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hadn’t meant time for the patient, but
for herself.
    “You should also tell him we’ve never done
anything like this before,” Rake said. “And we can’t count on Big
Dino’s guidance, either.”
    “There’s also that.” Spinner let his
shoulders drop.
    Nicholas took a long look at the arm and
hand molds hanging all over the wall.
    “So, we’ll know tomorrow if we’re doomed to
fail Miss Aurore’s expectations,” he said. If they failed Aurore,
Big Dino would be disappointed, too … when he regained
consciousness. “Good to know.”
     

10

    After delivering Cole to The Nightingale
Circus, Dale hadn’t dared leave the attic. There hadn’t been
obvious witnesses at the scene, but someone was bound to notice
something, and people talked. It was better not to draw the
attention of the police or the lowlifes in the city. But being
confined in the attic didn’t work for him, either. Having a
contingency plan would have helped, except he had no connections in
the city. Betting everything on Cole had been a huge mistake, but
he’d had no other option at the time.
    Since going over it again and again was
bound to give him a headache, he forced himself not to pace along
the windowed wall. His steps would be heard from the floor below,
worrying Mrs. Potec. She already had given him the evil eye this
morning, a sign she was aware of his past night’s activities. Thank
God his superiors weren’t. The last note sent to inquire when he
would be ready to report back to work had nothing to do with that.
But he was due another month of sick leave after the last repairs
and upgrades made to his enhancements, so he was good.
    With the radio volume turned low, Dale only
half-listened to the news. Lacking inhabitants, this wing of the
building wasn’t wired for most purposes and, therefore, had no
cable. Dale could do without a TV, but the slowness of the clock
hands on the wall drove him mad. A quick glance told him it was
past three in the afternoon. A couple more hours left until the
circus opened its gates. They had told him not to come back and
bother them, they would keep him informed of their progress, but he
fully intended on going back.
    A light flashed in the corner of his eye,
and he followed the bright spot moving on the cracked wall before
turning to look outside the window in search of its source.
Something gleamed on the balcony up the street. He reached for the
binoculars and focused on the culprit. A necklace with a big stone
hung on the window handle, reflecting every ray of sunshine in the
street.
    This was an unusual sight in the city, even
knowing the window belonged to the biggest jeweler in town. In the
two months he’d been there, he had never seen the Golden Lady hang
her jewelry out to dry. Someone had placed it there on purpose,
making sure the light reflected into his room. A signal of some
sort—or so he told himself. He owed Aurore, and he wanted to get a
feel for her so he wouldn’t be caught unprepared when she requested
her payment.
    Dale snatched his jacket and headed out.
Although sunny, it was colder than he expected. He started up the
street, the cold making him feel alive. He inhaled the fresh air.
It was too early for the food stands to cloud it with their blasted
smoke. A portly housekeeper argued with a vendor over a knitted
basket. Everything felt normal in the world.
    Little Rosie held out her hand when Dale
passed by her corner, and he dropped a coin in her palm. No use to
try and keep a low profile now. The kid reported to Aurore
anyway.
    He was expected. The guards stationed
at the building entrance, without bothering to search him, let him
in and signaled him to go upstairs. He found Aurore seated at her
desk, a few dozen precious stones spread on a velvet cloth in front
of her. The necklace from the window lay discarded in a box on top
of a pile of folders. Dale had never seen a crystal so big, but
gems weren’t his trade.
    “I don’t appreciate being used as