Page 56 of Decoding Morse

“First off, Sage is single. And second, what the fuck are you talking about?”

“You’re on the same team, and that’s what teams do. They dress alike and share a playbook.”

I stared at him. “You’re giving me a sports analogy? You’re aware I don’t watch sports, right?”

“But you get what I’m saying.”

Of course, I did. I wasn’t stupid. Still, I couldn’t pass up the chance to fuck with him, so I laughed. “Rabbit, I don’t understand you most of the time.”

He made a sound of frustration. “Bottom line is you can’t keep important shit from your teammate, or you’ll lose the game, and one of you will get drafted. If you have any hope of making things work with Amelia, you need to come clean. She’ll find out everything eventually, and the longer you wait, the worse it’ll be.”

“I gotta side with Rabbit on this one,” Tap said, chiming in. “I’ll watch her house while you’re gone, but it’s fucked up to monitor someone without their consent. You need to tell her.”

First Thia, now my brothers. Did everyone have a goddamn opinion about this relationship?

“Exactly.” Rabbit now stabbed the air with his finger. “And I’ve been thinking… this trip gives you the perfect opportunity since she’ll be a captive audience and can’t run away screaming. She’ll have to hear you out. Share the fucking playbook.”

I knew he was right, and I couldn’t endure another instant of his failing sports analogy, so I relented. “Fine.”

Dismissing his annoying ass, I headed to the supply closet, where I unhooked my pride and joy from its charger and loaded it into the case.

“Oh shit. You’re taking Smokey?” Rabbit asked from the door.

Smokey, afterSmokey and the Bandit, was a heavily modified commercial drone with enhanced thermal imaging, advanced optical zoom, and a hidden feature that made it illegal as hell to own. I’d bought him on the black market and usually kept him docked in a secret compartment in my closet.

“Premeditated,” I said, thumbing my chest.

Rabbit stared at me like I was the crazy one. “Ohh-kay.”

He didn’t get the reference, but Amelia would. Fuck. She and I had inside jokes now.

“Why are you still here?” I asked, weaving around him to set the drone on my desk.

Again, he followed me. “Fine isn’t good enough. I’m not leaving until you promise to tell Amelia everything.”

“Why are you like this?” I asked.

“Because I give a fuck about you.”

“That’s inconvenient.”

He chuckled. “Tell me about it.”

I headed to the supply closet, hoping to lose him, but he kept up.

“What if I tell her, and she never wants to speak to me again?”

Rabbit shrugged. “That’ll suck, but at least you’ll know she can’t handle your crazy and you can move on. But if you don’t tell her, you’re selling her an inauthentic version of yourself. You’re being a fuckin’ poser, man, and you’re better than that.”

God, I hated being called out, but especially by Rabbit. Still, he wasn’t wrong, so I relented.

“Fine. I swear I’ll tell her while we’re in Idaho.”

* * *

I rented a dark gray Kia Telluride for the trip. It was roomy, the passenger seat reclined significantly, and it was the best option available when I made the reservation. Morgan tried to climb in behind her mom, but I had her scoot over to sit behind me. With the girls loaded up and our gear stashed in the back, we left at eight a.m. sharp, as planned, with Specks and Prospect ontheir bikes behind us. Specks had connections at both colleges and had volunteered to come, while Prospect was tagging along at Link’s insistence. I still didn’t trust the newbie any further than I could throw him, but he was willing to stick his neck out on guard duty, so I didn’t complain.

Specks, Prospect, and I tested our Bluetooth coms, and then I slid behind the wheel. Morgan fired up her tablet before I even shifted the SUV into drive.

---