Robert Asprin's Dragons Run

by Nye, Jody Lynn

  She clutched his wrist with her nails. Griffen suppressed a grunt. If he hadn’t had dragon flesh, he would have looked like a suicide victim.

  “I’m a concerned citizen,” Griffen assured Winston. “I won’t get in the way, and I will stay out of the cameras. I don’t want to be on the evening news any more than you want me there.”

  Winston grunted. “There would be no chance at all if you weren’t there.”

  “Now, stop it! He’s coming along, and that’s that!” Penny said, her voice rising almost to a shriek.

  Griffen eyed her with dismay, but neither Horsie nor Winston seemed surprised by the outburst. Fox Lisa, dressed in a dark green business suit and a bow tied at her neck that hid all her tattoos, gave Griffen a nervous look. Her job at this rally was to introduce Penny to the crowd, which meant memorizing a short speech and speaking into a microphone before an audience. Fox Lisa had the speech down pat.

  “But every time I think of opening my mouth in front of everyone, my throat goes dry,” she had told Griffen.

  “I’ll be there with a bottle of water,” he had promised her.

  She clutched his hand in both of hers. Griffen squeezed her fingers gently.

  Since he had spoken to George five days earlier, Griffen felt he could relax a little. The shape-shifter assassin and the shadowy organization behind him wasn’t after Penny or Val. It wasn’t easy to kill a dragon. Chances were that the people backing Duvallier didn’t know about Penny’s species. He wouldn’t have given long odds on that since they did know about Duvallier. Griffen held out hope, though, because Duvallier hadn’t said he intended to kill Penny. Penny was a fighter. She was armed, knew martial arts, and had alarms and bodyguards within almost constant reach. Griffen did not know how much more he could be expected to contribute to her safety. He hadn’t yet seen any threats he could handle better than Winston or any of her other security agents, all of whom openly questioned his presence.

  The man who had driven the garbage truck had come to two weeks ago with no memory at all of how he had come to be driving his vehicle the wrong way up a one-way street in the middle of the night. No trace of alcohol or drugs could be found in his bloodstream, so the police cited him for dangerous driving and left it at that. People with whom Griffen had discussed it either shrugged their shoulders as one of those inexplicable things that happens in New Orleans or put it down to bad juju. Since Rose had not reappeared to confirm the latter, Griffen was left with no answers. The worst thing was that he was getting bored. Fox Lisa might hang on every little detail of the election, but having seen some of the workings from the inside, Griffen no longer felt privileged. The next time he talked to his uncle, he was going to ask for a more fair division of labor.

  Except to look up at them peevishly once in a while in a silent demand for quiet, Penny ignored the rest of them and spent the long drive west reading documents from a briefcase at her feet. With nothing else to do, Griffen couldn’t help but read over her shoulder. Penny read the draft of a request for funding, ran down a checklist of school-board members, and read letter after letter from constituents. Those ranged from computer-generated form letters to scrawls on large-lined notebook paper that could have been written by schoolchildren but on close perusal had not. Griffen was grateful for the excellent education he had had and wished everyone could say the same. Penny was clearly in favor of better schools, as she said several times as she dictated answers to the letters into a pocket recorder. Whatever sharp comments she made on the side to the unknown secretary that would be typing these replies, Penny was kind and forthright in the body of the letters. She might speak fluent politicianese, but she never talked down to her correspondents. She was frustrated by the limitations on her powers to change their lives. Griffen developed respect for her, though he would have hated to work for her full-time.

  After a few hours winding their way through the inevitable road construction, Winston turned into a gravel drive that led down a long road overhung with dark green Spanish moss and bright green lianas. On either side of the road, the ground sloped down into soggy wetland. The towering ranks of dark-trunked mangrove trees crowded the land. At the end of the winding drive stood a group of nondescript cinder-block buildings painted white, with tiled roofs. Several other cars were already in the parking lot around them. A sweating bald man in a white Oxford shirt and a bow tie waited until the car came to a stop and pulled open the door.

