DWINDLING RATINGS
By Minimizer
Chapter 116
"Okay, Kate," said Mark worriedly, "are you absolutely sure this is what you all want to do?"
"Yes, dammit!" I yelled up at him. "They're ready! Just get ready to move, will you? As soon as Lou pulls the grenade away, go for it! And try not to step on us, okay?"
"Of course not, dear," he replied, rolling those giant eyes of his. "Really, now, haven't we been through enough sim adventures together? I'll watch my feet!"
"How about you, Wendy? Are you sure this is what you want?"
"Yes, I'm sure!" she replied emphatically. Alex was holding her in his hand at the moment, cradling her gently. She had the tranquilizer rifle in her arms, with the shoulder strap tightly in place so she didn't accidentally drop the weapon. Really, I thought her embellishment to Sally's plan was pretty damn stupid, but it was Wendy's risk to take. Besides, I did tell her she could get a shot at Lou, didn't I? This was about the only chance she was going to get to pull that off.
The crowd of us got ready along the floor. Despite our obvious fears, everyone looked prepared. If Lou tossed that grenade in our direction, we were all dead. Yet, not one of the people around me wavered for a moment. Not Megan, Cindy, or Sean, who were in effect civilians and shouldn't have been here at all, and certainly not myself or Irene, who were used to this stuff by now. Lieutenant Sullivan, too, was with us, still looking around and up at everything like someone totally inexperienced with miniaturization. "Damn," she muttered under her breath. "I gotta be nuts!"
I nodded, thinking that perhaps I should've stayed with Mark, just as Zara was with Alex now. Although she volunteered, he refused to let her come along. I wonder if maybe he really did love her, as he claimed? She certainly looked appreciative of his protection, and retreated into his pocket without any further complaint.
"Well," I said, forgetting about those two for a moment, "I have to say, this is about the craziest plan I've ever been a part of. I can't see a better solution, though. I hope you're right, Sally."
"Me too," she replied, giving me a quick salute. "Oh, and you can call me Lieutenant now. I guess you've earned it. It's been a pleasure serving with you, Agent McLeary."
I didn't know the first thing about saluting, so I just nodded and smiled instead. "Same to you, Lieutenant. Now let's make this thing happen, shall we?"
"If we're going to do this," muttered Mark from above, "better do it now. I think I hear a maglev car approaching!"
Inside the cage, three tiny men climbed cautiously upward. The eyes of over a dozen other prisoners watched them go, most with fingers crossed or hands clenched in solemn prayer. Above, the black form of a hand grenade loomed, still clutched in Lou's sweaty hand. A few seconds earlier, they all heard him pull the pin, but his fingers were holding down the trigger. If he released the weapon and it fell into the cage, the final result would be devastating.
None of them would survive such an event. Their hopes all lay in the those climbing up the metallic wall at that moment. "You guys all right?" asked Mitch as he made his way across the ceiling one link at a time. "This is just like doing the jungle gym back in grade school."
"Yeah, well, I'm not as in shape as you," muttered Jeff, struggling to make his way across. "Keep your voice down! We don't want him figuring out what we're doing in here."
"Don't worry, he's busy," said Mitch, pulling himself up into the open doorway above. The grenade hung over his head, just a few inches away. Lou's nervous hand motions brought the metallic object down, almost touching him before retreating once again. "See? He's watching something else."
"Help me up, damn it!" Jeff complained as he reached the opening at last. "My arms feel like they're going to fall off!"
Mitch reached down and pulled him up easily. Jeff sat there, shaking his arms to relieve the strain, as they both waited for Ivan to finish his trip to the entrance. "No problem at all," said the Russian. "Now let's do this thing, okay?"
"Not yet," said Jeff, reaching into his pocket. "We have to time this exactly right. If we don't, very bad things will happen."
"Okay," agreed Mitch. "Come on, Ivan, let's get into position. You just let us know, Jeff, and we'll be ready."
Jeff nodded, pulling the tiny pocketknife out and extending the longest blade. He looked up at the monstrous hand hovering just an inch away from his face. For an instant, he felt completely ludicrous, like a man trying to sink a battleship with a pea-shooter. How in the world could he possibly hurt something as big as Lou with an object as tiny as the one he held in his hand? He was a fool--but he didn't have much choice, did he? Either this, or certain death, or a lifetime of imprisonment. Some choice!
Well, it's worth the risk, he decided, gritting his teeth and waiting for just the right moment to strike.
Lou stared across the hallway. Perhaps ten yards away, the last two men who could stop him from achieving total success lurked, afraid to poke their heads around the side. His ploy with the grenade was working, he could tell. Those idiots didn't know what to do, did they? The mercenary was probably here to recover the little prizes--"kewpies," the Colonel called them. The soldier wouldn't endanger what he came here to collect, nor would he risk his own life by rushing out to make an ill-advised attack. The other man was probably a cop who happened to follow Lou surreptitiously. Or maybe he came after the other soldier and wound up here by accident. Whatever--the details hardly mattered. No cop would ever endanger hostages with some kind of rash attack. He'd wait for negotiators to arrive, by which time Lou would be long gone.
Best of all, the instant a maglev car stopped and emptied out behind him, all Lou had to do was toss the grenade to create an instant smokescreen for himself. Before they could recover, he'd be on his way. Now where was that car?
A moment later, he had his answer. A kind of humming sound rose in pitch behind him, and he risked a glance over his shoulder. Sure enough, one of the pod-like vehicles was slowing to a halt just outside the gate. The entrance doors hissed and slid open, letting a weak gust of fresh air into the building through the opening below the car. The vehicle was shaped like a gigantic, hollow medicine capsule, hovering perhaps two feet off the ground underneath its overhead suspension rail. Beneath the contraption sat a gravel surface choked with weeds, beyond which thick grass obscured the rest of the ground.
As Lou waited patiently, the car's doors opened, revealing nothing but an empty chamber beyond. That's it, he thought excitedly. All I have to do is get inside and I'm out of here!
For an instant he contemplated standing up and throwing the grenade, but then he froze in shock. Something was happening on the other side of the corridor--something he never in his life ever expected to see.
As he watched, open-mouthed, six tiny figures charged around the corner, spreading out and heading in his general direction. They were all yelling and waving as if they wanted to get his attention. What was more, he recognized some of them, because he'd seen them before, earlier in the day. Two of them were Sean Riedle and that lovely redheaded Army lieutenant, both of whom were unconscious when they got miniaturized. He didn't know three of the others, but all of them were women. To his greatest surprise, though, the sixth was Kate McLeary--absolutely the last person he ever expected to see at that moment!
