Read Defiant (an Ell Donsaii story #9) for Free Online Page B

the disposable wipes and put on some “Ell typical” clothes. Looking like Ell, she stepped back into the tunnel. Ignoring the waiting golf cart in favor of a little exercise, she jogged through the tunnel to her farm house.
    Climbing the stairs out of the basement, she called, “Bridget?”
    A moment later Bridget appeared, wide eyed, in the door to the kitchen. “How did you get past us and down into the basement?” With a hand out in front of her she pointed a finger back over her shoulder and mouthed, “Ryan!”
    Clapping an embarrassed hand over her mouth Ell shrugged elaborately, mouthed “Oops,” then said in a normal tone, “Oh sorry, I came in the side door a while back. I’ve been down in the basement putting away a couple of things I bought on my vacation.” She dropped her voice to a whisper, “I guess I should have Allan check to see if we have visitors before I burst up out of the basement, huh?”
    Stepping into the kitchen she made a show of being surprised when she saw Ryan. She glanced smilingly back and forth from Bridget to Ryan and then raised an eyebrow, “ Mister Keller, what are you doing here?”
    He grinned back at her. “ Someone told me that Bridget thought I was cute, so I’ve been playing the cards I’ve been dealt.”
    “Humpf, I leave on a little vacation for a couple of weeks and all kinds of things start happening behind my back.” She frowned at him, “You’d better not be trying to make off with my roommate.”
    “We were going to go over to his place.” Bridget put her hands on her hips and mock glared at Ryan, “Butif the EPA visited that toxic waste dump he lives in they’d send in some hazmat teams to clean it out.” She turned back to Ell and shrugged, “So we came here instead.”
    “Yeah, I’ve…” Ell, about to comment on the way Ryan kept house, realized just in time that she, as Ell, shouldn’t have such knowledge, “been in a house like that once,” she finished lamely. “I’ve got to do some unpacking, don’t you guys do anything I wouldn’t approve of.”
    Ell withdrew, picking up the mail that Bridget had stacked up for her on her way up to her room. Once there she quickly sorted through it, wondering at the volume of junk mail that still arrived. She kept thinking that advertisers would soon give up on bulk mail for delivery of their messages, but it didn’t seem likely to happen too soon. In the midst of the junk she did find two envelopes that looked like they might be personal in nature.
    The first was indeed an invitation to the neighborhood block party at the Sparlock’s house.
    The second, to her amazement, was a brief note on crisp white card stock. “To the world’s best sprinter,” was all it said. It was signed, “Michael Fentis.”
    Ell stared at it for a moment, her eyes misting over. She could hardly imagine the agony signing such an autograph would bring a proud man like Fentis. Especially to the woman he had hated and who had broken the world records he justifiably took such pride in. “Sorry…” she whispered quietly into the ether.
    She went to the window and stared unseeingly out over her little farm. Eventually she returned to her desk and replied to the Sparlock’s invitation. She sat a while then pulled out a small blank card. “Mr. Fentis, Thank you for the autograph. I will treasure it.” For a bit longer she contemplated including an apology, but it felt like that would add insult to injury. Finally she signed it, “With the greatest of respect, Ell Donsaii.”
    She sat a while longer, wondering if she should have responded differently, or could somehow ease his pain more. Finally she shrugged and sealed the envelopes. She headed downstairs and back to her new home with Shan.
     
    Opening the stair from the basement Ell stepped around the corner and found Shan holding the blue Mattioli painting up against the narrow wall at the end of their couch. He looked back over his shoulder at her, “What do you