AN: A little useless fact here: one of the minor characters in this chapter, Larry, was based on one of my friends from high school. She had this psychological issue in which, if the stories she told me were true, her step-father would tell her that she wouldn't do good in college because she wasn't smart enough or something like that, so she combated it by acting like the ultimate expert on every topic known to man. (Once we went to an amusement park, and she starts talking with this guy about the mechanical details of the ride we were on.) Like Larry, she'd talk non-stop about some random thing, which usually sounded completely bogus and untrue, while I just sat there listening and nodding every-so-often.
A group of children were outside the Beginnings Nursery School, spending the day out on the playground and enjoying the warm, sunny morning. Among them was Sammy, who was currently on line for the brightly colored toddler slide. After his turn came around and he had slid down the plastic slope, Sammy started to run back to the end of the line. Just as he started off, he heard someone calling his name. Looking over at the fence that bordered the playground, Sammy saw a young girl with blonde hair waving over at him, glancing over at the staff member currently watching the kids play, checking to see if she was distracted. When she was sure no one was looking, the girl beckoned Sammy over. The little boy blinked warily at her for a moment and gave a brief glance at his playmates before slowly walking over.
"Hello, Sammy," the smiling woman spoke when Sammy was close enough to talk with. "Are you having fun?"
"James said not to talk to strangers," Sammy announced in a matter-of-fact tone, his eyes never leaving Hannah's face.
"Oh, he did, did he?" Hannah continued smiling. "That's very good advice, but you can talk to me. I'm not a stranger. I've known you since you were a baby."
"Really?" Sammy slightly cocked his head, as if trying to evaluate Hannah.
"That's right," Hannah confirmed. "How else would I know your name, or that your birthday is May 8th?" Sammy couldn't think of anything to argue with there, and he took a few steps closer.
"Say, Sammy," Hannah went on. "I know of this nice little ice cream shop not too far from here. Would you like me to take you there?" In response, Sammy took a step backwards, shaking his head. "You don't?" Hannah spoke in an unbelieving voice. "Don't you like ice cream?"
"James says I'm s'posed to stay here, unless he, Penny, or Mrs. Cohen come to get me."
"It'll be okay," Hannah assured him. "It'll just be for a little while. Come on, Sammy. I'll buy you a big hot fudge sundae, with your favorite flavor."
"With rainbow sprinkles?" Sammy asked hopefully.
"That's right," Hannah grinned. "Come on, what do you say?" For a moment, Sammy cautiously approached Hannah, who smiled in triumph and reached in to open the gate from the inside. At that moment, the staff member, deciding it was time to go back inside, called the children over. Before Hannah could say anything to stop him, Sammy had obediently turned and hurried back to the group. From the gate, Hannah stood for a moment, watching Sammy go back inside, and then she turned and walked off.
Inside one of the administrative rooms in the New York Downtown Hospital, Penny was at work measuring out medications and counting out the correct pills for the patients up on the third floor, double checking the hospital's medical sheets to see if she was doing the job correctly.
"Hey, Penny!" Upon hearing her name, Penny turned to the door to see Rachel standing there. "I was just about to head down to storage." Rachel explained. "I wondered if I could get you something while I was down there."
"Um," Penny glanced over the medicine bottles that were arranged on the cabinets in front of her before replying. "Actually, if you could bring me back some more Ribavirin? I'm just about out up here, and Mr. Matlin is almost due for his dose."
"Right," Rachel nodded. "Hang tight, I'll be back in a moment."
Rachel made her way down the hospital corridors to the storage room. Inside, she started to go through the cabinets filled with various medications, taking down some pill and vaccination bottles.
"And some Ribavirin for Penny," Rachel spoke to herself upon selecting the correct container of pills. As she closed and locked the supply cabinet, through the corner of her eye, she saw a person with blonde hair run by the open door. Turning quickly, Rachel stepped out into the hall to see who it was, but when she stuck her head out of the room, there was no one in sight.
"Hello?" Rachel called out to the empty hallway. "If someone's there, this hall is for hospital staff only." When no reply was given, she started to feel a little uneasy. She'd always been a murder mystery/crime show fan, and she'd seen enough of them to know that this was the part where the hapless victim was done in. Her senses on high alert for any indications of someone other then herself being down there who might jump out any second, Rachel quickly made her way to the elevator, making a mental note to check with administration to see if anyone else had been down there.
Unknown to Rachel, a short distance from the supply room, there was an open cardboard box that hadn't been there earlier. Inside the box was an assortment of crumpled newspapers and old t-shirts soaked in kerosene. Ever so slowly, the newspapers started to smoke until, as fast as a switch turning on the lights in a dark room, the box's contents burst into flame.
Somewhere across town, Mark and some of his coworkers from Redefining Pictures were setting up for a documentary on the city's wildlife, more notably the pigeon. As he worked, Mark listened to another one of the cameramen, Larry, who was an avid birdwatcher.
"You know how most people immediately think of the rock pigeon when someone mentions the word 'pigeon'," Larry was saying, "but the truth is, if my counting skills are correct, there are 310 different species of pigeon in the world, and that's if you exclude the extinct species."
"Mmm," Mark nodded, for the sake of being polite. It wasn't as if he disliked Larry, but there were times where he would talk your ear off, and all you could do was to just nod and smile a lot.
As Larry was about to start explaining what his favorite species of pigeon was, another one of Mark's coworkers, Simon, hurried over with a portable radio, looking extremely stressed out about something.
"Mark!" Simon cried. "You gotta listen to this!"
"What is it?" Mark turned to Simon, relieved of the distraction from Larry's ramblings.
"I was just fiddling with the radio here to catch some of the news program," Simon explained, looking very pale. "Listen." Mark glanced down at the radio to listen to the broadcast, wondering what had gotten Simon so upset.
"The latest word is that the fire at the New York Downtown Hospital is under control, and the building is being searched for any personnel or residents who weren't able to make it outside during the conflagration. Investigations are already underway as to what started the fire, although according to the reports of one nurse, who refused to disclose her name…." Almost immediately, Mark felt his heart stop. The Downtown Hospital was where Penny worked.
"Guys, I…" Mark started to speak, his voice horribly strained from worry.
"Don't say a word, just get down there!" Larry interrupted, knowing what he was going to say. "Family's much more important then this. We'll cover for you down here."
"Thanks, guys," Mark replied before hurrying toward his bike, which had been parked nearby. Within moments, he was pedaling towards the hospital, with his legs moving as quickly as he could manage and his mind swamped with worry. Was Penny okay? Did Emily hear about the fire, too? If she did, was she, at this very moment, trying to call him at work?
At an intersection, Mark had to stop his bike on account of the traffic blocking his path. Impatiently, he began tapping his open palm on the handlebar of his bike, waiting for the right of way, anxiety starting to make his scalp itch.
"Mark!" a voice cried suddenly from the street. "Mark, over here!" Turning to his left, Mark saw James sitting in his taxi cab.
"James," Mark breathed, practically leaping for the open window of the cab. "Penny…."
"I know," James imputed, his face mirroring Mark's intense worry. "I already heard. Get in the back, I can get you there faster then that bike can."
"Thanks," Mark hurried into the back of the cab, pulling the bike in with him. "I'll pay the fare…"
"Forget the fare," James spoke urgently as he drove on. "If my boss gives me grief about giving you a free ride, then I'll just tell him to take it out of my paycheck."