Chapter 3: Old Wounds, Part 2
We'd fallen into a comfortable silence, but being a blind guy, I didn't have many other options. Piper flipped another page of the newspaper, having finished her cup of coffee long before I did. I'd run out of things to talk about, and fiddling with my cane I turned to her.
"I'm clearly enthralling company if you're choosing to read the paper—sorry about that." Piper laughed quietly, and a rustle of paper sounded again.
"Would you like me to read it to you?" she asked, and I shrugged.
"As much as I enjoy your lovely voice, I think I'd like to try it on my own," There was a moment of silence, and I drummed my fingers on the table.
"Still there?" I asked, trying to keep my voice playful. Piper let out a small chuckle.
"I'm not sure that the obituaries make for a very interesting read but you're more than welcome to try. These are probably the most predictable articles, so picking things out might not be too difficult" She replied offhandedly. Sliding the paper towards me, I took it with eager hands—only to see a gray blob in front of my face. I practically had to eat it to try and make out what I thought was the date. Frustration bubbled in the pit of my stomach and I grit my teeth. Putting the paper down I took a deep breath.
"That's alright." Piper said kindly. "This is going to be a slow process, but you really have been doing well." Suddenly, Piper had moved from her spot across from me to the seat on my left. She placed a gentle hand on my shoulder. "What are we looking for?" she her tone bright.
"An old friend," I answered simply.
"Name?"
"Jai Wilcox."
There was a beat before Piper could find his name. She started to read the homage that was created by Langley, her voice fading into the background as I began to remember old ghosts. Ghosts that weren't dead. I was being haunted as recently as last night.
It was the thud of boots across the floor that startled me. Combat boots, thick and heavy, starkly different to the sharp, clipped sounds of nurses shoes that I'd become so accustomed to. Visiting hours were long over, and as the sound grew louder, my mind whirled with the possibilities of whom it could be. My instincts kicked in. My hand darted beneath my pillow and pulled out the gun. I held firm, pointing the gun in the direction of the door, the knob sounding quietly as it turned.
"Who's there?" I growled.
"People don't usually check themselves into hospitals voluntarily Auggie. Were things worse than what I was hearing?" Her tone was warm, oddly so for someone with such a thick, Russian accent. It could only be Natasha.
"As far as I know, everything went fine. Another nice gold star on my homework before I left." I answered wryly, placing the gun carefully back under my pillow. "Why have you come out of hiding? What have you heard?"
Natasha sighed.
"You know how this began. We were on our government-sanctioned honeymoon to Russia—"
"Who honeymoons in Russia?" I mused. Someone really needed to talk to the people that set up our covers.
"—with our lovely tour guide, Dominika. She was the one who witnessed our fights, and it wasn't long before she was consoling you through our many arguments—"
"While you were back at her apartment trying to find blackmail, to make her our newest asset." I finished.
"It would have worked if you both hadn't come back to her apartment!"
"It would have worked if you could improvise!" I retorted, bristling.
"This should make it up to you darling," As she went for my surprise, she asked, "Do you remember our chef on that trip?"
Who knew Natasha could cook? Keep reading to see how this meeting unfolds! This is short, but we hope you enjoyed it! Next part should come soon! Comments and questions are always appreciated!
Beth-Geek Chick: Thanks so much for your question! Initially, we weren't sure if we wanted to let readers know who Piper was—wanting you all to be as surprised as Auggie would be! We originally wanted the readers to discover things at Auggie's pace, but we decided it was much too difficult to write for a faceless person that would end up being so close with Auggie. We wanted to let you in on Annie's view of her mission, and she calls herself Piper to distance herself from Auggie and vice-versa so that she is able to remain free of emotional entanglements while she's got a job to do—though with someone as charming as Auggie, that's proving to be difficult! Hope that helps!