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“She lived through it, didn’t she?” Shelby stood up, crossed her arms over her chest. “And landed in the prime. Now she’s blaming me for everything.”
“I’m not blaming you, for anything.”
“Are too. You’re saying it’s my fault we’re dead. That just because I wanted my own place with my own friends, everybody got killed. Like, what, I knew it was going to happen or something?”
“Listen—”
“So what if I sucked off a few fuckheads?” She threw her arms out now. “So the fuck what! I got what I wanted, didn’t I? And shit for my buds, too. If you don’t take what you want, somebody takes it first. No way I was going to be stuck in that ‘holy higher power meditate your brains out’ shit until some jerkwad who didn’t know jack about me decided I could get the hell out. I decide for myself. Nobody was going to push me around again, ever, ever, ever!”
“Wow.” Eve gave her a considering nod. “You really were a bitchy little whiner. Not that you deserved to die for it. Maybe you’d have grown out of it, or maybe you’d have been a bitchy grown-up whiner given the chance. But you didn’t get the chance. And that’s where I come in.”
“You’re no different than the rest of them. No better than the rest of them.”
“I’m what you’ve got.”
“Fuck you!”
“Sit down. Shut up.”
Mikki hauled herself to her feet, hands bunched to fists at her sides. “You can’t talk to Shelby like that.”
“Sure I can. It’s my dream, and I’m in charge here.”
“I don’t like when people fight.” Iris put her hands over her ears, began to rock. “People shouldn’t fight.”
“Where’s your dog?” Eve wondered. “Didn’t you have a dog?”
“We don’t have to listen to you!” Shelby shouted, running to each girl, hauling her up to stand. “We don’t have to talk to you. We don’t have to do anything you say. Because we’re dead! And it’s not my fault.”
“Jesus. Shut up. Shut up so I can think.”
“You’re the one doing all the talking.”
Eve blinked her eyes open, looked blurrily around the dimly lit room. “What?”
“That should be my question.” Roarke stroked a hand over her hair. “Who needs to shut up?”
“Shelby. The girls came back. That Shelby. Bitching, whining, bitching. I probably would, too, if somebody drowned me in the tub. What time is it?”
“Early.” He leaned over to touch his lips to hers. “Go back to sleep.”
She sniffed him. “You’re up, just out of the shower.”
“Can’t fool an ace detective.”
“Your hair’s still damp.” She walked her fingers through it. “And you smell really good.” And her detective skills told her he wore nothing but a towel. “I bet you have a ’link conference with Pluto and a holo-meeting with Istanbul or somewhere scheduled.”
“And a mind reader as well. What a lucky man I am.”
“You could get luckier.” She skimmed a hand down his chest, down his belly, down. And grinned. “But I see you knew that.”
“I’ve deductive powers of my own.”
She used her other hand, tugged him down by his hair. “What else you got?”
“Apparently a randy wife.” His hands got busy as well, skimming up and under the thin nightshirt she wore. “Pluto can wait.”
“Now, how many people can say that?” She tugged again so his lips came to hers.
