Diesel snatched the Defender out of Adele’s hand, but not before she managed to pull the trigger. He turned to catch Juliana but something unusual happened. She was still standing. She looked at him quizzically as if she was also shocked to find herself still on her feet.
“Juliana? Are you okay?”
“I think so. Did she not pull the trigger?”
“I thought she did. Perhaps it wasn’t charged or something.”
“Can that happen?”
He shrugged as a ruckus started out in the hallway beyond his door.
Cam said, “Drop your Defender, Adele.”
“No! He’s better off with me. We’re at least the same species. She’s an earthling and inferior!”
Diesel peeked out just as Cam grabbed the young woman by the wrist. “Let go of me,” Adele squealed. Cam put a shackle sticker on her wrist and she immediately stopped thrashing around and became compliant. It was the same thing used to subdue the alien in the Boogieman Affair a while back.
Cam said, “Come along, Adele. Be quiet for now. We’re going downstairs to talk about all of this.”
She didn’t say anything, but allowed Cam to lead her downstairs.
Nova popped into the hallway as soon as they were gone.
“Gage is still waiting to see you.”
Diesel looked at Juliana. The choice between kissing Juliana senseless and having a conversation with his brother regarding scientific analysis wasn’t even a difficult one to make.
“Tell him—”
Gage appeared behind Nova with an expression that was ninety percent excitement and ten percent best day ever.
“I need to talk to you, Diesel. You’ll never believe what the results turned up.”
“The person who took the bite out of the apple was Adele, right?”
He expected Gage to deflate.
His brother’s eyes narrowed for a second. “Yes, but that’s not the exciting news.”
Diesel pushed out a sigh. “Come on in then.” Kissing Juliana would have to wait for scientific analysis courtesy of Gage, his semi-nerdy brother, who lived to explain things.
“Juliana, this is my brother, Gage.” She smiled at him. Diesel still hadn’t figured out why she hadn’t fainted when Adele had fired the Defender.
“Gage, this is my girlfriend, Juliana.”
“Really pleased to meet you, Juliana,” Gage said with a grin. “I have some news you should also hear.”
They all sat down, Diesel and Juliana on his sofa and Gage in a chair.
“The analysis showed not one but two samples on the apple you gave me to test. One was Adele’s DNA, as you suspected.”
Diesel didn’t mean to be impatient, but he was. “And the other turned out to be mine?”
“No.”
“It was mine, right?” Juliana said.
Gage nodded. “It was yours, Juliana. Once I figured that out I ran the test five more times to be certain.”
