“It must have been a very heavy burn. I can’t even imagine how much energy you had to use to do whatever it was you did with that quartz. Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Stop fussing,” Sam said. “We don’t have time. I’m going to crash soon.”
“Right. Yes. Sorry. I suppose that was Nick’s Mr. Anonymous.”
“Probably, but he’s not Mr. Anonymous as far as Coppersmith Inc. is concerned. We have another name for him.”
“What?”
“The competition.”
“That was someone from Helicon Stone?”
“Got a feeling we just took a meeting with Gideon Barrett, Hank Barrett’s son. I told you that Dad and Hank have been feuding for years.”
“Whew. Well, at least our side won tonight.”
“Our side?” Sam sounded amused.
“Figure of speech,” she said brusquely. “What now?”
“Now we find a place where I can crash for a few hours. Forget driving back to Anacortes. When I go down, I’m going to go down hard.”
“I can drive.”
“I know, but you’ll be too vulnerable if I’m passed out on the backseat. I don’t want to risk another carjacking.”
Abby swallowed hard and braced herself.Show no weakness.Sam had used a lot of energy tonight. He would need to sleep, and soon. She had to be adult about this.
“We can go back to my condo,” she said. “That’s the nearest bed.”
“No,” he said, surprisingly gentle. “Not the condo.”
36
HE CHOSE ONE OF THE BIG, ANONYMOUS HOTELS A FEWblocks away in the downtown core, and requested and got a room withno connecting doors. In the close confines of the elevator, he was intensely aware that he was not the only one experiencing the effects of a strong afterburn. There was a lot of edgy energy in Abby’s aura. She had not taken the full force of the flash-bang blast because it had been focused on him, but she had caught some of the blowback. She was experiencing some of the downside, too.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“I’ll be fine,” Abby said. “Just a little jittery. You know how it is. Probably just as well you didn’t take me up on my offer to drive back to Anacortes tonight.” She glanced at his duffel. “But if this keeps up, I may have to start traveling with an overnight bag the way you do. At least the hotel provided a few basics.”
He looked at the small packet she clutched. The front desk clerk had given it to her. It contained a tiny toothbrush, toothpaste and a fewother overnight essentials. She had refused to even take some of her underwear and a change of clothes from the devastated condo. All she had with her tonight was whatever she normally carried in her large tote.
The elevator doors opened. He followed Abby out into the hallway. He had to stay focused on getting her securely buttoned up for the night so that he could crash without having to worry about her safety.
“What was that flash-bang thing he used on you?” Abby asked.
“Damned if I know. The Barretts have their secrets, just like the Coppersmiths. I’d give a lot to know what kind of crystal he used to power that gadget, though.”
Abby smiled.
“What?” he asked.
“In hindsight, there was a certain humorous aspect to that showdown in the garage.”
“Yeah? I didn’t notice anyone laughing, especially not me.”
“Something about the way the two of you started to wander off into a discussion of crystal physics while you’re both holding weapons on each other,” Abby said.
