Domino Falls (28 page)

Ursalina practiced her smile for Wales, resting her hand across Dean's hairless cheek, soft as a woman's. He'd never told her what he'd seen and done when he went to the reservation to find out what happened to his family, but she knew. “I'd be too much for you,
muchacho.
I might kill you by accident.”

Dean squeezed her hand, wishing her good luck. Maybe good-bye.

“You're beautiful,” Dean said.

Ursalina smiled. “
Gracias.
Too bad you're not a chick. With that hair, sometimes you fool me, though.”

Dean tossed his hair over his shoulder, vamping for her. “What's a little plumbing between friends?” They laughed. But she couldn't forget that Kendra and Sonia came first for these guys. Ursalina knew that, and she didn't feel envy.

“We don't have to do this,” Ursalina told them. Again. She'd had the same conversation with the girls.

“Planes,” Darius said. “We've always wanted to fly. Maybe now we can learn.”

“What about you?” Ursalina asked Terry. “Is this for Kendra?”

Terry seemed to blush. “Sure, I want to help Kendra see
her great-aunt,” he said. “And I don't like what happened to Brownie, or whatever's going on with those girls.”

Ursalina nodded. “Yeah, okay, but what about the rest?”

Terry sighed. “The truth? Even with everything I know about this place . . . if I don't go now, I might never leave. It's comfortable, and maybe it could be better. But my sister's somewhere out there, and she needs me. Maybe she's in Devil's Wake. Lot closer to L.A. than Threadville.”

And maybe the Wizard will give us brains,
Ursalina thought.

“It's a big world, kid,” Ursalina said. “What if you never find her?”

“I have to try,” Terry said. “I have to go farther south.”

“Your turn, Ursalina,” Dean said to her. She had surprised everyone, even herself, when she decided to take part in the mission. “What changed your mind?”

The puzzle was gone, suddenly. She realized it had never been a puzzle.

“It's just like Crazy Horse used to say,” Ursalina said. “Today is a good day to die.”

They nodded silently, agreeing on the point. The moon overhead was bright. All around them, families with children who might grow up were settling in for a peaceful night's sleep. Their stomachs were full. They were with friends.

They huddled in the moonlight, listening to the clucked omens from the henhouse, feeling more alive than they had since Freak Day.

Terry was glad to be in the Beauty's driver's seat again. As Myles had
promised, the engine purred like a kitten when he turned the key, better than it had run at Camp Round Meadow. The
wheezing and choking sounds were gone. The ember of faith he'd felt burst into a flame. The Beauty might take him to Devil's Wake after all!

Hold on, Lisa,
he thought.
I'm coming for you.
The thought forced him to wipe away an unexpected tear. He rarely let himself feel how much he needed to find her.

“I hoped you might be the ones,” Myles said, finishing his walk-through of the bus's repairs in the privacy of the garage. In the strong flashlight beam, the shiny new parts were a mismatch. “I started mapping it out in my head as soon as you drove up,” Myles said. “Part from here, a piece from there. Broke my heart to tell you I couldn't fix her, knowing damn well I could, if I was willing to take the risk. But I didn't know if I could trust you yet.”

“Why do you trust us now?” Terry said.

“Still don't know,” Myles said. “Just praying I can.”

“And if it goes bad,” Terry said, “you'll say it was all our idea, right? No responsibility.”

“You don't know me very well, son,” Myles said.

“Maybe that's what you should say. You've got a wife and kid.”

“You're just kids yourselves.”

“Not anymore,” Terry said. He hadn't ever asked himself what he thought adulthood was, but now he knew. You had to go through something that stripped everything else away. “Be packed and ready to go. When you get the all-clear, start creeping toward the intersection. You drive the bus; Deirdre drives your car. If we make it, we'll be in a hurry. This doesn't work without the Beauty.”

“She'll be waiting,” Myles said.

They shook on the deal. Terry patted the bus's hood one last time before they went out back to meet the girls at the Toyota Corolla that Myles had lent him from his row of rescued cars.

“Saddle up, pardners!” Ursalina drawled. “We're goin' to the ranch.”

Ursalina was in the driver's seat, engine already fired up. Kendra was in the passenger seat, and Piranha was in the backseat with his arm around Sonia.
Way to go, P.

