by J. B. Garner
I was the one that turned red this time. Oh, it wasn’t the attention that embarrassed me. Gods, after Siofra’s constant flirting, I could handle that fine enough. Women weren’t my preference, no, but I was feeling like a pile of slime that I hadn’t even considered the possibility that Bunny was a lesbian and that she had, well, that much was obvious in hindsight.
“Bunny …” I bit my lip. “I’m such a hard-headed fool. I didn’t even think about it.”
“Reba is a good woman, Mary,” Sinclair added, still betraying the fact he did, indeed, have a heart. “Your infatuation with our vagrant prince was plain, so she has done her level best to not interfere.” His shark-like smirk came back as he finished, though. “If you were to ask me, you chose significantly down.”
“Thyvian,” Bunny growled, her eyes flashing red, “don’t make this even worse. Even if we both think Mary’s a damn fool, she’s actually in love with the cad. And, I can’t believe I’m saying this, he’s staying true to her as well.” She glanced out the tinted windows. “Trust me, I’ve been keeping an eye on him.”
My eyes went wide. “Are you really spying on Aelfie?”
I wasn’t sure if I was upset about that or curious as to what she saw him doing when I wasn’t around. What can I say? The private life of Aelfread Aelfson was intriguing when you dangled it around like that.
She looked back at me, and while it was weak, some of her usual confident smile was back over the blush. “Now, Mary, you sound like you’re more curious than reproachful.”
“Please, ladies,” Sinclair interrupted, his claws scraping as he steepled his hands again, “while this moment of sharing has been delightful, we will be at Councilman Frizzoli’s establishment shortly. You should prepare yourselves to discuss your grievances with him.”
His gaze was strictly on me now. “Naturally, I cannot go with you. As the Governor of the region, it would be inappropriate for me to appear. It would be taken that I was exerting undue influence in the case at hand. I wouldn’t want anyone to accuse me of corruption, would I?”
I gave Bunny a reassuring smile and nod before giving Sinclair my attention. “I wonder who’d ever say that, your Governorship.”
“I wonder indeed,” he purred, almost like a cat.
“Whatever, Thyvian,” Bunny said, resolution growing in her tone again. “Just promise me that when I wrap up this collar, you won’t pull any tricks to keep Frizzoli on the streets. Not like last time.”
“I don’t know what you’re referring to, Reba. You know I am a strict follower of the law. However, rest assured that in this instance, you have my full support, even if I cannot declare so publicly.” Sinclair lowered his fanged maw, and with the glint in his eyes, I could see why the Drakes thought of themselves sharing blood with the True Dragons. “As Ms. Stone has made the case for, Mercutio has crossed one line too far.”
13
I was still absorbing what I had learned when Sinclair’s car finally pulled to a stop. Let’s face facts. Before that fateful night that I had met Aelfread, I had never been what you would call desired, not romantically. A loyal friend, sure. A dependable worker, of course. But never someone to love, to cherish, to find, well, sexually attractive.
Even after Aelfie and I consummated our relationship (something we’d done plenty over the months since), I guessed that there was still a part of me that assumed that love was founded not on some mutual attraction but the fact I had been the heroine who saved the prince from the dragon. As for Siofra, well, that was flirting. Every Elf I knew (not many but more than a score) acted that way, showing about zero social or sexual inhibitions.
But with Bunny, well, that was the last eye-opening revelation that maybe I wasn’t the dog at the pony show. For all the other insanity that was swirling around, it was, well, sort of empowering to feel that way, that I could be sexy when I wanted to be, and that people could love what they saw when I walked down the street.
Mr. Sinclair’s horror of a chauffeur opened the door, gesturing stiffly out onto what looked to be a side street or an alleyway. “Ladies, Governor, we have arrived.” His exaggerated grin hadn’t changed a bit, and his head seemed to wobble unsteadily on his neck as he stepped aside to accommodate our exit.
“I had Gavin take you to a tucked-away alley a block from the restaurant,” the Drake said, gesturing to the door as well. “Considering the grave nature of this incident, I would appreciate it if you kept me in the loop, Huntress, Ms. Stone.”