"Lou!" Kate was yelling, frantically windmilling her arms around excitedly. Her piping little voice just barely reached his ears. "Hey! Lou! Down here!"
For a second or two, Lou simply froze in total shock. That was the moment when several other things happened all at once--a period of several seconds that seemed to stretch out into eternity.
"Are you absolutely sure you want to do this?" asked Alex worriedly, looking down at Wendy in dismay. "I'm not really trained all that well in this sort of thing. I'm just a scout, you know."
"Whatever," muttered the black-clad blonde, fingering her gun with determination. "Just don't put me into a wall, okay? What are the others doing?"
"They're waiting to go," said Alex nervously. "I think a car's coming in right now. Better get ready."
Behind her, Zara's tiny head popped up out of Alex's jacket. "Wendy," she called out, "I don't know you, and we hardly met, but I have to say, this is about the bravest thing I've ever seen! Good luck, okay?"
"Thanks," she replied with a proud little wave. The irony of the moment--a former contestant complementing someone who, just an hour before, would've been her bitterest enemy--passed unnoticed by both women. "I don't know you, either, but I really do appreciate it."
"They're going," Alex interrupted, folding his hand around Wendy carefully. "God, I hope this works. You ready? Stay down, Zara! Mark--give me a warning, all right?"
"Yeah, hang on," he answered. "Wait for it. There--he noticed them! Go, Alex! Go!"
With that, Alex took three steps to the side, drew his hand back, and let loose. The low ceiling would be a problem, he thought, so he compensated by sending his tiny cargo flying in a low, wide arc, with as good an aim as he could possibly muster.
Screaming "Banzai!" all the way, Wendy flew from his grip like a tiny, three-inch high, rifle-wielding grenade.
At the sight of Alex suddenly coming into view, Lou snapped out of his stupor. He lifted his gun to fire, even as the mercenary threw something in his direction.
At exactly that same instant--a moment that seemed to last forever--Mark stepped out around the corner, dropped towards the ground, and let loose with a snap shot. The bullet blew a chunk off the seat in front of Lou's chest, but didn't hit him. Lou unconsciously started to pull the trigger, and in that same brief moment decided that this would be a good time to throw the grenade.
Also at that same frozen instant, he heard a tiny voice atop the cage yell, "NOW!" A sharp pain suddenly stabbed through the bottom of his hand, as if someone just poked a red-hot needle into his flesh. He instinctively released his grip and jerked the wounded palm away, letting the grenade drop into the cage.
Except that it didn't go into the cage at all. Lou wasn't in position to see the reason, as he was too busy clutching his wounded hand while Mark started to rush across the opening in front of him. Lou wasn't able to watch as the strongest of his prisoners, using every ounce of muscle their tiny forms possessed, shoved the falling grenade sideways with all their strength. The weapon rolled off the tarp-covered cage and tumbled onto the floor, bouncing towards the center of the hallway--directly into Mark's path.
Finally, the last event to occur in that extremely long second of time was a very soft pop near Lou's right ear. Something struck his forehead, just between his eyes, creating a brief sting that momentarily overcame the pain in his hand. As he kneeled there, totally bewildered, a black shape sailed past his head. A shape he knew well, although her very presence here was a complete impossibility. He distinctly heard a tiny, recognizable voice shouting one final phrase as she went past.
"Take that, asshole!" yelled Wendy in triumph, just before she struck the floor and bounced underneath the maglev car beyond.
Chapter 117
All right, time for me to get another word in here. Yeah, it's me again, Mark Powers. Kate's gonna have a conniption when she sees I got to narrate this bit at the end of the story, but too bad! She got to do a whole damn book, after all. The least she can do is let me have my moment in the sun!
Okay, let's back up for a second. There I was, watching my lovely (and wonderfully tiny) wife rush out across the floor in a wild attempt to distract Lou. I thought she was absolutely out of her mind, but you know how Kate is. Once she gets an idea in her head, off she goes. There's just no stopping her.
I probably should've argued with her about it, especially when the others volunteered to help, but I didn't really have time for that. Besides which, my little mini-Kate was just so cute I could hardly think straight. I wanted to take her in my hand and start teasing her some more, but not right now. Later, though. Yeah...later!
Oh, sorry, where was I? Yeah, that's right, I was watching her and the others rush around the corner. As soon as they did that, I peeked around and saw Lou's eyes widen. I thought for sure I could hear his jaw hitting the floor, even all the way across the hallway. That was the right moment for Alex to make his little move--which I also thought was crazy, too, but what do I know?
Anyway, he stepped around the corner and lobbed Wendy like a hot potato. I didn't hang around to see where she landed. Lou was taking aim at Alex, so I dropped down and took a shot. I figured if I hit my target, great, but if not, he'd be distracted enough to miss our mysterious ally. Keep in mind I had no idea who this Alex guy was, only that Kate seemed to trust him enough since her rescue. I'd sort it out later, I figured.
Anyway, when I fired, Lou looked totally surprised. He still had his hand on the grenade, though. Now, you might be wondering why I was risking attacking him while he was threatening to blow up his hostages. Quite simply, I wasn't buying it. He had those people for a reason, and it wasn't to use them as leverage. I figured the grenade was either a fake, or he had no intention of pulling the pin. Yeah, it was a stretch, but I didn't have a lot of time to worry about it, what with the maglev car pulling up outside and all.
So just as I started to charge in towards him, he suddenly jerked his hand up like someone stabbed it. At the time, I thought I must've tagged him with a shrapnel fragment from where my bullet hit the seat nearby. He dropped the grenade, which of course bounced off the chair and dropped right in front of me.
Now, remember, I was pretty sure it was fake, or he hadn't pulled the pin, but you don't simply ignore a potentially explosive device that drops right in front of you! I didn't waste any time trying to look and see if the pin was out or not. I reacted the only way I could, really. I gave the damn bomb a good swift kick.
I was never really all that good at soccer, though. I was hoping to boot the grenade down the unoccupied hallway, towards the vacant emergency exit stairwell. Instead, the stupid thing went off the side of my foot, hit one of the chair legs, and bounced past Lou, into the gravel underneath the dangling maglev car. I distinctly remember thinking, "Good! His body will shield me from the blast!"
Except there wasn't any blast. The grenade went off a second later, but all it did was release a billowing white cloud. Tear gas was the first thing that went through my mind. What would that do to the tiny people down by the floor--or to me, for that matter? If I became immobilized, Lou could still escape!
It wasn't tear gas, though--just a standard smoker. He got us all worked up for a simple smoke bomb! For just an instant I wondered if Lou even knew this wasn't an explosive grenade, or if all his posturing was just a bluff. Then the haze started to drift in from outside, obscuring part of the scene from view.
