Lady Grace & the War for a New World (Earth's End Book 2) by Sandy Nathan Page A

saw the heaps of computers and peripherals where she’d indicated. “I didn’t see this stuff last night. This is a whole lab. I’ll be able to do everything but fly.”
    “You may have to, dear. Now get me that dosage, please.”
    Sam got his cortisone shot. Minutes later, he was less swollen and breathing better. They had pulled the parasiticide-soaked tarp out from under him and replaced it with a clean one. Veronica checked his wound and changed the dressing.
    “Since we don’t know exactly what he’s allergic to, we’ve got to eliminate everything I gave him. And we’ve got to wash the guck off him.” She looked at Sam. “Sam, does your wound hurt terribly? I can give you something for pain that won’t make you sick, along with an antibiotic that will be safe.”
    He took the medication, choking on the pills.
    “You’ll feel better in a while.” She turned to Jeremy. “Sam can’t go anywhere and he can’t get that wound wet. He’ll have to have a sponge bath.” She went to one of the compartments and pulled out towels and buckets. “Can you go to that pond and get some water? I’ll sit with Sam.” She squatted next to him as he lay in the open area in the container’s front.
     
    Sam was able to study her for the first time. She was more beautiful than the stories they told about her. She had huge, dark blue eyes that seemed to glint. He’d never seen eyes that color. Her nose was fine and straight, her lips soft and full, framing her wide mouth. Her skin was silken and pale. Her black hair hung to her shoulders. All of her was lovely. She had some tiny lines around her eyes that he scarcely noticed; she didn’t seem old enough to be Jeremy’s mother.
    He also saw what those of the line of Emily knew to look for: fine scars along her jaw. A tiny depression in one cheek where a broken bone couldn’t be fixed perfectly. The lady had said goodbye to Sam Baahuhd just before the world blew up. She did it by making a cylinder and having someone get it to him secretly. The way that she moved and her gestures said that she was being watched when she recorded it. The lady had turned her face so that he could see her scars and know what her life was like. The general had beaten her viciously.
    Being near her made it harder to breathe than it already was. When she picked up his hand and stroked it, he started to shake.
    “Oh, Sam, you’re in pain. I can give you one more of those pills.” She gave him a pill and made him drink the entire glass of water. She gave him more water than he’d get in a day in the underground. The lady sat next to him, holding his hand.
    Sam drifted into and out of consciousness. The medicine she gave him made him sleepy, but his stomach hurt less. He couldn’t believe he was free. He couldn’t believe that Jeremy the Tek and the lady, Mrs. Edgarton, had saved him. The Tek was worshiped as God in the underground. His mother was a legend. He heard her talking to Jeremy.
    “Thanks for getting the water, Jeremy. I’ll give him a sponge bath now, unless you want to,” her voice said.
    “Sorry, Mom. That’s not my thing. I’m going to take a dip in the pond and then scout around.”
    “Don’t go in near the shelter.”
    “Don’t worry. I heard the guy that threw Sam out.”
    Sam must have fallen asleep, because he was surprised when something touched him.
    “Sam, I’m going to wash you with a soapy rag, and then I’ll rinse you off. I’m going to wash you all over, but I’m not getting fresh. Can you hear me, Sam? Are you asleep?”
    He drifted off again, and then awakened when he felt something on his face. It was soft and gentle and slippery. He pretended to be asleep. The cloth went all over his face and head, and behind his neck.
    “I’m going to rinse you off, Sam.” Another cloth stroked him, this one dripping with water. She rinsed him carefully, taking her time. Her touch electrified him. He lay as though he was asleep, but his body strained toward