Primary Storm by Brendan DuBois

crawling into bed. Join me if you can."
    Which is what I did, but before crawling into said bed, I went around and made sure the windows were locked, that the door was locked, and the sliding glass door leading out to my first-floor deck was locked. I also did a quick weapons inventory, and aside from the missing Ruger, my twenty-gauge shotgun, my eight-millimeter FN-FAL, and my nine-millimeter Beretta were all in place. I went upstairs and retrieved my Beretta from my bedroom, took a long shower to warm up my chilled bones, and then slid into bed. I read for a while and soon enough, the sounds of the ocean put me to sleep.
    The creaking door from downstairs woke me up. I reached over to the nightstand, grasped my pistol. It was cold and awkward and yet comforting in my hand. I sat up, moist and cool, and knew my fever had broken. There were footsteps on the stairs coming up to my floor, and I aimed the pistol out toward the open door, waiting. Waiting.
    The wind rattled the windows in my bedroom. I waited and ---
    Damn.
    I lowered the pistol and pulled the sheet over it, just as a figure appeared in the doorway. I called out, "Hello, Annie."
    "Lewis," came the familiar and lovely voice. "Didn't mean to wake you up."
    "You didn't, not to worry," I said.
    She came in, and as she undressed, I tried my best to quietly put the Beretta back on the nightstand, and she said, "That's a new one, Lewis. Usually you can get me into bed with a soft word, not a weapon."
    "The day I've had ... sorry, I heard someone come in." Annie came over, slid under the sheets. "But you invited me, didn't you?"
    "That I did."
    She cuddled up next to me and said, "You've been all over the news, but you knew that."
    "Yes."
    "Do you know why you are involved? Who did this to you?"
    "Not a clue."
    "Mmm ... you intend to find out."
    "That I do."
    She said, "I ... I cherish you, Lewis, but please. Please don't do anything to cause any more bad publicity for the senator. All right? I believe in him. I really do. And ... I just want him to win next week Okay?"
    I stroked her hair. "Is this my Annie talking, or campaign Annie?"
    "It's me talking, that's who."
    "I understand, dear one, I do. Whatever I do, it'll have nothing to do with the senator. I just want to know how and why I was set up."
    She touched my forehead. "How are you feeling?"
    "Tired. Drained. Whatever I had before the rally seems to be going away."
    "Good."
    She kissed me chastely on the cheek and said, "You've had a long day. I've had a long day. Let's ... let's just sleep, all right?"
    "Fine. That'll be just fine."
    She moved some more and in an instant was asleep. I held her for a bit, and then gently disentangled myself and rolled over. I lay there, listening to her breathing slow and deepen, until it almost matched the rhythm of the ocean's waves.
     
     
    I awoke with wet hair in my face. Annie was there, fresh out of the shower, it seemed, and she raised herself up. "You okay?" she asked. She was already dressed, and knowing Annie, breakfast was either ready or already consumed.
    "Feeling better. I think"
    Another kiss. "I've got to run. Campaign staff meeting in forty-five minutes, and I'm only going to be on time if I speed my pert little ass over to Manchester. I'll call you later, all right?"
    "Sure. Thanks for coming by. It ... it meant a lot."
    "Meant a lot to me, too. Especially when you didn't shoot me."
    I raised myself up and kissed her, and she smiled, and then she was gone.
    I lowered myself back to bed, yawned, and thought about what I should do next, and when I looked at my bedside clock ---- keeping company with my nine-millimeter Beretta --- I saw that another hour had passed.
    Time to get up and get going.
    Getting dressed after my shower, I felt like I hadn't eaten well in days, so I treated myself to a coronary-encouraging breakfast of scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, and some shaved potato bits that passed as home fries. I left the television off and switched on the radio