The Light Bringer's Way Part 6

Other people experienced a fun rush and a silly tickle as they rode a roller coaster because they did not hang in air time the way I did. Negative gravity created a strong upward pull for me that made me feel there was a good chance I would not come back down. Consequently, the ride was frightening and painful.

Reid was calling my name somewhere inside my head and I could feel him distantly flipping through images in my mind trying to find a way to reconnect with me. It helped me focus my concentration as I mentally attempted to catch up and wrench myself back into the trolley.

"What's wrong?" Reid yelled as he shook my shoulder. There was a desperate edge to his voice. The last thing I wanted was for him to tell Tiembo to hit the brake. We would lose our speed and then we would have to do it all over again. I forced myself to open my eyes. There was no denying the trolley was plummeting downward as I noticed the rocks and boulders jutting out from the walls of Earth panning by us. It was disconcerting because my conscious state lingered several hundred feet up in the air. I tried to embrace the stretch of disconnection by tunneling my vision and focusing on something small and immediate in the car.

There was a small humming noise and I saw aerodynamic windows rising from inside the metal doors. It was shockingly state-of-the-art. My coping technique helped me look more normal. At least I thought it did since Reid did not seem so freaked out now. He didn't know the whiplash from the hang time had not hit me yet. I could study the trolley until then, I told myself, and we would be too far into the journey to stop.

The interior was secure and well designed. I noticed the ergonomic handles were within easy reach and the bucket seats were comfortable and kept us in place. The black floor material was springy and soft like cork. Overall, the trolley was as quiet and smooth as a well-appointed luxury car. I recalled Dr. West had said it was Cloccan designed as if that was supposed to make me feel better, and I was starting to see why.

I reminded myself of the time Reid had mentioned he drove his BMW because of its engineering, not the status. At the time, I thought he had said it because he didn't want me to think he was a sn.o.b. The context of his remark meant more to me as pieces of his Cloccan ties fell into place. In fact, I could see the Cloccan influences everywhere: the technological luxury of Sanctuary, his elite BMW convertible with a customized glove compartment, his specially outfitted Range Rover, and even his custom Breitling watch that cleverly contained epinephrine. He had Cloccan machines or devices with him at all times.

Exhibit A, I thought to myself as I glanced at the large watch strapped on his wrist. It must be nice to be outfitted by those who valued such precision and performance. Then I noticed the tiny second hand was not moving and that was odd. It was a pulse-activated watch and Reid was very much alive. Something wasn't right.

Bam. My neck and upper body jolted forward. It felt like I had been rammed with a car from behind. It knocked the wind out of me and shook my focus. My eyes saw the enormous cavern walls of rock blurry and looming over me.

"Whitney, what just happened?" Reid's voice was demanding and he held fast to my shoulder. I could not answer even though I could hear his voice inside my head getting louder and more frantic. For a second, my mind was scrambled. Then it was clear again.

My dazed eyes found his face. It was tense with fear; I had scared him again. I did not know how much he absorbed from me, but it made me self-conscious. I looked away, uncomfortable and hoping he would not press me. No luck. He held my chin with his hand so he could look me squarely in the eye. "Are you all right?"

I returned his stare and he could tell I was fully present. Even though I was not full of explanations, it was enough. He calmed down and took my cold and clammy hand. "A little warning next time would be nice. I saw the memory of you riding the Rebel Yell with Blair but I did not understand it. I have to admit, I thought you were just a chicken. But I should have known that would have been too...um, you know, normal."

I managed a smile, recalling how roller coasters and hang time had terrified me at first, and that was a mistake. It kept me from dealing with the situation. This time, I knew I would have to think, adapt, and adjust. Adversity was an excellent teacher as long as fear did not get in the way of making smart choices.

The track leveled out and banked toward the ma.s.sive wall of rock in a wide S curve. We headed straight toward the wall until we dipped at the last second. Floodlights illuminated the expansive chamber we had entered and spectacular rock formations s.h.i.+mmered and glistened along the walls. Some of the rocks appeared translucent in the light. Blair pointed to a formation that looked as if it was made of folded cloth. Stalact.i.tes and stalagmites formed magnificent columns as they met each other in the s.p.a.ce of the cavern. We all stared in amazement. I realized this was why I heard Blair gasp earlier-it was not the drop but the captivating beauty of the underground world.

