaction.
“No! What the hell is
this?! I want to know what the fuck is going on and who the hell are you?!”
His voice cracked and started to give out, but the emotion behind the words hit
me full force.
“Nick, it’s me. Look
close.” I raised my voice slightly. I knew if he could hear my voice, he would
know it was me. My voice was really distinct, being sort of the female version
of AJ’s voice. I held my breath as Nick studied me. Then his face broke out
into a smile.
“Oh my god...”
I let the breath out with
a whoosh and threw my arms around him, hugging him tight. “You scared me there
for a second.” I dropped back to a whisper.
He pulled back and held
me at arm’s length. “Whoa...” He looked me over, his eyes wide as
saucers.
“Shhhh, you aren’t
supposed to talk!” I reminded him again.
“I can a little bit.
Please explain!”
I nodded. “This is going
to take awhile so bear with me. As for the time being, Nick Carter is dead.
According to the whole world, you died due to complications from the surgery.
According to Marcus, he killed you.” I explained everything starting from where
Marcus tampered with his oxygen supply and cornered Brian and I in with him. I
explained how Brian said to let him die and how I almost flipped out. I told
him about how AJ and Howie didn’t know the real truth and only his parents,
Kevin, Brian, and the hospital staff involved knew. I tried to remember every
detail about Marcus showing up at the viewing and his plans to continue the
stalking at least for now.
I quieted a moment and
let Nick digest everything. He looked a little overwhelmed by it all, but he
was taking it pretty well. Then he screwed up his face and gestured to me. “But
wait, that still doesn’t explain you.”
I let out a sigh. “There
was no way I was going to let you go through this on your own. You obviously
can’t keep in contact with anyone and this is going to be really rough. There
was no way you could be totally alone through this.”
He shook his head slowly.
“But, you...your life...you can’t just...” He stammered.
“I can and I did. Nick,
we’ve gotten this far together, we gotta stay that way. What else was I going
to do anyway? I am out of a job, flunked out of school, I am going to have to
leave here anyway. Everyone knows now. Besides, I felt kinda lost.” I spoke the
last part really soft. Since knowing him, we had rarely gone more than a couple
days without talking each other’s ears off. We had only gotten into a few
fights, but it was the same thing. I would feel totally lost until we fixed it.
He had said the same before too. “This is going to stay like this until Marcus
and anyone he is working with is caught. That could take days or it could take
months. I don’t want to go that long without contact with you. The only way
around it was to assume a new identity. So, basically, you are stuck with me.”
I said quietly, hoping he was okay with this and suddenly afraid he wouldn’t
be.
I needn’t have worried.
He practically crushed me into a tight hug. “Thank you.”
“Yeah, you say that now,
wait till you are so sick of me in a few days that you are ready to ship me off
to Siberia.” I joked.
He grinned. “Ditto.
Okay, now how did you gain an extra 20 pounds cause I know you haven’t been
eating.”
“It’s a body suit under
my clothes. I feel fat.” I almost laughed because those weren’t words I had
ever said before. “Trust me, you don’t look fat. You need the weight.”
Nick assured me. I rolled my eyes at that one. He was always on my case about
being too skinny. “At least I have a butt now.” I joked. He laughed too. “Women...”
“Now we gotta work on you. Mista Jack, we gotta make you look different now.
According to your new license, you have brown hair, brown eyes and a mustache.”
I grinned.
Nick’s eyes widened. “How...?”
“I got a recent pic of
you and the lady that fixed me up, did it. She doctored the picture, changed
all the info, and fitted it all together on an Ohio license.. The hair oughta
be easy enough and the contacts will be Fed Exed in a nondescript package here
in the morning. She had to get ahold of your prescription so it took more time.
By the time you are released you oughta have somewhat of a mustache right?” The
shocked look on his face was hilarious. “Oh, we gotta cut your hair too.” I
added as I pulled his new license out of my wallet.
“Damn...“ He
muttered as he looked it over.
“Oh, I about forgot about
this!” I pulled Kevin’s second envelope from my purse and tore it open. I
opened the note first, holding it so we could both read it.
Dear both of you,
Everything should be set now. If there are any problems, you will to figure it
out yourselves. If there is an emergency, you know how to get ahold of me.
There should be plenty of money in the account, but I will try to keep an eye
on it so it doesn’t get too low. Hang in there and stay out of trouble. Both of
you lay low and don’t get involved in anything. We won’t be able to talk again
until this is all over, but we are thinking about you both. Brian sends his
love and prayers. Take care of yourselves and each other.
Good luck!
Kevin
Next was a blue
checkbook. I opened it up and did a double take. Cute, Kevin. He had Nick’s
alias on top with mine underneath. Then a fake address underneath. I didn’t
even think to check if the addresses on our licenses were the same. We had some
serious figuring out to do. This was going to be interesting.
“How did he do that?“
Nick pointed to our names on the checks. Normally checks had to be sent away
for and they took about a week to get made.
“The man’s been pulling
strings like you wouldn’t believe.” I opened the register and my jaw hit the
floor. “We’re loaded!” I exclaimed.
Nick snickered, not fazed
by the zeros. “Dork.”
“Shuddup. Um...about the
laying low part...” I fidgeted, unsure of how to finish what I was aiming at.
“Hell no, we’re going
to have some fun with this!” Nick gave me that knowing look.
I returned the look. He
had a mischievous glint in his eye and I am sure mine wasn’t any different.
This was definitely going to be interesting...
***
