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"It’s where we keep what’s important to us," Pansy said; she sounded more serious than Bryn had ever heard her "It’s our last stand So yes Horades to the facility must have been made in the late sixties or early seventiesIt had that vaguely futuristic, sterile, spaceship feel to the design, including the oddly shaped doorways Everything had, no doubt, started off sleek and white, but the plastic hadn’t aged wellmost of it looked yellowed now

"Yeah, I can see why you love it," Joe said "Comfy"

That made Pansy finally sht, down another weirdly curving hall, and then opened up a door on the left

The room was circular, midcentury modern in style, and finished out the sauely futuristic chairs and desks A wall-mounted flat TV didn’t look out of place in all that

Neither did Annie, as lying on her sto Star Wars unfold on the plasma screen Her wavy hair cascaded over her back, and she earing pale pink shorts and a white tank top, and Bryn had a flashback to seeing her in exactly this position, even to the crossed ankles and her fists wedged under her chin

She’d been fourteen then She looked just as young now

"Bryn!" Annie exploded off the bed in a rush, grabbed hold, and danced Bryn around in a dizzying whirl "Oh God God God, I knew you weren’t dead, they told me you had to be, but I knew it, you bitch, how could you do that to ed her, and Bryn hugged back

Mr French ca at their feet and shins

Home

It felt that way

"She’s fine," Pansy said "I told you she was"

Bryn pushed her sister back and held her at arreat Not a scratch "They haven’t experiives o--well, Mom and Grace, but they’ll tell everybody else I lied I said ere together, and ere fine Had to keep it short, you know? But they’re not worrying And they’re all safe Brick has people watching" Annie studied her face, and Bryn saw the worry in her eyes "You look bad, honey What happened to you?"

"Later," Bryn said "As long as you’re okay, I’ainst the door "I assuh the straps on his straitjacket in his eagerness," Manny’s voice said It ca "Pansy, quit playing happy faet them up here Now"

"Yes, o master," she said, and flipped him off

"I saw that," he said

"He didn’t," she told them "No cameras in the rooms I insisted But come on He needs to talk to you"

"Annie co"

Bryn ignored that, too Mr French was too excited to be left behind, and she let hi after them

There was, it seemed, an elevator after all, in the central core; it whisked theot them past more security doors, into what see white desk, chair, a shocking red rug, and a few guest chairs that matched the bloody color Modern art on the walls that seearde for so, by now

Lia a report froreeted them all with a nod and slanced up He earing the square reading glasses again, punching keys on a laptop as if they’d done hiht I’d see any of you again"

"Glad to see you, too, Manny," Patrick said He offered Bryn a chair, but she shook her head Annie slipped into it instead and crossed her legs; she seeht she was the only one Even Mr French couldn’t settle doeaving around her legs and pressing close to emphasize how much he’d missed her "Guess Bryn told you that Jane’s dead"

That merited another uplift of the man’s attention, and raised brows "You can verify it?"