"Wow," I said aloud, and looked at Reid to see his reaction. He was enjoying the view and had a subdued smile of pride. This was part of Reid's world and I lightly squeezed his hand as a show of my appreciation. I had a better understanding of why his ancestor Saint Margaret had been drawn to her cave in Scotland: it was the physical embodiment of the abyss of meditation. Here, everything else fell away.

Reid's shoulders finally relaxed. My genuine response of wonderment put Reid more at ease than any adamant words I could have spoken. He was rea.s.sured I was actually all right.

We rocketed through the labyrinth of rock eroded away by water. Mr. Parks once said the softest things in the world overcame the toughest things in the world. I was beginning to understand the wisdom of his words as we rapidly reached the Bongo platform. It blended into the landscape except for the parking dock for the trolley. The entire platform was a mechanical lift, and it was not until we were on top of the platform that I realized this was so the track would not be visible if someone accidentally discovered the cavern.

"Tiembo, how does the trolley get back to Timbuktu? Is it motorized?" Blair asked as the lift locked into place on the floor. I smiled. Blair would love one of these trolleys to zoom us to and from practice.

"No. The trolley is silent transportation. We do not want the wrong people to exploit it so we keep its existence imperceptible. When we can't use gravity to go north, we use a magnetic system for propulsion," Tiembo explained. I noticed he said north-and not just to Timbuktu. I wondered how far the track went. Then I wondered how many more of them were all over the world.

"We are a short distance from the village. You are all Peace Corps tourists and I am your guide. Tomorrow, we will meet with the spiritual leader of the Dogon, called the Hogon. I am told you have private business with him. Please remember, no one is allowed to touch the Hogon. That is our custom." Tiembo unlocked a heavy steel door that was camouflaged in stone on the outward-facing side. Right next to it was a smaller door, outlined in red.

"Tiembo, is there a separate door for children?" I went up to the smaller door and traced the top of it with my finger. The red color was so unusual that I wanted to see what created it.

Patrick, Blair, and Reid looked at me like I was delusional. Tiembo smiled at me and answered, "That door is for the Tellem people."

"Tellem?" I echoed. I wished someone had given me a biography or at least a dossier on all these groups of secret or hidden people. I thought I had come to Mali well prepared but had been proven wrong at regular intervals today.

"Yes. They are not children but people small in stature. The Tellem are pygmies who have red skin from working deep in the mines in this area. They are uniquely suited to the mines because they never fall. Their sense of balance allows them no fear of heights or of precarious depths and, if they fall, rumor has it that they can use sound to levitate. Do not look so pensive, Whitney. You will probably never see a Tellem person in your life. They prefer to remain reclusive and their only connection to the outside world is through the Cloccans," Tiembo explained as he led us through a narrow pa.s.sage that opened into the wide mouth of a cave. The heavy stone door locked behind us with a faint click.

Diana said tribes that liked to remain reclusive often did so because they had the power to remain independent. The Tellem might have more to do with hiding the spear than the Dogon, I thought to myself. I wondered if the Dogon had carried the spear from Egypt to the Tellem to hide in exchange for information and knowledge about the solar system. In the area around Timbuktu, where knowledge was wealth and power, it would grant the Dogon a.s.similation.

I kept my thoughts to myself because it was simply a hunch. Blair would want proof and Reid would be skeptical. Patrick distracted me by asking Tiembo if it would be possible to talk to one of the village astronomers tonight.

Tiembo looked thoughtful. "You are welcome to ask the astronomer questions as long as you are respectful that his knowledge of the sky also relates to our religious beliefs. Many people come and try to dispute him. Then, when their telescopes discover what we have been saying for thousands of years, they do not come back to say the Dogon were right, they say it was a fluke. This has made the Dogon astronomers skeptical of outsiders' questions, but I will take you to him if you are ready to listen as well as talk, Patrick."

Reid lightly held onto my hand as we walked behind them and I could feel him monitoring me. "I swear I am all right. Negative gravity and I don't get along well. I don't know why. It's always been like that."

"You may be all right, but I don't know if I am. I don't scare easily, Whitney, but you have a knack for terrifying me. I can feel you drifting in your mind but I cannot find you." Reid's voice was tight. "The last time you did it was on Sanctuary. What you are doing shouldn't be possible and I don't know how to solve a problem that shouldn't exist."

Unfortunately, there were no coordinates accompanying my mindscape. I hated it when I got lost myself, especially in the dark area past memory and dreams. That was an abyss I sensed was dangerous.

"I could hear you. I heard you saying my name," I softly mumbled. For what it was worth, I wanted him to know he helped me to find my way back.

