He waited near the door till he heard a flush inside, then backed away. Dawn came out holding a little wand, staring at it.
"It says we've got to wait. It turns either red or blue. If it turns blue…" Her voice choked off.
"What?"
"Blue is yes." She shook her head. "I don't believe I'm doing this. 1… oh, shit!" She dropped the wand and buried her face in her hands. "()h-shit-oh-shit-oh-s/uf!"
Jeremy swooped down and picked it up: Blue.
Yes!
He felt suddenly boneless. He leaned against the wall. He needed to sit down. But the feeling lasted only a few seconds. Then a wild mix of joy and pride exploded within, energizing him.
He'd done it! He'd damn fuck done it! He'd completed the touchiest, most difficult—and therefore the most important—part of Daddy's Plan. He wanted to run and tell Hank, wanted to jump around and whoop and scream in a crazy victory dance. But he resisted. Plenty of time for both later. Right now he had to deal with Dawn.
"There, there, darlin," he said, slipping his arms around her and holding her tight against him. "No need to cry. We should be celebratin."
She looked up at him with a blotchy, tear-streaked face. She wasn't a beauty to begin with, but she looked downright homely now. But looks didn't matter in this case. All that mattered right now was what she was carrying inside her.
"Celebrating? Ym pregnantl This wasn't supposed to happen!"
"Look at it this way: It's a miracle."
"No, it's a mistake, that's what it is. The test's got to be wrong."
"Yeah, you're probably right."
But Jeremy knew different. He knew all about pregnancy tests. He'd used them before, lots of them. But that had been pre-Creighton. These new ones were much better and accurate much earlier. Lots fewer false negatives.
Dawn backed away a step and wiped her face.
"I'm going down to the drug store and pick up a different kind—no, two different kinds. And then we'll see." Jeremy watched her shake her fists in the air just like he'd done minutes before, but with a different feeling. "I can't believe this!"
Jeremy kept his voice calm. "Worse things in the world, darlin."
She stared at him with narrowed eyes. "Hey, wait a minute! Is this the same guy who told me he got a vasectomy because he didn't want to bring kids into this screwed-up world?"
"Yes, I did. I surely did. And I really and truly felt that way. But all that changed when I met you."
Her face softened. "Oh… that's so sweet. But I can't be pregnant! I just can't!"
You are, Dawnie-babes. You are.
"Maybe not,"" he told her. "But il you are, don't you think it's like a miracle?" She opened her mouth to reply but he rushed on. "I mean, don't you see the hand of god in this?"
"If you're talking about a virgin birth, I've got news for you—"
"No, I mean, you believe in god, don't you?"
He knew she did. Jeremy didn't. At least not in her god.
"Of course."
"Well, then, you can almost see his hand in this, can't you. I never wanted to have kids, then I meet you and start wishing I hadn't had a vasectomy because we're so perfect together and you'd make such a great mother, and now look what's happened."
"I'm not pregnant!" She started crying again. "I can't be! I'm not ready! And then there's the game—"
He hugged her tighter. "That's the great thing about software, darlin. You can do it from home."
She pulled away and headed for the stairs.
"I'm going down to the drugstore. When I get back we'll do it again, and then you'll see."
No, Dawn. You'll see.
And then would come the tough part. Once she was convinced she was pregnant he had to work on her to get behind having the baby and want it as much as he did.
Yeah, well, she'd never want it that much, and he could never ever tell her the whole story—man, would she freak!—but he'd have to convince her how special this baby was going to be.
That might not be so easy, but hell, she'd bought into everything else he'd told her. Why not that?
But more important, he had to keep an eye on Dawn, stay with her, watch her every minute. He had to protect the baby.
4
"Laurie! A round for the house! On me!"
Jack had been sitting in Work and sipping a draft pint while pretending to read a copy of Kick. He looked up and glanced around at the sound of Bolton's voice.
He'd been starting to think he'd been wasting his time, that Bolton would be persona non grata here after the fight, but apparently he wasn't the type to be easily deterred.
One good way to assuage hard feelings was to buy a round for the house.
Bolton had a distinctly unhappy-looking Dawn in tow. He spotted Jack on his way by, nodded, but didn't stop. Now he stood surveying the room as the two dozen or so habitues bellied up to the bar for a freebie.
Jack stayed where he was, watching Dawn. She stood at his side, holding a cola of some sort and looking embarrassed and red-eyed, as if she'd been crying. Trouble in paradise? If so, and if he could find out what it was, maybe—
"All right, everybody," Bolton said, holding a bottle of Bud aloft. "I want you all to meet my lady, Dawn."
Dawn's face reddened as the crowd murmured ragged hellos.
"I just want to let all of you know that today Dawn has made me the happiest man in the world."
Oh, shit. They're getting married? Christy would—
"Because today I found out that she's going to make me a daddy!"
Dawn turned crimson as everyone shouted their congratulations. Jack could only stare at the beaming Bolton as he lifted his glass higher.
"To Dawn!"
The crowd echoed the words and drank—all except Jack and Dawn. Her expression said loud and clear that she wasn't into this pregnancy. He had a feeling she'd be even less into it when she learned the father of her baby was her uncle.
And Christy… if he'd thought she'd go ballistic at the idea of a wedding, she'd be off the charts with the pregnancy, especially when she learned—
Then he noticed a grinning Bolton coming his way, dragging Dawn by the hand.
"Hey, Joe? Y'hear?"
"Sure did." Jack raised his glass and let Bolton clink his against it. "Congrats, man. And to you too, young lady." Dawn only nodded.
Bolton said, "This here's Joe Henry, darlin. Met him the other day. He's a gamer and a good one too."
"Pleased to meet you," Jack said. The next words resisted being spoken but Jack forced them out: "With you two as parents you gotta know it's gonna be a beautiful baby."
Pardon me while I find a shovel.
"More than beautiful—special. Special in so many, many ways." He pointed to the book lying on the table in front of Jack. "He'll never have to be dissimilated because he'll never be assimilated. A kick-ass Kicker from the git-go."
Jack tapped the stick figure on the cover. "Right on!"
"Ain't you finished that yet? You must be a slow reader."
"I'm studying every word. I can't tell you how much I'm enjoying it."
Jack glanced at Dawn's midsection. He now understood the "project," the "mission" Bolton had mentioned. Was this the "Key" he'd spoken of?
He shifted his gaze to Bolton himself and wondered what the hell was going on in his head. Then he finished his beer and rose to his feet.
"Wish I could hang around for the party, Jerry, but I've got places I've gotta be."
"Sure I can't buy you another beer?"
"Have to take a rain check."