Bhodi: I need to borrow your laptop.
Reef: Why?
Bhodi: Research project.
Reef: Can’t you use yours?
Bhodi: Not for this type of research *winking emoji*
Reef: You better not be “researching” porn, asshole
Bhodi: Lol. Text me the password. I know you changed it after last time
Reef: *middle finger emoji*
Laughing, I pocket my phone and go grab Reef’s laptop from his room. He’s being a dick; he knows what I want it for. Only Reef’s fancy laptop has access to the databases that I want to look at, and is untraceable. Like, completely, one hundred percent untraceable by humans and supes alike. Some clever voodoo shit went into protecting that machine, so I understand why Reef got a little bit pissy the last time I borrowed it and spilled milk on the keys.
Apparently saying “no use crying over spilled milk” wasn’t the best way to break the tension. Just my nose.
I promise I’ll be more careful this time because I actually want answers. Returning to the sofa with Reef’s laptop, I open up the lid, power it up and check my phone for the password. He hasn’t sent it.
Bhodi: Password, dickhead.
“That’s not it.”
I nearly jump out of my skin when Reef’s voice comes from behind me.
“Oh my god, you absolute fucktard! Why would you do that?”
He laughs. “You should have seen your face. As if I’d trust you with the password or the machine.” He drops down next to me, snatches the laptop from me and types in the password too fast for me to catch it. “What are we researching?”
Great. Just what I didn’t want to happen. When I don’t reply, Reef looks up at me.
“What are you up to?”
“Nothing. I just wanted to know a bit more about Malia, is all.”
“Right. And you thought that you would be able to find what exactly, compared to me?”
“Oh fuck off.” I know Reef is the tech guy, the research guy, the info guy. Mr fucking know it all.
“Do you just wanna read her file?”
“You have a file on her?”
“Of course.”
“Since when?”
“Does it matter? You wanna read it or not? It’s not…pretty.”
“What the fuck does that mean?”
“Just see for yourself, but promise me that whatever you read, you won’t take it out on the laptop.”
“What the hell?!” I snatch the laptop from him and click on the first document in Malia’s open file. I scan the hospital report and blanch.
“Yeah.” Reef gets to his feet, squeezes my shoulder and goes to leave.