by Sharon Green
"Showoff," Oldon grumbled at him, a gleam of amusement in his dark eyes. "All I have to do is return this bowl and spoon to the kitchen, and I'm also ready. Since Eric and Amiol still have to fold clothes, they're the ones who will probably be last."
Freemont just chuckled before adding, "And I'm all done already, so Eric and Amiol will surely be last."
That was a safe bet, so I said nothing as I led the way into the kitchen. Jack was there to take all our things while assuring us that washing them ourselves was unnecessary, so I let myself be persuaded and headed upstairs. I just needed to empty out some of the coffee I'd swallowed and get my gunbelt, and then I'd be the fourth to be ready.
It wasn't long before the entire team was ready to go, so we went into the garage to get the car. People kept calling the vehicle a truck, but it only had the shape of a truck. It was actually being used as a car, so that was what I intended to keep calling it.
Eric was going to drive again, which made me the one who opened the garage door so he could back out. Once he was out I closed the door again, then reclaimed my place in the front passenger seat. By that time Eric had the GPS programmed, which let us get on our way.
It wasn't a very long drive to where Falk Instruments was located, and happily there were two parking spaces in front of the store. Eric appropriated one of the spaces, and as soon as he turned off the car we were all able to get out.
Once on the sidewalk my teammates headed immediately for the front door and the camera/buzzer we'd need to use to get in. I'd stopped to mess with one of my shoes, which put me behind the thundering herd – and which also let me see a really odd sight. The first thing that caught my attention was a horrible smell coming from the right, and when I looked over that way I saw what looked like a proverbial drunken bum stumble out of an alley down that way. Something he held in a small brown paper bag was causing the horrible smell, but that wasn't all that took my attention.
The supposed bum was a shapeshifter, which meant he couldn't be drunk the way he looked. He staggered another two steps in our direction, then suddenly looked up to see me watching him. At that point he stopped pretending to be drunk with a faintly panicked expression, turned back the way he'd come, then disappeared into the alley he'd come out of.
"That was the strangest thing I've seen in a long time," George murmured from where he hovered next to me. "Would you like me to see where he ends up going, Taz?"
"That might be a very good idea," I agreed just as softly. "He left again as soon as he recognized me as another shapeshifter, which is suspicious at the very least. I'd love to know what he was up to before changing his mind."
George made a sound of agreement and then disappeared, which left me free to follow the team inside the store. I saw that Eric, Freemont, and Amiol were standing and talking to the elf woman Fainis, and Oldon was over on the right talking to Rolfe, so I joined Oldon and Rolfe.
"… so I decided to get a smart-phone the way Taz means to do," Oldon was saying. "I usually try to keep up-to-date, but for some reason I missed out this time."
"Too busy chasing rogues, probably," Rolfe answered with a wry smile. "I'm in a position to take advantage of every new device that comes out, but there are times even I end up too busy to notice I'm falling behind."
"Not to mention that the new stuff is coming out so fast that keeping up is almost impossible," I put in as I joined the two. "I'm sorry to jump in and change the subject, Rolfe, but I have a question. We had no trouble getting a quick appointment with you folks, so I'm now wondering if your business is slacking off for some reason."
"Actually, we are experiencing something of a slump in business," Rolfe answered slowly as he studied me. "People will make an appointment, and then simply not show up. Is there a reason why you asked that?"
"I think your camera at the door has a very narrow range, otherwise you'd already know why I asked," I returned, leaning an arm on the case I stood in front of. "As my teammates stood around the door waiting to be let in, I happened to see a bum who carried something that smelled really awful. He seemed to be on the way over to my teammates with the stuff he was carrying, but when he spotted me watching him he turned around and ran off. He'd been pretending to be drunk, but I knew he couldn't be because he was a shapeshifter. Is someone trying to drive you out of business?"
"By driving away my customers!" Rolfe exclaimed rather than said, anger and distress behind the words. "I don't know who would be behind that effort, but things like that don't simply happen on their own! I should – Wait a minute. I wonder if this has anything to do with – "
His words broke off as his attention went inward, but only for a couple of minutes. Then he pulled out of the distraction and gave me a sour smile.
"I think I'll be better off if I do my thinking out loud," he said then. "A good friend of mine owns this building my shop is in, and he told me when he got an offer to buy the building. The offer was lower than the actual value of the property, so he refused the offer by saying he had a long lease with me that couldn't be broken. I still have fifteen years to go on the lease, but the one making the offer has other plans for the building and doesn't want to wait fifteen years. He sent someone in to offer me a 'bonus' if I canceled the lease, but I knew my friend didn't really want to sell so I refused the offer. Am I wrong in thinking that now they're giving me a better reason to move?"
"That would be my guess," I agreed, seeing that Oldon also agreed. "George has gone to follow the 'bum' to see where he ends up, so we might have some actual proof against the fool behind the effort."
"And you might want to put up a different camera at the front of your store," Oldon suggested mildly. "Or a second camera that will let you see what's happening beyond your own doorway. Getting an image of that rogue doing his thing will help enormously in convincing him to give up his employer when he's arrested."
