Capítulo 896: Ch 896 - The Good, the Bad and the Gary
As Debbie released Yvonne from the hug, Yvonne remained stiff as a board. Don't move. Don't let anyone know how amazing that hug was, and definitely don't let anyone know she smells like a dream, she thought.
Alex golf clapped. "Thank you for apologizing, Yvonne."
She raised a finger to Alex. "Technically, I didn't apologize."
Lost in her own world, Debbie stood up. "It's okay. She doesn't need to. I felt like this was very healing."
Yvonne waved off everyone. "Okay, now that all the mushy-gushy nonsense is out of the way, let's get cracking on this USB drive."
Alex, Debbie, and Louis agreed with her, but Christopher was reluctant. "I'm starting to have my doubts. Are we sure we want to plug this thing in? What if Alex was right and this is all a trap?"
Yvonne, however, was done with waiting. "What could possibly happen? Helicopters start flying over the house?"
Christopher didn't pick up Yvonne's sarcastic tone. "Maybe not helicopters, but that little piece of technology may be a homing device in disguise. It could lead more people here. Or worse."
Alex gripped the flash drive with white knuckles. "At this point, what could be worse? I, for one, am not too worried. In my mind, if this is a homing device, it will lead the enemy to us, and that means we can fight them, and that's a fight I'm sure we'll win."
Debbie put her arm around her man. "Exactly. I've never seen Alex in a fight he couldn't win."
Christopher understood their argument. "You're right. We are some of the strongest forces Baltimore has to offer."
Louis agreed. "Anyone who would target us is a fool."
"You're right," Yvonne said. "So let's plug in that USB drive and find out who these fools are."
Christopher moved toward the staircase. "Let's use my work laptop. That way, if anyone is tracking us, it will lead them to the hospital."
Impressed, Alex nodded. "Good thinking, that could create a diversion."
As Christopher began to walk up the stairs, a loud rustling noise coming from outside made its presence known.
Everyone froze. Yvonne looked toward where the front door should be. "Did you guys hear that?"
Debbie shuddered, grabbing her arms. "Do you think it could have been Ron?"
Christopher backed off the staircase and returned to the group. "No, Ron is definitely long gone by now."
Alex walked toward the door with trepidation. "Everyone, don't move. I'm going to take care of this."
Even though the day felt never-ending, it was only the afternoon. Alex stood on the front porch. The sunlight glistened through the treetops. Alex brought a hand up to his brow, shielding his eyes from the sun. He didn't see anything out of the ordinary. Still, something felt amiss.
Alex remained still, watching and listening. He heard it again, the loud rustling. This time, it was coming from the side of the house.
Carefully, he went in the direction of the noise. He took each step with consideration. The grass around his house was tall and thick, used as a deterrent to keep away anyone who would happen to stumble upon the residence. However, it made it hard for him to see what was going on.
As Alex rounded the corner, he noticed a large patch of grass jostling back and forth. It looked as if something were trying to circle the house.
He cocked his fist, ready to attack what he assumed was another super soldier. Without pause, he dove forward.
He got it, whatever it was, and it pinned it to the ground.
When he looked down, Alex saw a huge, fat, fuzzy squirrel. It squeaked at him.
Alex let go of the squirrel, and it scurried into the forest at a leisurely rate. He felt foolish, but in his defense, it was a really big squirrel.
With his hand rubbing his temple, Alex walked back into the house.
Debbie was huddled behind Yvonne, who was holding a kitchen knife in the middle of the living room. Christopher and Louis sat on the couch, unamused.
Yvonne seemed shocked when Alex returned unharmed. "What happened?"
"It was just a squirrel," Alex admitted. He took a seat next to the other men.
"A squirrel?" Yvonne asked, utterly confused.
Alex scoffed. "A big one. It was really fat."
Yvonne and Debbie let out a collective sigh of relief. Yvonne returned the kitchen knife to its proper location. "Oh, thank god. So tell me, how fat was the squirrel?"
Refusing to answer, Alex glared at her.
"Oh, come on! Who knows! Maybe he was so big because he was a super soldier squirrel," Yvonne hypothesized.
Alex sucked in his breath as he collected himself. He didn't like to appear out of control, even if he was with his friends. "I doubt that they're making a zoo for super soldiers. I don't think we have to worry about any jacked animals."
