by Amy Hopkins
“That’s what he said.” Cisco ducked Penny’s absent-minded slap to the back of his head. “Fine. but who is she?”
Penny shot Trevor a sideways glance. “Anything to do with your new pet project, Trev?”
He spread his arms, eyes still glued to the meandering giant. “Not me.”
The entity was a woman. A very tall woman, tall enough to tower over the buildings clustered around her. She wore a headpiece that reminded Penny of a Bollywood movie, and a green silk dress strung with jewels to match. In her hands—all four of them—she held weapons and a shield.
A hum buzzed near Penny’s ear and she jerked away, swatting at a bee. Two more passed, and to Penny’s alarm, a swarm the size of a large dog appeared around the corner to follow them.
ZzzzzzZZZZ. The bees floated away, moving toward the giant woman.
“Come, my children!” The woman’s voice boomed, her accent thick. “Find the one they call Paddy. Find him and bring him to me.” The buzzing intensified.
“OI!” Penny yelled as loud as she could, waving her arms to attract the attention of the giantess. “Down here!”
Big brown eyes turned her way. The nearby buzz grew louder as the swarm of bees drifted back toward her.
Uh-oh. Maybe this wasn’t the amazing idea it seemed like a second ago. Penny slipped a hand behind her back, crossing her fingers and hoping her gamble would pay off instead of getting her—and probably everyone around her—killed.
“What do you want with Paddy?” Penny yelled, trying to keep her voice friendly despite the volume, and the fear that crawled up her spine as the bees lazily approached, darting to and fro in a thick cloud.
“He has summoned the gods and goddesses to discuss the future of our kind.” The goddess spoke in a voice that carried across the buildings and streets, in a low, rhythmic hum. “He did not, however, explain how we were to find him. I am unfamiliar with your city, child.”
“I can take you to him,” Penny called. “But you need to call back your bees so they don’t hurt anyone. And don’t step on anything!”
The deity regarded Penny for a moment, her face still. Then, she gave a slow nod. “Be still so they may bring you to me. They will not harm you, and it will be tedious trying to navigate the city without them.” She regarded Penny for a moment longer. “Perhaps this will be easier if you close your eyes.”
“You got my back, Dangerino?” Penny murmured.
“Always,” Cisco replied. He squeezed her hand, then stepped away. “I’ll be right behind you. Behind and below. Way, way below.”
Beside him, Trevor edged away. “I’m allergic to bees,” he whimpered.
The bees stretched into a wide cloud, and more flitted from the sky above to fill the spaces between them, creating a thick blanket that blocked out the sun.
Penny held her breath and squeezed her eyes shut, praying she wouldn’t inhale one and invoke the wrath of their goddess. She flinched when the first one landed on her face but clung to a shred of calm as more joined it. Soon, every inch of Penny’s body crawled with the insects.
The bees took flight, a thunderous buzz that drowned out Penny’s senses as they cradled her body, lifting her into the air. When she cracked her lips to gasp in a breath of air, they parted to allow her to breathe.
Penny rose, the sensation more like being swung around in a maggot-filled hammock than flying. She endured it for what seemed like hours, although it was only the space of twenty strained breaths. Still, the crawling sensation over her skin still beat the sudden fall when they abruptly let go.
Thwap. Penny landed on a firm, leathery surface, heart pounding. She tried to stand, but a movement made her shaking legs buckle beneath her.
“Sit, child. I do not wish to drop you.”
Penny looked up into the face of the goddess whose large fingers cupped her safely.
“I am Bhramari Devi,” the goddess told her. “Take me to the one named Paddy.”
Chapter Six
"We've got fourteen broken streetlights, nine signs, and a bicycle. How am I supposed to explain that?" Crenel slapped the report back on his desk and sat back in his chair, an unlit cigarette dangling from his fingers.
Penny shrugged. "I did my best to keep her out of trouble. I don’t think she meant to step on all that stuff."
"You did great, kid." Crenel tapped the report with one finger. "If not for you, this all could have been a lot worse."