Bunny had regained her full composure, diving back into the tough-as-nails Huntress act. “Don’t worry, Governor. You’ll hear all about when I drag Mercutio in with chains on his wrists.”
“What she means,” I hastily added, “is that we’ll be in touch if something new develops or we need your assistance.”
Sinclair let out a brief chuckle. “Oh, Ms. Stone, I know exactly what Reba meant.” He made a brief shooing motion with his talons. “Now, to work with you. Mr. Sanderson will not find himself, will he?”
That was enough to spur us both out of the door and into the alley. Gavin closed the door behind us, carefully turning his entire body to face us and bow slowly at the knees. I only sketched a curtsy on instinct; whatever Gavin was set off all the wrong signals in my brain. The sooner they were away, the better for me. In all honesty, the relief I felt as he disappeared into the driver’s seat was palatable, and when he drove off, it felt as if someone who had been stepping on my grave had finally stepped away.
Bunny glanced over at me as I collected myself. “Guess you haven’t met a Dullahan before, huh? Surely Aelfson’s been doing his due diligence and teaching you about Figments.”
“You should know the answer to that, Ms. Snoopy Pants,” I shot back with a grin. “As a matter of fact, he has. Dullahans are some kind of dark fairy, right? Something to do with the whole ‘headless horseman’ myth, if I remember what Aelfie said.”
“Right in one. I don’t have to smack Aelfson around then.” Bunny led the way to the mouth of the alley. “Gavin’s nothing to worry about, well, as long as he’s on the job for Sinclair. If you seem him out and about alone, though, I’d stay clear.”
My hairs stood up on end at the very thought of that. “Advice taken, believe me.”
We came out onto the growing bustle of downtown Saginaw, and I realized just how out of place we looked in our well-worn and stained clothes, not to mention how tired I was getting. Maybe Garou had superhuman stamina as well because Bunny still seemed to be going strong. Stifling a yawn as I ran a hand through my hair, I was glad I could get a look around despite my, well, lower perspective.
Business offices, restaurants, and all manner of small shops filled the buildings rising up around us. There was almost nothing to make this little chunk of the city stand out at all, at least to any normal human strolling through. To me, though, the place set my hairs on end. There were Figments everywhere here and not for the first time I wondered how the hell I hadn’t realized what I was before I met Aelfie.
That wasn’t all. The streets were whispering to me, telling me about the passages and warrens that were dug into the streets below, hidden homes like the tunnels the Rumcutter Dwarves had built. That’s when it all clicked.
“Frizzoli’s a Garou Souris too, isn’t he?” I found myself whispering just loud enough for Bunny to hear me, my eyes darting around from person to person.
“Uh-huh, Mary.” She must have noticed my frantic looks. “And yes, ratweres reproduce as almost as fast as you think they do. You saw Mother’s kids, after all.”
“So, uh, we’re basically completely surrounded, deep in enemy territory?” I was trying not to panic and reach for my hammer or my rune book, staying right on Bunny’s heels as she moved purposefully towards a small diner at the end of the block.
“I wouldn’t think about it that way.” The Huntress didn’t share my anxiety. In fact, she was nodding and smiling at more than a few of the locals, who shared that kindness with her. “I know you’re n
ot familiar with large families, but when you have one, there are always the bad seeds and black sheep. Most of the rats are good, honest people just trying to get by, like you and me.”
Gods, what was I thinking?
“You’re right.” I got my wild imagination under control. These were exactly what they looked like, people trying to rush to work or grab a bite to eat before the start of the day or get the kids to school on time. “I was starting to think like I was the heroine in some fantasy novel going into the lands of the orcs or something. As if any people could be so uniformly evil!”
Bunny pursed her lips for a moment as we slowed before said diner. “Well, some types of Figments are more nightmares than dreams. Doesn’t hurt to keep that in mind for the future … but here, well, we only have to worry about the same jerks we have to worry about anywhere.”
She came to a stop and turned to gesture at the place. “Speaking of jerks, here we are.”
