“If you’re bored with nobody around, and if visiting hours are still open, there’s something I want to discuss,” I said. “I can bring anything you need, too. I’m fast and you’re not far.”

“If you think my mom is leaving while visiting hours are open, you’re just plain wrong,” Natalie said.

“Where is that doctor?” her mom asked.

“Don’t bother the doctor, Mom. Everything’s fine.”

“The more attention you get, the better.”

“I will get worse care if I’m obnoxious.”

“I’ll be the obnoxious one then if it means getting you the care you need.”

“Natalie, I’m going to get out of your hair,” I told her. Then, spur of the moment, I winked and said, “Be sure to get in touch about that one-on-one conversation. Team stuff.”

“Team stuff? Legal?”

“Yeah,” I said. “But it can wait until this afternoon, I think.”

That was excuse enough for Natalie to shoo her mom and the mini-Natalies out of the room—they weren’t even paying attention to us, mostly sitting in a row of three chairs in the corner, talking. They went with the aunts and uncles. Cousins. The mom went a separate direction.

“Needed a moment to breathe?” I asked.

“Yes. Thank you.”

“Believe me, I get it.”

“My mom is embarrassing. I love her, but you can’t tell her anything. Your mom, I know for a fact, is awesome.”

I drew in a breath and held back the big sigh I wanted to give.

“Are you okay?” Natalie asked. “You didn’t stay up all night hunting those losers from Kenzie’s house, did you?”

“No. We got the mooks and handed them off to the authorities. Tipped off other teams, we’re collapsing on them like we did with Trial and Error. If we pin them down, I might fly over and help.”

“Are you okay though?”

“I did want to talk with you about something one-on-one,” I told her. “If you’re up for it.”

“Something legal?”

I shook my head. “Not really. But it came up last night, and it’s been pointed out to me that this stuff being kept private is kind of a weak point. Maybe if the others had known, they would have known what to say when it came up on the show. Extra heads—

“—extra arms,” I finished. My voice was quieter with each word.

“That was a real thing?” Natalie asked, equally quiet.

“I was a puddle of body parts for two years and the one person who could change me back sent herself to the one place nobody was supposed to get out from. She threatened bioplagues if they didn’t send her there…”

“Bioplagues?”