5
Exit the Dragon
Brant Thoreau’s reply to me had been very measured, very polite, and so I had to admit I was a little startled by the apparition that showed up on the Bigelow mansion’s doorstep the next day.
He was very tall, taller even than Calvin’s impressive six feet and four inches. Unlike Calvin, Brant was almost painfully thin, with bleached white hair that stuck out in spikes, a nose ring, and tattoos encircling his throat and arms. A silky kimono embroidered with dragons billowed over slouchy black linen pants and a black tank top, and black flip-flops adorned feet that had black-painted toenails.
After a single blink, though, I recovered myself and extended a hand. “Hi, Brant,” I said. “I’m Selena, and this is Tom and Elizabeth.”
They were both staring at him, expressions
