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Chapter -15- Stuff And Things

December 26, 2049 - some time after midnight

Stasis Chamber Laboratory Alpha...

Vincent wrapped his arms around Topaz from behind. She immediately relaxed, recognizing his smell first, and then his touch.

She reached up, over her shoulder, and ran her fingers through his hair. "Baby," she murmured softly.

Reno watched his brother with a wan smile. His smile faded but he remained otherwise nonjudgmental, seeing Fox Parker approach.

Vincent and Fox shared a kiss.

Reno couldn't deny it was at least a _little_bit weird to see his brother kissing another guy.

Reno turned to face Rufus. "Hey."

Rue, still in full werewolf form, turned to Reno and pulled the former inspector into a quick half-hug. "Hey! It's good to see you made it back in one piece, son! How the hell're you doing? Did you find Falcon? Is this shit finally over?"

Reno grinned, amused by Rue's exuberance and enthusiasm. "I sure as hell hope so, big guy. I gave that bastard exactly what he wanted, and I hope he chokes on it."

"I dunno what that means, but it sounded perdy damn badass. They's wakin' up Bull first. Nicky gonna be next. Your Nicky. She's here, she's alive, and she looks like she healed."

Reno nodded. "How do you mean healed? Which one of these is hers?"

Rufus walked over to a stasis tube with a blanket laid across it. "This one. Check it, son."

"Why is there a blanket on the tube?" He pulled the blanket back and saw Nichole Parker's nude form inside. There was a thin line of scar tissue over her chest. He looked back at Rufus. "Did you cover her?"

"Yeah. She deserves that kinda respect. I ain't never met'er, but I knew her clone. And I know you got good taste in people."

Reno looked back down at her, keeping his eyes on the scar tissue over her heart. "Thank you, Rufus. You're a good guy."

"Yeah, yeah. We found another girl but ain't none of us recognize her."

"Where?"

Rufus motioned to an adjacent tube. "This young'n right here. She can't be but sixteen or seventeen years old. Perdy face. She might be Turkish or Hungarian or somethin'."

Reno blinked. "Or Romanian maybe?"

"Yeah, I reckon."

Reno approached the other tube. Within was the unclothed body of Abby Chase, the gypsy that forced Reno's involvement in all this mess from the beginning.

He looked back at the blanket over Nichole's tube, then forward to Abby's body. He felt torn between covering his fiancée, and covering the body of a minor. After a moment, he went back to the blanket and handed it to Rufus. "Pull."

Rue took the end and drew it taut. He used one paw to keep the blanket drawn, and reached over with his other paw. "Shred it in two wit' m'claws?"

"Yeah. I can't remember for sure but I think Abby is just a teen."

Rufus nodded and helped to rip the blanket into two. He handed half back to Reno. "Fer Nichole." Rue turned around to Abby's tube and laid it across, covering the girl from the shoulders to her knees. "You's a good man, Nevada."

Topaz approached Rue and Reno. "Who is she?"

"She's a gypsy," said Reno. "She got me into this mess. She was a little eccentric, but now I can see why - she was wrapped up in this drama by no fault of her own. I can't understand why Falcon preserved a human. Let alone several."

Topaz nodded. "Lucky for us, huh? One of them is my goddaughter." Topaz looked down at Abby's face through the glass. "She's pretty. Romanian?"

Rue grinned at Topaz. "Keen eye, Nevada."

Reno looked up. "Huh?" He saw that Rue was talking to Topaz. A grin tugged at Reno's face. He walked over to Topaz and, rather abruptly, he hugged her.

Topaz laughed and returned the hug. "What's this for?"

"Welcome to the family. You're my sister-in-law; I just realized I have a sister. As silly as this sounds, I've always kind of thought it would be neat to have a sister."

She laughed again and gave Reno a squeeze. "I already felt like you were practically family. You're going to marry my aunt. God. You're my brother-in-law _and_you're about to be my uncle by marriage. How screwed up is this family, right?" She laughed in spite of herself.

Reno laughed. "Don't judge yourself. I'm just glad everyone is alive." He released her from the embrace and turned to Nicky's stasis pod. "Have you guys seen Karla?"

"No, why?" Topaz turned to look down at the youthful face of her aunt. "Wait ... were you and Karla, like, a thing?"

"Friends," said Reno. "I heard her husband is back. Funny how fate gave everyone a happy ending. I was starting to believe that happy endings don't happen anymore. But I'll be damned if things didn't wrap up neatly as can be."

