The mattresses were bare, which meant Neil was going to have to buy sheets. He hadn't slept in a real bed since he left Seattle. He'd broken into cars to borrow backseats in California, slept on the bus to Nevada, and dozed in passenger seats while hitchhiking with truckers to Arizona. His house in Millport had been unfurnished, so he'd slept on the floor with shirts as his pillow. Wymack's couch was the nicest thing he'd had in over a year, but now he had a bed.

Sleeping alone would be disorienting. He'd gotten in the habit of sleeping in his mother's bed, as her paranoia didn't want him out of her reach. They slept back to back, guarding each other, the guns under their pillows uncomfortable but reassuring lumps.

"I'm heading out to get Dan and Renee from the airport," Matt said from the doorway. "Want to come with?"

"I've got to run by the store," Neil said. "Do you care which bed you sleep in?"

"I'm too tall to sleep up top," Matt said, "and Seth keeps weird hours, so unless you've got a thing with heights you're better off in the loft. I'll be back in an hour or so, and you can hitch a ride with us to the court when the girls are settled. Dan won't believe you're okay until she sees you with her own eyes."

"I'll be back by then," Neil said, so Matt left.

Neil waited until the door closed behind him before shrugging his bag off his shoulder. He walked laps around the dorm room again, this time with a sinking feeling in his gut. His locker was on the other side of campus, and Wymack's locked cabinet was even further away. The only quasi-secure place in the entire room was his dresser, and that was just because the drawers closed all the way. Nothing had a lock on it except the front door.

He could bring the duffel with him, seeing how it was only two miles to the store, but he needed to buy so many things he knew he couldn't carry it all back. He ran through the timing in his head instead, adding up Matt's drive to the airport, the wait for the girls' luggage to show up at the belt, and the trek back. Even if Matt was only gone an hour, he and Neil should get back to the dormitory around the same time. The suite's lock was going to have to be enough for now. Neil could look for a better solution at the store.

He dug his wallet out of the duffel's end pocket and stuffed the bag into his dresser's bottom drawer. It barely fit, but at least it closed. He pressed his fingers to the wood for a second, looking for the courage to walk away, and triple-checked the lock on his way out.

The next room down was the girls', and the cousins' room was after that. Nicky was lounging in his doorway. He smiled when he saw Neil.