We pulled the truck into the garage. Nina got out and looked at me, "Mind accompanying me to the lab? I would love another blood sample and I want to check that cut. You haven't let me near it since I first cleaned it."

To my surprise, my amusement momentarily trumped my irritation. I smirked as Nina was obviously trying to use that as an excuse to get a look under the bandage. My other scabs were long gone, but Daniel still sported a few scabs from his deepest scratches.

I exhaled gustily as my irritation won, but still followed her to the lab. Nicky tagged along to avoid being put to work. Nina pulled out cleaning supplies as I sat on a tall stool. Nicky chose an office chair on wheels and slowly started spinning herself around in it.

Daniel had taken a seat in a chair by the counter while watching Nina as she started working the bandage loose. Nina carefully peeled back the bandage and blinked in surprise. I kept a straight face even though I felt like gloating.

The scab had come loose this afternoon and I had removed it. I had kept the bandage on just to mess with Daniel's head. He would have no clue as to when the scab had come off. My deep cut was healed, yet his larger scratches were still scabbed over.

Nina shook her head, but looked amused, "I should have known. You are doing this just to get under Daniel's skin, aren't you?"

I bared my teeth in a grin, "I bet it is working."

Daniel snorted lightly, "Not as much as you are likely hoping."

"Drat."

Daniel found my reaction amusing, "I may have to bribe Nicky into spilling the secret somehow..."

I raised an eyebrow and cocked my head as I pretended to consider the odds, "I bet if you let her color your jacket and wore it for three days along with the rainbow socks and shoes that she might agree."

Nicky perked up, "I like that idea, but make it a week and he can't cover it up like you did."

"Not a chance." Daniel clearly was not that desperate to learn the secret.

I shrugged, "Well, it would be one way to wear out her felts."

Nicky shook her head with a grin, "Those things will never die."

Daniel declined a response. I narrowed my eyes as Nina picked up a blood collection needle in her hands, but I let her take two vials of blood. Nina capped the vials, "Thanks. Are you ever going to tell Daniel, even if he doesn't figure it out in a month?"

I made a face, "If he doesn't figure it out in a month, then he needs to go back to zombie school."

Daniel tilted his head, "I missed the enrolment deadline for that and I haven't found a tutor willing to enlighten me. Perhaps you can take pity on me?"

"Since when did you become an eloquent poet?"

Nicky interrupted Daniel's response as she launched into a wildly off-key song, "Hold back the river, let me look in your eyes, Hold back the river, so I-" She cut off suddenly and we just stared at her, trying to figure out what the hell she was going on about. If her mind ever short circuited, we were in for a ride.

Nicky blinked in surprise, "Whoops, wrong song... That was supposed to be Cry Me A River, not Hold Back The River..." She shrugged, "Easily fixed. The bridges were burned, now it's your turn, to cry... Cry me a river..."

I was about ready to plug my ears when Nina interrupted her, "That actually gives me a really good idea!"

Nicky looked at her like she had lost her mind, "You might need your head checked. No one has ever liked my singing."

I agreed with Nicky. Nicky's voice was something that made you cringe at the first few words before trying to plug your ears in such a way that would allow you to block out any trace of that racket. I failed to see how Nicky's singing could bring about any good idea other than duct tape.

Nina shook her head at Nicky, "No. Sorry, your singing is terrible and completely off-key, but it gave me another idea for research." Nina turned to look at Daniel with growing excitement, "I have always used blood or saliva in my testing and both help in different areas, but I never considered tears. It opens up a completely new area we can look at."

Daniel blinked slowly, "The idea has its merits. Collecting tears is harder than saliva or blood though. I am actually not sure how I would react to anything near my eyes."

Nina shrugged, "A small collection vial to collect a tear as it rolls down would be much more effective."

Daniel nodded slowly, "That would work, but I have never been the type to shed tears and I don't recall shedding a tear since I turned. Even if I stick my head out of the truck while driving my eyes don't water from the wind. My pain tolerance is also extremely high, so that won't work either."

Nicky tilted her head while regarding Daniel before turning to me, "I say we tickle him until he cries for mercy."