"I'm not arguing." Topaz put a hand on Reno's shoulder and gave a squeeze. "Christmas magic, you know? Everyone is happy. All our friends and loved ones are thawing out. I brought clothes for everyone. I also brought food. God knows if these people will be hungry."

"Good thinking."

Topaz shrugged. "I'm a mom. My first thought is to make sure they're fed and clothed." She walked away to check on the others.

Rufus gave Reno a firm swat on his left shoulder blade. "I'mma go wait for Bull to wake up." He walked away.

A moment later, Charles Foster approached Reno. "You knew my brother?"

"Johann? Yeah, I knew him. Good kid."

"May I ask you a personal question?"

"Sure." Reno looked back at Charlie and said, "But you're telepathic - you already know the answer, right?"

"I am not advanced enough to scan your deepest thoughts. I have to ask the question to find out the answer. Regarding the gypsy, Abigail - was there anything between you? Even just ... a moment?"

"No." Reno shrugged. "When she gave me that ability, I was pretty upset with her. I felt like the kid had a crush on me, or something, but that's how people sometimes deal with emotionally stressful stuff. Lord knows Abby went through her share."

"Everyone is thawing," said Charlie. "Everyone's mind is slowly becoming aware, like slowly waking up from sleeping in late on a Saturday morning. I cannot read their minds, but I can sense their presence." Charlie turned away from Reno and Nichole's tube. He put his hands on the blanket of Abby's enclosure. "Except for her."

"What?" Reno turned around, facing Charlie and Abby's stasis pod. "You don't sense anything from Abigail?"

"No. Nothing at all. Her heart began beating. The monitor says her body temperature is nearly normalized. Her body is stable. But I sense nothing from her." Charlie looked down, somewhat. "With all due respect, you have my deepest..."

"Don't jump the gun." Reno frowned. "Still, that's not good." He rubbed his chin. "Maybe, if we could find a mirror, we could put Tamamo-no-Mae into her body. Karla and Conner might not like the idea, but we could use all the help we can get down here."

Charlie feigned a smile. "A kitsune cannot inhabit the mind of someone who is brain dead, Reno. If that is the case, then your idea, while full of merit, will not work."

"Oh."

"But I am sure she would appreciate your consideration."

Reno put his hands on the blanket over Abby's tube. "It's a shame. She'd have been proud I got the artifact, even though she might not have appreciated what I did with it." He walked back over to Nichole's stasis tube.

Charlie nodded. "I wish to check on the others. Be well." He walked away.

Reno's eyes made their way to the monitor over Nichole's stasis tube. There was less than ten minutes left in the restoration phase.

Commotion from the other side of the room caused Reno to look back up.

Rufus helped Collobulous from a stasis tube. The werewolf exclaimed, "Damn, I sure as shit never thought I'd see you again, brother! I got so much to tell you, man! I got me a son now! We might've beat Falcon! This shits done, and we came to rescue y'all!"

Collobulous took a pair of shorts from Topaz with a nod of appreciation. He put them on one leg at a time and dried the nutrient solution from his face with a towel brought over by Fox Parker.

"Thank you, everyone." Bull looked from Fox to Topaz, then over at Vincent. Collobulous glanced at Rue and asked, "How long has it been?"

"About twenty-six years, boss."

"It feels like ... I just woke up from a short nap." Collobulous saw Reno across the way. "Why doesn't Sparky look any older?"

Reno grinned a bit and called over, "I woke up before you did."

"Oh, roight then." Bull turned back to Rufus and said, "I just need a bit. You can yabber on if you want, mate, but Oi'm still a bit knackered. Not every day you cark it, then wake up. Where's the dunny?"

"You gotta piss?" Rufus laughed.

"Nah, mate. I don't need to widdle; I'm gonna toss."

Topaz whispered to Rufus. "I don't remember his Australian dialect being so thick, and his voice being deeper."

Rufus whispered back to her, "When he's not awake, it's a bit thick. He tries talking differently when he's awake and alert. Give'em a minute."

Collobulous turned away from the group and put his hands on the stasis machine, now room temperature to the touch. He leaned into the tube and closed his eyes. "Stomach feels wonky." He opened his mouth but nothing happened. "Bollocks."

Despite feeling sick, Collobulous had nothing on his stomach. He turned around and sat down on the floor, back against the base of the tube. He leaned his head back, sweating profusely. "This dodgy sheep-dip piece of machinery, 'ey? I just need a sec."