  “We’re honored, Representative,” he said. “Just as honored as can be. Everyone’s lookin’ forwa’d to hearin’ you speak.”

  “Well, that’s so nice of you, Mr. Anton,” Penny said, graciously, allowing him to hand her out of the car. Upright, she stood at least five inches taller than the bald man. “I’m pleased to be here. What you and your folks here have accomplished is a boon to the environment.”

  “Where’s the ladies’ room?” Horsie asked, interrupting. She glanced behind the Lincoln at the horde of reporters pouring out of their vehicles and hoisting their cameras and microphones. “Penny needs to freshen up a little.”

  “Well, right there,” Mr. Anton said. He pointed to a recessed door with a screened vent near the top. “Please help yourself.”

  Horsie took the briefcase and recorder and pushed Penny into the ladies’ room. She stood outside the door, heading off the handful of reporters who tried to follow Penny inside. Instead, she took a sheaf of papers from the briefcase and distributed copies to each of them.

  “Just give the girl some privacy,” Horsie said with an engaging smile. She gathered up the nearest reporters in both arms. “We’ve had a long drive. You wouldn’t want her to say something wrong just because she’s tired out, would you? Here are some talking points she’s going to be discussing today. Now, if you’ll just come with me, I’ll give you some exclusive information that I am sure you all want to hear. Mr. Anton, come with me, and you can answer their questions, too!”

  She persuaded them into a gaggle and led them deeper into the property. On the other side of the buildings, a crowd of about two hundred people waited, murmuring to one another. With the grove as a backdrop, a low stand had been erected and furnished with a podium and half a dozen folding chairs.

  Fox Lisa and Griffen were left with the austere Winston in the parking lot. Griffen inhaled the heady scent of the trees, so different from the smell of the French Quarter but seeming just as ancient. The breeze off the brackish water of the swamp was chilly. Fox Lisa hunched her shoulders.

  “I doubt there was any good reason to bring you along,” Winston said, his lips pursed. He had donned a pair of dark glasses against the strong light, rendering him into an expressionless statue. He was approximately the same height as Griffen but seemed taller because of the breadth of his shoulders. The front of his dark suit coat draped against his chest revealed a boxy outline. Griffen knew he was carrying a large handgun in a shoulder holster and at least two other weapons concealed elsewhere about his person. Griffen had a knife, almost standard issue for someone who lived in the Quarter. Fox Lisa had her pistol. Winston lifted his chin as a couple of uniformed Louisiana State Troopers climbed out of their patrol car. “Stay here.” He went to meet the officers.

  It was eerily silent. Griffen could hear a few birds calling in the distance and a jet streaking overhead, but little else. Then his ears perked up.

  “Do you hear that?” he asked Fox Lisa.

  She strained to listen. “No. What is it?”

  “I hear howling.”

  “Well, there’s coyotes all over this state,” she said. She eyed him mischievously. “There’s also the loup garou.”

  “I know,” Griffen said absently, peering into the shadows cast by the orchard center building’s eaves. “I didn’t think they went around in daylight.”

  Fox Lisa looked sour. “I suppose you’re going to tell me you met some of them.”

  “I did,” Griffen admit
ted. “A few of them came to that conference in October. I haven’t been in touch with any of them since.”

  She put her hands on her hips in annoyance.

  “You met the loup garou?”

  With a wary look toward Winston, Griffen hushed her.

  “When we have time, I’ll tell you all about the people who were there,” he promised. “For now, just help me watch out for Penny. I want to get back to the city before tonight. I have a couple of games running in two different hotels.”

  Fox Lisa let her mouth relax in a grin. “I guess I’m just nervous. And a little jealous. I’ve lived here all my life. My folks used to scare me into behaving with horror stories about the loup garou and the ghosts who live in the graveyards. You hang around with ghosts and all those other things.”

  “Believe me,” Griffen said, “your parents were right to warn you. I wouldn’t want you to run into one.”

  Fox Lisa patted her purse. “It’d have to move faster than I can pull the trigger.”

  “They can move . . .”

