Page 29 of The Company We Keep

"Did you bring swim trunks, then?" Wayles interrupted Carrow’s train of thought with his question to Dust.

Dust gave him a dumb look.

"Nah, of course you didn’t. Ah, well, you can borrow some of mine,” Wayles said after a moment. “You'll love the pool."

Carrow rolled his eyes.

“I guess the meeting’s over, then,” he said, flat.

“There’s apool?” Dust asked.

“Damn, I thought you said you did research,” Vashvi shot.

“Yeah,” Leta said, catching Carrow’s eye and smiling. “I think the meeting’s over.”

Vashvi and Wayles started chattering immediately, practically dragging Dust away from the table. He gave Carrow and Leta an apologetic look before they made their exit. The three of them looked like they’d belonged together all along — as if Nick Short had been some accidental inclusion andnowthey were really hitting their stride.

Herron crossed their arms and watched the youngest members of The Company leave.

“Looks like you’ve got a trio on your hands, boss,” they said. “At leasttheydon’t have any doubts about him.”

“And you?” Carrow asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I’ll reserve my judgment for after the job,” they said, pushing back from the table. “You joining us on the roof?”

“I don’t think so.”

He waited for Herron to slip from the room before turning to Leta.

“How about you? You on the fence, too?”

“Not at all,” she said quickly. “I like him. Russell likes him.Youlike him.”

“Do I?” Carrow asked, pressing his lips into a line.

“I can read you like a book, Ansel, and not even a complicated one at that,” she said, standing and letting a hand stray across his shoulders as she passed behind his chair. “Youtaking bets on how long it is until he finds his way into your bedroom?”

“Christ, Wright.”

She shrugged.

“No judgements from me, but I can see how you look at each other.”

“I don’t knowhowyou see him look at me, but I can tell you that my interest in Wrenshall is only in determining his fit for The Company.”

Leta held up her hands, exposing two empty palms as if to say“got it,”before she made her way back towards the living room.

7

June 2014 • AIIB Mission Month 1

If Carrow had taken Leta’s bet, he surely would’ve lost money.

Dust found his way to Carrow’s bedroom just a few hours later.

It had been an honest mistake, of course. Wayles and Vashvi had delighted in showing him the pool, and Herron had arrived on the roof a few minutes after them, opening up a piece of slick cabinetry to reveal an outdoor bar. They were just retrieving a can of soda from the fridge, but at Wayles’ goading, Herron began mixing cocktails.

It came out over conversation that Herron was the unlikely best cook and bartender of The Company — ironic because they were both vegan and a teetotaler. The pepperoni recommendation had only been based on what Herron knew Wayles liked the most. They didn’t taste half of what they cooked or stirred up, but, Herron explained, they had a photographic memory that allowed for easy recall of innumerable cocktails and recipes. Vashvi didn’t drink either, which left Wayles and Dust to consume what they mixed up.

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