Topaz used Bull's towel to wipe the sweat from his face. "You'll be fine. It'll pass. I brought you the shorts, but I didn't know what size shirt you'd wear. You want to take a look and see what we've got?"

"Thanks for the togs, but I'll hold off on the shirt." Bull took a deep breath. Sure enough, the nausea passed after a few minutes. He sighed. "Anyone have something to drink?"

Fox approached and handed Bull a bottle of water.

Bull took off the cap and guzzled it at first. His pace slowed, until he was drinking at a calm rate. He finished the bottle of water and stood up.

Bull tossed the empty bottle and the cap into the tube where he'd been in stasis for twenty-six years.

The Australian stretched with a grunt. He started walking along the line of other stasis pods, all of which were nearing completion. He stopped between Nichole and Abigail's tubes and nodded to Reno. "That's good you covered up Tassie. Good on you, mate."

"Tassie?"

"Look at a map of Tasmania, you'll get my meaning." Bull offered a hand to Reno and they shook. He continued down the line of pods and people, and stopped in front of Donovan Loupe. He continued to Johann and Charlie and smiled a bit, seeing Johann's face. "So many people captured because I couldn't help."

Charlie placed a hand on Bull's bicep. Bull turned to face the white man. Bull glanced down at Johann again. "You two are related?"

"Yes," said Charles with a calm nod. "He is my brother. You think we look alike?"

"Just a few features."

"Mm, understood."

Collobulous smiled inwardly and looked back down at the glass tube. "Will he wake up soon?"

"Very soon. Wait, you think all white people look a bit alike?" Charles blinked in confusion. "How could you possibly think we look alike?"

"You a mind reader?"

Charles cleared his throat. "I am."

"Awkward." Bull stopped in front of the last tank. He peered in at the young woman. "This one looks like Rue's blond friend."

Rufus chuckled. "Karla and I ain't an item, son. That's her daughter, though. I ain't ever met'er but I suppose we all will soon enough."

Reno looked up. "Hey, guys, Nichole's coming around."

Everyone started to approach the stasis tube but Reno waved them back. "Give her some space. Topaz, get something for her to wear and come over here, please. Everyone else ... give her some space and some privacy. She's not dressed."

Topaz turned to the group of men and rotated her finger in the air. They turned away without a word.

The group started talking amongst themselves and crowded around Johann's tube, which appeared to be the next closest tube to completion.

Meanwhile, Reno and Topaz worked together to unlatch the tube cover. They lifted it open and propped it up.

Nichole opened her eyes, looking up at Reno and Topaz.

Her brows scrunched up with confusion. "Reno?"

Reno bit his lower lip and stifled a laugh. "Nicky." He reached for her left hand. All she wore was her engagement ring. "Just take it easy at first." He looked up at Topaz and said, "You got the water?"

"Yeah," said Paz.

Nichole smiled at Reno. Her eyes cut to Topaz, recognizing the voice. She recognized her face, but couldn't understand why the woman appeared so much older, now. "Topaz?"

"Surprise. I'm old."

Nicky looked from Paz back to Reno. "How did only one of you age?" Before anyone could answer, Nicky added, "Where's Rick Peterson?" She blinked, adding, "Did Fara have the baby already?"

Topaz laughed softly and put her hands on Nichole's shoulders to calm her. "His name is James. Everyone calls him Jaye. He's twenty-six - almost twenty-seven now, Aunt Nicky."

Nichole rubbed her face with her hands. "How old do _I_look?"

Reno gave his fiancée's hand a squeeze. "As young as you did the last time I saw you. You haven't aged a minute. After you were put into stasis, I was..." he trailed off, remembering how her clone tricked him and put him into cryogenic stasis. "I was caught by Falcon's people and put into cryogenic freeze, just like you. We were dead for two-and-a-half decades. Then my new friends thawed us out and revived us."

Nicky brought a hand down to her chest. She traced a finger over the healed mark above her heart. It appeared to have healed well. She grimaced and looked at her fingertips. There were no visible marks.

"What's wrong?" Reno asked.

From across the room, Charlie said, "She is reliving a flashback to the moment Rick Peterson put a knife through her heart from behind. She remembered pushing her fingertips against the blade to shove it back through. Peterson twisted the knife and she felt herself began to..."

"Enough!" Reno said. He looked around at the silent room. "Sorry, uh, Charlie. I just ... too much, too soon."

Nicky looked up at Reno. "I died. I ... it was really vivid. I remember feeling so ... sad."

