little bit weird.” But she frowned.
“Hasn’t stuff like this happened to you before? Weird days? Strangers popping up out of nowhere trying to do you harm? I can’t believe my family’s the only one who knows about you.”
“This is California,” she said, looking more than troubled; looking vaguely alarmed. “Weird stuff happens all the time out here. And it’s not even an election year.”
“Yeah, California, not the Twilight Zone.” He wriggled more and the tape pulled at his arm hairs. “Ow!”
“Well, sit still.”
“And starve to death? Forget it.”
“Oh, for Pete’s sake. How long have you gone without a meal?”
“Two hours.”
“An eternity, I’m sure.”
“Fast metabolism. Come on, you have to have something around here.”
“Buddy, you have got some nerve.” She sounded almost . . . admiring? But she still looked pissed. Not that he could blame her. “Weird stuff . . . you probably said that because you were in on it.”
“In on what?”
“Oh, like you don’t know!”
“I don’t know,” he said patiently. “What are you talking about?”
“You don’t know about the team of red-robed weirdos who tried to kill me at work.” She said this with total skepticism.
“No, but I can’t say I’m surprised. See, you’re the bad guy.”
“ I’m the bad guy?”
“Yup. In fact, you’re fated to destroy the world.”
She touched her chest, looking flabbergasted. “ I am?”
“Yup. That’s why I was sent to make you take a dirt nap, so to speak. And I bet the crack team of weirdos was sent to do the same thing. So you should do three things: Feed me, untie me, and get the hell out of this house.”
She stared at him.
“Don’t think you have to do it in that order, either,” he added, wriggling again. Fucking tape! Why couldn’t she use plain old rope, like his exgirlfriend?
“That’s it,” she finally said. “I’m calling the police. Right now.” But she didn’t move, and he could smell that she didn’t mean it. She was too confused and curious.
“Okay, Morgan. Fetch the fuzz.”
“What did you call me?”
“Morgan. It’s your other name.”
“I think I would know if I had another name.”
“Obviously, you don’t.”
“Oh, piss off!” she snapped, which almost made him laugh. “I’ve had about enough of this ‘mysterious stranger trying to kill me and then being all cryptic’ garbage. Spit it out.”
“Okay. You’re the reincarnation of Morgan Le Fay.”
She threw up her hands. “Oh, please! That’s the best you could do?”
He shrugged, as much as he could mummified in tape as he was. “It’s the truth. You’re a bad witch, back to wreck the world. Sorry.”
“First of all, Morgan Le Fay wasn’t necessarily bad. Second—”
“How do you know that?”
“I did some papers on her in college. Second—”
“Uh-huh. Of all the people in the world, living and dead, you picked her. I bet your minor in college had something to do with her.”
“Lots of people minor in European history. And as for picking Le Fay for a research topic—me and about a zillion other people through the ages,” she said, but again looked vaguely troubled, as if listening to something he couldn’t hear. Which with his hearing was impossible, frankly. “Tell me, the place where you live . . . are there a lot of doctors there? And little cups of pills?”
“Very funny, Morgan.”
“Don’t call me that,” she said automatically, but with no real heat.
“Look, at least consider the possibility. I mean, why would I come here? I live in Massachusetts, for Christ’s sake, but I come all the way across the country just to wreck your house?”
“That’s the theory I was going with, yes,” she admitted.
“Pretty shaky,” he told her. “And today not only am I here, but another group of killers? Would-be killers, I mean? And what happened to them? How come you’re not dead? You avoided me and them?”
“We haven’t established
“Hasn’t stuff like this happened to you before? Weird days? Strangers popping up out of nowhere trying to do you harm? I can’t believe my family’s the only one who knows about you.”
“This is California,” she said, looking more than troubled; looking vaguely alarmed. “Weird stuff happens all the time out here. And it’s not even an election year.”
“Yeah, California, not the Twilight Zone.” He wriggled more and the tape pulled at his arm hairs. “Ow!”
“Well, sit still.”
“And starve to death? Forget it.”
“Oh, for Pete’s sake. How long have you gone without a meal?”
“Two hours.”
“An eternity, I’m sure.”
“Fast metabolism. Come on, you have to have something around here.”
“Buddy, you have got some nerve.” She sounded almost . . . admiring? But she still looked pissed. Not that he could blame her. “Weird stuff . . . you probably said that because you were in on it.”
“In on what?”
“Oh, like you don’t know!”
“I don’t know,” he said patiently. “What are you talking about?”
“You don’t know about the team of red-robed weirdos who tried to kill me at work.” She said this with total skepticism.
“No, but I can’t say I’m surprised. See, you’re the bad guy.”
“ I’m the bad guy?”
“Yup. In fact, you’re fated to destroy the world.”
She touched her chest, looking flabbergasted. “ I am?”
“Yup. That’s why I was sent to make you take a dirt nap, so to speak. And I bet the crack team of weirdos was sent to do the same thing. So you should do three things: Feed me, untie me, and get the hell out of this house.”
She stared at him.
“Don’t think you have to do it in that order, either,” he added, wriggling again. Fucking tape! Why couldn’t she use plain old rope, like his exgirlfriend?
“That’s it,” she finally said. “I’m calling the police. Right now.” But she didn’t move, and he could smell that she didn’t mean it. She was too confused and curious.
“Okay, Morgan. Fetch the fuzz.”
“What did you call me?”
“Morgan. It’s your other name.”
“I think I would know if I had another name.”
“Obviously, you don’t.”
“Oh, piss off!” she snapped, which almost made him laugh. “I’ve had about enough of this ‘mysterious stranger trying to kill me and then being all cryptic’ garbage. Spit it out.”
“Okay. You’re the reincarnation of Morgan Le Fay.”
She threw up her hands. “Oh, please! That’s the best you could do?”
He shrugged, as much as he could mummified in tape as he was. “It’s the truth. You’re a bad witch, back to wreck the world. Sorry.”
“First of all, Morgan Le Fay wasn’t necessarily bad. Second—”
“How do you know that?”
“I did some papers on her in college. Second—”
“Uh-huh. Of all the people in the world, living and dead, you picked her. I bet your minor in college had something to do with her.”
“Lots of people minor in European history. And as for picking Le Fay for a research topic—me and about a zillion other people through the ages,” she said, but again looked vaguely troubled, as if listening to something he couldn’t hear. Which with his hearing was impossible, frankly. “Tell me, the place where you live . . . are there a lot of doctors there? And little cups of pills?”
“Very funny, Morgan.”
“Don’t call me that,” she said automatically, but with no real heat.
“Look, at least consider the possibility. I mean, why would I come here? I live in Massachusetts, for Christ’s sake, but I come all the way across the country just to wreck your house?”
“That’s the theory I was going with, yes,” she admitted.
“Pretty shaky,” he told her. “And today not only am I here, but another group of killers? Would-be killers, I mean? And what happened to them? How come you’re not dead? You avoided me and them?”
“We haven’t established
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