I snorted in amusement. How she planned to win that match was beyond me. Nicky shook her head as she dismissed the idea, "Nah, he might just kill me if I attempted that." Nicky eyed me up instead, "I don't suppose you are ticklish..."

Oh no you don't... I shook my head and lied, "No, I lost that when I turned. Don't even bother coming after me, all I need is a glimpse of light for my eyes to water."

One glance at Nina showed that my attempt to dissuade Nicky had leaked some rather unfortunate information that Nina found very interesting. Crap. Me and my big mouth.

Nina took a few steps closer, "Would you possibly consider doing it? It could very well be quite important in our research." She was tentative, but her hope and curiosity came through plainly in her scent.

I looked at her with misgivings and spoke reluctantly, "The problem isn't getting my eyes to water. They are quite sensitive to light. The biggest problem is that if the light is bright enough to make my eyes water, then it is bright enough to partially blind me due to pain. Between the pain and inability to see, there is quite a high chance of me striking out at anyone who comes near me until my eyes recover. You saw how that feral reacted to light."

Daniel growled lightly and Nina winced at the memory. Nicky leaned back in her chair and seemed oddly serious, "If you are serious about trying, I can guard you. I can even use the vial to catch the tears as they roll from under your sunglasses since you won't be able to see them in a mirror. I am not sure if you trust me enough to attempt that though."

I was not in favor of her potential plan. This kind of chore was the one I would rather push onto Daniel, although chances of Daniel managing to shed a tear were slim to none. Even grief often did not allow tears to come as a zombie. He might find a way. If it wasn't for bright lights, my eyes had never watered since I turned. Light that bright hurt like hell too. I did not want to do this and did not intend to even attempt it.

I opened my mouth to decline when a memory of my sister came to mind and I closed my mouth with a headshake and a low growl as I suddenly became conflicted. The memory of her sitting beside our parent's graves afflicted my decision and undermined my resolution.

She had been silently crying as she put new flowers by their tombstones. I had hugged her and we had sat in silence before she had whispered, "Tears are the price we pay for love. You cannot cry over something you do not care about."

I gritted my teeth, why did I have to remember this now of all times? My grief hadn't really faded much in eight months and it roused my instincts. They made me more agitated and unpredictable.

I had always been the more fierce one, the one always getting into fights with bullies. She had been the one who was all smiles, the one who helped anyone she could. I beat up the ones who tried to take unfair advantage of her generosity.

I knew that she would have urged me to try if she had been here. I exhaled gustily as I tried to rein in my conflicted emotions. The others were watching me, they didn't seem that surprised that I seemed divided on the subject, although they had no clue just what debate was raging in my mind. They most likely thought that I was trying to work through my lack of trust with them if I was blinded.

If I was blinded, I was vulnerable. Zombies did not like being vulnerable, for that matter, most humans hated being vulnerable as well. Even when Luke had lost his sight for that slight second, it had put him off balance. Allowing someone near, and touching me yet, was a completely different level.

Even when Kelly's sunglasses had come loose during our wrestling match, I had simply handed her the sunglasses. I would not have attempted to put them on her face. I doubted I could let someone near my face if I was blinded. Nicky was right about one thing though, if I tried to use the vial myself, chances were that I would miss more tears than would go into that little glass tube.

Daniel and Nina were completely out of the question. Luke wasn't an option either, I got along well enough with him, but my instincts would not tolerate the Runner so close to my face while I was blinded.

Now I just realized that I am debating the how instead of if I should. How the hell did that happen? I shook my head to recollect my whirling thoughts. The person that no one in this entire place trusted was the one that actually had the best chance of approaching me without getting slashed.

Nicky. For as crazy as she could get sometimes, she was loyal to the core. My instincts had not considered her a threat for quite some time now. The controlex had rendered humans a non-entity, which should make things easier, at least in theory. The biggest thing was that I trusted her.

I had trusted her enough weeks ago to let her put that stupid dandelion crown on my head. Would I be able to tolerate her proximity if I was blinded? I honestly wasn't sure. Light blinded Nightstalkers were not exactly rational, even if they were sane. There was a chance I could lash out at her as an automatic reaction, like when people jump when someone sneaks up on them and yells 'boo'.