Piper was starting to get the drift. “Like The Hunger Games.”

“And win the four hundred and sixty dollars.” Jada pulled her curly dark hair into a ponytail behind her head and then released it. “I really need the money because my phone is, like, embarrassing. I never say that to my mom, but she knows, and it makes her feel bad because we can’t afford anything better.” She dipped her chin. “I shouldn’t have told you that. Mom said never to talk about money.”

Piper’s heart went out to her. “So how does the game work?”

“You can’t kill anybody on school property or, like, at a school activity or if they’re at work or from a moving car because kids get hurt that way.”

“Comforting.”

“No kills if you’re on a bus or the El going to or from school, but any other time is okay.”

“I can only imagine how the commuters feel about dodging Nerf bullets. Especially in Chicago. You’re lucky nobody has shot real bullets at you.”

“We’re supposed to be respectful of other people.”

“How’s that working out?” she said, with only a little sarcasm.

Jada’s forehead crumpled. “I’m really sorry about what happened. The thing is, you’re not allowed to go into a person’s house to kill them unless somebody invites you in. And, like, if any of the kids showed up downstairs and said they were one of my friends, one of the bouncers or the servers would probably let them in.”

“You might want to talk to them about that.”

“Mom won’t let me. Since Coop lets us stay here for free, we kind of owe him everything, and Mom doesn’t want to make any waves.”

Free? Piper’s suspicious nature made her wonder if altruism was Coop’s only motive for providing free lodging. “If this happens again,” she said, “I could seriously hurt you.”

“That was pretty cool. You have really fast reflexes.”

Now that Piper knew she hadn’t broken the kid’s arm, she had to admit she was happy with herself.

Jada was thoughtful. “Maybe we could have a code. You could, like, knock twice fast and once slow at the bottom of the stairs before you come up so I know it’s you. I really need the four hundred and sixty bucks.”

“Help me unload my car, and I’ll think about it.”

Jada led the way downstairs. She leveled her Nerf and took a quick survey of the alley before she stepped out.

Piper had stuffed everything into two suitcases and a couple of boxes. Jada took one of the suitcases, gun still raised, head swiveling. Piper pulled out the other. “Do you really think anybody’s coming after you back here?”