Inner Workings

Inner Workings - Part 20

Will sucked in short mouthfuls of air, trying to catch the wind that was knocked out of him. He clutched both hands over his stomach. Had Louis and Massaru felt it? Where they okay? He couldn't feel anything, not even an S.O.S. Flannel Two held him up against the brick wall, the only support Will would get at the moment, trying to catch his breath and think about what to do next, but he could barely hold his torso up, his stomach burning when he tried to stand straight. Oh God, what had they done to Louis and Massaru?

Flannel One got up rubbing his aching head. "We need to get a raise."

"Man you're hard to catch," said the man holding Will up.

"Hey!" called out the bag man, gesturing to Will. "What's all this?"

"None of your business, just move along!"

"What now?" asked Flannel One.

Will's arm shot out, grabbing Flannel Two's crotch in a crunching grip. "You beg."

Faster than the bag man could follow, Will kicked the second man in the chest and landed the first one a punch to the face that laid him out.

"Owwwwwww..." Will fell to his knees, cradling his bruised knuckles and burning arm against his stomach. Suddenly the bag man was at Will's side, the smell making his throat close, setting Massaru's briefcase next to him.

"You going to be alright?"

"After a little ice, yeah." Then Will's eyes widened, his arm tightening around his stomach. A flutter from inside. He quickly got the stethoscope out of Massaru's suitcase, not caring if the smelly bag man saw, and put it on, pressing the circle against his stomach.

"Louis? Massaru? Around you guys okay? Speak to me."

It took a few moments to hear Louis through the churning of his insides and his heartbeat.

"Massaru was out for a while," said Louis, breathless and strained. "We'll be fine as long as you try not to pull a stunt like that again."

Will sighed and nodded. "Got it."

The bag man was silent as Will used the dumpster to get himself to his feet, still slightly crouched over, and then searched his attacker's pockets. He found one small wallet and took the man's ID, but left the money. Picking up the suitcase, he faced the bag man.

"Sorry for the disturbance."

The bag man watched Will leave and then shook his head. "Talking to his gut. And they call me crazy." He picked up the rest of his spilled bags and grabbed his box. "C'mon my pretties, we got a dress to make."

***

Cetz hovered over Grant's shoulder, scanning the codes flying by on the wall screen. A Comp Tech had come in earlier and moved all of Grant's empty slushie cups to the recycle bin, leaving the Head Tech's office cleaner, if not less cluttered. The rotating stairs with the walking slinky still slinked, and Grant still typed away.

"Can't you trace Sandra's location?"

"Nope," said Grant grimly. "Aside from her access to Watch Financial, she doesn't have any online presence. And even that is through a scrambler which is making it hard to see where she's coming from. She's probably using cash only and payphones. I can't track wallets from a computer."

"So we have to wait until she tries to access the Watch Network again."

"Yep, and hope she stays on long enough for us to get a trace."

Cetz noticed the tired look in Grant's eyes. "When are you going to take another break?"

"After we catch her. I like Will. People don't get to blow up people I like."