“There’s so many layers,” Jordan exclaimed as he started the stopwatch on Arthur’s phone.
“Yeah. Some of it is to pad the limb, and other bits are to help the suction stay in place.”
Jordan’s eyes widened. “Does it ever fall off?”
Arthur nodded. “Your mum had to fish it out of the marina for me the other day.”
He grinned. “She’s the coolest.”
“She is.” Arthur checked the time. “We’d better get to school.”
Jordan fetched his bag and Arthur turned off the television and tidied the house.
It was a cool, clear morning, the blue sky stretching into the distance, the sun rising towards its zenith, and birds calling to each other in the garden. Other children were walking or riding their bikes to school, and Jordan waved to a couple but stayed next to Arthur. Arthur scanned the road ahead. No parked cars where people could hide and most of the front yards were simple patches of lawn. Parents waved their children off to school and a couple of joggers ran past.
Normal life.
“Thanks for staying with me,” Jordan said. “It’s nice going to school at a normal time.”
“It’s my pleasure. You’re helping me by making sure I get some exercise. I’ve been lazy.”
“Aren’t you supposed to be super fit?”
“I was when I was in the army. But I spent a lot of time in hospital and haven’t got back into the swing of things.”
“We could exercise after school,” Jordan said. “You could show me and Cody army drills on the oval.”
Arthur hesitated. Should he encourage Jordan’s interest in the army? Right now, he saw only what he thought was cool, but there were so many elements to it. And he shuddered when he remembered his father’s drills. “We’ll see. I’ll have to chat to Cody’s mum.”
That seemed to satisfy Jordan, and they chatted until they got to school, where they met up with Cody.
“Hey, Sherlock!” Cody waved.
“Morning.”
“Sherlock’s staying with us at the moment,” Jordan said. “He’s going to walk me to school every day.”
“Epic!”
“I’ll see you after school,” Arthur reminded him. “I’ll walk you both home.”
“Awesome,” Cody said.
The bell rang, and the boys ran inside.
Arthur scanned the schoolyard, and then the carpark and surrounding road. There were a couple of cars containing harassed-looking parents who shooed their children out and then drove away. No one who didn’t belong there. Jordan would be safe inside the school for the day. Still, it was harder than he expected to walk away.
He was invested.
Arthur exhaled and headed for Sam’s place. He could do with a shower, and wanted to change the liners on his prosthesis. This was his first day alone since he’d been discharged. Excitement tickled his skin. He could do whatever he wanted. His first thought was to research Kurt. The more he knew about his enemy, the better. Then, if he had time, he wanted to dive into the research of those extra Retribution passenger names.
Two worthy missions, both of which he was qualified to do.
He wouldn’t fail.
***
Arthur’s alarm blared, and he jolted, switching it off and checking the time. Two o’clock. Time to pick up Jordan. Good thing he’d set an alarm. Time had disappeared as he’d submerged in his research, finding little about Kurt online, but a bit about Gretchen’s parents. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. He’d turned his attention to the puzzle of the Retribution and lost all track of time so that he’d forgotten to have lunch. His stomach rumbled.
