Back at the safehouse
Saturday, 1:00 A.M.
Hit Girl had been shot, four times!
Twice in the right thigh and twice into her right side. Both bullets were still embedded in her thigh, but the other two had gone straight through. The shooter had been firing an H&K MP7 with rounds that were able to pierce Hit Girl's armour. We needed a doctor, but couldn't take Hit Girl to the hospital. Currently she was laid out on one of the couches, in the briefing room and she was in considerable pain.
"I'll call my Mom; it'd be safest!" Chloe suggested. "I'll get the little shit to tell her where to go!"
"You hope that keeping our masks on will help?" I asked, unconvinced.
"We can try. Abby and Marty can go upstairs and stay out of the way. Hopefully she won't recognise any of us!" Chloe said, hopefully.
"Hopefully!" I replied, not convinced at all.
Chloe called home.
It was late, well early, so I din't know what Dr Bennett would say. I could hear Chloe on the phone.
"Look you little bastard, get my Mom here now or I'll break your scrawny little neck and you fucking know I can and will!"
"A little harsh, Shadow!" I commented, when she had hung up.
"The little fuck deserved it!"
About five minutes or so later, Chloe's cell buzzed with a text message.
"They are on their way," Chloe said, apprehensively.
"What the hell are you getting me into Curtis. I get mugged, I'll kill you!" I said to the boy, sitting beside me.
"They need your help. It's Kick-Ass and Hit Girl. Somebody's wounded, that's all I know," Curtis replied. "They know me, never mind how!"
The area was very dark and looked like the ideal place for a mugging or even a murder! I double checked that all the doors were locked! How the hell was Curtis involved, with those vigilantes? I have a bad feeling about this!
Curtis told me to stop beside a steel mesh gate.
He then sent a text and seconds later the gate opened, followed by the main garage door of the building, inside the compound. I drove into the darkened building and saw the mesh gate and garage door, closing behind me. This filled me with a sense of foreboding! I stopped my Jeep SUV beside two large SUVs, that I recognised as a Range Rover and an LR4.
As the garage door closed behind me, the lights came on inside the building and I saw two menacing looking people standing in front of me. The taller one, I thought must be Kick-Ass, but I wasn't too sure about the much shorter one, although I was starting to get an idea!
..._...
I turned off the ignition and got out, seeing Curtis climb out his side and walk over towards the shorter vigilante.
"You must be Kick-Ass! Where is the wounded person?" I asked, getting straight down to business. I was concerned, I didn't feel like my life was at risk, but I was cautious.
"This way, Doc!" Kick-Ass snarled.
Kick-Ass took me across a training mat, towards a large, two storey, brick structure and a door to the left hand side. Through the door I found a room, that looked like a combined command centre and briefing room. On the couch lay a young woman, in a black armoured suit, with purple flashes.
"You must be Hit Girl!" I said, kneeling down beside her.
I could see hastily applied field dressings, on her right thigh and right side.
"Curtis, get my case from the Jeep," I ordered, then looked up at Kick-Ass. "Tell me what happened!"
"She has two bullet's embedded in her thigh and two bullet wounds to her side," Kick-Ass said.
Curtis appeared lugging my medical case. I opened it and put on some gloves, before probing Hit Girl's wounds. She screamed at each touch.
"Calm down Hit Girl... Or should I say Mindy!" I said, feeling sure I was correct.
"What?" Kick-Ass and the short vigilante said, together.
"I am not that naive, Dave and I am also very sure that the short-ass ninja, over there, is my daughter!" I said, conversationally.
"Oh fuck!" Shadow said, not too quietly.
"I heard that, young lady!" I said, with a smirk, as my daughter appeared from under her mask.
"Hi Mom!" Chloe said, apprehensively, looking a little shy.
"We'll talk later, midget ninja!" I said, turning back to Mindy.
"Can you get the bullets out?" A now unmasked, Dave asked.
"I can. We need to get the suit off her. Can I use the table?" I asked, it looked sturdy enough to hold Mindy's weight.
"Yes. Chloe clear the table," Dave said, and started to pull off Mindy's combat suit, very carefully, starting with the mask.
Ten minutes later Mindy was lying on the table, which was covered with a white bed sheet.
She was in nothing but her underwear and Chloe was holding her hand, to reassure her, as Mindy kept passing out with the pain.
Dr Bennett cleaned the area around the wounds and injected some local aesthetic, around the thigh wounds. The upper wounds were okay for now, the important wounds were the thigh ones, with the embedded bullets.
..._...
Forty minutes later, Dr Bennett stood back from the table and pulled off her bloody gloves.
"All done! I've removed the two bullets, closed up the wounds and dressed them," Dr Bennett said. "I would recommend getting Mindy to bed."
"I'll get her upstairs right now," I said, picking Mindy up; she was currently passed out. "Come and help me Chloe."
I carried Mindy upstairs and Chloe helped me tuck her into bed.
..._...
I went back downstairs.
"Thank you Dr Bennett, for all your help," I said.
"No problem, I like to help. Any chance of a coffee?" Dr Bennett asked.
"Upstairs," I said, leading the way.
"You know Abby and this is Marty," I said, as we entered the kitchen, where Abby, Curtis and Marty were sitting at the table.
