Chapter 36 Clarice
CLARICE
When it became apparent that Bruno was having trouble talking, Clarice cleared her throat and reached over to turn on the speakerphone.
“Hi. I’m Clarice, I’m Bruno’s…uh…friend, and he’s got hypothermia, probably, but he seems to think that this phone number can help us stop a raid on a day care that is about to happen.
” If she could believe in shifters and telekinesis, why shouldn’t she believe that Bruno could ouija board a phone number with his eyes closed?
“Tell me everything.” Juliette’s voice was crystal clear now that she was on speakerphone.
Clarice had no idea who she was, but she didn’t ask what Tiny Paws was or doubt that it was in trouble.
“Start at the beginning. No, wait. I’m going to call in anyone I can first, there’s no time for details.
Stay on the line, I’ll be back as soon as I can. ”
Juliette’s hold music was terrible, but it gave Clarice a chance to take the phone of Bruno’s trembling hands. “We’ve got to get you out of those frozen wet clothes,” she said. “There’s no bedding here, but you can put on Veronica’s coat and I’ll tear down some curtains to wrap you in.”
Bruno needed her help to get the soaking clothing off.
She rubbed his arms and helped him tuck his frigid hands into his own armpits before swaddling him in the coat and everything she could find, ignoring her own shivers.
“I’m going to see if I can find the heater controls,” she said.
“I’m going to be super pissed if they didn’t drain the swimming pool but they were here to turn off central heat. For a couple of reasons.”
There was no furniture, so Bruno sat on the bottom step of the grand staircase, leaning against the balustrade and shivering.
The house, blessedly, had power and gas, but Clarice knew that even on full blast, it would take a while to heat.
Especially with the blown out doors on the wide-open second floor.
She cranked it up as high as it would go and went to see if there was a chance one of the bedrooms had been left furnished for photographs.
Clarice returned at the same time the screen of the phone went to sleep. Tapping it reactivated the phone app, and Clarice helped Bruno back to his feet. “There’s a gas fireplace and a built-in couch in the snobby second receiving lobby. We’ll at least be more comfortable there.”
Bruno had hobbled halfway there when Juliette came briskly back on the phone. “I’ve got a team heading to Tiny Paws now and Agent Petrov has been alerted. I need to know what kind of force we’re looking at and when to expect them.”
“A dozen goons, several meatbags, a lot of guns—I’m sorry, I don’t really know what kind, but they did mention tranquilizers that could take shifters down—and two wizards,” Clarice said.
“It’s a twenty minute drive from here, but they said something about stopping somewhere to change into something less conspicuous. ”
There was a moment of silence. “Wizards?”
“They threw Bruno through a pair of very nice French doors without touching him. I don’t know what else they would be.”
“I’m passing that on,” Juliette said faintly. “The closest team should be there in thirty or forty minutes and we’ve put emergency protocols in place. Do you need emergency medical assistance?”
“I got the heat on and I’ve got Bruno wrapped up in a coat and curtains.” Bruno gave a thumbs up from his curtain roll. “I mean, we’re stranded here because they took our car keys, but the kids come first, of course. Bruno’s son is there. Gil. He’s very loud and he’ll probably be scared.”
“We’ll send an agent to get you after we’ve secured the location and relocated the kids,” Juliette said. “I’ve got this number and I’ll be with the second wave. Good work. We’ll take it from here.”
She hung up and Clarice turned the phone off to save the battery.
“So, we’ve got a little time to kill,” she said, snuggling close to Bruno. She was chilled herself, but she didn’t want to take back Veronica’s coat and leave him with nothing. “Oh! You know what, I bet I can put your clothes in the dryer if there is one. Let me go explore real quick and see.”
She did a brisk tour of the rest of the house, found a laundry room down a hall clearly meant to house the help, and started Bruno’s clothing tumbling. She tore down two more velvet curtains to bring back with her.
He looked considerably better, and the gas fireplace was pumping out heat. His boots were on the hearth, the linings pulled out to dry faster. “Oh, this is almost nice,” Clarice said, returning to cuddle up to him and wrap the soft curtain around them both.
“I’ve heard that it works better if you share body heat naked,” Bruno said, nuzzling her neck. “But I hope you won’t be offended if I’m not up for much.”
