Better Off Dead

Chapter Ten: You Are A Hazard

When I returned inside, Devon had an update on the shooter. "He has not left the island, there is no activity on any credit cards, and he has not been found by security cameras. But he will show himself eventually."

"I've been working on the tracker a little more. You can switch to a second screen that will show precise directional results at close range, like a compass or a motion sensor. If the serum were hidden in a drawer or something this would lead you right to it." Taylor said."I just have to get it into this new case so you can press a button..."

She was trying to squeeze the tracker into a glass case. But the space she wanted to fit it into was smaller than the device. I added it to the very long list of things I would not try to understand.

In contrast, Devon was definitely trying to understand. "There is no way you can make that fit."

Taylor glared. She'd been trying to make this work for fifteen minutes and did not appreciate the criticism. "When there's a will there's a way, bro."

"That is not physically possible."

"Don't tell me what's physically possible! I'm a SCIENTIST." A quality that is really great, but does not alter the rules of reality and three-dimensional space.

Before anyone could stop him, Liam tried to be helpful. "Here. I can make anything..."

"Break?" I chimed in after the glass case shattered on the table. He looked so surprised that things went wrong.

Taylor huffed. "I demand hazard pay!"

"I want hazard pay." Liam said.

"You are a hazard!"

A little bit of glass had fallen on Taylor's shoulder. He tried to be more helpful and reached out to brush it off her.

Taylor turned her head slowly and gave Liam a look that made him freeze, and cringe just a tiny bit. "Touch me, and die."

"I was just going to..."

"Do you know the things I could put in your coffee? No. No you don't." She brushed the glass shards off her sleeve and huffed away from the still-frozen Liam.

He didn't look insulted, he just looked baffled. Like a mastiff that had tried to play with a kitten, got scratched on the nose, and wasn't quite sure if that was part of the game.

"You just broke a glass when you tried to pick it up. You should keep your hands off people." Devon said before Liam could try and help again.

But it's fine if he tosses me around like a shake-before-opening juice can. Thanks, man. Really appreciate the implication there.

"I am a delicate flower!" Taylor yelled at the top of her lungs.

Devon nodded politely, but his voice didn't match. "Frailty, thy name is woman."

Liam retreated, leaving Devon and me staring at each other from across the table.

"Did you know I was going to get shot?" They had to have been expecting some level of violence to throw me into the fray, right?

He thought about this for a moment, folding a napkin into an origami crane for absolutely no reason. It was a really great crane. "Dr. Moore and Bobbi are more alike than just being coworkers. They've both been suspected of some level of violence. So it was a reasonable precaution until we knew what he would do. But at no point did I expect that you would be shot. Particularly by a third party. That was certainly a surprise."

I couldn't decide if I was really pissed or kind of understanding or totally impassive. Emotions are tough. But I knew where I stood on the matter. "I am not going to be a meat shield again."

He looked me over. "You look okay."

I slammed my fist on the table and he flinched. Which then reminded me that I am a terrifying and dangerous child-sized person who had recently caused severe physical harm to another. It's easy to forget that when going about your daily life where you are mostly powerless about most things.

"I am not okay. Some guy shot me. Of course I'm not okay."

We both looked at each other for a moment, expecting the other to say something.

"If you don't want to go, talk to Liam about it." He said this in such a businesslike way, like it was a real suggestion, but we both knew it wasn't.

"Liam doesn't listen to me." I was getting irritated. "You could just tell him no."

Devon shrugged and used an 'I'll be frank with you' tone. "Unlike you, Liam can die. What decision do you expect me to make?"

Apparently, the decision to ignore my equal right of not being murdered. I had nothing productive to reply with, so I stormed out of the room. Great. The person who could absolutely fix this, but he's completely indifferent. If Taylor suddenly got regeneration they wouldn't be using her as a meat shield.