Debbie bit her voluptuous bottom lip. "A super soldier bear would be absolutely horrifying."
"Well, let's not worry about what doesn't exist," Alex said as he put a hand on Christopher's shoulder. "How about we focus on the USB drive? Chris, would you mind getting the laptop now that we're through with distractions?"
Christopher stood up with a yawn. "Don't jinx us. I'll be right back."
For the second time, he walked up the stairs.
Yvonne returned to the living room and plopped herself down on an antique rocking chair. "So, what do we think is going to happen next? Dinosaurs are going to come back to life and tear the roof off of the house?"
Debbie tilted her head to the side. "No, I think we're going to find whoever is behind this, and then Alex will be able to put a stop to it."
Alex looked at Debbie and gestured to his lap. She gladly took the invitation and sat down on top of him.
This made Yvonne's blood boil. She felt her eye twitch as she stared at the couple. "So, you two, when's the wedding?"
"Hm?" Debbie glanced up at Yvonne.
The corners of Yvonne's mouth twisted upward slightly. "When are you going to get married? You two are just so in love, and when people are in love, they get married. I don't know how you could possibly wait any longer to tie the knot."
Alex lowered his eyebrows. That was not a conversation he was willing to have, especially after spending the last day with Yvonne. She was causing more trouble than she realized. Alex frowned at her. "Not now, Yvonne."
Debbie turned to Alex, completely oblivious. "Why not?" She grabbed Alex's hands. "I hope soon. Right, Lexi-boo?"
Alex did not break eye contact with Yvonne. "Maybe."
Yvonne stuck out her bottom lip, pouting. She delighted in this little game she began to play. "Oh, come on, Lexi-boo. Why maybe?"
Debbie kissed his cheek. "I told you Lexi-boo would catch on. It's a really great nickname."
Yvonne nodded deviously. "Oh, yeah, Debbie. Lexi-boo is the best nickname ever. In fact, I think he should legally change his name to Lexi-boo Ambrose."
Alex pursed his lips. He hated that Yvonne's calculating backhanded compliment made his heart rate increase. He hated how hot she looked when she was being spiteful, and most of all, he hated having these feelings while Debbie was sitting on his lap.
Thankfully, Christopher came back down with laptop in hand. "Are we ready to get started?"
Yvonne raised one eyebrow toward Alex. "Are we ready, Lexi-boo?"
Alex glared at her in return. Before he could say anything, Louis interrupted. "Oh, my god. Yes. We're freaking ready. I'm going to die of old age before we look at this thing."
Christopher briskly walked over to the couch, sitting next to Debbie and Alex. He logged into the computer and plugged in the USB drive. "Well, here we go."
Just as Christopher was about to open the drive, the power went out. All of the lights turned off.
Louis buried his hand in his hands. "You have got to be kidding me."
After a few seconds of nervous chatter and Debbie's unhelpful yelps, the power returned.
Debbie wrapped her whole body around Alex. "What was that?"
Alex carefully removed her hands from his face. "I don't know, but I better go find out. Debbie, would you mind getting up?"
"Oh, yes," she said as she got off Alex.
Alex sighed. He felt as if he was never going to be able to look over the USB drive. He stood up. "Alright, I'm going to go check the breaker box, just to make sure nothing's messing with us. Christopher, get started on going through the USB. Louis is right. We shouldn't wait any longer."
Christopher nodded and started typing on his computer. "Got it."
Alex started to walk out of the living room. "Everyone, sit tight and help Christopher."
Yvonne saluted Alex. "Tell the super soldier squirrel I said hello."
Alex walked into his backyard. The breaker box was located outside, on the back of the house. He figured he wouldn't find anything, but he couldn't afford to not be safe and wind up sorry.
He was shocked to find that the breaker box had been mangled. It was crushed in, like something hit it with monumental force, almost as if someone had taken a battering ram to it. He tried to open the box, but it didn't budge. It was as if the metal had melded together when it was hit.
Then he heard it again. The rustling behind him. Great, another super soldier, he thought. He controlled his breathing, steadying his heart rate.
"Neigh!"
Cautiously, Alex turned around.
It was gigantic, maybe eight feet tall. It was black, with shining deep eyes. Its hair flowed in the wind, long and coarse. It stood at the edge of Alex's backyard, looking fearsome and majestic.