We had arrived at the entrance of the cave. Small children greeted us with singing and Blair pa.s.sed out pencils to squeals of delight while Patrick handed out high fives. It was easy to pretend to be a tourist with the kids around. It lightened the mood as we walked into the stifling heat of the late afternoon.

Tiembo ushered the children along with us as we walked out into daylight and toward the village. A little boy walked up to Tiembo and asked him a question. He was looking in our direction. Reid surprised the boy by answering him in his native language and the three of them laughed.

"Our little friend asked me if you were my wife because I looked annoyed with you," Reid translated. His eyes softened but I ignored it. Instead, I laughed like it was a joke.

"Did you tell him cranky was your permanent look?"

Reid laughed again. "No, I told him annoying me is your hobby and that I indulge you since it is good practice for when you ARE my wife." Reid's eyes shone with merriment. He had caught me off guard with his remark and he knew it.

I fought to keep my cool despite the blistering heat and the uncontrollable blush that rose to my face. My pulse raced and I cursed the fact that Reid was holding my hand. He had felt my wave of panic. I could tell by his satisfied grin.

He pulled me close to him and whispered in my ear, "What? Does this mean I should take the elopement off tomorrow's calendar? Don't worry, Whit. No rush. You haven't even confessed how much you love me or that you can't live without me. Clearly, I've got some work to do." He shrugged as if it was a simple fact.

He was irresistible to every other girl he had met and it must have been freeing for him to dangle commitment and a lifetime plan to the one person who did not want it. My immediate plans only involved getting the spear and getting my team safely on the plane home.

"Don't hold your breath," I answered. Reid puffed up his cheeks and I deflated one with my finger. The little boy who was walking with us laughed at Reid and then ran up to his friends.

"You certainly know how to take the wind out of a guy's sails," Reid joked. He was still holding my hand so I knew my rebuff had not really upset him. He had an unshakable confidence about our future that unnerved me. Maybe because I was not so certain, thanks to my intuition that I had not learned all there was to know about Karen Eubanks.

I looked ahead at Blair and Patrick. It was not hard for me to see their future. They had what I did not-the potential for a normal life-and it was getting harder for me to keep up the facade. I looked down at my fingernails. Holly had the idea for the team to paint them blue for our field hockey game. My shoulder had been sore from the vaccinations and I had not played well. It wasn't that I didn't score any goals; it was that I didn't create scoring opportunities for others. My pa.s.ses had been weak and I felt I had let the team down. There would be tough choices ahead.

At the moment, we were thousands of miles away from the lush greenery of Virginia and the high school fields of compet.i.tion. We were standing on the Bandiagara Escarpment, the sandstone cliff that stood over 1,500 feet high and stretched for almost 100 miles beneath the dry and arid plateau dabbed with a few scrubby trees. The horizon beyond was a brilliant blue and endless sky.

Once we arrived in the village, I was surprised by the futuristic appearance of its buildings. The continuous, rounded forms were plastered together. I was trying to think where I had seen it before when Patrick spun around with a child on his shoulders. He held a hand up to his eye as if he was looking through a scope. "Is that you, Han? Princess Leia?"

That was it. Patrick was spot on that the Bongo village looked like Luke Skywalker's home planet of Tatooine.

"No. It's me, Luke, and this little bleeping droid who is nothing but trouble." Reid poked my side but I neglected to beep like a good R2-D2 unit.

"Look who casts himself as the lead character. And I'm a robot?" I scoffed. Blair paused and turned around to give a tight-lipped smile at me. She waited for me to catch up to her and I beamed a smile at her, thanking her for having my back.

"Patrick asked me to go with him to see the astronomer later," Blair said. "Is that cool or do we have stuff to do to get ready for tomorrow?"

"Nope. You've gotten everything I had access to before we left. While you are out, feel free to grab dinner and the kola nuts for the Hogon. We will need to offer those when we see him tomorrow." It would be good to send Blair and Patrick into the village with Tiembo so they could get a look around.

Tiembo led us through the dusty streets until we walked up to where we would be staying. The mud house was small with a central courtyard. There was an outhouse shower with a half wall and no ceiling. It was basic and would suffice to rinse the dust out of my hair and skin.

We climbed up to the roof. Low walls enclosed the top of the house, a thoughtful protective measure since I read most Dogon and travelers slept on the roof at night. There were four sleeping mats propped against the wall. Tiembo fixed a curtain across a portion of the roof for propriety and we set our packs down. I needed to think about how to handle the sleeping arrangements, especially since I had a feeling I wasn't the only one thinking the exact same thought.

