Текст книги "Oblivion"

Автор книги: Jennifer L. Armentrout

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Текущая страница: 42 (всего у книги 51 страниц)

Chapter 8

After catching one-on-one time with Kat that wasn’t nearly enough time, we headed to the Smoke Hole diner Saturday evening. Kat was like a live wire as we were seated in a booth in the back, near the crackling fire. I knew she expected this to be a trap and for us to be seconds away from the DOD bum-rushing the place.

I wasn’t going to let anything happen to her.

Besides, the DOD wouldn’t come at us in such a public manner, and we hadn’t come to the diner alone. Matthew and crew were hanging back in the parking lot, and some of the staff here were of the extraterrestrial persuasion, including our waitress, Jocelyn.

Quite a bit of the Luxen living in the colony worked outside of it. Obviously the football coach and some of the administrative staff at the high school lived in the colony but were employed in the human world; however, I was kind of surprised to see that Jocelyn was still working here since she just had her babies and had to have her hands full.

Kat was busy making kitten litter out of the napkin she was frantically ripping apart while Jocelyn appeared at our table. “Daemon, how are you doing? Haven’t seen you in ages.”

“Good. How about you, Jocelyn?”

Kat’s fingers stilled as she eyed the redhead curiously.

“I’ve been real good,” Jocelyn said. “I’ve stepped down from managing since the babies. Working part time instead, since they’re a handful, but you and your family should visit soon, especially since…” She looked at Kat and her smile faded just a little. “Since Dawson has come back. Roland would love to see both of you.”

“We’d love to do that.” I winked at Kat. “By the way, Jocelyn, this is my girlfriend, Katy.”

Kat’s lips split in a wide smile as she extended her hand to the Luxen female. “Hi.”

Jocelyn blinked and paled. “Girlfriend?”

“Girlfriend,” I repeated.

She gave a little shake of her head and then shook Kat’s hand before quickly releasing it. “Nice…nice to meet you. Uh, what can I get you two?”

“Two Cokes,” I ordered, and Jocelyn rushed off to place the order.

“Jocelyn…?” Kat asked.

I slid over another napkin for her pile. “Are you jealous, Kitten?”

“Pfft. Whatever,” she said. “Okay, maybe a little until I realized she was in the ARP.”

“ARP?” I stood, moving to her side instead of sitting across from her. “Scoot.”

She wiggled over. “Alien Relocation Program.”

“Ha.” I dropped my arm over the back of the booth and stretched my legs out. “Yeah, she’s good people.”

Jocelyn returned with our drinks, and I placed an order for a meat loaf sandwich. Kat didn’t order anything, and I knew she was too nervous to eat. When Jocelyn left, I angled my body toward hers and lowered my voice. “Nothing’s going to happen. Okay?”

Kat drew in a deep breath and nodded. “I just want to get this over with.”

No sooner did those words come out of her lush little mouth than Blake walked into the restaurant, his gaze zeroing in on where we waited for him. The punk-ass swaggered up to our table like he wasn’t at all concerned with the fact that the last time I’d seen him I wanted to kill him.

Behind Kat’s head, my hand curled into a fist along the back of the booth. “Bart,” I drawled, forcing my hand out of the clench. “It’s been so long.”

“I see you still haven’t figured out my name.” He slid into the seat across from us, frowning at the pile of torn napkins. “Hey, Katy.”

I leaned forward, smiling coldly. “You don’t talk to her.” Kat pinched my leg under the table, but I ignored it. “At all.”

Blake raised a brow. “Well, only talking to you is going to make this conversation real rough.”

“Like I care?” I said.

Kat exhaled slowly. “Okay. Let’s get to the point. Where are Beth and Chris, Blake?”

Blake’s gaze slid to Kat again. “I—”

Placing my hand on the table, I allowed a current of electricity to course across the table, shocking Blake. He lifted his hand with a hiss, his eyes narrowing on me.

I smiled.

“Look, you tool, you can’t intimidate me this time.” Blake’s voice dripped contempt. “So you’re just wasting time and pissing me off.”

“We’ll see about that,” I replied.

Jocelyn returned with the meat loaf sandwich and took Blake’s drink order. The moment she left, Kat refocused. “Where are they?”

“If I tell you, I’d have to trust that you two, plus anyone else, aren’t going to give me a cement swim.”

