They’d been there for hours and hours at that point, well after the first helicopters arrived and the military cordoned off the entirety of Centennial Pines with an abundance of yellow tape and armed guards. Turning the once quiet and picturesque suburb into a maze of rapidly constructed walls and tents meant to keep prying eyes like Danika’s from getting closer. The eviscerated remains of the monsters that had woken people up from their peaceful lives at the crack of dawn that morning now completely in the hands of the military. People were whispering and shouting about what they thought they saw to anyone who was willing to listen, and there was a rapidly growing number of reporters and cameras who wanted to hear it all.

  Even though Danika and Mack had been some of the first to meet the suburbanites in the aftermath of the fighting. She hadn’t leapt on that chance to get ahead of everyone else with the same energy she usually would have. Hadn’t thrown herself against the armed guards of the suburb turned military outpost to find the truth behind what must have been the beginnings of the government trying enact a coverup in real time. She hadn’t even brought up the idea of heading back to the lookout point where they’d captured the footage of the Big Guy doing his thing to try and spot what the government spooks were trying to do.

  That footage... Danika thought with another gut wrenching pang of… of what? Anger? Regret? In the moment it had been recorded that footage seemed like the key to everything. To proving what her hunch had told her and what she’d desperately wanted to believe all along.

  It had been everything she’d ever wanted.

  That damn footage. She thought harshly. Blinking the wetness rapidly from her eyes as she clenched her fists. Forcing the tears away with an effort of stubborn will that was getting harder and harder to rally against the onslaught of guilt she felt. She’d thought she was doing the right thing in the moment. That the camera footage they’d recorded could show everyone the difference between the Big Guy and the real monsters appearing in the world. They tried to tell anyone they could who watched the video the truth of things but nobody listened. Worse, almost nobody who watched the video they’d recorded from the overlook seemed to see what she and Mack so clearly did.

  Where she saw the Big Guy, the same monster who’d saved her life rush to pick up a panicked woman off the street. She immediately assumed he was trying to protect her from the police the Big Guy had considered a threat. Everyone else though only saw a green scaled behemoth snatching up a helpless bystander for its next meal as it roared at policemen powerless to stop it.

  Where she and Mack had both seen the Big Guy run behind rows of houses to find a safe spot, clearly nuzzling the woman before setting her down far from the action. Others only saw a bulletproof beast dip its head down to take a bite out of its prey. Nevermind that there wasn’t any blood or sign that it had ever done so. People had only seen what they wanted to see with the bad angle they’d viewed the scene from.

  Even after hours of trying and often failing to talk to survivors of the attack and the rapidly increasing number of others piling up outside Centennial Pines, none of them were willing to listen to her or change their opinion on what they believed.

  Damnit. Danika thought with a boundless frustration as wetness streaked down her cheeks. Damnit. It… It wasn’t supposed to be like this.

  Memories flashed past in Danika’s mind all too clearly. Events that felt like they happened a lifetime ago instead of merely days.

  The first of them made her remember the gas station.

  The terrifying sight of seeing raptor-dinosaur like monsters for the first time as she hid behind the clerk’s counter but even brighter in her mind was what happened at the end of that madness. Running for her life from the monsters with her cameraman before the largest of them came right at them from behind. Claws that could have disemboweled her and Mack both hugged them tight instead as a green scaled monster took the brunt of an explosion that would have killed them both. She could almost feel the heat in the air again as she stood up in the aftermath of that fireball. Right next to the very monster that had saved them as the firelight danced across its scales in shifting hues of too bright yellows and burning reds. A glimmer of intelligence in its inhuman eyes that pushed her call out to it and reach out a hand.

  Then there was the Supermart.

  Standing in the rubble of snacks and wrappers as they surveyed the damage done by the Big Guy she and Mack owed their lives to. Trying to connect the dots of its past before she found those claw marks in the floor. Marks that led from a broken skylight right up the base of the store’s circuit box. The breaker for the security cameras bearing the unmistakable mark of a claw deep in the plastic.

  The Rest stop.

  Where she’d found so much more concrete evidence of the Big Guy’s intelligence in the forms of torn tourist maps. That and and the simple fact that the squat building was still standing since it was too small to for the Big Guy to make his way inside normally. Which means the over ten foot tall creature must have had to crawl inside. Managing to do so with such care that it didn’t even leave a crack in the glass doors.

  A shuddering breath left her chest as she pressed her palms against her face thinking on the most recent and closest encounter she’d had with him yet. She could still remember the warmth of its scales against her hand as she finally got the chance to talk to the Big Guy again, even with wounds trailing rivulets of blood all across his body he had looked at her. Saw her somehow even with horribly burned and nearly blinded eyes. He could have left, could have ignored or eaten her like every other member of its kind would have. But instead it took a moment to try and make her understand.

  She could still see him in her mind’s eye, scratching four letters into broken concrete with dagger like claws. Undeniable proof that the monster she’d been searching for all this time was able to think, to feel. That it was trying despite everything to be good.

  And she’d repaid all its efforts by stabbing it in the back.

  “D? You back here?” Mack called out as he came close to where she was hiding, a clear note of concern in his voice as the quick breather she said she needed turned into something longer.

  Wobbling a little on her feet as she quickly stood from the tree stump she’d been sitting on. She took a moment to make sure her voice was clear before replying back. “Yeah Mack. Just getting some fresh air.” She said as she rapidly wiped at her eyes.

  She’d been at the edge of the half circle of loosely packed cars and people outside Centennial Pines main entrance for a half hour at most but her quiet spot quickly joined the fast growing camp of news vans, food trucks, and more that had set up outside the suburb. Danika rubbed at her face like she could scrape off anything that might have given her recriminating thoughts away. For once, the reporter was absurdly grateful that the broken moments of rest she’d gotten sitting inside the rental car instead of a proper bed. The lack of good sleep was the best kind of excuse to explain away the redness in her eyes. Nobody would find the emotional cracks in her armor under the familiar mask of good old sleep deprivation.

  Once she was sure she wouldn’t make a scene by bursting into tears the moment she laid eyes on Mack, she stepped out from behind a particularly large news van from a rival network. Danika usually bright and competitive spirit as she gave Mack a well practiced smile. “Alright, let’s get back to it.”

  Mack’s frown deepened as he watched his partner march towards the milling crowd of people like a woman heading to the gallows instead of a reporter eager for the scoop of a lifetime. Even so he fell in step beside her brisk pace as they weaved around prepping news crews and curious locals checking out the commotion.

  Taking a deep breath Mack’s hands found their way into his pockets, then fiddled with his baseball cap as the cameraman tried and failed to find something worth doing that didn’t require a camera. His eyes flicked over to the destroyed construction site where thought of where he’d he’d lost the thing but found the dirt again as he shifted uncomfortably.

  “Danika, wait.” He said abruptly. The words sounding more like they’d been forced out rather than spoken. “I… I’m sorry.”

  Danika’s step faltered as she turned towards Mack with confusion written all over her face. “What?”

  “That footage. The camera too. I’m sorry.” Mack said with a sigh. The words coming easier now that the dam holding it all in had broken. “If I hadn’t gone to the edge of the treeline when you were talking to the Big Guy, we could have avoided all of this. We could have proved to everyone that you were right. But because I messed up- just because I wanted a better shot. We lost all hope of that happening. Just look at what they’re saying on air.” Mack said as he pointed to a television attached to some third rate network’s news van to monitor their news feed. Reporters, journalists, and bystanders all crowded around to watch the video he recorded play out with the news reel underneath. The government had moved fast to shut down Suzy Summer’s broadcast but apparently their boss Jameson was a rather courageous sort. Or maybe just absurdly petty and vindictive. Rather than allow Mack’s footage to get snuffed out by government officials the video had “leaked” out to other networks. The government might have moved quickly against Channel Seven but they weren’t quite fast enough to censor the half dozen larger networks or the many smaller and lesser known bottom feeders from airing the video that was spreading across the internet like wildfire. Almost outpacing the efforts of those taking it down wherever it cropped up.

  The editing of his video was disgustingly amateur to Danika’s eye and Mack’s sensibilities, but it didn’t have to be great or even good if all they wanted to show was a giant green monster shrugging off bullets and throwing police cars on a loop. The news reel underneath scrolling by with blatant disregard for their feelings.

  “UNKNOWN MONSTER TERRORIZES LOCAL SUBURB. GOVERNMENT EXPERIMENT GONE WRONG? PROOF OF CRYPTIDS? POSSIBLE CONNECTION TO BIGFOOT? OUR EXPERTS WEIGH IN-”

  “Oh Mack.” Danika said with a breath. The reporter having to reel back from her own guilt and frustration to realize what it must be like for her camera guy. How it must have felt to be the one holding the camera that sparked this entire multimedia frenzy. Any hope of them getting the truth out nearly snuffed out now that the story had moved too fast for them to get ahead of it.

  “It’s all my fault D.” Mack said with a despairing note that twisted at Danika’s heart. “All of this. The Big Guy saved my life- our lives. And look at what I’ve done to repay him.” Mack spread out his arms, gesturing all around him before they fell back to his sides as his shoulders sagged with emotion Danika had never expected to see in her partner.

  “That moment of you in the clearing with him was perfect D, one in a million. It could have changed everything. But I had to get it in my head that I needed a better shot.”

  “Mack.”

  “-I didn’t need to do that at all, but I did D. I just-”

  “Mack.”

  Danika stopped her cameraman cold as she wrapped him in a hug. Feeling the man tense under her for a moment before letting her embrace him.

