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He whimpered and hid behind Angel. “I’ve got a bad back.”
“Fine. If you’d like, Angel can sleep with me.”
Her expression lit with horror and she whirled on Humphries, pushing him off. “Be a man and sleep on the couch. It’s just for one night.”
I hid my smirk with a cough.
“Nothing’s going my way today,” Humphries grumbled.
Angel tossed her backpack strap over her shoulder. “Goodnight.”
“Goodnight, Angel.” I gestured to my door. “My room is right across the hall. Feel free to knock.” If not for Humphries, I would have said more, but I left it there.
“I’m good. This is great. I won’t need anything.” She threw her hands up and cracked her jaw with an exaggerated yawn. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
Humphries jostled me aside and eagerly swooped toward her door. “Goodnight, Angel. Sweet”—the door slammed in his face—“dreams.”
This time, I didn’t bother to hide my laughter.
Humphries glared at me. “You got shot down too, brother.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Did you think you were slick with that”—he deepened his voice in a poor imitation—“’my room is right next door’ nonsense?”
A lock clicked as if to punctuate the statement.
We both turned and looked at Angel’s room.
“See?” Humphries tilted his chin up proudly. “No one’s getting in tonight.”
I smiled politely. “Let me show you where we keep the blankets.”
Humphries strode beside me, humming beneath his breath. I stopped in front of the closet and surveyed the rows of neatly folded towels and sheets.
“Have you heard of kyusho jitsu, Humphries?” I asked conversationally.
“What?”
“That’s Japanese. Means ‘Touch of Death’.” I chose a blanket and draped it over my arm. “It’s the belief that one perfectly placed blow can disrupt a human’s chi and kill him.”
Humphries swallowed. His eyes, already an impressive size, bugged and took up half of his face. “I-I didn’t know that.”
“Now you do.” I reached out.
He flinched.
I patted him on the shoulder and offered the blanket. “Have a good night.”
Humphries wiped the sweat on his forehead and gave a trembling nod.
I returned to my bedroom and cast a look at Reid who slept peacefully in his crib. Making a mental reminder to look for another bed with higher rails, I slipped into my own bed and stared at the ceiling.
Darkness pressed around me.
The wind moaned outside.
Reid’s steady breathing became a rhythm of its own. I closed my eyes and saw the buck of my revolver.