The plan was to escort the girls to the ranch's front gate, then leave them and double back to try to find a way into the tunnel while Darius and Dean provided cover. Once they were inside the tunnel, they would be on their own—but at least they'd be armed.

Terry climbed into the backseat. There was no room for him in the front seat beside Kendra, so he leaned behind her the way she had on the bus. Piranha was speaking so softly in Sonia's ear that Terry couldn't hear him. When Kendra turned around, they only stared at each other for a long time. Their eyes were a resting place.

Myles and his family waved with sober expressions as they drove off, almost as if they didn't expect to see any of them again. Deirdre turned her face away. Terry still wasn't sure he could trust Myles or the situation, but it was too late now.

Ursalina drove toward Wales's ranch on the darkened road. Their only light was the battered car's single dim headlight.

“Follow your instincts in there,” Terry told them all, but especially Kendra.

“Yes, Dad,” Kendra said, smiling. She wouldn't admit it, but she was scared.

“I'll get you to Aunt Stella no matter what, Kendra,” Terry said. “Even if it was just you and me, like I told you. You don't have to do it this way.”

Kendra nodded. “I know,” she said. “I want to. Terry, my instincts say if I don't do this . . .” She stopped, staring at her lap.

“What?” Terry said, leaning closer.

Kendra whispered to him. “We could disappear. All of us. The whole world.”

Dread thickened Terry's blood. He didn't know which was more frightening: the scenario Kendra described or how nuts she sounded. He didn't believe she was crazy, but . . . wasn't it crazy to believe anything else?

“Just try to find Rianne,” Terry said. “Don't worry about the rest of the world.” He leaned into her, and they kissed like it was the last night before Armageddon.

S
olar
lamps bathed the ranch's front gates. A spotlight stabbed the sky, and Kendra was sure people could see the glow for miles.
Almost as if Wales knows we're coming,
Kendra thought.

“Tomorrow's ceremony,” Sonia said, remembering.

“It's showtime,” Terry said. “Ursalina, stop the car.”

They were still at least twenty yards from the gate, but Ursalina slowed the Corolla to a stop. The plan called for the girls to get out of the car before approaching the guards, so no one would peg them as a threat. Kendra's heart fluttered. It was time. Kendra saw movement behind Wales's gate as they were spotted.

“If you aren't out of there by midnight, we're coming after you,” Piranha said. “Even if it's just a progress report, somebody better make it back to the front gate . . . or out to the tunnel. Don't make us go in there all Rambo.”

They laughed. Laughing felt better than Kendra would have expected.

“Let's go,” Ursalina said. “If I were them, I'd be getting nervous.”

Kendra followed Ursalina's lead as she climbed out of the car; long legs stretched first, hips swinging. They looked like they were headed to a fashion show.

Piranha jumped out to take the driver's seat. He and Sonia locked eyes but made no move toward each other. Tonight, at least, Sonia belonged to Wales.

They walked toward the waiting gate in single file as the car drove away. Kendra wanted to wave back at Terry but decided against it. In a way, she belonged to Wales too.

The guard gate was manned by only four Gold Shirts, but Sonia had said that up to thirty others had lined up when Brownie came, so they probably weren't alone. Kendra hoped the tunnel would offer an easier escape.

Was this the spot where Brownie had died? Kendra looked for blood on the dusty asphalt, but she didn't see any. But she felt the echo of the night's violence.

A Gold Shirt wearing a tassel on his shoulder met them outside the guard booth, gun ready. After the Brownie incident, they were on alert. “What's your business, ladies? It's late.”

Before Ursalina could answer, Sonia stepped forward, hip canted in a Marilyn Monroe pose. “I'm on the list,” she said, her tone efficient. “Sonia Petansu. Washington Crew. Mr. Wales said to come back whenever we wished.” She batted her eyes. “We wish.”

“Kendra Brookings,” Kendra said, thrusting her own hip and feeling idiotic.

The other Gold Shirts wandered out to them, appraising them as they listened. Sonia glanced at them and waved, suddenly. “Chris!” she called. “It's me!”

