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Chapter -14- Friends with Benefits

Wednesday, December 1, 2049 - 7am Cumberland, Maryland Mouth of the Chesapeake Canal ...

Sinopa Guillot placed her right hand atop her left , gazing out over the city of New Cumberland. Surrounded by mountains on one side, and the Atlantic on the other, it was covered in a light dusting of snow.

Karla turned to Sinopa. "Reminds you of Japan, huh?"

Sinopa nodded and smiled. "You must be psychic, Karla-san." She turned to the south, gazing over the harbor. "It's beautiful."

"And cold," Karla quipped. "This is why I left Washington DC all those years ago." She nodded towards the harbor. "Potomac Harbor is one of the busiest ports on this whole god-forsaken strip of land. It reminds me of San Francisco. Gateway to a western ocean, hilly, prone to earthquakes ... just like San Francisco, only colder."

"Hai. That is why I loved San Francisco - it reminded me of Japan."

Karla grinned. "But without the carpfish deity."

Sinopa laughed. "Indeed, San Francisco had far less quakes than Japan. And no snow, sadly. I love the snow. It is the only thing I missed in San Francisco. It's beautiful, it kills germs; it makes things quiet."

Karla nodded. "Yeah. I've heard that before. Hell, maybe it was you that said it. Look, I've straightened out the drama with Conner. But I need to be honest with you if we're going to work things out."

Sinopa sighed. "Tamamo is missing. She has stayed out of contact since 'borrowing' your body. I knew this would happen."

"You know what happened? Wait, did you dream it?"

"No, it was more of a mother's intuition," Sinopa said in a soft voice. She looked back at the private chartered plane. She turned towards the sea in the distance. "Conner called me yesterday, he said you were agitated. Then he said he preferred to wait to give me the details until we could speak together in person."

"Ah."

"Karla, if she did what I think she did, I am appalled and deeply sorry for what you had to endure."

"The kid and I spoke at length." Karla nodded to the south. "Let's walk somewhere more private. I don't want to teleport where anyone can see us."

"Very wise."

"It's what you would want."

Sinopa nodded in agreement. "What was the outcome of your conversation with Conner?"

Karla withdrew one of her two coats and put one around Sinopa's shoulders. "I know you're fine with snow, but a sweater won't hack it."

"Arigato."

"No problem. So, when I realized that Conner was forced into this, I hugged the kid. I'm four-and-a-half centuries old. I can handle my shit. But he's a teenaged boy. I felt bad because he doesn't even realize what he's going through right now. I just ... hugged him. He even cried when telling Reno what happened."

"Wait." Sinopa stopped and turned to face Karla. "Apparently, I am not clear on what happened. I thought Tamamo used you to have sex with him?"

"She did," Karla said in a flat tone. "But she went down on the kid against his wishes. And when he passed out from that, Tamamo apparently used me to ride him. And then she told him, 'Gee, thanks for last night!" He didn't get a say."

Sinopa's eyes widened. Her heart pounded and her stomach felt uncomfortable. "By the way you speak, am I to assume she stripped your memories of the events?"

"Yeah. But you know what I do remember, Red? I remember Conner storming out of the room when she came onto him, using my body. The next thing I remember, she's in the bathroom taking a shower, and she felt sated. Proud, even. It's all splotchy after that."

"My heavens."

"Conner was freaked out I might wind up pregnant. He didn't know how to act about anything."

Sinopa unleashed a long-winded statement, filled with Japanese curses.

"I only understood a few of those words, and they weren't nice words to say."

Sinopa ground her teeth together. "How could she do that to my grandson?! After all I risked to restore the honor of her name, she does this?!"

"Sinopa, it isn't your fault."

"It is!" She balled up her fists. "I manipulated them to become mates so I could ensure he would be protected from whatever may happen in the near future! On top of that, we've lost her kanko spirit as an ally! And, the worst of all, is that Conner is confused, and you were disrespected in such an absolutely horrible way!"