She rolled her eyes, and I almost laughed at the lame reference. “Trust is a two-way street,” she said.

“And we don’t trust you,” I threw out.

Blake drew in a long breath. “I don’t blame you. I’ve given you no reason to trust me other than the fact that I didn’t tell Daedalus about how well the mutation held.”

“And I bet either your uncle stopped you from turning me over, or you thought he was doing his job,” she countered. “But he screwed you over for money.”

Blake’s jaw hardened. “He did. And he put Chris in danger. But it’s not like I haven’t had to convince them otherwise after the fact. They think I’m happy to be an implant. That I’ve drunk the Kool-Aid and asked for seconds.”

I snickered. “To save your own ass, I’m sure.”

“The fact is, Daedalus doesn’t believe you’re a viable subject,” Blake said.

“How do you know?” I picked up the fork, resisting the urge to implant it in his eyeball.

“The only real wild card here is Will. Obviously, he knew and used that knowledge.”

“Will isn’t our biggest or most annoying problem right now.” I took a bite, chewing slowly. “You either have a lot of courage or are incredibly stupid. I’m going to go with the incredibly stupid part.”

Blake snorted. “Yeah. Okay.”

I did not like his attitude. Once he had his drink in front of him and Jocelyn was gone, I leaned forward. Blake’s gaze met mine, and the stupid ass had the brains to recognize his mistake. “We gave you a chance and you came back here after you killed one of our own. You think I’m the only person you have to look over your shoulder and watch out for? You’re so wrong.”

Fear churned in his eyes, but he hid it when he spoke. “The same goes for you, buddy.”

I sat back, eyes hooded. “As long as we’re on the same page.”

“Back to Daedalus,” Kat said. “How do you know they’re watching Dawson?”

“I’ve been watching you guys, and I’ve seen them hanging around.” He folded his arms. “I don’t know how much work Will did to get him free, but I doubt he pulled the wool over anyone’s eyes. Dawson is free because they wanted him to be free.” He paused. “Here’s the deal. I know where they’re keeping Beth and Chris. I’ve never been there, but I know someone who has and can give us the security codes to get into the facility.”

“Hold up.” Kat shook her head. “So you can’t really get us in. Someone else can?”

“Go figure.” I chuckled. “Biff is virtually useless.”

His lips thinned. “I know what level and cell they’re being kept in, so without me, you’d just be running around the compound begging to be captured.”

“And my fist is begging to be in your face,” I shot back.

Impatience colored Kat’s tone. “Not only are you asking us to trust you but to trust someone else?”

“That someone else is just like us, Katy.” Blake dropped his elbows on the table, rocking his glass. “He’s a hybrid but has gotten out from under Daedalus. And as expected, he hates them and would love nothing more than to screw with them. He’s not going to lead us astray.”

“And how does anyone get ‘out from under’ Daedalus?” she asked.

Blake’s smile was freaking creepy. “They…disappear.”

She tucked her hair back as she glanced at me. “Okay, say we do this, how do you get in contact with him?”

“You won’t believe anything unless you’re there to witness it for yourselves.” He picked up his glass. “I know where to find Luc.”

I smirked. “His name is Luc?”

He nodded. “He’s not going to be reachable by cell or email. He’s kind of paranoid about the government tapping cells and computers. We’ll have to go to him.”

“And where is that?” I asked.

“Every Wednesday night, he hangs at a club a few miles outside of Martinsburg,” he explained. “He’ll be there this Wednesday.”

I laughed. “The only clubs in that part of West Virginia are strip clubs.”

“You would think that.” The smugness creeping into his expression needed to be knocked out of it. “But this is a different kind of club.” He slid a quick glance in Kat’s direction. “Females don’t show up in jeans and sweaters.”

Her eyes narrowed as she swiped a fry from my plate. “What do they show up in? Nothing?”

“The closest thing to nothing,” he replied with a smile. “Bad for you. Yay for me.”

“You really want to die, don’t you?” I said.

“Sometimes, I think so.”

That surprised me, because there was a genuine quality to his words.

“Anyway,” he continued. “We go to him, he’ll get the codes, and then it’s on. We go in, you get what you want, and I get what I want. You guys will never see me again.”

