Page 29 of N8
F8 agreed with him. “I’ll check her when we’re done.”
“How much longer before we get back to the motel?” N8 called over to Cydney.
“Maybe ten, fifteen minutes. What are you going to do with those microchips?”
T8 raised a hand. “I say we leave them on the bus. Make the enclave think we’re still in custody.”
“That’s a good idea. We should leave their telephones here, too, and just take the knife and guns.”
“I second that,” G8 remarked.
“Hey, N8? Guys?” Cydney glance up at them via the wide rearview mirror above the windshield. “Explain how the hell you were able to overcome those guards so easily.”
G8 snorted. “We all took lessons in mixed martial arts.”
“You did?”
N8 grinned at her. “What? Did you think playing basketball was the only way we ever got any exercise?”
“We also played tennis, soccer, baseball, and flag football,” K8 included.
“Not to mention a little archery, some fencing, and volleyball,” T8 added.
“Don’t forget that time we all had to learn ballet,” P8 mentioned, inciting groans and laughter.
Cydney snickered. “They made you all learn ballet?”
F8 spoke out. “Hey! You ought to see P8 do a Grand Jeté!”
G8 chuckled. “Bet they never expected in a million years that we’d take all that knowledge and use it against them one day.”
Leaning over the back of driver’s seat, N8 crossed his arms on top of the head rest. “Are you okay?”
Cydney gave him a quick side eye. “Yeah. You?”
“Yeah. You understand now that there was nothing you could have done to prevent them from finding us, right?”
She sighed as she nodded. “Yeah. Thanks.”
“Any time.” He kissed the side of her face, then sat back in his seat to await their next move.
16Deb8
Cydney parkedthe van in the parking lot in front of a large store. Releasing her seat belt, she pointed out the windshield. “The motel should be about three blocks away, if I remember correctly. We can hoof it from here.”
“You figuring it might give us a little more time by leaving the van here?” N8 asked her.
“Wouldn’t hurt, don’t you think?”
Before they exited the vehicle, they slid the guns they’d confiscated from the guards into the waistbands of their jeans at the small of their backs, pulling out their shirts to wear on the outside and help cover the weapons from view. N8 caught Cydney’s amused smile. “What’s so funny?”
“You guys have seen way too many cop shows.”
“Hey. It doesn’t hurt to see if it works.” He held out his hand, and she clasped it. Altogether, they crossed the streets to reach the little motel and her vehicle.
“You know what’s funny?” G8 remarked as they lifted the back seat and transferred the bags of groceries from the front seats. No one commented on why the rear of the SUV had been enlarged, or why N8 and Cydney had been found inside it that morning.
“I’ll bite. What’s funny?” P8 replied.