"We can't undo the damage that was done," Penny agreed, a small frown pressing her brow. "But I'm sure we can figure out a way to prevent it from happening again. Does the city have a property somewhere on the outskirts of town that can be used for meetings like this in the future?"
Crenel pursed his lips. "They just might. Damn. I know you're a smart kid, but you’re starting to run circles around me, and it's making me feel old."
Penny laughed as she reached for the door to his office. "That's because you are old." She slipped out and closed it behind her just in time to avoid a balled-up piece of paper that shot toward her head.
Penny wandered down the corridors of the Academy. Her burger had been cold by the time Cisco returned to the Academy with it, but it had filled her stomach, and now a gentle lethargy had set in.
Tuesday was her day off. Apart from her unscheduled defense class that morning, she didn't have anything else on for the day. She checked her watch. Amelia and Red should be finishing up the European mythology class right about now. Penny hurried off to meet them.
She almost tripped over Trevor, who had wandered around the corner juggling an open laptop in one hand and frantically typing with the other as he walked.
“Oh good, you made it back.” Penny waited for his attention to refocus.
A slow grin grew across his face. “Penny! Wow, that was the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen, despite the bees. I mean, I like bees, they’re good for the environment and stuff. It’s the part where they can kill me that kind of freaks me out, you know?” He looked up as if expecting a giant hand to squash him for insulting the goddess’s minions.
“It was pretty cool,” Penny admitted. “Did you make any progress on your big case today?”
Trevor shook his head. “It was a bust. I got there too late and missed my chance.”
“The goons said the arcade game will be back tomorrow.” She watched him closely, hiding her smile when he jerked his head up in shock.
“What? What arcade game?” He scurried back. “I never said anything about an arcade game.”
“Yeah, you did,” Penny reminded him gently. “When you arrived at the cafe. I just assumed…”
“I’m so bad at this,” Trevor moaned. He rubbed his face with one hand, which caused the laptop to sway as it balanced precariously on the other. “I was supposed to keep it a secret!”
“Why?” Penny darted a hand out to prop the slipping laptop up.
Trevor righted it gratefully. “It’s just… You guys get to do so much cool stuff. I’m not jealous or anything — I know I couldn’t do half of what you do. But when I found Polybius and realized what it meant…” He trailed off.
“You thought you’d found something right up your alley?” Penny still didn’t know what his interest was in the game, but she didn’t press him. “Look, I get it. If I stumbled on a case involving Rainbow Serpents, I’d bust my ass to get in on it, despite how underqualified I might be.”
Trevor looked up hopefully. “You would?”
“Of course!” Penny replied. “But do you know what else I’d do?”
“What?” Trevor looked dubious, but let her continue.
“I’d ask my friends for help,” she told him gently.
Trevor’s eyes dropped to his laptop. “Yeah. Yeah, you’re right.” His eyes met hers. “And that’s exactly what I’m gonna do.” He whirled around on one foot and walked away.
“That’s…not where I thought that was going,” Penny mused. She was going to chase him, but a nearby door opened and students began
filing out.
“Penny!” Amelia waved at her. “Red asked if we can help him with an assignment tonight. Are you in?”
“Sure!” Penny looked back for Trevor one more time, but he’d already disappeared in the crowd. She sighed and turned back to her friends. She would hunt him down and press for answers later. “What’s the brief?”
Red’s eyes gleamed. “Gold, Penny. The brief is gold!”
“I thought it was just leprechauns that got their knickers in a twist over yellow rocks,” Penny commented. “But I see it’s all Irishmen.”
Red laughed. “Are you saying that you wouldn’t be excited if you found a giant ingot lying on the beach?”
“Well… no. I’d probably wet myself with excitement.” Penny braced herself as Red clapped her on the shoulder. Since his werewolf bite, he’d gotten a lot stronger.
“That’s the spirit, lass.” Red looped one arm through Penny’s and another through Amelia’s. “Now, we’re looking for a thing called a gold-digging ant. Can you believe the wee bugger goes and digs up gold in the sand?”