“You’re probably worried sick about Gil, and what’s going to happen at Tiny Paws,” Clarice said sympathetically. “It’s kind of a sexy-times dampener.”
Bruno’s arm around her tightened and he kissed the top of her head. “You could say that.”
They were quiet for a little while, just watching the repetitive gas flames. “Thank you for coming to my rescue,” Clarice said finally. “Was it instinct?”
Bruno nodded against her. “I knew you were in trouble, and it told me how to get here.”
“And then you got yourself thrown out of a window into a frozen swimming pool for your trouble.” Clarice tightened her arm around him. “I was so scared. I thought you’d died. I would never have forgiven myself. I kept wondering what I could possibly tell Gil.”
She didn’t realize that she was crying until Bruno rocked her in his arms and said, “It’s okay. I didn’t die. I probably would have, if you hadn’t gotten me inside and warmed up.”
Clarice sobbed. “It’s not much consolation when it’s my fault you’re here!” She felt selfish for being emotional when it was Bruno that had almost died and left Gil fatherless.
“You couldn’t have known what you were walking into,” Bruno assured her. “This wasn’t your fault. This was Veronica Chase’s fault.”
“Not really,” Clarice said, feeling terribly divided. “She smuggled me the phone, and she made them leave me behind. She said she didn’t set me up, that she didn’t know this was a trap.”
“And you believed her?”
“Veronica can be prickly and kind of… self-centered…but she isn’t bad. She’s just gotten mixed up with the wrong people and didn’t realize it until it was too late. Almost. Almost too late. If they get to Tiny Paws on time.”
Bruno’s arm stiffened. “Alan will keep them safe. Alan and Cherry and Addison and Shea. And probably plenty of parents. Hunter’s crew doesn’t know what they’re about to walk into.”
Clarice tipped her head so she could see Bruno’s expression. “Are you saying that to reassure me or yourself?”
Bruno gave a dry chuckle. “The doctor has been doctored.”
“Gil will be okay,” Clarice comforted him. “He’s a smart, capable kid, and those guys have no chance against him.”
“He’s a good kid,” Bruno agreed with a grumble.
“Where’s his… ah… mom? Should you be calling her?
” Clarice didn’t want to spoil the moment by talking about his ex, but she also knew they’d have to have this conversation eventually.
And if they weren’t going to have sex in their unexpected opportunity for privacy, they might as well get other things out in the open.
Bruno appeared to be recovering from his hypothermic scare, and the room was warming nicely.
Bruno was quiet. “I’ll tell her later. She’s in Kentucky with her new family and there’s nothing she can do from there.”
“I don’t want to pry,” Clarice said, though she really did.
“I have full custody,” Bruno said, as if he guessed. “We’re divorced. Tracy…thought she could handle having a shifter husband and a shifter kid, but she couldn’t and didn’t want to try. She found a nice normal guy to settle down with and have nice normal kids.”
“Poor Gil,” Clarice said softly. “Poor you.”
“I’m over her,” Bruno said firmly. “And Gil only knows that we broke up and she went away. I would never even suggest that it was because of him. It was me, not him. Never him. He just…reminded Tracy of what I really was.”
“Grown-ups can pretend they aren’t what they actually are, but kids are little truth canons.”
Bruno sighed. “Yeah.”
“Well, I think it’s really cool that you can shapeshift,” Clarice said honestly.
She was making lazy circles on his thigh with her hand.
“And Gil is cute either way. I never knew that armadillos could be so adorable. It’s like he’s on high heels, the way he taps around with his little ears and whiskers! ”
“You mean that, don’t you.”
Clarice could appreciate why he might be reluctant to believe it. “I gotta say I was a little disappointed you couldn’t teleport, but I guess being an armadillo is a close second.”
Bruno chuckled, as she meant him to. “What about you, any exes I should be worried about?”
“I’ve had a couple of boyfriends, but none of them should concern you. No weird stalkers or secret babies. Book boyfriends, that’s where you might want to watch out! If some of my favorites came to life, I’d drop you like a hot rock and head back in time or outer space with them.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Bruno said, kissing the top of her head.