Shadow Of The Past Trilogy ∞ THE DISPLACED

46 ∞ just another job

Day Twelve ∞ Tuesday

APOCALYPSE PAUSED only for two seconds. "You know what? I'll give you some time to think." He got up suddenly and put his chair aside. "You make sure you carefully consider how you are going to answer that question when I get back. Okay?"

He closed his case, put on his glasses, picked up the case and jacket and left without another word.

Selina withdrew her gaze from the locked door and looked straight ahead, stretching and flexing her fingers twice, then drew a couple of long, deep breaths. Gradually the burning pain dissipated and her arm began to feel normal again. She waited a while longer before releasing that part of her arm from isolation. Then she reflected on her encounter with Apocalypse.

One thing stood out for her: he was trying to elicit an emotional response from her. Fear. Panic. Annoyance. Anger. Anything that would make her lose her focus. But Aumegas were not emotional. Millennia had passed since the last ever-heard-of roused Aumega. She wondered if this man would succeed in getting her to that point—she did not doubt that he would try.

And if he came prepared to ask that question again, she would have to make a decision: enter that mind or corrupt herself by speaking an untruth. Because the truth was not yet an option.

She just had to ensure neither would happen before she was ready—before The One was ready. Only then could she speak the truth. Only then could she show her true colors.

∞

Jagg stopped at the street corner beside Lora and surveyed the area. There was nothing remarkable about the location this morning, just the normal pedestrian activity and traffic passing through. Toni and Pace were across the street at the two ends 'minding' their own business. Sleek and TJ were hanging out on their bikes beyond the corner at the other end of the block waiting for the signal, and Ramiro was likewise parked with the van engine running beyond where Jagg had left his bike, with a direct view of Toni.

They'd never done a bank job before. Planning this was a first for Jagg too—he'd sooner forget the only other instance when he as a teenager was accessory to a nasty close call. Today, however, he could only envision open doors ahead of them. He wasn't one for taking random chances. Having Lora outline exactly what she would do to facilitate this job before the planning session yesterday, was his way of making sure of that.

Satisfied with his initial sweep, he eyed Lora. She'd almost made them go off-schedule this morning because he'd done what he'd usually do when preparing for a job: arm himself. Before he could mount his bike, she'd distanced herself from him and returned to the front door. She wouldn't budge until he removed his underarm holsters and dumped them in the van. He still had his switchblade inside his left boot, though; she didn't seem to be aware of that—either that or she didn't care. But he knew TJ had already left with his gun on him.

Lora stood in her turtleneck like she owned the street—slowly scanning it 270 degrees. Phase one of the plan: stemming traffic to the bank. It only worked with people within her direct line-of-sight, according to her—initiating 'mental blinkers' that kept the bank out of mind for a period. But anyone from beyond the perimeter entering the bank during the heist were unlikely to notice anything out of the ordinary. If all went as he expected.

He watched her turn her head to bring her focus past his shoulder and then straight through him. Suddenly, he couldn't remember why he was there in the middle of downtown Albany on a Tuesday morning.

He was about to go back to his bike when her gaze came back to him—and he caught himself, realizing he was stepping in the wrong direction. "Stop messing with me," he said through gritted teeth.