  “I think I killed him D.” Mack said softly. The weight of those words so great that they struggled to leave his chest. But Danika still heard them. Even as his eyes watched another helicopter land inside the suburb before disappearing from view. “You know they’re gonna be looking for him now. With choppers and soldiers... everything. He won’t be able to hide forever.”

  “I know Mack.” Danika said pulling back but still holding onto his arms. Something wet in her eyes as she tried to think of anything to say back but came up empty. What were they supposed to do now? It all seemed so clear before but with their damning video evidence of the Big Guy out there turning the world against him, how could they possibly make that right? How did you even begin to make up for that?

  “We’ll figure something out Mack.” She said despite everything. “We… we just have to find him again. You’ll see.”

  “We aren’t going to be able to get close like we did before D.” Mack said shaking his head. “We scared him off. No sorry, that’s not true. I scared him off. And its only a matter of time before the military corners him and they…”

  Danika shoved Mack back weakly as she rubbed at her eyes. She was not going to cry here. She was not. “Don’t talk down on him like that.” She said mustering together a smile she didn’t feel. Long ingrained instincts she’d used just for the camera saving her composure from falling apart at the seams.

  “He’s smart.” Danika tried and failed to say convincingly. “Really, really smart. So he’s gonna be okay. He’s gonna be fine. Nothing can take him down. No matter how hurt he is he keeps going.” The reporter’s facade broke a little as her lip trembled at remembering how hurt he’d been when they’d found him. Even after their first encounter he hadn’t been invincible, there had been cuts and bite marks on his body then too.

  “H-he’s bulletproof now.” Danika said fiercely. Fighting to get the words out and look Mack in the eyes. “If he runs into trouble he’ll just get tougher, or grow a bigger tail or do some other stuff we’ve never seen before. That’s apparently a thing for him. So he’s gonna make it you’ll see. And we’re gonna find him again and- and find some way to make it up to him. I promise.”

  Mack stared at Danika for a moment with a pained expression and she stared back at him. Conviction bright in her eyes as she refused to look away. Something in Mack’s gaze softened as he looked at her. That undercurrent of guilt and despair she saw in him, what she still felt in herself. Lessened as he closed his eyes and took a shaky breath. When he opened them again Danika could see that her words had gotten through to him, even if they hadn’t felt real to herself they did something in Mack that seemed to fill him slightly. Helping him stand just a little straighter instead of sagging like he had before. Maybe he didn’t believe what she’d said at all, Mack had been behind a camera long enough to tell if she was being genuine or not.

  Maybe… it was simply because the words came from her.

  A flutter of something moved in Danika’s core as she watched Mack nod, the smallest of smiles creasing his normally stoic face as he simply said. “Okay.”

  Mack adjusted his cap on his head, snugging it tight as he reversed it properly. A small tuft of blonde hair sticking out through the hole in the back of the cap like it was meant to be there. Despite how she’d teased him the first time they met about wearing the hat like a stereotypical camera guy would. She wasn’t a fan of hats in general but...

  It looked kinda nice on him.

  “D.” Mack said as he took a step towards her “I-”

  “Are you two survivors!?”

  The moment of… whatever it was shattered to pieces as a man with a lanyard around his neck approached them with exited steps. The word “PRESS” on the end of it swinging wildly as he approached with a slightly winded, chubby looking camera guy a couple paces behind him.

  “I’m with Channel Nine, eyewitness news!” The man announced as he held out a branded cordless mic like the kind Danika had lost in the gas station before a giant green lizard threw her van into it and the place exploded.

  Belatedly, Danika realized that without her microphone or Mack’s camera in hand they looked a little too much like the haggard looking homeowners this man should have been talking to instead of them. Nevermind that they were deep within the maze of parked news vans outside the suburb and had been talking to homeowners themselves less than an hour ago.

  “Did you see what happened in Centennial Pines? Were you close to the creatures people claim to have seen? The one video we have of the incident is rather suspect, the source of the footage is a rather unsavory news station after all. Some say that the people who recorded the footage fabricated the scene entirely to cover up something worse. Can you-”

  “Shut the fuck up and get out of my face you Channel Nine scum!” Danika seethed as the words tore into the man. All her pent up sadness and despair somehow finding an outlet in unbridled aggression against her long time network rivals. The reporter flinched back in surprise as he held up his microphone face twisting into abject shock as he tried to stammer out a response and failed to counter Danika’s verbal assault. The Channel Seven reporter taking a threatening step forward as she practically snarled at the man.

  “Crawl back into the gutter with the other mainstream bottom feeding ass lickers before I snap your dick off and use it to slap the stupid off your face!”

  “Sorry, ma’m! My sincerest apologies!” The Channel Nine reporter said as he retreated at speed. His cameraman silently shadowing him as he tried to keep a smile from erupting on his face as he looked back and forth from Danika to his coworker with unbridled glee. Danika unironically raising a curled fist and shaking it as she stared after her foe.

  Breathing hard, there was an uncomfortably long beat of silence in the air as the space around them grew quieter. The people nearby quickly finding reasons to be elsewhere for some reason. Leaving Danika standing with her fist still raised in the air before she awkwardly brought it down and slowly turned to her camera guy as he stared at her. Brows raised in surprise and staying there as he blinked at her.

  “Snap your dick off and use it… to slap the stupid off your face?” He said. Clearly enunciating every word as if to make sure he’d gotten the facts right for a story.

  The beat of silence that followed his words were excruciating.

  “Were you saving that for Channel Nine specifically or…?”

  “No.” Danika said quickly. Cheeks flushing slightly as she composed herself and fixed an errant strand of hair. “I just came up with it.”

  “Right, right. I’m just not used to hearing swears that- erm. Creative.”

  “I get a lot of practice every time I talk with Jameson.” Danika said defensively, crossing her arms. “He doesn’t like talking to people who can’t keep up with him. So I’m making an effort to um, expand my verbiage a bit.”

  “A bit? I mean, I knew you guys went at it sometimes but damn.” Mack said putting a hand to his baseball cap before shaking his head with a smile. “I figured I’d already heard every swear you had in you back in the police station.”

  “Well you kind of did.” Danika admitted. “One thing I’ve learned about swearing is that it isn’t the swear itself that’s most impactful, its how you deliver it that matters. Use the same word over and over and you’ll wear it out. So for maximum effect the best swears are gift wrapped in lesser but still creative insults.” The reporter said with an air of genuine pride.

  Mack continued to stare at his coworker and the satisfaction of a creatively insulting swear before he nodded solemnly to himself. “Yeah, I think I get it now. It totally makes sense why you hate Suzy so much.”

  “Wha-” Danika started before narrowing her eyes. “W-where is this coming from?”

  “She grew up the popular girl. Always nice and agreeable around people. Winning smile wherever she goes. She’s basically your complete opposite.”

  “Of course she’s my opposite! And don’t you start with those lies about her being nice. She uses that pretty face to hide all the evil she keeps inside her.”

  “You’re her opposite.” Mack continued as though he hadn’t heard the reporter speak. “And you probably grew up one of the unpopular ones girls like her picked on. That’s where the misplaced anger and aggression for her come from.”

  Danika gaped at her camera guy as she floundered for words. “M-my aggression is perfectly placed!”

  “Probably caught frogs growing up too.”

  “It was only o-” Danika started before she shut her mouth with a snap, her face screwing up into a mask of pure exasperation.

  “Mack! Where is this coming from? Why have you suddenly become a Suzy Supporter? How did that snake get to you out here!?”

  Danika stepped back from her utterly relaxed camera guy with a hushed gasp. As though she’d just realized some terrible secret about him. Her face twisting in disgust as she spoke in a low voice.

  “Have you been reading her blog?” Danika said horrified. The innocuous question filled with more tension that it could ever hope to hold.

  “Nope.” Mack said easily. “And I hope I never will.”

  Danika held her tensed posture as though expecting some trick of some kind from Mack as he turned towards her fully and casually straightened out his shirt. Like he was making himself presentable. Well, as presentable as a man could look in a T-shirt, ball cap, and blue jeans.

  “I’m not much of a camera guy without a camera am I? Doubt there’s any stores nearby with the kinda equipment I’m usually used to so…” Mack shrugged, looking uncomfortable for the first time Danika could remember as he gestured to her.

  “I might as well do what I can to help you with the investigation. I’m no reporter, so I’m not as good at picking people apart like you are so I figure I had to start practicing somewhere.”

  Danika relaxed her tensed shoulders as she looked at Mack again. The cloud of despair that had held steady over her head for hours on end finally lessening at last. Reducing from a roiling storm that might never end down to a partly cloudy forecast over her emotions, one that finally let some light shine down on her and see what she’d been missing.

  “You want to…” Danika said slowly shaking her head with a smile as she looked at him. It hadn’t been clear to her in the aftermath of the failed encounter with the Big Guy that morning but Mack wasn’t just remorseful over the loss of the camera. She could tell he’d been regretful over the loss of the incredible footage he recorded and felt guilty about how the encounter had unfolded but underneath it all there was still something deeper.

  She could see it in the way his eyes casually drifted to the sides of her instead of staring her head on, the way his posture was almost too relaxed. Like he was trying to project his usual air of easy going calm outward instead of letting it come naturally like it always did. Unlike the signs of stress Danika usually looked for in other people Mack was almost too good at hiding how he felt. He’d already aired out his feelings a moment ago before they were interrupted by that Channel Nine dirtbag. But the sudden talk about helping her investigate? That wasn’t just out of left field, that kind of talk had literally never come out of him before.

  The way he’d tried to deflect her attention by bringing up Suzy? Wrapping his offer of help in more words than she’d ever heard out of him at once? That wasn’t just regret driving him to make up for past mistakes, real or imagined. That was worry. What was there left for a camera man like Mack to worry about in this moment?