Karla put an arm around Sinopa's shoulders and walked her towards the south overlook, high above the harbor. "You're an amazing friend to care about me. Yeah, it sucks, and the weirdest part is that I'll remember it soon. But I confronted Tamamo."

"You ... did?"

Karla nodded. "I used Kuda to go to her house. I got right up in her face, too."

"Oh Karla, that was dangerous. She does not fight fair when cornered."

The succubus scoffed. "I basically told her she's a bully. I told her that she's capable of redemption but she's not invited to join us in fighting Falcon."

"But she is an excellent warrior."

Karla rolled her eyes. "She's backup at best. "We've got our flamethrower - you."

"We could use a warrior skilled with a blade."

Again, Karla scoffed. "We've got four thousand years of sword combat in Tamae and Rachel."

"Mm, true. Rachel retained everything, and Tamae has been Tamamo's host for an excessive period of time."

Karla buffed her nails on the front of her coat. "Oh, and I have Kuda." she grinned. "I, uh, basically shoved her back, snatched Kuda right out from under her nose, and left."

"Oh my." Sinopa closed her eyes as the two walked together. "She is very possessive of her objects."

"Kuda's not an object. If he wants to be Tamamo's toy, he is free to hop in any mirror and go crawling back to her. But his happy-little-tail is parked on my yacht right now. I've left one mirror uncovered, and it's only big enough for him to fit through."

Sinopa and Karla continued walking to the edge of the tarmac. The Atlantic sparkled like a sea of black diamonds in the morning sunlight.

The kitsune's eyes lowered to the busy harbor far below. "It's so beautiful."

"Beautiful but cold. You ready?"

Sinopa nodded in reply. "Where is the yacht?"

Karla pointed with her finger. "See that little white dot out there? Conner had it fully restored. Apparently, he put in the order for it to be repaired a day or two before he and I went after Sekhmet's headdress. He thought we were becoming buddies again, so he'd do something nice. Last night, he tells me he was glad it was ready in time to repair our friendship - isn't that sweet?"

"His heart is in the right place, but his temper can be difficult at times."

"He's an Aries," Karla said. "I know that zodiac stuff isn't always right but, on average, I like to think it's fairly accurate."

"Hai. You most certainly live up to a Scorpio."

"Hell yeah I do." Karla grinned. "Anyway, Conner was so worried I would blame him, he waited until the boat was ready. He brought that to use as a conversational icebreaker."

"How has he taken Tamamo's betrayal?"

"He and Tamae have discussed it at length."

"Mm. What was their take on her actions?"

Karla shrugged. "They think Tamamo couldn't control my hormones, and fell victim to my hunger. They understand she did something wrong, but they're trying to be loyal to her."

"Understood. So they are choosing to bear her shame as a family, by standing with her?"

"Sort of." Karla shrugged, looking out over the morning ocean view. "They agreed with me on one thing - they're not making a decision until they've distanced themselves from the situation. No contact for a while. Then, if time healed the wound of being betrayed, great. And if they're still offended, they'll act accordingly when the time comes."

"I see. It isn't like Conner to make such a patient decision."

"Tamae and I convinced him."

Sinopa grinned. "Understood. Shall we?" She reached for Karla's hand and interlaced her fingers. "For some reason I prefer to hold on to you during such a lengthy teleportation. I hope you do not mind."

"Nah. It's cool. You've got soft hands anyway."

Sinopa replied with a shake of her head. "I appreciate the compliment, but the flirting is not necessary."

"I flirt with everyone. It's my personality."

Before Sinopa could reply, she felt herself become weightless. There was a moment of disorientation. They appeared in the frigid sky, high above the ocean.

Her tails floated, and her hair rose, coming even with her face.

Karla looked down, eyeing the yacht. They disappeared again.

They appeared and then vanished again.

All at once, Sinopa felt the deck plates beneath her feet. Coming from solid concrete to a yacht was strange, as her next step was upon a yacht in the ocean. However, the sea was calm at this hour, and Sinopa adjusted.

