Ultraviolet

Chapter Thirteen: Quinn

The National Mall

Washington, D.C.

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Over the next days, Isi continued to work on her endurance, as V wanted. Then, in the early-morning, after a hurried breakfast, she put on the leather gear V had given her. It was designed to fit most people: the tunic had lacing up both sides that she could pull tight, and the vambraces and greaves also tied onto her limbs.

She was a little afraid of them falling off, but she put her knee-length black coat on over it all and let V drop her off in a secluded corner of the Mall. Quinn was with her dad at Rockefeller Center, so she started to walk along the north edge. With her coat on, she didn't get too many strange looks, but there weren't that many people on the Mall at all. She supposed some people probably had to work—it was a Thursday, after all—and the weather wasn't particularly inviting. Though it wasn't too cold, the sky was leaden with heavy clouds.

Isi had brought her headphones, and so she listened to music while she walked. She was already getting tired, and it had been less than an hour. They'd come so early because they hadn't known when Hellfire would strike, so she might be here for hours. Not to mention the very real possibility that he wouldn't come to the Mall at all. V could appear before her at any moment, telling her that all was taken care of, that she didn't need to worry anymore.

Or maybe it would be Quinn—it was possible V wouldn't want to look her in the eye after he'd lied. The former had already been by a few times, but hadn't mentioned anything to that effect, even when Isi asked him. But she was alone now, wandering through the many walkways, and she just had to assume that nothing had happened just yet.

She wondered how Durant and Bonnie had ever been able to build snowmen here. The snow was almost all gone from the ground, leaving behind grass that was slightly bleached of color. The only remaining snow was in piles from when someone had cleared the walkways, and those were small and stained with mud.

There was a small shop near the Lincoln Monument that sold lunch, so Isi bought some with the cash she'd shoved in her pocket and sat at one of the tables. She kept her eyes roving.

Once she'd balled up her trash and thrown it away, she pulled her phone out of her coat pocket and called V.

"How is it?" she asked. "Over there, I mean. Any sign of—"

"No, starling." He sounded tense, short.

Isi bit her lip. "Is everything okay?"

"Yes," he said, letting his breath out. When he spoke again, he sounded more relaxed. "No news is good news, I think."

"Maybe he decided against it," Isi pointed out.

"I suppose it's possible. Or he has made new Christmas Eve traditions."

That made her nervous. She'd started walking again, but she suddenly wanted to sit down. She found a bench and headed for it. "I hope not," she said, trying to keep her voice light.

"I, too, would like to get this over with," V mused. "It has been... not quiet here, but ordinary. How has it been with you?"

"Quiet," she said, half-smiling. "Not many people around."

"The blizzard," V guessed.

"Maybe. It's not that cold here. Foggy." She glanced across the view of the mall as she settled onto her bench. Visibility wasn't that great—if Durant showed himself, would she even be able to see him before it was too late? "Think it scared him off?"