While at Altier’s truck, you all receive what sounds like muffled static across your earpieces.
Followed by a single reply from an unknown female voice.
“Yes.”
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“I don’t know! MAYBE…”
Gracie jumped slightly at Altier’s comment, but obliged and got in.
She ignored the familiar smell of oil, as she hauled in her backpack, and got seated, the backpack in her lap.
Gracie shook around a bit as she lurched from the recoil of Oswin sitting down, and clutched her bag tightly, her nerves slightly frayed.
She peaked over at Billie.
“So how’d it go?”
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“But also no,” Altier comments as he closes his door. The truck begins moving again and they head towards their new destination.
“We do have everything, right?”
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If Billie looked uncomfortable before, sitting almost at the edge of her seat with her knees close together and her neck retraced into her shoulders, now that she was leaning forward towards the vent of the air conditioning system, her position looked truly miserable. She was definitely not cut out for this weather.
I hope this thing doesn’t break down in the middle of the road…
Billie got a moment to think about this herself and concluded that the truck bed was probably the best option for the kid. Given his experience with the bench at the diner, it was safe to assume that the back seat in this car wouldn’t stack up better against him. The bed seemed to have a better chance at withstanding him though.
I really hope it doesn’t break down… The prospect of getting stuck outside with no air conditioning and having to walk to their destination wasn’t a pleasant one in the slightest.
Billie looked visibly annoyed at Oswin’s reaction, making her appear even more moody than usual. The fact that the kid seemed completely unbothered by and unaware of the current hellish weather conditions while everyone else was forced to suffer from them seemed completely and utterly unfair in more than one way. Did he not see that everyone else was getting absolutely boiled alive?
Billie sharply turned around in her seat to see the bed of the truck with an expression of concern. She let out a quiet and disgruntled “Is the suspension gonna hold?” before taking her original position facing the air conditioning unit.
Billie instinctively moved her hand to cover her ear from the unpleasant sound, but was quickly reminded that the sounds were playing right inside her ear. It almost seemed as if the person on the other end of the line was playing some sort of annoying prank, trying to mess with them by playing strange sounds and disjointed pieces of conversations… or maybe these devices were picking up frequencies of random radio stations.
As the car started moving with all four members of the group inside, Billie quickly unwrapped the paper bag she was holding and pulled out her burger. She bit into it with surprising ferocity and began rapidly consuming it, as if she hadn’t eaten anything in a very long time. She was eating like it was going to be her last meal ever. This appetite was caused by a combination of things: high stress, increased metabolism due to her… condition… Well, and the fact that she really hadn’t gotten many chances to eat lately due to a certain lack of money. But from an outsider’s perspective it looked like a person with a good physique eating food that wasn’t good for them all too eagerly.
Hearing the questions, Billie interrupted her meal mid-bite, clearly disappointed by the fact that she would have to respond. She pushed out a quick “Mhm. Got the files… They don’t know”, before returning to her food. She was hoping that she would be able to avoid having to explain the intricacies of what exactly she did. The less chances of her past employment at the diner getting brought up, the better.
The burger was gone in no time and Billie moved on to reaching to open the can of still slightly cold beer she had snatched from the box earlier, eagerly anticipating the refreshing and hopefully cooling effect it would have on her in this unbearable heat, at least for a short time.
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Oswin nearly toppled backwards at the message that spoke directly to his mind. The ‘Yes’ that followed gave him cause to turn sharply about towards the rear window, thinking that somehow Billie had responded to the inquiry.
Instead of showing signs of having said anything at all, Billie began to devour her hamburger in utterly ferocious fashion, giving no regard to proper etiquette or, at the minimum, avoiding hiccoughs. But at least she had a nice cold can of beer to wash it all down with.
Beer.
YUCK.
It didn’t take long for the thought of this unknown participant in conversation to prompt his knees to rise, slowly drawing up to his chest. Despite his weight, the truck seemed perfectly capable of handing him, and while the seat would likely have performed just as well, perhaps having him in the bed was safer.
…
Wait, isn’t this illegal?
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“She has to so she better,” Altier answered.
He figured it should, given the other heavy things he’s hauled. But you never know when a vehicle decides it’s time to give up.
Keeping his eyes on the road, Altier didn’t seem bothered by this display. If not for all the emergency vehicles, he would be driving with one hand (if that) and eating his own burger.