Topaz swallowed down emotion. "Rick was told not to hurt you." She reached down and thumbed a tear from beneath Nichole's left eye. Topaz couldn't hold back her own tears - she only ever cried for other women. Now was no different. "Sweetheart, Rick is dead. Falcon experimented on him after he stabbed you. He was left to rot. I found him. It looked like he'd been tortured."

Nichole brought her hands to her ears. "God what is that noise?"

Reno and Topaz exchanged glances, followed by shrugs.

Nicky rubbed her ears. "Sorry. The loud thumping. There's a bunch of noises but one of them is louder than the rest." She sat up in the tube.

Topaz took Nicky's right hand, helping Reno to ease her over the lip around the sides of the stasis tube.

Nicky put her bare feet on the tiled floor, but her skin was wet from the nutrient bath solution. She started to slide but clutched at the front of Topaz's shirt and felt Reno reach to stabilize her.

"Sorry," said Nichole in a soft voice. "My stomach feels ... I think I'm going to puke."

Topaz helped Nicky to the floor. "Hey, you'll be okay. I think it might have been the nutrient crap you were in. It gets into your mouth and stomach. I've been put in stasis briefly. I threw up when I woke up."

Nicky looked up at Topaz with concern and confusion.

"What is it, Aunt Nicky?"

Nichole opened her hand, releasing Topaz's shirt. She placed her palm flush against her niece's upper chest and paused. "It's you."

"What?"

"Your heart is beating hard. That thumping I hear is the same as your heart. I mean ... I think I hear, uh..." Nichole leaned back against the base of the stasis tube. "God I'm overheated. This floor feels nice, cold."

Reno reached for the half of the blanket that was atop of her stasis tube earlier. He wiped Nicky's face with it and kissed her softly on the lips. "For the longest time, I thought you were dead. I thought Falcon killed you and I hunted that son of a bitch."

"We have to arrest him. He started that new drug, and he's doing experiments. We have to put him behind bars before he causes any more trouble in this city."

Reno grimaced. He lowered to a knee, besides Nichole and cupped her face. "San Francisco is gone."

"What?"

Reno took a deep breath. "It was destroyed by a nuclear bomb about two months ago. It's gone, baby."

Nichole replied with a blank stare. "Did ... Falcon do it?"

"Not directly, but he was complicit." Reno scoffed and shook his head. "Listen to me using terms like I'm still back on the job. I haven't been a cop in a long time."

She looked back at Topaz, studying the look of her niece's face. "How ... how long did you say?"

"Twenty-six_years_," Reno replied.

Topaz turned around and drew pants and a shirt from her bag. She rummaged through the bag, found underwear and a halter-top. Topaz turned to Nichole and handed her the clothing. "I've got to find you shoes but this is a start. Let's get you dried off first."

"Johann is waking up," Charlie told the group.

Reno turned to Topaz. "Can you take a bottle of water and some clothes over to Johann? I need a minute alone with Nicky."

Topaz leaned down without thinking about it. At the last second, she paused then leaned up a little and kissed Nichole's forehead. "Good to have you back. You'll meet James soon, and everyone else. Just take it easy for right now." Topaz stood up and walked away with her bag of supplies.

Reno gathered the half-blanket and wrapped it around Nicky's body. "Let's get you dried off and dressed."

"Just need a minute," she said. "I'm overheated. I need to lay down on the tiles for a sec."

Reno helped her ease back. He guided the clothing off to the side. "I know this is a lot to take in at once. Be glad you woke up from being frozen. I was in a coma for months after they thawed me out. I practically had to teach myself to walk again. It took days."

"Days?"

"Yeah, it would've been longer but..." he grinned. There would be time to explain having powers, there would be a time to explain how complicated the world became. Now was neither the time nor the place.

"But?"

"But I'm a tough dude, right? I got my muscle mass back the old fashion way - by being awesome."

She reached up and cupped his face. "I thought I'd never see you again."

"Same. It's been so long for me. Almost two years. I thought you were dead for almost two whole years. It's so ... God. I never thought I'd see you again."

Nichole peered over at Topaz and the others. She looked back up at Reno and, in a soft voice, said, "Was it me or did she almost kiss me?"

Reno shook his head. "It's complicated."

"She's a lesbian, I know that. I don't care about that. I just thought it was weird, she seemed awfully comfortable."

Reno shrugged. "It's complicated. More than you realize."

"How complicated?" She sat up a bit and reached for the ripped blanket. Nichole toweled her arms, legs, stomach, and then her hair. "I see your brother over there with my niece. They're holding hands. They look older than us. Like, a lot older than us. So how much more complicated can it be?"

