I took out my frustration on the armored crates, pushing the crowbar to its limits and seeing what would break first. It was hard work and after the first three, I knew that both the crates and the tools could hold up far longer than I would. At least it sapped my anger a bit, that is between scuffed knuckles. If I kept this up, I'd make a good dockworker but a lousy operative.
"You shouldn't let her get to you like that. She thrives on it." Gael said.
I nodded and slammed the point of the crowbar into another one of the joints. As I pulled on it, there was a minor groan but nothing gave. It looked like I'd have to use my entire weight on this one. Too bad I wasn't partnered with Obie, but then the conversation would have been a little lacking.
"I know, but I can't help it. She just knows how to push my buttons."
Gael smiled and helped me pry the corner of the lid up. It popped up with a quick jerk and let out a low hiss as the pressure seal gave. "Yeah, she's good at it. Gets to me too at times, but she's more threatened by you."
I smirked as I wedged the lid open and she waved the sniffer into the opening. It gave us another negative and we both shook our heads and groaned. Five minutes to get one of these open, followed by five seconds to tell us we'd wasted our time. What a bargain. I wondered what the reason was for this complete waste of time and rested for a moment. Humility?
"So, did Angus choose this broom job or was it another one of Casper's brilliant ideas?"
Gael smiled in the way that said she really didn't want to tell me the answer and nodded to the next box in line. I obliged and I circled it, looking for the door joint. It was one of the standard crates and stood about nine feet high. It had a scuffed heavy armor housing and I knocked on it as I found the door joint. These things were so durable that using them as shipping containers seemed like a bit of a waste. I guess the grunts on Dante could probably hide behind them in a pinch, but I wouldn't bet on it.
Around us, I could hear the rest of the squad working in mostly silence with the exception of Angus trying to get Obie to tell dirty jokes. Casper and McNeil were having a good time and once he looked over at me, snickered, and then turned away. I'm glad that I gave them something to laugh about. I'm even more glad that I didn't hear the remark.
"Alex, let it go." Gael said. "You were in a good mood when you got here, so try to find it again."
I couldn't help but smile at her and nodded. She was right as usual and I had to keep remembering that the waster thrived on my irritation. If I could somehow find the peace of mind to ignore her, my life would be a lot easier. On second thought, no it wouldn't. If I suddenly started to ignore Casper's taunting, she'd only try something more extreme. I was caught in a vicious merry-go-round of escalation and the charred-eyed freak was standing on the throttle.
As we continued checking the crates, my mood gradually improved. The feeling that we were putting far too much time into this than the BPN was paying kept nagging at me but there was nothing I could do about it. In a weird kind of way, I was glad that I had the Gray BPN since it offered a challenge and higher stakes. Now if I could only do something about my paranoia and curiosity. By the time the next few hours had ended, I was tired and disgusted that we hadn't found a single crate with ordinance or contraband.
"Alright guys, that's enough for now." Casper said as she clapped her hands. "How about we get lunch and meet back here in a half hour."
She looked over at McNeil who raised an eyebrow.
"Make that an hour. Now get lost!" she added.
"God, I think I'm going to be sick," I said as I started to put the tools aside and headed over to meet K'rth. Gael stopped me before I had gotten very far and stacked the tools with the others.
"Alex, I'm having a surprise party tonight for Nix at my place. Wanna come?"
I scrambled to think when Nix's birthday was and came up empty. How old was Nix - nine now? Other thoughts like "what do you get the wraith that has everything" went through me mind. Guns, knives, pointy sticks, harsh language…I was fresh out of ideas. She had every kind of killing implement that she wanted and luxuries didn't hold much interest for her.
"Love to. What time?" I asked. There was no way in hell that I was going to admit that I'd forgotten Nix's birthday. I knew that birthdays don't mean the same thing to a wraith as they do to a human, but she had adopted the custom and really enjoyed celebrations with her friends. I'd hate to admit that I'd forgotten and disappoint her.
"Nine? That way everyone will be ready. Mostly I've invited her friends but most of the squad doesn't know, so keep it to yourself."
I nodded and headed off to meet up with K'rth and pick up a quick gift for the furball. I felt more embarrassed than guilty about not remembering, but considering everything else going on, I had a reason. Something tickled me from the back of my mind, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it.
I wondered what else had slipped past me.
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