Page 144 of Haze of Obedience

Silence.

"My granddaughters would love an autograph. I have seven of them."

Zoe smiles. "Why don't you go get seven things, and I'll sign them with personalized messages."

"That would be very sweet of you, Ms. Diego."

"Call me, Zoe."

"Zoe." He touches her shoulder when he passes, and I hold myself back from twisting his arm and putting him into a headlock.

I spin Zoe into me. "You shouldn't be leaving any evidence you were here."

"We will tell him to wait a few months before giving them to his family."

"He's not going to wait."

"He's Tinker's friend. We're trusting him to get us passports. There's no difference."

"I don't—"

"I'll wait. You have my word," Clayton barks from behind me.

I turn.

His hands are full of old CD cases. He scowls at me then smiles at Zoe. "Would you mind signing eight? I think my grandson will want one too."

"Sure."

He sets the items on the coffee table and hands Zoe a marker. They go back and forth over names, and she spends fifteen minutes asking him their ages and writing personalized messages to each of his grandchildren.

When she finishes, he says, "There's a spare room if you want to crash for the night."

"We have a mattress in the van. If we can stay in your driveway, that would be appreciated," I rush to say.

He shrugs. "Suite yourself. The bathroom is available if you need it."

Zoe rises. "I'll take you up on that."

He points out where it's located, and she leaves the room.

"How many days will it take to get the passports?"

"Twenty four hours typically. I'll get it done first thing tomorrow morning. My eyes don't work as good at night."

"Thank you."

"You need to calm down, son. Zoe Diego is a superstar. You can't expect her to be in a room and not have others pay attention to her."

My anger builds once more. "I know who she is. Why don't you keep your advice to yourself."

He holds his hands in the air. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

Zoe comes out, and we leave. As soon as we get in the van, I lock the doors. "Are you all right?"

"Fine. He's like lots of fans. It's not a big deal."

"You shouldn't be giving your autograph out."