Chapter Ten: Actions Speak Louder Than Words.

"Go ahead," Reid said to my back as I looked toward the shower. "Helga wants us to use an unscented soap to keep away mosquitoes AND a net at night. Malaria is a pretty big deal over here." He pulled a bar of soap wrapped in brown paper out of his backpack, unwrapped it, and tossed it toward me. It looked like a chunk of wood and felt as rough. I ran a finger across the small rectangle and pretended it gave me a splinter. Reid laughed and said, "I'm trying to be helpful. Anything else I can do?"

"Why do you ask? Do you really think a shower is too tough for me to handle on my own?" I pulled out my chamois towel and a change of clothes. I figured I would rinse the clothes I was wearing and let them dry on the line. Given the temperature outside that should only take two minutes.

Reid was going through his backpack and didn't look up as he answered, "You seem unappreciative but Mr. Parks would be proud of me for extending my hand. I thought he said we were better together but suit yourself."

I shook my head and laughed. Reid pulled out two bottles of water and a clear Tupperware box. Helga. My eyes were glued to the clear plastic rectangle. Reid shrugged. "Come on, it's Helga. She wasn't going to let me leave with some energy drink Dr. West concocted and a few nutrition bars. She knows we have to be careful about what we eat but she also knows we will be hungry. Hurry up with your shower and then we can see what she sent."

Reid looked up at me and I saw myself reflected in his sungla.s.ses. A shower was a good idea and good food was a strong incentive to launch my feet into motion. I scrambled down the steps and arrived at the primitive shower stall. I walked into the designated shower area and decided the faucet looked simple enough to operate ALONE and that if I wore my clothes into the water I could get them wet and soaped up to save myself time.

My scream was a reflex. A blast of frigid water had slammed me back against the wall the instant I flipped the faucet handle. I had not considered water pressure and it was a painfully clear lesson to me why the National Guard used fire hoses for crowd control. I was powerless against it and couldn't move. Reid's hands wrenched me out of the torrent of ice water before he turned the faucet off. Its force and arctic temperature left me breathless. I gulped air and wiped water from my eyes. "Sorry," I sputtered as I noticed through my wet lashes that he had gotten himself wet. "I didn't expect it to be a FREEZING COLD tidal wave."

He had a humorous look on his face. "Obviously. Speaking of unexpected, nice shower outfit." Reid's eyes swept down my drenched clothes that were plastered to my skin and I felt ridiculous appraising myself through his eyes. "Is this haute couture for the village rinse off or were you expecting me?"

His glib laugh and c.o.c.ky smirk made my panther paw twitch, and without thinking I stepped to the side of the stall and flipped the faucet back on him. Reid's response was cla.s.sic crane-he did not protect himself but instead he extended his arm and grabbed me while he turned his back into the stream of water. It defused the torrent and sprayed the water in all directions. Reid swept me up and he pulled me close to him. I could feel the warmth of his touch pulse all the way down to my toes and his kiss was electrifying. He took the hit for a bigger impact and it was one I would not forget.

Unfortunately, Reid was not immune to the frigid water and eventually he had to reach behind him and turn off the faucet once and for all. He was drenched as he rescued a soggy roll of Certs from his chest pocket. His face was crestfallen; he seemed so attached to the peppermint breath mints. I started to hum taps and his exaggerated scowl made me playfully squeak, "Yikes!" as I grabbed my towel and sprinted to the roof to my waiting change of clothes. The curtain gave me a dressing room to peel off the clingy, wet clothing and exchange them for a loose and long-sleeved camp s.h.i.+rt and trekking shorts.

I peeked out of the curtain and saw Reid by his backpack pulling on a clean expedition s.h.i.+rt. He felt my stare and turned around. There was a gleam in his eye and a smile on his face. It seemed I was forgiven for ruining a pack of his precious Certs. "Truce?" He stretched out his arms and as he walked toward me the movement revealed his cobblestone abs beneath the open linen fabric. I wanted to look away but my eyes betrayed me and first skirted up to his broad shoulders and then to his lips. It was too late by the time I felt him in my mind. He had been practicing. A lot. He was not nearly as clumsy as he used to be when he crossed over and it was harder for me to detect him. I had a strong suspicion Mr. Parks had been training Reid before we left for Africa.

I pushed away the image of his physique in my mind and Reid gave me a coy grin. "I learned that trick from this really beautiful girl I know. You might know her...she cheats in sparring matches."