“That’s pretty much the only thing you’ve said so far I like.” I shifted in the booth. “The thing is, I’m having a hard time believing you. You say this hybrid is in Martinsburg, right? There isn’t any beta quartz near that place. How come he hasn’t become some Arum’s afternoon snack yet?”

Blake met my stare. “Luc can take care of himself.”

“And where’s the Luxen he’s tied to?” Kat demanded.

“With him,” Blake answered. “Look, what happened with Adam—I never wanted that to happen. And I’m sorry, but you of all people have to understand. You’d do anything for Katy.”

“I would.” Static built on my skin. “So if for one moment I think you’re about to screw us, I won’t hesitate. You won’t get a third chance. And you haven’t seen what I’m fully capable of, boy.”

“Understood,” Blake murmured, his eyes downcast. “Are we on?”

I reached under the table and found Kat’s hand. I squeezed gently, and she drew in a shallow breath and said, “We’re on.”

Chapter 9

Since Blake was back in the picture and hanging around like a weed that wouldn’t go away, Kat rode in with me Monday morning and Dawson ended up catching a ride with Dee. After school, we made a pit stop at the post office.

Of course.

Kat loaded my arms up with packages, and when we got to her house, she stacked them on her desk, her fingers lingering on the yellow envelopes.

I plopped down on the bed, folding my arms behind my head. “You can open them now if you want.”

She twisted her hair up in a messy knot as she faced me. “I can wait.”

Grinning, I kicked off my shoes. “I know you want to do it now.”

Kat stuck her tongue out at me as she walked over to the other side of the bed and sat down, facing me. I knocked my knee off her hip. “You hanging in there?” I asked.

Nodding, she toyed with the string on her hoodie. “Yeah.”

I eyed her, knowing there was a lot on her mind besides the return of Blake and where we were going Wednesday night. She had talked to Dee last night, or at least tried to. She hadn’t talked to me about it, and neither had Dee, but I didn’t think it went over well.

I patted the spot next to me. “Come here.”

Kat crawled over.

“Closer.” I patted the spot again.

She rolled her eyes, but inched over.

I fought my smile. “Lie with me.”

An aggravated sigh was next. “You’re so needy.”

“I am the neediest needy guy out there right now.”

She shook her head, but stretched out beside me on her side, facing me. “Happy?”

Brushing a strand of hair back from her face, I pretended to think about it. “I’m happy, but I’d be thrilled if you put your head…”

Kat’s eyes narrowed as she peered up at me.

“…on my chest,” I finished with a sly grin.

Her lips twitched, and then she planted her cheek on my chest. “How about now?”

I curled my arm around her back, settling my hand on her round hip. “Much, much better.”

She laughed softly, placing her hand on my stomach. “I like when you’re needy.”

“I know.” A couple of moments passed. “How did your talk go with Dee last night?”

Her fingers curled against my shirt. “Honestly? Not good. Not good at all.”

I reached down, placing my hand over hers. She sighed and added, “She says she’s not ready to really talk about anything, and I totally understand that, but…I want her to be ready, because I miss her. She was my best friend.”

“She is your best friend.”

Kat didn’t respond.

I twisted onto my side and scooted down. Those beautiful gray eyes were full of tears. “She is still your best friend,” I repeated. “Dee still cares about you.”

“You think so?” she whispered, touching my cheek with the tips of her fingers.

Kissing the end of her nose, I then pulled back. “Yes.”

She smiled weakly. “I know I shouldn’t be worried about my friendship when we’re dealing with Blake and Dawson and Daedalus…and everything else under the sun.”

I slid my hand off her hip, to her upper thigh. “Kitten, you can worry about whatever you want. I just wish you didn’t have all that crap to be concerned with.”

“Can say the same thing for you.” She dragged her fingers down to my jaw. “You’re having to deal with a ton of crap.”

“It’s nothing.” My voice lowered as my hand tightened along her thigh.

She leaned forward, brushing her lips along mine. “What do you think we’re going to see Wednesday night?”

“I have no idea.” I nipped at her finger as the tip skated over my lower lip. “I’m not even sure about this club. Martinsburg isn’t that big of a place.”

“Bigger than here, right?” Her finger found my right dimple. “I know it’s not far from where my mom works when she’s in Winchester.”

“It’s bigger than here, but then again, most places are.”

She grinned. “I wonder who Luc is.”

“No idea. Never heard of him.”

