Noah cut him off. “I know Lake’s here. I saw him. He and Cree are sitting out a hunt?”
“Nobody’s seen Lake since he arrived,” Felix said in that singsong, ‘I know something you don’t know’ tonethat always preceded drama.
“What do you know?” Noah asked, narrowing his eyes.
Calliope grinned, sensing blood in the water. “Oh, yeah. Spill. Do we have dirt?”
Felix shrugged one delicate shoulder. “Well, I don’t know for certain, exactly. But rumor has it that Spiderman 2099 and an AU Spiderman were last seen heading upstairs…together. Potentially exploring a little crossover action.”
He made a circle with his thumb and forefinger, jabbing the pointer finger from his other hand through it with a salacious look.
“Not sure if that’s kinky or narcissistic,” Noah said around a laugh.
“Oh, who’s playing the role of AU Spidey?” Lola asked from her position on the other side of Calliope, her voice rich and teasing.
Felix gave a sly grin. “Not sure. Didn’t get a look at him with his mask off.”
Noah frowned, the thought clicking into place like a lock turning. When the realization hit, he gasped so dramatically that even Zane startled. “Holy shit. I know who our Miles Morales is.”
They all turned toward him like he’d finally cracked under pressure.
“Good for you?” Calliope offered, lips twitching.
“No, Miles Morales,” he said, emphasizing the two words, waiting for them to connect the dots. When they didn’t, he rolled his eyes. “Miles Morales is the name ofAU Spiderman,” Noah said, gesturing wildly.
“Do we know this Miles Morales?” Felix asked.
“Oh, my God. In the Spideyverse, this Spiderman’s name is Miles Morales, but tonight, the role of Miles is being played by someone with the same initials.M. M.”
When the room only stared blankly, he threw his hands up. “Matty Mulvaney! Lake just went upstairs to hook up with Aiden’s brother!”
For half a second, silence hung heavy, and then it cracked open like glass under pressure.
Zane let out a low whistle, breaking his tense pacing for the first time all night. “Oh, my God. Didn’t see that crossover coming.”
Felix smirked. “Guess we’re addingSpiderverse: The Mulvaney Cutto the family movie night lineup.”
Even Calliope snorted. The laughter didn’t last long, but for a brief moment, it broke the tension thick enough to choke on. It was the kind of humor soldiers made before the next firefight, quick, desperate, necessary. The calm before the next wave hit.
Zane shook his head. “On any other night, this would be the best dirt ever. Do you think they even know there’s an actual hunt happening?”
“I’m…verklempt,” Calliope whispered, pressing a hand dramatically to her chest, her other still flying over the keyboard. The gesture was pure theater, but her fingers never slowed, Noah just knew she could hack the Pentagon while quotingSteel Magnolias.
“Hello? I thought you wanted to do a second comms check?” Adam’s voice crackled through the headset, equal parts command and irritation.
Shit. Right. The thing. The game. No, hunt. The hunt.
Calliope had set up secondary channels for each couple, private frequencies so partners could keep tabs on each other even from opposite wings of the mansion. The system glowed faintly green on her screen, every name pulsing with a color-coded heartbeat. The war room looked like mission control for a space launch, rows of monitors, the faint hum of electronics, and enough blinking lights to make a Christmas tree jealous. The air buzzed with caffeine, static, and adrenaline.
“Sorry, baby. We got…distracted,” Noah said, trying—and failing—to sound like a man who hadn’t just been gossiping during an operation.
Adam snorted. “What could possibly be more important than a bunch of murderers running through the house?”
“Matty and Lake are totally somewhere in the house hooking up,” Noah practically shouted into the mic.
A beat of static. Then: “And?”
Noah sucked his teeth. How did Adam of all people not understand the importance of such a discovery? “And they’re both dressed as alternate versions of Spider-Man.”
