Bribes

Justin nodded again. He knew Misty's expertise revolved around medical issues, not psychological ones, but he also knew she cared and wanted to make sure Chance was taken care of and not just left to rot in a prison cell. "I'll definitely do my best to keep you in the loop if I'm allowed to continue working with him like I want. As for using Destiny... that might actually work. I have no idea if Destiny would ever take him back after all this, but... he can't let go of her, and he'd do anything at this point to please her."

He paused as he thought about all his options. "Maybe if he thought she'd want him to do all he could to help the Elite and not the Underground, he'd be more willing to talk."

He pushed off the counter, preparing to leave so Misty could get back to work. There was still one very big hurdle though. "Now to convince your uncle to bargain with Chance. Intel for no prison. Any tips on that one?"


As Ryan openly displayed her affection for Hunter, Zan kept his grin to himself. He saw Eli roll his eyes, which made it all the more amusing to him. 

Under the table, Hunter hooked his ankle around Ryan's, giving it a little tug. He gave her a sidelong glance and a wink before settling back, putting his arm around the back of her chair so she could sit in even closer. 

Eli nodded at her question. "Mm, sort of. We need to figure out -" He left his sentence hanging as Thirteen came over to take their order. After requesting a couple pizzas, he resumed. "Our goal is to knock Thunder out of the race - or basically just make sure he loses. It doesn't matter who else wins at this point."

"Why not Ryan?" Hunter suggested. "It could serve as her comeback."

Eli shook his head. "Then people will think she won just because you two held back Thunder. Not that it really matters but I care about her reputation too." He gave his sister a little smile. He really was proud of her racing skills. "What if none of you won? What if you entered a novice race?"

Hunter's eyebrows rose. "We can't do that. Then we'd be no better than Thunder."

"No... you enter only after Thunder does. Force him to the back of the pack, and guess what? He'll lose to a novice driver."

Zan grinned. "I like the sound of that. Besides, I think I belong back in the novice races anyway."

"You do not," Hunter chided. "You've just had a bad streak."

"Yeah... named Hunter and Thunder... and soon to be Ryan again." Though just a bit frustrated, Zan threw Ryan a crooked smile. "You don't take bribes do you?"


The afternoon wore on, and Aaron remained in his room. Even though he was itching to walk, he stayed on his bed most of the day, knowing he'd probably just get into more trouble if he wandered the hall. He'd just have to hump around tonight when the floor would be empty.

At the security room, there was a knock at the door. Reese poked his head around the corner before coming inside and taking one of the chairs. He looked at Sam with quiet seriousness. "Okay. I've got one side of the story. I know you were gone when we had the little fiasco in the break room, but did Aaron tell you what happened? I just want to hear from you whether you really think it was an accident or I'd Aaron was trying to pull something​."