“Hmm…” She trailed off, and I knew there was more that she wanted to say, but she kissed me again.

And I couldn’t complain about that.

The kisses started off slow and they were as sweet as sugar water, but it didn’t take any amount of time for the kiss to turn deeper, rougher. There was nothing tentative about the way she kissed me or the way my tongue danced with hers. I rolled, shifting her onto her back. Her arms looped around my neck and fingers immediately went to my hair. Man, she loved getting her hands in it, and that was another thing I’d never complain about.

Bracing my weight on my forearms, I settled over her, chuckling when she moaned into my mouth. I caught that sound, and then I was the one groaning as she hooked one leg around my waist.

Hell.

I shifted my weight to my left arm, and then my right hand took a nice slow trip over the dips and swells until I slipped my hand under her loose sweater. Her back arched as my finger skimmed over the smooth skin of her belly.

Knowing her mother could walk in on us at any given moment, I forced myself to slow down, dragging the kisses out until I could break away. Sliding my hand out from under her sweater was probably one of the hardest damn things I’d ever done.

Her lashes lifted. “Your eyes are glowing.”

One side of my lips kicked up in a grin. “I’m not surprised.”

She brushed her fingers through my hair, dragging the shorter strands off my forehead. Our breaths mingled in the warm space between our mouths, and the only noise in the room was the sound of our breathing. Kat pressed her forehead against mine, and as she splayed her fingers across my cheek, she let out a soft, shallow sigh.

I could live on those kisses.

I could live on those tiny breaths.

I could live on her.

By the time we hit Interstate 81, I wanted to kick Blake out of the damn car, tie him to the middle of the road, and run him over several times. At least fifty times. Maybe fifty-one.

Kat was actually wearing a coat, and based on the minuscule skirt she was wearing, paired with legit torn stockings, I was almost afraid of what she had on under the jacket, but those legs…

Yeah, I still had a thing for her legs.

We were running late because we hit a snow squall outside of Deep Creek, and jackass in the backseat just had to point out that if we’d gone south we wouldn’t have hit the snow.

He was lucky that we were close to our destination, nearing the Falling Waters exit. “Which one?”

Blake popped forward, dropping his elbows on the back of our seats. I rolled my eyes. “One more exit—Spring Mills,” he said. “You’re going to take a left off the exit, like you’re heading back to Hedgesville or Back Creek.”

I followed his instructions, eyes narrowing as we cruised down a country back road. Two miles off the exit, Blake spoke again. “See the old gas station up ahead—the pumps?”

I saw what looked like gas pumps about forty years ago. “Yeah.”

“Turn there.”

Kat leaned forward, eyeing the tall weeds overtaking the shack near the pumps. “The club is in a gas station?”

Blake laughed. “No. Just drive around the building. Stay on the dirt road.”

“You are giving my car a bath when we get back,” I muttered, easing the SUV down the narrow dirt road.

Man, the farther we drove down what I was beginning to think wasn’t an actual road, but more of a path, I imagined this is where many humans had traveled to never be seen again. Trees crowded the sides of the SUV, and we passed several run-down boarded-up houses that probably never saw electricity.

“I don’t know about this,” Kat said. “I think I’ve seen all of this in Texas Chainsaw Massacre.”

I snorted, but I thought she was right. The SUV bumped over the uneven terrain, and then there were cars. Everywhere. Cars parked in haphazard lines, beside trees, crammed across a field. Beyond the endless rows of vehicles was a squat, square-shaped building with no outdoor lighting.

Kat sat back. “Okay. I think I actually saw this in Hostel one and two.”

“You’ll be fine,” Blake said. “The place is hidden so it stays off the grid, not because they kidnap and kill unsuspecting tourists.”

I parked near the back, away from the assholes I knew would open their car doors right into mine. As I killed the engine, a guy stumbled out from between the row of cars in front of us. My brows rose as I caught sight of the spiky green Mohawk. Interesting.

Kat opened the door and climbed out, hugging her coat close. “What kind of place is this?”

“A very different kind of place” was Blake’s answer as he climbed out, slamming the door shut.

“Hey,” I shouted as I gently closed the driver’s door. “Slam my car door again, and it’ll be your head.”

Blake sighed as he turned to Kat. “You’ll have to lose the jacket.”

“What?” She glared at him. “It’s freezing out. See my breath?”