“An ant? You want to find one tiny ant at a beach?”
Red laughed. “He’s not tiny. Supposed to be the size of a wee dog. A proper wee dog, I mean, not those big-eared ones that look like rats.”
“Red, Chihuahuas are proper dogs.” Amelia sighed. “And you’d better get used to them because I have three at home.”
Thinking back on her earlier discussion with the gigantic goddess and her bee powered flight, Penny decided that yes, she could believe in a giant ant that spent its days looking for gold. "What class is this for?" she asked, curious. It didn't sound like anything she had read about in their shared mythology classes.
"It's for geospatial and signals intelligence." Red flashed a grin. "I'll be bringing some fancy equipment along with me. All I have to do is use the equipment to find it, then catch the wee bastard on camera—and if some gold happens to fall in my pockets, the professor doesn't need to know that."
"What do you need us for?" Penny asked suspiciously. "It doesn't sound terribly difficult."
Red gave her a look of mock horror. "Out on the beach by myself? All night? I'll be so bored my kneecaps will fall off."
Penny had to laugh at that. "Fair enough. When are we going?"
"Right now," Amelia explained. "Red already has the equipment packed and ready to go. Where’s Cisco? Might as well bring him too."
“He was with me before, but I got caught chatting with Crenel,” Penny explained. “You wouldn’t believe the day we’ve had.”
Red shot off a quick text message, his phone pinging barely a minute later. He pumped a fist in the air. "My boy is in!"
"Do I need to bring anything?" Penny asked. "At the very least, Boots will want to come."
"Go get your wee snake and maybe a coat. You might have a better tan than me, but you're a downright wimp in a nice breeze."
Shaking her head but unable to disagree with him, Penny headed back toward her room, flipping the bird over her shoulder back at Red. She arrived at her dorm room and pushed open the door. "Boots? Boots, where are you?"
The room was a mess. Wow, I didn't realize it had gotten this bad. She shook off the thought, resolving to spend the weekend cleaning it. "Boots?"
Penny looked up at hearing a rustle overhead. Boots’ tiny face peeked out over the edge of the narrow wardrobe in the corner of the room.
"What are you doing up there?" Penny lifted her arms so that Boots could lower herself down safely. "Actually, forget why you're up there. How did you get there?"
Boots gave a frustrated hiss and wobbled her head. Her tail twitched with irritation.
"I'm sorry, my dear. I do wish I could understand you." Penny let the snake wrap around her shoulders, wincing when she squeezed tight. The serpent's behavior concerned her. Boots wasn't normally this clingy. "Are you getting sick?"
The head hovering next to her cheek shook from side to side.
"Are you hurt?"
Boots shook her head again.
"Is it… Boy trouble?" Steele's words were still playing on Penny's mind, though she had done a fairly good job of shoving them back to her subconscious.
Boots head-butted Penny's ear in exasperation, then shook her head for the third time.
"Then I really can't help you." Penny scratched Boots under the chin and felt the snake relax a little. "But I have good news. We’re going on a road trip!"
Boots perked up at that, happily riding on Penny’s shoulders down to the car. When they got there, Red, Amelia, and Cisco were already waiting for them.
"Hurry up, slowpoke." Red turned the key in the ignition and started the Jeep.
"Is this one of Mack's?" Penny asked.
"Sure is," Red said. "He funded most of the equipment for the class."
Although Mack had told his former students they were welcome to borrow his vehicles and take them out on the racetrack any time, Penny hadn't had the chance this semester. She slid into the back seat of the pristine car with a happy sigh, nestling Boots between her and Cisco.
"Hey, Boots." Cisco reached out to stroke Boots, but she wriggled across his lap instead, shoving herself between him and the window. She nosed the button to open it and hung her head out the side.
Cisco laughed, shuffling closer to Penny to give the serpent room. "She's like a big goofy puppy dog."
Penny turned a warm smile his way. "She wants you to think she’s like a big dopey dog. She is a cunning snake though, and twenty to one, she has no interest in staring out the window."