Well, if this was supposed to be the Mos Eisley of the Garou underworld, it really didn’t fit the bill. As with the nature of this entire neighborhood, the place must have been hiding its secrets well. Taking up a corner spot of an older, crumbling building, the Cheese N’ Crackers had to have been here for a good decade, judging from the fading signs over the large picture windows that exposed the dining area for all the world to see. The name was painted in cracked yellow paint on the windows as well in a fancy, cursive script, while the various fliers and posters for community events were in far better shape.
Even for the moment we stood there, several normal-looking folks, some human and more Figments, came in and out, each opening of the front doors letting out the low chatter of morning gossip and the fresh, heady smells of strong coffee. The scent alone was enough to bring some life to my tired eyes.
“So, what’s the plan?” I asked, making a show of looking at the posted menu to avoid looking too suspicious as we loitered.
Bunny let out a held breath. “Honestly, I was planning on winging it. John, you know, the grey rat, honestly only confirmed a lot of what we knew, as well as drawing a direct line between Klaus and Mercutio. No matter what I said to Sinclair, that’s not enough to put Frizzoli in irons.”
“I thought you were, you know, back on track.” My faith was starting to falter, and my drooping eyelids weren’t helping. “This just doesn’t sound smart.”
“Trust me, Mary.” I glanced up to see her smiling at me. “That last crack he gave as we got out the door put things in proper perspective for me. We’re not here to put these guys behind bars, at least not yet.”
I found myself smiling back. I was stupid to doubt Bunny again so soon. “We’re here to get a lead on Patches. We can guess Patches had contact with Klaus at the Council’s behest, but Frizzoli obviously has more information.”
“Right,” she nodded as she grabbed the door, holding it open to let an elderly couple pass. “We’ll get what we can here, then meet up with your boy toy at Klaus’s pawn shop to keep on the trail.”
I was still a bit lost as to why we didn’t go straight to Klaus, but my head was foggy for multiple reasons, not to mention my growling stomach. I trusted Bunny and, hey, at least I could get some breakfast and a cup of coffee to get over the hump here. Giving Bunny a final nod, I went on into the Cheese N’ Crackers as she gallantly held the door open for me.
The place was as homey as the outside was dilapidated. The warmth of the kitchen mixed with the aroma of sizzling bacon and melting cheese to lower your guard as the friendly banter lulled you into a sense of total security. The more I thought about it, this was the perfect front for a crime boss’s headquarters. Who would ever think to look for illicit activity here?
We went straight to the counter where a few bar stools were still open. To my surprise, the grizzled old man who looked to be more leather wallet than flesh, one of four folks manning the front end, produced a solid-looking crate as we got there, holding it out to Bunny.
“Ms. Kincaid,” he nodded. “For your Dwarf friend there.” He winked at me like you’d imagine a favorite uncle might.
She took it and nodded back, handing me the crate. It’d make a steady enough booster seat and as embarrassing as you’d think that might be to have to use, I’d long since thrown that bit of my dignity out.
“Hello, Mercutio,” Bunny replied matter-of-factly, something that made me almost fall off the stool-crate combination I had just finished perching upon. “I’m sorry about my error the last time I was through here. Even someone with my reputation can make a mistake.”
Okay, so they had some back-and-forth polite banter thing going. Good. Maybe things wouldn’t go down the toilet before I could get a bite to eat. “Hello, sir,” I added. “Maybe you can introduce us, Bunny, while we get some coffee and a bite to eat.” I smiled and waggled my eyebrows. “I’ll buy …?”
Mercutio Frizzoli shook his head. “Oh, think nothing of it, Reba. We all make mistakes.” He clucked his tongue, scolding me. “We’ll have nothing like that. We know how to take care of our local officers in these parts, especially a sister like Reba here. Your meals are on the house.”
He waved a hand that was entirely skin and bones behind him at one of the servers weaving in and out of the chaotic frenzy. The waitress nodded, diverting from whatever she was doing to get us full coffee mugs and a tray of sugar and creamer.
I eagerly started to dump sugar into my coffee as the elder Garou smiled with that same smarmy confidence Sinclair often showed. “I hear you two have been busy,” he said, keeping that genial, grandfatherly tone. “Nasty wreck on the bridge, so they tell me.”