The youngest Gold Shirt was the same one Sonia had been
hanging out with at the movies. He seemed surprised to see her, and not happy. His face was sour.

“You know her?” the ranking Gold Shirt said.

Chris nodded, staring at Sonia with questions. “You're here for Mr. Wales?” He sounded so glum that Kendra almost felt sorry for him.

Sonia's smile looked apologetic. “He promised me a special tour. I want to know more . . . just like you did.”

The other Gold Shirt checked a handwritten list, and his face brightened with recognition. “Right at the top! Sonia Petansu. I've also got Kendra. But . . .”

He peered at Ursalina, who gave him an Oscar-caliber smile. “Call me Lina.”

Sonia and Kendra glanced at each other:
Lina?

Kendra was sweating beneath her carefully prepared clothes. Her scalp itched. The Gold Shirt wrote down Ursalina's name and spoke into a radio, using codes.

“Copy that,” he said, and turned back to them. “Good news: he's on his way.”

“Who?” Ursalina said.

The guard dipped his chin to dramatize his announcement: “Mr. Wales.”

Sonia bounced up and down, practically squealing, and Kendra didn't bother to hide her surge of excitement. If they were groupies, why not be happy to see Wales?

“You mean he's coming here to us?” Sonia said, in full character. “Right now?”

The guard's wink to Sonia made Kendra's stomach turn. “You must have made an impression,” the guard said. A few nearby Gold Shirts gathered as if the girls were a fashion show. “Gotta love the newbies!” one of them said, and another whistled softly.

In less than a minute, a large luxury golf cart sped up; a Gold Shirt was driving Wales, who was in the passenger seat in a denim jacket with a fleece collar, and plaid wool pajama pants underneath.

“I thought I was taking a quick ride before bed,” Wales said. “But I must already be dreaming.” He stared at Sonia, then Kendra, with a nearly manic churning in his eyes that would have been more frightening without his grin . . . but not by much. “What an unexpected and delightful surprise!”

Kendra's heart knocked so loudly in her chest that the vibration seemed to fill the car. They were doing it!
Is life really this easy for girls who know how to work it?

At Wales's invitation, one by one they climbed into the plush empty rear row of the golf cart, taking their time, crossing their legs, tossing their heads back to laugh at Wales's trite remarks. When the cart drove, they passed a small, elevated stage. Workers had draped it in tarp, and massive, shiny red-and-gold ribbons peeked out.

“Is that for the ambassadors?” Kendra said.

Wales peered over his shoulder to look at her. “Yes!” he said. “I figured that's why you're here, Kendra. But you're not ready to go out yet. Your training hasn't begun. But it can begin tonight.”

“I don't want to waste any time,” Kendra said. “I'm dying to start researching your Special Collections.”

“She doesn't believe in waiting,” Ursalina said. “Likes to jump right in.”

“I don't believe in waiting either,” Sonia said, driving her eyes into Wales's. She moved closer to him.

Wales's smile sharpened as he stared. “Is that so?”

“That's very so,” Sonia said, and smoothed Wales's jacket collar.

Kendra was glad again that she didn't have Sonia's job. Ursalina's lip almost dropped to a touch-her-and-I'll-kill-you sneer as she watched Wales's heavy gaze on Sonia. She caught herself, but if the Gold Shirt had noticed, someone might have tried to slap Ursalina in handcuffs.

“You're all here for my personal tour?” Wales said.

“Uhm . . . just me,” Sonia said, sliding closer still to his seat. “If that's okay.”

“Oh, we can manage.” Wales's breathing was already heavy. “I think your friends should get to know my friends.”

Kendra and Ursalina winked at each other, as if ready to make a Threadie sandwich together.

Wales chuckled. “Gonna be a good night. A damned good night. Well, Sonia, ready for your very special tour?”

The golf cart dropped Kendra and Ursalina off at the bunkhouse, and Wales moved to the cart's backseat to slide next to Sonia. Before the cart drove away, he was twirling Sonia's hair with his index finger.
Gross.

Sonia giggled. “Be good, but not too good!” she called to them, and gave them a thumbs-up sign as the cart sped away. When Sonia rested her head on Wales's shoulder, her smile faded just long enough for Kendra to remember that her friend was only acting.