"Then why is she over there?" Cisco asked.
Penny giggled. "She's matchmaking."
She didn't admit it out loud, but Boots had shown signs of being well and truly sick of Penny's pining after Cisco. After their first date had gone so horribly wrong, he hadn't asked her again. Penny was beginning to think she would have to take the initiative. She wasn't normally shy about asking guys out, but things were somehow different with Cisco. She had spent all of six months trying to convince herself she wasn't interested in him and that by the time they started getting to know each other, she would be back living in Australia.
During her second semester at the Academy, she had simply been too busy. Between searching for a job and dealing with life as a hunter of myth and legend, she had no time for romance. At least, that’s what she had told herself.
It's not like life is going to get any quieter, she told herself. The rip in the veil is still tearing, and things are only going to get busier. She took a deep breath and spoke before she could chicken out. "Are you free for an early dinner Friday night?" she asked in a low voice. “I have to be at work by eight, but I thought… You know, a date.”
"No, I've got plans with me girl," Red called loudly from the front seat. He grinned over his shoulder. "Or were you asking another devastatingly handsome man?"
Amelia slapped his chest. "She wasn't asking you, idiot."
"I know that," Red replied with exaggerated patience. “I was being funny.”
“No one laughed,” Amelia pointed out dryly. Then, she turned big eyes toward the back seat. “Well? Are you free, Cisco?”
The object of her attention muttered something under his breath, his face as red as a gnome’s pointed hat.
“What was that?” Amelia pressed.
“I said I’m busy planning a double homicide,” Cisco repeated.
Penny laughed. “Oh, please, let me help. I’ll bring the shotgun if you bring the shovel.”
In the corner, Boots coughed a laugh.
Cisco jabbed a thumb toward Red. “Good luck digging a hole big enough for his stupid head.”
“It’ll be fine,” Penny replied, deadpan. “As long as Amelia doesn’t insist on being buried with her enormous shoe collection.”
“You’re damn right, I do!” Amelia shot back. “And all of my handbags, too. It’ll take you months to dig a hole that big!”
“Our plan is foiled.” Cisco sighed dramatic
ally. “I guess I’m free, then.”
Penny couldn't stop the excited grin from spreading across her face.
Amelia couldn't stop herself from pointing it out. "Jeez, girl. You look like a fourteen-year-old meeting her first celebrity crush." Despite their close proximity, Amelia easily dodged the shoe Penny lobbed at her head. "What? I think it's adorable."
"And about time, too." Red changed gears, slowing the car and rolling into a free spot by the side of the road. "But enough of that romantic shite. We've got work to do."
Chapter Seven
Penny was the first one out of the car. She popped the trunk and began unloading Red's equipment.
"Really?" Amelia grumbled as she dislodged an item from the trunk. "They're supposed to be training you up to use the most sophisticated equipment in the world, and they give you a dollar shop metal detector?"
"That's not theirs," Red told her. "And she wasn’t from the dollar shop. Were you, my magnificent lass?” He stroked the machine in Amelia’s arms. “My grandpa used to take me out hunting treasures with Bessie here. Found her at a pawn shop, cost him three whole pounds. Mack offered me some big fancy version, but I don't trust it like I trust old Bessie."
"I take it back, Penny," Amelia told Penny. "Boys are awful. All of them. You should run while you still can."
Penny chuckled. "Too late. He knows I’m interested now."
Together, they headed down to the beach. Penny squinted into the afternoon glare as they waited for Red to set up his equipment. He clicked open the large boxes and pulled out smaller ones, set up a flimsy folding chair, and threw a packet of markers on the ground.
Beside her, Cisco's eyes were locked on the horizon.
"Sorry," he murmured.
"What for?" Penny asked, confused.
His eyes flickered toward her, then back to the scenery. "Making you ask. Look, I can face down the Kraken or fight off an urban legend. When it comes to girls, though, I’m…"
"A bit of a wuss?" Penny asked, grinning.