After the intense noise of the explosion, the silence was eerie. He lay in the stillness, numb with shock, and listened to the nothing around him. And found it was not as silent as he had first thought. There was a thin wailing, ringing sound and it was making his head swim.
And then more sounds began to gradually creep in. There was a hissing and splashing of water spraying from somewhere. There was the crunching rumble of masonry settling and then there was a gentle groaning.
It was close. He moved his head and instantly what he could make of the dim world span about him. With a gasp, he tried to reach up to clutch at his head and found to his horror that he could not move. And then there came the slow realisation that something was on top of him.
Flexing the fingers of one hand and relieved to find that one arm was free and moveable, he reached up and touched whatever covered him. And his stomach turned. It seemed to be not so much of a 'what' as a 'who'. Reaching round the body, he discovered that it was lying diagonally across him and he groaned as he turned his head and his cheek brushed against damp hair.
The body had to be moved. It was restricting his breathing and adrenaline was building as he realised that he could not now lie here and be suffocated after having survived what had just happened.
But what had happened? Blurred memories of an explosion began to surface and his heart was racing. There was something important he had been doing and he needed to get back to it.
Wriggling part way out from under the body took all his strength and he had to pause to catch his breath. And then panic gave him a sudden burst of energy and he let out an angry yell as he pressed both hands against the torso that covered him and rolled the body away.
And now he was suddenly getting soaked by the water that poured from the ceiling. Drops banged against his head painfully and splattered into his eyes. Turning away from the spray and rolling slowly onto his side, he lay still for a moment and tried to quell the nausea that moving had caused.
The notion that he needed to get clear of this place then occurred to him and he pushed himself upright, hissing in protest as pain gathered in his head and threatened to form another explosion.
He took a moment to calm his breathing and the pain faded to a dull ache that seemed to stay in the background as long as he didn't make any sudden moves. Blinking his eyes open, he took in his surroundings. It was a mess. Rubble and furniture were scattered through the barely recognisable lobby, drenched with water from the ruptured pipes that hung down from the split ceiling.
A grinding sound then began from somewhere behind him and he turned to see part of the shattered plaster of the lobby wall crumble to the floor. That was enough. Deciding it was time to get out of there, he rolled onto his knees and paused with new dizziness.
Then the groan came again and he suddenly remembered the others. Looking around, he could now make out various bodies amid the debris and he frowned in concern. Then he looked behind him and saw the person that had been lying on him and his heart sank.
Crawling closer, he saw the young man's chest rising and falling slowly. And with one breath came another moan. He reached out and rolled the man over onto his back, leaning over him to shield him from the water.
"(You okay?)"
Slowly the man opened his eyes and blinked to try and gain some focus. "What …? What happened …?"
"(I'm sorry. You were never meant to be caught up in this. You were supposed to be clear.)"
And recollection flooded into the young man's face. He cried out in fury and slammed his fist into the older man's temple.
"(I'm sorry!)" The older man sobbed, rolling away from any further attack and clutching at his head. "(I'm sorry, John.)"
"(How do you know my name?)" John demanded angrily, clambering over onto his knees and scrambling after the man. And then he saw the bodies amid the rubble and suddenly remembered. "Henry!"
Clambering over the water soaked debris, John searched for any sign of his colleague, his heart in his throat. And then he found him. With a sob, he fell to his knees beside the body and could see that there was little chance of finding a pulse. But he checked anyway. He had to. For Alex.
Henry was already cold. Perhaps from the water that collected in puddles amid the rubble, his skin was icy and pale and John placed his hand on Henry's shoulder as the first tears fell.
Lifting his head, John could just about make out where the entrance to the bar had once been and he got to his feet. With a sob, he headed into the large room and could see from the blast pattern the focus of the explosion. He looked around at the destruction and shook his head sadly.
John's eyes then fell on a disfigured form lying awkwardly beside the splintered remains of the bar. He stepped a little closer and covered his mouth as he saw the glistening matter splattered over the body. His eyes then moved to the strangely unharmed face and his stomach turned.
John fell to his knees and doubled over, heaving what little he had in his stomach into the waterlogged floor.
"Ustin …"
John lifted his head and wiped his mouth, watching the man staring in dismay at the scene before them. "What did you do?" John husked, climbing to his feet and suddenly flying at the man in fury. He sent them both toppling over and was dazed for a moment. He then rolled onto his knees and leaned over the equally stunned man. "(Who the fuck are you?)"
"Josef." The man covered his face with his arms and recoiled from John. "Josef Svorsky."
John frowned in confusion and sat back on his heels. He shook his head and glared angrily at the man. "(You work for the Hood.)"
"(No.)" Josef sighed, "(Well … yes. I used to.)"
John's frown deepened.
"(I was undercover.)" Josef continued, sitting slowly upright and swaying groggily. "(Trying to destroy him.)"
