Hail Marys. “Thank you for keeping the sound off.”
“Waste of time. I’ve seen them all.” I heard the remote bounce on the bed. “It’s about time to go.”
“How’d your cop friend take it?”
“Like I was confessing I was a mafia killer. Laughter, denial and slow acceptance. Didn’t hurt when I told him who you were.”
I smiled. “Guess the disguise wasn’t all that great.”
“Hot is hot, Jo.” Harris chortled. “Can’t hide that under a baseball cap and glasses.”
I’d lost both somewhere between the apartment and the hotel. “Smartass. Don’t get cocky now that you’re on the front lines again.”
“Me? Never.”
“Okay, just so we’re clear. Best-case scenario first. You go in, talk to Dykovski and work your magic.” I stumbled to my feet, candy wrappers and discarded chip bags falling everywhere. “He’ll want you, willing or not. Try to be willing. Imagine he’s your favorite porn star ready to give you a chance.”
Harris scowled at me. “Tease.” He got up off the bed where he’d been laying. “What about Kit? What if he’s still angry with you, with me, with us? What then?”
I studied the faded wallpaper. It might have been flowers once. Or exploding kittens. “All I can do is try to appeal to his sense of right and wrong. Dykovski fucked him up real good in Atlanta, I can’t blame him for wanting revenge. But we have to save the town from being the real casualty between these two egos.”
The room was warm, almost stifling. We’d turned the heat up because of Harris’s lack of a coat. He’d stopped shivering, at least with the cold. I wasn’t so sure about his nerves.
“What if Kit doesn’t go along with it? Are you ready to fight him?” Harris toyed with a candy bar wrapper.
“I don’t want to.”
“But if you have to?”
I sighed. “I’m not keen on a two-front battle. Fighting Dykovski and Kit Masters at the same time.”
“Sort of ugly threesome.” Harris shot me a halfhearted leer.
“Not my scene. I’d rather worry about Dykovski and the power armor, thank you very much.” My attention returned to the Rorschach wallpaper.
Harris lifted his right hand, pulling the fingers into a clenched fist. “I can do this.” He looked at me, his jaw tensed. “I can do this, Jo.”
“I know you can.” I smiled. “Just play it the way we agreed, and wait for the team to jump in and save the day. No solo heroics.”
“Like you’re one to talk,” Hunter added dryly. He’d been quiet for the past few hours. It made me nervous.
“Okay. Let’s go find Kit and get ready to meet Dykovski.” Harris ran his hands up and down his arms. “Before I lose my nerve.”
“You won’t,” I reassured him as we stepped out of the hotel room. “You’re solid.”
The words didn’t help quell the quivering in my chest. My fingertips were cold despite the heat radiating off the ground. The gravel crackled under my feet as I took a deep breath and reached for Harris’s hand.
A few seconds later we were airborne, skipping along the tops of the trees. The deep cut in the forest signaled the highway, making it easy for me to navigate towards Kensington Grove and the diner.
The town crawled onto the horizon in an oasis of civilization. Harris squeezed my left hand.
“Let’s land there.” He gestured towards a vacant parking lot next to a supermarket. “Good dumpster diving there.”
“Don’t tell me why you know that.” I set us down in the shadows, light as a feather. “Where would Kit be if he’s not in the apartment?”
The slightly obese super stood up straight and slicked his hair back with one hand. “Ah, let’s see. He doesn’t leave the apartment much. Sort of mooches off of me.”
“No problem. Where does he go online? I don’t remember seeing a computer in your apartment. You spring for a laptop?” I dug my chin down into my chest as we walked out onto the street, pulling the jacket’s lapels up. It was unlikely anyone
“Waste of time. I’ve seen them all.” I heard the remote bounce on the bed. “It’s about time to go.”
“How’d your cop friend take it?”
“Like I was confessing I was a mafia killer. Laughter, denial and slow acceptance. Didn’t hurt when I told him who you were.”
I smiled. “Guess the disguise wasn’t all that great.”
“Hot is hot, Jo.” Harris chortled. “Can’t hide that under a baseball cap and glasses.”
I’d lost both somewhere between the apartment and the hotel. “Smartass. Don’t get cocky now that you’re on the front lines again.”
“Me? Never.”
“Okay, just so we’re clear. Best-case scenario first. You go in, talk to Dykovski and work your magic.” I stumbled to my feet, candy wrappers and discarded chip bags falling everywhere. “He’ll want you, willing or not. Try to be willing. Imagine he’s your favorite porn star ready to give you a chance.”
Harris scowled at me. “Tease.” He got up off the bed where he’d been laying. “What about Kit? What if he’s still angry with you, with me, with us? What then?”
I studied the faded wallpaper. It might have been flowers once. Or exploding kittens. “All I can do is try to appeal to his sense of right and wrong. Dykovski fucked him up real good in Atlanta, I can’t blame him for wanting revenge. But we have to save the town from being the real casualty between these two egos.”
The room was warm, almost stifling. We’d turned the heat up because of Harris’s lack of a coat. He’d stopped shivering, at least with the cold. I wasn’t so sure about his nerves.
“What if Kit doesn’t go along with it? Are you ready to fight him?” Harris toyed with a candy bar wrapper.
“I don’t want to.”
“But if you have to?”
I sighed. “I’m not keen on a two-front battle. Fighting Dykovski and Kit Masters at the same time.”
“Sort of ugly threesome.” Harris shot me a halfhearted leer.
“Not my scene. I’d rather worry about Dykovski and the power armor, thank you very much.” My attention returned to the Rorschach wallpaper.
Harris lifted his right hand, pulling the fingers into a clenched fist. “I can do this.” He looked at me, his jaw tensed. “I can do this, Jo.”
“I know you can.” I smiled. “Just play it the way we agreed, and wait for the team to jump in and save the day. No solo heroics.”
“Like you’re one to talk,” Hunter added dryly. He’d been quiet for the past few hours. It made me nervous.
“Okay. Let’s go find Kit and get ready to meet Dykovski.” Harris ran his hands up and down his arms. “Before I lose my nerve.”
“You won’t,” I reassured him as we stepped out of the hotel room. “You’re solid.”
The words didn’t help quell the quivering in my chest. My fingertips were cold despite the heat radiating off the ground. The gravel crackled under my feet as I took a deep breath and reached for Harris’s hand.
A few seconds later we were airborne, skipping along the tops of the trees. The deep cut in the forest signaled the highway, making it easy for me to navigate towards Kensington Grove and the diner.
The town crawled onto the horizon in an oasis of civilization. Harris squeezed my left hand.
“Let’s land there.” He gestured towards a vacant parking lot next to a supermarket. “Good dumpster diving there.”
“Don’t tell me why you know that.” I set us down in the shadows, light as a feather. “Where would Kit be if he’s not in the apartment?”
The slightly obese super stood up straight and slicked his hair back with one hand. “Ah, let’s see. He doesn’t leave the apartment much. Sort of mooches off of me.”
“No problem. Where does he go online? I don’t remember seeing a computer in your apartment. You spring for a laptop?” I dug my chin down into my chest as we walked out onto the street, pulling the jacket’s lapels up. It was unlikely anyone
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