She held her hands out to steady herself. "You're getting good at going lengthy distances. In the past, such a journey would have lasted four or five appearances in the air, most of which involved flailing."

Karla grinned. "I'm better with the telekinesis. I can keep us stable in flight, now. Yeah, I'm getting real good with teleporting. I still like to eye the target first, and check the area for a clear landing." Karla picked up her purse and shouldered it. "Never leave home without a handbag full of coins, I always say."

"Dare I ask what happens if something is where you intend to appear?"

"Oh, I never told you?" Karla grinned. She pointed a finger at a handrail nearby.

A quarter teleported from her purse and appeared half-buried in the wooden handrail. The backside of the rail cracked from stress.

Sinopa approached the rail and studied it. She pulled on the quarter but it didn't come free. "How difficult is it to pull the coin from this? Can you teleport it back out?"

"Nope. The quarter materialized in the handrail. They're fused forever on a molecular level or some such. You can cut what's left of the quarter and sand it down to be even with the rail, but that's about it."

Sinopa swallowed. "As many times as you have teleported me..."

"See? Aren't you glad you trust me, babe?"

"I..." Sinopa paled somewhat. "Thank you for not killing us many times in the past."

"No problem!" Karla announced cheerfully. "Now that you're here, we need to wake up everyone and get ready to find this nuclear bomb. And we'll need Greg Watson, James Parker, Wilford Greg - everyone we can find."

"We're on a mission from the gods and it's time to..."

Sinopa cut her off, adding, "...Get the band back together, yes."

"Now who's the psychic one?" Karla grinned. "I know Jonathan couldn't give a rat's ass about the Blues Brothers, so I'm going to assume you watched it with Jules."

Sinopa placed her hand gently on Karla's elbow and gave a soft squeeze. "Carmen, actually. She went through a phase of loving all things pop culture, old and new. It frustrated her brother, because he distanced himself from such things, save for spy movies."

"Yup. But here's something you might not know about Carmen. She hates my guts because I slept with her mother." Karla shrugged. "Kids these days. Acting all conservative because their mom was ultra liberal. Crazy, right?"

"Mm. Perhaps it would be best if we speak of our plans. We should head through the canal and follow the coast north to New York City. Everyone is waiting for us."

"Here's your fun fact for the day," Karla said, "The Chesapeake Canal follows an old interstate in, towards Baltimore, and comes down, along another old major interstate, dumping out in the Patapsco River. I lived in DC for a while; I think it was I-70 to I-695. Anyway, we'll pass by Fort McHenry."

"I'm not sure the significance of..."

Karla said, "Battle of 1812? Star Spangled Banner? Oh say can we see by the dawn's early light? All that? That was written right there. We're going to be passing right through that spot on the way to the Chesapeake Bay, where it dumps us out."

"You certainly know many little trivia facts, don't you?"

"Again, babe, I lived in DC for a while. If you asked me historical questions about something from the middle of the country, I wouldn't know the answer."

"I see."

"Remember, I lived through all that mess. I didn't head out to the West Coast, the first time, until the gold rush. And thank Christ I did because the Civil War was some nasty business." Karla rubbed her palms together. "You wake everyone up, I'll cook breakfast, and Conner can get us through the Canal."

"Conner can...?" Sinopa paused and sighed. "Yes, he did bring the yacht across the globe to you. I suppose he can navigate a yacht."

"It's all computer stuff. He can drive this thing from anywhere on the boat, Sinopa. That's what he does, remember?"

"Hai, he inherited it from Fox. I remember." Sinopa bowed to Karla. "You are handling things more maturely than I gave you credit. I would be honored to fight alongside of you. Perhaps if I was able last time, we would not have failed."

"Hey, don't blame yourself, Red. You took out that asshole, Sire St. Leonard. That guy was practically impossible to beat, but then you show up and ruined his day."

