Page 62 of Second Alarm
Cal claps his hands together once, like a magician revealing a trick. "See. Magic."
"Cal."
"Ty has a voice she responds to. Probably because he's older."
"He's older by four years, Cal — "
"It's a brother thing, but more effective, because Ty doesn't have the baggage."
I eat another bite of pasta and look, for one specific half-second, over Cal's head at Ty in the doorway. Ty is looking at me with the face of a man who's just been asked to do a party trick with his beloved and has done it successfully and is going to have to sit with that for the rest of the evening.
I eat all of the pasta. Every bite. Like a woman who is, in point of fact, going to burn in hell.
Cal is pleased. He gets seconds, pours himself more water, and eventually wanders to the rec room to deal with Deluca's gaming situation, and the moment he's down the hall Ty sits down in Cal's chair.
"I can't," I say.
"I know."
"I can't lie to him while he's apologizing to me for loving me — "
"I know."
"He's literally apologizing, Ty." My voice drops. "For loving me wrong. While I'm sitting there doing — "
"Hanna." He puts his elbows on the table. "Breathe."
"I'm breathing."
"You aren't."
"I — "
Riley walks into the kitchen.
She walks in the way a woman walks in when she's been in the building for ten minutes and has been triangulating. Civilian clothes, to-go coffee from Peak Grounds, here for a fire report with Aiden on the Maple case. She stops in the doorway and looks at me.
"Hanna. Gemma's looking for you in the bay."
"Okay."
"Right now."
Her tone doesn't leave room for negotiation. Riley isn't my boss. Riley is absolutely my boss in this moment, and I stand up and go.
Gemma is in the apparatus bay. Not because she needs me — because Riley told her to be there. She's still holding the pillowcase.
"Hi."
"You don't actually need me."
"No," Gemma says. "Your face was doing a thing. You need a five minute break."
"Yes."
"Breathe."
I breathe. Gemma stands there with me and doesn't make me talk, and when I'm ready she holds out the pillowcase.