Well, this could be bad, I thought. Lou could use that cloud to escape. Maybe he wasn't that stupid after all. He didn't try to run, though, though. Instead of dashing into the waiting maglev car, he instead just toppled over like a puppet with its strings cut.
Of course, his gun clattered to the floor uselessly. Without hesitation I kicked the weapon away, into the smoke, to make sure this wasn't some kind of trick. He was really out cold, though. There was a tiny fleck of blood on his temple, and as I stared at that, I realized that could only be Wendy's work.
Damn! That was a hell of a shot! I was going to have to talk to her about that later. Anyone who could hit someone in the middle of the forehead as she flew across the room was definitely worth chatting with! Of course, at the time I didn't know exactly who Wendy was or where she came from. I didn't hear the rest of her story until later, and by then it was too late, anyway.
Anyhow, as soon as I saw Lou was subdued, my mind immediately switched out of combat mode and into the wrap-up. There were six tiny people running around on the floor somewhere, mixed in with all that smoke, so I stopped moving around for fear of injuring one of them by mistake. Before I could do anything else, though, I noticed three people jumping up and down on top of the nearby cage. They looked awfully excited and pleased with themselves.
"Something I should know?" I asked curiously, putting my gun away.
All three men jumped at the sound of my voice. "Oh, shit!" one of them yelled in surprise. "Please, for the love of God, tell me you're on our side!"
"Of course he is!" I heard a familiar female voice yelling from deeper in the cage. She could see my face through the open top, but I couldn't tell who she was in the shadowy interior. "That's Kate's husband! Hi, Mark! Let us out of here, will you?"
I whipped off the blanket, and there they were--all the little Survivors, huddled around each other in the bottom of the cage. The one who spoke earlier was Rebecca Ferguson, but I didn't know any of the other tiny faces at all. "Hello, everybody!" I said amiably, giving a little wave. "Hey, Rebecca!"
"Hi, Mark!" she yelled, looking awfully cute down there in the bottom of the cage. They all looked cute, really, the way they were all staring up at me like little mice. I had to really concentrate to keep from staring. "Sorry, I'm going to leave you in there for now, for your own safety," I said, in my best authoritative voice. "The danger's over, though. Stay put while I get the others, and then we'll find you a restoration machine, okay?"
At that they all let out a loud cheer, clapping and hugging each other as the mood struck them. The men on top of the cage dropped inside and hurried over to their ladies of choice. Except for a couple of unconscious people on the floor, nearly everyone seemed to have somebody to hug down there. Awww...how romantic!
Which reminded me--what was my wife doing right now? I suppose I should probably try to find her, I thought, getting down on my hands and knees amidst the smoke and starting to root around. I couldn't wait to have her in my hands, just the way I like it. Too bad there wasn't a miniaturizer around someplace so I could join her at that size, but I was pretty sure I'd manage just fine as I was.
Dammit, Mark, quit that! And what's the big deal interrupting me, anyway? I was supposed to get to tell the big finish! I swear, you can be so annoying sometimes!
Okay, okay, fine. You got to have a couple of seconds of real excitement there at the end. Whatever. Like you did anything, really! You chauffeured some people around, and kicked a smoke grenade, and got to fire your "piece" (snicker). And missed, I might add! And you call yourself an agent!
Oops! Sorry, folks! It's Kate again, if you couldn't tell. Oh, and don't get me wrong, I'm happy Mark was there. I didn't want to have to trust Alex any more than I had to. Something about the way he spoke to Zara and Sally concerned me just a bit. If Mark hadn't been there, Alex would've been the only full-sized person conscious on the scene. He could've collected the rest of us and headed off anywhere he wanted without anyone knowing. As it turns out, I was right to be worried, but more on that later.
Anyway, from where I was, at floor level, I couldn't really see much of what was going on elsewhere in the terminal. I started running, trying to get Lou's attention. I succeeded, he dropped the grenade, and Mark kicked it. You already know that part, I guess. After that happened, this thick white smoke started coming into the room, obscuring my view. I continued on forward, towards the chair that was my original target, and came to it fairly quickly. Visibility was only about three or four inches in front of my face, but I saw a couple of other people silhouetted in the smoke. I also heard the sound of tiny cheers coming from somewhere up and to my right.
"What's going on up there?" I heard Megan say in front of me. "Someone sure sounds happy!"
"Where are you, Megan?" Cindy's voice asked. After a moment both women came into view. "Oh, hi, Kate! That sure was fun! Did you see what happened?"
"Yeah, I think Wendy got her wish," I replied. My voice seemed to be like a beacon or something, because Sean showed up a moment later, followed closely by Irene. No sign of Sally, though. "Just before the smoke came in, I saw Lou fall over," I explained.
"Great!" Sean replied. "You hear that, Reyna? It's all over but the shouting now!"
He took the miniscule woman out of his pocket and held her comfortably. "Hooray for us!" Reyna yelled, but her mood seemed somewhat subdued. The reason for that became plain after a moment. "But that means we have to get back to normal size, doesn't it, Sean? Oh, please don't make me get big again! Can't you keep me hidden somewhere?"
"I wish I could," replied Sean sadly, "but you heard what that Army woman said. You'll die if you don't get restored. I won't let that happen!"
"I don't have to get all the way big!" Reyna protested. "Just put me in your pocket while they restore you, and I'll be three inches high again! No one has to know I'm there. I'll stay the same size relative to you!"
"Sorry, I'd know about it," I replied, "and I can't just keep something like that to myself, Reyna! You know the law."
"Damn the law!" she yelled angrily, actually stamping a little foot on Sean's hand. "Come on, Kate! I saved you, remember? You owe me! You'll know where I am all the time. You can check on me whenever you want. Sean won't do anything bad to me! Please!"
Both of them looked at me hopefully. I glanced over at the others, trying to figure out a good way to tell them no. To my surprise, Megan and Cindy were both also giving me a pleading kind of look, and instead of arguing, Irene also appeared to be in favor of the idea. "What, you all think I should?" I asked, surprised. "Irene, you'd be the last person I'd think would agree!"
"Oh, just let her try it," Irene replied with a shrug. "Like she said, you'll know where she is all the time."
"Come on, Kate," said Megan. "It's her choice. Besides, that's just another article I can write. The ultimate romantic story--two people in love, separated by a size factor of twenty!"