  Being left behind.

  Danika’s lip twinged with emotion as she realized what Mack might have thought as she’d left him time after time. What he must have been thinking as she told him that she’d just needed some fresh air and she disappeared for longer and longer.

  Just as quick as emotion welled up in her Danika shoved it down as she gave Mack her warmest smile. As though the real reason for his offer of help had never occurred to her and she was just happy he wanted to stick around.

  “I’d be more than happy to show you the ropes Mack.” Danika said as she drew herself up with a breath to look into his eyes. Making sure he knew that her words were real. And that her next came straight from the heart.

  “But I do not pick people apart.”

  “You do though.” Mack said easily. Some intangible tension leaving him as he fell back into the rhythm of their usual back and forth.

  “I realize things may look different from the other side of the camera but let’s get one thing clear. I am a professional and I approach every story with the appropriate amount of tact and finesse.” Danika said convincingly. Not convincingly enough to counter Mack’s direct experience however.

  “Those things show up on camera pretty well D. You do a good job of that. But you drop the tact and finesse like a sack of bricks the moment I stop recording and you have a story you want to follow.”

  “Are you saying I’m rude or something?” Danika frowned. Her goodwill for Mack suddenly less abundant than it had been mere seconds ago.

  “I didn’t say you were rude.” Mack said. The familiar stoicism and calm returning to him at last to shield him from her glare.

  “It sounds like you’re trying to say I’m rude.”

  “You’re not rude. You just drop tact and finesse off camera.”

  “I’m nice to people! I am a nice person Mack!” Danika said testily. Her cameraman remaining annoyingly unruffled by her words or tone.

  “Never said you weren’t D.”

  “Then why say I drop tact and finesse off camera? You make it sound like I become a completely different person off camera.”

  “Nah, you don’t become a different person off camera. You just act like yourself more when you don’t have a mic is all. Doesn’t mean you’re rude. You’re usually pretty nice to most people. But you can still be nice and hack at people over and over until you get a story out of them.”

  “Hack at people?” Danika said incredulously. “What am I an axe murderer?”

  “No D. It’s because you verbally hack at people, with words. To wear them down like- Eh, you’re right that’s a bit much for a metaphor. I should have said you used a crowbar instead.”

  “A crowbar? For what? To verbally bash people’s kneecaps in?”

  “No?” Mack said. Giving Danika an incredulous look, like she was the one making absurd statements. “Because you pry information out of people.”

  “I don’t pry.” Danika said with a huff as she crossed her arms. “I investigate. That’s completely different.”

  “Well…” Mack said with a small smile. Adjusting his cap as he moved to stand beside her as they both faced the massive crowd milling about outside of the once isolated suburb. “I suppose you’ll have to show me the difference then. Got any tips for a newbie?”

  “Absolutely. Ready for the first one?” Danika asked as her eyes roamed over the crowd, a new brightness in them as she looked. The built up emotion of it all hadn’t dissipated. Not by a long shot. It all still ground at her, mixing in her core like

  “They say the best way to learn how to swim is to jump right into the deep end. Its basically the same rule for us reporters too. You wanna get good?” Danika said with a grin.

  “You’ve got to drown a bit first.”

  “What?” Mack said worryingly. His expression only growing more dismayed as Danika grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the crowd like she intended to throw him in.

  “D, that’s not a tip! Give me some actual advice or- actually, just tell me what helped you the most when you started.”

  “Drowning!” Danika said with too much enthusiasm. “Headfirst and with no mercy!”

  “That was what helped you most starting out?” Mack said baffled. “That’s not even advice D, that just sounds like suffering disguised as a learning experience. Why would you even think that?”

  “I was an intern!”

  “Oh.” Mack said softly as his face slackened. The former camera guy filled with a new and profound understanding of his coworker as the smaller woman pulled him along. The man’s arm going from taught to limp and back again as Mack jerked like a fish on a line. People watched the two go by with raised brows and questioning gazes as the grinning woman practically dragged a man behind her, his expression somehow gloomy and accepting at the same time.

  “Yeah… that’ll do it.” Mack said in sympathy as he thought about his own experiences.

  Danika wasn’t kidding when she’d said that the best way to learn was to get thrown in the deep end. Well, it was clear that was what she honestly believed at least. The first few people she’d tasked Mack with “investigating” for information had been the armed military guards of the suburb itself. Armed with nothing but a cheap pen and a tiny notepad Danika had offered him.

  “Excellent work Mack!” Danika said as she clapped an unenthused Mack on the back. “What did you learn?”

  “That civilians and other nonmilitary personnel are forbidden from entering the designated area under threat of criminal prosecution.” Mack said lamely.

  “No, that’s just what the guards told you. What did you learn?”

  “Um…” Mack said as he looked over the scribbles on his notepad. Trying and failing to decode them for information in the rare chance he actually learned something useful and wrote it down. “I learned that the rate a guard’s patience deteriorates is directly proportional to the length of time they spend guarding a certain position.” Mack said with a sigh as he rubbed his ear. “And that they can be very loud when they want to be.”

  “That’s true.” Danika said nodding sagely. “But what you really learned was what it feels like to be rejected to your face by someone you’re trying to talk to.”

  “You…” Mack started before turning to his partner with a deflated glare. “You sent me out there knowing I was going to get smacked down like that? In front of literally everyone? Are you serious D?”

  “Yes.” Danika said empathetically. “I know it sucks to get chewed out when you’re just trying to do you’re job. Believe me, I’ve been there. But its something that’s bound to happen at some point or another. And when it does you can’t let it get to you or slow you down. I can’t tell you how many new hires I’ve seen get watery eyed and depressed when the person they’re interviewing gets mad or insults them or both. So I figured its best to get that experience out of the way so you’re better prepared for the future.”

  Mack paused and stared at his coworker. Processing everything she just told him. “That makes a concerningly weird amount of sense.”

  “Concerningly weird?” Danika said with a huff of derision. “Did you have to add that? Why not say it was encouragingly insightful instead?”

  “Because that’s not something I’d say about a lesson my coworker considered akin to drowning.”

  “Right, moving on then.” Danika said. Glad to move away from any criticisms of her teaching style. “Let’s make the rounds again and I’ll tell you what we should be looking for, you’ve spent plenty of time behind the camera so you’re probably gonna catch on to this quick.”

  With that Danika and Mack started moving around the milling crowds of homeowners, reporters, and everyone else in between. Skirting around the densest areas with the major networks setting up a small studio’s worth of cameras, lights, and microphones. A sight Danika tried not to let her eyes linger on for too long as she refocused on her cameraman turned reporter in training.

  “So first things first. There are people here with all kinds of stories to tell. People will tell you anything if you put a microphone in front of their face, but what is it that you want to hear them say?”

  Mack frowned at the question and gave it a moment’s thought before answering. “I suppose we’re looking for someone who’s willing to talk about the monsters they saw right? No wait. We want to find someone who saw the Big Guy right?”

  “Yes and no.” Danika said with an approving nod.

  “We want to find someone who can actually support what we’re trying to prove to people Mack. Someone who can actually change the way people see the footage we recorded. Now sometimes you get lucky and that person will come straight to you but most times…” Danika said with her words petering off as she pointed at a man in the distance.

  “They’re not the kinds of people who are the most reliable or trustworthy.”

  Off not too far away was a rather overweight man with unkempt hair who was enthusiastically spouting his version of events to the nearest reporter who’d had the misfortune of drawing too close to him.

  “Aliens! I’m telling you, I saw it shapeshift with my own eyes. It must be a new subspecies of invader!”

  “With all due respect sir, I don’t believe the monsters you saw are aliens...” The reporter said trying to escape the conversation.

  “Um… I see your point.” Mack said with a nod before looking worriedly to Danika. “I don’t have to talk to him do I? Please don’t make me talk to him.”

  “Relax, I’m supposed to show you the ropes Mack. Not let you get eaten alive by your first crack pot interviewee. C’mon. And I’ll show you the next best tool in your toolkit as a reporter.”

  Mack obediently followed Danika curious as to what kind of tool he was supposed to use.

  It wasn’t the kind of thing he was expecting.

  “You’re secret tool is… churros?”

  “Tactical churros Mack. Tactical churros.” Danika said with confidence. As though the word tactical and churro belonged together.

  “Why?” Mack said dubiously. Unable to reconcile the sugary snack in his hands with an instrument of information gathering.

  “Nobody is going to suspect a person eating a churro has ulterior motives Mack. Plus people are more agreeable if you have food to offer them, that’s why we each have four.” Danika said as though she was an authority on the matter.

  “Generally speaking of course.” She added.

  “Of course.”

  “Plus I didn’t think you were going to offer up any of your unhealthy snacks to people in exchange for information.”

  “Never.” Mack said with casual conviction.

  “Of course.” Danika said with a sigh as she looked Mack up and down. “How the hell do you stay that thin anyway? If I ate half of the things you buy I’d have half a ton of processed sugar go straight to my thighs.”

  “I’m blessed with a high metabolism and good genes.”

  “You’re gonna have to tell me what store you bought them from then.”

  “Can’t I’m afraid. They’re sold as a package deal, same goes for everyone else too. If you’ve got a problem with yours you’re gonna have to take it up with the manufacturer.” Mack said casually as he pointed a churro at the sky.

  “What a shame.” Danika said eyeing her own waistline with a frown. “I want a refund.”

  A beat of silence followed the joke before the two broke out into smiles and stifled chuckles. Danika swiped at her camera guy with a cinnamon flavored sugar stick in mock offense at his antics.