Well, that explained the mischievous look in his eye. Next time, I would be more wary. I made a pathetic attempt to cover up why I would be staring at his lips. "I didn't realize I was so hungry," I murmured as I breezed by him and reached for a Tupperware box. Reid's stare pressed into me and I pretended not to feel it. Around us, the sun was sinking into the desert sky, making it glow a vibrant orange. There was a lull in the noise of day when everything seemed to be taking a breath, and the rooftop had a magical feel.

"Neither did I," Reid said, but he was not looking at the food.

I needed something to do that did not involve meeting Reid's eyes so I opened the lid of the Tupperware box. It smelled like honey and sweet pineapple. Inside was a trail mix of sunflower seeds, dried fruit, and some of Helga's homemade granola.

"I don't know if I like the way you are staring at me," I said. "There are plenty of good options here for a carnivore. I think that one says beef jerky over there." Reid ignored my suggestion. I popped a handful of trail mix in my mouth and snapped the lid back on. I tossed the plastic rectangle at him, attempting to shake the building intensity between us with the rattle of the container. It was desperate but I was running out of options.

Reid and I were both schooled in strategy and he recognized I was trying to divert his focus. He caught the flying plastic box of trail mix and let it drop to the ground. Reid was not falling for my usual tricks and distractions, and the pull toward him was getting stronger as he closed the physical s.p.a.ce between us. I was keenly aware I had lost control over the situation and wondered to myself if he had hijacked my body and mind.

"I know you are as attracted to me as I am to you, Whitney. How are you able to turn it on and off? I'm asking because when I don't know how to do something I want to learn and right now, I am failing miserably at staying away from you." Reid phrased his question in an innocent tone but his demeanor radiated confidence. The trail mix tasted dry in my mouth as my mind spun for an answer. "It seems to be getting worse as I fall deeper and deeper in love with you."

This would be an ideal time to black out, I thought to myself as I tried to untangle the knot of my emotions. Reid had me reeling for footing and I had to take the opportunity to ask him about Karen. I wanted to know why I had a precognitive feeling Karen had a hold on Reid and why he had a sense of duty toward her. I cursed the fact that I had gravelly trail mix in my mouth and not enough saliva to swallow it. It was like chewing rocks and I grabbed the water bottle to wash it down.

He wrapped his arms around me and said, "I can see the uncertainty in your eyes, Whit. Let me show you something spectacular. Come fly with me in my mind for a minute." The murmur of his voice made my stomach drop. He leaned toward me and I felt the softness of his lips. It was difficult to concentrate on crossing over to his mind as he requested but I managed to find my way.

As I entered, I found myself in diaphanous clouds of blues and reds that blended together to form a s.h.i.+fting kaleidoscope of purple hues that created an ethereal light. I could feel his presence here and it was strange that I could also sense my own. My sight was captivated and when Reid kissed me again the air tingled with a rush of vibrant energy that rippled with possibility like the wind off the ocean. The sensation played like music on my skin and I inhaled my favorite fragrance of the brisk snap of evergreen and the warm zing of clove spice; it smelled like Reid.

The yell sounded distant at first. Then it was clear the shout came from close by in the village. Its urgency was clear even though I didn't know what the man said. Reid broke away from me to grab his shoes. I looked at him, perplexed.

"Doctor. The shout was for a doctor." Reid answered my unspoken question. He grabbed his first aid kit out of his backpack and I slipped my feet into my hiking boots.

We raced down the stairs and out of the gate toward the large crowd that was gathering across the street. Blair and Patrick were at the center of the circle where a Dogon woman was holding a small girl. The child was limp in her mother's arms and she looked like she was having difficulty breathing. A lot of people were talking and I could feel their nervous tension.

"The villagers think it's malaria," Reid explained. He popped open his kit to find the chloroquine pills. We had all been taking them before we left as a preventative measure.

The girl's face was puffy and her breathing was strained. Her eyes took on a distant stare and no one needed to translate that the situation was growing dire.

Reid held up the bottle of pills and asked the village doctor if he needed them. The doctor shook his head no. He explained the little girl had some already. Some of the people in the crowd walked away with defeat draped across their shoulders. Malaria was a constant killer of small children in Mali and those leaving a.s.sumed the medication had come too late.

Blair gently moved the sleeve of the thin fabric near the girl's arm. Angry b.u.mps on the child's skin were large and getting larger and the rash progressed toward her torso. Hives. I was about to tell Blair but she was already using the auto injector of one of our epinephrine pens. She had figured it out and there was no time for discussion. She made the obvious choice: either she tried the EpiPen and it worked or she didn't and we all watched the child die.