"Arigato. Your words are kind. I still feel as though I could have made a difference if I was able to help last time. Even if it was something small, like keeping your heart on the right path in the face of adversity, I could have helped. We could have won the day together."

Karla frowned. "Yeah. Yeah, I suppose. Is that why you're coming with me? To make sure I'm not going to mess things up again?"

Sinopa reached for Karla and pulled her into a hug. "No one should have endured such a choice alone. You felt as though the man was unbeatable, leaving you with few choices. I do not judge you for the choice you made. I only wish I could have helped you. Together we could have made a difference."

Karla, surprised by the hug, returned it. "You think so?"

"This time, we will."

Karla grinned a bit. "I like hugging you. You're not that much taller than me. Everyone else is way taller than me."

"Karla, do you remember the promise we made to one another a few months ago?"

Karla lowered her voice, to the best of her ability, trying to emulate a movie ad narrator. "Two angry moms, together, against all odds, vowing to stop Falcon ... and get our kids back at all costs."

"Hai. And we are close to realizing that vow."

Karla squeezed Sinopa firmly, "Don't you dare die on me before we go after that guy. Promise me."

Sinopa relinquished the hug and met Karla's gaze. "I had a dream recently. In it, I saw us, together, laying flowers down at a memorial. Our children were in attendance."

Karla grinned brightly. "Then we win?"

"Hai."

"Fuck yeah, we win! That is awesome! Do you know what that's going to do for everyone's confidence? That's amazing, Sinopa! Wait until I tell everyone!"

"I thought you would appreciate it."

"I know it's a bit premature to ask, but do I marry Reno?"

Sinopa opened her mouth and paused. She licked her lips, not wanting to discourage Karla over what she learned regarding Reno's fate. "No, but there is a good reason."

Karla licked her lips and tilted her head. "Does ... Chance come back to life? I ... I shouldn't even be asking that, but if Vincent can be brought back from the dead, and if Nichole can be brought back, I have to know. Do we find Chance down there?"

Sinopa shook her head. "In my dream, Eric Loupe was still your husband. He was at the memorial."

The succubus narrowed her eyes. "Everyone said he died. He shot Rufus, because he was under Falcon's goddamn command. Rufus heard Falcon order my husband to set fire to a holding facility for supernatural people. And then..." Karla swallowed back emotion, jaw tight, and eyes moist. She took a deep breath, "And then Falcon ordered Eric to kill himself. He's dead. And if he isn't, he never came back."

"Perhaps we find him in cryogenic stasis."

Realization washed over Karla's face. "Christ, I didn't even think of that. You ... you might be right. I could go down there and get my kids and their father back. I could save them all, my whole freaking family."

"What do you do about your budding relationship with Reno?"

Karla's eyes dropped. "Well, we're not dating. We're just friends with benefits. I love Reno. I love that man to death. I'm not romantically in love with him - at least not like I was with Chance. But I love him. I suppose I could grow to fall in love. It wouldn't be difficult with Reno. He's good to me. But Eric ... I made a life with Eric. Eric is immortal; Reno may age like Nathan did. I'm married to Eric. He's my husband. We've spent two-and-a-half decades together."

Sinopa placed her hand on Karla's shoulder. "You do not need to choose now. Please, do not stress yourself about it."

Karla reached for Sinopa's hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Sorry, I wasn't being clear. What I mean is, if Eric really is alive ... I've already made my bed. I'm willing to try sleeping in it again. If my husband is alive, I'm not going to divorce him over a crush. He's my husband and I love the man."

"Then you should tell Reno."

"I will. Reno will understand." Karla turned away from Sinopa and walked to the end of the deck.

The succubus paused, seeing a long, out-stretched shadow that came from the angle of the sun across the deck.

"What is it?" asked Sinopa, keen to notice Karla's expression. Her golden gaze lowered to a lengthy shadow, cast by something across the deck. "What?"