"Oh, my god," Alex said, breathless. "It's a horse."
Saying the horse was huge was a vast understatement. It had immense leg muscles. Alex couldn't see fully, but it looked like it had an eight-pack. It was absolutely jacked. Its hooves were sturdy. They almost looked metallic. Immediately, Alex figured out what had destroyed his breaker box, but he also came to another realization. Something he did not anticipate.
"It's a super soldier horse."
Alex remained very still. He wasn't sure what the beast was capable of. Then, a sound in the distance spooked the horse. It let out a deep whinny, and disappeared into the forest.
Without hesitancy, Alex ran after it. He followed its enormous hoofprints in the dirt. Eventually, after he raced farther into the woods, he caught up with the creature.
The horse was running wild. It seemed confused, like it didn't know where it was. It was knocking over everything in its path.
When Alex initially ran after the horse, he didn't have much of a plan. He had to wing it. He sped up, hoping to get close enough to jump on it and slow it down. He had ridden a few horses bareback before, but this was unlike equine creature he had ever seen.
He sprinted at full speed and lunged at the horse. Immediately, he was bucked off its back. He flew in the air, eventually hitting a tree and falling onto the ground. He chuckled to himself. "Shit, I think I met my match."
Dusting himself off, Alex got back up. This time, his aim was just to stop the horse by whatever means necessary.
After sprinting toward the horse for a second time, Alex snuck up behind it and grabbed one of its legs. It fell over, taking him with it. It hit the ground with mighty force, shaking the forest around them. The horse kicked Alex in the face, sending him flying off its leg.
Rubbing the side of his jaw, he got up. "You're a fighter, huh? Well, let's see if you can get out of this."
He tried to put the horse in a headlock, but he was, once again, unsuccessful. The horse threw him off with a simple tilt of the head.
Alex took a moment to catch his breath. It wasn't often that he found a worthy opponent to fight. He was taking somewhat of a liking to the horse.
Instead of trying to battle with it, Alex slowly reached out to the horse. As he got closer, he saw that it had scars all over its body. He remembered how Ron told everyone about the scientists that would give people the super soldier serum and stitch them back together. It broke his heart to think that this horse went through so much pain and suffering.
The horse noticed Alex approaching, and it stood up. It let out a loud snort, and Alex stopped in his tracks.
"Easy, boy," he said. "I'm not going to hurt you."
The creature peered down at Alex, as if it knew what Alex was saying. "I'm going to try to help."
Alex took a step closer, and the muscular horse lowered its head into his hand. He lovingly stroked the horse. It seemed like the super soldier serum didn't affect the horse's brain in the same way it had affected Ethan's. The horse seemed more intelligent, more knowing, and not at all crazy.
Alex looked the horse in the eye. "My name is Alex. I live here."
The impressive stallion nuzzled in, as if it were accepting Alex. He smiled warmly. "I'm sorry about what happened to you, but we're going to try to help. My friends and I, that is. If you come back with me, we can figure out what happened to you, and we can make this right."
With kind eyes, the horse looked up and let out a soft purring sound. Despite getting off on the wrong foot, the horse trusted Alex.
"Do you have a name?" Alex asked. Obviously, the horse didn't reply. Horses can't speak. "Right. Hm, well, let's see. What do you look like? An Andre? No. How about Gary?"
The horse whinnied. Alex felt a sense of accomplishment. "Gary it is, then. It's nice to meet you, Gary."
Gary the super soldier horse removed its head from Alex's hand. It crouched down, allowing him to get on its back. Because the horse was so big, it was hard to mount. However, it wasn't a problem for Alex. He was in impeccable shape. He swung his leg around the horse, and it lifted him up in the air.
Alex had never been on such a tall horse. It was as if he could see everything in the forest, including his house. He leaned toward Gary's ear. "Alright, boy, let's head home."
With that, Gary took off. He galloped at a fast pace. The trees flew by. Every time its hooves hit the ground, the Earth shook.
Alex had a newfound sense of confidence while riding Gary. He felt like an unstoppable force. This is just what he needed to take down the super soldiers. He had befriended one of their own.
Alex smirked, holding onto the horse with all his might. "Gary, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship."
As they flew through the forest, Alex wondered if his friends back home where able to access the hard drive.
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