Page 31 of Rarely Pure and Never Simple
"I know you." He sat up slowly, rubbing the side of his head. "I saw you on a newscast. You're Shudder McKenzie."
Shudder backed off to sit cross-legged on the floor and had the nerve to laugh. "Why, yes, I am. What newscast was it?"
"It was just a few days ago. Someone running for senate. I don't recall his name right now."
"That's all right. I know the one. That was fun, wasn't it?"
"Fun, he calls it," Blaze growled. "You could've gotten someone killed."
"Blazey doesn't approve of me." Shudder winked at Damien, and damn if he didn't get something that sounded like a laugh. "Now this is all very nice and sociable, but you've stumbled into my little colony. I'm afraid I have to insist that you tell me why you're here."
Damien looked up for the first time. "Why is Blaze chained up?"
"Well, my thought would be that the young people who pulled you out of the pit trap found him threatening. Does that sound reasonable?"
"I… maybe. I don't know what happened."
To his credit, Shudder stopped grinning like a fool. "I heard a bit of it, and I'm sorry about that. The traps are automatic and set off alarms when they're sprung. We weren't trying to catch you in particular. That was really bad for you, was it?"
"Yes."
Oh, that's better. One-word sentences are better.
"I—when I was a kid, I used to get locked in an ancient root cellar as punishment. It was, ah, underground."
The fuck?Where's the true-confession shit coming from? Damien hadn't told him a damn thing about his childhood willingly. Every word had to be dragged out of him.Though… Blaze narrowed his eyes as much in thought as in resentment. Dr. Parma had mentioned elemental variants being the best grounding, the best calming influences for Damien. Variants didn't come more elemental than Shudder.
"Oh. I am sorry. That does sound terrible. But I suppose we should get to business. Have you come to collect the bounty?"
"Bounty?"
"Yes." The mad grin returned. "The one for bringing me in. Pretty sizeable, last I saw."
"Idiot," Blaze grumbled.
Damien shook his head. "No. We're not feds." He leaned back against the wall, eyes closed. "I work with them sometimes. Contract work. Like Blaze. But I'm not on salary."
"Ah. So you found me for them. That's too bad." Shudder heaved a tragic sigh. "I liked this place, and now we'll have to move."
"We weren't looking for you. And this isn't a Federal Crimes Bureau job."
Finally, something that set the annoying shit back.
Shudder blinked at Damien. "You weren't? It's not? Well, why else come out here to the ass end of nowhere?"
"Do they end here? All six?" Blaze interrupted, unconcerned about being rude. "Damien?"
Dark, weary eyes opened and pinned him where he sat. "Yes."
"What ends? Six what?" Shudder's attention ping-ponged between them.
"I'm not telling you a damn thing unless you cut me loose, and he's feeling like crap, so you won't get much."
"I'll let you loose if you manage to ask nicely."
"Get the fucking cuffs off, please."
Shudder turned to Damien. "That didn't sound nice at all, did it?"