"That shadow." Karla followed it across the aft deck. "Eric? Eric, if that's you listening, just ... show up, babe. Come back to me and we'll talk." There was no response. "I'm not mad. I was wrong. I want to try again. If you're here, listening, then you know that's how I really feel."

Sinopa tilted her head. She couldn't deny that she saw Eric in her dream. She wondered if he could still be alive.

Karla followed the long-stretched shadow towards the back of the yacht. She looked up at the angle of the sun in the sky and kept following it. She went around a set of Evan's famous sunning chairs, which had shorter shadows.

She made her way to a grill at the edge of the deck, the source of the long shadow. "Eric?"

Kuda stood atop the grill, ears perked, tail fluffed, and back straight.

Karla lifted her gaze from the shadow on the deck and met Kuda's tiny amber eyes. The sun glowed on his thick winter pelt.

She stood in silence, staring at the tiny animal atop of the grill.

After a moment, she reached up, drew him into her arms and carried him back across the deck to Sinopa. "Look who came to see us, Kuda, baby. It's Sinopa. You know Sinopa, don'cha?"

She tried to sound cheery and gentle to the animal, but Sinopa could hear the disappointment in Karla's voice. She drew Karla, along with Kuda, into a hug. "We will find him, I promise."

"I thought it was a weird shadow. It looked too long to be part of the grill."

Sinopa looked down, and the shadow was now shorter. "Kuda was standing atop the grill. Perhaps it made a difference."

"Obviously," Karla said in a flat tone. "You said you see him alive, and then I see a shadow stretched out across the deck. Christ, and it's gone now - obviously it had to be Kuda. I'm just all messed up. How can I start a thing with Reno when I still have feelings for Eric like this? God, I didn't even know I still loved him this much until now. My head is so screwed up."

Perhaps it is best we do not speak of Tamamo's childish misadventures when we rescue him."

"I actually like his possessive streak, but..." Karla sighed and stepped back from the hug. "Sinopa, I can't hide that from my husband. If he found out later, he would think I kept it from him."

"I meant until the dust settles. After Falcon and Loki are dead - that would be a better time."

"Yeah. I guess you're right." Karla grimaced. "What was I thinking? Eric wouldn't be here. He wouldn't be hiding in the goddamn shadows. If he were following me, he would have thrown me off of Conner. He would have thrown Reno in the ocean."

"That makes sense. It would have never happened to begin with."

Karla nodded in agreement. "And, oh God, he would have threatened Rufus to within an inch of his life. Eric was seriously jealous over how I used to have a thing with Rufus. Not sure why, considering I made my choice. But Eric didn't even like me to say Rue's name. He would cringe and get pissy."

"I thought he called Rufus to come to the house - isn't that why he shot Rufus?"

"Falcon ordered him to do it, but Eric probably didn't mind. I figured the only reason Eric would have called Rufus is if Falcon ordered him to do that, too, or if he wanted Rufus to come by, just to make sure I wasn't backsliding. Eric used to say, 'if you lie with dogs, you wake up with fleas. Wolves undoubtedly have the most.' Look, let's just drop this whole thing. We need to get moving and pick up everyone else."

"Hai. I will wake the others, starting with Conner."

"Good idea." Karla carried Kuda inside. She took a piece of jerky from her purse and wedged it into his teeth. "There you go baby-boy."

X

X

Meanwhile Syracuse, New York Continental United States ...

Patty Balmoral looked up at the sunrise. The clouds were purple, pink and orange. She watched from the eastern window. "It's so beautiful."

Haley knelt on the sofa, arms across the backrest. "It's really pretty, mom. Why aren't they all like this?"

"It depends on the clouds. Just the right amount of clouds makes it prettier. They reflect the morning light and help with the layers and colors."

"When are we going to find daddy?"

Patty took a deep breath. "I'll tell you what, stay here and watch the sunrise. I'm going to talk to our friends." Patience stood up and walked to the back of the beautiful century-old home. She passed Charles Foster in the hallway and stopped him. "I hate to ask..."

