Shiiiiit. . . this nightmare he was in just kept getting more "mare. "
But, God, that vision as he'd woken up, of his shellan ever farther away. . . even more faded. . . her exhausted eyes tortured and gray as the landscape.
The knock on the door was too strong to be Fritz.
"Come in. "
John Matthew peered around the jamb. The kid was dressed for fighting, his weapons on, his mood dark.
"Going out early?" Tohr said.
No, I've switched shifts with Z - just wanted you to know that.
"What's wrong?"
Nothing.
What a lie. The truth came out in the sharp edges to the kid's words, his hands forming the positions of ASL with hard corners on the letters. And he wouldn't look anywhere but the floor.
Tohr thought of the messy bed across the way, and the fact that No'One had left one of her spare sheaths on the chair over by the bureau.
"John," he said. "Listen. . . "
The kid didn't look at him. Just stood there in the open doorway, head down, brows down, body twitching to leave.
"Come in a minute. And shut the door. "
John took his time and crossed his arms when he was done closing them in.
Crap. Where to start.
"I think you know what's going on here. With No'One. "
None of my business, came the signed response.
"Bullshit. " At least that got him some eye contact - too bad, since he promptly stalled out on the reveal. How could he explain what was going on? "It's a complicated situation. But no one's taking Wellsie's place. " Shit, that name. "I mean - "
Do you love her?
"No'One? No, I don't. "
So what the hell are you doing here - no, don't answer that. John paced around, hands on hips, weapons catching the light in subtle flashes. I can guess.
In a sad way, Tohr thought, the anger was honorable. A son protecting the memory of his mother.
God, that hurt.
"I've got to move on," Tohr whispered hoarsely. "I have no choice. "
The fuck you don't. But like I said, it's none of my business. I gotta go. Later -
"If you think for one moment that I'm having a party in here, you're too wrong. "
I've heard the sounds. I know exactly how much fun you're having.
As he took off, the door shut with a crack.
Fantastic. This night got any better and someone was going to lose a leg. Or a head.