“You’re not going to freeze in the seconds it takes us to walk to the door. They’re not going to let you in.”

“I don’t get it.” She clutched her jacket. “So not fair.”

I went to her, folding my hands over hers. “We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to. I mean it.”

“If she doesn’t, then this was one huge time waster.”

“Shut up,” I threw over my shoulder, at Blake, and then focused on Kat. “I’m serious. Tell me now, and we’ll go home. There’s got to be another way.”

Kat shook her head and stepped back, unbuttoning my jacket. “I’m fine. Pulling on big-girl undies and all that jazz.”

Big-girl undies? What in… All thoughts vanished as she took the jacket off and tossed it inside the SUV. Holy shit, I wanted to get her up against the nearby tree and I also wanted her to put the damn jacket back on.

I stepped back, eyeing her from the pointy toes of her boots, up the ripped black tights, over the short denim skirt, and then my gaze got hung up on her bare stomach and that cute little belly button.

Oh damn.

“Yeah,” I muttered, shifting so I blocked her from the…the world. “I’m not so sure about this.”

“Wow,” Blake said, admiration obviously in his voice.

I whipped around, letting go of a small pulse of the Source. Whitish-red sparks flew from my fingertips. Douche Bag darted to the side, narrowly avoiding the hit.

Kat heaved a sigh. “Let’s get in there.”

Sending him one more look of warning, I placed my hand on her lower back. We started forward, stalking between the cars as my palm burned from the contact. The building was pretty nondescript. No windows. Only a steel door, but as we drew close, music from inside could be heard.

Kat glanced back at Blake. “So do we knock—?”

I stiffened as a mountain of a man appeared from out of freaking nowhere. Dead of winter, and this dude was wearing overalls with no shirt on underneath. His hair, spiked in three sections, was purple. Piercings were all over his face—nose, lips, eyebrows. He had a planet pierced in each of his earlobes.

And even though he was human, he looked like he could lift a house with one arm.

Kat took a step back, stumbling into me, but Mountain Man was eyeing me like he wanted a piece. “See something you like?” I asked.

The guy smirked.

Blake jumped in. “We’re here to party. That’s all.”

Mountain Man continued to stare at me as he reached for the door, opening it. Music blasted from the inside. “Welcome to the Harbinger. Have fun.”

With my hand still on Kat’s back, we stepped inside. The door shut behind us and Blake said, “I think he liked you, Daemon.”

“Shut up,” I said.

He let out a low laugh as he slipped past us in the tight, dark hallway. A few steps in and then we were in the club.

Jesus, I would never have expected this place to be here.

Dizzying blue, red, and white strobe lights flashed continuously. The dance floor was packed, and there was no escaping the scent of perfume, bitter alcohol, and sweat. Cages hung from the ceiling. Occupied cages. On the other side of the dance floor, near a bar, was a raised stage. People were everywhere, and not just humans. My senses were firing left and right. I could feel other Luxen, but among that, the darkness of nearby Arum slipped over my skin like oil.

Not liking this at all, I went on alert as I scanned the cavernous room. There were a lot of shadows, a lot of couches with…uh, questionable things taking place on them.

I glanced down at Kat and almost laughed at her wide-eyed expression. I spoke in her ear. “A little out of your element, Kitten?”

“I think you should’ve gone with the eyeliner,” she replied.

I smirked. “Not ever going to happen.”

Heavy drums pounded as we skirted the edge of the dance floor, and then everyone stopped—the ones on the dance floor and the chicks in the cages. Their fists shot in the air as they chanted in unison, “Safe from pain and truth and choice and other poisoned devils…” The yells picked up, drowning out everything except the drums.

Alrighty then.

We entered a narrow hall, leaving that mess behind. Kat was doing her hardest to stare straight ahead, studiously ignoring the couples along the walls. We stopped at a door that had the word Freaks scribbled over what used to be Personnel Only.

Sounded about right.

Blake started to knock on the door, but it cracked open. I couldn’t see who was behind the door, but I had a feeling it was a Luxen.

“We’re here to see Luc,” Blake said. There was a pause, and the back of his neck turned red. Nice. “Tell him it’s Blake, and he owes me.” Another pause. “I don’t care what he’s doing, I need to see him.”

“Great,” I muttered. “He’s friendless as usual.”