I sighed. On any other day, I might've immediately refused, but I really did owe Reyna for what she did earlier. Twice, in fact. Anyone else might've been horrified to be shrunk to only a sixth of an inch high, but she managed to not only get us out of the toolbox, but save us from Wendy, too! I'd just have to make sure we got this all taken care of properly. I'd want them both monitored, and there should probably be some sort of legal consent forms involved, but we could work all that out later.
"Okay, okay," I agreed reluctantly. "Put her back in your pocket, and I'll keep my mouth shut for now. But you'd better not disappoint me, Mr. Riedle, or I'll track you to the ends of the Earth!"
"I won't, I swear!" Sean replied happily. Reyna literally jumped for joy, and they shared a quick kiss there amidst the smoke. I just shook my head, wondering if what I was doing was a good idea or not. It felt wrong, and yet those two really did seem to be in love. Would it last, with the vast size difference between them? Only time would tell.
About then I noticed a very large shadow moving around close by. "Kate?" Mark's voice called out. "You down there? Come on, where are you?"
I sighed. Might as well face the music. He was going to find me eventually, and I knew exactly what that would mean. "Down here, Mark!" I called out. "By the chair! Careful where you step!"
His face peered in through the cloud that surrounded us. He grinned and put his hands down on the ground. "Come on, get in, everybody," he said quickly. "There's security guards coming. Fortunately, there's a transport right over here for all of you. I should be able to get everyone out before anyone sees you and this whole thing turns into more of a media circus than it already is."
We climbed into his hands carefully. Even Cindy, who I later learned had been quite timid throughout this whole adventure, jumped into Mark's palm without hesitation. He stood up carefully, getting us out of that damn smoke at last, and carefully lowered everyone into the cage. The other former prisoners seemed to be celebrating now, and they all seemed quite happy to see Irene, Megan, Cindy, and Sean delivered safely.
Those four all jumped off at once, but when I tried to go, Mark clamped his fingers gently around my waist. "Not you, love," he chuckled, pulling me back out of the cage. Naturally, I scowled and crossed my arms as I looked up into his gigantic face. "Come on, Kate, you know I can't resist this opportunity," he said seriously. "Do you know how much I've wanted to hold you like this again?"
"Yes, I do," I replied, trying to look indignant. I wasn't doing a very good job of it, though. To my immense surprise, he wasn't laughing at me at all, and in fact just seemed to be studying me carefully. "Quit staring, Mark," I complained. "And please don't rub it in. You know how much I hate being like this!"
"Yeah," he replied, "but I can't help it. You're so beautiful when you're tiny. The smaller you get, the more I love you. Now come on, you can sit on my shoulder while we find a restorer."
With that, he closed up the cage and put the blanket back over the top. Was he really going to leave it at that? No attempts to fondle me, or make fun of my tiny size? Not even a single wisecrack about how little I was? Was this really my husband, or did someone kidnap him and replace him with a robot double?
"What's the matter?" asked Mark after a moment. "You're not getting mad. I figured you'd be screaming your head off by now."
"That's all right," I answered. "I figured you'd be taunting me by now, Mark. What's the matter? Don't I live up to your expectations?"
"No, you do, it's just that I know you don't like being shrunk, so I'm going to get you back to normal as soon as I can. This isn't the way I wanted this to happen, you know. I was supposed to surprise you at the house, and then get miniaturized along with you."
"Ah," I replied, nodding. "So that's why you were here! I was wondering about that. Well, I appreciate you being nice and all, but I just realized we're forgetting a couple of things."
"What?" he asked curiously, not taking his eyes off me. I could tell he was making a supreme effort to be nice, which was kind of charming, actually. Considering having me in his palm was his biggest fantasy, he was showing remarkable self-restraint.
"You didn't find everybody," I told him. "What about Lieutenant Sullivan? And Wendy, too. She might be hurt, you know. She got thrown an awful long way."
"Good point," he agreed. "I'll ask Alex. He must have an idea where she went."
Mark turned to look for Alex, the man who helped rescue me and the others. The ex-mercenary who helped get us out of that building before it exploded. The man we trusted with Zara Cochran.
But he was gone.
Chapter 118
Okay, now that the excitement's all over, this is the part of the story where I carefully wrap up all those loose ends you're wondering about. Don't you just love how neatly that all works?
So anyway, as soon as he realized Alex was gone, Mark shuffled over out of the smoke and started looking around for the wayward mercenary. A small crowd of people had gathered nearby, watching the action with curiosity, so he couldn't range far. Neither of us could see Alex anywhere through the clustered onlookers. He made his escape pretty neatly, didn't he?
Anyway, a couple of security guards showed up--finally--and Mark let them in on what was going on. They handcuffed the snoozing Lou and searched him for weapons, but not until my husband checked the floor carefully. There was no sign of Sally, unfortunately. We all originally figured she was hiding under a chair someplace, but no dice. I couldn't imagine why she would run off, and as best I recall, the last time I saw her, she was heading in Lou's general direction. What could've happened to her?
Mark gave me a suggestion after the smoke finally cleared and Sally didn't turn up. I didn't like the idea, but it was the only thing that came to mind. He said maybe Alex picked her up and took her away. I hoped that wasn't true--I wasn't sure what he'd do to her, and the very fact that he ran off was proof of his bad intentions. The only other options, though, were that she either wandered away by herself, for reasons I didn't understand, or one of the passers-by grabbed her.
While searching, we also looked around for Wendy, but we found no sign of her at all. Apparently, she decided not to hang around after shooting Lou. The smoke grenade gave her all the cover she needed to slip off into the tall grass and through the fence surrounding the maglev rail. She could be anywhere by now. Later on, after the police arrived, there was a general search made for her, but she didn't turn up. I figured she made her way to the road and latched onto a vehicle down by the stop sign at the bottom of the hill. I guess I can't blame her, really. She didn't want to go back to normal size, or go to prison, and both of those things were virtually guaranteed to happen the moment she got taken into custody. I guess she's still out there now, wandering around somewhere, trying to stay hidden as best she can. Maybe someday she'll come back to us, or find her way to a restoration machine on her own. Until then, she's still listed as a wanted fugitive.
To help look for our two missing comrades, Mark enlisted the aid of the security guards, who all looked awestruck at the sight of a cage full of tiny people. Mark stopped searching by that point and kept his eye on the men, to make sure none of them tried to palm a new little pet. The search was fruitless, though. Sally and Wendy were both long gone.
After about fifteen minutes, actual cops showed up to haul Lou away. With what he attempted to pull off--and very nearly got away with--I was pretty sure he was going back to prison for a long, long while. Oh, and this time, there wouldn't be any rescues from tiny allies we didn't know about. I was going to make sure he got locked up somewhere that had anti-miniaturization protocols in place at every entrance.
