Marlowe
The den settled into something like healing over the following days, King's recovery progressing steadily enough that he'd started grumbling about being kept off active duty, which Preacher took as a reliable sign of genuine improvement rather than actual complaint.
The banter crept back slowly — Cricket's ridiculous betting pool resurrecting itself around considerably less speculative questions now that the truth was fully public, Nova's easy warmth returning without the careful edges of secret-keeping, even Wrench's gruff affection settling back into its familiar rhythm now that the worst of the crisis had passed.
Reid found me alone in the garage one evening, hesitant in a way I'd genuinely never seen from him before.
"Can I talk to you?" he said, none of his old careful cal
