Chapter Nine - Fast Car
Since Roxy's month and a half long undercover operation took longer than anticipated. She reflected on the hard job as she, under an alias, flew on a commercial flight back to England. As Roxy's plan reached its high altitude, she started to feel a little less than sick to her stomach. Her hands squeezed the life out of her chair arms. The old lady sitting next to her looked at her with concern. She handed Roxy a barf bag, to which the Kingsman agent shook her head with a smile. Roxy wasn't ever squeamish during flights, nor was she one to take help unless she really needed it.
Twenty minutes later, after Roxy used up both the kind old lady's barf bag and her own, the flight attendant leaned over to her.
"Ma'am," the middle-aged stewardess began, "you better head to a doctor right when we land."
It was pretty clear now, that Roxy must've caught a sickness of some sort.
"Which one? The 3rd, 10th, 11th, or 12th?" Roxy joked, referencing one of her country's most popular shows, despite her uneasy health.
The stewardess smiled, then Roxy nodded reassuringly, letting her know the doctor was in her plans. Even if it wasn't the time traveling one.
Roxy ended up at the doctors' office of a family friend she hadn't seen in a long time. She figured that if she had to go to an office, she'd much rather go to someone she knew. She really couldn't stand doctors offices or doctors, or nurses.
Sitting down in the waiting room for the doctor, she felt like she was waiting on her impending doom. Why hadn't she become a doctor? Or married one by now to get out of going to the doctor. She always felt awkward, scared even, sitting in the waiting rooms. It was somehow much harder, to tell the truth to a professional health consultant and let them help you than it was to stitch up one's own wounds and grit your teeth through the pain.
Her calling Eggsy while waiting made the whole ordeal tolerable. It was even an enjoyable ordeal when he picked up.
"Your dog is picking on JB again." The young man on the other end of the line said first thing.
Roxy smiled. She could tell by his voice that he was smiling. "Well, I better have my dog put down than. Oh, wait... I already tried that. It was a blank wasn't it?" She teased.
"I'll never live that down will I?"
"Eggsy, there are many things you'll never live down."
"But in all seriousness, your dog is bullying JB again. My mom's been calling about it. She keeps telling me to take care of it."
"Maybe you should."
"What?"
"Hire a dog sitter for JB and let my wonderful dog stay with your mom. We both know your little sister isn't in love with your dog, it's mine."
Eggsy shook his head, then took in a large breath, and he sighed. But the good, positive kind of sigh. He really needed to hear her voice right now. And she could tell.
"What's up Eggsy?"
"Just work. It's a pain when things fall through. We had- actually I'd rather not burden you with the details. Let's just say it's been a long few weeks..."
"I bet. Your op, It's not supposed to be easy."
"Neither was yours. I mean I should have it down by now. My op's taking far longer than we anticipated or wanted. I'm just frustrated at myself. There are things I should've done, that could've made things turn out differently. But that's just life, and operations. They're just as unstable as our dogs' relationship."
Roxy chuckled at his joke, then she sighed. "You're too hard on yourself you know? Someday you're going to run yourself into the ground trying to prove something. You've nothing to prove Eggs. Your mother and sister will always be proud of you. You must know that you'll never be able to taint my pride in you either. No matter what you do. Unless you cheat on me. That's a different story."
"A story you will never hear." Eggsy assured her. "But thanks. I'll try not to run myself into the ground."
A little kid near Roxy sneezed loudly into his mother's jacket. To which Roxy shuttered. She couldn't stand sickness.
"What was that?" Eggsy asked.
"It's just a kid at the doctors' office."
"You're at a doctors office. Are you okay?"
"It's nothing," Roxy said into her phone, to Eggsy on the other end.
"Roxy. If you're in a doctors office as we speak, it's not nothing."
"But it is Eggs. It's just- I got..." she sighed, "I can't believe I'm telling you this... Well, I got plane sick. Or air sick. I'm not sure what they call it. But yeah..."
Eggsy began laughing. "Alright. Alright. I mean I know that you don't normally get queasy very easy, but... I'll stop laughing now actually. If you feel like you should be there. You should be there. You sure you're okay? We're still on for lunch first thing tomorrow?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. And yes, we're still on. I just don't see why we couldn't go out tonight. I want to see you already. It's been too long."
"I'm working Rox. You know that." His voice aimed disappointment at his job for but a moment.
"True. You're a good enough of a spy to sneak off and get back in time... But in that case, I'm going to check into work tonight. Have a cuppa with Arthur, debrief..."
Roxy noticed the noise in the background of Eggsy getting louder. His breathing quickened too. She knew what followed.
"Rox. Sorry I've gotta go. Talk to you tomorrow, yeah?" Eggsy hung up and rushed back to his mission. He was still dressed in his red velvet suit. Gering back up to get to work after his much-needed break.
During her check-up, Dr. Henwitch said that nothing was wrong, per say. So the doctor went out on a whim and had a test run. The results were conclusive. They were also shocking.
"You really are sure Dr. Henwitch?
"100 percent, love. I'm sorry-"
"No don't be sorry. This isn't something to be sorry for. I'm not dying. Nothing's wrong... it's just so unexpected." Roxy shook her head at nothing in particular. "I'm pregnant?" She said more to herself than to anyone else.
"Yes dear. You are."
Roxy almost wondered how this happened. Then she immediately found herself strapped to a medical bed in the white room of Radcliffe's enormous underground basement. The artificial insemination Roxy thought she had thwarted, had actually occurred. It must have been while she was sleeping. She couldn't recall when it had happened, but she knew that it did.
"Damn Radcliffe," she uttered under her breath.
"I've a phone if you need to call someone."
"No. I'm fine. Or should I start saying we're fine?" Roxy smiled uneasily.