“Good…See anything interesting in them?” Altier asked but then almost dismissed the question. “Never mind, I’ll learn later.”
He’s quiet for maybe a second, checking his mirrors both for traffic and on the off chance they’re being followed. It’s long enough for Billie to grab the can.
Then he added, “How many of those before you start boxing?”
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As you all drive north along Highway 99, one of Chief Presley’s officers is in the street directing traffic; motioning for you (Altier) to proceed slowly. Passing by the fire trucks, desperately fighting to contain the fire, you can start to see just how intense the fire has become. Fire fighters are doing their best to douse the flames, while others are trying to put out a car that was too close to the pipe; its body work missing and the frame melting from the hellish conditions.
The detonation ripped the alleyway apart, large sections of the warehouse are missing or ablaze with flames climbing several stories into the sky. The heat from the inferno can be felt through the truck’s windows.
You finally pass onlookers and emergency services and continue past 4th and Main, turning west into Old Town.
The buildings here were designed to look old, the façade hiding modern architecture in order to fit the theme. The “old” brownstone buildings keep with the theme by having vintage signs inviting onlookers and shoppers to stop and view their wares. One block west, on the corner of 4th and Pine; you see a large three (3) story brownstone with a street parking and a digital sign (that doesn’t fit in with the decor of the other businesses).
”Green Country Tech”
The words are emblazoned in a metallic neon green against a black background. The business is known around town as the go to place for all things tech related; and being in a college town, they typically make a great deal of money from both students and faculty alike. They have a reputation for hiring upperclassmen from the colleges of Science and Technology to serve are computer repair specialists.
Parking the truck, you all can see a sign in the windows indicating that the business is hosting a “Capture the flag” event, offering prizes to the person or persons who can locate and capture the digital flag the fastest; and a grand prize of $50,000.
Upon entering the business, you can see that it is already crowded with shoppers, looking at the latest and greatest in computer tech. Everything from portable computers to drones and even a “personal satellite” kit with instructions on how to get your new satellite into orbit.
“Welcome to Green Country!” The staff shout in unison as you all enter.
You receive another message in your minds - indicating that you need to speak with Trevor; and tell him that you all are here to “Carpe Noctem.”
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Billie looked over at her pocked where her phone was kept. She hadn’t really had a chance to have a good look at the files yet, given how she needed to do everything in a hurry. There could be some important information in those documents, some leads. She was almost ready to pull her phone out and start looking through the pictures, but quickly stopped herself from doing so. It would be safer to keep it in her pocket, just to ensure that nothing happened to it. The less people know where it was, the better.
Billie opened the can and was in the process of taking a sip of the soothingly cool beverage when Altier’s question rang in her ear, prompting her to practically freeze in place and her face to turn red in a moment. There was only one explanation for his inquiry. He knew.
Utterly embarrassed, Billie lowered the can, mumbled something that sounded like “More than you think”, and quickly turned away to stare out the side window of the car, hoping that Altier and everyone else would forget about her existence if they couldn’t see her face. She spent the rest of the drive in that position.
They definitely didn’t have enough beer in the car to get her into that state, but at that moment she wished that they had just enough of it to make her forget this entire morning.
As Billie spent the entirety of the trip looking out the window, she got a very good look at the chaos and destruction that had been caused by the explosion. It was an exceptionally grim sight that made her disgusted with those who caused it, now that she could witness it up close in all of its horrific glory.
Was this really necessary? What the hell were they thinking?! People could have died here…
Suddenly Billie felt a flash of anger at the people who hired her. Even she could tell how irresponsible this entire showcase was. If they had no regard for casualties, then they certainly didn’t care about the people who went missing and needed the files for some other, less noble reason.
The scars on her lower arms began to ache more once again.
Billie exited the truck after everyone else, wanting to spend as little time in the heat of the outside world as possible. Standing in the blazing hot sun, she downed the rest of her almost full can of beer in one go, wiped her mouth and threw out the can in the nearest garbage bin, together with the paper bag from the burger. The drink seemed to make her existence only a tiny bit better.
She would follow the rest of the squad into the shop, not wanting to enter yet another public place first.
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My lands.
Oswin looked with considerable horror at the blaze as he passed it, feeling himself getting smaller as he did so. This terrible attack, costing so much in damages, destroying private property and someone’s perfectly fine vehicle - all to get a small stack of papers? Couldn’t these mysterious employers find whatever they needed at the library, or online someplace?
