“Before I ditched my old body, I stashed money in a locker at Union Station. That’s another reason I needed to get a new body in D.C.”
“Maybe if you change your look just a bit, sir,” Marna suggested. “Wear something that Big Rotty might not’ve worn?”
“Yeah,” Dad said, nodding. “Get myself a suit. Straight-up gent.” When he grinned, I could see exactly how he’d earned himself a reputation with the ladies. He had a famous scar above his eye from a knife fight, and a scar on his neck from a bullet graze, but he had a roguish handsomeness that made you want to stare.
“I can take your measurements,” Patti offered. “We’ll send one of these guys out to get you some clothes.”
“I will go for him,” Kopano said.
“Perfect.” Patti grabbed the remote and turned on the television. “Let’s see if they mention anything about this on the news.”
So far there was nothing. Maybe the police were keeping it quiet.
I looked down at Kaidan’s empty plate. He’d had three pieces of pie: cherry, pumpkin, and apple.
“Which pie was your favorite?” I whispered in his ear.
His eyes hit mine and I felt my neck heating, the warmth spreading up to my face. All at once we both realized Dad was watching us, giving Kaidan a murderous glare.
Kaidan quickly amended. “Erm, key lime was my favorite, luv.”
“Oh,” I said.
Dad looked away and Kaidan shot me a big-eyed “oops” glance. I choked back a laugh. Patti came up behind us and kissed Kai’s head.
“How you doing, son?” she asked.
He gave her a boyish smile and said, “Very well, thanks.” She pushed hair from his eyes before moving along.
“So, tell me what’s been going on around here,” Dad said to me. “You seen Pharzuph again?”
“No,” I told him. “Nothing’s happened since you came to my dorm room.”
“When’d you see Pharzuph?” Blake asked.
I told them about the surprise visit and Pharzuph’s new body.
“Yeah, brah,” Blake said to Kaidan. “We’ve both inherited fortunes and new-looking daddies we haven’t even seen yet. How many people get to say that?”
“Awkward,” Jay said. “Acko taco . . .”
“With a side of guaco,” Marna finished, and they chuckled together.
“You haven’t seen your father’s new body yet?” Jay asked Blake.
“Nah. Probably won’t now that he lives in China, and that’s fine with me.”
“Do you have any news?” I asked Dad.
He shook his head. “I just know they’re having a summit tonight in Switzerland. Still got my boys looking in on the son of Shax to see if he’s ally material. He seems legit, but I’m not sendin’ you to have words with him till I know for sure. How’d he seem when you met him?”
Everyone looked at me, and I thought about it.
“Well, compared to creepy Caterina, he seemed normal, but I still wouldn’t turn my back on him. He’s slick.”
Dad nodded, and ran a hand over his do-rag. “I was hopin’ to have more allies by this point. I think we all know it’s going down soon.”
We sat quietly, an intensity blanketing the room. It felt like things were happening too fast.
“What are we going to do?” I asked.
“We roll with it,” Dad said. “All we can do is be ready, mentally, for whatever they throw at us. Be strong. Keep your wits. They’re not expectin’ a team of you like this. We gotta fight smart.” He tapped his head.
He was right. We couldn’t formulate any kind of plan when we didn’t know when or how the Dukes would attack. But that didn’t have to mean we were weak.
“So . . . we wait,” I said.
“We wait,” Dad confirmed, glancing at his empty pie plate. “And eat.”
As always, Dad couldn’t stay long. Patti and I measured him and then sent Kopano and Zania to the nearest mall with his credit card for new, less conspicuous clothes.
Kope and Z returned with big bags.
“These look good,” Patti said, pulling out the clothes for Dad. “But your hair . . .”
“Hot mess,” he agreed with a low chuckle as he ran a big hand over his hair, which needed a good brushing or cut.
Patti stepped up and handed him a Miami Heat ball cap. He fitted it on his head and grinned.
“Yeah. That’s nice, right there.”
The three of us walked back into the family room, where everyone was sitting, and even from the corner of my eye I could see Dad’s larger-than-life walk—the kind of body movements that forced people to notice him.
As Dad started talking to Blake, thanking him for pulling off our recent plan, Jay approached me.
“You know, since he still knows how to talk and walk like Big Rotty, I bet he could still rap if he tried.”
I could only shake my head, giving him my “you’re crazy but I still love you” look.
“What?” He laughed. Marna smiled at him from the couch.
Kaidan walked to my side and I linked my arm through his, hugging his bicep. Dad came over and put his hands on Kai’s shoulders. They shared a serious look.
“You take care of my girl, you hear me?”
Kaidan nodded. “I will, sir.”
Dad patted his shoulder, and then looked at me. Deep in those eyes I saw my dad—his love and concern for me that stemmed from his soul. I let go of Kai and reached for Dad’s waist, squeezing him. His arms went around me, and I felt the same pit of sadness I always felt when he had to leave, never knowing when we’d see each other again.