“Not always and not everything. But I heard enough of this.”
I shrug and give up on finding smokes. That’s okay. I need to get out of here and walk off some of the knots in my legs and side.
“This isn’t news. Mason’s always got two or three things going at the same time.”
“Yeah, but nothing like this before.”
“What is it?”
“He’s trying to make a new key to the Room of Thirteen Doors.”
I don’t know what I was expecting to hear, but that wasn’t it. But it makes sense. What’s worse is that the prick is talented and relentless enough to actually do it.
“Is that what you didn’t want to tell me?”
“You shot at me once. You threatened to drop me in the ocean and throw me to the coyotes, so I had some concerns you might overreact.”
“You weren’t holding back because you thought you could cut a deal with Mason?”
“Make a deal with the guy who blew me up and left me like this? He’s right at the top of my people-to-trust list.”
“Okay. Thanks for coming clean.”
“You’re taking it pretty well.”
“No. I’m not.”
I head for a shadow next to the closet door, stop, and turn back to Kasabian.
“No one’s going to look out for us but us. We’re just bugs on God’s windshield. You need to get serious and work with me on this or we’re both going to end up in Tartarus.”
“What the Hell is in Tartarus? Even the Codex doesn’t say.”
“I don’t know, but I figure anything that scares Hellions ought to scare me. We need to talk some more, but I need some alone time to clear my head.”
“Me, too.”
“By the way, what happened out back? I wouldn’t have left you out there.”
“Yeah, you would have.”
“Only if I thought you were going to dick me around forever. Then yeah, but only then.”
“Lucky me some schmuck lost a hand.”
“You were wrong, see? Turns out it was a good omen.”
Kasabian scuttles around and hits the eject button on the DVD player.
“You got enough devil movies for tonight?”
“Suddenly I’m out of the mood for those. Maybe I’ll watch The Great Silence.”
“Do one more devil movie. Bedazzled. The original. It makes facing down Lucifer easier if you picture him in a Brit burger joint in a silly cape.”
“Maybe I’ll do that.”
“I’ll be going by Bamboo House later. Want me to bring you back something?”