  “Reeeeeerrrrrrrrrgh!”

  The hoarse scream tore the air. Griffen cast around for a moment, then realized it came from the ladies’ room. He slammed open the door and ran in. Fox Lisa was close behind him.

  Penny had been shoved against the wall between two hand dryers. With claws spread at her throat was a lithe, hairy creature with a long jaw, triangular ears, and a long tail, clad all over with thick black fur. Red eyes glared out over a long muzzle. A loup garou! Its head whipped around in surprise. It snarled.

  Griffen leaped at the beast. He grabbed it around the throat and belly, and pulled it away from Penny. It twisted nimbly in his grasp, coming up with jaws open. Griffen twisted his face away. It bit his shoulder. He headbutted it in the face. It flailed at his chest with its claws, struggling to get free. It shoved all its weight into his midsection. Griffen lost his balance. He fell backward onto the cold concrete floor. The beast fell on top of him, biting at his face and neck. Griffen rolled over, taking the beast over with him. It was smaller and lighter than he was. He used his weight to hold it down while he freed one hand to shove its mouth away. It snarled and writhed, emitting an unearthly squeal. It clamped its jaws on Griffen’s wrist. The sharp teeth couldn’t penetrate his skin, but it hurt.

  Fox Lisa was suddenly at his side, feet spread, her pistol in both hands pointed at the creature’s head.

  “Lay off, or I’ll blow your brains out!” she shouted.

  The loup garou looked up at her in horror and lay flat on the floor, its arms and legs limp. Its eyes lost the red light and faded to pale brown.

  “What the hell are you doing in here?” Penny shrieked. She drew back her toe and kicked Griffen in the ribs. “You should have stayed outside!”

  “I heard you scream,” Griffen gasped. He clambered to his feet. So did the lycanthrope.

  “I didn’t scream,” Penny said, her eyes flashing with fury. She pointed at the loup garou. “She did.”

  “She?” Griffen asked, eyeing the lycanthrope in astonishment.

  The door burst open, banging against the cinder-block wall. Winston and the state troopers burst in, guns drawn.

  “What happened?” he demanded.

  Penny recovered her wits at once and brushed back her hair. It had become slightly disarranged in the melee.

  “Nothing. I was just having a discussion with a supporter here.”

  “This is one of your supporters?” Winston asked dubiously. He turned. Griffen goggled. In that split second while everyone’s attention was turned away, the loup garou had changed into a woman with long dark hair and a deep mahogany complexion. Her ankle-length skirt and peasant blouse were black. She wore no shoes. Griffen supposed they were harder to manifest than clothing.

  “How’d she do that?” Fox Lisa demanded.

  The loup garou glared at them.

  Penny found a smile somewhere and pasted it on her face. She looked so demure and coy that Griffen would never have guessed her life had been in danger a moment before.

  “You see? It’s all settled. Now, if all you gentlemen would remove yourself from this female holy of holies, I have to get ready for my speech.”

  Horsie appeared behind them with the entire press crew in tow. “Honey, what happened?”

  Penny put a gentle-seeming hand on the transformed female’s arm. Griffen saw the loup garou wince.

  “Why, we just scared each other,” she said. “I was coming out of the stall when this lady was trying to go in, and she made a little noise. I don’t see what all the alarm is about.”

  “It sounded like a scream,” said a man in a bright red Windbreaker with the logo of the local television affiliate on it. He had a camera balanced on his shoulder.

  “Did it?” Penny said. “I am so sorry to alarm everyone. Why don’t you all go and wait for me, and I will be right out!”

  “Well, come on,” Horsie said to the press corps. “That little run got my blood pumping. No one had better fall asleep during the speech now!”

  The reporters fell obediently into line and trailed after her, with a few shooting openly curious glances over their shoulders. Winston loomed behind them, ensuring that no one dallied. Fox Lisa followed them. Griffen went as far as the threshold and stopped, arms crossed on his chest.

  “You, too, Mr. McCandles,” Penny said, sweetly.

