PANIC ROOM • KENJI KON

XXVIII. Bathroom Yurt Discussions

Chapter Twenty Eight:  Bathroom Yurt Discussions

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"Pre-pasted toothbrushes?" Sammy squealed as Eva entered the tent. "What are we, royalty?" She gasped, "Four kinds of hand cream? Eeh! Little soap peacocks."

Eva chuckled, leaning against the wall of the shower.

Kenji sat on the toilet seat, finishing his breakfast. "Please, this is all so basic," he retorted. "If you guys had seen my penthouse—"

"Shh!" Brooklynn looked around, then dropped her voice to barely above a whisper. "I can't prove it yet, but I think..." she trailed off. She peeked outside the yurt door, then ushered everyone into the toilet stall. "... There's something going on with Hap." Brooklynn took her spot on the throne, while the others stood around her. "He dodged all my questions, and was really weird about the key card I found in Wu's lab."

Yasmina took the plate from Kenji's hands and moved it to the side. Eva swiped a piece of bacon off the top, to which Kenji sent her a narrow-eyed look.

"Mitch and Tiff are clueless—"

Eva barked in laughter.

"— She's too 'golly goodness' to notice anything, and all he thinks about is dinosaurs."

"What's wrong with that?" Darius asked innocently.

"No, I... I'm just saying Hap's suspicious. He's gruff, and unsmiling, and—"

"What's wrong with that?" Yasmina asked, her voice surly.

"I don't mean... Look, could Hap be involved with Mantah Corp? Am I crazy?"

"I mean..." Sammy started. "The Mantah Corp folks who sent me were like, corporate spies. Not action man, secret identity, pew-pew spies."

"Look," Darius spoke next, "I know you've got conspiracy on the brain, Brooklynn, but forget Hap. In two days, we're going home. Let's focus on that."

"Unless we're not," Eva pointed out.

Everyone groaned.

"Okay, Brooklynn, I know you think Hap is all mysterious- suspicious, but I seriously think Mitch and Tiff are the problem here. They just keep lying!"

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"They lied about when they got to the island, they lied about the boat, and I'm guessing they're lying about what they're really doing here, too!"

Brooklynn put her finger to her lips. Eva immediately apologized.

Darius put his hand on her shoulder. "Eva, I think you just—"

"I'll stop being a cunt to Kenji if I'm wrong."

"Oh shit!"

Sammy placed her hand over her heart and gasped.

"Are you for real?"

"You're that convinced Mitch and Tiff are up to something?" Kenji asked in disbelief. "Oh my god, I really hope you're wrong, but I'm starting to get the feeling you might be right."

Darius shot Kenji a look.

"What? She wouldn't bet her hate for me if she wasn't serious!"

"Thank you!"