Dr. Henwitch reached out a hand to place on Roxy's. Roxy was thankful at this act of comfort. Because although Roxy was a world class spy, an Oxford graduate, and a very well off young woman, this pregnancy scared her beyond belief. What this meant for only Roxy, paled in comparison to what it meant for Roxy and Eggsy. Both separately and together.
"I have an Obstetrician/gynecologist you might want to see. You're only about, I don't know... two months in. But it'd be good for you to go see him." The Doctor handed her a card. "Also, congratulations. Whether or not you realize it. You're a mother now. Whatever you do from here on out is your decision."
"Oh, I'm keeping this baby," Roxy said quickly. Though after she said it, she realized how quick she was to say it. There was never any way she'd say no to a child, even if it wasn't the child of someone she loved dearly. She knew how precious a life was, regardless of its circumstance for arriving. Roxy placed a hand over her belly and she smiled. Though the heartbeat wasn't yet there, she knew that she and Eggsy's child was. There could be no other father, Radcliffe was obsessed with mixing hers and Eggsy's DNA. That bizarre thought comforted her, somehow.
Roxy thanked Dr. Henwitch and went to the nearest Off License store to pick up two Cigars. One for her and one for Eggsy. She really didn't know how he would take it. She didn't really know how she would take it thinking on it. What would she do? Would Kingsman be understanding? How would it reflect on her as an agent and the first female agent? How would her mentor look on at her? As she handed the cashier the most expensive cigars she could find, she pondered on how she'd fare as a mother.
This thought shocked and scared her the most. It compelled to bolt out the door once she bought her tobacco. She held her tears until she had gotten into a cab. She had it take her to her parents grave.
She stood looking down at the dark and bleak headstones. The slabs of rock where she rested her head, while she was growing up. The grass that was watered by her tears over the years. The names chiseled into the stone.
She sat back to back with her father and mother's shared tombstone. A large one at that. She let a few more rare tears slide down her face.
"What a way to spend a day off, right Father?" Roxy chuckled through her watery eyes. "I'm not saying I'm not glad for it. It's just that, I don't think I can do this. I'm so glad, so excited to be waiting on a human being that's my child. My own kid, who's growing inside me as I speak... But I'm terrified. I'm terrified I'll end up like her. I know I can be different. But how can I without you? You alway said you'd be there. And you're not."
Roxy let the tears fall, as she continued on speaking to someone she hadn't spoken aloud to in years. Despite him being dead. After she realized that all these years her mother was so close by, she decided to talk aloud to her too. She yelled a lot and cried even more. Ultimately she forgives her. Although she was long gone, she forgave her mother and was able to let a part of herself move on.
Roxanne Morton waved at the taxi driver to wake him up. He was sitting there for a good three hours. He ruffled his hair and blinked his eyes a few, as Roxy gave him directions to the Kingsman storefront.
Feeling around the back seat she picked up her phone. She still felt like she wasn't complete. Roxy still hadn't called Eggsy, perhaps she was subconsciously procrastinating. She rung him four times before giving up. Then she decided to call Percival. Who answered promptly.
"Darling!" Percival greeted warmly, "it's a beautiful day isn't it?"
This was code for 'I'm not actually able to talk to you normally at the moment for I'm using our phone call for another purpose'.
To which Roxy responded, "hmm. Yes. Lovely indeed. Though the weather in England always is lovely and gloomy. Though I doubt you're in England. I won't be needing your umbrella by the way." The umbrella was code for urgent help.
"Delightful." He then laughed at nothing. "Yes. I do think blue is your color darling." Which was code for go on.
"Uncle, I have to tell you something. Let's say monumental."
"I think green is your color too. Don't ever limit yourself."
Roxy hesitated. This was harder than she thought. "Uncle I'm... I'm pregnant. I just thought you should know."
"Wait- what?!" Perceval said breaking his cover voice. "Where's the boy? I'm going to kill him, and get him-"
"Stop. Uncle- it's not his fault."
"It most certainly is!" Perceval shouted.
"It was the operation. Radcliffe. You read my report. I didn't leave out anything. Except for how long I was out. There's really no telling. It's definitely possible they inseminated me while I was out. It lines up two. I'm about two months in."
"By Jove! I don't know what to tell you, dear. I mean-"
"You could congratulate yourself. You're going to be an uncle again."
"You're right. I guess you're right. As soon as I get back we're having dinner. You, me and the boy."
"He has a name Uncle."
"He does dosen't he?" Percival joked, "I should actually congratulate you then. Congratulations. Take care now, and you should probably find your way to a doctor. However hard that is for you."
"You'll be pleased to know, I already went."
"Atta girl. You take care now. Don't do anything drastic till I get back."
"Uncle. You forget you trained me in the arts of drastic."
"Alright. See you later. Cheerio!" Perceval hung up the phone. Just as Roxy's cab entered London.
She checked her phone again, no return calls from Eggsy. She rang him again as they turned down the street that Kingsman tailors lay in.
Just as they turned the corner a loud booming sound screeched through the sky. "Stop the car!" Roxy cried out to the driver, who did as he was told.
The sound grew louder quickly. They sat not four store fronts down and watched as a missile took out Kingsman Tailor's, in a large heap of expositions and smoke and shrapnel and dust.
Roxy sat there in shock till it hit her. "Turn this car around. And drive us fast for Plymouth!"
The taxi driver hit the petrol, and the cab sped through the night as far away from the unprecedented attack on Kingsman. What Roxy had just witnessed forced her into survival mode. She had to face the reality that Kinsman could be exposed. That everyone she knew could be dead or almost there. The new Arthur was most positively dead and there was no doubt that the other base had been assimilated. Kingsman was under attack, and no one was safe.