by Geonn Cannon
Dale bundled the clothes under her left arm as she stood in the entrance and looked down toward the water. There was no sign of the truck or Ari. She leaned against the concrete wall and finally risked looking down at her left foot. No blood, no obvious disfigurement, but it was throbbing like it was about to fall off. Running probably hadn’t been a good idea, but she knew Ari’s intention had been to transform. She didn’t want to leave the trail of discarded clothes behind for just anyone to discover.
Now, though, she had to deal with the police. She opened her purse and found a way to fit all of Ari’s clothes into it.
“Go get the son of a bastard, puppy,” she whispered. She turned and used the wall to keep the weight off her foot as she limped back toward the scene of the crime.
#
Ari dropped to all fours while she was still mostly human, her palms slapping twice against the pavement before twisting into paws. She didn’t even consider the few seconds she spent completely naked in the parking garage but she was vaguely aware that she didn’t see any headlights or shouts of surprise when she stripped out of her clothes and began transforming, so she assumed she’d gotten away without being spotted. She followed the slope of the ground to the exit and emerged with the truck still in sight. It swept through the next intersection without even touching its brakes, causing another blast of horns and screeching brakes.
Ears flat, Ari raced downhill in pursuit as the truck took a hard left onto Second. She caught up quickly due to the wolf’s speed and the fact the truck was slowed by weaving in and out of traffic in an attempt to get away. Ari could hear sirens rising up throughout the city but she was only focused on the truck. Her wolf brain filled with base, primal thoughts: anger, fear, pain. Her entire back and right arm hurt from hitting the pavement. Dale had kneed her in the side when they fell, a minor ailment considering the pain she’d seen on Dale’s face before taking off.
Whoever was in the truck had hurt them, hurt Dale. The wolf was determined to make them pay.
Ari reached Second Street in time to see the truck make a right turn onto James. She put her head down and slammed into a pedestrian’s legs as she continued her pursuit. The pain in her legs didn’t matter. The throbbing in her spine was just a reminder that she’d be sore in the morning. All that mattered was the black GMC truck.
At the corner she realized the truck hadn’t turned onto James Street at all; it had pulled into the Sinking Ship parking garage. She ran in as well, slowing to a trot to examine the cars on both sides of the aisle. She finally spotted it on the other side of the structure, the engine still ticking as it cooled. No sign of the driver, but she dropped her head and sniffed the ground near the driver’s side door. Dozens, hundreds of comingled scents, body odor and shoe leather and perfumes, but one was distinctly recent.
She followed it to the edge of the asphalt and peered over the edge. The Sinking Ship was actually the last remnant of the Seattle Hotel, rising from a triangular crossing of streets, which made it look like a sailing ship lost to the waves. The drop to the pavement from this particular spot was over ten feet. It would hurt, but it was doable for someone with the right motivation.
Ari scanned the sparse crowd for signs of anyone moving with a limp. No one jumped out at her so she left the garage and moved to the sidewalk. She put her snout to the ground again and tried to pick up the driver’s scent. Pedestrians gave her a wide berth, while some took out their phones to take pictures of her. She was sure Instagram and Twitter would be full of people spotting the #SeattleWolf, but she didn’t care about that. There were too many people, too many scents to pick up one in particular. From where she was, the driver could’ve gone down Occidental, Yesler, Second Avenue, into or between any of the buildings nearby. He could be blocks away before she got the scent back.
“He’s wearing a collar,” a woman said, “see if he has a tag.”
Ari pulled away just before the well-meaning woman’s companion got his hand on her collar. He withdrew his hand but Ari knew he wouldn’t give up easily. Other pedestrians were starting to gather to help the poor lost dog, so she knew her options were to abandon the chase or risk spending the night in a kennel. She turned and sprinted between her would-be savior and his female companion. She didn’t stop until she was back where the chase had started.
Police cars were lined up at the curb in front of the parking garage, their lights casting silhouettes in red and blue against the surrounding buildings. An ambulance was sitting near where the truck had jumped the curb and Dale was sitting in the back. Two uniformed officers were flanking her while an EMT examined her left foot.
Dale looked past them and spotted Ari. She pressed her lips together and dipped her chin. Ari nodded back to her. It killed her to leave Dale behind but there wasn’t much else she could do. She couldn’t exactly approach Dale to get her clothes back, so she crossed the street and continued on toward home. It was a mile and a half run, barely worth noticing for the wolf even after chasing the truck.
When she arrived, she slipped into the backyard and transformed to get out the hide-a-key and let herself inside. Dale had left her phone when they went out to dinner. Ari put on a T-shirt and some sweatpants before she called the police on their non-emergency tip line.
“Seattle Police, how can I help you?”
“My name is Ariadne Willow. I’m a private investigator and I was involved in a near hit-and-run earlier tonight at the corner of Columbia and Fourth. Vehicle was a late model GMC, black.” She closed her eyes and recited the license plate number before it faded from her memory due to transforming out of the wolf form. “I pursued the vehicle on foot to where it was abandoned at the Sinking Ship parking garage on Second.”
“You pursued it on foot?”
