see J.L. roll up behind him, and the two dropped their hold on their partners and play-fought into the room. The two young sisters-in-law hugged and giggled and dashed into the room waving and singing, "Good morning!" They flopped down into chairs and held each other's hands, intermittently sending a squeeze of sup port to each other.
J.L. ducked a mimed rabbit punch from Bobby and then fell back and opened his arms.
"Whassup?"
"Whassup?" Bobby answered, laughing, making his voice go deeper than J.L.'s. J.L. fell out laughing, and then said it again to crack Bobby up harder. "Whassup?"
"No ... whassup?" Dan said in an alto that beat them all, entering the room with Heather, behind Bobby and J.L.
Big Mike fell off the sofa onto the floor, laughing so hard he was lying on his back, wiping his eyes. Shabazz sat for ward and lost his cool facade and broke down laughing so hard he couldn't breathe. Jose was doubled over, and Berk field was red in the face with belly laughs that were making him wheeze. The women in the group laughed and just shook their heads. Carlos cracked a smile but didn't say more or laugh. Bobby and J.L. were totaled against the wall, and Heather simply covered her face with her hands, laughing hard but mortified.
"You almost missed roll call, man," Jose hollered at Rider through simmering bursts of chuckles.
Rider leaned against the open door frame real cool, drew Tara against him, and kissed her slow, and then released her to enter the room. "Depends on which role you're called for, son ... g'morning, gentlemen."
The room went silent for a minute as Rider loped into the room behind Tara. Berkfield released a slow, quiet whistle of appreciation aimed at Rider under Jose's whispered harmony of "Daaaaaaaayum..." Mike got up off the floor and pounded Rider's fist as he passed and sat next to Shabazz.
Shabazz gave Rider a cool nod and they exchanged a fist pound without looking at each other.
"Old school," Shabazz muttered.
"The only way it's done, bro," Rider said, looking at Tara, then calmly extracted a chew stick from his vest, slid it into his mouth, and bit down on it like it was a Tiperillo.
"Well, now that the gang's all here," Damali said, her nerves raw and not completely sure why. "Maybe we can de cide where to go next as a team?" She glanced at Carlos as female Guardians slid next to their partners, some sitting on laps. Carlos stood and went to the window with a shrug. "Wherever you all wanna go is fine by me. I'll transport you, get a shield up. Y'all know the drill." The room went still for a moment as Carlos's morose tone blanketed the team. Concerned glances passed be tween the brothers and their wives looked at Damali, searching her eyes for answers she didn't have or wasn't willing to share.
"Can you get a divination from the stones?" Marlene said, her voice reaching out to Damali like tender balm.
"No," Damali said in a far-off voice. "My pearl has shut down since Cain's death ... that
crazy she-dragon was in love with him, and when Eve beheaded him, she's been grieving so hard she won't respond."
"Maybe we can ask the Queens?" Marlene said, trying to keep hope in the room alive.
"Yeah. Let her ask the Queens," Carlos said flatly. "I'll check with my council, too, before I do anything else wild and off the hook."
"Hey, does it matter where we build?" Rider said. "Look, being real here, guys ... there is no safe place, per se. No safe neighborhood. It's what you make it, and if the big war is in full effect, I say let's go somewhere nice."
"Heeeey," Shabazz said, rolling his shoulders. "Gotta take a stand, set down roots, fortify where we're at so we can have some peace, feel me?"
"Completely, man. How we gonna raise kids on the damned run?" Mike rolled his shoulders and began a slow pace between the seat he'd abandoned and the dining room table. "San Diego gets my vote. Military base nearby, in case we need to borrow a tank or two. Beautiful weather, beach, close enough to L.A. to drive up to handle our business there, on the coast for easy out, a stone's throw to Mexico."
"That could work," Jose said. "So, like a fly crib the size we'd need, whatduya say, twenty, thirty mil? How's your pockets, brothers?"
"I'm good," Rider said. "Joint build-out as always."