travels easily and fits in around here. Not a lot to go on, but it does narrow things down a bit.
What I really need is for Marina to get me a name from Auntie Min. Once I know who and what he is, we can start to plan out how he's going to die.
Josh
Des is in a great mood at lunch, probably still riding the adrenaline rush of thumping Erik. He's full of plans for the band, the skatepark, hanging out. It's so infectious that I can't help but feel optimistic myself. Even Marina seems happy and relaxed, though I do catch her studying me from time to time with an expression I can't read. Her friend Julie joins us and it starts to feel like old times, like the whole Wildlings thing never happened and we're just a bunch of kids passing the time talking about music and good surfing beaches and the lame shows on TV. Julie teases Des and Marina, asking if they're going to the prom together. Des announces he might attend clown school next fall, then gets insulted when we all tell him that he could teach them more than he'd learn.
It's great. Other than being sore, everything is so normal. For the first time in longer than I can remember I feel like I'm living my life instead of just going through the motions.
After classes I do my detention then we all meet up in front of the school. We're keeping a lookout for Erik and his pals, but they're nowhere in sight, which is a good thing. I don't need any more drama.
Marina has to go straight home, so Des and I walk with her. Julie's going to the library to study, which is interesting. She'd been hanging with the stoner crowd for a while, but it looks like she's getting serious about school again. We say goodbye to her and head off like we've done a million times before, the three of us just kicking along the sidewalk together.
But nothing in my life is ever simple anymore. We're only a few blocks away from the school when a familiar car pulls up beside us. The window rolls down and Agent Solana looks up at us from the passenger side.
"Got a minute, Saunders?"
"Not really," I tell him.
Agent Matteson leans across the seat. "We can do it here, or we can do it back at the office. Your choice."
"Seriously? I told you. I don't know who the guys were that jumped me."
The driver's side door opens and Matteson gets out. He puts his elbows on the roof of the car and studies me for a long moment.
"You still look like crap," he says.
That gets Des's back up. Marina stands frowning between us. I know she's trying to get a take on what the Feds want with me now, but good luck with that.
"Dude," Des says. "What do you think happens when a bunch of guys—"
"Yeah, yeah." Matteson makes a brushing-off gesture with his hand. "Just tell us where you were last night."
"You know where I was. You drove me home. Did I look like I was in any shape to do anything but collapse once I got inside?"
"You tell me."
"I just did."
But then I realize what's going on.
"This is about Clint Gaillard, isn't it?" I say. "The guy who was running security at ValentiCorp."
"What do you know about it?"
"Nothing. Des saw it on the news and told me he'd been killed."
Des nods and juts his chin in my direction. "The dude was still crashed when I came over to his place this morning."
"See?" I say.
"Yeah, but—" Matteson begins, except I cut him off.
"Look," I tell him. "I don't care one way or the other that he's dead, but I didn't kill him. What about those dead kids' parents? He's got to have pissed off people who are a lot more dangerous than I am."
"You tell me," Matteson says.
"Will you stop saying that? Why would you even think I had anything to do with it?"
"Good question," Matteson says. "Isn't it, Al?"
I look down at Solana. He shrugs.
"Coroner's report says he was torn apart by some kind of animal," Solana says. "They haven't got a line on just what kind, but they're working on it."
"And you think it's a Wildling."
"We're keeping an open mind," Matteson says.
"I keep telling you, I'm not
What I really need is for Marina to get me a name from Auntie Min. Once I know who and what he is, we can start to plan out how he's going to die.
Josh
Des is in a great mood at lunch, probably still riding the adrenaline rush of thumping Erik. He's full of plans for the band, the skatepark, hanging out. It's so infectious that I can't help but feel optimistic myself. Even Marina seems happy and relaxed, though I do catch her studying me from time to time with an expression I can't read. Her friend Julie joins us and it starts to feel like old times, like the whole Wildlings thing never happened and we're just a bunch of kids passing the time talking about music and good surfing beaches and the lame shows on TV. Julie teases Des and Marina, asking if they're going to the prom together. Des announces he might attend clown school next fall, then gets insulted when we all tell him that he could teach them more than he'd learn.
It's great. Other than being sore, everything is so normal. For the first time in longer than I can remember I feel like I'm living my life instead of just going through the motions.
After classes I do my detention then we all meet up in front of the school. We're keeping a lookout for Erik and his pals, but they're nowhere in sight, which is a good thing. I don't need any more drama.
Marina has to go straight home, so Des and I walk with her. Julie's going to the library to study, which is interesting. She'd been hanging with the stoner crowd for a while, but it looks like she's getting serious about school again. We say goodbye to her and head off like we've done a million times before, the three of us just kicking along the sidewalk together.
But nothing in my life is ever simple anymore. We're only a few blocks away from the school when a familiar car pulls up beside us. The window rolls down and Agent Solana looks up at us from the passenger side.
"Got a minute, Saunders?"
"Not really," I tell him.
Agent Matteson leans across the seat. "We can do it here, or we can do it back at the office. Your choice."
"Seriously? I told you. I don't know who the guys were that jumped me."
The driver's side door opens and Matteson gets out. He puts his elbows on the roof of the car and studies me for a long moment.
"You still look like crap," he says.
That gets Des's back up. Marina stands frowning between us. I know she's trying to get a take on what the Feds want with me now, but good luck with that.
"Dude," Des says. "What do you think happens when a bunch of guys—"
"Yeah, yeah." Matteson makes a brushing-off gesture with his hand. "Just tell us where you were last night."
"You know where I was. You drove me home. Did I look like I was in any shape to do anything but collapse once I got inside?"
"You tell me."
"I just did."
But then I realize what's going on.
"This is about Clint Gaillard, isn't it?" I say. "The guy who was running security at ValentiCorp."
"What do you know about it?"
"Nothing. Des saw it on the news and told me he'd been killed."
Des nods and juts his chin in my direction. "The dude was still crashed when I came over to his place this morning."
"See?" I say.
"Yeah, but—" Matteson begins, except I cut him off.
"Look," I tell him. "I don't care one way or the other that he's dead, but I didn't kill him. What about those dead kids' parents? He's got to have pissed off people who are a lot more dangerous than I am."
"You tell me," Matteson says.
"Will you stop saying that? Why would you even think I had anything to do with it?"
"Good question," Matteson says. "Isn't it, Al?"
I look down at Solana. He shrugs.
"Coroner's report says he was torn apart by some kind of animal," Solana says. "They haven't got a line on just what kind, but they're working on it."
"And you think it's a Wildling."
"We're keeping an open mind," Matteson says.
"I keep telling you, I'm not
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