After punching in the complex, sixteen-digit code, the doors opened for Derek and Nell. The giant had to duck to enter the building, but once inside he was able to stand up straight. He'd bought the building almost exclusively because it had high ceilings. Money and location had figured in, too, but he told himself it was mostly the height thing.
"Nell, are you in trouble?" he rumbled.
"In theory," she said, obviously trying to be as vague as possible. Nell was one of the least subtle people that Derek knew, and this was probably a good thing because her mind was unreadable and uncrackable to him.
That was not to say that Nell was more powerful than Derek. It was simply that she had powers, and Derek could only read and control the minds of normal people.
He demanded, "Explain yourself." They headed for the kitchen, which was more of a nook in the corner of the giant living room than anything else. The kitchen area consisted of a refrigerator, a sink, and an oven/stove plus a table. The floor was concrete and grey like the rest of the warehouse, but Derek had at least made an effort to paint the walls a different color (in this case, a pale blue).
Nell explained hastily, "You know Richard, and I've told you about Ben before. Well, Richard called me and told me that the TV said they caught me with Ben tonight. I avoided it." Derek thought that she was trying to trivialize the situation so he wouldn't be mad at her. In truth, he wasn't mad at her (she was too interesting to be angry at) but he was concerned over the possibility of her being caught, because if she was caught, he might be caught.
"You didn't leave any trails anywhere?"
"Nowhere, never," she assured.
Derek believed her, and got himself a beer despite the fact that he'd spent his whole evening in bars. It took a lot to get someone of his mass even slightly buzzed, like a jotun from Norse myth.
"Nell, are you in trouble?" he rumbled.
"In theory," she said, obviously trying to be as vague as possible. Nell was one of the least subtle people that Derek knew, and this was probably a good thing because her mind was unreadable and uncrackable to him.
That was not to say that Nell was more powerful than Derek. It was simply that she had powers, and Derek could only read and control the minds of normal people.
He demanded, "Explain yourself." They headed for the kitchen, which was more of a nook in the corner of the giant living room than anything else. The kitchen area consisted of a refrigerator, a sink, and an oven/stove plus a table. The floor was concrete and grey like the rest of the warehouse, but Derek had at least made an effort to paint the walls a different color (in this case, a pale blue).
Nell explained hastily, "You know Richard, and I've told you about Ben before. Well, Richard called me and told me that the TV said they caught me with Ben tonight. I avoided it." Derek thought that she was trying to trivialize the situation so he wouldn't be mad at her. In truth, he wasn't mad at her (she was too interesting to be angry at) but he was concerned over the possibility of her being caught, because if she was caught, he might be caught.
"You didn't leave any trails anywhere?"
"Nowhere, never," she assured.
Derek believed her, and got himself a beer despite the fact that he'd spent his whole evening in bars. It took a lot to get someone of his mass even slightly buzzed, like a jotun from Norse myth.