It was enough to fool Oswin, that was certain. As Altier drove by numerous buildings with weathered fronts, it felt like being transported back in time, to an era before the ominous reputation of the town had gotten around, before robot boys with overactive imaginations were possible.
However, as the universe didn’t like to stay on one topic for too long just as much as he didn’t, the truck slowly crawled to a stop in front of the next big distraction.
It had not occurred to Oswin that, when told to go to a computer repair store, he would be going to a store at which they repair computers. Upon seeing the displays in the windows, the gadgetry being sold, and the capture the flag event’s prizes, he was enraptured.
“WOW!”
Oswin threw himself over the side of the truck, his boots skidding slightly on the asphalt as he landed. He happened to vault himself over the right side, and just as Billie was pitching the wrapper for her hamburger he marched over and pointed at the shop with massive pupils and glowing irises.
“They have computers here!!”
It had not occurred to Oswin that the practice of hiring the best and brightest from the college meant there was an extremely high probability of several of the employees not only knowing who he was, but having met him in person and possibly even shared conversation with him. “C’mon, let’s go!”
If he stayed in the parking lot any longer, he would run the risk of bubbling over with excitement until he was an incoherent mess. So without waiting for Altier or Gracie, he took off for the entrance and threw open the door.
And then all his excitement got ruined by being made the center of attention by every employee in the building. He tried and failed to pry his shoulders off his neck as the tech on display started to take on a different air, feeling more intimidating than awe-inspiring, and while one foot tried to apprehensively back out of the store the other one refused to move.
With an extremely forced and not very successful effort at recomposing himself, Oswin shuffled forward, trying to tell by looking at the employees’ attire which one was Trevor.
Carpe… Carpe Noctem? I never learned Italian. Is that some kind of a fish?
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Noticing Oswin’s apparent excitement, Billie sent a slightly frustrated glance in his direction.
They’re just computers, what’s so special about them?
Once again, she had to question why her employers accepted a literal child for this job. He clearly had no concept of how serious it was. For all she knew, this building could very well be a trap and they wouldn’t be coming back from there alive, and he was willing to go there without any hesitation or concern because he thought that computers were cool.
Billie sent a frustrated, almost pleading look at Altier and Gracie, hoping that they would do something about this. Then, seeing how the kid was already at the front entrance, about to ferociously open the door, something compelled her to hurriedly follow him into the building, much to her dismay. Billie certainly couldn’t trust him with going there alone, even if she wasn’t all that eager to go herself.
He’s gonna ruin this whole thing…
As she attempted to enter the shop, the door sprung back right into her face after having been thrown open by Oswin. She managed to stop it with her hand with an audible thud before it could make contact with her forehead, which unfortunately came at the cost of a spike of pain immediately piercing the damaged tissues across her arm when it collided with the door.
She entered the building with an exceptionally disgruntled expression on her face, holding onto her hurt forearm until the pain faded enough to be bearable.
As if she wasn’t miserable enough already, the loud unanimous greeting from the staff which sounded like some kind of bizarre hivemind almost made Billie jump and sent shivers down her spine. The fact that most of the employees seemed to be the smart kind of college kids not too much younger than her didn’t help. Why can’t they be normal about this… For the second time this morning, she ended up being the center of everyone’s attention and wished that she could fall through the floor at that very moment, which very much showed in her body language.
Billie didn’t share any of Oswin’s strong emotions about the things displayed in the shop and looked at them with utter apathy and lack of interest, completely unimpressed by what she was seeing. To her, it was a bunch of overpriced and useless tech that she would never need in her life, or, even if she did, wouldn’t be able to afford. And unlike with the diner where she used to work, Billie didn’t have any emotional attachment to this place whatsoever as she never felt the need to go here before. It was her first time visiting it and it was completely alien territory to her in every way.
This was the first time the voice in her head didn’t catch her by surprise. Was it the beer calming her nerves or was she starting to get used to it?
Couldn’t they have chosen simpler code words for this?
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“Alright, fine, just thought I’d ask. Might need those punches later. That one fancy lady? She was watching the back of the diner. Vanished soon after I came around.”
As the quiet solemn came upon the passengers from the flames, Altier gave a comment as they passed by.
“Just be glad it wasn’t you this time. Might not be so lucky later.”