Once the police had everything under control, Mark took me and the others out to his car, where he made a quick phone call back to headquarters. After reporting what happened, he proceeded to live up to his promise to look for a quick way to get us all back to normal. Although there weren't any restoration machines specifically installed anywhere in the local area, there were plenty of high-tech companies that included gamma radiation screens in their security arrangements.
A couple of calls later, we had a private session all arranged, only about twenty minutes away. The prisoners in the cage were all thrilled to hear it, but after everything they went through, most seemed pretty doubtful that things would really be that easy.
They were, though. After a drive in the general direction of downtown Burbank, we pulled up outside the building we sought and up to the rear security entrance. The studio, wasting no time starting to mend fences, already had a bus waiting to take the contestants to a hotel somewhere. There was an ambulance, too, with confused-looking paramedics looking for a patient to treat. Mark asked them to wait outside while he carried the cage into the building. A quick ID-flash later, we were all alone in the alcove.
"All right, everybody," said Mark, carefully setting the cage on its side. "All you have to do is go in that room and wait until the light comes on. Then it'll all be over."
They all piled out quickly. A couple of the former prisoners yelled their thanks up at Mark, or at me sitting on his shoulder, but no one hesitated to hustle into the chamber. Hell, they probably would've fought to get in there if the opening was any narrower!
As a final gesture, Mark pushed the cage over to the opening and gently slid William's unconscious form inside the entrance. Then he stepped back and worked the controls, taking care to shield me from the light. I didn't even consider protesting. I could tell he wasn't going to let me back to normal right away no matter what I said, so it wasn't worth arguing about it.
Just as Mark threw the switches, Rebecca jumped out of the entrance and hid around the side of the doorframe. I gave her a curious look, and she smiled and gave a thumbs-up. Well, she must know what she's doing, I thought, even if I didn't understand it.
The light glowed for a few seconds, drawing a cheer from the contestants inside. "Hurry out," said Mark when the bulbs faded. "You can't all fit in there at normal size. Move out the front as you get bigger, okay?"
They rushed past, cheering and hugging each other as they ran for the bus. A growing Sean checked his pocket, obviously making sure Reyna was also getting larger, and smiled to indicate she was. "Thanks," he called out to me as he walked by. Several of the others also took the opportunity to thank Mark and myself, but I just smiled. All in a day's work, really.
Not everyone was in such a hurry. Two of the contestants, Mitch and Nicole, were kissing each other passionately inside the little room, paying no attention to the fact that they were steadily getting larger. Ivan, who turned out to be rather tall and bulky once he got back to normal, had a breathless Noel in his arms and was swinging her around ecstatically. The oldest man, Carl Flynn, was hugging Cindy in a fatherly kind of way. As for Jeff, he was kneeling down in front of Rebecca, watching her with curiosity. From his point of view, she appeared to be growing smaller as he steadily expanded back to his normal proportions.
"What are you doing, Rebecca?" Jeff asked curiously. "Why'd you leave the room?"
"I'm not ready to get big again," she answered with a smile. "I liked being small with you, Jeff. You can put me back to normal later, all right?"
"Sure!" he agreed with a smile, scooping her up as he finally got back to full size. "You know something? I really don't deserve someone like you."
"I'll be the judge of that," she replied, laughing as he tickled her stomach. "Now take me home. I'm sure Kate over there won't let me stay like this for long, but we'll enjoy it while we can."
I sighed and nodded. Jeff scooted past with a half-hearted "Seeya!" before I could change my mind or say anything in protest. By the time he got to the bus, Rebecca was safely entrenched in his pocket. I hoped she'd be happy like that, at least for a little while. Like everything else in her life, nothing lasted long for Rebecca, so she might as well take some happiness whenever and however she can get it.
Meanwhile, the EMTs hurried by, doing their professional best not to notice the crowd of rapidly growing people that, to them, pretty much just came out of nowhere. Mark explained the miniaturization bit as William reached full size. They treated him quickly and skillfully, I must say. Turns out he had some broken ribs and internal bleeding, but Nicole's impromptu stabilization efforts paid off. He would live, and enjoy a full recovery after a few weeks in traction.
Within a few minutes they had William on the ambulance and on his way to the hospital. Meanwhile, the bus loaded up and headed off. Everybody called out a cheerful goodbye in our direction, but none of them thought to ask why I was still small. They were too happy to be normal again, after everything they went through. Not that I could blame them.
Finally they drove off. Mark turned his head to look at me. "Alone at last, my little chickadee," he intoned in a horrifyingly bad W.C. Fields impression.
"Okay, Mark," I said with a sigh, "you did it, okay? You managed to find a way to get me small again. Congratulations. Do what you have to do and put me back to normal size so we can go home. I don't even want to think about how much paperwork there's going to be waiting for us back at the office!"
He picked me up off his shoulder and dropped me into his palm. While I leaned back and tried to get comfortable, he made his way to the rental car, got in, and drove it over to an unoccupied section of the parking lot.
"Kate," he said with a smile, "you know I love this, and I love you terribly, but I'm not going to do anything you don't want--no matter how perfect an opportunity this is." As he spoke, he started running his finger up and down my back. "So if you want me to stop, all you have to do is say so."
"Mark," I answered, trying to ignore the tingling running up and down my spine, "you know I hate being small! Please, just take me back in there and put me back to normal, okay?"
Almost casually, he lifted up my arms and slipped the business jacket off my back. With his tongue clenched between his teeth, he started squeezing me all over. "That wasn't a no," he pointed out. "Come on, Kate, admit it. I saw you let Jeff take Rebecca home with him. You know this is all right, as long as it's between two people who love each other."
"It does feel good," I admitted as his fingers caressed me all over, convincing me almost unconsciously to sprawl out in his warm, slightly trembling hand. "But that's not the point, Mark! You know me! I'm not the kind of person who likes being totally in someone's power like this!"
"Yes you are," he told me as he tugged off my shoes. With practice obviously gained from hours in the virtual sims, he undid my tiny belt and slipped my pants off in a single swift motion. "You just won't admit it, Kate. You need to let go every now and then. You need to trust someone. Trust me, honey. It's all right to like this, you know."
"I don't like it," I retorted, but I wasn't protesting as he pulled off my blouse. I wasn't about to let him win, though. I put a resigned look on my face, like I knew this was coming and there wasn't anything I could do to stop it. To my surprise, though, I found myself shivering with anticipation.
"You know I'm just doing this so you can enjoy your little fantasies, right?" I called out as he finished methodically stripping me naked in his palm. "Go on, Mark. Indulge yourself all you want."