  “Stop distracting me Mack. I’m supposed to be throwing you to the wolves here.”

  “I thought I was supposed to be drowning?”

  Danika paused for a beat at that, expertly disguising her pause with a bite of a churro before smoothly continuing.

  “We’re doing wolves now. Now follow me, avoid making eye contact with that alien guy though. He might be able to smell fear.”

  “I’d be surprised if he can smell anything honestly.”

  Fighting a smile Danika wove a trail through the crowd until they were mostly away from the most packed sections of the crowds. Danika scanned the area with an expert eye before nodding to herself as she pointed at a spot towards the outskirts of the camp. Using a churro to point like a general commanding their forces.

  “You can start at the back there. See if you can learn anything interesting from the new arrivals, most of them are just gonna be locals checking out what’s happening because its in the neighborhood. But some of them might know something we don’t.”

  “Got it.” Mack said as he eyed his collection of churros. “What should I do after I talk to the people over there?”

  “If they know anything interesting flag me down first of all. I don’t want to miss a word they have to say if it relates to the Big Guy. Other than that, just make your way back towards the food trucks to reload your churros.”

  “You can’t reload a churro D.” Mack said as he looked at his partner with a raised brow.

  “Oh hush you, you know what I mean.” Danika said waving her partner away as she pushed him towards the first group of people she could see. “Now go over there and infiltrate that group of unsuspecting locals.”

  “I think the unsuspecting locals can hear yo-”

  “Just get over there!”

  Danika finally left Mack to his own devices and the man was almost glad for it this time. Even as he tried and failed to gather any info from the small group of four giving him funny looks. He watched Danika head towards a group in the distance with a spring in her step that had been absent most of the day. A smile tugging at the corner of his face as he felt the knot of worry he had for his partner fade in his chest. It was good to see Danika go back to being herself again. Part of Mack still felt like he had a lot to make up for with the way their last encounter with the Big Guy had went. Even if Danika thought he didn’t. The memory of that encounter played out in his mind like it was stuck on a loop.

  Mack took a bite of a churro and tried not to think about how he was lying to Danika about wanting to be a reporter. He just wasn’t the type that wanted the spotlight like that.

  Doesn’t mean I can’t do some good here. Mack thought to himself as he habitually pulled his ball cap a little tighter. I just need to find someone who can make up for that footage, change everyone’s mind on what they saw. That can’t undo the damage of the vid itself but it would be a damn good start.

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  With a deep breath in to prepare himself for more conversations with people, something that had never been his strong suit. Mack made the rounds. Talking to people standing alone who were just curious about the commotion. Groups of people comforting family members who couldn’t return to their homes. All the while trying to follow Danika’s advice. Though he wasn’t sure how munching on a churro could help him gather information. Offering a churro seemed to make people much more agreeable.

  It took the better part of an hour to make his way from person to person but by that time he was out of churros and people to talk to. He’d done his best to ask what people had seen if they were relatively close to the big guy when he fell into their suburb but it felt like he was trying to squeeze water from a stone more often than not. He still gave out his phone number to anyone who might remember a detail or two down the line.

  “How the hell does that woman make it look so easy?” Mack complained to himself as he made his way back to the food trucks. There was quite the line forming around them now that it was growing nearer to dinner time. With a soft sigh, Mack made the line for the food truck selling the churros he needed to continue reporting. Idly wondering while he waited if he could snag some extra bags of chips for himself before darker thoughts creeped to the surface of his thoughts.

  The Big Guy’s smart. D was right about that, a hell of a lot smarter than I gave him credit for. Strong as hell too but… Mack thought with a crease furrowing his brow. Barely noticing the line move along.

  He keeps getting bigger. Every time we’ve seen him he’s grown. And not by a little bit either. He’s been fine till now because he’s probably been sneaking around people or hiding in forests. But that won’t be the case forever. Shit. It took what- a day or two for him to grow big enough to destroy construction sites and start stomping through suburbs. It might already be too late for him to hide like he used to. How long can he last when he becomes too big a target for anyone to miss?

  A paycheck was usually motivation enough to get Mack to do something. Usually enough to do the job well if the pay wasn’t bad. But the need he felt to help the Big Guy before it was too late simmered in his chest like a pressure cooker. He ran a hand over his face like he could relax the stress he felt for the monster that had saved his life. Oblivious to the time it was taking for the line to move forward as his thoughts spun around the problem of finding the Big Guy.

  What if this doesn’t work? We have to do something more, figure out what we can do to help. But what can we do when we can’t even find a giant lizard? There must be a way. Got to be. I’ve just got to… Mack’s thoughts roved over everything he and Danika had learned as they’d looked for the Big Guy. They’d followed as best they could but the police scanner they had was likely their best hope to find him. Even if it would likely be too late for them to help if the police found him.

  How… Mack thought hard as he waited in line. How did he know we were being attacked at the gas station? He was chewing through the meat section at that Supermart right about then. But he couldn’t have heard anything, that Supermart was miles away. Literally miles. Nothing has hearing that good. There’s no way he could have known anything from that distance. So how did he know we were in danger? How does he even know anything at all? None of it makes any sense. The thing with the circuit breaker, looking for maps, the damn writing? That’s just plain spooky. Shit man, that’s an understanding of language that’s almost human. That doesn’t just happen. Or at least it shouldn’t, not unless something beamed books worth of stuff into his head.

  That thought tickled at Mack’s mind a bit. As impossible as it was, he’d been dealing with a lot of impossible things recently. Hell he’d almost been killed by some very impossible monsters less than a few days ago. Why not believe the giant dino who saved their lives had gotten all those smarts and ethics from the internet?

  Nah, probably not the internet. Mack snorted. If it did, then it would probably be hell bent on killing us all just for the ads it had to suffer through. Although…

  Mack frowned. Eyes hazy as thought trying to find the edge of an answer in the distance. What if that’s what’s happened? Some bio-wifi thing? Sounds stupid but maybe-

  “-Sir!”

  Mack startled to find that he’d somehow made it to the front of the line. There wasn’t anyone left in front of him except the annoyed looking cook inside the food truck’s side window.

  “You gonna order something? You’re holding up the line.”

  “T-the churros please? Four of them.” Mack said as he remembered what he was ordering and why.

  “Again?.” The cook said with a mystified smile. “You and that other chick are gonna wipe out my stock at this rate. If I’d have known there was a churro chugging contest today I’d have made an extra batch.”

  “It’s for work. I uh, need them to do my job.” Mack said lamely.

  “Sheesh, you should try and stress eat some spinach bud. It’ll keep you from getting fat. Or worse looking like my sister. Hah!”

  “It’s not like that. Really.”

  “Ah whatever.” The cook said with a hearty chuckle as he took Mack’s credit card to pay. “Good luck speed running diabetes. We’re all rooting for ya.”

  A small chorus of laughs erupted from the line behind Mack as he took his card back and the churros with a sigh. Slightly chagrinned Mack took a few steps away from the loud cook running the food truck to take a breather. He’d need one if he was going to throw himself back into the gauntlet of constantly questioning strangers.

  I don’t stress eat. Mack thought with a huff as he took a bite of a churro. Then a few more. I’m too stressed about my bank account to stress eat. After a few moments Mack adjusted the wrapping for the churro he was holding, trying to find the bottom of it but coming up with nothing but flecks of sugar and cinnamon. Had he eaten that thing already?

  I’ll ignore that. Mack thought as he wadded up the empty wrapping and looked for a trash can. In the midst of his fruitless search a small commotion drew his attention back towards the food truck as he watched a man try and argue with the obstinate cook taking orders.

  “It’s just a twenty! You really can’t cash that?”

  “Read the sign kid! No cash, only credit. This is a food truck, not an atm.”

  “I don’t have my wallet on me! Please can you just-”

  “No! Now who’s next in line!” The cook shouted. The man at the front of the line tensed in frustration for a moment before sagging as he stalked away from the food truck. The man looked around at the other food trucks and the long lines connected to each one with a clearly distraught expression.

  Feeling a pang of sympathy for a fellow victim of the food truck’s ire Mack took a few steps closer to the man. He was well dressed. If a bit unkempt and frazzled looking. His button down shirt was a dark blue that looked nice until you noticed the wrinkles covering the thing. Like it had been thrown on in a hurry.

  “Are you alright?” Mack said as he adjusted his cap. “I saw a bit of that back there.”

  “Yeah, I’m fine. It’s just that- fuck man. Today’s been rough.”

  “Been rough for everyone.” Mack nodded as he felt a bit of hope swell in his heart. Maybe he’d actually found someone willing to talk? “You live here?”

  “No, no. It’s my girlfriend who lives here.” The man said tiredly. “Woke me up and scared me half to death when she called. I rushed over as fast as I could but I forgot my wallet at home. I’d go back for it but I live about twenty five miles away. And Izzie she’s… she’s just not doing well. I was gonna take her to my place but she starts crying because she doesn’t want to leave her house. Took her forever to save up for the thing so I get it. I wouldn’t wanna leave my place either but… yeah.” The man said with a deep sigh.

  “I’m sorry to hear that.” Mack said earnestly. He’d seen some of the destruction from the cliff above the suburb and he felt for the people affected by it. But he knew there was a stark difference between someone else’s house getting demolished and your own. “Do… you need that food? I can put it on my card.”

  “Thanks man.” The stranger said with a smile. “But I’m not hungry, I don’t think Izzie is very hungry either. She had a lot of water and ration bars when the paramedics were checking her out. I just wanted to try and get her something to eat to take her mind off everything.”