Tiembo and Reid fielded answers to the questioning crowd, explaining what Blair had done as the epinephrine was absorbed and the swelling was going down. Blair showed them the receding rash, and after the child's airway and breathing were restored, the little girl explained a bee stung her. By the time she got to someone to get help, her tongue was too swollen to speak. The girl's mother held her tight and rocked her back and forth. Tears streamed down the mother's face and the rest of her family came to help get them to the hospital for observation. a.s.sured they would be all right, we headed back to the mud house where we were staying.

"Blair, you just saved that girl's life! That was amazing. How did you know to do that?" Patrick could hardly contain himself as he bounded next to Blair. Every step he took had an extra bounce. He was visibly celebrating the little girl's second chance at life thanks to Blair's swift actions and preparedness.

In typical Blair style, she downplayed her role. "I saw the hives..." Blair said slowly and methodically. Her eyes were looking off to the side as she considered what had happened and dissected how she knew how to handle it.

Patrick found her steady and calm response confusing. He grabbed her arm to jostle some of his enthusiasm into her. "Yeah, but you're not allergic to anything. How did you know to DO that?"

"Because my best friend IS allergic to something and I made it my business to know what to do. I wasn't going to walk around helpless and wish I had known how to recognize the signs and symptoms of anaphylaxis. What if Whitney needed my help someday? Or Reid? Or anyone for that matter? It's no different than knowing how to do CPR or the Heimlich maneuver." Blair shrugged. "I'm not going to watch someone die if there is something I can do to prevent it. I could not live with myself because to me, that's being irresponsible."

"Whoa. I hadn't thought of it like that," Patrick said. "No offense, Reid, I had not realized you could have ever needed my help. My mistake." Patrick slapped Reid good-naturedly on the back. "I guess I thought there was not much I could do except call an ambulance until I saw Blair in action."

"None taken, Patrick. I appreciate your willingness to learn. We can show you when we get back. It's not hard. That was good detective work, Blair. Medical school could be a back-up option if the P.I. business doesn't work out." Reid slipped his hand into mine. I was happy he gave Blair the credit she deserved and I didn't mind letting him know it as he crossed into my mind to see how I felt about what had happened. As ever, I was feeling glad to have Blair on my team.

"Great save, Blair. It's an understatement to say thank goodness you were there," I said and gave her a nod. She smiled. I caught a twinkle in her eye that said there was more than her medical heroic that she was smiling about and I arched an eyebrow, asking what else I had missed.

Her smile of excitement grew and my eyes flitted to Patrick. Wordlessly, I widened my eyes, questioning her if something happened while they were gone. She blushed and looked at the ground, smiling. I could only derive a yes and couldn't wait for her to spill the details.

Reid squeezed my hand as he had been in my mind for the wordless conversation I had with Blair. "Hey, Patrick, we need to grab more water for tomorrow. Tiembo, can you direct us to where we can buy some more while we are out and escort the girls back to where we are staying?"

"Certainly. And I must warn you all about the shower. It's a bit testy," Tiembo started to explain.

"Yeah, we found that out the hard way. It's sort of like a horizontal geyser. You need to stand to the side of the stall when you turn it on and then go into it with your back first. And it's painfully cold," Reid explained. Despite his description his eyes sparkled and he cryptically added, "It's not all bad though."

"Hmm. Sounds lovely," Blair joked. I could tell by her face she had no intention of getting near the stall. Blair was too pragmatic to take on a geyser without the proper equipment.

"It's water and I survived it. Somehow," I laughed, and replayed the memory of me turning the faucet on Reid in my mind for his benefit.

"Barely," he clarified. His brown eyes admonished me for teasing him as he backed out of my mind. He cleared his throat and refocused. "Come on, Patrick. I want to get back before we lose our daylight."

"Sure thing. Blair, I'll show you Sirius like I promised when I get back. The astronomer had some pretty amazing things to say about it and you guys will want to hear about it," he continued, addressing Reid and me. "And Blair, tell Whitney what we found and see if she wants to check it out on our way to visit the Hogon tomorrow. Oh! And we got the kola nuts," Patrick rambled, reluctant to leave as Reid dragged him around the corner. I waved to them until they disappeared and then excitedly linked arms with Blair. Her signature tight-lipped smile appeared right on cue. I couldn't wait to get back to our rooftop to hear what happened with Patrick. Finally!