"Hello Abby, Marty," Dr Bennett said, holding out her hand, which Marty shook. "Nice little safehouse you have here!"
"Thanks," I said, smiling and poured a coffee for Dr Bennett.
"So," Dr Bennett said slowly, looking directly at Chloe, who visibly shrank into her chair. "My thirteen year-old, vigilante daughter, has been running around the streets, killing people!"
"I won't insult you, by denying it. But she only kills in self-defence or in the defence of others," I said quickly. "Chloe is a fully trusted member of our team. She has proved her worth and her courage, way beyond her years. Very few people know mine and Mindy's story, but Chloe is one of them, because we trust her and she is part of our inner-circle. Mindy and I trust her, with our lives."
"It's okay Dave. I've killed people in my life and sometimes it has to be done. I had a feeling that Chloe was up to something, once we moved to Chicago. The pretence of staying with Abby was a good try! When did she join you two?" Dr Bennett asked.
"Towards the end of January. We came across Chloe, when she helped us one evening," I replied. "She got herself shot!"
"I was wearing your old vest, so I was okay, but a little bruised and I was also knocked unconscious," Chloe said, shyly.
"At least you were thinking, when you went out! I assume you are all wearing proper body armour?" Dr Bennett asked, looking closely at Chloe's combat suit. "Type II?"
"Yes," I replied, a little surprised. "Type IIA. My combat suit is heavier, Type III."
"I have fifteen years of service in the Navy, as a Doctor, Dave. I went into hostile areas, several times and had numerous opportunities to rely on my body armour, giving me the chance to return the favour," Dr Bennett replied, darkly.
"How many..." Chloe started.
"I won't ask about your body count, if you don't ask about mine, young lady!" Dr Bennett said, meaningfully.
"Mindy has been doing this for over a decade and knows what she is about and how to keep the team as safe as possible," I said.
"That's obvious, I can see that. I know what you do is dangerous and injuries will happen and no, I won't stop you Chloe... Unless your school work starts to slip!" Dr Bennett said.
..._...
"I am a bit surprised to hear that, Dr Bennett," I said, honestly.
"There was a bit of trouble, when Chloe's father and I were young. We were both packed off to join the Navy, but we met up again at College; we were both sponsored by the Navy. That was when Ryan and I got together properly, he had this great Ford P.O.S. and the back seat was very useful!" Dr Bennett said, reminiscing, with a smile.
"Ugh! Yuck!" Both Chloe and Curtis exclaimed.
"Don't complain Chloe; you were conceived on the back seat of a US Navy sedan!" Dr Bennett said, with an evil smirk.
"Mom! Gross!" Chloe exclaimed and Curtis sniggered, which earned him a hard punch to the arm. "I don't want to hear about you and Dad... Ugh!"
"I thought you always wanted a little brother?" Dr Bennett teased.
"I've seen Curtis, no thanks!" Chloe replied, grimacing.
"Hey!" Curtis exclaimed, indignantly.
"The next problem will be explaining this to your father, Chloe!" Dr Bennett said.
"You can't!" Chloe exclaimed.
"I can't hide this from your father... Besides things slip when we're in the sack together!" Dr Bennett said laughing and Chloe went bright red.
"He'll ground me till I'm ninety-five!" Chloe groaned.
"We'll see, dear. When did the little guy get involved?" Dr Bennett asked, looking at Curtis.
"Less of the little!" Curtis groused.
"The little fuc... The annoying rat followed me here!" Chloe explained. "Abby tracked me a while ago, too. She never goes out, but helps Marty with the technical and comms side."
"You are very high-tech here; I'm genuinely impressed!" Dr Bennett said. "So, I suppose I am now the official medical support for Fusion!"
"Only if you want to be. We can't force you," I said, hopefully.
"Considering that my only daughter is running around Chicago, shooting people with an FN Five-seveN, I will need to provide what assistance I can!" Dr Bennett proclaimed, with a smile.
Dr Bennett left, with Curtis, to head home.
The Doctor recommended that we keep Mindy resting, for at least a week, to allow the wounds to begin healing. Dr Bennett had also commented on the healing wound, on Mindy's left arm. I said it was from a crossbow bolt three weeks ago and that a paramedic had fixed the wound up, at the time.
Chloe was allowed to stay, to help with Mindy. I left things till after six in the morning, before I carefully placed Mindy, into the back of the SUV, with Chloe. Marty would take Abby home and see us later at the house. I drove home slowly, so I didn't hurt Mindy, who was still out, thanks to the drugs that Dr Bennett had given her to help her sleep and to deaden the pain.
I was really worried about Mindy. Her young body had taken a lot of punishment over the past few weeks and I was very worried that her body may not be able to take much more stress, at least for now. Mindy would also be pissed, as she had been wearing the new top for her combat suit! I suppose the large amount of cash that we seized tonight, would pay for a new suit, easily!
Once we were home, I carried Mindy upstairs and Chloe helped me get her into bed. We then both went to get showers and go to bed ourselves, as we were both very tired. Before she went for her shower, Chloe gave me a hug and told me that Mindy would be okay. Chloe was a very caring and perceptive young lady.