Tea

As the meal is eaten, Kyle digs into his fruit, holding up a piece on his fork to examine it. “Somebody sure did a good job with these.”

Jen throws him a look across the table, warning him not to go overboard.

Instead of reacting though, he simply gives Katie a wink and returns to eating.

Partway through the meal, Jason finally feels it’s time to put the cards on the table. He knows the other guys have been respecting his silence, but have also been wondering at his decision.

Taking a swig of iced tea, he pauses his eating. “Alright, guys…I know you all are waiting on me to say whether or not I’m gonna sign on with JetStream.”

Mike holds up his hand. “Before anything else is said, if it’s the contract that’s got you leery, by all means, ignore it. We just wanted to make sure you knew we were gonna hold up our end of the bargain.”

Jason shakes his head. “No, it’s not that, though I appreciate your consideration. I, um…” he glance to Katie to gain support. “I do want to join JetStream.”

“Yes!” Kyle throws his arms in the air.

Jason can’t help a slight smile, but waves him to stop. “There’s a catch though, that I…well, both Katie and I need to tell you about before you decide if you really want me on the team.”

Kyles eyes widen. “You ARE with the FBI.”

Sensing the seriousness in Jason’s tone, Phil elbows his brother. “Shut up.”

Jason sighs deeply. “Look, there’s no other way to put this I guess…” His eyes catch Katie’s briefly. “Katie and I are employed by an underground vigilante corporation formed to help bring justice to areas in which the regular law enforcement fails.”

Eyes around the table widen. Kyle looks a Jason, all humor gone. “Your not kidding, are you?”

“Nope.” Jason leans his elbows on the table. “And…I wouldn’t feel so strongly about telling you this, were it not for the fact that this corporation is in secret, and all employees risk the chance of being hated by the enemies.”

“Are you saying that you’re in danger?” Jen questions.

“Yes.” Jason nods solemnly. “I have helped solve many cases and helped take down some pretty shady characters. I’ve also recently had someone who tried to kill me. I’ve worked at TJY since I was in high school. Katie signed on not all that long ago, though she’s been involved with enough that her identity has risk connected with it as well. Her car accident that put her in the hospital was no accident.”

Mike lets out a low whistle. The three men exchange glances, and suddenly a quietness takes over the table. Kyle looks across at Katie, his eyes studying her face.


Con moves just enough to prop himself up on an elbow, letting his blanket fall down to his legs. He takes the tea without argument, letting the hot liquid soothe his throat. He sighs deeply, still feeling exhausted, though not quite as horrid as he had several hours earlier. His eyes move to Jamie as she speaks. “Heh…I can’t remember a time I’ve been sick like this either.” He tries to clear his throat so he can talk better, but it doesn’t do much good. “It hit me about three this morning.”

He takes another sip of tea and leans his head back against the couch. He allows his eyes to study Jamie’s face, even though she looks away. For some reason, having known she’d already been there for hours seemed to have dispersed much of his awkward feelings. There needn’t be any ice-breaker…she’d already talked with him and taken care of him, apparently.

A new understanding seems to be coming into the light, despite the odd feeling in Con’s stomach. “Thanks, Jamie…for coming over. I guess I needed more help than I thought.”