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"It's a surprise."
"What?" I shot upright. "No way! Don't you dare--"
"It'll give you something to look forward to when I get home."
"Well, that's good, Cortez, 'cause God knows, I wasn't looking forward to anything else."
A soft laugh. "Liar."
I thumped back onto the bed. "How about a deal? You tell me what the spell does and I'll give you something to look forward to."
"Tempting."
"I'll make it more than tempting."
"That I don't doubt."
"Good. Now here's the deal. I give you a list of options. If you like one, then you can have it when you get home if you tell me about the spell tonight."
"Before you begin, I really should warn you, I'm quite resolved to secrecy. Breaking that resolve requires more than a laundry list of options, however creative. Detail will be the key."
I grinned. "You alone?"
"That goes without saying. If you're asking whether I'm in my hotel room, the answer is yes."
My grin broadened. "Good, then you'll get all the detail you can handle."
I never did find out what the spell was, probably because, five minutes into the conversation, we both forgot what had started it and, by the time we signed off, I crawled under the covers, forgetting even the most basic nighttime toiletry routines, and promptly fell asleep, my curiosity the only thing left unsatisfied.
Death before Dishonor
COME MORNING, I BOUNDED OUT OF BED, READY TO TAKE on the world. This would have been a positive sign had I not done the same thing every morning for the past two weeks. I awoke, refreshed, determined this would be the day I'd haul my ass out of the pit. I'd cook breakfast for Savannah. I'd leave a cheerful message of support on Lucas's cell phone. I'd jog two miles. I'd dive into my Web site projects with renewed vigor and imagination. I'd take time out in the afternoon to hunt down season-end tomatoes at the market. I'd cook up a vat of spaghetti sauce that would fill our tiny freezer. The list went on. I usually derailed somewhere between leaving the message for Lucas and starting my workday...roughly around nine A.M.
That morning, I sailed into my jog still pumped. I knew I wouldn't hit two miles, considering I'd never exceeded one mile in my entire running career, which was now in its fifth week. Over the last eighteen months it had come to my attention, on multiple occasions, that my level of physical fitness was inadequate. Before now, a good game of pool was as active as I got. Ask me to flee for my life, and we could be talking imminent heart failure.
As long as I was reinventing myself, I might as well toss in a fitness routine. Since Lucas ran, that seemed the logical choice. I hadn't told him about it yet. Not until I reached the two-mile mark. Then I'd say, "Oh, by the way, I took up running a few days ago." God forbid I should admit to not being instantly successful at anything.
That morning, I finally passed the one-mile mark. Okay, it was only by about twenty yards, but it was still a personal best, so I treated myself to an iced chai for the walk home.
As I rounded the last corner, I noticed two suspicious figures standing in front of my building. Both wore suits, which in my neighborhood was extremely suspicious. I looked for Bibles or encyclopedias, but they were empty-handed. One stared up at the building, perhaps expecting it to morph into corporate headquarters.
I fished my keys from my pocket. As I glanced up, two girls walked past the men. I wondered why they weren't in school--dumb question in this neighborhood, but I was still adjusting--then realized the "girls" were at least forty. My mistake arose from the size differential. The two men towered a foot above the women.
Both men had short, dark hair and clean-shaven, chiseled faces. Both wore Ray-Bans. Both were roughly the size of redwoods. If there hadn't been a one-inch height difference between them, I'd have sworn they were identical twins. Other than that, my only way of distinguishing them was by tie color. One had a dark red tie, the other jade green.
As I drew closer, both men turned my way.
/> "Paige Winterbourne?" Red Tie said.
I slowed and mentally readied a spell.
"We're looking for Lucas Cortez," Green Tie said. "His father sent us."
My heart thumped double-time, and I blinked to cover my surprise.
"Fath--?" I said. "Benicio?"
"That'd be the one," Red Tie said.