"That's a very good idea," Rolfe said, his distracted gaze showing he was considering options. But that was all he had time to say before George suddenly appeared next to me.
"Would you believe I lost that shapeshifter?" George said at once, his voice sounding outraged. "He was gone when I followed him into the alleyway, and there was nothing to show where he'd gone. I looked into all the buildings in the area, but he wasn't in any of them. Where could he have disappeared to?"
"Maybe he went underground," Rolfe said while Oldon and I made sounds of surprise. "There's supposed to be some kind of area beneath this street, but I've never seen it myself."
"It's possible there's an entrance the man knows about and used," I said, having the feeling Rolfe had hit on the solution to the puzzle. "If he is working for the man who wants to buy the building, they'd know all about what's here and what isn't."
"I'll take a look, but chances are the man is long gone," George said, sounding more than a little sour. "I wish I'd thought about looking under the street, but the idea never occurred to me. I'll be back in a little while."
George disappeared, which let the rest of us get back to the reason we'd come in the first place.
"If you'll give me your phone, Taz, we'll start with bringing you up to date," Rolfe said, holding out his hand. "My assistant Tim will swap out sym cards, then transfer any data saved on your old phone."
"No sense in fighting the inevitable," I answered with a sigh, pulling my phone out of my pants pocket. "We aren't up to having 'visiphones' yet, are we?"
"You mean the stuff we've had in science fiction for years if not decades," Rolfe answered with a laugh. "Look at the phone and see the person you're talking to. We have that on laptops and tablets, but only a few phones are able to send and receive a picture. I've decided to wait until all phones are capable of doing that, and then I'll choose the best from among the herd."
"That's close to why I'm not even asking which phone I'm getting," I told him after handing over my old friend. "If I can't stay with what I'm used to, I'll let someone who knows what he's doing make the choice for me. But pleas
e don't throw away my old phone. I'm going to keep it as a … keepsake."
"I did the same in the beginning, but don't anymore," Rolfe said, taking my phone with a smile. "You get to the point where you have so many 'keepsakes' that you don't know where to put them. I'll be right back, Oldon, and then I'll take your phone."
Oldon nodded with a smile before Rolfe turned away, and then my new teammate and I looked over to where the rest of the team was standing. Freemont and Amiol were holding tablets, but Eric was just watching them examine the things.
"I think Eric said he wanted to upgrade his phone too," Oldon commented. "Freemont and Amiol have gone on to bigger and hopefully better things, but I don't believe I'll ask about them. My technological savvy isn't as high as it should be."
"Tell me about it," I muttered in agreement, referring to myself rather than him. "I've always liked new tech toys to play with, but things have been getting out of hand these past few years. Everyone has to have 'newer, bigger, more involved' versions of things that worked really well in the beginning, but now they've been ruined by the so-called upgrades. I wish I had the power to insist on no more changes for the next year or two."
"If you find that particular power, please do let me know right away where it is," Oldon said, the words very dry. "I'll even promise to help you give us a badly needed break from the 'new' stuff."
Our short conversation would have been amusing if there hadn't been true desperation behind the words. I sighed again, but didn't have time for a third sigh. Rolfe came back with a strange phone, handed it to me, then took Oldon's phone and left again. When Rolfe came back with Oldon's new phone, his female assistant took Eric's phone and disappeared with it. While she was gone Rolfe gave Oldon and me a short course in what our new phones could do, mostly the quick and usual things we used our phones for. When his assistant came back a few minutes later to hand Eric his new phone, Rolfe smiled.
"Now three of your team are linked," Rolfe told Oldon and me while Eric got his explanation. "These new phones are 'aware' of each other, and will even provide locations if necessary. I'd guess that that will be a plus for people in your business."
"Definitely," Oldon agreed while I nodded my own agreement. I think Oldon was about to add something, but just then Freemont came over to join us.
"Taz, you're going to enjoy hearing this," my partner said with a wide smile. "I called Allison to make sure, but there isn't a problem. I'll be able to sync this tablet to the network Allison's people use, so we'll be in real time touch with them if we need to be."
"That sounds great," I said, enjoying Freemont's happiness as much as what he'd learned. "We're getting to be so high tech that the rogues won't be able to match us. But what about cameras? Don't we want to get some cameras we might need?"
"Amiol has already taken care of that, as well as getting a mobile hot spot," Freemont answered as he … petted his new tablet. "Now we'll have wi-fi wherever we go, thanks to the hot spot. And everything near us has been paid for, so if you and Oldon are through we can go to our next stop."
"I was just about to pay," I said, seeing that Oldon had already handed over a credit card to Rolfe. "We'll be done in a couple of minutes, but where are we supposed to go from here?"
"We've decided we need some new clothes," Freemont answered, accepting a padded bag from Rolfe to put his tablet in. "There's a mall not far from here, and they have stores that specialize in men's clothes, women's clothes, and kids' clothes. I don't think we'll need anything from the last category."
"But we do from the other two," I said, handing Rolfe my own credit card. I'd put the credit card, my driver's license, and some cash in a small case, using a separate "slip" for each of those things. "Now that we have where to leave things, we don't have to limit ourselves to nothing but work clothes," I continued. "Yes, that was definitely good thinking, partner."
