Murphy didn't try to shove past Lisa-Joe, but stood watching her with his golden eyes boring into her until she chose to move.
"Thanks," he said, without making any attempt to sound sincere. She had no fucking idea and was instantly assuming the worst. Maybe it did look bad, but it was none of her business, it was between Jake and him, not her. He raised an eyebrow at her empty threat. If Jake was the man Murphy hoped he was, he wouldn't let her hurt him, even if Murphy had upset him.
And if Jake did let her carry out her petty threats, maybe Ben was right.
He couldn't be bothered trying to answer back, she clearly wanted the last word so he let her have it and headed down the corridor. Murphy had been to the armory once on a quick tour from Jake, but it had been on the way elsewhere and from somewhere else, so he walked gingerly to make sure he went the right way.
Murphy entered the artillery room first, breathing in the unfamiliar scents of metal and oil. The fledgling followed his ears, moving into the next room, his nose wrinkling up slightly at the scent of sewage, mingled with a flowery scent which became too overpowering and artificial. He could smell the polish on the floors as well, which was more pleasant, but not strong enough to over-take the stench.
The unhappy look on his face disappeared into a smile as he spotted Jake, although he looked busy and Murphy glanced down at his shoes, not wanting to disturb Jake, but knowing he had to.
"Hey," he said after a moment as he sensed a small break in the sparring, stepping further into the room, but not moving close to the battling trio. "Sorry I couldn't come over before," he added quickly, knowing it was only the start of the conversation, but wanting to get that apology in first. He shouldn't have stayed away for a week, Jeanne was right. He'd seen the desperate messages from Jake and wished he hadn't caused that. Jake would hopefully dismiss his sparring partners before he started asking questions, but if not Murphy would ask him to.