"Falcon cloned you."

Nicky deadpanned. "He did what?"

Reno helped her to dry off with the other end of the blanket. He slid the underwear up Nicky's legs. "Lift your butt." He guided the panties all the way up. Next, he helped her with the denim pants. "Falcon did experiments on you. He decided you were important and made a clone of you. He found a way to engineer his clones to age to maturity in a short time. Once the clone reaches a certain age, they start aging normally. Your clone has been working for Falcon up until recently."

"I don't even know what to say to any of that. But, no offense, it has nothing to do with Topaz trying to kiss me."

"Actually, it does. She's sort of ... in a relationship with Topaz ... and, uh ... my brother. I'm still trying to wrap my head around it. The other Nichole is in a romantic thing with Topaz and Vincent and Fox. They're all married. It's really..."

Nicky cringed. "Jesus fucking Christ, my niece is having sex with my twin? And sharing her with your brother and her brother?"

"Told you it's complicated."

Nichole turned away from him and, without another word, threw up on the tile floor.

Reno quickly pulled away the fresh shirt and halter top with his left hand, and helped lift Nicky's hair away from her face with his right. "I know, it's all messed up. She doesn't even act like you."

Nicky coughed several times, trying to speak over being sick. "Did _you_do anything with her?"

"Me? God no. The first time I saw her, she attacked me for Falcon. The next time I saw her, she was all emotional and cozied up to Vincent, Topaz and Fox. I haven't even had time to process it."

"I'm going to kill Falcon. He and his buddies nuked my home? I'm going to..."

"Nicky," Reno said, now using both hands to keep her hair out of her face while she struggled with her stomach. "He's probably dead. I lodged a big grape-sized thing in the back of his throat and left him to choke to death."

The door at the far end of the room hissed open. Nichole Parker, the clone, walked into the room and approached Topaz and Vincent. She hugged them, kissed Fox Parker and then froze.

Nichole licked her lips apprehensively and stared at Rufus Darken. "You."

Rue sighed through his nose. His ears laid back and he approached her. "I see you got control of yer appearance now. You din' turn wolf when you came inna room."

Nichole grimaced. "Rue, I'm sorry I used you."

Nicky sat up, recognizing the sound of her own voice. She looked back at the other woman across the room. "My niece and nephew are having sex with her? She looks just like me. How can they even pretend that's not screwed up?"

"Shh, babe. I don't know. I'm just glad I have_you_ back."

Nicky looked back at her doppelgänger with contempt. "Does she even know? The other me? Does she know?"

"I have no idea, to be honest."

Nichole's clone gave Rufus a forgiving hug. "Look, it's just ... you're an awkward ex-boyfriend in a matter of words. I'm sorry, and thank you for forgiving me. My head wasn't right and ... yeah."

Nicky, over by Reno, rubbed her eyes. "Is that some sort of ... creature that Falcon created?"

Reno grinned somewhat. "That's Rufus. He's a werewolf and he's on our side. He's been alive longer than Aris Falcon. I know this is a lot to take in. Are you going to be okay?"

Nicky reached for the halter-top and pulled it over her head. She reached back and pulled her hair free from the fabric, adjusted the top and reached for the shirt. "Part of me hopes Falcon survived so I can kill him."

"Nicky, the man gave himself powers."

"Powers? You mean like ... in one of your comic books?"

Reno chuckled. "Yeah. Powers like that. I'm serious, though. He stole genetic markers or ... something. He stole _something_from other people. And he somehow used it to give himself powers. I don't know how it works, just that he did it to make himself powerful. Killing him isn't a simple thing. That's why I choked him."

Nicky pulled her shirt on, reached back and pulled her hair back out the way she did with the halter-top, then she hugged Reno. "This is all too much. I'm just glad you're here."

"Me too, babe." He drew her into his arms. They sat together on the floor between two stasis tubes in silence.

"Donovan is waking up," said Charles. "This one is Eric's uncle. He is powerful like Justus. Someone help him while I tend to my brother, please?"

Topaz said, "Fox, Vincent, you take care of Donovan. Elvena's capsule is venting the nutrient solution. I'll help my goddaughter. You boys keep your eyes averted."

Nicky sighed, listening to everyone speak. She kept her eyes on Reno. "At least she's being respectful to another woman's body. Who is her goddaughter?"

