Page 45 of Fortress
“Some blood they drew, I guess, to run tests—”
“You let them take my bl-blood? Fort-tests?” Toby stood, and Jake blinked at him. Toby’s fists were clenched, his mouth set in a thin, hard line, his eyes snapping in barely contained outrage. Part of Jake wanted to savor the sight of Toby actuallyangryat him, but the part with the most sense knew better than to push Toby any further.
“It’s a routine thing,” he said defensively. “I mean, they didn’t even ask me.”
“Jake.” It was hard to tell whether Toby was more angry or terrified; his face was still white but his eyes had gone dark, boring unblinking into Jake. “Didn’t you th-think—don’t you kn-know what they could havefound?”
“An iron deficiency?”
“This isn’tfunny!” Bright spots appeared on his cheeks. “How c-can you j-joke —”
“Toby, I’m not!” Jake lifted his hands. “That’s all they found, okay? All it means is you get to have more salads—”
Toby wasn’t appeased. “They could have f-found—” He gestured to indicate limitless possibilities too awful to name. “And that would’ve—th-that could’ve—” Either fury or fear pushed words out of his reach, and he dropped his hand back to his side, vehemence flickering like a flare burned out. “I don’t know how you’d be able to l-look at me if—”
Jake had a powerful and completely unhelpful desire for a drink. “Toby, I could sit here all day and tell you that nothing they could have found would’ve changed anything. Fuck, Ihavetold you that, but that doesn’t matter because theydidn’tfind anything. That’s two doctors now who have taken a good hard look at you, inside and out, and said you’re in the clear. We should throw a fucking party.”
Toby threw him a look instead, then shook his head as though to ward off a mosquito. “They got too close. M-maybe we should...”
“Leave town?” Jake felt a wave of relief in his bones. They had been in one place too long. Necessary as it had been for Toby’s healing, Jake was ready to hit the road. At least there they would be a moving target.
“Yeah.” Toby took a deep breath. “I’ll call the l-library, let them know that we have to go.”
“I’ll tell Alex,” Jake agreed.
They left Arizona quick enough to shake the dust from their trail, but their path east wasn’t aimless.
Jake had been racking his brains for the best way to celebrate Toby’s seventeenth birthday, especially since Toby had brought him the best fucking homemade breakfast in bed a guy could ask for. In Sahuarita, Jake had pursued a lot of little ideas. The Eldorado’s back seat had another box of books he’d picked up at the secondhand shop and a couple CDs from Shady Raptor Records, each carefully wrapped in salvaged funny papers. But no matter what he could come up with, there was an essential problem with anything that Jake could give Toby.
What could possibly be good enough for Toby’s first birthday outside Freak Camp?
Nothing that Jake could manage without shaking down heaven and earth, that’s what. He had some tentative ideas, like maybe a book on plants to match Toby’s newfound fascination with spring and flowers. As the weather warmed, any daylight hours outside the library Toby had spent taking notes outdoors, flipping through his biology book and another borrowed book on the local flora.
But once they started driving, Jake knew exactly where they should head.
Toby had asked if they should scan for a hunt before choosing a direction, but Jake had shaken his head, told himDude, you just stopped rattling when you walk, let’s not push our luck.
They slowed down through St. Louis. Jake pulled off the I-44 highway toward Soulard, muttering about an old restaurant that had the best hot dogs ever, or at least he’d thought so in junior high. When they found it, Toby got a simple hot dog withmustard while Jake chose the chili cheese dog, and both were damn good (though Jake admitted there were one or two other places that might give them a run for their money now).
“Whaddaya say we hole up at that place down the street for the night?” Jake asked around his last mouthful, washing it down with his last swig of soda. “Or maybe the weekend, there’s lots to see in the Lou.”
Toby turned to look at the Hilton Hotel that Jake nodded toward, then looked back at him in surprise. Jake had to admit the surprise had merit. They usually bunked in smaller motels on the edge of town—a step up from the dumps Jake had lived in with Leon but still could best be described ashomey. Once or twice they’d hit a Holiday Inn when Jake hadn’t liked the look of any of the nearest motels, but they’d never shelled out for a Radisson.
Jake shrugged. “Figured we could treat ourselves after making it out of Arizona, right?”
Toby still looked puzzled but didn’t question him. But as they walked inside the spacious lobby, his eyes widened. Grinning, Jake took Toby’s hand, swinging it on their walk to the front desk. A little sweet talk with the attractive young receptionist, and he managed to wrangle a deluxe for the price of a regular room. He winked at Toby as they headed to the elevator, and Toby smiled tentatively back.
The smile grew when they stepped into the suite and Toby took in the vista: a bedroom and separate living room; a bathroom that, even from the door, Jake could see had an actual jacuzzi; and furniture that aped actual classy stuff that you would find in a mansion, all dark wood, intricate carvings, and sapphire brocade. This decor included the king-size bed that dominated the bedroom. They could probably sleep spread out without either of them in danger of rolling off the bed.
Instead of their usual routine of unpacking toiletries and setting security measures, Toby drifted to the huge bed and sat down on it. After a moment, he lay back with a soft exhale, full of wonder and contentment.
Jake handled the salt lines himself and joined him, stretching out with a throaty groan that made Toby’s eyes widen. “Can you believe some assholes live like this all the time?” Jake told him.
Toby’s smile was wider, beautifully unselfconscious. “Is it bad that I don’t think I can get up right now?”
“Nah, sounds perfect. We’ll order room service later.” Jake squeezed Toby’s fingers. “Looks like we’re stuck here together.”
Toby still didn’t suspect anything the next day as they pulled up in front of the Missouri Botanical Gardens. He frowned at the lettering across the front of the building, craning his neck to see it through the windshield. “Why are we here?”