"Sure, sure," he chuckled, seeing right through my weak attempt at sour grapes. "All right, Kate, if that's the way you want it. I promise, I'll put you back to normal right away. Just a couple of things first, though. Just a few teensy little things."
I stared up at him, trying my best to look upset about being spread-eagled in his hand like that. I don't think he was fooled for an instant, but bless his heart, he let me keep my pride. "Okay, Mark," I replied with a sigh. "Do what you have to do."
"Can't you just admit it?" he asked with a smile. "Can't you just say you like this, for once in your life?"
"Never," I told him as he brought me up to his face. His tongue began to caress my torso, sending shivers coursing all through my tiny body.
"Are you sure?" he whispered as sought out every curve and crevice my trembling figure had to offer.
"Yes," I answered breathlessly. The feel of that slick, bumpy muscle over my flesh was indescribable. "Oh, yes!" I gasped. "Yesssss..."
"That's what I thought," he chuckled, just before he pulled me gently into his lips. After that, he showed me some things the human mouth can do that very few people have a chance to experience. Which, now that I think about it, is really too bad.
Okay, already! Yeah, it's true, I had to totally surrender myself to someone else, without question. If you really want to know, the reward I received was well worth the risk. I liked it, okay? I admit it! Sheesh!
Just don't tell Mark, or I'll never hear the end of it!
Chapter 119
"All right, I suppose you're all wondering why I brought you all here today," said Jeff Cunningham with a huge grin on his face.
"Yeah, we do," chuckled Megan. "Nice food, though."
The Survivor contestants, as well as their two guides, were assembled in one of the Hilton's cavernous meeting rooms, surrounded by tables full of impeccably catered meals. In the week that passed since what would forever be known as the "Survivor War," the former participants--less the missing Zara and injured William--were treated to some serious pampering by the studio. Each had their own suite on the expensive top floor, a generous expense account, limousines to take them wherever they wanted to go in the city, and the best in food and drink. All of this volunteered by the studio, of course. Not that they had any lawsuits to worry about or anything.
"Well," Jeff went on, "I wanted you all to know two things. First, and most important, they've decided not to fire me."
A chorus of cheers swept through the room. Rebecca hugged him and planted a peck on his cheek, although she already knew about the studio's decision. "Even though I still think I deserve worse than a two-week suspension and a reprimand," Jeff went on, "I appreciate your kind words on my behalf. Thanks, everybody! Now, as for the other thing, they've decided to start the Survivor game over again. No, before you ask, there won't be any miniaturization this time. They've tentatively selected Tierra del Fuego for the site. Even if that isn't the final choice, I promise everyone will be full sized this time around. And, any of you who want to participate get first crack at a slot."
There were more cheers, as well as a ripple of conversation flowing through the chamber. "You don't need to decide right away," Jeff called out over the din. "Just think about it. We need your answers by the end of the night, though. For now, enjoy the rest of this party. Tomorrow, you all fly home, wherever home might be. I must say, it's been a pleasure knowing you all." He turned slightly and smiled at Rebecca, who looked resplendent in a somewhat familiar-looking red dress. "Especially you, my dear."
"What makes you think I'm going anywhere?" she chuckled, giving him a quick kiss. "Didn't I tell you? They hired me as a guide for the next show. Miniaturization or no miniaturization."
"Then you aren't leaving?" he asked in wide-eyed surprise.
"Nope," said Rebecca as she folded her arms around his neck. "I'm afraid you're stuck with me, Mr. Cunningham."
"Good," he replied with a grin. "I wouldn't want to be stuck with anyone else, big or small!"
"Can you believe that?" asked Nicole, shaking her head. "Imagine! They're still trying to make us feel better about everything that happened by inviting us all back for more Survivor. They must think we're idiots!"
"Yeah," agreed Mitch, taking a sip of beer from the frosty mug in his hand. He hadn't realized just how much he appreciated such simple pleasures until he got shrunk too small to enjoy them. "Do they really think any of us would be stupid enough to go through another one of these trials?"
"Yeah, pretty dumb," Nicole replied. "Moronic, really."
"Insane," Mitch noted.
"Yeah, and don't forget the best thing about it."
"What's that?"
"We get to go home," said Nicole. "We'll be far, far away from each other at last, and I can finally get back to my normal life."
"What, you mean I wouldn't have to endure your constant bitching?" Mitch offered. "All that whining about how unfair everything is?"
"Yeah, and I wouldn't have to put up with your blimp-sized ego any more, or the way you're always strutting around, showing off your muscles like they're so goddamn awesome."
"I'll be glad to get the hell away from you. Finally!" Mitch insisted.
"The further from you, the better!" countered Nicole.
They stared at each other for a moment, breathing quickly. Something unspoken passed between them, almost like a spark. Mitch immediately set down his beer, and Nicole tossed the piece of cheese she'd been nibbling on over her shoulder. "Quick," she breathed in sudden desperation. "Find us someplace private!"
"This way!" he urged, taking her hand and rushing her out of the ballroom. A lonely broom closet was all he could find on such short notice, but that was perfectly fine as far as they were concerned.
A lot better than a dark hole underneath a brick, that much was certain!
Megan chuckled as she saw Mitch and Nicole race across the room and out the door. "Well, I guess there's two people who'll be back for the next round of Survivor," she mused.
"How about you, Megan?" asked Shauna curiously. "You gonna come back for more like the rest of us?"
"Sure," she agreed. "Yeah, I probably shouldn't, since I've got enough to write about to last me the next year, but why stop now? If I do this right, I can be the official Survivor Reporter for the rest of my career. A Pulitzer's great and all, but so is a steady job!"
"Well, I'm coming back, too," said Tracy. "I'm going to miss being small, though. I did like that, at least a little bit."
"Me too," agreed Ed. "I'm through with Survivor, though. I'm goin' back to the beach. They can give my slot to one of the alternates."
"Me too," said Steve. "Listen, everybody, I was going to make a toast over dinner, but since we don't have a table, I'll just tell you now. Emma and I have decided to get married."
There was a chorus of congratulations from the assembled group. "When?" asked Noel, hugging the much taller Ivan. The huge, pale-skinned Russian and the short African-American woman couldn't have been a more unlikely couple, but they seemed quite taken with each other now. "Is it soon?" Noel went on excitedly. "Can we all come?"
"Of course you can," replied Emma happily. "We're waiting until the new show's finished taping. We'll have the wedding right on the site, if the studio doesn't mind."
"I don't think they'll care," suggested Sean. "In fact, the way ratings work, I wouldn't be surprised if they pay for the whole thing. After all, it'll be free advertising for the next season, won't it? And anything that helps smooth over this latest disaster will be just fine. You two are at least something positive that came out of that whole fiasco."