“It nearly ran over me and my girlfriend. I was motivated. The truck should still be there if you get a car on-site as soon as possible.”
“We’re going to need an official statement.”
“I’ll be happy to give one. Later. For now, you’re going to want to get that truck.”
She hung up and began pacing. Fifteen minutes later, Dale limped down the stairs with a crutch under her right arm. Ari was already at the door to usher her in. They hugged tightly as soon as Dale was safely inside, clinging to one another for a long moment before Ari stepped back to look down.
“How bad is it?”
“As un-bad as it can be,” Dale said. “Ankle sprain. The crutch is just because I aggravated the injury by running after you. I have all your clothes, by the way.”
“Thank you,” Ari muttered, distracted as she examined Dale’s shoulders and elbows for signs of any injury she wasn’t mentioning.
Dale gently flapped Ari’s hands away. “My foot got twisted when I jumped out of the way, but I jumped at just the right angle to not go under the tire.”
Ari muttered, “Another lucky angle, huh?”
“What?”
“Nothing.” She cupped Dale’s face. “I’m so glad you’re safe. I felt your body jerk. I saw the pain on your face and I thought—”
Dale covered Ari’s hand with her own. “It doesn’t matter what you thought, because I’m fine.”
“This time.” Ari dropped her arm and stepped away. “How many lucky breaks are we going to get, Dale? Shot in the head, and the angle was just right for you to survive. You get hit by a truck and again the angle just happens to be perfect. You were standing unarmed in the street in the middle of a gunfight because of a war between canidae and hunters. What about next time? What if that driver had timed it so we were in the crosswalk and he mowed us down? You keep getting hurt because you just happen to be standing next to me. How many times are we going to get lucky?”
Dale looked confused and concerned. “It comes with the job.”
“Well, maybe it shouldn’t.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Ari had moved closer to the kitchen, widening the gap between them. “The job Cecily Parrish offered
me is still on the table. When the probationary period ends, she’s going to offer me something full-time. I could be an in-house investigator for the firm.”
“What about me? What about Bitches, the company you built from scratch?”
“I’d be willing to give it up if it meant you would be safe.”
Dale clenched her jaw and took a deep breath before she spoke. “So you go sit in an office at GG&M and I… what, go work at McDonalds?”
“At least you would be safe there.”
Dale scoffed and shook her head. “Or some psycho could come in and shoot the place up. The world is a dangerous place, Ariadne. I could get shot at any job. I would also be miserable in another job. I proved that while you were up in the mountains with your mother last summer. I just… I don’t want some tedious paycheck. I want to be with you, I want to be part of the agency we built, and if that ends up being a little dangerous… then that’s the price.”
Ari leaned against the kitchen doorway and hung her head. “I’m not willing to sacrifice you because of choices I make.”
“That’s not your decision, Ariadne.”
They stared each other down in silence. Finally Dale hissed and shifted her weight from the heel of her undamaged foot to the toes. “Shit.”
“You should go lie down.”
“Right.”
She used the crutch to maneuver herself around Ari, limping toward the bedroom. She was almost there when Ari said her name without turning around.
“I know we’re in a fight, and I know ordinarily I’d give you your space by sleeping on the couch, but I almost lost you tonight. I need to hold you even though you’re mad at me.”
Dale said, “Come on.”
Ari sighed softly, relieved, and turned off the light as she followed Dale into the bedroom. They could discuss their options in the morning when they were both more level-headed. Ari would hate to just surrender Bitches Investigations and go to work for someone else. Everything Dale said had made sense, but she couldn’t make herself believe it. She loved having Dale as her employee, partner, sounding board, companion. The idea of giving all that up was terrifying. But she didn’t know how many times she could come this close to losing Dale before the stress become overwhelming.
Chapter Five
In the dream, Ari saw Dale hit from behind, flung forward and rolling across the pavement in a mess of blood and broken bones. She heard Dale scream as the truck hit her from the side and knocked her into traffic to be hit by another car. She saw Dale under the tires and staring with glassy eyes after the impact. Each nightmare jarred her from sleep and each time she was certain she wouldn’t get back to sleep. But eventually her eyes closed and her brain gave her another horrific scenario.
She surrendered at a little past five, she gave up and got out of bed. She went into the kitchen and made tea so it would be ready when Dale woke. She wanted to call for an update about the truck but she knew it was both too early and unlikely they would share any information with her. She took out her phone and dialed Diana Macallan’s number to leave a voicemail. The phone buzzed once before there was an answer.
“Hey, Ari.”
She sat up straighter. “Diana. I expected the voicemail.” She looked at the clock on the microwave. “What are you doing up this early? I thought you got off the zombie shift.”
“Long story.” Diana sounded weary. “I doubt you’re just calling to shoot the breeze. What’s up?”
Ari briefly detailed the night before.
“Dale was hit by a car?” Diana sounded more awake now. “Is she okay?”
“She’s… yeah. She’s okay. She’s got a crutch for now.” She rubbed her eye. “I was hoping that you could keep me updated about the truck, if they managed to find anything about the owner.”
