Kai tapped on the back window, gesturing for him to get back into the car. They needed to leave. Theo slid into the driver’s seat, flustered. Did they really have to destroy the car? A nigga in a busted Civic was as natural as algae in a creek. What wasn’t natural was going to the police station to report a fake crime on the same night you committed a real crime. Wasn’t there a Biggie song about that? And Apollo had disabled the base’s surveillance, hadn’t he? They had gotten away with it, definitely. Probably. If they hadn’t, that laser would have already gotten them, probably before they even got off the base. Excessive precaution could be just as dangerous as naivete. Theo made up his mind. No need to get all surgical with it, throwing body parts to unfed pigs. The night was a success. Theo cranked the engine and pulled out slowly.

“Where are we going?” Kai asked. Theo stared straight ahead. For once, he knew where he was headed.

The wrecked van was just as they’d left it, implanted in the trunk of a tree at the bottom of the hill on Central Villa. Theo slowed and parked on the side of the road. Kai removed her flaming red wig and shook out her curls. They exited the car, reaching the trunk in two exhausting steps. Goddamn, it was hot.

Gasoline containers in tow, they quickly emptied them on the wreckage as Zed, Apollo, and Sol watched from inside the MINI. Theo watched Kai place her gas container on the ground then walk over to Zed’s car, sticking out her hand. The driver’s window slid down and her hand was quickly filled with two phones and a laptop. “That’s not all the gas, right?” Theo heard Sol ask. Kai ignored her and sprinted to the van, emptying her hands. The electronics hit the ground with a dull, unsatisfying thud. She gave her burner, the only one that was a smartphone, a particularly strong toss. It had come preloaded with MapQuest; it deserved the worst. Theo smiled when the screen shattered on impact.

Retrieving her gas container, Kai used the last few drops to douse the wig. Brandishing her lighter, she lit it then tossed it into the wreckage.

She and Theo swiftly filed back into his car. Following Kai’s directions, he pulled out quickly and headed toward Cascade Road. Theo hoped for an explosion, but he had watched enough Mythbusters to know better. Instead, he listened as Kai watched videos of their laser tag on Twitter. He couldn’t wait to see what the tag said in the morning, and he couldn’t wait to see Sol’s response to the change of the change of plans. He hated when she stepped up to solve his problems.

I-285 appeared quickly, and the seven miles home seemed to appear even quicker, but even as the night glided by, Theo remained in that harrowing half hour. When his head finally hit his pillow after dropping off Kai and driving to Marietta, he didn’t feel relaxed. He felt poised, ready to take on whatever else the summer dared to offer and determined not to fuck it up.