Megan pulled Sean aside for a moment while the others continued to congratulate the newly engaged couple. "That reminds me," she said quietly. "You and Reyna still owe me an interview. She's still all right, isn't she?"
"Perfect," he replied, grinning. "In fact, she's closer than you think. Aren't you, baby?"
"I'm just fine, big boy!" her little voice yelled from inside his jacket pocket. "Can I please come out now? I wanna sneak around for a while!"
"Okay, okay," he agreed, pulling Reyna out and cupping her in his hand. He stepped over to the table and set her down carefully. Immediately the tiny, black-clad woman darted in amidst the piles of luncheon meat, finger sandwiches, and other appetizers. Before Sean could blink, she was out of sight.
Megan laughed. "She's really enjoying this, isn't she?"
"Yeah, you don't know the half of it," Sean chuckled. "She's ruining my apartment, I tell you. I love it, though. It's nice to have someone to come home to, even if she does turn off the hot water, or write messages to me in crushed corn flakes."
"Sounds like her," Megan agreed. "I'm sure glad someone around here likes being tiny. I wouldn't want to go through that again. So how much longer is she going to stay that way?"
"As long as she wants," Sean replied. "Unless they make us put her back to normal, I'm perfectly happy with her just like that. She's my pet, you know."
"Pet?" inquired Megan curiously.
"Yeah, it's a strange word, I know, but it's true," Sean went on. "Oh, don't get me wrong, I don't think of her like an animal or anything. She's the woman I love, but that doesn't mean she can't be my pet, too. She certainly likes being one--ask her if you don't believe me. And you know the old saying about pets, right?"
"What's that?"
"She followed me home," Sean said with a wink, "and I'm keeping her."
"So this is it," said Carl, stretching out his arms to indicate the large, two-story house and its wide, well-groomed front yard. "This is the Flynn ancestral home."
"It's beautiful," Cindy replied with a sigh. The house was old, but appeared well kept, at least from the outside. "Perfect, really. I think I'll like it here, Carl. Thanks for inviting me to stay."
"It's no problem," he replied. "I warn you, though. It's been a long time since there's been a woman's touch in this place. It may look a little rough."
"That's fine. I don't mind. It's the least I can do, after you found me a job here in Tallahassee."
"Anything to have you close by," said Carl, putting his arm around her shoulder. "You and I need each other, Cindy. You need a father...and I very much need a daughter. I've needed one for a very long time."
"Yeah," she agreed. "I've missed having family around. That's been my problem since my parents died. I've always been alone. I've felt so empty inside, Carl. Do you know what that feels like?"
"Yes," he told her with a long sigh. "Yes, I know. I know perfectly well what you mean. Now come on, I'll show you to your room."
"Thank you," she said softly. "Thanks for everything...Daddy."
He smiled and gave her a kiss on the forehead. In response, she hugged him close. That feeling of terrible emptiness was gone now, they both realized. They had family again.
Still arm in arm, they headed up the stairs into their house.
Chapter 120
Backyard Survivor
By Megan Carruthers
It's not often that a reporter gets to be part of her own news.
My name is Megan Carruthers, and at the time these events took place, I worked for a prominent Hollywood magazine. I signed up for the Survivor contest entirely on a lark. I figured I was somewhat unique--how many other people in my line of work would even bother trying? Little did I know! I found out later that literally thousands of undercover types sent in applications. The studio judged us all equally, just as they did the other potential contestants, but they made sure they had only one reporter in the group at the end.
It's important you know and understand this up front, before you continue reading this narrative. You see, I thought I was being sneaky. I thought no one would figure out I was undercover. I was stupid--they had me pegged right away. They didn't tell me, though. They let me go on thinking I managed to sneak past their investigations. They wanted a reporter in the group, in the hopes of seeing an article exactly like this one. Little did they know what was to come! To their credit, though, they didn't try to censor me after things went wrong.
Another thing I want you to know right away is just how little we all knew about what was going to be done to us. None of us in the game had the slightest inkling that we'd be miniaturized. We thought we'd be taken to some secret site someplace out in a desert or jungle somewhere. What we didn't realize, though, was just how desperate things were getting for Survivor. This was the twenty-fifth season, and the studio was looking for ratings any way they could get them. What better way than to hold the game someplace familiar, like a typical back yard?
Of course, most of those of you reading this already know about this particular twist. We had no idea. They put us on an enclosed truck, drove us to a warehouse somewhere, and walked us into this little room. We didn't know it, but the "room" was actually a large box with padded walls inside a miniaturization chamber. When they actually shrunk us all, we weren't even aware of what was going on. Somebody carried the box out to the yard, set it down, and left. When the door opened, we all got the surprise of our lives!
Think about it for yourself. You're going somewhere familiar--let's say the mall, for example. You walk into a room and the door shuts. You get a kind of tingly feeling, and then everything starts shaking. A couple of minutes later, you walk out--and now the world is gigantic! Well, that's what happened to us. We were standing there, looking out at huge flowers, trees, and blades of grass. How would YOU react to something like that?
Well, I'll tell you how I reacted. I was ticked off! How dare they do this to us? Unfortunately, we all signed ironclad legal consent forms that gave them the right, even if we didn't realize it when we put pen to paper. All we could do was walk out into that tremendous back yard and go ahead with the game. What choice did we have? Besides which, we were assured that nothing could go wrong.
Well, something did go wrong, and that's what this article is all about. In the rest of this six-part series, I'll introduce you to the other contestants, discuss what it's like to be shrunk, and try to put you into our shoes as best I can. By the time I'm done, you'll have an understanding of what it's like to be reduced in size by a factor of twenty...
A loud fluttering sounded close by. Wendy didn't waste time looking to see what caused the sound. Her reflexes, honed by months of survival on her own, kicked in automatically. Abandoning the open magazine, she darted towards her pre-selected escape route, a partially blocked drainage pipe in the nearby wall. Her boots splashed loudly in the puddles as she ran, sending tiny blobs of water scattering every which way.
Only when she was several inches into the shadows did Wendy turn to see what caused the noise. A huge blackbird was hopping around outside her hiding place, searching for tidbits of food near the towering garbage can. Wendy sighed and relaxed. There was no way that monster would be able to get its head inside the little pipe in which she lurked. Even if it did try, her needle-sword would make short work of its eyes.
She really missed the tranquilizer gun, but there was no sense carrying it around without any ammo. Within days of her escape at the maglev station, she used the last dart on a cat that accosted her while she moved across an open field. She still had the pistol, with its single round, but she already promised herself that would be used only as a last resort. The dart likely wouldn't work against anything larger than a rat, anyway.
