Demons can’t get sick.
It’s just her.
“Come now, my Dove,” Caspian leans against the doorway, watching us with feigned impatience, “If we do not leave soon, our reconnaissance will be delayed.”
“Alright, I’m up. I’m up. Give me ten minutes to get ready.” She walks into the bathroom, and after a silent moment, she peeks her head back out, “Where are my tampons?”
Caspian proudly responds, “I packed them already.”
“All of them?” Bel covers her laughter with a hand, “That box had like 50 of them.”
“Will that… will that not be enough?” His eyes dart to mine, but I’m as clueless as he is, so I just shrug.
“For three days? That’s far more than I need. And I need one of them right now.” Caspian seems slightly embarrassed, so Bel eases his mind, “Hey, it’s alright. You had no way of knowing. Thanks for packing them up for me. Can you just… grab me one real quick?”
“Of course.” He reaches through theAetherto wherever he packed them, pulling one out and sending it right into Bel’s waiting palm.
“Thank you,” she mock salutes with the bit of plastic, darting into the bathroom without waiting for a response.
“I’ve no clue what I’m doing,” Caspian tells me.
“I don’t think she minds,” I assure him. “She understands what you’re going through here. Everything is new. In fact, I think she loves watching you discover this new world. It helps her see it through fresh eyes, ya know? The things she takes for granted are all a marvel to you.”
He nods, looking like the thought never even occurred to him, “Thank you, Fritz. I’m not sure how I’d do all this without you.”
I chuckle for a moment until I visualize what it might look like if he had to navigate this strange future on his own. I don’t let the discomfort show; instead, I laugh it off. “How fortunate for all of us that you’ll never have to.”
What Are We Doing Here?
Fritz
“This istorture,Caspian. Christ, how long have we been here?” I ask.
“It’s been 20 minutes, Fritz,” Bel whispers, amusement evident, “Stop whining.”
“I’m not… whining,” I try to explain, “I’m just-”
“Whining,” Caspian supplies. “Loudly, too. This is important, Fritz. Can you please be quiet?”
We’ve been perched on the roof of this building forhours, I swear. Just. Fucking. Laying here. The three of us, lined up on our stomachs. Bel has binoculars and made all three of us wear all-black, nearly identical outfits.
The moon above us is the only light, sending massive shadows across the alleys between here and the compound. This whole area smells like a plastic factory, which I’m sure is deliberate. Can’t smell gun smoke or burnt flesh when everything smells like melted rubber.
There hasn’t been any movement in the building we’re watching, though I can vaguely hear movement there. This is my first time here, and hearing commotion that doesn’t have any matching emotions or energy signatures is unnerving, to say the least.
“They’re not even doing anything,” I tell them.
“Well, that’s not true. They’re doingsomething,” Caspian corrects, “We just can’t see what it is. But it does sound like they’re getting ready to move.”
“You guys can hear them?” Bel asks, and I wish for the umpteenth time we could have left her safely with Isla rather than drag her this close to her captors. She’s putting on a brave face, but her fear is overwhelming. And not the fun kind of fear she gets with Caspian and me. The sort of fear that makes your blood run cold and your skin feel like it’s crawling. I’m easing it enough for her to keep going, but if I took it all away, she’d know, and she’d be pissed.
Her terror right now is not only natural, it’s necessary. It’s her body’s way of protecting her from those who would harm her.
Bel nudges me with her shoulder, “Isla keeps texting me and asking what we’re doing. She knows something is up. Why exactly am I lying to her?Again?”
“Because Fritz is scared of Eamon,” Caspian explains, eyes still locked on the massive warehouse in front of us.
“Aren’t you?” I ask him, incredulous.
