"Now?" Jenny whispered, nervously.
They'd been sitting in what seemed to be a spare bedroom of the Alto's penthouse, waiting, for what seemed like forever. The whole time, Genie's imagination had played out nightmares in which her mother and Uncle Max dismissively handed them over to be brutally violated by George T, or ruthlessly killed by Mr. Grey, or both. Any moment, Genie was certain, a horrible doom would come crashing down on them.
They had to escape. Their only hope seemed to be the woman in the slinky green dress - Mr. Grey had called her Candi. She had lingered in the room, idly looking at the uninspiring paintings on the wall and ignoring them. Now she was flirting, in her annoying giggly voice, with the man left to guard them.
He's distracted, Genie thought, nodding to Jenny. This was their chance. maybe their only chance. She tensed, preparing to make her desperate - and probably hopeless - move to overpower him and escape.
Maybe she could distract him long enough for Jenny to make it to the door, hopefully to the elevator. If Jenny reached the street outside, she could run, scream. All she had to do was find people... the Altos wouldn't hurt her if she was surrounded by witnesses. Genie could hold out that long... long enough for her friend to escape.
She was so focused on her desperate plan, she almost missed it when the guard suddenly started to convulse, his mouth open in a wordless, silent cry.
Genie leapt to her feet, watching the startled shock as the guard dropped, twitching, to the floor. She stared at him in shocked recognition.
She'd seen this kind of thing before.
"You stunned him!" Genie gasped accusingly at Candi. "That's a stunner. An Agency stunner! You're a spy!"
"Say it louder... I don't think the assembled crime bosses down the hall heard you," Candi said sardonically.
"Candice Barnett, Agency field operative," Candi continued, in a voice nothing like the giggly bimbo she'd pretended to be. "You and your little friends just basically screwed up months of my work, infiltrating Marco's inner circle... but I couldn't just hang you out to dry."
"Hey, we stole the Alto's ledger," Genie said.
"Yeah, you did... and I'd love to know how you cracked the combination on that safe," Candice replied. "I've been trying for weeks."
"Corrie worked out the formula," Genie answered with pride.
"Serves me right for underestimating her," Candice chuckled. "Now, let's get you two out of here before Grey comes back."
"Wait here, while I take care of the other guard," she added quietly, slipping out of the room.
"Right, get going you two," Candice ordered.
"What about you?" Jenny asked, still spooked and more than a little overwhelmed by everything.
"OMG!" Candi gasped, reverting seamlessly to full bimbo. "Marco, baby, it was horrible. They used some spy gadget to knock out the boys and escaped. I was so scared!"
"If you're sure," Genie said, heading quickly for the door.
"I'm good," Candice smiled. "Just tell me you have a plan for that ledger... a better than the one you used to get in here."
"I hope so," Genie laughed.
----------------
"Aadi, I can't tell you have glad I am to see you," Orange sighed.
It was very late or possibly very early, Orange had lost track, when he and Corrie had gotten off the train at Finchwich station. From there it had been a short and well marked walk into the little country town.
Aadi... loyal and reliably cheerful Aadi... had met them in front of the Gnome's Arms, the town pub.
"Sorry big man, Aadi is taken," they said with a broad grin. "Our love must remain forever unrequited."
"What?" Orange blinked, confused, then laughed. "Oh, right... yeah, I missed you, Aadi." Turning to Corrie, he added, "Corrie, this is Aadi. Aadi, Corrie."
"Hi, Aadi," Corrie laughed, thoroughly charmed.
"Good to meet you, girlfriend," Aadi smiled. "Welcome to the teeming metropolis of Henford-on-Bagely. This... is pretty much it."
"It's... nice," Corrie said, uncertainly.
"Aadi, have you heard anything from Genie or Jenny," Orange put in, worried. "They didn't meet us at the train and..."
"Relax, big man," Aadi said soothingly. "Genie called me a little bit ago. They're OK. They made it out, but they missed the last train. They're laying low with an old karaoke friend of mine in the City and they'll be on the first train in the morning. That's the good news."
"Thank God, blessed Saint Peter, and Saint Jacob," Orange said fervently. "Hang on... if that's the good news, what's the bad news."
"The bad news is you got spotted getting on the train," Aadi said. "Trouble is a-brewing."
"So, no time to enjoy Finchwich's thriving night life," they continued. "No... we sadly must get our hustle on."
"Oh no, I'm so sorry to make trouble for you," Corrie groaned. "Maybe we should..."
"You should follow your Aadi. Quick march," Aadi said firmly, leading the way. "And don't worry, Mill Lane is safe as can be... we have stalwart neighbors, magic spells, tough protectors, big scary monsters..."
"Wait, did you say Mill Lane? Do you live near Cassie Goth's old farmhouse? Where she wrote Brookside?" Corrie gasped, excitement overriding her tension.
"Sugar, we live in Cassie Goth's old farmhouse where she wrote Brookside," Aadi smiled "Come with me and I will show you wonders... or at least a big old farmhouse with some really nice paintings."
----------------
"Welcome to the famous house on Mill Lane," Aadi announced.
They had walked for a while, over the bridge at Finchwick and along quiet, dark country lanes. Farmhouses dotted the hills but they saw no one except for a lone fox, who had dashed across their path on some business of its own.
To Orange, who had lived all his life in cities, the quiet and emptiness were strange, but not as strange as the darkness. Without streetlights, the hills were black shadows against a sky lit only by a thin sliver of moon and more stars than he had ever seen in his life. He was more heartily grateful than he cared to admit when Aadi finally led them within the glow of lights from the sprawling farmhouse.
"Orange, Corrie, let me introduce our landlord and protector, Jake Volkov, King of the Werewolves," Aadi said grandly.
"Orange Bailey-Moon," Orange said, shaking the hand of the big man. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Volkov."
"Just Jake. I'm not a king," the man replied, firmly grasping his hand. "Love your book by the way."
"Thanks," Orange smiled.
"And this is my boo, Jordan," Aadi continued.
"Honey, we've heard a bit about your troubles from Genie," Jordan said, pulling Corrie into a friendly hug. "I'm so glad you made it. I hope we can be a safe space for you and know that you are always welcome."
"Umm... thank you," Corrie replied, a little startled.
"Perimeter's secure, Jake," announced a tawny-haired woman who came trotting out of the shadows.
"And this is the remarkable Demarco," Aadi said. "Another of our great protectors and noble beasties."
"Don't mind Aadi," Jordan said to the group in general. "They missed their calling as a royal herald."
"You didn't tell me they called," Aadi joked.
"Come on, everyone inside out of the cold and damp," Jordan declared.
"We've got spare beds and sleeping bags upstairs for you to rest," Aadi said, leading everyone into the house's front hall. "There's a rest room over there, and another upstairs, if you want to freshen up. There are some leftovers in the fridge if you're hungry, and we can probably even dig some old clothes that should fit out of the dressers if you want to change. Nuestra casa et su casa."
"Thanks again, all of you," Orange said earnestly.
"Um... who's that?" Corrie asked, nodding through the archway.
"Oh that's Etta," Aadi said. "Don't mind her... she may seem standoffish but she's just shy."
"I'm not shy," the fair-haired woman meditating in the other room said without opening her eyes.
"Is she... floating?" Corrie said, shocked.
"Don't mind that either," Aadi grinned. "It's a witch thing."
"I'm not a witch," Etta muttered.
"Welcome to Mill Lane," Jordan said.