Charlie smiled. "You haven't asked in a week. You've been patient. But it's almost time."

"How long? What do I tell my daughter?"

Charlie put his hands on her shoulders and guided her back down the hallway to the smaller east-facing living room. "Haley," he said, guiding Patience to sit down on the sofa. "I was going to tell your mom just now, but I figured I'd tell you both..."

Haley turned away from the sunrise and folded her hands.

Charles grinned. "You are such a well-behaved kid."

Patty grinned at her daughter; Haley smiled back.

Charlie held his hands out and announced, "There is a place across the ocean that used to be the other side of New York. Old York, or whatever you want to call it. That's where your daddy is right now. We couldn't go there because we have people watching the area to try and find out where our group is hiding. These same people are also trying to find out where your dad's friends are hiding."

"It's been a month," Haley said calmly. "I know I'm a little girl, but I've been very patient. When are we going to see my dad?"

Patty opened her mouth to say something but Charlie put his hands up. "No, wait, Patty. It's perfectly okay. She's right. She has been patient. The young lady knows what she wants. I can't fault her for that."

"Mom says I have spunk."

Charlie laughed. "You two have been amazing. Patience, you've not only lived up to your name, but you've been very helpful with everyone here. Ms. Natalia has the utmost respect for your mind. And Peter was delighted to hear all about your stories in the lower city. But I found a way to expedite things, and we don't even have to leave the house."

Patience lifted her head, eyeing Charlie for a moment. "We're not going to him?"

"No. Peter had an idea. He sent a message to Steven Milford. He said something only Steven would know, and asked Steven to send Cybil Powalski to help. In the letter, he asked for Evan to accompany Cybil as protection."

"What if the letter is intercepted?"

Charlie shrugged. "Only Steven and Peter can read the words. It's written in a dead language, only the two of them would know. That's what will pique Steven's interest to follow instructions. We sent it two days ago. It should arrive any time."

"So Evan is coming here?"

Charlie nodded. "To be honest, I was hoping you guys wouldn't ask until Evan arrived, so it could be a surprise. But I can't just hold it from you. I can't lie, you know? But yeah, he should be on his way right now, actually."

Haley and Patty exchanged glances again, offering each other a secret smile of excitement.

Haley asked, "So what's this other man like? Cybil?"

"Well, he's an oracle. He can see the future."

"Cool!" Haley exclaimed. "Can I meet him? Can he tell me the future?"

Charlie bit his lower lip. "I uh, don't know if that's a good idea. See, Cybil had a very severe stroke a few years ago. And, now, he can't control some of the words he says. He randomly says words that he knows are very bad, but he can't help it. And you're too young to hear that sort of language."

Patience cringed. "And they're sending _Evan_with him?"

"Why, is that a problem?"

Patience brought the palm of her hand to her face. "Not for Cybil, but it will certainly be interesting for Evan."

"Oh. Well, uh, okay. I look forward to meeting my brother's best friend."

Patty grinned. "I look forward to seeing him, too."

Charlie bit his lower lip. "Look, uh, I'll tell you what."

"Yes?"

He smiled. "After he comes in, and you guys get to spend a few minutes getting reacquainted, I'll take Haley up to get a nice meal. She can help me bring it back, so you and Evan can catch up."

Haley smirked. "You're just saying that because you're psychic or whatever. And you're reading mom's mind, so you know she's going to want to make out with dad."

"Haley!"

"You're married after all, duh. I would expect no less, mom."

Patience sighed. "I accept your generous offer, Charlie. Everyone in this wonderful home has been nothing but tolerant and kind to us. You've fed us and kept us safe for an entire month. I feel like I can trust you to be a babysitter."

Haley smirked. "I'll keep him from getting into trouble, mom."

Charlie grinned. "It's the least I can do."

X

X

At that very moment Atlantic Ocean ...

