Kitt enjoyed his conversation with the police officers very much. They brought him a cup of bitter coffee and then a plate of doughnuts as he told them precisely what had happened at the crime scene.

“My god, man,” Officer Brown said when he was finished. “I don’t know how you were able to keep your cool and remember all the details. You probably saved that girl’s life.”

Of course Kitt remembered exactly what happened and in what order. He had used his gift to slow his perception, remove the brick with burning rags tied to it from the floor of the cabin, take it outside, extinguish the flames in the dirt, and capture Wade Travers.

“You have the makings of a good cop,” Officer Kravitz told him.

“Thank you,” Kitt replied through a mouthful of doughnuts.

So far they had not indicated that they suspected him of anything, except being a hero.

“Here you go, man,” another officer said, tossing him something.

He grabbed it. It was a sweatshirt. On the front it said Purple Mountain PD.

“Go on, put it on, son,” Officer Brown told him.

Kitt pulled the shirt on over his bare chest.

“Aw, Bill,” Officer Kravitz pretended to pout.

“No flirting, Kravitz,” Brown teased her. “He’s a hero, not a Chippendale.”

They all laughed, even Officer Kravitz.

Kitt laughed too, though he did not know what a Chippendale was. He thought maybe it was a style of furniture, but why would Officer Kravitz flirt with a piece of furniture? At any rate, he enjoyed the camaraderie of the group of uniformed warriors.

Just then, Officer Nunez walked past, with Honey in tow. Honey was not laughing and Officer Nunez looked very business-like.

“I’m gonna drive her back,” Officer Nunez said to the group.

Kitt put his half-eaten doughnut back on the plate and straightened up.

“Not yet, son,” Officer Brown told him. “We’ll take you back in a few minutes.”

They made him repeat his story twice more. He wondered why, but thought it best to comply calmly.

Then at last Officer Brown drove him back to the resort.

Kitt looked out the window, marveling at the speed with which the car took the turns.

Out the window, raindrops began to splatter on the leaves and run down the glass windows of the vehicle like tears.

“You gonna be okay, son?” Officer Brown gave him a half smile that was just visible through his gray beard.

“Yes,” Kitt said. “Wade Travers has been imprisoned, Honey will be safe.”

“You really like her, huh?”

“Yes,” Kitt said, not bothering to explain how inadequately those few words described the hugeness of his feelings for Honey. “But she’s not so sure about me.”

“Well, stay the course,” Officer Brown advised. “She looked pretty shaken up. But she’ll come around. You’re nothing like that other fellow.”

“Thank you,” Kitt said.

When they pulled up in the main parking lot, Kitt hopped out of the car and dashed through the rain toward the cabins.

He wanted badly to find Honey, but he knew she didn’t want to see him.

So instead he went to his own cabin. It was a large space, with bunks for more than twenty men. But right now they were all working. Kitt would have time alone to contemplate what to do about Honey.

Once he arrived, he saw that his brothers were sitting at the communal table at the end of the room, playing checkers.

“Remington, Indiana,” he said happily.

“Are you okay, Kitt?” The deeper note of Remington’s voice told Kitt he was really concerned. “Malik said that we could come back here and wait for you. Did they believe you?”

“I’m fine,” Kitt replied. “The police were very courteous.”

“Yeah, it looks like he’s one of them now,” Indiana winked, inclining his head toward Kitt’s new shirt.

Kitt looked down at it proudly. The cotton stretched tightly over the muscles of his chest and biceps but it fit him well compared to most garments.

“Where’s Honey?” Remington asked.

Kitt ran a hand through his hair and began to pace.

“Oh man,” Indiana laughed. “You’ve got it bad, brother.”

“Don’t laugh at his pain,” Remington chided. “What happened, Kitt?”

“She doesn’t want me,” Kitt said.

“They told us to expect that,” Indiana said. “Earth women aren’t inclined to feel comfortable with men from Aerie right away, they need time.”

“It’s not that,” Kitt said.

“Then what is it?” Indiana asked.

“She thinks she’s cursed,” Kitt muttered.

“What?” Remington turned his chair to Kitt.

“She thinks she’s cursed,” Kitt repeated. “She said that it’s her fault that Wade Travers went crazy, that it was because she went on a date with him. And she said if she goes on a date with me I’ll go crazy too.”

Indiana began laughing delightedly.

“Damn it, Indy,” Remington roared. “Stop laughing at Kitt’s problem.”

“This sounds like it’s Honey’s problem, not Kitt’s,” Indiana chuckled.

“That’s it,” Remington said, slamming his fist on the table and causing all the checkers to leap off their squares.

“Sorry, brother, sorry,” Indiana said. His expression grew more serious.

Kitt appreciated it. His brother Indiana reminded him of the famous Bugs Bunny. It was hard for the high-spirited fellow to contain his good humor for long. But it was not always the most helpful way to be.

“So how do we solve this problem?” Remington stood and began to pace alongside Kitt.

“I don’t know,” Kitt said. “How can I prove to her that I won’t go crazy if she dates me?”