The pneumatic doors of the M15 local bus hissed open with a dramatic, squealing groan.
Aria skipped down the rubber steps onto the pavement. She turned back toward the brightly lit, packed cabin, waving enthusiastically at an older woman sitting near the window.
"Good luck with the gallbladder surgery on Thursday, Brenda!" Aria yelled cheerfully over the roar of the bus engine. "Don't let them cheap out on the anesthesia! Ask for the good stuff!"
"Thanks, sweetie!" Brenda waved back. "Tell your husband to take some Pepto!"
The doors slapped shut, and the bus roared away into the Manhattan night, blowing a warm gust of exhaust fumes over the curb.
Aria turned around, a massive, triumphant grin on her face.
That grin vanished the second she looked at her husband.
Damien had stumbled out of the bus behind her and was currently braced with both hands against a brick building, his head hanging low.