Lacking any advanced weaponry, she was forced to improvise. After raiding an apartment for food and supplies, she came away with a sewing needle, a couple of paper clips, a handful of tacks, and an improvised backpack capable of carrying as much as she could lift. After some modifications to the needle, which was over half her height, she had what amounted to a crude sword. So far, it had already saved her life several times.
Wendy watched the bird jump around, gobbling up chunks of food knocked out of the trash can when she hauled out the magazine. Once, a long time ago, such a creature might have scared her. Not any more. She could handle things like that. Half the time, the giant monsters that attacked her would run in the face of a determined opponent and a little pain from a stab wound. As long as she didn't get caught by surprise, she'd get along just fine.
After a while, the bird flew away. Wendy emerged cautiously and went back to reading. Megan waxed eloquently for a while about what it felt like to be tiny, but Wendy just smiled. Despite the reporter's experiences, she didn't really know a thing about it, did she? She, and all the others, were all supposed to be "Survivors," but none of them had the slightest clue what that really meant.
As far as Wendy Sugarton was concerned, she was the only one truly worthy of that title. She was the one who really earned it. None of those others could've done what she did, and lasted as long as she had out in the open.
I'll show them, she thought. I don't need to be full-sized! I can make it out here, on my own, without any help from anybody! I'm the one they should really call the Survivor. Yeah...that's it. Wendy Sugarton, the Survivor! I like the sound of that!
Smiling to herself, Wendy made her way down the alley. She had no idea where she was going, or what she'd find around the next corner, but she didn't care. She could handle it, whatever it was.
She was the Survivor, and that was all she needed.
Joshua Cochran opened his front door. A man in blue jeans and camouflage fatigues awaited him, but Josh had never seen this particular visitor before. The caller had short, curly blond hair and a noticeably muscular build, and he held a metal box the size of a cigar case in his right hand.
"Yes, can I help you?" asked Joshua curiously.
"Mr. Cochran," said the man, "you don't know me, but my name is Alex Hall. I understand your wife was in the latest Survivor game?"
"That's true," he agreed, "but she disappeared after that whole thing blew up in their faces." He looked upset for a moment, but then got a hopeful look on his face. "Why? Do you know something about what happened to Zara?"
"In a way," said Alex with a smile that said he knew more than he was telling. "I was with her while all of that was going on. Zara was--well, she was very special to me, but I always knew you were more important to her than I was. It took me a while to understand that, but now I have."
"What the hell are you saying?" demanded Josh, wondering if he should go get his shotgun. "What did you do to her?"
"She's all right," said Alex hastily. "Don't worry, sir. She's perfectly fine. In fact, she wanted me to give you this. I assure you, it'll explain everything. Just wait until I'm gone before you open it. Thank you, and goodbye. You'll never see me again, and that's a promise."
Before Josh could reply, Alex turned and strode quickly to his car, which was idling with the engine running. Joshua watched as the vehicle sped away quickly, got onto the main road, and vanished around the next corner. He didn't think to take the license number, and by the time the idea occurred to him, the vehicle was long gone.
Shaking his head, Josh closed the door and set the box on the kitchen table. For several long moments, he stared at the container, wondering if it might be a bomb or something more sinister. No, if that man really did know Zara, maybe this was something she was wearing when she disappeared. Jewelry, or her watch, or--
Or maybe her wedding ring.
Joshua sniffed and wiped a tear from his eye. He didn't want to think about the possibility that Zara might be dead. No one knew anything about where she was, although that woman from the FBI seemed convinced his wife would come back one day. Maybe this had something to do with it.
Carefully, almost fearfully, Josh lifted up the latch and opened the box. His eyes widened as he took in the sight that awaited him. He expected to find a scrap of clothing, jewelry, or something else Zara owned before she disappeared. Never in his life did he imagine he'd see what awaited him inside that featureless metal container.
There, sitting up amidst a thick clump of cotton balls, sat the three-inch figure of his wife, clad in a pair of shorts, hiking shoes, and a ragged-looking T-shirt. She smiled and gave a cautious little wave.
"Hi, Josh," she said in an impossibly tiny voice. "It's good to be home..."
Alex shut the door to the pathetic fleabag of a hotel, walked across the room, and picked up the remote. There was nothing on TV at that hour, he knew, but he searched the channels anyway. After flipping around listlessly, he finally settled on a basketball game. He turned the volume down, though, almost to the level where he couldn't hear it any more.
With a sigh, he opened up the nearby drawer and lifted out the small box that waited inside. This one was locked, but otherwise looked identical to the container he used to send Zara home. He undid the combination and opened the lid slowly.
"She's gone," stated the miniature form of Lieutenant Sally Sullivan, blinking to let her eyes adjust to the light. She had a sad, resigned look on her face. "You really sent her home, didn't you?"
Alex picked her up and set her on his palm. She was clad only in a pair of panties, brown T-shirt sans bra, and her tiny little dog tags. "Yes, I gave her back to her husband," said Alex, wiping a tear from his eye. "That was the hardest thing I've ever had to do. She saved me, Sally. I'm a better man today because of her."
"Does that mean you're going to let me go?" she asked hopefully. "Please, Alex! I want to go back to my unit now. I want my life back!"
He stared at her for a moment, turning that idea over in his mind. He really shouldn't hold her against her will, just as Zara taught him. Yet he knew Sally didn't mean what she was saying. What he sensed in the tiny lieutenant all those weeks ago when he held her for the first time eventually proved itself to be true. She liked being small, he could tell, even if she wouldn't admit it. She always complained when he played with her, but he also saw the jealousy in her eyes when he spent time with Zara. Sally was just too strong-willed to ever submit to him completely. Or at least she thought she was.
Could he cure her of that particular idiosyncrasy? Alex didn't know, but he wanted very much to find out.
"No, Sally," he said gently, taking her little body in his fingers. She pretended to struggle for a moment while he worked on her, but soon her gasps and groans were coming with their usual regularity. "Not just yet. I'll send you home when I'm done with you. With Zara gone, I need you more than ever now."
Sally shut her eyes and arched her back while his fingers probed and massaged her sweat-slicked body. Deep in the back of her mind, she wanted very much to argue and insist he take her back where she belonged. Whenever he left her alone in the box, all she could think of was getting home again. Now, though, under that relentless, sensuous grip, she lost all capacity to resist.
I can wait a while longer, she thought through a haze of pleasure. Just a little while longer. He really is a good man, after all. Zara proved that. When we're both ready, I know he'll send me home.
Someday.