Chapter 16
Chapter Sixteen
PAISLEY
“ You need to do your glamour magick thingy and fast. The human world has no clue that monstera, don’t get that look on your face. I am not calling you a monster, but that’s what other humans will think when they see you! Hurry !” I bark out, panic filling me as I hear a vehicle door shut and the yard gate creak open and closed.
I do my best to hurry back across the house to get to the front door before Laithog does. Merry and Pippin also haven’t shut up since they heard the sound of the engine pulling up the drive.
Who needs an alarm system when you have dogs like mine?
“ Boys , hush! Box , box!” I command. Thankfully both of them are in a mood to listen as they cease barking and go get in their respective kennels. Considering my parents and Patrick have been the only ones to come visit me in years, the fact that I have company does not bode well.
“ Paisley , do not worry so. I understand that I am in a humans home, and out in a world I no longer know anything about. All will be well,” he soothes, the deep timbre of his voice a balm against my tattered nerves.
My eyes dart over to Laithog , and relief fills me when I see that he’s glamoured himself to look human. In fact, he looks eerily similar to the character on the cover of my favorite historical romance novel. My relief is shortly followed with a tingle of something that I shouldn’t feel. The form he’s chosen is one of an exceptionally large and devastatingly handsome human man. His eye color, facial features and overall body size are about the same, just no wings and no purple. I’m almost… disappointed to see him this way. However , I don’t know him well enough to have this sort of a reaction to him.
Do I ?
Logically , I know this is the safest course of action for him, but somewhere deep inside of me I am irritated on his behalf that he has to hide himself. To be frank, I find him to be far more handsome in his natural form than this. When he looks like this, he reminds me of every other human man that’s harmed me. Shaking my head I try to clear these thoughts. I don’t have time to dissect how I feel about my inhuman houseguest.
Laithog must somehow sense my disquiet with his new appearance, because I feel what must be his tail wrap around my waist and move me behind him so it is he that will greet whoever is on the other side of the door. Just before he reaches out to grasp the doorknob he whispers in my ear. “ It is still me. There is no need for you to be apprehensive. It is a glamour and nothing more, my true self is still here for you to touch, even if you cannot see it with your eyes.”
His words still the part of me that began to fear him, ever so slightly, due to his new appearance. It isn’t consciously done, but more of a gut reaction due to my recent experiences with large men. The comforting weight of his tail reassures me.
I take a deep breath and nod at him as a knock on the door sounds.
A sense of satisfaction comes over me when Laithog rips open the door, and none other than Sheriff Grady Stewart stands there. I watch as the superior smirk on his face fades swiftly only to be replaced with a look of bemused confusion. He wasn’t expecting me to have company. Sheriff Grady is an older man that, once upon a time was a handsome man, or so I’ve been told. The last decade of poor personal hygiene and laziness have softened his body to the point that his belly hangs over his belt. His breath wheezes slightly with every exhale, and I see food stains where his belly bulge begins.
“ Well hello Sheriff . What brings you out this way?” I ask with saccharine sweetness. This man makes a mockery out of what his position is supposed to be about. I don’t miss his quick glance at the bruises littering my body and the consequential smirk.
Asshole .
Laithog , missing nothing, feels the tension that instantly entered my body at the sight of Grady . His tail tightens even more around my waist and moves me slightly farther behind the bulk of his body.
“ Paisley … I didn’t realize you have…company. I received a welfare check phone call earlier that you may have been in some trouble and came to check on you.”
What a crock of crap. This man wouldn’t have done anything, even if I would have reported what Bradley and his thugs did to me in the alley behind my jewelry shop. Bradley’s underling, a now very dead underling, have probably called and told Bradley about Laithog , and in turn, Bradley have sicced one of his favorite dogs on me.
Hardy -har-har.