  “Well…” Mack said slowly as he eyed his three churros. Suddenly glad he’d bought so many. “How about some churros?”

  The man’s face twisted in surprise as Mack offered all three of the churros. “Seriously. I- I mean. Thanks man, that would help me out so much. You sure you don’t need them?” The stranger said taking all three of Mack’s churros.

  “It’s fine don’t worry.” Mack said with a small smile and a shrug. “I had about five already.”

  “Well I appreciate it man, what’s your name?”

  “Mack.”

  “Terry. Thanks for helping me out Mack.”

  “Anytime. Was your girlfriend okay?”

  “Yeah. She’s still pretty shaken up though.” Terry said as he started walking off. Not getting any indication Terry didn’t want him to come along, Mack followed.

  “You know anything about talking to people after something bad has happened?” Terry said suddenly as he wove his way through a maze of parked news trucks and haphazardly parked cars at a fast walk. “I honestly don’t know what else to say to her. I’ve told her that it’s gonna be okay at least fifty different times already.”

  “I’m not really sure what I’d say sorry.” Mack said pushing himself slightly to keep up. “Have you tried-”

  “-Izzie! Hey.” Terry said. Forgetting about what he’d asked Mack in an instant as he jogged forwards to kneel beside his girlfriend. She was sitting by herself in the back seat of a pickup truck with the door wide open. Her legs were hanging outside the pickup like she was preparing to get out and walk but she remained still. Only raising her head to look at Terry.

  Mack held back a few steps for a few seconds. Not wanting to intrude on the couple’s space in the slightest. He almost gave up entirely on the idea of asking either of them questions about the suburb attack or the Big Guy until he froze. Unnoticed by Terry or his girlfriend he took a tentative step closer. As if afraid the girl before him might disappear entirely if he moved too quickly.

  Because Mack recognized her face.

  “Are… are you alright ma’m?” he said hesitantly. Trying not to stare in shock as he looked over the very person he’d recorded himself less than a day ago. The same one the Big Guy had grabbed off the street to shield her from the police. It wasn’t easy to make her face out in the video since she wasn’t the focus, but it wasn’t that hard either. Mack wondered if she knew how many millions of times she’d been seen by people and how many of those millions thought she’d been eaten alive.

  The woman, Izzie or Isabell was clearly distressed, even wrapped up as thickly as she was in that large blanket. She was hugging it to herself like she was trying to keep out the cold of a winter storm instead of the chill of a mild afternoon breeze. And her eyes were cloudy and haunted as her boyfriend talked to her.

  “She’s been through a lot today.” The man said as he crouched near her and held out one of Mack’s churros. “Isabell here. My friend over there got you something sweet. Can you get some of this down? I know its not much but I don’t want to leave you for too long waiting in those lines around the food trucks.”

  “It’s okay.” Isabell said with a small voice as she took the sweet from her boyfriend’s hands with both hands. Like the featherlight churro was something unwieldy she might drop if she weren’t careful. She took a small bite of it after a short moment. The motion more mechanical than human.

  Mack turned and looked for Danika through the press of the crowd and vans, managing to catch her eye somehow and make her realize that he had found something big. Mack wet his lips at all the things he could think to say to the woman but he didn’t trust himself to say the right thing. What were you supposed to say to someone who survived a monster attack and was clearly still suffering from shock? That the one monster that might have terrified her most was actually the one trying to save her?

  Oh, and also that she should give a public statement to help Mack and Danika confirm their interpretation of events.

  “Fucking vultures. All of them.” The man said with a quiet snarl as he held Isabell’s shoulder. Mack tensing slightly as he tracked his gaze as he stared out at all the reporters milling about, searching for any unwary survivors they could get any more information out of.

  “Didn’t even give her a moment to rest after the attack before they were on her. I hate these kinds of people. Only thing in the world they care about is getting their pound of flesh. Not people like us you feel me? Especially the people they tear that pound of flesh from.”

  “Terry…” Isabell said softly as she reached up and held his hand on her shoulder, the man visibly calming as he looked down at her.

  “Sorry, sorry.” Terry said apologetically as he put his other hand over Isabell’s. “It just… It just isn’t right Izzie.”

  Mack tried to not draw attention to himself as he tried to signal to Danika. Trying to get across the idea with frantic eye movements and hand gestures that she should do anything but immediately come over and blurt out that she was a reporter like he feared she would. Weirdly he didn’t feel as threatened or even offended by the man’s recrimination and general dislike of reporters. He was still the unnoticed camera guy in his own mind. The one you only lingered on for a moment before looking to the nearest person with a microphone.

  Plus there were some genuinely terrible people Mack had come to know since he started work as a camera guy. Not Suzie though. She was fine. Danika was just weird about her for some reason.

  Is she though? Mack thought distractedly. Danika is the one with that gut instinct for reporting. I’ve seen her put random things together so many times I know I definitely don’t have what she does. She was right with the Big Guy the first time, then right again about how smart he was…

  Suddenly the idea that Suzie was secretly evil didn’t seem as far fetched as it had been an hour ago.

  Not gonna lie. Kinda regretting asking D to be a reporter at this point. Mack couldn’t help but think as he tried and failed to think of something to say to the couple that wouldn’t immediately result in a blow up from her boyfriend. His brows furrowed by a problem that required a far more complex solution than any kind of equipment failure had ever required.

  Thankfully he didn’t have to figure that out on his own.

  “Hey-” Danika started as she joined Mack before cutting herself off at the sight of the girl being comforted by her boyfriend. Mack saw the twitch of recognition in her frame that meant she must have recognized who he had found. The reporter, the actual reporter, Mack thought amusedly instantly changed her demeanor and lowered her tone as she approached. Doing an excellent job of hiding her excitement behind a mask of genuine care and emotion.

  “Hey.” She said again. Noticeably more compassion in her tone as she introduced herself. “I’m sorry to interrupt, I was just getting my guy here and… are…”

  Danika swallowed as she took a step forward, her body language dripping with concern as she looked at the couple. Shifting her footing and eyes in feigned nervousness before looking at Isabell directly. “Are you alright?”

  Mack schooled his expression as he kept from widening his eyes at Danika’s performance. He’d seen her “flip the switch” so to speak from the energetic and curious person she was to a calm and more refined version of Danika that was more palatable to the mild mannered kind of reporting their news network expected from her. But even so she’d only had to act the part talking to locals about renovations to their local parks or discuss the rumors circulating around a college campus about who was responsible for the latest change in admission policies. It made Mack realize she’d never had to do more than the bare minimum for her job, and it was only now that she really could show how good she was at her job.

  Damn she’s good. Mack thought as he took a deliberate step back to allow Danika to draw Terry and Isabell’s focus.

  Isabell made to respond but her voice faltered in a shuddering sigh as she shook in the blanket she was clutching to herself. Terry spoke up for her as he rubbed a hand along her back. “She’s okay physically. The paramedics checked her out and signed off on her but- she had it bad. Worse than the others.” The man said as he tilted his head towards the scattered residents of Centennial Pines.

  “Oh, I’m so sorry.” Danika said as she drew closer. Crouching down so the distraught girl didn’t have to raise her head from the ground that held her gaze. “That must have been horrible. Did… you didn’t lose anyone did you?” Danika said softly. Not having to fake an ounce of worry in her words. She could almost recall too clearly what the monsters she’d seen were capable of. Just because she knew one of them had good intentions didn’t mean Danika could forget the sight of a detached human arm torn from the last seen attached to a person.

  “No, no I didn’t.” Isabell replied softly shaking her head. “But its just… horrible. You have no idea what I saw out there. There were monsters. Real ones. People were screaming and running…” The woman trailed off eyes watery as she took in a shaky breath.

  “But I was too scared to run.” Isabell said closing her eyes. “It was all I could do not to scream. They tore open a hole in my house, I was just getting breakfast and I had to hide in the kitchen so none of them would see me.”

  Terry crouched down to wrap an arm around Isabell and the man’s presence was clearly a comfort to the woman as her breaths came more steadily. Still clearly shaky but it was a definite improvement from before. He whispered something to her and Isabell shook her head. This time with more strength.

  “I-I can talk about it Terry.” She looked up at Danika with wide eyes, the fear that she’d seen within them still there but mixed with a newfound determination.

  “I was hiding. That was all I wanted to do, I wanted to hide and disappear. I didn’t think they would find me but I saw… I saw the biggest one of them kill a different monster. It was- Oh God it was horrible. It made it suffer before it died, and then it just… tore it open. It bathed in its blood.”

  “It-” Danika started as her mouth worked soundlessly. “It what?” She said flatly. The compassion she carefully layered into her tone and voice faltering a moment upon hearing the information.

  “I’m telling the truth.” Isabell said with a small voice as Danika fought internally to reconcile that. The lofty mental image she’d built up of the Big Guy fracturing slightly as she considered that the monster that saved her might have literally bathed in the blood of its enemies.

  “I… I believe you.” Danika said nodding as she buried her thoughts on the matter. She’d heard bits and pieces about that from other survivors in the suburb at the time but she’d just taken it as pure spin just for the sake of making the Big Guy seem even more menacing. That wasn’t going to make it any easier to get others to accept the Big Guy as the nice monster she knew he was. Bathing in blood had that effect on people.

  Well uh… we all have our vices? Danika thought as she kept her expression from shifting from calm and understanding to straight up concern. I’ve got a thing for spending too much on expensive haircare products, he’s got a thing for ripping monsters open to soak in their insides. I can fix that... Probably. Not like he has to worry about credit cards declining to help motivate him to stop being so bloodthirsty. Maybe he was just thirsty?

