“Um. Yes. ”
“Is it broken?”
“I…I don’t think so, no. Can we just go home now? I’ll explain everything after some sleep, and I think they’re mostly done with us here. ”
Lu looked around at the visitors’ center parking lot—as far as she could see it, anyway. The fog had let up some as dawn was approaching, but it was still asserting a healthy presence.
“Where are you parked?” she asked.
“Back by Ted’s place. ”
As if on cue, Ted appeared beside us. He was not perfectly coifed, but he was surprisingly well put-together for a man who’d been roused before dawn for an emergency phone call. He always was, though. There was something aesthetically mercenary about him that you either loved or found repulsive.
“And of course”—he inserted himself into our conversation, extending a hand to Lulu—“your lovely niece is welcome to leave it on my property for the time being. ”
“Forget it,” I said.
“We’ll drive you home,” Dave said, patting my leg.
But I wasn’t about to leave the Death Nugget thirty-five miles away from its driveway of preference. “No way. I’m not hurt. I’m tired as hell, but so are you two—and I’ve still got leftover adrenaline to keep me awake. Besides, I’ve got to run these two nutters home. ” I tipped my head at the boys.
Benny was still holding an ice pack to his head, and Jamie had a rat’s nest of leaf litter stuck in his curly mane.
Lu looked them up and down, noticing for the first time that they were alone. Both of them looked back at her with perfect dejection.
Neither one of them had summoned any family assistance. Jamie’s mother was old enough to be his grandmother and in poor health, so it didn’t surprise me that he hadn’t given her a call. And Benny was on the outs with all of his relations, save a much older brother. I didn’t know the details and I’d never asked. It was none of my business. If he wanted me to know, he’d tell me.
“We can give them a ride,” she said. “We’ll run them home. We’ll all fit in the car. ”
“You could run them home, but you’re not going to. I brought them here, and I’ll take them back,” I insisted. “I’m not leaving my car out here. One of you would only have to bring me back to it tomorrow. ”
I stood up, brushing concrete dust off of my hands and onto my thighs. Everyone else sitting on the stairs—Dave, Lu, Jamie, and Benny—rose as well. Ted stood aside in a charming, deferential fashion that marked him as a salesman.
“My offer stands,” he reminded me, and I thanked him but declined again.
“Thanks, man. But I don’t want to have to come back for it. I do appreciate it, though. If you hadn’t been home, we might’ve been in trouble. ”
I said it with a rueful sort of smile that I hoped told them all I was kidding. No one smiled back except Ted, but that was okay.
Lu tossed her hands up, then snaked one arm around Dave’s wrist. “Suit yourself, if that’s the way you want it. We’re going to follow behind you, though. We’re parked over by the Tower monument. I won’t have you falling asleep at the wheel. ”
Or give you extra time to run off and get your story straight, I thought, but did not add aloud. It wouldn’t have been fair. She was worried, and Dave was worried, and I had been the one to worry them.
“That’s fine. We’ve got to walk that way to get to Ted’s anyhow. Let me make sure the cops are done with us, and we can walk back to the car. ”
I confirmed with the nearest police officer that nothing more was required of any of us, though they had all of our contact information and would almost certainly be in touch. No surprise, there. They offered us a ride back to our car, but I declined on everyone’s behalf.
I rejoined my friends and family. Benny withdrew the trusty flashlight from his bag and struggled to flick the black switch to turn it on. He was exhausted, and had a headache to boot.
I put out my hand, and he gave me the light. With some trouble of my own, I pushed the switch into place and aimed the beam at the ground. Everyone was kind enough to refrain from pointing out how badly the circle of light shook and wavered.
I was worn out, but not so much that I didn’t appreciate it.
We left Lu and Dave at their vehicle, and the rest of us walked the extra half a block to Ted’s in silence. Even Ted kept quiet, which was a little out of character, but he was a smarter guy than I sometimes gave him credit for.
I thanked him again for his assistance; then Jamie and Benny and I all piled back into the Nugget. We closed ourselves inside the smallish car and exhaled simultaneously.
I stuffed my hand into my pocket and dragged out my keys. They felt bulky and sharp in my hand. I fumbled with them, dropping them twice before my thumb found the right one.