Page 23 of The Retreat
Imogen felt herself smiling and stopped. ‘I’m scared of spiders. Completely.’
Talia’s eyes widened. ‘Spiders? That’s a bit obvious, isn’t it?’
‘It doesn’t have the originality of a stalker pigeon, I’ll give you that,’ Imogen said. She thought she might have pushed it a bit with that.
But Talia only gave a dry snort. ‘So… What’s up with spiders? Aside from the obvious.’
Imogen frowned, thoughtful. ‘Did you know they don’t get stuck in their own webs?’
Talia frowned. ‘They don’t?’
‘Some of them coat their legs in this oily stuff, like a wax, so they can walk on the threads without triggering the vibrations.’
Talia pulled a face. ‘That’s grim.’
‘And they’re bloody precise,’ Imogen added, warming to her topic. ‘Like, some species actually count their steps when they go out hunting, so they can find their way back to their web.’
Talia stared at her. ‘That is truly disquieting.’
Imogen shrugged and smiled. ‘Told you. Spiders aren’t just scary. They’rewrong.’
Talia gave a short laugh, looking away. ‘OK, next question.’
Imogen thought. ‘Would you rather fight one horse-sized duck or a hundred duck-sized horses?’
She sort of thought Talia would demand a more serious question, but she considered it carefully. ‘A hundred duck-sized horses sound like a swarm of nightmares.’
Imogen nodded. ‘Exactly.’
‘So, horse-sized duck it is. At least it’s just one thing to focus on.’
Imogen smiled. ‘Looks like we agree on something after all.’
Talia glanced at her sideways, a little reluctant. ‘Seems like it.’
They both fell quiet for a moment, the game bridging the distance more than either expected.
‘Next question,’ Imogen said lightly. ‘Do you snore?’
Talia smiled faintly. ‘Not that I know of. You?’
‘Only when drunk,’ Imogen told her.
‘Then don’t get drunk.’
‘I’m glad you said something. I was planning to be smashed the whole time,’ Imogen said dryly.
‘Actually, I would recommendsomedrinking this weekend.’
‘You would?’
‘Me personally? I’m gonna need a drink or two this weekend,’ Talia admitted. ‘I’m sure it wouldn’t hurt you to relax a bit, either.’
‘Me? I’m totally relaxed. I’m downright fucking zen,’ Imogen said.
That surprised a laugh out of Talia that she was quick to cut short.
It wasn’t perfect. It wasn’thealed. But maybe it was a start.