Once they arrived and parked, Altier rolled out and opened the other door for Gracie to escape. He would soon go in but wanted to ensure all the doors were shut and locked properly. At least, that was the idea until the boy shouted and jumped out.
“Yeh, what did you think was–? Oh hold on. Why do I ha-hrmemene,” Altier went into a grumble.
He was slower than Billie is getting around but follows soon after. With somewhat of a stumble, he will try to push past them and get around them to get further into the store.
Can’t they give these things a bit sooner? It’s like they’ve never gone to church. If you run slides, you change them seconds early to give the singers a chance to read the lyrics. Not the moment the words need to be sung.
Reality catches back up to Altier and he nods in response to the greeting. He scans the aisles for a brief moment and then walks up to the nearest counter that had some label for customer assistance. Provided there isn’t too much commotion, he’ll greet the worker.
“Mornin’. Could you help me find a part? Chip in my tablet got cooked in the heat and today’s craziness already has me late.”
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Looking back briefly, Oswin watched as Altier approached the first customer service individual person he laid eyes on, although it was unclear if this individual was the aforementioned Trevor or someone else entirely. Well, I guess we’re all finding out what people’s approaches are like today. Useful information for the future, I suppose…
Turning further as the back part of his mind told him the thud noise he heard was worth inspecting, Oswin clapped both hands over his mouth and recoiled in terror at the sight of Billie holding her forearm. The implication was obvious - he had thrown the door open without thinking, Billie walked in, and got hit by it. He didn’t hold the door for her, he hadn’t been remotely courteous, and above all else he had unintentionally hit her in the one part of her body already clearly damaged. Big yikes.
“Oh no!” His voice was briefly muffled by his hands, but he quickly removed them, reaching out and almost touching the clearly wounded arm before realizing that would be really weird and uncalled for. "You’re not- are you okay? I’m so sorry."
If the deathly tone of voice had somehow not been enough, Oswin’s expression was halfway between shock and utter misery at the notion that he was responsible for hurting someone else - especially one of his new friends.
Yes. They’re his friends now.
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So she wasn’t the only one who found the woman suspicious…
Before, Billie only had a suspicion lingering at the back of her mind that the woman from the diner would be a problem, but Altier’s words pretty much confirmed that. Not only was she watching them inside the diner, but apparently she hung around outside as well, seemingly waiting for them. For all Billie knew, the woman could still be around somewhere, so her decision not to expose the location of the files seemed all the more reasonable.
Billie gladly allowed Altier to go past her and take the lead in the procession. She hated the prospect of having to be the one to talk to whoever this Trevor was, so Altier seemingly wanting to take initiative on that brought her some relief. She would follow him, staying a bit behind and trying not to stand out or draw anyone’s attention as much as possible. That probably would have been more or less easy if not for the two exceptionally outstanding individuals that were accompanying her and Altier.
While he addressed the customer assistance worker with a fake problem, which she found to be a smart move, far better than anything she and her lack of experience in social interactions would have come up with, she looked around the building from under the visor of her cap, trying to see if there was anything even remotely suspicious. Particularly, she searched for any signs of the intimidating woman in a suit from the diner showing up, as she could have easily been on their tail this entire time.
Billie had to hold herself back from jolting away from Oswin’s outstretched arm. She let go of her forearm and looked away from him, trying to act as if nothing happened and her arm didn’t hurt.
That was nothing, I should really act tougher around these people if I want to get through this.
“I’m… fine. You don’t need to worry about me”, she uttered in an almost sorry, embarrassed tone, angry at herself for letting him notice that she got hurt. It was her own problem and nobody else had to get involved. Why did he care anyways, it’s not like she did anything to deserve it… it was none of his business, he’d be better off worrying about himself.
And the way he looked at her made her feel worse than she would’ve due to any kind of physical pain. Not only did she not want these emotions to be directed at her, but also she found that exact face painfully familiar, and it was not the memory she wanted to return to. You can’t be him, he’s dead.
The way Oswin looked at her made her want to be somewhere else more than anything she had experienced earlier this morning.
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She nodded, chomping into a cookie.
She was silent for most of the ride…thinking.
You just complied with someone who just blew up a building…what is wrong with you?!
She blinked, fiddling with her metal fingers.
What would her parents say?
Or better yet, what wouldn’t they say?