  Unaware of Danika’s internal monologue Isabell kept going.

  “I was practically frozen until I heard that first gunshot ring out.” She said as her voice filled with a bit more strength. “I couldn’t decide on what to do, where to go, or if there was anywhere safe for me to run. Then I heard the sirens of the police and… I started running towards them… and then…”

  “It picked you u-”

  “It nearly killed me.” Isabell said with a shudder as she tried to fight back a sob. “I felt its claws wrap around me. The blood of the things it killed- I felt it soak into my clothes- Oh God!” Isabell finished with a whisper as she shut her eyes.

  “Hey, hey!” Danika started as she reached out to grab Isabell’s hand. The girl’s cold fingers gripping hers with an almost painful tightness. “It’s alright. You’re safe now. That’s what matters right?”

  “Uh-huh.” Isabell started as she sniffled. Nodding instead where words failed her.

  Danika nodded as she felt an opportunity to talk more openly about the Big Guy coming closer. A bead of sweat trailing down Danika’s face the only sign of how intensely she was focusing on this conversation.

  Talking to people was a game of sorts. The only problem with that is that sometimes the game changed depending on who you were talking to. Sometimes the game was simple. Ask the right questions and recieve the right answers. Repeat until you find the story. That was how the game was played with people who weren’t trying to play the game at all. But other times the game became complicated. When other people played the game, you had to read them more carefully. Analyze their tells, the gaps between what they were saying and what was asked, and you had to be careful they didn’t trick you into accepting an answer that sounded right or one you wanted to hear. Getting people like that to give out meaningful information was an exercise in patience and guile.

  Isabell was a different case altogether. She wasn’t playing the game at all, but one wrong word on Danika’s part would push her to flip over the table. Danika didn’t have the luxury of being able to ask direct questions like she could if she’d had her microphone and could lean on her status as a reporter. Right now she was just a stranger among many to Isabell and while most people were willing to open up to strangers, they were just as opposed if not more so to allowing a stranger to dismiss their opinion on things so they could accept a new one.

  Isabell believed what she was saying and the only way you could get someone to change what they believed was by handling them with the utmost care. One wrong word and the story you wanted them to tell would slip away.

  Careful now. “See.” Danika said as her mind whirred as it gauged both her words and expressions. Finding the right ones for the moment. Let her talk and get it all out.

  “You’re okay now. That’s what matters most of all right?” She said giving Terry a reassuring smile. Pick apart the flaws in her story.

  .and you know what? I don’t think I see a scratch on you.” Danika said warmly as her thoughts grew thick with tension as it checked off on the right things to say. Remind her she wasn’t harmed. Get her thinking on that.

  “Y-yeah. I guess your right.” Isabell said with a sigh as she looked at Danika with a small smile. Seeing a concerned stranger despite the predatory intent lurking under the surface of Danika’s mind. Hunting for the right things to say to bring this girl to her side. That story- of her speaking up for the Big Guy would change everything. Millions of people had already seen a glimpse of this girl in the video they recorded, they’d listen to her. It could make up for the damage she’d done releasing footage that made the Big Guy look like a monster instead of the hero he really was. This one girl could change the way the entire world saw him.

  “Thank God for small blessings right?” Isabell said shakily as her hand relaxed slightly in Danika’s grip.

  A joke? That’s a good sign. Danika thought methodically as she met that small spark of humor with a joke of her own. Hoping the bit of levity would help make what she really wanted to say hit home. The reporter’s lips moving mechanically as the words she was focusing on getting right touched the air.

  “Exactly. Plus think on the bright side.” She said with cheer. “You know what that hole in your house means?”

  “W-what?”

  “Remodeling.” Danika said with a sing song voice and a knowing smile.

  There was a beat of silence that stretched in the air for a second. One where Danika could swear she felt Terry’s confused frown like static building in the air and Mack’s incredulous stare at the back of her head.

  Isabell broke the silence with a genuine bark of laughter. It was softer and more fragile than Danika would have liked but the smile on Isabell’s face was a touch brighter than it was a moment before.

  “I didn’t even think of that!” She said lightly as she shook her head. Bringing her other hand over Danika’s as she asked “Do you think I can get a good enough claim with the insurance?”

  Steer her away from what made the hole. Danika’s mind warned. “Girl.” Danika said with a raised brow and a wry smile. “Forget the insurance. The moment Uncle Sam decided to set up shop on your front door is the moment an extra zero got added onto what you’re gonna make after today.”

  “I-” Isabell started as a bit of warmth crept back into the pale skin of her face. “I didn’t think of that.”

  “See I told you Izzie!” Terry said with a grin as he gently squeezed Isabell’s shoulder. “It’s not as bad as it seems. We’re gonna get through this.”

  Danika swallowed a lump in her throat as she looked over the smiling couple, hoping that her next question sounded natural enough to not raise Isabell’s guard over how badly she wanted to know what the woman knew.

  “Is it okay if I ask you something Isabell?” Danika asked softly. Trying to add a note of embarrassed curiosity to her voice that was almost foreign to her. She needed to look like a normal person asking a deeper question, not a reporter probing for answers.

  “Okay?” Isabell said after a moment.

  “How did you manage to get away?” Danika asked openly. Even as her thoughts said something altogether different.

  Almost there. Danika thought cautiously. In a way, the answer to that question was one Danika didn’t need to know. She knew why Isabell was alive. A slip of a girl like this would never have been able to outrun or escape one of the monsters Danika had seen. The only explanation was that the Big Guy had let her go, and even that wasn’t the full truth. He’d found a safe spot to put her down, away from the chaos of police cars and gunfire before heading back into the fray to keep them from finding her. But Danika couldn’t just come out and say that. Isabell had to put a few pieces together herself before she’d let Danika complete the puzzle for her.

  “I-I don’t know.” Isabell said. The fear that she’d displayed earlier coming back in force as she flinched and closed her eyes hard. Only opening them after a quick breath in.

  “And frankly, I don’t care.” Isabell said with a quiver in her voice. The sound of it was still fragile but it felt jagged and sharp like a shard of glass.

  Danika’s mind practically reeled as it was thrown off balance. The careful probing questions she wanted to ask falling apart as the girl shut her down.

  “I’m not talking about what happened.” Isabell said harshly. The words ringing with finality.

  “Listen, Isabell.” Danika said as she felt the woman rip her hand away as Danika took several steps back, hands raised and palms spread in apology, though it looked more like she was trying not to spook a wild animal than apologize to a person.

  “I’m sorry to bring it up, I know its scary-”

  “No you don’t.” Isabell said with tears brimming in her eyes. “You don’t know what those things were like.”

  “Yes I do.” Danika said. The words almost getting caught by the knot in her throat as she spoke them. “I’ve seen those monsters before. I’ve seen what they’re capable of and… God, I’ve seen what happens when people can’t run away from them fast enough. The blood, the gore, the pieces of people they leave behind. I- they almost killed me too.”

  Isabell’s stormy expression scattered as she heard Danika speak. The slip of a girl standing and coming closer. Her gaze intense but hoping in a way they simply hadn’t before. Like she’d been drowning and suddenly found someone who could offer her a lifeline.

  “You… you really understand?”

  “Yeah.” Danika said with a tired smile. “I’m sorry you had to go through that too. I really am. I wouldn’t wish those monsters on anyone. But I made it out alive. Me and Mack both.” Danika said gesturing towards Mack.

  “And Isabell…” Danika stepped closer to the woman and gently gripped her shoulders. “You made it too. You’re alive.”

  Something seemed to break in Isabell as she sagged where she stood. Tears streaming from her eyes in rivers as she let them flow without trying to hold them back.

  “I was so scared.” Isabell said in a trembling whisper. “I felt so small. Like I didn’t have a chance. Like I wasn’t going to make it.”

  “I felt that too.” Danika said with a sad smile as she hugged Isabell and the woman hugged her back even tighter.

  “I don’t know why I’m still here.” Isabell tiredly. And the sound of it made Danika close her eyes as she braced herself. She would only have one shot at this, and this was the best chance she’d ever get.

  “I know why.” Danika said softly.

  “Y-you do?” Isabell said. Drawing back in confusion to look at the stranger she’d met. Danika met her gaze and nodded once.

  “Yes. Both of us survived when we shouldn’t have but we both survived for the same reason.”

  The question was so clear on Isabell’s face that she didn’t have to say a word as she shook her head. Not understanding but wanting to hear the answer.

  “I was at a gas station when it was attacked by those monsters. They came all at once and I thought it was all over when they started clawing through the doors.” Danika explained.

  “But one of those monsters that night was different. It didn’t try to attack us. Even when it had the chance to, it attacked the other monsters and only the other monsters.”

  A flash of understanding lit up Isabell’s eyes as she put together what Danika was talking about and she drew back with a shake of her head.

  “No…”

  “Yes.” Danika insisted as she squeezed the girl’s shoulders a little tighter.

  “That monster wasn’t like the others. And it saved my life that night. Me and Mack’s. The gas station we were in exploded but right before it did that monster grabbed us and shielded us from the blast with its own body. That monster you saw Isabell? Its the same one that saved me. It-”

  “No.” Isabell said as she jerked back out of Danika’s grip. Almost stumbling towards a confused looking Terry as he looked from Danika to Isabell like he wasn’t sure what he was hearing.

  “It wasn’t trying to scare you Isabell. It was trying to save you when it grabbed you. Save you from the police it thought were a threat to you. The same way it saved me from the explosion that would have killed me and my camera guy.”

  “I’m not listening to this!” Isabell said as she walked away with her hands pressed to her head. Like she was trying to keep Danika’s words from getting close.

