Page 131 of Switch!

Two hours pass before Trixie and I see each other again. I’m not familiar with the transit system in Seattle. While trying to figure it out, I missed my train and had to catch a bus instead. The wind had mostly fizzled out by the time I boarded. Now that I’m back in Tacoma, the sky is tranquil and blue. Trixie and I keep glancing up at it after exchanging a hug. Then we laugh.

“What was that about?” I ask.

We already exchanged equally perplexed texts on the way back to Tacoma, mostly to make sure we were each doing okay, but I didn’t want to distract her while she was driving. “Do you think Gismonda pulled some sort of trick to get rid of us? The weather could have been a natural excuse.”

“It didn’t look natural to me,” Trixie says as we walk across the depot parking lot toward Gary’s car. “And she wasn’t lying. At least I don’t think so. I’m not sure I understand my own powers anymore.”

“I’ll help you figure them out.” That was on my mind during the bus ride. Trixie has been tireless in helping me explore my abilities. She seemed so confident in hers that I never thought to do the same. “But you’re sure she wasn’t tricking us?”

“As much as I can be. How awesome was that, by the way?”

“Which part?”

“All of it! Too bad we couldn’t stick around longer. What do you think would have happened if we did?”

I do my best imitation of Gismonda when answering. “Mysterious forces should not be trifled with.”

This cracks Trixie up. “We learned a lot, even though it was a short visit. Like how we’re one in a million. That’s going to be our team name. The Millionaires.”

“How ironic then that we’re broke,” I say as we reach the ridiculously expensive sports car. “Even if it doesn’t appear that way from the outside.”

“And we’re about to get poorer,” Trixie says. “Sounds like we have some travelling to do.”

I nod before I climb in on the passenger side. I wait until Trixie is seated before replying. “Gismonda said we both need to go home, one after the other, but I’m pretty sure she meant Patrick and me.”

“That was my impression too,” Trixie says as she starts the car. “I’ll be going with you, of course.”

“I was hoping you’d say that.” The news has me feeling calmer about the prospect. “Where should we go first? Wyoming or Connecticut?”

“We should take Patrick home, if you still plan on sharing your original body with Caleb.”

“It’s the only solution I’ve come up with. I’d need to figure out how much of the real Caleb is still in there, and what we can do to help him.”

Trixie nods. “Then we have planning to do.”

We decide to wait until we’re back at Gary’s place. When we reach his house, we drive past it, trying to figure out if the maid is there. We don’t see a car. Trixie knocks on the door and rings the bell, but nobody answers, so we open the garage and park. The interior of the house smells like cleaning chemicals and is noticeably tidier. Confident that the maid has come and gone, we plop down on one of the living room couches.

“Okay,” Trixie says, laptop at the ready. “You said Patrick’s parents live outside of Hartford?”

“Yup.”

She alternates between typing and clicking. Then she exhales. “That’ll be two days of nonstop driving, although we need to sleep and eat, so it’s more like four or five days. Or we can fly. That would get us there in seven hours instead.”

“I’m already doubtful we can afford enough gas for the trip. How much do plane tickets cost?”

“About five hundred each, round trip.” Trixie sets the laptop aside. “I know what you’re going to say. That’ll clean us out, and you’re right, but maybe we don’t need to worry about paying off Patrick’s debt. His family might be willing to take care of that, once they find out how bad things have gotten for him. Even if they do, paying rent is a pain. I think we should stop.”

“And get kicked out of his apartment? We need somewhere to live.”

“Are you sure about that?” Trixie asks, glancing around meaningfully. “Can’t you do something like this again? Gary isn’t the only rich guy with multiple homes.”

She’s right, and I know this sort of lifestyle appeals to her sense of adventure, but I like to feel secure. Part of me is always on edge while here, wondering if Gary will return home early. Or some other person we don’t even know about could show up. I only had brief access to Gary’s memories. I didn’t think to ask all the questions I should have.

“Either way,” Trixie continues. “Gismonda said this is what we should do, and we have to get there somehow. Driving is cheaper, but once you factor in gas, hotels, food, and repairs if anything goes wrong, it might cost more.”

I chew my bottom lip, still not convinced. “We could sleep in the SUV. It’s big enough. I know that wouldn’t be very comfortable, but if we tough it out and eat cheap…”

“Okay,” Trixie says. “I wasn’t going to show you this because you don’t want to be tempted, but you should at least take it into consideration.”