"I don't need anything at the moment, so I'll just stay in the car while you others shop," Oldon said, getting ready to put his day hat back on. "Staying in the car will also give me a chance to nap, so all of you can take your time in the stores."
That sounded perfect all the way around, but before we could leave George appeared again.
"I found the underground section, but the perp was long gone," he reported to all of us. "But this needs looking into, Rolfe, so you ought to think about reporting the problem to someone."
"I'm going to talk to my friend, the one who owns this building," Rolfe said, now looking grim as he handed back my card and gave me the receipt to sign. "If we decide we want really expert help, will your team be available to be hired?"
"We already have a job, but there's no reason we can't take on another," I said, looking at all my teammates who now stood with us. "Someone is trying to drive Rolfe out of business because they want to buy this building. Do we want to let the lowlife get away with doing that?"
The sound of everyone saying no at the same time made Rolfe smile, his dark elf assistant smiling in the same way.
"But we don't come cheap, so you'd better point that out to your friend," Freemont put in, his newest smile one of compassion. "But we'll most likely be back another time or three, so part of whatever you pay us will end up coming back to you. George, are you available to go clothes shopping with us?"
"With you or Amiol or Eric, certainly," George answered. "Taz will have to manage on her own, which will keep me from trying to tear my hair out while she makes up her mind then changes it, makes up her mind then changes it, over and over and – "
"Okay, enough," I said while the others laughed, grudging my own smile. "So I'm not that easy to please, that's life and you learn to live with it. Men just aren't strong enough to go clothes shopping with women, and that's also life. All you weaker types will simply have to stay away from my store."
There was a lot of loud coughing and sounds of quiet hooting as we left the store, but none of my teammates tried to claim they were strong enough to go shopping with me. Which happened to be the best idea. If no one is standing around waiting for me to make up my mind, doing the deciding becomes a lot easier.
We all piled into the car, and then Eric drove us to the mall we wanted. The mall had underground parking available, of course, so that's where we parked. Since Oldon was staying in the car, we'd all feel better having him out of the sunlight.
The clothing stores were separated by food stores, but none of us was hungry enough to stop. We went our different ways, the guys to the right, me to the left, and then I was inside the store and looking around. I found a couple of blouses I liked, blouses rather than tee shirts, and then I picked out a few pairs of pants. I also chose a new jacket in leather, then took all my purchases to the counter to pay for them. It felt good knowing I wasn't spending my own money, so to speak, but I also knew I'd have to ease into that knowledge slowly. Once the idea was more firmly in my head, I'd come back and buy other things.
But not "big name" items. I have no idea who the big designers are and don't even care to learn. I buy what I like and ignore what I don't, even if that puts me in trouble with the fashion police. If wearing overpriced garbage makes you someone, I'll just stay with being a no one. And I'll stick with my $12 watch. It keeps perfect time, so why would I spend fifty thousand dollars for a watch with a name?
Walking out of the store with my purchases showed me no sign of the men, so I just headed toward where the car was parked. If they hadn't gotten through before me, I'd leave my packages and go looking for them.
I passed a girl standing and digging through her own bag, obviously looking for something, and just kept walking. A moment later I heard an "Ah!" in a girl's voice and then light footsteps behind me. It looked like the girl had found whatever she'd been searching for, and now was on her way to her car. I had just enough time to have that thought, and then everything went black.
Chapter Fourteen
I came awake to dimness around me, not to mention a bunch of weird smells. What I was most aware of, though,
was the soreness at the back of my head. As if someone had hit me with something hard…
That thought made me stir where I lay, wondering what was going on now causing the movement. I had no idea why I'd been kidnapped, but then a more important point came to my attention. I was lying in some kind of container, one that didn't give me much room to move. There was a grate of some sort beyond my head, and putting a hand to the nearest side wall said the container was made of heavy plastic.
Which didn't tell me much of anything. I straightened out as far as I could and moved closer to the grate, seeing that it was made of metal rather than plastic. Instead of bars there were small squares blocking the way out, and suddenly my mind cleared enough to tell me what I was lying in. I'd been stuffed into an animal carrier, a large one but definitely a carrier.
Great. Fury and rage ripped through me at the thought of being treated like the animal I hated being, and it took me a couple of minutes to calm down. Having been put in a cage might or might not have been a comment on what I was, but a reason did nothing to help me get out again. Getting out was what I needed to do, and that as quickly as possible.
And that, I realized, would take some doing. I couldn't just reach through the metal gate, not when the squares were so small, so how was I supposed to open the stupid thing? I'd once helped one of my sisters with the carrier she had for her small dog, so I knew how the things worked. You had to move the top handle down and the lower handle up, otherwise you couldn't get the door open.
I stared at what I could see of the bar holding the door closed, the dimness all around doing nothing to help me clarify the picture. The two bar-handles were turned away just a little, making reaching them even more of a problem. Breaking the plastic of the carrier itself might prove easier than just opening the door…
But breaking the plastic, even if I managed to do it, would make more noise than was probably wise. Letting the bad guys know you've gotten free isn't usually a good idea. I needed to get out as quietly as possible, but how was I supposed to do that?