  “Izzie!” Terry called after his girlfriend as he turned towards Danika with a glare. “What kinda fucking story is that?”

  “It’s the truth.” Danika said fiercely as she made to go after Isabell. “Please just give me a little more time to explain Isabell!”

  “I think you talked to her enough.” Terry said as he stepped in front of Danika. An angry glare leveled at her when there had only been concern for Isabell moments before. “You really think she’s going to believe the monster that almost killed her was trying to help her? Are you fucked?”

  Turning to look over the maze of parked cars Terry started jogging towards the direction Isabell had moved towards as he called out her name. In the next moment Mack was right beside her as he looked worriedly from the retreating form of Isabell to Danika.

  “D? Maybe we should just let her be for a bit?”

  “She’s the only person who can undue the damage we did with that video Mack.” Danika said with clear pain in her voice before it firmed with resolve. “Come on!”

  Danika moved to a steady jog as she tried to determine the path Isabell had taken away from them. Eyes scanning every person she could see with something akin to desperation. They had to get Isabell to understand what the real story was. Who the Big Guy really was. She’d only told her about the gas station, that clearly wasn’t enough.

  I just need to tell her about the Circuit Breaker! Danika thought tensely as she dodged around groups of milling people and parked cars. The maps, the word he wrote into the ground, there’s so much she still doesn’t know!

  The memory of that morning resurfaced again. Its details too clear and almost too bright in her mind as she remembered the way the Big Guy had let her get close. The way he’d looked at her despite the pain he was in. Danika’s hands clenched as she remembered the feel of warm scales under her hand. The way that he’d loomed over her without even trying but had shuddered under her hand as she talked to him. The way he’d nodded as he understood what she was speaking to him. She hadn’t explained any of that to Isabell and the need to tell her those things burned inside Danika like a roaring flame that stoked her hope higher and higher.

  She’ll see then. She has to!

  Terry had clearly taken a wrong turn as Danika could clearly hear the man calling out for his girlfriend worriedly. She left him behind to wander in the wrong direction as she craned her neck to look above the crowd… and finally saw what she was looking for.

  “Isabell! Wait!”

  The girl must have increased her quick walk to a jog at some point because her shoulders were shaking from the effort of putting some distance between herself and Danika. They’d moved out into first quarter of the wide open area around the freshly fortified entrance of Centennial Pines. The military making clear to all the eager news reporters and displaced homeowners that the space was to stay clear for their own trucks to move into the suburb without issue. That mean that there was a large amount of people milling about, some of whom turned to look at Danika to see what the commotion was.

  “Isabell, there’s more I haven’t explained.” Danika said as she approached the girl breathing hard before her. “Just give me a chance to tell you more about him alright? He’s not trying to scare you or anyone. I know its hard to tell, but I’ve seen him up close and I can tell you beyond a shadow of a doubt that he’s good.”

  Danika walked the few steps towards the girl and seeing that the girl hadn’t moved away felt bold enough to reach out and place her hand on the woman’s shoulder. Too eager to talk to Isabell to notice the way she shuddered under her touch. Or the way her arms wrapped around herself too tight as her fingers dug painfully deep into her arms. Her fingernails breaking the skin in more than one place.

  “I’m trying to find him, to show the world that they’re wrong about him. You can help change the way everyone sees him Isabell.” Danika said with genuine warmth in her tone. Tinged with the desperation to make things right and undo her own mistakes.

  “Once we do that and we make sure he’s okay, I think he might like to see you again!” Danika said with a small laugh. “I get the feeling he’s the type to care too much and he’d probably want to make it up to yo-”

  “Shut up!”

  Danika was blindsided by the scream that tore out of Isabell as the girl grabbed her arm with both hands and wrenched her light grip on her shoulder like she was tearing herself free of a viper that had wrapped around her neck. Practically the entire clearing hushed in one big wave of silence as every nearby head turned to look at Danika and Isabell.

  “Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!” Isabell continued to scream as she stomped the ground like a frightened mare and slashed her clawed hands through the air as she turned towards the wide eyed Danika with too wide eyes of her own. The girl looking like she was on the verge of a panic attack as she took light rapid breaths in and out.

  In that split second of shock, understanding came too fast and too late as Danika realized that approaching Isabell like this was the last thing she should have done. She tried to step forward and apologize but Isabell wasn’t about to give Danika any more chances to speak.

  “I don’t ever want to talk about that fucking monster again! Never! Not for the rest of my life! And I don’t ever want to see you ever again!” Isabell shouted as she backed away from the unmoving Danika like she was a wild animal.

  “Isabell!” A voice shouted out with panicked concern.

  “Terry!” Isabell said with frantic relief as she fell into her boyfriend’s arms as he ran into her. The girl letting out a sob of anguish as she clutched at the man. “She’s crazy! She’s completely crazy!”

  “Look at what you’ve done!” Terry shouted as he hugged Isabell tight. “What did you do to her!”

  “N-nothing.” Danika said as she raised her hands in surrender. Looking at Terry then past him towards the hard stares of the crowd. “I was just talking to her I swear! I’m a reporter with Channel Seven. I wouldn’t-”

  “Damn you to hell! You fucking people are all the same!” Terry said with a snarl of biting anger as he put Isabell behind his back. Stepping towards Danika with a pointed finger like he wanted to spear her through with it. “Can’t you see what she’s been through today!? Don’t you care at all that you’re harassing a person to get a fucking story!”

  “Please! I’m so sorry. I never would have done anythi-”

  “You’ve done enough!” Terry said as he stepped forward and shoved Danika hard. The push was hard, fueled by anger and hatred. It was only by sheer luck and her own natural grace that she managed to turn a shove that would have sent most women sprawling into a frantic backpedal that kept her on her feet long enough for a someone to catch her before she fell.

  “Hey!” Mack said with sudden heat as he glared at Terry before looking Danika over with a panicked worry. “Are you alright?”

  “And you!” Terry said as he pointed at Mack accusingly as he stalked towards him with a vengeance. “I thought you were trying to help! But you’re just like that fucking snake! You got cameras on you don’t you camera guy? Recorded everything just so you could make a quick buck!?”

  “Don’t talk to her like that.” Mack said with a quiet fury. His voice almost a mirror opposite to Terry’s loud shouts as he stepped towards Terry with clenched fists.

  “Fucking make me!”

  “Mack! Don’t!” Danika called out.

  Too late.

  Terry made the first move. Stepping in to deliver a haymaker into Mack’s face that he barely managed to twist aside. The dodge more reflex than conscious thought as Mack brought his hands up in a loose guard. Missing an opportunity to hit Terry in his wide open side as the man turned around like a bull and swung again. Moving with well placed steps he delivered an uppercut that sent Mack’s hat flying off his head. The man’s eyes going wide as he backpedaled away from someone who clearly had more experience fighting than him.

  Terry’s moves weren’t overly graceful. If anything he was being sloppy with his wide swings in his anger. Plus it wasn’t like the man was anything close to a black belt in terms of skill. But he’d at least had some experience boxing in the gym or punching a bag. That immediately gave him the edge over Mack. In a real fight, any amount of fighting experience will give you an advantage against someone without any experience whatsoever.

  People were shouting from the crowd now. Some calling out for someone to call the police, others for calling over the guards posted by the entrance to the suburb, and a few voices started cheering Mack or Terry like they were exited to have something to watch. A few people rushed forward to try and end the fight before it got too rough, but they didn’t move soon enough.

  Mack had put up a valiant effort fending off the blows of a more experienced opponent. But Terry had moved forward after his uppercut to throw uncoordinated, quick jabs. And those kinds of things just weren’t things Mack had any experience defending against. He managed to block one with his arms by sheer luck, back step away from two more, but the next punch finally landed home.

  Without any proper defense Terry struck Mack hard with a jab to his face, the blow not as hard as it could have been but it was still more than enough to send Mack tipping back on unsteady legs before losing his balance and falling to the ground.

  “Mack!” Danika shouted as she rushed forward. Fear and panic mixing together as she rushed towards her camera guy even as people from the crowd arrived to keep Terry from jumping on Mack while he was down. The man shouting obscenities even as he disappeared behind a wall of people.

  “Are you alright?”

  “Fine. I’m fine D.” Mack said with a groan as he propped himself up with one hand off the ground. The other feeling at his face with a wince.

  “Looks like you got fucked up buttercup!” Said a too happy voice calling out to Mack somewhere in the crowd.

  “Honestly, can’t believe those reporters went and hounded that poor girl like that.”

  “Got what he deserved I say.”

  “Hope it’ll knock some sense into the bastard.”

  “Mr. Steal-Yo-Girl got fucking folded! Hah!”

  Danika glared around at the crowd that was doing a lot more to calm down and console Terry than do anything to help Mack get up from the ground. Mack grimaced at all the bad looks he was getting and Danika could feel more than a few glares thrown her way too. With a calming breath she bent down and picked up Mack’s hat. Pushing down hard on the urge to lay into the crowd, Terry, and Isabell all at once for turning this entire situation violent. She tried not to think about the part she played in the situation as she held out Mack’s hat with a worried frown.

  “Are you sure you’re alright?”

  “I am now.” Mack said with a smile, wincing as he tugged at the rapidly forming bruise on his cheek. “Nothing’s really hurt except my ego.”

  “Come on, let’s get you some ice.” Danika said quickly as she helped Mack to his feet and the two of them took the quickest route away from the crowd. Wanting to put as much distance between them and everything that happened as possible.

  “Well… that could have gone better.” Danika said despondently as she munched on a french fry. The late afternoon sun hanging low as she and Mack licked their wounds.

