Time for phase two of the plan. When he was on his way out the front door he took out his phone and typed a message:Contact has been made and I’m on my way there now.
Dots appeared as the message was read right away. Darius couldn’t help but smile and his heart gave a crazy little flip when the message came on the screen.
Contact:Be careful. Keep me posted. Do you want me to call ahead for you?
Darius:It’s okay. It’s already taken care of. Oh and if you see shadows, don’t worry they’re from my clouds.
Contact:Thank you for providing the shade. It’s getting really hot here lately.
Darius:Make sure everyone stays out of the sun.
Contact:I will. Send me a message when you’re finished.
Darius:I will.
He opened the garage and climbed into his car.
“Let the games begin,” Darius muttered, pulling out of his driveway.
LINDA
The sun poured through her car window as she pulled up in front of Penny’s house as the woman ran down the stairs toward the car.
"Can we not at least stop so I can get changed first?" Penny mumbled as she pulled open the door and slid into the passenger seat. They were both still dressed in their casual attire—simple t-shirts, practical jeans, and old sneakers covered in a light layer of renovation dust. "How is George doing?"
"Well, hello to you too," Linda greeted her sarcastically, then answered her about George. "My uncle is still out under the chemical sedation, but the medical team explicitly stated that his vitals are stable and he is going to be okay. He remains under strict monitoring inside the intensive care unit."
“I’m glad George is okay,” Penny told her.
“We all are,” Linda admitted, letting out a ragged breath. It had been a very stressful few days.
"Can we not just pull up to the hotel and gather some fresh clothes from our suites?" Penny protested, glancing down at a small plaster smudge on her sleeve. “I feel so grubby.”
"No," Linda said, keeping her eyes fixed on the roadway ahead as she tapped the steering wheel. "There is no time if we want to catch our window before the afternoon rush."
"Ugh," Penny moaned, leaning her head back against the leather headrest with a dramatic sigh. "Fine, but you are buying us a late lunch to compensate for the wardrobe malfunction."
"Deal," Linda said, a small laugh breaking through her lingering anxiety as the dash suddenly lit up and started an angry aggressive beep that grew louder. "Penny, buckle up." She glanced at the woman beside her. "You do that a lot, you know." She shook her head. “Get into a car and not put your seatbelt on right away.”
"I am used to sitting comfortably in the cushioned back of a corporate town car," Penny pointed out, her tone dry.
"You should wear a seatbelt in the back of a town car as well," Linda told her, keeping her voice calm as she pulled up the regional safety statistics in her mind. "The data reports from the highway safety administration are remarkably grim on that subject. A high percentage of unrestrained passengers sitting in the rear seats are thrown forward with enough physical velocity to fatally injure the driver or the front passenger during a standard collision."
"Oh, good grief," Penny breathed, a visible shudder moving her shoulders as she quickly reached across her frame. She clicked the metal tongue into the anchor block with a sharp snap, and the persistent, annoying safety beep on the dashboard cut outinstantly. "Phew." She let out a long, relieved sigh, smoothing her hands over her lap. "What a truly terrible noise."
"Purposely engineered to ensure you comply with the road safety regulations," Linda advised her with a small, knowing smile. “To stop forgetful people who lounge in lavish town cars from flying through windows if a car hits something.”
“Okay, I get it,” Penny said, rolling her eyes. “I’ll be more cautious.”
“That’s all I ask,” Linda told her, satisfied.
"I am genuinely glad George is going to be okay," Penny told her, moving the subject away from her bad habit of not using seatbelts. "I take it George is not coming home as anticipated in a day now?”
"No," Linda told her, her expression turning sober as she recalled the floor coordinator's direct words. "The doctor says he needs at least a full week of absolute quiet under medical supervision before they can discuss a discharge plan." She glanced up into the rearview mirror, her eyes narrowing as she tracked a white, non-descript sedan maintaining a consistent, fixed distance three cars back. A quiet smile touched her lips. She’d noticed it most of the day. "We have a tail, I think."
Penny pulled down the passenger sun visor, turning the small vanity mirror so she could scan the reflection behind them before patting a stray lock of hair into place.
"Yes, that is one of ours," she confirmed, her tone thoroughly relaxed.
