Chapter Six #2
“One of Cerberus Charlie K9s, Mojo, was over in Namibia, Africa, that was dry as a bone,” Auralia said.
“Then a squall of some sort came through, and Mojo and his handler were on the roof of a building, sailing down the river, trying to survive. I will tell you here and now that the harrowing stories Levi tells about how he and his dog escaped that mess make me prefer a war zone. It’s bad when bombs are dropping, but they’re not dropping on every square inch.
It’s luck of the draw rather than a clean sweep. ”
“Tell me the truth, are you planning to confront Morrison?” Kamar asked, leaning forward.
“I’m here to hear what he has to say, and then I’ll research if that warrants further reporting.”
Kamar caught Mohammed’s gaze. “I vote we go. I can’t afford car repairs, and I don’t have the skills to stay safe in what they’re describing.”
“Good,” Mohammed finally released his hair and brought his hands down. “Yes. I vote this, too. We go.”
The men heaved themselves back to their feet and moved back to the spot they’d staked out.
“Good job running off the competition.” Doli teased.
“Come on.” Auralia turned to watch the International Associated Press crew gathering their things. “Sharing is caring. I said that, and it sounded sarcastic, but everything we were saying is accurate. When I strapped this bullet-resistant vest on this morning, I thought—”
“That you’d be dodging bullets?” Doli asked.
“No, that if someone were to try to punch me this time, it would be a huge surprise when they hit my ceramic plates.”
“No lie.” Doli pressed her hand against the solidity of the vest. “But I was thinking bullets. I always think of bullets when I’m pulling one of these over my head.
” Doli turned and watched Kamar lifting a bag strap onto his shoulder.
He raised a hand at the women, and they saluted him in return.
“Yeah, he’s local beat. I don’t think he’d have a single clue how to get out of a flood, and worse, he’d feel obligated to report on the situation, which takes the attention away from survival. I’m glad they’re going.”
“As a goodwill gesture, we could send them some footage that we’re not using and notes from the speeches.”
“Good idea. And speaking of ideas, I really am curious whether Gator said anything about the vests. He’s never sent you anything like this before, has he?”
“Do you want my real impression?” Auralia raised her brows. “It might be a little woo-woo.”
“I’m up for some goosebumps.”
“For the last few days,” Auralia whispered. “I’ve had an earworm.”
Doli held up her hand, “Stop. Do not sing some jingle or half-lyric and get that in my head. I do not want.”
“It’s a phrase. ‘Whelp, looks like I dodged a bullet.’”
“Are you serious right now?” Doli held up her hand again. “Don’t say ‘deadly serious’ as your answer. I’m not cool with that, Auralia.”
“I …” Auralia shook her head. “What?”
“Nothing. Except I’ve noticed that when you sing a song over and over or repeat a phrase over and over, it comes true in the days that follow.”
“And those are words of wisdom, right?” Auralia asked.
“Oracles of Delphi are how I classify them.” She frowned. “‘Dodged a bullet.’ Are you suggesting that Gator picked up on your thoughts, snatched them from the ether, and decided to act on them? Just like I can’t go hanging out near Gator with salty thoughts about what I’d like to do with his—”
“Stop.”
“You and Creed do that between you, too.”
“Yup.”
“I can see how that could lead to a whole lot of misunderstandings and hurt feelings. I can also see how it would be helpful.”
“Always has been a double-edged sword. And my mamma was the worst of them; she could snatch your thoughts out of the air before they evolved into a full thought. ‘Auralia, don’t you even think about sneaking a cookie. I have those made up for the potluck this Sunday.’”
“Bullet-resistant vests, I asked if Gator gave an explanation?”
“Yeah, no, he didn’t say anything.” Auralia pulled a pin from her bun, put it between her teeth, smoothed her hair, then slipped it back into place.
“I got a box at the front desk with a note for us to wear them. He might not be able to tell us. No harm in following through, though. I kind of like the weight.”
“Remember when we were here to confront Morrison the first time, and Liu said to put the number of the lawyer on our arms. And you said—”
“It’s like going to the store and thinking I need to get mayonnaise. You should never talk yourself out of it.”
“You’ll always need the mayonnaise.”
Auralia turned to see three men in suits making their way toward the backstage area, followed by two women. It was hard to tell from this angle, but Auralia thought that was Morrison’s wife and daughter. “What do you think he’s up to today?”
“Who? Morrison? I think he’s here to try to win back hearts and minds—”
“And pocketbooks.”
“And pocketbooks,” Doli nodded. “I think we need a plan if things start to go sideways. Unless we have some Marines in from Quantico again, we’re on our own this time.
Even if Gator and Creed are here, they’re on the clock.
We’re on our own.” Doli’s face tilted skyward, where she scanned with a frown between her eyes.
“What do you see up there?” Auralia asked.
“Nothing good,” Doli said as she turned her head to take a sweep of the horizon. “When the sky looks like this in the Navajo Nation, we prepare for thunderstorms and flash floods.”
Auralia took a moment to consider the people coming down from the parking area into the dell while Doli scrolled through her phone.
“Timetables moved up slightly, and warnings are stronger. The weather forecast said high winds with the possibility of heavy rain early afternoon.”
“We should be good and gone by then,” Auralia said. “I’m not going to die for the opportunity to stand in a field and ask Eugene Morrison a question. I don’t care if I’m mid-question, you put your hand on my shoulder, and we’re turning and hightailing it out of here. When you say move, we move.”
“All right.” Doli laughed. “No pressure.”
“Psh. You stand out in the middle of a road as bombs are dropping from drones on the buildings to get your footage. I think you can take the pressure off predicting a good time to dodge a rainstorm.”
Doli tipped her head back and sniffed the air. “Do you smell that? That’s not good.”
Auralia sniffed, and it smelled like East Coast air, like bathwater rising and tickling the inside of the nostrils. It was too cool today; it shouldn’t smell that way.
Auralia pulled out her phone and opened her maps app. “If things do turn dangerous, I’m going to head north. I think the south and east will be a mess. We’ll need to get back over that bridge fast, though. Look at this.” She held out the map for Doli. “Do you agree?”
Doli took the phone, searched the map, and then handed it back. “I say we get up to the next town and grab a hotel room and hunker down.”
“Yup.” Auralia typed a quick message to let Gator and Creed know, then shoved the phone away.
Auralia imagined, for a moment, that she and Doli were running away. Iniquus would be here doing their best to help everyone.
She pushed the idea of Creed and Gator being in harm’s way down, down into her bowels the way she did when they were deployed, because how could she survive thinking they were in danger?