  After Isabell’s nuclear blowup at them in front everyone and the fight that ensued. Mack and Danika retreated to the safety of a less popular food truck that had set up on the outskirts of the suburb’s quickly growing camp. Arriving too late to pick a prime spot for hungry customers and not serving anything people particularly wanted. The duo were slumped over a small plastic picnic table set up by their food truck of choice. Partly because of they were recovering from their failure to convince Isabell the Big Guy had tried to save her life and the fight with Terry, but mostly because one of the table legs was horrifically uneven.

  “She could come around… Eventually.” Mack said waving a fry slightly for emphasis. Two bags of chips open and next to his meal in case the burger-fry combo somehow failed to keep his hunger in check. Even all that extra unhealthy food didn’t seem to help Mack’s dour mood.

  “I don’t think we have the luxury of holding out for eventually Mack.” Danika said as she placed an arm on the table to lean her head into. Staring off into the distance at nothing in particular as she tried and failed to get her mind off the disastrous talk with Isabell. She ran the entire conversation through her head multiple times. Wishing she’d said something different to get the girl to open up to them instead of shutting down the way she did. Danika let out a long sigh as she groaned in frustration before letting her head drop onto the table in defeat with a small thud.

  “Damnit all.” Danika said despite her drooping hair muffling her words.

  “What was that?”

  Danika rolled her head onto its side and blew the hair off her lips with a puff of air before responding.

  “I blew it Mack. I blew it to fucking hell and back. That girl was our best chance to make everything right and I managed to give her PTSD towards the only nice monster on Earth. And sic her boxer boyfriend on you.” She said with a melancholy lilt to her voice. The despairing image Danika was trying to give off hampered somewhat by her hair covering her face like a death shroud. The table pressing against her cheek didn’t help either.

  “You can’t give people PTSD, D. That’s not how that works.” Mack said as he upended a bag of chips and its contents into his mouth like he had the munchies or like he no longer cared if others judged him. The former reporter adjusting the wet paper towel and its melted ice against his cheek with a sour expression aimed at the food truck they’d ordered from. Who the hell makes people pay for ice and a paper towel after they’ve been punched?

  “You didn’t blow anything either D. Except for your hair just now.”

  “Bite me.”

  “D. Find someone who shares your kink. I’m not into that.”

  “Kill me.”

  “I’m not into that either.”

  “Ugh.” Danika said as she raised her arms up onto the table to bury her head into.

  “What are we doing here Mack?” Danika said with a sigh of blown hair.

  “Sitting at a busted plastic table drowning our sorrows in lemonade and below average food.”

  “Hey! I heard that!”

  Both Danika and Mack turned their heads towards the owner of the food truck they were sitting outside of, who was obviously trying to listen in on their conversation and stared at him until he scoffed at them and went back inside his truck. A few seconds later the volume on his radio cranked up a notch. Then several more notches as the air between the both of them filled with sound.

  “Shake, shake, shake, Senora!

  Shake your body line.

  Shake, shake, shake, Senora-”

  “Good taste in music.” Mack said half heartedly as he nodded his head slightly in approval. Danika nodded as well, though with her head on the table it looked like she was trying to scratch an itch without using her hands.

  “Yeah, I really like this song.”

  “Same.”

  A long beat of silence filled the air between the both them held for a moment before breaking. A heavy sigh left Danika’s lungs as she reluctantly lifted her head off the table.

  “What did I do wrong Mack?” She said softly. Her voice pained as she looked at her partner and winced at the dark bruise on his cheek.

  “You didn’t do anything wrong D. You tried your best.” Mack said as he finally gave up on using the soggy paper towel to help his bruise. Tossing the thing onto his mostly empty plate with a flick of his wrist.

  “It’s just that sometimes, no matter how hard you try. Your best isn’t good enough.”

  “I… I know that. I hate it. But I still know that.” Danika admitted. “Is your face okay?”

  “It’s fine, looks worse than it is. That’s all.”

  “You still got punched because of me Mack.” Danika said softly.

  “It’s fine D. Really. Besides I didn’t get punched.” Mack said with a dismissing wave of his hand. “I just happened to catch a fist with my face today. That’s completely different.”

  “No its not. Don’t try to make it sound less bad that it is Mack.”

  “It is though.”

  “And how are you gonna convince me of that?” Danika said looking at Mack with watery eyes. Not even trying to hide the pained emotion in her eyes even as she dabbed at the corners of her eyes with a sleeve.

  “Because I took a hit for someone I care about.” Mack said with a casual shrug as he looked at Danika. The words making something in Danika’s chest twist out of shape as Mack continued talking. “That’s what friends do. It stings and that sucks. But I’ve got so much more to worry about I’m not gonna spend any more time thinking about it than I need to.”

  “You…” Danika started. Flushing as she completed the sentence in her head. You did that for me?

  “… I’m glad I have you as a camera guy.” Danika said as she covered her thoughts with extra thick curtains. Then stuffed them in a box. A black box, inside a slightly larger invisible box.

  “Glad to be of service.” Mack said with a regal wave of his hands. “But I think I should get paid extra for playing bodyguard.” The man said flatly.

  “Always with the money. Okay, I’ll try and renegotiate with Jameson to get a body guard bonus for you.” Danika said with a smile. “And I’ll even try and get you a little extra for reporting.”

  “Ah, yeah.” Mack said with clear embarrassed as he fixed his hat. “I don’t think I’m cut out for reporting D. Sorry.”

  “Psh. It wasn’t that bad.”

  “I got punched in the face.” Mack said pointing to his cheek. “Nobody ever punches the camera guy. Plus I think you should get hazard pay for having to work with flight risks like Terry and Isabell.”

  “They… they were just dealing with a lot.” Danika said frowning. “I thought I was asking the right questions Mack but I messed up somewhere while talking to Isabell. If I’d said anything else…”

  “You serious?” Mack said with a raised brow. “D seriously. You were amazing.”

  “You’re not just saying that are you?” Danika asked.

  “Of course not. D, listen. I didn’t know the first thing I would have said to that girl. Not a clue, but you went right in and nearly got her to accept what really happened like it was nothing. You literally had her crying and hugging you before she completely flipped out.”

  “But, what if I could have gotten her to open up to us more? What if I’d just asked the right questions?”

  “Don’t linger on stuff like that D. Take it from me. The best thing you can do for yourself is not get stuck in the past. I think what we need now is to figure out where we go from here.”

  “But we don’t know how to find the Big Guy. We don’t even know where to start.” Danika sighed as Mack nodded in agreement.

  “I don’t think we have to find him actually.” Mack said pondering as he put a hand to his chin. “What if… we don’t look for him specifically. But for any other people he might have saved? You know how the Big Guy is D. There’s got to be at least one if not more people out there he’s saved monsters. Some of those people have got to be more like us than Isabell or Terry right? People who want to find out what really happened?”

  “That…” Danika started as she felt a bit of hope return to her chest. It wasn’t much, she didn’t even know where to begin looking for people who’d met the Big Guy and wanted to talk about it. It wasn’t like they had a website or chat group to share stories. She literally had no leads whatsoever except a general direction the Big Guy had run off in.

  But when had that ever stopped her before?

  “You know what Mack?” Danika said as she stood with a measure of her earlier energy. Looking at her camera guy with a smile. “I think you just did the most important thing a reporter can do.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Ask the right questions.” Danika said beaming as she stepped away from the table and threw her plate away into the garbage can.

  “It won’t be easy, I doubt most people the Big Guy saves are the type to tell everyone they got saved by a big scaly monster. It would be nice if people did but that’s not most people.”

  “So what’s the plan D?” Mack said with a smile. Uncaring of the bruise on his face as he waited for her answer.

  “We find them.” Danika said meaningfully. “And we tell their story.”

  A beat of silence followed between the two of them. The kind that felt purposeful and impactful. The kind that heralded the beginning of something great.

  Mack raised his hand as he broke that silence. “Great idea. I can get onboard with that but ah, I still need a camera.”

  “We can get a camera on the way.” Danika said nodding as she pointed off into the distance. “To the rental!”

  “Sure but, can we also find a motel or something to get some actual sleep too. I’m about an hour away from keeling over to hibernate.”

  Danika’s outstretched finger wavered a bit before drooping as she let her hand fall to her side. “Yeah we need to do that. I didn’t wanna say it but those espressos earlier are the only thing keeping me awake right now.”

  “To the motel.” Danika said with much less enthusiasm than before, her tiredness slipping into her words as she and Mack shuffled off towards their rental car.

  “Can we make sure the motel has a good breakfast too?”

  “To the bed… and breakfast.” Danika sighed as she finally let her shoulders slump. Pulling out her phone with an effort of will. “Let me get the GPS going and see what’s nearby.”

  “I’ll drive.” Mack said casually.

  “You are not driving! I want to arrive to our destination safely. Not drift into the parking lot at 60 miles per hour.”

  “I’m a safe driver.” Mack protested.

  “I don’t remember feeling safe on the drive to Centennial Pines.”

  “That was different and you know it. Besides we got here safely didn’t we. Do you really wanna get the motel, or do you really wanna get to the motel?” Mack said as he looked pointedly at Danika from the passenger side of the rental. Standing outside the door and staring as Danika glowered at him for a long moment.

  She threw him the keys.

  “Thank you D.”

  “If you’re driving kills me I’m haunting you.”

  “Ghosts don’t haunt other ghosts D. That’s not how that works.” Mack said with an easy smile as he got into the driver’s seat.

  “Just shut up and drive.”

  https://discord.gg/3twfsErnzM