“Damn. How many times did you tell me to leave you and Murphy to fight alone.”
“I lost count. You’re pretty stubborn,” Mia said.
“You left her out there?” he asked Cid.
“I had no choice. Mike picked me up like a sack of potatoes and ran off with me. I did manage to land a few jacks…”
“Show me the jacks,” Ted asked.
Mia dug in her pockets and came up with the innocuous looking toys. “Don’t drop them inside,” she cautioned.
“I think it’s time we gathered materials…” Ted started.
“Tell me,” Mia said.
“Tell you what?” Ted asked.
“Where did I go wrong?” Mia asked.
“You thought this was all about you. It isn’t.”
“It’s not?” Mia’s voice squeaked. “The Others have a contract to kill me.”
“Only because providence gave your grandmother the opportunity to deal with you when you’re vulnerable. She was given a do-over. Anyone would have taken advantage of it.”
“We won the fight with the birdmen’s help,” Mia said.
“No, you lost. You let loose the demon inside. The thing Murphy was worried about the whole first attempt,” Cid said.
“Is this true?” Ted asked.
Mia nodded. “But you see, no matter how I fought it in the original timeline, I became an assassin.”
“No, Mia,” Murphy said, manifesting. “You were trained to protect yourself. You didn’t sneak in and kill the demon-with-no-name. Altair said you fought well and were very quick in your fight. You didn’t play with the creature. You got the job done and then came back looking for us.”
“I sense that’s a hell of a story for another time,” Ted said. “Let’s concentrate on this time.”
“Yes, Ted,” Mia said.
Ted raised an eyebrow. He wasn’t used to people listening to him like this. “We need these items,” he said, handing the list to Cid. “Hopefully, we can find most of them here. I have a list I’ll pick up when I go home to inform my sisters that I’m spending the night here. I’m going to also get you a pair of my old pants that I’m sure will fit you. My mother sewed on an extra set of pockets so I could hold all my stuff when I was in elementary school. This will free your arms for other stuff.”
“K.”
“Let’s plan on leaving here in an hour. We may have to pick up a couple of things at the Home Depot.”
“Yes, sir,” Mia said.
Cid left to find the things on his list.
Mia looked at Murphy and asked, “What do you think?”
“Ted was always best at planning, Cid at loyalty, and you at implementation. I think our chances have improved tenfold.”
“Still no guarantee,” Mia said. “If this isn’t about me, what is it about?” she asked Murphy.
“I have no idea.”
Chapter Twenty-one
Burt sat up. He looked at his watch. “Thursday afternoon.” He tried to stand and found himself weak. “Whoa, Burt, steady boy,” he cautioned himself, remembering the salt line he poured and his attempt to break out through the window. The work in his concussive state must have been too much for him. Today he was very tired, but he needed to make some progress. If he couldn’t get the door open, maybe he could either climb up into the room above, which had its dangers, or try to increase the window’s size so he could escape that way, maybe lower himself so he could jump safely into the bushes that hugged the side of the building.
Either plan needed a rope. He studied the material that still hung over the rotted padding. It itself was too fragile, but if he braided it? He began pulling the pads off the wall.
~
Cid heard a car turn into the driveway and was able to warn Ted and Mia before Candy’s keys hit the lock on the back door.
Ted had pulled Mia into Cid’s room and shut the door. They crawled under Cid’s bed and lay there, barely breathing.
“Cid!” Candy said, surprised at seeing her brother. “Why aren’t you in school?” she said, narrowing her eyes.
“I finished the test early, so Mr. Nagi gave me a pass to the computer room. But it was locked, so I came home instead.”
“Skipping school is a bold move. If I didn’t already know that you’ve probably pissed off the others by acing the test, I’d be proud of you.”
Cid frowned. He pushed his glasses up on his nose.
“I want you to spend the weekend at Ted’s.”
“Why?”
“I’m not going to be home. Sally’s waiting in the car. Her sister invited us to a party at the college.”
“Mom’s not going to be happy.”
“Mom’s not going to be happy to know you skipped school. So you keep your mouth shut, and I’ll keep mine shut.”
“Alright.”
Candy looked at him again. “You’re being too agreeable.”
“I met a girl today.”
Candy stared at him. “Oh my god, I thought you and Ted were a couple. What’s the girl like?”
“Long blonde hair and green eyes.”
“Cute?”
“Yes.”
“She’s just being kind. Why would she want to hang around a fat blind boy?”
“That’s not nice,” Cid said.
Candy ignored him and walked into her room and changed her clothes. Cid walked around the house looking for any sign of Ted or Mia. He walked into his room and started to change his clothes. They had all agreed on wearing non-reflective dark clothes. He pulled off his shirt.
Candy walked in.
“Cid, you want to borrow my bra?” she asked.
Ted felt Mia stiffen under the bed. He put a restraining hand on her arm. He was surprised just how muscled it was.
“I don’t know why you have to be so mean,” Cid said. “It’s not my fault I’m sight challenged.”
“It’s not, but look at you. You’re fat, you’ve got