Whoever was behind the door said something, and Blake growled. “Dammit, he owes me. These people are cool. Trust me. No bugs here.” Finally, after forever, he turned to us, brows drawn tight. “He wants to talk to me first. Alone.”

I drew up to my full height. “Yeah, not gonna happen.”

Blake shook down. “Then nothing’s going to happen. Either you do as he wants and someone will come for you, or we made this trip for nothing.”

Yeah, I was so not cool with that.

Kat rose onto her toes and pressed against my back. “Let’s dance.”

I turned halfway and stared down at her.

She bit down on her lip as she tugged on my hand. “Come on.”

Not a smart idea, but how was I supposed to turn down that lip? Or that sweater.

Or those tights?

I let her guide me back out to the dance floor, around the twisting and turning bodies. Once she found a spot she seemed to like, she stopped in front of me, and I watched her curiously, wondering if we were going to do this.

This wasn’t like homecoming.

Closing her eyes, she stretched up and wrapped one arm around my neck and placed her other hand on my hip. We were close, very close, so I liked where this was heading already.

And then she started moving against me.

For a moment, I was still, because Kat…she knew how to move every part of her body—her shoulders and those hips. My mouth dried as her thighs rubbed against mine. I circled my arm around her waist and my chin grazed her neck. “Okay,” I said into her ear. “I might have to thank Blake for being friendless.”

Kat smiled.

My arm tightened as she swayed against me, the move fluid and sensual. “I think I like this.”

That was the understatement of the year.

A fine sheen of sweat dotted Kat’s face as she whirled around, pressing her back against my front. My hand slid to her stomach, and we moved together. Hell, I didn’t have to do much of anything, because Kat had the lead on this. She danced away from me, and I caught her arm, spinning her back.

We were front to front, her on the tips of her boots and our bodies twisted together. Pure instinct and a near-primal need drove me to lower my mouth to hers. Our lips brushed, and power pulsed through me and over Kat. It created a flash of light that blended in.

Our hearts pounded in unity and our bodies surged with the music, fitting together, and when my lips pressed more firmly against hers, she opened up. We didn’t stop moving, but her hand was sliding over my chest and lower, and mine was coasting over the curve of her back. Static crackled over our skin, and I was thinking about those couches I’d seen when we first came in and how incredibly useful—

A heavy hand landed on my shoulder, drawing me out of everything that was Kat. I let her go and spun, realizing it was Douche Bag. Before I could knock him into next year, Kat caught my arm.

Blake smiled as he yelled over the blaring music, “Are you guys having sex or dancing?”

“Do you want to ever have sex?” I shot back. “Because I’m about to fix it so you never can.”

He stepped back, throwing his hands up. “Sorry. Geez.”

My cheeks flared. Okay, maybe right now I’d be embarrassed.

“He’s ready to see us if you’re done eating each other’s faces,” Blake said.

One of these days, I was going to do more than seriously harm him.

Reaching down, I took Kat’s small hand in mine, and we followed Blake back through the maze of people. I took the time to get my head on straight. Namely, start thinking with the head on my shoulders, which wasn’t easy, considering.

When Blake went to knock on the door at the end of the hall again, the one marked Freaks , it opened before he could rap his knuckles off it.

The room was large and the air scented with vanilla. Several couches lined the walls, and one of them was occupied. A younger boy with shoulder-length brown hair was stretched out on the center couch, legs crossed at the ankles and his fingers flying over a handheld game. Around his wrist was a silver cuff that held a black stone with a reddish-orange flame in the center. The stone also had flecks of blue and green.

The kid glanced up, and purplish-colored eyes drifted over us, lingering on Kat for a second and then moving to the blond-haired man sitting behind a desk covered with stacks of money. The silver-eyed guy was definitely a Luxen, and he was shocked to see me there.

I stepped forward, and the Luxen male stood. “What’s going on?” Kat asked.

From the couch, the kid coughed out a laugh as he tossed the game on the cushion beside him. “Aliens. They have this wacky internal system that lets them sniff each other out. Guess neither of them was expecting to see the other.”

Kat twisted toward the kid.

He sat up, swinging lanky legs off the couch. “So, you crazy kids want to break into Daedalus stronghold and you want my help?”

My head cocked to the side, and I almost laughed out loud. Luc, the person Blake had dragged us here to meet, was practically a toddler.