The girl tried to keep a straight face, but didn’t quite manage it.
“I’ll show you,” she said.She left her counter, Con grabbed the bag with the hats.
Rita stepped out, transformed except for her hair.Without comment, he held out one of the hats, pulled the other one on, and slid into the jacket.
It was going to be a pain to wear the extra layer.
The girl opened a door at the end of the small hall for them.Rita headed toward it, but Con stopped to pull the curtain back in place.He gave the girl another smile and followed Rita out.
The alley where they emerged was narrow and smelled nasty and hot.Yes, hot had a smell.Garbage bins lurched drunkenly in both directions.
Red glanced each way, then nodded to their left.
“I think there’s a diner this way.If we can beat the crowd there, we can figure out what to do next.”
Rita nodded and went with him.The new boots weren’t broken in, but they weren’t high heels, so her feet were happier.
The heat though.How did it find its way between the building so efficiently?There was shade here, but it didn’t seem to help.
Rita wanted to look back, but she didn’t.The boots helped her alter her walk and she tried to stride out like a boy—while picking her way toward the end of the alley.
Back out in the street, there was no sign of the men in black—well, no sign without peering around in a manner that guaranteed they’d be noticed.
She hunched her shoulders, shoved her hands in her pockets and followed Red like a sulky teenager.It was kind of fun.In the future, sulky wasn’t encouraged.
Red had changed his walk, too.She might be impressed that he’d thought of it.He veered toward the diner sign and once again held the door so she could enter.
So far it was pretty quiet.The press conference must still be going on.She slid into a booth and realized she’d need to take off the hat if she didn’t want to draw the wrong kind of attention.
“I’ll be right back,” she said, sliding out and heading for the restroom.She almost went into the ladies, managed to stop herself.
Thank goodness no one was there.She pulled off the hat, rearranged her hair, wetting the front and tucking as much as she could under the collar of her jacket.With her hair slicked back, she did look different.
Then she slouched her way back to Red.
He’d removed his hat, but there wasn’t much he could do to change his hair color.She pulled the collar higher.
Red had a look she found puzzling.
“Is anything wrong?”
“Wrong?”He shook his head, then said, “I wasn’t sure you’d come back.”
She blinked.How odd.She hadn’t even considered not coming back.She was way off script, even her own script.
“I have the odd feeling I’ll do better working with you than on my own,” she admitted.“But…”
He shook his head.“I agree.”Then he rubbed the top of his head, ruffling his hair.“I’m not sure what our next move is, though.”
“Me either.”She saw a waitress approaching and adopted a sullen look.
They both ordered, Red getting a sympathetic look from the girl, before they were alone again.
A few more people entered, chatting easily among themselves.They greeted the waitress.Locals it seemed.It was better if there were a few people in here.
A new worry gripped her.They’d been assuming they were following them by sight, but what if they’d accessed her agency tracking device?
Even as she had the thought, she saw a black sedan drive slowly past the diner.