“I’ll bet you dinner it was stolen. The fact it was left behind for the driver to flee on foot supports that. I’ll ask around and see who is working the case.”
Ari said, “Thanks, Diana. Are you okay? You sound weird. Flat.”
“Calling me at five-thirty and complaining I’m not fully awake? You’re a peach, Ari.”
“Sorry.”
“It’s okay. I’m not a hundred percent, but I also don’t really want to talk about it over the phone at the crack of dawn.”
Ari said, “Over dinner, then? You and Lucy, me and Dale.”
“Sure. We’ll find a day that works for all of us.”
They said their goodbyes and hung up. Ari retrieved her laptop and opened the file with the names of the Totem players. She was scrolling aimlessly through the list when Dale came out of the bedroom in shorts, a T-shirt, and her glasses instead of contacts. She was hanging off the crutch.
“Hey.”
“Hey.”
“You should put your weight on your hand, not—”
Dale shifted her weight. “I know.”
“Sorry.”
“It’s okay.” Dale went into the kitchen and poured herself a cup of tea. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Dale slowly made her way over to the table and sat down next to Ari. “Don’t make decisions about my life and my job without consulting me.”
“I won’t. But you kind of got forced into this.”
“How so?”
“You got a crash course in canidae when you woke up with me in your bed. And you were just going to get the agency’s books in order. The job was supposed to be a few weeks, tops. Since then you’ve been kidnapped and shot and attacked…”
Dale smiled. “Yeah, and at no point since those first few days did I have the option to quit. Ari, I hate to tell you this, but I didn’t fall in love with you at first sight.”
“I’m shattered.”
“I know you are. I thought you were attractive as hell. I thought you were intriguing. But I was a long way from being in love. When I was lying in a hospital with my head wrapped because some asshole shot a gun at me, don’t you think it occurred to me to quit? I thought about quitting the first time we slept together because I figured it would be too weird to mix business and pleasure. There were plenty of times I could’ve walked out but I didn’t. I loved my job before I loved you, puppy. You’ve overtaken it in the years since, of course.”
Ari smiled and tucked her hair behind her ear.
“I’m not in danger because of you. I’m in danger because… that’s the job. I’m facing it with you. We’re facing it together. What about all the times you’ve been in danger and I saved you? Out on the island? Or when the hunters kidnapped you and dosed you with wolfsbane? Do you think that’s easy for me to handle?”
“No.”
“Damn right. And I want to be by your side so I can save you. Just like when I’m in danger, there’s no one else I want riding to my rescue. It’s you and me, puppy.” She put her hand palm-up on the table and Ari put hers on top of it. “In the end, it’s going to be your decision. It’s a good career move. It’ll probably mean a lot more money and a lot less stress due to a steady paycheck. But there are so many other factors to consider. Sleep on it. Work out the pros and cons. Please don’t throw away the agency because of me.”
Ari said, “I won’t.”
“I love you.”
Ari stood up and bent down to kiss Dale’s lips. “I love you, too. Now that the important stuff is out of the way… who the hell tried to run us over?”
Dale slapped her hand flat on the table. “Yeah! Who the hell tried to run us over?”
Ari went back to her seat and turned her computer so Dale could see the screen. “Diana said the truck is probably stolen. There might be fingerprints or some other CSI-type evidence, but I wouldn’t count on it. If I could get access, maybe I could pick up the guy’s scent.”
“Or the scents of the original owner plus all the forensics people who have been crawling all over it since last night.”
“Yeah.” Ari rubbed her chin. “As far as suspects go, I think there are really only two options. We’ve got
the surveillance case, and the background checks for the Totems.”
Dale said, “I don’t think any vandals are going to stage a hit-and-run just so they can get away with trashing a few boats.”
“No, that’s unlikely.”
“So that leaves us with someone on the Totems.”
Ari nodded. “I assume word has gotten around that I’m asking questions. Maybe someone on the team was worried I’d uncover something. I’m not sure what it could be. Everyone so far has been the perfect boy next door.”
Dale said, “You’ve barely even scratched the surface of the people who aren’t from Seattle. There are the international players to think about. I don’t want to sound like a dumb American scared of foreigners, but it’s a possibility.”
“Yeah. Have you made any progress on getting their records?”
“The Canadians, yes. I’ve found a couple of resources in Vancouver and Quebec who are helping me out. Sweden is being surprisingly helpful.”
Ari raised an eyebrow. “Did you find a sexy young Swiss Miss to help you out?”
“Swiss Miss is Switzerland. And no, no flirting is going on.”
“Good. Are you going to work from home today?”
Dale nodded and looked down at her injured foot. “Yeah. Easier than trying to get this stupid crutch to the office. I’ll be a lot more comfortable here.”
“Okay, I’ll go get us some breakfast. Is there anything you need from the office?”
“No, I can log in from here.”
Ari stood up to kiss Dale. “My baby’s got skills. I’m going to change clothes and then head out.”
“Wherever you get breakfast, try to make it healthy.”
“Always.”
“No.”
“Usually.”
“Nope.”
“This time I’ll definitely try my best.”
Dale smiled. “It’s the least I can ask.”
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