Right…this place…
She recognized it from all the times she skated past it, but it was more one of those buildings she just looked at and ignored. She liked machines, no doubt, but the kind that were more mechanical than technical.
She hadn’t even stepped out of the car when the message played.
I’m really starting to hate this…it’s too creepy…
She lurched forward as the weight shifted
CAN THIS GUY SLOW DOWN?! They’re just big boxes…
“What now?”
Gracie opened the door and dropped from the truck. She was half tempted just to wear her bunny mask for a laugh or two, but went against it. Her hand clutched the black device slightly, as if to remind herself what it was capable of.
“I seriously didn’t catch that.”
She pulled out her backpack, putting it on.
“Alright. Sure. I’ll help…”
She gave an exasperated sigh. Her backpack clinked and moved as she walked in.
“Hey. Hey! Can you look at me?”
Gracie was suddenly by Billie’s side, her face close to Billie’s.
“What happe-Ooooh…that’s what they’re for….oh boy….ouch.”
She grimaced at the scars.
“How long have those been a thing? Actually never mind. Do you need help? Getting up?”
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The tone didn’t help things at all for Oswin. No longer was it simply a matter of her accidentally getting hurt by something he did, but- well, it was a matter of Oswin’s empathetic heart getting in the way of his brain. Stupid decisions were inevitable at some point in the future.
For now, though, his heart only managed a vicious stranglehold over his tongue. “But I-” He halted briefly, both hands heading towards his own throat to slightly touch his collarbone. “I want to.”
His expression lost the horror he had concocted at the sight of Billie being in a slight amount of pain, and with the misery still somewhat present, a sense of pleading entered his eyes, looking up at Billie’s with a desperation that if only she would allow his empathy, he would somehow make the whole world right again.
And then Oswin did a double take at the appearance of Gracie, who seemingly popped up out of nowhere. He opened his mouth to verbally express his gratitude that she was sharing in his concern, when she continued.
Oswin lost all notion of concern and immediately descended into confusion, his brow crinkling as he tried to decipher just what the heck Gracie was talking about. Get up? Like, metaphorically? Because she’s clearly still standing. Is this some kind of psychological thing I don’t understand because I’m too died once to comprehend?
His eyes traveled awkwardly between Billie and Gracie, unsure how - or even if - he should interject. Perhaps this was a thing only grownups like Billie could comprehend.
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The staff member behind the counter turned and faced Altier, giving him a slightly annoyed sigh as she looked him over.
“Sure,” she said. “What’s the model?”
Looking around the main floor, you notice a lot of people. Most look like they’re either students or faculty from the university; several have open cybernetics and genetic alterations; some borderline crazy even by modern standards.
Aside from the customers and staff, you do notice surveillance cameras throughout the store, but nothing out of the usual for a store of this type.
There are several employees working with a group wearing University t-shirts setting up computers around a stage, under a large banner that reads “Capture The Flag!”
There does seem to be a quiet, almost unnoticeable static as you entered the building. The noise is so low that you have to force yourself to even perceive it; but then again … is it truly there, or are you paranoid because of the frequent mental images and instructions?
Due to the size of the main floor, it is hard to recognize anyone right away; although there are several students from the University setting up computers for the competition near a stage. As you look, you notice that their shirts have patches sewn on their sleeves indicating they are part of the college of cybernetics.
The device pulses once more, this time its screen indicates that several encrypted communications are broadcasting nearby, some of their signal strengths are registering well above 100k watts. You also notice that the device pulses differently as you hold it when facing the north part of the building; almost like it’s directing you toward something.
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When looking around the shop, Billie didn’t notice anything that could be considered immediately alarming, however she was immensely weirded out by the people with grotesque alterations that she saw in the crowd. who in the world would make themselves look like that willingly, by choice?
But there was at least one positive thing about it: Gracie and Oswin wouldn’t stand out as much in this crowd of these weirdos, so maybe she wouldn’t need to deal with unnecessary attention after all.
Looking directly into one of the cameras for a moment, she realized that she was almost expecting that whoever hired them was probably watching through it right now.
That, combined with the communication device in her ear led her to the conclusion that this person was likely monitoring her every step, which was not a comforting notion in the slightest.
As soon as Oswin’s words registered in her mind, she stared back at him with a blank expression as her mind refused to believe that she heard him right. He couldn’t be saying such a thing, it was ridiculous.
Worry about her? What for? What has she done to warrant that?