Evan put his hand on Cybil's shoulder and pushed the man down, behind the crates. "Shh. If they see us, we're dead meat."

"This'll be the second time you've saved me from the 'bad guys.' But this is a lot more dangerous than Oakland in 2023. This is ... we're up against shitting fucked damn."

"I thought you said Steven Milford did some sort of genetic engineering thing to fix you? You've done nothing but cuss since those people boarded this stupid ship."

Cybil stared at Evan with one eye open. "Yes, he reprogrammed a virus to attack damage left over from my aneurism. It has repaired the problem I had with telepathy. That has nothing to do with the shitting problem of my coprolalia. Shit. I wish I could ass'ing fix the shit problem of my Tourette syndrome fuck. I can control it when I'm not frustrated, but now we're being shitted ... being boarded_and I'm frustrated. I didn't see this, because this whole thing should never have ass ... never have happened and it's so f-f-fuc - so _frustrating, because I should have been able to avoid this if my ability was working properly."

Evan sighed. "I'm not mad. I just don't like cussing."

"This has to be hard as crap for fuck. For you, I mean, I just..." Cybil shrugged. "I can't even stop, even when I try to shit."

Evan shrugged back. "It's not your fault. So it doesn't insult me when you do it. My wife always said she thinks I could be desensitized to it if the right situation presented itself. God only knows if I'll ever see her again."

"She's waiting for you right now," Cybil said. He frowned. "Maybe that's in the proper timeline. Sorry, I don't mean to get your hopes up, but you're supposed to be going to see her right now."

"That's impossible."

"So is the Red Sox winning the series a few months ago. But whatever. I'm just glad you don't have an echo."

"Echo?"

"Nothing, never mind, it's in the past and, yeah. I cuss less because the echo isn't around to frustrate me anymore. But Aris Falcon's people boarding this ship ... that's fucked. It's so ass that I'm fucking all over the place."

"I wish you didn't have the problem. I know it upsets you."

Cybil offered a wan smile. "I wish you were going to see Patience. But I'm pretty sure I'm broken and you said she's still with Falcon. But I just wanted you to know so you could be happy in another version of life where shit didn't get fucked up. I saw you ... oh. Oh my, I didn't need to see that."

"What?" Evan eased up, peering over the cargo boxes. "I don't see anyone anymore."

"Yeah. Well, you guys were doing the horizontal mambo if you know what I mean. Way to go, buddy, you really get into it! You're like a pornstar with her."

Evan cringed. "Well, she's beautiful and I can't keep my hands off of her."

"Good. That woman is abso-fucking-lutely in _love_with you. Sorry, I meant to cuss there. I know you don't like it."

"What if you had someone reprogram you to only cuss in a different language, and forget English swear words?"

"Holy crap, why didn't I think of that? Do you know how hard it is? My tics are difficult to deal with. Trying to hold them back is emotionally exhausting. And having something that less than ten percent of Tourette's syndrome people have, coprolalia, is frustrating. Everyone thinks everyone with Tourette's has that problem." He cleared his throat twice.

"Do you say anything else, when you're not frustrated?"

"Are you asking if I randomly say other words?"

"Uh, yeah."

"Food. I randomly say food, baseball teams, and I flinch every now and then. But sometimes I also shout at the top of my lungs, and we need to hide. So I'm scared it's going to happen now, when we're trying to hide. If I keep talking, I might be able to, ngh," he cleared his throat again. "Evan, what are we going to do?" He flinched.

"What about the gestures?"

Cybil looked down at his hands. Both of his middle fingers were up, but his hands were otherwise in two tight fists. "Oh. Copropraxia. It's kind of new for me. But I don't have Coprographia, so I prefer to do all my correspondence by texting, typing, writing..."

"You two," said a man with a gun to the left. "I'm Petty Officer Hank Taylor of the United States Coast Guard. We're conducting a full sweep of this cargo ship. Who are you two and why are you hiding?"

Cybil stood up. He flinched and grimaced. "He's lying. He's one of Falcon's people."

