Nix smiled in his sleep; the warmth of a familiar body next to him quickly destroyed any motivation he had to get up.


    "I''m d you''re back." Hyai''s voice wasforting as it drifted into herpanion''s consciousness.


    Nix opened one eye, just long enough to ensure it was the Innkeeper. "It will be two days before I can be resurrected. I expect you to let me sleep as much as possible."


    "He''s tired, Hyai." Deidra''s voice pulled the Inferno Leader out of his slumber. "Although I am curious as to how he died."


    Nix cursed into the soft padding of his pillow. "The hell is she doing here?"


    Hyai pinched his side in response. "She''s been guarding me..." The Innkeeper sighed heavily; although unweed, she found the intent quite heartwarming.


    "Hmm?" Nix sat up slowly, ncing around the bedroom. He respawned in the Coven circle a few hours earlier. After enjoying a homecooked meal, he moved into the room that Hyai had been using. He nced at the cold beauty of Solomon City before looking back at the woman in bed beside him. "Why would she need to guard you?"


    "We''ll talkter, Nix. Wee back." Deidra excused herself and shut the door softly after exiting.


    "Well... The thing is..." Hyai found herself somewhat hesitant to speak; the normal confidence she spoke with seemed to avoid her as she stared at her gripped hands. "Somehow, I find myself in the same condition as Mina."


    Nix chuckled at her difort. "That makes it sound like you''re pregnant. Hit me with it. What''s up?"


    "I''m pregnant." Hyai smiled at her own words and let out the breath she had been holding. "A boy, ording to Shae."


    The silence stretched for several seconds while Nix processed her words. His first reaction was that she was teasing, but he knew by her expression that she wasn''t. "Holy crap... We need to get you somewhere safer."


    Hyai watched as he tossed off the covers and started getting dressed; he tripped twice while slipping his own shoes on. "Nix? Stop for a moment."


    "Huh?" Nix finally managed to get his shoes on by sitting on the floor. "What?"


    "What do you think?"


    "Hmmm... I''m thinking that the ten thousand reasons why I can''t lose you, just doubled." Nix ignore his own nerves and took a seat next to her on the bed.


    Hyai smiled and hugged him tightly. "So it''s good?"


    Nix nodded and kissed the top of her head. He had met the Innkeeper on his first day after escaping the dis Hub; if he was being honest, her influence was a big part of his sess. "Did B freak out?"


    (B is married to the Provost Marshal Bane, she is Hyai''s daughter)


    "Freak out?" Hyai made an effort to pat down Nix''s bed hair. "What''s that mean?"


    "Did her head blow up?"


    Hyai nodded. "Yep..."


    ***************


    A short excursion from Colonial will only be two chapters. Skipping ahead won''t really affect much other than a bit of backstory.


    ****************


    [Chinatown, New York 0300 hours] Six months before Nix was ced in the dis Hub.


    Most of the dark alley was blocked off by police cars and emergency responders. The shine from fresh rain caused normally dark brick walls to reflect the blue shing lights.


    "Fucking hell..." The young woman wrinkled her nose in disgust at the smell of urine and trash that permeated the air. "How am I going to sleep with this racket?" She nced at the group of cops that were huddled under ck umbres.


    "You aren''t going to believe this... No fingerprints or DNA on file."


    Two different police officers repeated the words as they checked and rechecked the body. The thin woman watched from the far end of the alley, just close enough to hear what they were saying. Since the victim was carrying no ID, dispatch was already calling her Jane Doe.


    Mason walked for a few minutes before arriving at her t. No one had stopped to question her, even though the corpse was less than two blocks from her building. Her five-inch heels clicked loudly as she walked down the hall toward the old freight elevator that offered the only ess to her apartment. She punched the button angrily with her elbow and listened as the old electric motor spun up. By the time the door opened, she had her torn fis stockings and wet purple wig in one hand and her heels in the other.


    When Mason entered the t a moment minutester, both of her roommates were sitting on the living room couch. Twentytwo-year-old Mason Dixon from Georgia had moved to Chinatown three years earlier. None of the jobs she attempted panned out; she fell back on what she knew in the end.


    "Fifteen years of dance sses, and I end up as a stripper. Mom would love that." Dixon hung up her overcoat and stepped into the entryway, pausing when she noticed her friends. "Something up?"


    The trio was an unlikely group; an MIT graduate who hadnded a dream job only to have fate snatch it away, a woman who danced for men, and a tattoo artist. When Yu Yan lost her job, she had been forced to take on boarders in her t. The once luxuriouslyrge space shrank suddenly when two more were added in.


    Yu Yan offered her roommate a smile. Dixon wore her work clothes under the overcoat, a micro skirt with a metallic halter top. She knew her roommate was actually more conservative in real life. They were all trying to survive. "We''re going to miss rent."


    "I already paid up." Dixon hung her purple wig on the closet door handle and limped toward the group, dancing in heels aggravated the injuries she had suffered while training ssical ballet. She took a seat on a padded rocking chair and leaned back slightly while running her fingers through her short ck hair. Since it was damp, her hair stuck straight up when she finished.


    Yu Yan blushed slightly; her pale features would have been somewhat attractive if she ever managed to smile. "I''ve been looking for work; no one is hiring. Ray only has half, and I ampletely broke."


    The third girl nodded in affirmation. "Sorry," although a talented tattoo artist, Ray had struggled to carve out a niche for herself. Each of them paid fifteen hundred dors a month; she hade up short by half." Ray pointed at the stack of bills on the coffee table. As expected, she had turned her arms and legs into intricate tapestries that showcased her abilities as an artist. "This is all I have."


    Mason''s fine features were expressionless as she listened. She''d been saving her money so that she could go back to college and finish. Would that even matter? Yu Yan was an unemployed MIT graduate. "I can cover rent this month, but we have to figure something out."


    **************


    "Heading to work?" Yu Yan looked up from her spot at the kitchen ind. She had spent the entire day applying for any position that she qualified for. Mason worked all night and generally didn''t get up until dinner time, while Ray usually worked until midnight.


    Mason nodded. "You hear anything else about that body?"


    Yu Yan nodded. "Mystery woman, her picture is all over the news. Sooner orter, someone wille forward. At least my luck is better than hers."


    Mason smiled at her roommate and nced at the stove. Yu Yan did most of the cooking, but she''d obviously been too busy. "Take out tonight?"


    Yu nodded. "Yep. Noment?"


    Mason shook her head slightly. Her roommate had worked for two years before the building she worked in mysteriously burnt to the ground. Shended another job almost right away before fate struck a second time. "It''s bad Karma to take notice of other people''s bad luck."


    Yu blew softly on her steaming cup of tea. "I swear that bastard was targeting me."


    Masonughed at Yu''s expression. "Good news is that they''ve caught him; we should be safe."


    Yu put on a fake frown. "Don''t jinx yourself. He''ll escape prison and burn your workce to the ground."