Page 18 of Spring L.A.W.
“Brown, I think? Maybe dark blonde? It was slicked back. Gelled within an inch of its life.”
“Eyes?”
Jasper hesitated. “Weird. Like… not just one color. More like… theychanged. Sometimes hazel, then glowing with a gold color. Sometimes… Look, I don’tdomagic, okay? I just follow people and take notes.”
Rayna snorted. “You’re not doing great at either.”
“I didn’t know who you were! I thought you were just some eccentric writer!”
Creeeak.
“Okay!” he squeaked. “Imight’veknown you were more than that. He said you were dangerous. That you’d been flagged.”
Rayna’s voice turned glacial. “Flagged forwhat?”
“I don’t know. Honest. Something about past lives? Or timelines? He said you were ‘an abnormal.’”
Rayna blinked. “That’s a new one.”
Joell rolled her eyes. “Add it to the bingo card. Right next to ‘alien menace’ and ‘women’s interference unit.’”
Jasper held up his hands. “I’m just a messenger! He paid me to follow you and report back. That’s it. I didn’t sign up for truth chairs or terrifying girl bosses.”
Rayna leaned back, fingers steepled. “Did he say what he wanted from me?”
Jasper hesitated.
Creeeak.
“He said…” Jasper swallowed. “He said if you got too close to something… Something called theEcho blaster?He’d have to intervene personally.”
Joell sat up straighter. “Echo blaster? That sounds like?—”
“I know what it sounds like,” Rayna said quietly.
Jasper looked between them, panicked. “I don’t know what it means! I swear.”
Rayna rose. She circled behind Jasper slowly. “Here’s what’s going to happen, Jasper,” she said softly. “You’re going to stay right here. We’re going to have a little chat with our friends, and they might want to dig into your memories,withyour mandated permission. Then, if you’re a good boy, we’ll let you go, because honestly, you’re not important enough for us to keep you around.”
Jasper swallowed. “Right. Sure. Whatever you need.”
“And if you’re lying about anything…” She imitated the chair. “Creeeeeeak.”
“We’ll know, and you won’t like the result,” Joell added, since he didn’t seem smart enough to extrapolate.
Rayna walked to the door, Joell trailing her.
“Wait!” Jasper called. “Whoareyou people?”
Rayna paused. Glanced over her shoulder.
“Justice,” she said. “And it’s not looking good for your boss.”
She opened the door.
And there stood Major Payne.
“Well,” she said, deadpan. “Speak of the devil…”
