She reached up and wiped her face. “Yuck.” The green stuff was in her hair, her ear, her nose. It waseverywhere.
“Sorry.” Iwinced.
“It’s fine. It’s worth a shot,” she said, then stepped to the side. Mr. Hansen wasnext.
Brisk and I repeated the process and quickly doused him. The green stuff surprisingly didn’t have a noxious odor; it was more earthy and coppery innature.
We soaked Maxine next, careful not to get too much on her healing shoulder wound. This stuff regenerated the aliens, but Lord knew what it would do to our bodies. We just had to hope it wouldn’t be too bad during the time before we wokeagain.
Josephine had cuffed herself to Jeremy while we worked on Maxine. They were now playing tic-tac-toe in the dirt as Damien came over for his turn to get slimed. He pulled Brisk and me aside. “I hate to do this, but the only way Jeremy is going to allow this is if we… just doit.”
OhGod.
“No, that will terrify him,” Iprotested.
Damien looked pained. “I know, but if we try to ask him, he’ll make a big scene and try to run. He hates being dirty. There’s no way he’llagree.”
I didn’t think I could forcefully smother sweet Jeremy with slime without his consent. “Let me try, and if I can’t get him to agree, we’ll force him,” I toldDamien.
He looked conflicted but nodded. I handed him my piece of the sheet, so he could finish getting Nox, himself, and Brisk, and then it was just me andJer.
Walking over slowly, I bent down to get into Jeremy’s field ofvision.
“Hey, bud, I need to talk to you aboutsomething.”
He marked an X and then flicked his eyes up to me for a briefsecond.
“I need us to make a deal. Something we both agree to,” Iadded.
He set the stick down. “What?” he saidsoftly.
He spoke. He spoke to me in the Dream Wars. That meant he trusted me, and I didn’t want to betray thattrust.
“I need you to do something for me that you’re not going to like, but it’s going to keep you safe. Then in return, I’ll do something for you. Anything youwant.”
He was quiet for a long time. “I’m never safe here. You can’t make mesafe.”
Fucker was too smart forme.
“Well that’s true. The Dream Wars are dangerous, but I can make you safer if you do this thing forme.”
He sighed. “What isit?”
No way. I wasn’t dealing my cards first. He was either clueless to the fact that Josephine was dripping green slime, or he didn’tcare.
“Tell me first what you want from me if you do me this favor. Remember, it can beanything.”
He grinned. “Anything? Like a list of demands you would give to the police to release ahostage?”
I tried not to laugh. He watched way too many movies. “Yep, what are yourdemands?”
The ground shook then and Jeremy jumped, a high-pitched whine in histhroat.
“You do whatever I say with the hat. Let me study your brain and telepathicpower.”
Damn.
“Done.” Istood.