A quick peek around Laithog’s broad shoulders confirms that Grady brought at least one or two of his deputies with him. “ Well , as you can see, I am perfectly fine. Or , as fine as I can be after getting the shit kicked out of me by two monsters while Bradley stood there and watched. He told me that I have two weeks to make a decision. I still have a whole seven days left. You’re here at his behest. We both know that, don’t we, Grady ? I sneer out, enjoying the way his jaw clenches every time I call him Grady instead of Sheriff . He hates being called Grady instead of his title, so naturally I do it every chance I can.
Misogynistic prick.
“ Now , now Paisley . You know better than to be making accusations like that. Mr . Thomas advised me that he has a solid alibi for the evening you were attacked. He wanted that known in case you came in to press charges. You do know filing a false police report is a crime, don’t you?” He explains, speaking to me as if I’m slow.
“ Why yes, Grady , I do know that, but I do so appreciate you taking the time out of your busy day to come check on my welfare and to explain that concept to me. Well , as you can see, I’m a bit busy, so why don’t you fuck off from whence you came, and leave me to my evening? You’re polluting it with your presence,” I gleefully ask.
That fucker was planning on coming here and kidnapping me. There is no other reason for him to show up at my house, let alone after dark, and it would have been under the guise of him doing his job.
Thank the Lord , Laithog is here. Grady wouldn’t chance a witness, especially a stranger. You never know who knows who or who is connected to who. Bradley and his family didn’t get where they are because they acted rashly or were stupid, and Bradley wouldn’t let any of his underlings act without explicit permission.
Unfortunately , for the rest of us.
“ Does your friend here not have the ability to speak?” he bites out, irritation plain in his tone.
To which Laithog lets out a menacing chuckle. “ I do not lack the ability to speak. Paisley , it would seem, does not care for you, and this is her home. I would not do her the disservice of speaking for her in her own home, nor speak to her in a demeaning manner, as you have done since your arrival,” he grates out.
Unaccustomed to being challenged, shock comes and goes from Grady’s face before it’s replaced with a calculating look as he assesses the “man” in front of him. “ Interesting …and just who might you be?” suspicion clear in his tone.
Before Laithog can answer, I interject. “ This is my friend, Lance . He’s in town for a while and is crashing with me. Lord knows I have plenty of space out here all by myself. Don’t we, Grady ?” I bite out, my smile full of teeth.
“ I …see. I didn’t know you have…friends like that, Paisley . Best be careful or folks might get the wrong impression about what kind of woman you are,” he patronizingly insinuates.
Indignation and fury rival for supremacy within me.
How .
Dare .
That .
Fat .
Fuck .
“ Considering you’re in Bradley’s pocket, and have been for years. That’s fucking hypocritical coming from you. You’ve never respected a woman or her reputation in your life. So don’t you dare insinuate that I am anything less than the honest, law-abiding citizen that I am. My personal life is just that. MY PERSONAL LIFE . Unless you have anything further to say to me, I suggest you leave and tell Brad to fuck off for me,” I end with a furious hiss before continuing.
“ Now , I’ve asked you to leave twice. I am in my home, have done nothing wrong, and unless you have a legitimate reason to be here, which you don’t, you need to leave. I have no issues submitting an anonymous tip to Internal Affairs to have your entire office investigated. Hopefully so thoroughly you feel violated. Just like you violate the rights of citizens, you should protect every damn day.”
For a second, Grady wavers, as if he might actually have a conscious, but then his face twist in a vicious sneer. “ You’re luckier than you know, Paisley . It’s lucky for you that Bradley wants you, and the rest of us can’t touch you. Or else…” his words trail off menacingly, and I feel Laithog’s body tense.
But , with that parting shot, Grady and his deputies turn to leave.
Laithog and I watch them as they exit my yard, climb into their vehicle, and leave my property. We wait until the tail lights have completely faded from sight. The second the lights disappear, the rigidity leaves Laithog’s body, and he relaxes.
“ Little one, I feel as though there is much for you to tell me,” he states as he turns to me, closing the door with his tail as he does so. The human glamour fading to nothing now that our unwanted guest is gone.
I sigh heavily.
“ I was afraid you were going to say that.”