“It was a doozy,” Bunny chuckled, her eyes never leaving Mercutio as she mechanically took a sip of her straight black coffee. “I heard a few of your family had an accident too. They’re doing okay, I hope?”
“The youngest is a little lost, but my other brood is fine, thank you.” Frizzoli arched an eyebrow, a faint hint of red in the pupils. “You wouldn’t happen to have heard where he went? Young boy named John?”
I had managed to get half of the mug down my throat, sweet caffeine flooding my brain. “He’s fine. I’m pretty sure we saw a glimpse of him, didn’t we?” I nodded thankfully at the sweet black sludge in my cup. “We had a chat and sent him on his way. Good kid.”
Hey, I’d played more than my share of innuendo games and cons in the carnival. I may not have been as polished as Bunny, Mercutio, or Aelfie, but I could hold my own.
“Well, that’s fine news,” Frizzoli lied. “Fine news, indeed.”
Two plates were served before us, each one a classic two-egg breakfast. Thick pieces of bacon, scrambled eggs with generous helpings of melted cheese, butter-topped cream of wheat, and a couple of slices of sourdough toast. Despite every impulse, I didn’t tear into my food like a savage, but I did tear into it all the same.
As I ate, I noticed that the diner was starting to clear out at a precipitous rate. I didn’t have to tell Bunny that; she was more on point than I was. Frizzoli wiped absently at the bar, still glancing up at her as he ‘worked.' “I’m going to guess that you two aren’t here just for the morning special, then?”
“That’s why you’ve stayed in business for so long, Mercutio,” Bunny smiled thinly. “You are an amazing judge of intention.”
The people that were staying behind were all Figments, and they were rough-looking customers to the last one. Not one to waste food or time, I kept stuffing scrambled eggs into my mouth with my right hand while my left carefully opened my work bag. It wasn’t the bacon I smelled any longer.
It was the distinct aroma of imminent disaster. I knew it well.
“Look, Reba, I respect you.” The elder ratwere put his hands flat on the counter, leaning forward as his demeanor shifted from kindly grandfather to stone-faced killer. “That’s why I am going to give you and Ms. Mary Stone here a warning. Back off of this case. Let Patches and this whole incident disappear in a puff of smoke.” I looked up at my name. “Oh, I know all ab
out you. You should be thankful that our mutual friend has been shielding you and your little store. Mother of the warrens, I’d kill to have a runecaster in my employ.”
I pulled the last bit of the strip of bacon into my mouth with my tongue and swallowed. Crime lord or not, Frizzoli was starting to press into the wrong affairs. You did not threaten my Easy-E-Mart. Eyes narrowing, I stared him down. “You’re welcome to try, and you’re also welcome to run back home with your tail between your legs when I put you in a rat trap.”
“Tough talk, Ms. Stone.” He wasn’t intimidated, but neither was I.
All the ordinary folks were gone now, even as the wait staff shuffled quickly to the back.
Bunny, her breakfast untouched, hopped off the stool and without a moment’s hesitation fursploded to her full seven-feet of bunny fury. “She’s tougher than you, Frizzoli.” She matched his posture, pressing her paws into the ancient Bakelite counter hard enough to put crack it. “I’m not here to collar you … yet. But I’m here to shake everything you know about Patches and the blue moon out of you. Give us what we need, and I’ll consider it a mark in your favor when the time comes that I slap the cuffs on you.”
Needless to say, Mercutio didn’t back down, and his toughs didn’t back off. As the air shimmered and the half-dozen goons in the room shifted and sprouted their own rat fur, I took the chance, before we were likely going to either die or get our butts thoroughly kicked, to grab Bunny’s plate and stuff another few slices of bacon into my mouth.
Hell, if I was going to go out, it was going to be with a full belly!
14
Not that I intended for things to go that far south for us. My worries at the gang of ratwere toughs aside, Bunny was with me and more importantly, I wasn’t the orphan Dwarf who had no concept of her true power anymore. I was a runecaster now, someone who had spent the last few months doing everything she could to master the ancestral magic flowing through her pen, well, when not running a beloved local business. Not a small number of those months was spent preparing for the next time someone wanted to make trouble in my life.