Page 17 of Wonder
I showed Jackson how to chop tomatoes and carrots for the salad, which they took to with great enthusiasm, if little skill. Esperanza eyed them like she was itching to show them how to hold the knife properly, but she must’ve decided she had bigger concerns and went back to stirring the soup. Shane joined us, sitting at the kitchen table since the kitchen itself was too crowded already.
Simon came out of the guest room. “Hey, Nicky’s gonna need a bath somehow, and clean clothes.”
I frowned. “He’s not the only one.” I pointed at Simon’s less than clean jeans and his blood-smeared chest. “Shit, I’m sorry. I had a change of clothes in my backpack this whole time. Do you want them now? And my stuff’ll be huge on Nicky, but it’ll do for tonight.”
Simon looked down at himself. “Sorry. I didn’t realize how dirty I am.”
I snorted. “It was well-earned. None of us are complaining.”
He gave me one of those over-bright smiles. On anyone else it would seem fake, but it made me feel like I’d... exceeded his expectations, maybe?
He waved a hand toward the front door. “I have enough clean clothes in the minivan, though if I could borrow your washing machine tomorrow, it’ll save me a trip to the laundromat.”
“Of course. I figure you and Nicky’ll be here for a good while, so make yourself at home. I’ll go find Nicky something to wear.”
“That boy needs to eat before anything else. I’ve never seen anyone so skinny. Our dinner can wait.” Tia grabbed a mug from the cabinet, then dropped in a couple of ice cubes before ladling some of the soup into it. “Are any of you going to tell me what happened to him?” She glanced deliberately from Simon to Jackson. “Seems like something important’s going on.”
Fuck. I ran my hand through my hair. “Those vampires everyone’s been talking about? Simon ran them to ground an hour outside of town. They had six captives, including Nicky. The others are okay, but they’d had Nicky for a long time.”
She narrowed her gaze at Simon. “You’re the vampire who’s been helping, yes?”
He squared his shoulders. “Yes, ma’am.”
She put a spoon into the mug and handed it to him. “Here. The boy eats first, then he can have a bath. If he feels well enough afterward, bring him out to sit at the table, or he can lie on the sofa. It’s not good for him to be shut away from everyone.”
Simon gave Tia a weird little bow with his free hand clenched into a fist and held over his chest. “It shall be done.” He turned to go but hesitated. “Reno, maybe you should come with me, in case he gets scared about me being a vampire again.”
Crap, good point. “I can do that. Let me grab the clothes for him.” I dashed upstairs to my bedroom and picked out a t-shirt, some boxer briefs, and a pair of basketball shorts. Hopefully the elastic would keep everything from falling off of him.
Nicky was still asleep, his body small under the quilt. The bandages were gone from his head, but his hair was matted with blood. We’d have to change the sheets again once we got him clean. Simon gestured at me to wake Nicky, and he stood back a little holding the mug of soup.
I sat on the edge of the bed. “Nicky? Can you wake up? We’ve got some soup for you.” When he didn’t respond, I touched his hand.
Nicky exploded into motion, sitting up and knocking my arm away, punching at me with his other hand.
“Fuck!” I barely got my elbow up to block his strike. I dove off the bed onto the floor. When I looked back, he was panting, wide-eyed and with his fists up.
“Peace, Nicky. I’m Simon, and that’s Reno, remember?” He held up the mug. “We didn’t mean to startle you. We brought you something to eat.”
Nicky blinked, then lowered his fists. “I’m sorry.”
I climbed to my feet. “No, it’s my fault. I should’ve remembered what you’ve been through. It’s natural for you to be uneasy. You're at my house. This is my guest bedroom.” Shit, I hoped there was a therapist nearby who was part of the campaign. I waved toward Simon. “My aunt made some chicken and vegetable soup, if you’d like to try it.”
He looked at the mug. “I’ve never had that before. It smells good.”
Simon handed the mug to him, and Nicky pulled the spoon out, examining it like it was a novelty. His face twisted as if he were trying not to cry. “I haven’t been allowed any utensils since....” He shook his head, then dipped the spoon into the soup.
My throat went tight. “You can have all the utensils you want now. Knives, forks, whatever.” Feeling odd about looming over him, I sat on the chair in the corner of the room. Simon moved to lean against the doorframe.
Nicky’s hand was too shaky to use the spoon effectively, but he got one mouthful in with it. He smiled. “This soup is amazing.” He ended up sipping the remainder directly from the mug. When it was gone, his expression was almost mournful.
“There’s more, but why don’t we get you a bath first?” I pointed toward the bathroom across the hall.
Nicky’s mouth fell open as if I’d offered him a million dollars. “A bath? Like, in a tub?”
Oh, fuck, my heart. I didn’t want to consider how they’d kept Nicky clean. “Yeah, and there’s a shower too, for when you’re stronger and can stand up.”
Nicky allowed Simon to carry him to the bathroom. I offered to wait outside while Nicky relieved himself, but he asked me to stay. I guessed he was nervous being alone with a vampire, even a friendly one. Too bad I wasn’t the sort of magic carrier who had super strength, but Nicky would get used to Simon over time.
