They were now using Gymnesia as their base. The cold, modern
décor fit their new austere, militant aspect better than cavelike
Undergrounds. Coffee was largely eschewed in favor of frothy energy
drinks laced with guarana, a caffeinated plant from the Amazon,
which was meant to be healthier than coffee, despite the fact that it
contained exactly the same neurotoxin.
The phones rang constantly. People were calling in for their free
“Bidden Crooks” bumper-stickers, donating money to the cause, and
generally voicing their support to help stamp out the world’s ills. A
flag flew over Gymnesia now that resembled a pirate flag though it
was actually a white cartoon Martian face against a black
background. The outsiders were taking over. The alienated were
invading.
Yak sat off to the side, amazed. The energy and spirit that flooded
the place exhilarated him against his will. And Sprout was running
the show. He couldn’t help but notice how brightly she beamed, as
hot and expansive as a supercollider. He too felt caught up in their
spirit of discovery, began to wonder: If Undergrounds be saved by
this, might she be also? Might they all?
Might he?
“I’d like to help,” he said to Sprout. Her golden irises shone in
surprise, then quickly softened.
“Of course,” she said, “Really, thank you.” They looked at each
other for a long moment, until Yak finally averted his eyes. “You
could help out with the phones,” she suggested.
“I had something else in mind,” he said.
He promised Roy he wouldn’t tell anyone, but now Roy was gone
and it was unclear if he would ever return. The important thing was
that should he come back, he could hope to build his dream free from
fear.
Yak, normally so deft with words, found himself clumsy with
Sprout. He told her, “Ellie Bidden was not kidnapped.”
“No? So what happened.”
“Roy and Morris killed her,” he confided quietly.
Sprout blinked.
“Or Bidden did. Both of them did. It was an accident. Morris
found out about their affair. They had a duel of honor. Ellie was hit
by a stray bullet. Bidden won the duel because he used Ellie’s death
to blackmail Roy out of the country. His fingerprints were on the gun.
There may have been some other evidence too. Bidden insisted he
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