Chapter 221: A death on the base.
Sunshine looked around, making sure that they had complete privacy. When she was sure they were still alone, she leaned in and said sternly to Elio, "I just said that the prisoner that does not exist truly does not exist. Do not make me out to be a liar. Get rid of him." She hissed the last words out.
Elio waved at his daughter, smiling as he replied, "Carson swears that he has one last move in his torture book. I gave him today as the deadline. He had been at it since morning, and he is not giving up until the day is over. If we don’t get anything useful from him, you will have your ashes by dinner time."
Sunshine closed her eyes briefly. The silence of Augustus worried her, honestly. Was he expecting his friends to rescue him or had he decided to become a martyr for their cause?
The only unknown she wanted in this apocalypse were the watchers. Everything else needed to be within her control.
Tia fell down from a swing and Major Elio rushed away just as she started crying.
Moments later, the Quinn children came running to Hades and Sunshine. Leo was among them, fitting in as if he had grown up with them.
They were all excited, their cheeks flushed with joy. They told Sunshine and Hades all that they had been up to while the couple was inside the church.
"Okay everyone, I have a surprise waiting." Hades announced when they run out of stories. He led the children to the car and the marketplace.
They all stepped out of the vehicle and Hades gestured at them to follow him into the market. They went to the food section, where stalls lined in order, waiting for customers.
All the sellers wanted the presidents to buy from them. However, Hades ignored them as he had reserved a table at a modest stall tucked near the corner. Its wooden sign bore the name of its owner Kate. It was named Grandma Kate’s bistro.
Hades had played a big role in helping to set it up because the old woman lived alone with two of her grandchildren. Her son was one of the builders that worked on the base. He brought her and the children over then returned to wait for his wife that had traveled to see her parents.
He never returned.
So, Hades had moved the old woman to the inner wall and checked on her as often as possible. He ate at her bistro whenever he had time and he always over tipped.
Sunshine arched a brow as they sat down. "Is this your idea of a picnic?"
Hades laughed at her. "How did you know about the picnic?"
"Do you really think that you can keep secrets from me?" She asked him.
He shook his head, "Since you know, then I might as well apologize for the change of plans. The gardens are overpopulated today, and I did not want us to deal with more people bringing their problems to us. Don’t worry, Grandma Kate is a great chef."
The youngest kids were too restless to sit. So, as Ariel and Earl read the menu, Castiel and Leo chased each other around the table.
Grandma Kate served them herself, steaming bills of mutton curry, rice that had a nutty smell, fresh garlic butter bread and salads. The food was indeed delicious and comforting.
After the meal, Sunshine gave Leo a pill and told him to swallow it, claiming that it was a vitamin.
They drove the kids to the gardens so that they could play with other kids. Sunshine and Hades settled on a blanket and prepared to snuggle.
She was planning to get a short nap, resting her head against his chest. But then, her walkie-talkie crackled, and someone called in from the hospital, reporting that they had a dead resident.
Sunshine switched off the walkie-talkie quickly. Hades helped her up and they called the kids. They drove them to Rori’s and rushed to the hospital.
Nurse Hosea who was often seen with nurse Kendall was waiting for them. He took them to the mortuary when the body had been transferred already.
Doctor Melinda, a coroner was waiting for them, eating her lunch in the sterile cool room, unaffected by the body lying on a metal table, covered by a white sheet.
"Who died?" Sunshine asked quickly. "Please don’t tell me that is murder because I am way too exhausted to start playing detective."
Dr. Melinda, a reserved very tall woman with a bob cut and love for privacy put down her sandwich. She looked at the computer and replied, "Emmaline Walters and it is not a murder." She stood up and walked to the table, flipping the upper part of the sheet open to show them the old woman’s face.
Sunshine had seen dead bodies, so she was unaffected. Hades on the other hand flinched and looked away.
"She didn’t wake up from her coma. Her official cause of death is organ failure." Dr. Melinda finished. "Who is claiming the body?"
"No one." Sunshine replied. "Send her to be cremated and keep her ashes in an urn. Maybe someday a family member will claim them."
"No prayers or anything?" Nurse Hosea asked.
Sunshine almost laughed. How many people that died during the eagle attack had last prayers? Those that died in acid rain or when the meteors fell. Many more would starve, and nobody would pray for them. Their bodies would rot by the side of the road and others would be eaten. Emmaline was lucky to be cremated.
She didn’t need to tell them all that anyway.
"Reach out to Father Nicodemus." She told Nurse Hosea.
Hades took her hand, and they left the mortuary. They took a detour and went to check on Nusra and Alfred. Nusra was undergoing surgery to replace her lost limb and Alfred was asleep.
"Suni." Patrick Fawk stopped her in the hallway. "You came to see Alfred. This is great, he has been asking about you since he opened his eyes. He knows what you did to save his life, and he is very grateful to you. We all are."
Sunshine waved her hand. "It was nothing Uncle Patrick."
Patrick shook his head, "Nonsense, it was everything. Do not look down on yourself or make light of your efforts. Not only did you lead us beyond the wall to search for him, but you didn’t hesitate to open the gates and get him even though he showed up with danger on his tail." He sighed. "You are the heroine of our family."
Sunshine laughed. "If you want to thank me, take up an active role on the base. Something HR related where you can listen to the problems...."
"No," he turned her down eagerly. "I will not expose my ears to such torture. Tell me, are you free tonight? Maybe you can come over and stay with Alfred, watch over him for the night. His mom needs a break, and my daughter has a fever."
Hades gritted his jaw. What he heard did not please his ears.
The Fawk family was big, why did they need his wife to watch over Alfred? Where was Nimo? Didn’t they consider the fact that she also needed to rest, and she had her own children to watch over?
No sane husband would agree to this madness!!