Taylor backed up two steps, drew his pistol in one hand and his radio in another. "Found them. Get down here. They're on the..."

Cybil shouted, "Ngh! Fuck free French fries!"

The radio replied, "Didn't copy that last, Hank. What's going on down there? Where are you?"

Evan opened his hand. A chunk of glass grew from within the radio, puncturing the unit from the inside out.

Taylor dropped the broken radio and brought his free hand up, cupping beneath the butt of the gun. "Back up, right now. Both of you. On your knees, hands on your head, fingers interlocked."

Evan crossed his arms over his chest. "So you're one of Falcon's goons huh?"

"I told you," said the man, "I'm Petty Officer, second class, Hank Taylor. I'm here because we had information that terrorists were aboard this ship. We've already arrested the Skipper for accepting bribe money to illegally ferry you across the Atlantic."

"He's not lying about being Coast Guard," said Cybil, "But he's using his job to give Falcon intel. He uses a dead drop three times a week."

"Shut up," said Taylor, pointing the gun towards Cybil. "You're one of those people, huh?"

Evan smirked. "I knew you were lying when you didn't freak out after I glassed your radio. So, here's how it's going to go, Hank. I could create a chunk of glass in your brain, just like I did with your radio."

Taylor panned the weapon towards Evan.

Evan smirked in reply. "I've already put the molecules in a row for it to happen. And if you shoot me, I can't hold it back. It's like a dead-man's trigger switch on a bomb. Now, I'm the only one holding it back. You shoot me and we both die. If you shoot him, I'll kill you."

Cybil arched his brows. He flinched, tilted his head, made what sounded like a birdcall, and gave the gunman the finger. And then he abruptly clenched his hands and held them behind his back. "I didn't mean to flip you off."

"Whatever. You're a brave little bastard aren't you?"

Cybil cringed. "My parents were happily married when I was born, you jerk. Fuck the Yankees," he added at the end, followed by another cringe. "This is exhausting, holding back."

"Cybil, can you hear my thoughts?"

"It doesn't work like that for me."

"Then how did you know he works for Falcon?"

"I don't hear actively thought words. I read intent. It's hard to explain okay?!"

"Shazbot." Evan sighed through his nose. "Just relax. We just wait here. The rest of his patrol is coming. It's all part of the plan."

"Oh. Well, I'm so glad you think it's better to deal with all of them instead of just one."

"Shut the hell up, you two! You talk to goddamn much!" Taylor thumbed the safety on his weapon. "Now, I don't know if you're lying about the glass thing, but if I die, my family can retire. If you die, you're just dead. So shut your mouth." He pointed the barrel at Evan. "I will kill you. Don't push it."

"No, you won't, but if your backup doesn't show up soon, I'm liable to get..."

Taylor reached for Cybil in one smooth move, and used his other hand to bring a combat knife to Cybil's throat.

"It's against my carotid," Cybil said, alarmed. "Don't turn it to glass, that's no better than metal."

Evan furrowed his brows. "Are you serious? A hostage?"

"Now I have a knife on his throat, and the gun trained on you."

"I didn't see you rack your weapon or thumb the hammer."

"Stupid idiot," Taylor muttered, "This isn't a goddamn action movie. This gun doesn't have a trigger like that. It's cocked. Now, don't move, either one of you."

Evan rolled his eyes. "Fine." He paused, adding, "Just don't hurt him. He's harmless. I'm the one you want."

"I said shut up." Taylor swiftly brought the blade of his knife across Cybil's cheek, drawing blood. He guided the blade back down over the man's throat. "I will kill you both."

Evan ground his molars together in frustration. "You really shouldn't have done that."

"Oh yeah? You want to tell me why?"

"You'll see soon enough."

"Yeah? Well, for starters, we'll see how well you do in handcuffs." Taylor drew out two pair from his utility belt.

---

Next Chapter: https://www.sofurry.com/view/837111