“If he wanted us dead, we would be,” Manny replied fatalistically.
“Almost did Kit in,” Guinevere sighed.
“Probably,” Manny theorized, “because other than Paine, Pitch Black was the only one to score a direct hit.” Turning back to Kit’s prone form, he said, “When the monks taught me how to use my powers, it was never for anything as destructive as what Vagabond can do.” He paused. “Similarly, Vagabond probably doesn’t have the finesse you need for all the things I do. And that’s the problem: The trick with telepathy is that you have to know how the damage was done in order to fix it. You can’t use a hammer for a screw.”
“You try that Jedi Voice Trick on him?” Romeesha asked, using the term Kit would have used.
“’Nepalese’ Voice Trick,” Manny said, giving the trademark reply with a smirk, going along with the joke. “I can compel a person to do anything, even against their will. But they have to be conscious.”
There was silence, and then Miss Gwen spoke. “How are you holding up?”
Manny sigh-laughed. He undid the buttons of his shirt, revealing a yoga-toned torso, and turned his back to the women to reveal a huge, ugly bruise over most of his back. He stiffly turned around slowly, grunting.
“Oh, shit,” Romeesha drawled. “What’d the doctors say?”
“I told ‘em I slipped on a carpet and over a rail. Landed on my back,” he said. “The old ‘clumsy blind-guy stereotype.’ Nobody suspected I was thrown against a tree. Anyway, I have three cracked ribs, but my spine is OK. Very mild concussion.” He pointed to a noticeable welt on his head. “I’ll be fine. Dressing was tough.”
“Why did Vagabond attack you first?” Guinevere asked. “That was low. Attacking the blind dude.”
“He wasn’t picking off the easy targets. He’d have taken you two out if so,” Manny replied, buttoning up and tucking his shirt into his jeans. He sensed a flash of indignation. “None of you have ‘aggressive powers.’ Nash can vaporize metal. Alastair can make anything blow to pieces. Guinevere can build things and Romeesha can hack computers. Unless you are packing heat, he’d have just as well ignored you.”
“Thank you. I feel so empowered now,” Guinevere snipped, mildly ticked she wasn’t considered a serious threat. “And the next time your washing machine is on the fritz—“
“No offence. But I’m the only other psychic of us,” Manny explained. “Although I can’t do half the shit he can. He can pick up cars and throw them into the next state. I’m more of a mentalist. I can completely take over a person’s mind. I can wipe it clean. And I can surf psychic energy to its source and cancel it. I could have done that. I could get into his head, if he was distracted enough…and I had a lot to drink beforehand. After what Sanjay and Kit did, I would have had an opening. So he knocked me out first chance he got.” He smiled slightly. “I’ll pull through. How is JJ?”
“Benji’s got him tied up in his basement.”
“You’re kidding.”
“No joke,” Romeesha replied. “He was buggin’ out. Quartz had to hold him down and Eartha had to knock him out.”
Manny sighed. “He’ll be fine, once he withdraws. It wouldn’t take them long to figure out you can have skin-to-skin contact with the man. Poor guy.”
Guinevere sighed, her eyebrows shooting up and then down. “Good to know you’re gonna pull, through.”
“Been better. I’ve taken some vacation, so my practice is taken care of. Besides, to have your shrink look more beat up than you are is bad press.” He paused. “Moving around is harder. Bo keeps coming to the rescue, and Finn has offered to help while I recoup. I’m getting my rest. But as soon as they let visitors in, I’m here. Bo’s been a real doll and drops me off before he goes on duty at the precinct. He’s thinking of re-enlisting, not that DODT over, in case you hadn’t heard.”
“Didn’t,” he heard Romeesha say. “But ain’t surprising. The man’s a soldier. Loves his country and all ‘dat.”
“So what can we do for Kit?”
“My first thought was to haul Vagabond in here—“
“Seriously?”
“You are fucked-up!”
“—but I know that’s out of the question.”
“Even if we could find him.”
Romeesha spoke. “Too bad he ain’t a computer. You can just turn it off when it freezes up. Works every time, pretty much.”
Manny’s eyebrow’s poked up from his sunglasses.
“Whaaaaat…?” Romeesha asked thickly, her head going off to one side. Then she blinked. “Oh, now don’t even go there! Seriously?”
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