John snorted a sudden laugh. "(Well, zero points for subtlety.)"
Josef shook his head. "(This was not me.)"
John watched the man for a moment, hardly able to believe that the 'ghost' he had been chasing across Europe was now sitting in front of him.
"(I think this was him … and Red Dawn.)"
"What?" John demanded aghast.
"(And they'll pin it on a group seeking revenge for the destruction of the Ventura test.)"
John stared at Josef in confusion.
"(The Hood is only a small piece of the puzzle, John. A very big puzzle.)"
John nodded slowly, "(I know …)" He peered around them and frowned in concern. "(You think he's under here somewhere?)"
"(I doubt it.)" Josef sighed, "(He would have seen it coming.)"
John spun back to him, his frown growing. "(If you knew, why didn't you stop it?)"
"(Believe me, I tried.)" Josef insisted, "(There was no time.)" He shook his head sadly and then took a deep breath, "(We should leave.)"
John looked around at the devastation and sighed in dismay. "(We should check if anyone else is alive.)"
"(So they can identify us as having survived?)"
John spun back to Josef and held his gaze.
"(We must go.)" Josef urged.
John paused in uncertainty.
"(I am not your enemy.)" Josef stated evenly, "(But you do have many. And they are sure to arrive here soon.)"
John nodded slowly and followed Josef from the building as the first distant sirens could be heard approaching the scene.
XXXXX
The small apartment block was a twenty-minute walk/jog from the hotel and John was exhausted as he stepped inside. He followed Josef up to the third floor and wandered inside.
"(My sister.)" Josef explained, switching on the lights and illuminating the floral lounge. "(She is away.)"
"Sure." John scoffed, remembering how Josef had struggled with the lock pick. He waited in the centre of the room and watched Josef peering at the street below them cautiously before then closing the curtains. "(I need to phone my friends.)"
Josef shook his head.
John groaned and closed his eyes. "(Listen. They'll see what happened … I need to tell them I'm okay. I need - )" He swayed suddenly and his legs began to buckle beneath him.
Josef hurried back and grabbed a wooden chair from the side of the room. He caught John in time and eased him into the chair. "(You need to sit down.)" He suggested lightly.
John managed a thin smile and rested his elbows on his knees, letting his head fall forward with a heavy sigh.
Josef watched him in concern and hurried into the kitchen.
John looked up and saw Josef returning with a bottle of vodka. "(No. No thank you.)" He waved dismissively.
Josef shrugged, "(I wasn't offering you a drink.)" He moved behind him and lifted his jumper.
John frowned and then suddenly flinched as something stung him.
"(Looks like some glass caught you.)" Josef sighed in sympathy.
John reached over his shoulder and his fingers brushed the cuts that Josef had exposed.
"(This might sting.)" Josef cautioned and poured the clear alcohol down John's back, frowning in concern as John hissed in protest.
"Shit!" John husked and bit at his lip.
"(Sorry.)" Josef pressed a towel onto the cuts and peered at the damage in concern. "(I need to clean these.)"
John turned to look at him and frowned warily. He then nodded and leaned forward, clutching his hands together. "(So, Josef – ouch! – who do you work for?)"
"(Myself.)"
John smiled. "(I guess you know I've - ah! - been on your trail.)"
"(Yes)." Josef replied distractedly, carefully cleaning the pattern of gashes that crossed John's shoulder blades.
"(Henry - )" John paused for a moment and closed his eyes. "(My … my friend didn't believe you were real. He said – ow! – you didn't exist.)"
Josef shrugged, "(I don't.)"
John craned his neck to look at Josef and his smile grew.
"(I live under the radar.)" Josef continued, "(Like your family.)"
John frowned, "(But we have an identity. We're not invisible.)"
"(Perhaps this is where you went wrong.)"
John considered this for a moment.
Josef headed from the lounge and returned with a small plastic carton. He crouched beside John and began to cut small sections of dressing strip that he then carefully applied over the wounds. "(There. Finished.)"
John nodded and slid his jumper back down over his torso. He stood and again swayed groggily.
"(Easy!)" Josef grabbed John's arm and steadied him, leading him across to the sofa. He watched in concern as John fell back against the cushions, wincing as the cuts stung sharply. "(I'll make us some coffee.)"
John watched Josef leave and then frowned as he reached into his jeans pocket and found Henry's phone. He stared at the handset and considered his options. With a sigh, he decided that he would take the chance to find out more about Josef and could always phone later.
And then the room span dizzily once more. Frowning in confusion, he had a strangely familiar sensation of grogginess in his head and suddenly he remembered feeling this way before ... hospital ...sedation ...
He looked again at the phone in his hand but his vision was blurring.
Josef wandered back into the room and watched John slump onto his side on the sofa.
"What …?" John husked, fighting to keep his eyes open. "What have you done …?"
Josef sighed and crouched down before him. "I'm sorry, John."
Tbc …