Leona wheels herself down the hallway, and peeks into the room. Nope, not
who she’s looking for. She continues to the next one. Not this one either.
She knows that Cheyenne is in one of these rooms, but they wouldn’t tell her
which. They also wouldn’t tell her if that’s just hospital policy, or if
Cheyenne specifically asked not to see her. There we go, this room right
here. Leona knocks on the door as she’s inviting herself in. “Hey. We
haven’t talked yet.”
Cheyenne is sitting up straight in her bed, supporting her back on her own.
It looks like a physical therapy exercise. “They told me you weren’t feeling
up to visitors.”
“I don’t know why they said that,” Leona replies. “Mateo, Ramses, Kivi, and
Marie all came to visit.”
Cheyenne just frowns.
“I wanted to apologize for what happened,” Leona says forlornly. “I never
should have put you in that position. The whole thing about that place is
that crime is legal. It’s no surprise that people took advantage of that.”
“Not all crime,” Cheyenne counters. “Bombings, which endanger not only a
high number of people within the boundaries, but also neighboring areas, are
not legal. Besides, didn’t you hear? The suspects are in custody.”
“I heard, yes. I know that they’re the ones who did it, but I still feel
responsible.”
“I’m an adult, I made my choice.”
“You’ve lost so much already. Bridgette...” She was trying to start a list,
but the first one is too heartbreaking.
“I don’t blame you for what happened to her either,” Cheyenne promises.
“Look, I’ve not said much about my past, or my origins, but just know that
you have nothing to apologize for. I was born into this secret underground
world. You and your team didn’t bring me in, like you seem to think. I may
even know more about it than you. If anything, I’m the one who put you in
danger, by letting you know me.”
“I don’t believe that.”
Cheyenne chuckles. “You may change your mind one day. You’re time
travelers,” she muses with a shrug. “Keeping secrets from people like us
inevitably leads to failure.”
Leona narrows her eyes. She wants to know who this woman really is, but she
knows that she’s not entitled to it. Still, she’s right. When you’re part of
the salmon and choosing one network, you can’t expect to keep things from
others, especially not if two or more people know about it. Even the adage,
two can keep a secret if one of them is dead is completely meaningless for
them. They probably would have cracked this nut a long time ago if the Third
Rail weren’t stifling temporal manipulation, and hindering the circulation
of information. “It doesn’t matter. That building was mine, and I was
responsible for anyone in it, and anything that happened to them.”
Cheyenne nods tightly and respectfully. “Okay.” She leans back, and exhales,
either finished with her exercise, or too tired to go on for now.
“Miss, you can’t be in here,” the nurse says from the doorway.
“We’ll talk later,” Cheyenne says.
“In the meantime,” she begins before turning her attention to the nurse, “I
would like to speak with administration to find out why I’m not allowed to
see my friend.”
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