  “This is as far as I go,” he said. “I’m not going to let you out of my sight, in case this lady decides to assault you again.” Penny looked as if she was going to protest, but Griffen was adamant. “This is why you wanted me here, right?”

  “All right! But not a word out of you!”

  Griffen objected to the tone, but he nodded. Just when he was ready to give up on Rose’s assertion that Penny was in danger, this happened. He wondered how Duvallier had managed to conscript the notoriously independent Louisiana werewolves into putting out a hit for him.

  The woman glared at Penny. “So this is the way you keep fait’ wit’ the loup garou? You cheat us blin’, t’reatenin’ ouah ancestral groun’s, den you get de big dragon out heyah to beat up a po’ li’l woman?”

  Little woman? Griffen thought indignantly, but when he opened his mouth, Penny held up a warning finger like Han Solo’s. She turned a sincere face to the loup garou.

  “I told you that legislation to protect land takes time. I have to lobby my fellow officials to get a bill drafted and passed. That can get to be expensive. I told you that.”

  “Yah, but six t’ousan’ dollah? Wheah we get six t’ousan’ dollah?”

  Penny’s face could have been made of stone. “It’s just a suggested donation. If you and your people don’t consider that to be a fair amount, then tell me what you can give, and I’ll let you know what it will support.”

  The woman twitched her skirt from side to side as if it were still a tail.

  “Times is hard. We can affo’d maybe five hun’d. I brung it wit’ me,” she added hopefully, touching a pocket in her skirt. Penny was obdurate.

  “Sorry. That’s just not enough to do what you are hoping for. I’ve told you, there are expenses involved in declaring your family’s land as endangered habitat. Pulling any tax-producing territory off the rolls has to be balanced by cuts elsewhere.”

  “That’s all we got!”

  Penny smiled apologetically. “Then it sounds like you are not as committed to the project as I was. I’ll be happy to accept it as a partial donation, of course. I am so sorry, Mrs. Lemieux, I have many calls upon my time. I need to concentrate on my local constituents, until and unless all citizens in the state become my constituents. When I’m governor. And I am sorry to tell you that then even six thousand dollars won’t touch the expenses I would be accruing to persuade my fellow lawmakers to deal on your behalf. We have so many other pressing matters. You understand, I hope
? A small investment now would pay off handsomely later.”

  The lycanthrope’s head drooped. “See what we can do.”

  Penny beamed. “That’s wonderful. Get in touch with my assistant when you have a more concrete answer.” She took the woman’s hand in both of hers and shook it warmly. “Very nice to see you, Mrs. Lemieux. Come on, Mr. McCandles. I can’t leave those people waiting any longer.”

  Griffen was appalled. Not only wasn’t Penny in danger from the lycanthrope, she was shaking her down! He started to speak, but Penny grabbed his arm and marched him toward the door.

  The loup garou slunk out of the ladies’ room ahead of them and vanished around the corner of the building. She strode away with an easy lope that rapidly covered distance. In a moment, she was out of sight among the distant trees. A lonely howl went up in the wetlands, echoed by other, more distant wails.

  “You’re extorting bribes?” he hissed.

  “Is that what it looked like to you, Mr. McCandles?” Penny said, with the brittle smile on her face that he had come to fear. She patted her hair down with her free hand. “Why, you misunderstand what you heard. I was just explaining to that good lady the realities of introducing special-interest legislation in this state. That’s all. There are indeed expenditures that I must incur in the course of my duties. I am always happy to discuss such matters. I only wish that I could do everything that everyone asks of me. It’s just impossible. Once I’m governor, there will be more I can do. Now, you have the good sense not to discuss the private conversation you just witnessed, don’t you? Revealing it will just lead to so many complications.”

  By the cold expression in her eyes, Griffen understood exactly what those complications would include. Penny let go of him just before the cameras turned toward her. She smiled and waved both hands at the waiting crowd. Griffen scooted out of the way, so he wouldn’t be caught in the lenses. Penny sauntered forward into a barrage of camera flashes. He was already forgotten.