“I appreciate free food and unlimited drinks, which, by the by, is a considerable incentive for most human beings,” she said with a totally fake twinkle of amusement. “Why, that’s the very incentive most casinos use to snare people in. Take it from someone who used to spend all her time in the company of a top-notch gambler.”
“Why are you here?” I asked, trying to cut through the BS, looking her right in the eyes.
She shuffled her feet slightly and looked at them. “Well, it’s a funny thing, y’see … I don’t really have anywhere else to go. My family … they went with the cloister outside Connaught, and Breandan …” she shrugged. “Well, ye know. So, you’re right … I could have gone back to London, where I still have an outstanding arrest warrant, and my days of dodging the female cops are probably waning. So damned many of them now, y’see; female empowerment—good for the soul, not so good for the Siren on the run who relies on men she can bend to her will.”
“What do you want to do, then?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” she said, shoving those hands deep in her pockets. Her jacket was wholly inadequate to the task of keeping her protected from Minnesota’s vicious cold. She stamped her feet, but I was guessing that was unlikely to do much. “That’s why I’ve been hanging about with you. Doesn’t exactly require soul searching, what you’ve been up to of late.”
“Reed could use your help, you know,” I said softly.
She frowned. “How’d you know he was all right?”
Now it was my turn to hem and haw a little, though only because I hated to have to explain my chain of reasoning. “Because Harry didn’t say anything when I woke up, and it was the first question on my mind. I watched him as I was storming out; he didn’t have any bad news to deliver.”
“Yeah,” she said with a nod. “They’re all still in the hospital, but no fatalities. We don’t have much of an update on them, though—they’re just … in stable condition, as these things go.”
“I figured,” I said, drawing a frosty breath that made my lungs ache. “That means they’ll all recover, probably. Metahuman healing and whatnot. But this guy … the Predator …” I shook my head. “He’s looking for a fight. For a real fight, someone that can … I dunno, make him feel alive or something. He’s dangerous.”
“Harry said he was actually going to kill you,” she said, “if he hadn’t pulled you out.”
“I did piss him off,” I said. “And he’s causing no shortage of property damage.” I started back toward the house. “I have to find him. Have to wrap this thing up.”
“Uhm … forgive me for being all gloomy now that you’re … full speed ahead, because I don’t mean to be an anchor on your, uh, cheerfulness, but …” She paused. “How are you planning to kick his arse seeing as last time you bluffed him into taking it easy on you? And he still dusted the city streets with you?”
“I don’t know yet,” I said, “but that’s the least of my worries.”
“The least …?” Eilish asked as I moved on and she followed in my wake. “Hell, girl, what’s the greatest of them, then?”
“The Terminator is still after me, somewhere,” I said. “And he’s got a habit of showing up where I show up.”
“Yeah, how’s he doing that, by the way?” she asked as we walked up the path to the house. Someone had shoveled it; probably some kind neighbor or maybe a plow service. Either way, it was done, and the remaining snow so hard packed that it wasn’t too slippery.
Harry opened the door for us a second before I reached for it myself, so I just cruised on in, Eilish in my wake. “How’s the Terminator finding us, Harry?” I asked as he closed the front door behind the Irish girl.
“Every time you make a scene or an anonymous tip—a credible one—is received about you, he uses it to triangulate your current position,” Harry said, folding his arms as he walked forward.
“His accent is American,” I said, “his bearing is military. And this isn’t the first time they’ve employed soldiers against me.”
“You are leaving faint traces,” Cassidy said, piping up from her spot in the corner, lit by the glow of her monitor. “You were stealth in Florida. No tips, no nothing. But when you started moving, you started exposing yourself to more random people, casual encounters.”
“Before, I was hanging out on the beach, I’d go to the occasional restaurant,” I said. “You’re telling me that no one noticed me then, but the moment I started moving—”
“You were acting like a vacationer among people on vacation,” Cassidy said, blinking. “The minute you started moving, you were back to old habits, whether you realized it or not. And so you looked like—”
“A dangerous fugitive,” I said.
“I was going to say a real bitch, but whatever,” Cassidy said.
“Yeah, your natural RBF … it’s the stuff of legends,” Eilish said, gesturing to my face. “It makes me want to surrender to the authorities. And you weren’t really like that in Florida, see. Too drunk, I guess.” She shrugged.
“Sobriety … why is this worth it?” I muttered. “So … people are going to recognize me now, even with the weight loss and different hair color.”
“As long as you’ve got that working scowl on your face … yeah,” Harry said.
“So help me if you tell me to ‘smile more,’ I will dedicate my life to making sure that when next you smile, you do it with less teeth,” I said. He shrugged, and he was smiling, the bastard. “Whatever. This is not a problem of the moment. I need to deal with these assholes that are out there causing me problems.” I shed the quilt, dropping it back on the couch where I’d found it. “How do I beat these guys? How do I level the playing field?” I looked at Eilish.
She looked back, and her eyes widened. “Oh. Uhm. Me, then?”
“There’s only one of us in this room that can wrap men around their finger like they’re talking seductively to a sailor on leave,” I said.
“It’s me, isn’t it?” Harry asked, smiling faintly. “I’ve got a way with words.” His smile disappeared. “A word of warning about what you’re thinking here …” He explained.
“Uh, let’s not do that,” Eilish said once he’d gotten it all out.
“Fine,” I said. “We’ll work within the frame … work.”
“How?” Cassidy asked. “I’m sorry, I’m supposed to be the smartest person in the room, and while I’m very encouraged by the beating you were able to deal out to this … Predator, I guess you have chosen for him, namewise—”
“It’s a good name,” Harry said. “Fits the 80’s theme of our slate of villains. Plus, the Predator really did go looking for a challenge.”
“Whatever,” Cassidy said, totally brushing off Harry’s keen observations. “I like what you did to rearrange his face and skull, but I am slightly skeptical of your ability to repeat.”
“Let me tell you a little trick about humanity, Cassidy,” I said. “This guy? He thinks he’s the apex predator of the planet. That’s why he was seeking me out. He wanted to be the best, and … now he thinks he is.” I smiled. “But the problem with being the champion …”