"Karla's daughter. You've never met Karla, but she's a succubus with the power to move objects with her mind. She can teleport, too. Yeah ... I know how that sounds. She's ... sort of the unofficial leader of the group. She was the most motivated to fight Falcon because he abducted both of her kids. And if you remember the woman with the red hair that helped us the day you and I had that gun fight in the alley? That's Sinopa. She's down here, too. Somewhere. She's Fox and Topaz's mother."

Nicky blinked. "Wait, wait. Too much at once. First of all, Jon's wife died from cancer."

"She's immortal and it's complicated like everything else."

"And the other girl you mentioned, with the powers ... the leader, who is she?"

"How do you mean? Her kids were..."

"No, you mentioned her in a different tone than everyone else."

Reno sighed. "I won't lie to you. Karla and I had a brief thing. But it's over now. I'm told she found her husband down here. She thought he was dead for a year. Karla and I never dated or had feelings."

"Then what was it?"

"It was just ... we helped each other cope with our losses. I thought you were dead for two years and I was still mourning you. I didn't know how to handle the loss, and neither did she. She loves Eric and I love you. Please, I just got you back, I can't lose you again."

Nicky's face softened. She reached up and cupped Reno's cheeks. "Look, I'm not going anywhere. I get it, it's psychology. It was a rebound, not love. Right?"

"Exactly. And I'm not going anywhere either. We're back together again after all this time."

"Then it's fine. There won't be any awkwardness between you and this leader girl?"

Reno scoffed with a grin. "She's a succubus. She feeds on sex the way vampires feed on blood. The others say that Eric is back, which means Karla has her family back together and that's what she really wanted all along. I'm the last person on her mind right now."

"First werewolves, now vampires and succubus...es?"

Reno grinned. "Succubi, I suppose is the term you're looking for, but Karla is the last one. So ... look, it's all complicated. Can we just forget about all that bullshit so I can kiss you?"

Nicky stared at him for a minute. She laughed. "I'm glad you haven't changed." They shared a kiss. After a moment, she broke the lip-lock and said, "But you need to shave that silly stubble beneath your lower lip. The chin, too."

Reno laughed. He tilted his head up and rubbed his stubbly chin against her cheek.

Nicky squeaked, trying to pull away from his playful advances and scruffy chin. "Okay, okay. Where are we and how do we get home? I want to pretend everything is normal again. No clones, no monsters, no succubus girls with magical powers. Let's get out of here."

"Monsters?" Reno blinked.

"Werewolves? Vampires? Mythological sex demons? If that isn't your idea of horror movie monsters, I don't know what is. Where's the mummy?"

Reno laughed and helped Nicky to her feet. "I never thought of them that way."

"Oh. He's a giant ... black wolf. How can you not?" She put her arm around Reno and held onto him. "I feel a little dizzy. It's kind of loud in here."

Reno looked around the room. It didn't seem loud at all. He pulled her face into his chest and walked with her. "Topaz, where's a safe house? We need somewhere we can go and rest. Somewhere with a lot of space and privacy for everyone."

Fox shared a quick kiss with his sister and approached Reno and Nicky. "Here, if you both follow me, I'll help you find somewhere to rest. The city is being evacuated so the best idea is to have everyone lay low until such a time as the city is clear."

"Good, I need to get out of this room," said Nicky. "I just need to get away from ... everything for a minute. It's too much."

Reno ran his fingers through her hair, keeping her head against the side of his face. "Let's just go and decompress."

Nicky looked up to Reno. "I just want to be alone with you. I need to fuck your brains out, Nevada."

Reno blinked, not knowing how to react. His initial response was to laugh.

"I'm serious," Nicky said. "I need to claim you again. I need you to be mine. No blond demon girl. You're mine. Let's go and reconnect."

"I've always loved you for how brutally honest you are." Reno guided her to the door, following Fox Parker outside to uptown New Atlantis.

Fox remained professional, polite, courteous, and he said as little as possible, due to the awkwardness of being around a different Nichole.

Fox took them to an abandoned apartment only a block away. They took the stairs and came to the first door in the complex.

Fox picked the door lock and gestured for them to go inside. "I'll be back at the lab with the others. Topaz and I will come around and talk to everyone once we've all had some rest. I'll see you both tomorrow."

Nicky gave Fox a hug. She knew it was awkward for him, but she did it anyway. "Jon would be proud of you for rescuing everyone like this, Fox. See you tomorrow."

"Thanks, see you then ... Aunt Nicky." He backed up from the doorframe.

Nicky shut the door and turned to Reno. "I've been given a new lease on life after thinking I just died, Nevada. Get your clothes off and get on the bed, babe."