“She’s the one causing trouble. She’s trying to change the outsideworld.”
Wayne’s attention was back on Jo, threatening to destroy the fuzzy feeling he’d been earning a second ago. “All right”—back to Pan—“I’ll take it from here,then.”
Pan hovered for several seconds, clearly debating the idea. She folded her hands with a shrug and strolled out of the room. “This was becoming boring, anyway.” The woman-child paused in the doorway, looking back at them both. “Do make sure that you look after her, Wayne. Wouldn’t want the two of you getting intotrouble.”
With that, the rainbow-haired girl left. Wayne watched from the doorway and whatever he saw must have satisfied him because he stepped inside the room and closed the door behind him. Jo met his searching eyes fearlessly, knowing what question was coming before it even left hislips.
“Just whatareyou doing in here,Jo?”
Chapter 14
Shewolf’s Mission
JO LOOKED BACKto her computer, tapping the monitor back to life. “I don’t see how it’s anyone’s business. But thank you for getting Pan out ofhere.”
A large sigh was let loose from her left. Jo kept her eyes on the monitor, trying to convey that while she may be appreciative of his help, she had no intent of having a conversation. Wayne either didn’t get the hint, or didn’t care, because he pulled up the chair from the otherworkstation.
“Whatareyoudoing?”
“I’ll tell you the same thing I told her.” Jo continued to work. While Pan had this odd way about her that made Jo suspicious that she understood far more than she let on, Jo was fairly confident that Wayne had no idea what the various folders or scripts meant. “I don’t feel likesharing.”
“Doll, don’t play that way.” He looked toward the monitor and with one stare affirmed Jo’s suspicions that he didn’t actually know what he was looking at. “It’s been two daysand—”
“Two days?” Jobalked.
“Since anyone has seen you? Yes.” Wayne seemed confused as to why she wasstartled.
“Two days, huh?” She skimmed her work. “Pretty good, almost finished,actually. . .”
“With what?” he probedagain.
“Didn’t I tell you I’m not going toshare?”
“Don’t you know by now that I’m here to help?” He slung his own question back ather.
Jo leaned back in her chair, folded her arms over her chest, and swiveled to face him. She arched her eyebrows, assessing the man. He wasn’t wrong, not really. He had shown her around at first, and had taken her to see her family. She sighed, debating where tostart.
“It’sYuu.”
“You?” His brow furrowed inconfusion.
“Yuusuke.”
“The gentlemen we went to see,” Wayne spoke with the confidence of claritynow.
“I wouldn’t call him a gentleman.” Jo rolled her eyes. “But,yes.”
“What abouthim?”
Jo looked back to the monitor and swallowed in an attempt to relieve the sudden tightness in her throat. “My wish. . . was for him. And my family by extension. When we saw him. . . he was doing the same hack that led to our deaths. He’s going to end up back there. Depending on how stupid he acts—and believe me he can be quite stupid when he’s on a mission—he could be headed there in a week, even a matter ofdays.”
Jo could feel Wayne’s attention on her before he opened his mouth to speak. “You can’t stopthis.”
“Like hell I can’t!” Jo’s head snapped back to Wayne and her sudden ferocity had him pinned down to a stunned silence. “Why? Why can’t I? You expect me to just sit here? To not help with the wish, even though I’ve already quite grasped the hang of my magic? And on top of that, to watch as Yuusuke gets himself killed,again? My wish will mean nothing.Iwill meannothing!”
Her words seemed to echo impossibly in the small space. Jo’s chest heaved, as if trying to snuff the burning in her lungs. Now that she’d said it so simply, Jo wondered how she hadn’t seen it allalong.
“Wayne. . . I’ll meannothing.”
