Parker turned on the television and debated whether or not to wake Skylar yet. It was past nine o’clock, but she hadn’t gone back to bed until after noon. After pointing out that Raptor couldn’t know she was Songbird he felt like they accomplished something. He only wished he’d be there tonight to make sure nothing went sideways with her meet with Raptor.
Actually, he wished he hadn’t pulled her into this in the first place.
At the time, it sense to him, but now…Having her as a partner was turning into a liability for him. She was too inexperienced and Parker knew he couldn’t protect her if she slipped up in front of Raptor – not tonight; maybe not at all. The other members of his crew knew what they were getting themselves into and they enjoyed the danger. Chill was a seasoned con artist who dealt with the criminal element every day. Cherry was driven by her hatred of Raptor, but at least she had the skills to back her up.
But then there was Skylar.
She shouldn’t be part of all this. If all of her anger could just be set aside then she could have a good life. Intelligence was obviously one of her gifts, but she didn’t use it to see what was right in front of her face. The truth about what was going on and Raptor’s true identity was so obvious to Parker that he was amazed Skylar was still in the dark.
Parker could only hope his luck would continue to hold. It was a lucky break the FBI left Skylar alone after her phone call to them. Dinsley was forthcoming with him, but the last thing he needed was a dozen agents hanging around making it difficult to get things done. While the resources Dinsley had at his disposal could still be useful it was definitely better that they were out of the picture now. Besides, they never would have gone along with what he was doing; it was illegal, after all.
Parker was so lost in his own thoughts that he didn’t hear Skylar until she crossed into his line of sight. There was something different about her, but he couldn’t quite figure out what it was. Of course, he thought absently, she’s practicing for tonight.
“Why didn’t you wake me?” she asked as she sat down on the other end of the couch.
Parker shrugged. “I wanted you to be rested.”
“I’d rather be ready than rested.”
“Have it your way.” Parker rummaged for a moment in the bag next to his feet on the floor until he found what he was looking for and stood. “Come with me.”
He was moderately surprised when Skylar followed him into the bathroom without question. She must be more nervous about tonight than she was letting on. Rather than draw attention to it, he decided to get straight to business.
“Do you wear contacts?”
Skylar seemed surprised by the question. “No. My vision is 20/10.”
“How nice for you. What about color lenses?”
She shook her head. “I like my eyes just the way they are.”
“Well, that makes two of us, but we need to hide them from Raptor. What color do you want?”
Skylar gave him a blank look, but remained silent.
“Okay then, let’s try hazel. That should look natural on you with your coloring,” Parker said, handing her the packet containing the lenses.
She looked at it for a second and set it on the counter. “I can’t.”
Parker sighed. “What do you mean you can’t?”
She shrugged. “What can I say? I’m weird about my eyes.”
“You’ll just have to get passed that then. We don’t have a lot of time here, Skylar.”
“I know,” she whined, “but I can’t even put drops in them without freaking out.”
Parker put his hands over his eyes and then rubbed his temples. “Look, either you wear the damn lenses or you don’t meet with Raptor and you’re out of this right now. Anyone who’s looked at you for two minutes will recognize you by your eyes, regardless of the rest of the disguise. There are no other options.”
Skylar’s jaw dropped in protest, but she didn’t say a word. Instead, she picked up the packet and looked at it for a second. She put it back down and cast a pitiful look in Parker’s direction.
“Okay, don’t be an ass about this, but I don’t know how to do it. You’re going to have to show me how to get these things in.”
Parker suppressed a smile and shook his head. “You have got to be the only person I know who can make a guy feel like a jerk because you need help.” Before she could respond he added, “Watch carefully.”
Parker touched his finger to his eye and skillfully removed his lens.
“I had no idea that you wore contacts.”
“There’s a lot you don’t know about me. Anyway, that’s how you get it out. To put it back in…” Parker let his voice trail off as he pulled down his lower lid slightly and put the contact back on. “See, nothing to it.”
Skylar tossed him a skeptical look and opened the packet. “I’d prefer it if you didn’t watch me do this.”
“Suit yourself. I’ll be watching the news,” Parker replied, before turning and walking away.
© 2011, Sydney Katt. All rights reserved. Unauthorized use of content will result in dragon attacks.
Facebook
Twitter
Email
Ok…Ocd moment……Should this read: At the time, it made sense to him, but now…..
The ‘truth’ about what was going on??….and Raptors true identity……so obvious….aarrgghhh…lol!!!
OMG…I’m like that with my eyes…lol!!!!
Yep. It should.
Exactly. Obvious to everyone except Skylar…and the FBI…and the readers. But otherwise, everyone knows his identity.
Ha! So am I. I had contacts – briefly – before we figured out that my allergies were too severe to use them most of the year. Here, whenever you get your first prescription for contacts, they make you go through a little “class” at the eye doctors and then leave you in a little room until you can demonstrate you can get the in and out without gouging your eyes out. The whole thing was a bit like watching Parker demonstrate it like it was no big deal, then standing there staring at the package once I was alone…minus the overt sexual tension, of course.
Hmm, I like the idea of dangling the continuation thread out there. As a reader, I’d like to have most of the smaller loose ends tied off and have my focus directed to the bigger picture – the main event of the series. You’ve tied the first two books together well! Can’t wait to see how the third develops into the previous two!!
[haha, here's your onslaught of inbox comments]
Honestly, I consider the third the second half of this one, even though I switch primary characters and introduce a new ginormous problem to deal with. The events I put into play during this book will carry us through the next four books, in some form. Let’s just say, a few bad choices at key moments here and in the next one will set off an unstoppable chain of events that gets someone killed. (And since I’m not a TV writer, not even my main characters are safe.)
Not really sure how I made the first book tie into this one though. Must’ve been a fluke…or something I unconsciously did during editing. I’m pretty sure the first draft was complete before I realized exactly how pivotal this one was going to be to the ultimate series arc.
Random, but I’ve been in hyperdrive over the last week or two thinking about the 5th and 6th books. Guess it’s about time to start writing those while I finish editing these.
Ahh, I love putting things in my eyes! Especially sharp pointy things! LOL. I am dying for the big climax here! The meeting or the robbery?? When is everything going to collide!?!?!?
Sharp pointy things? What do you put in your eyes because Skylar’s just popping in some disposable soft contacts.
I’m feeling spoilerish so…Thursday.
Then again, Book 2 kicks off the true series aspect of this series so…big payoff may not hit until the next one. Hard to say. This is about the time I got good at *not* wrapping things up in neat little bows by the time the words “the end” hit the page.