Billie opened her mouth to respond, but her mind kept drawing blanks, unable to come up with a retort. She was beginning to panic, which very much showed in her eyes, even if the rest of her face did a decent job at hiding it.
What could she say? That she didn’t deserve it? But that would create even more questions and make things infinitely more complicated. If he knew what kind of person she was and what she had done, would he still want to care about her? Would that be enough to make him lose all compassion towards her? He was just a child who clearly didn’t understand how the world worked, so she couldn’t guarantee even that.
She was truly cornered by Oswin’s words. The thought of accepting his empathy didn’t even cross her mind, it was so alien to her. She knew that she didn’t deserve anyone’s compassion, not after everything she had done.
Before she could continue her thought process, Billie jolted back slightly when Gracie’s face appeared in her field of view, extremely close to her own. It was less the blatant invasion of her personal space that immediately made her visibly uncomfortable and more the ferocious bombardment of questions she had just been subjected to.
She attempted to hide her arms behind her back in embarrassment, once again mentally beating herself down for having drawn such attention to her injuries to begin with. Had the weather not been so awful, she would have worn something to cover them up and none of this would have happened. She could see that Gracie’s earnest interest wasn’t malicious, but that didn’t make it any less frustrating. There was no way she could explain anything about them even if she wanted to.
Finally she grumbled, looking down at Gracie from under the brim of her cap, but not quite making eye contact with the strange girl, “It’s not your problem, I’ll deal with it myself. As long as it doesn’t affect my usefulness in this mission, it shouldn’t concern you, or anyone else.”
Even if Gracie’s inquisitiveness was annoying, it saved Billie from having to say something in response to Oswin, which she was ever so slightly thankful for.
She attempted to move away from the pair and pretend to look at one of the devices displayed in the shop while she waited for Altier to finish his conversation with the staff member. The quiet static noise coming from the device in her ear started getting on her nerves.
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“It was a…shoot. Is Trevor here today? I think that’s who helped me last time. They should know.” Altier said.
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Oswin did not think to hide the recognition that showed on his face at the sight of Billie’s eyes. Her irises aligned with the reflection of his own, shining back at him in the lenses of her glasses.
He didn’t know exactly what it meant, seemingly only appearing at the mention of him wanting to help, and clearly being a negative response to the notion. But the idea had struck her in a way that was raw, real - something Oswin desperately missed. For better or for worse, Billie’s panicked reaction did nothing but enforce Oswin’s desire to help her.
With her arms tucked behind her, Billie dismissed Gracie with a curt air and moved past her, and in a fashion dismissed Oswin as well. It was somewhat disheartening to hear her say these things, but as she passed him to loiter in the computer repair store, Oswin’s mind landed on what must have been the truth.
The only reason Billie did not want to talk about it with anyone was because she had nobody she could confidently talk about it with. She was pushing others away because she had no one she could let in.
She needed a friend.
Oswin nodded to himself with an expression of optimistic resolution. I’m going to be as courteous, nice, and caring as possible, even if it kills me - again. She has no one she can trust, so I’ll be that someone. I don’t understand all the grownup things, but I know how to be a friend, and that’s good enough for anybody.
I’ll be her shoulder to cry on. I’ll be the one she can confide in. And I’ll lift her up when she’s actually feeling down and not like whatever happened here. Good friends take care of each other like that.
Folding his arms to reaffirm his decision to himself, Oswin looked back at billie with a confident smile, determining that, if at all possible, her wishes would be fulfilled. Right now it seemed as though a front must be kept up to appear as typical paying customers, so off he strolled, casually glancing at and occasionally poking the disabled buttons on a number of products, trying not to show how much he was geeking out at some of them.
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“Trevor?” She replied, her expression going focusing on something a thousand yards off as she thought for a moment. “Yeah, I think he’s here today. Give me a second to check.”
Pressing a button on a lapel mic, she asked for Trevor. As she waited for a response, you can notice her look around you at Billie, Gracie and Oswin. Raising an eyebrow, she looked back at you.
“Are they with you?” Her question and body language implying that she wasn’t looking forward to helping more customers.
Before you can answer, she raises one finger and listens to the response coming across her radio.
“Trevor is here today. He said he is finishing up with a client and will be free in a couple minutes.” She turns and points out the computer repair desk just across from the competition stage; “You’re welcome to wait for him there, or you can shop while you wait.”
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