Page 22 of Mongrels United
“You need me to come in?”
“Yep.”
“What’s up?”
“I can’t…” Jackalyn grimaced. “I willnotsay anything until you’re face to face in the same room with me and we’re both in a silence cone.”
Wow. Jackalyn Westcott was the Lieutenant of the Civil Guards and the most unflappable person Grady knew. And that assessment included Grady’s father.
Kailash begun to shovel down his meal in big mouthfuls that made Grady wince. “I’ll be there as soon as I can,” she told Jackalyn and cut the connection. “There’s no need for you to speed eat. Enjoy the meal.”
Kailash shook his head. “I’ll come with you. I want to try out a couple of different things with the team. I’ll call them from the training tank.” The half tank was in the Guards’ gym on the Bridge.
Grady nodded. “I’ll get changed.”
“I’ll be waiting by the door,” Kailash told her.
“You’reneverwaiting by the door,” Grady tossed over her shoulder. “That’s always what I end up doing, waiting for you to get your rear into gear.”
But this time, she only had to wait three minutes. “I’m impressed,” she told Kailash honestly.
“I’m only going to pull everything off and put on leotards, so why bother fussing?” Kailash admitted, pulling his plain jacket on.
“You’re not fussing because you know very well that the train will be empty and no one will see your hair uncombed.”
He combed at his spikey, thick hair with his fingers as she closed the door behind them.
The mag trainwasempty, but both of them chose to stand by the door rather than risk sitting on the slashed and stained benches. At the arena station, they stepped out and hurried the length of the platform and down the steps to the Collinas avenue that led to the Bridge gate.
Once they were waved through the gate and were into the main corridor serving the bridge, Kailash kissed her cheek. “You have a good day, hmm?”
“You, too.”
“Always,” Kailash said cheerfully and strode down the corridor toward the gymnasium, his pad out. He was already sending messages to his team, probably exhorting them to get out of bednowand join him.
Grady hurried along the corridor in the other direction, toward the Guards wing. The civil division had the smallest station, which was also the busiest. But there was little happening in the room when Grady stepped in. She glanced to her right and saw through the transparent doors that there were two people in the holding cells. Both looked like they were sleeping off heavy binges of something-or-other. There was always something new out there to steal people’s sobriety and made them forget cares and worries for a few hours.
Or, as Jackalyn liked to put it: “There’s nothing new under any sun we pass by, or the one we left behind. The packaging and the name might be different, but it’s still just a substance that makes people act stupid and hate themselves in the morning.”
Grady moved across the common room to Jackalyn’s office and entered without knocking.
Jackalyn put her feet on the floor, her coffee on the desk, and stood. “Chief.”
“Lieutenant. I’m here in person.” Grady waited.
Jackalyn invoked the shield and silence settled over them, almost thick with its complete absence of background noise. She tugged at her ear, which she did when she was uncertain of what to do next.
“Better just tell me,” Grady suggested.
Jackalyn nodded. “The night watch pulled me in. They didn’t know what to do.”
And now she was passing it on to Grady.
“They got a visit from Djuro Rim,” Jackalyn added.
“Who is?”
“Bio chemist. Office in the Port Corner on the Aventine. Institute Dean and mentor to apprentices.”
