Chapter 10
Chapter
Ten
N ow that I’d viewed the crime scene through Jinx’s eyes, I decided a return visit to the Farm was in order.
The cat had smelled things that my nose couldn’t.
Unidentified smells meant new potential clues.
I rode to the Farm with one hand on my bike handlebars and one on my phone, so that I could call Justine to discuss Gwen’s situation. The HOA president was none too pleased.
“Am I understanding this correctly? My assistant director of security is calling me about an assisted living case?”
“Yes.”
“When you’re in the middle of a double homicide investigation, yet refused my offer to assign you professional assistance?”
“It was in speaking to Gwen during the course of the investigation that I recognized her need for help,” I yelled over the sound of the wind.
“And here I thought you might have an update for me. ”
“I might have one soon, but I told Gwen I’d put in the request, and I didn’t want to forget.”
“You work security, Maya. You have no business talking to any of the Neighbors about assisted living.”
“I realize that, but I’ve had personal experience with Gwen, and I think it’s time.”
Justine sighed. “I’ll make the arrangements, but you know we can’t force her unless there’s a conservatorship in place.”
“She’s ready. I promise,” I shouted.
“Very well, then. I’ll see what I can do.”
“Thank you.”
“And Maya?”
“Yes?”
“Next time you need to speak to me about something important, don’t do it from your Huffy. It’s unprofessional.”
“Noted.” I put away the phone and hopped off my bike. I wanted to be annoyed by the mild reprimand given the immense pressure I was under, but Judd would’ve said the same.
These are powerful people, some of them with lifetimes under their belts , he’d said when I first arrived on Evermore. If they don’t respect you, they won’t listen to you, so be courteous and professional.
It had been an adjustment at first. I’d been trained for a different purpose. No courtesy. No professionalism. I’d had to learn both of those skills by watching and emulating Judd.
As I leaned my bicycle against the side of the barn, a commotion erupted. Grunts. Snorts. Squeals. Not quite signals of distress but not happy sounds either. I hurried toward the sound to investigate, narrowly avoiding a collision with a screeching chicken .
The noise was coming from the other side of the barn. I stepped into the open where thunderous hoofsteps charged toward me.
It was a stampede.
I jumped to the left to avoid two dozen feral hogs. The hogs lived in the forest, where the various shifters could hunt and kill with impunity. I wasn’t sure why they’d invaded the Farm.
I had to round them up and return them to the forest. I would’ve preferred to call for help, but each second counted.
In their current direction, they were headed straight toward the communal gardens.
If dozens of cloven hooves trampled Joan’s prized rosebushes, there would be hell to pay.
I didn’t want my face on a giant billboard.
I ran, ignoring the mud the swine kicked up in their wake. I wasn’t faster than a werewolf in their prime, but I was preternaturally fast. Certainly faster than a herd of feral hogs.
A splotch of mud hit me square in the face. If only their escapades involved less mess.
I increased my pace. It wasn’t the catching them that was the challenge; it was the wrangling. I had no rope, no equipment of any kind.
I swore loudly. I had no desire to use my powers for this . Then again, no one was around. No one would see; therefore, no explanation required.
Or I could use a power the Neighbors knew I possessed. One that would stop the hogs in their tracks and save my secrets.
I rushed past the coarse bodies and maneuvered myself to the front.
When I was a safe distance ahead, I turned to face the herd and unleashed my snake hair.
My gaze swept over the herd, securing them where they stood.
The chaotic grunting and squealing sounds ceased at once, like an orchestra at the sight of the conductor’s hand-pinch.
Ah, blessed silence. Twenty-five stone hogs stared back at me. An imperfect solution, yes, but still a solution. Score one for Maya.
“Communal gardens marked safe today from a feral hog stampede,” I announced to no one.
Mocking applause interrupted my self-congratulatory speech. I turned around to see Gage. “Imagine that. A man who doesn’t take no for an answer.”
He had the nerve to flash a dimpled smile. “Missed you, too, Maya. Can we talk?”
“I happen to be in the middle of a feral hog situation. Can this wait?”
“I’m afraid it can’t.”
“Well, neither can these hogs.”
“From the looks of them, I highly doubt they’re going anywhere.”
“Exactly. I need to transport them back to the forest and then return them to their natural state.”
“You can do that?”
“With a truck, sure.”
“No, I mean you haven’t killed them by turning them to stone?”
“Only if I don’t reverse the curse.” Which I fully intended to do.
“This is why I like meeting new people,” Gage said. “There’s always something to learn.”
I glared at him. “Do I look like someone who laps up compliments?”
He abandoned his pretense. “Fine. How about this? I help you with your feral hog situation and then you help me with mine. ”
“You have a feral hog situation too? What are the odds?”
He wasn’t amused. “Would you like my help or not?”
“I would.” While I could lift twenty-five stone statues, the task would be faster with two of us. “What brings you to see me again, Gage?”
“I come with a message from my boss. He’d like to meet with you.”
“The mysterious boss of the mysterious Elite Division?”
“That’s the one.”
“If he wants to meet me, then why are you the one standing in a field of feral hogs?”
“Because he sent me to deliver the message.”
“Nothing wrong with the phones here. Even a carrier pigeon would suffice.”
“You’d prefer a flying rat to my presence?” Gage fluttered his thick eyelashes. “I’m wounded.”
“Why does your boss want to see me?”
He pointed. “First, let’s tend to your rare hog collection. I prefer to have a woman’s full attention when I’m speaking.”
I arched an eyebrow. “Only when you’re speaking?”
Gage smiled. “It’s like you know me already. I passed a flatbed truck not far from here. Yours?”
“No, but the keys will be in the truck. Dean always leaves them, no matter how many times we ask him to stop.” The last thing the security team needed was one of the senile Neighbors getting behind the wheel and taking the truck for a joyride.
“Would you like me to drive it over here, or would you prefer to do the honors?”
“I should probably drive,” I said.
“No problem. I’ll stand guard and make sure no one takes off with a statue for their front garden. It would be a shame if hog statues became the rage. Those poor gnomes.”
Between the two of us, we managed to load the stone hogs onto the flatbed in under thirty minutes. Gage was strong and agile, like most of his kind. I pretended to struggle a few times, and the beads of sweat were easy to produce under the harsh glare of the Evermore sun.
“Teamwork makes the dream work,” Gage said, offering me a fist bump.
I turned away and climbed behind the wheel. “We can talk in the truck.” I waited for Gage to settle in the passenger seat before putting the truck in drive.
“Shouldn’t you wait for me to buckle my seat belt?” he asked, clicking the belt in place.
“I’m the only one authorized to give me a ticket, so no.” I turned the truck north toward the forest. “And where should this auspicious meeting take place? I can book the ballroom in the Magnolia clubhouse if he’s fancy.”
“He’s asked that you come to his residence in Savannah for a private meeting.”
“The Savannah across the water on the mainland?”
“Is there a Savannah on the island I don’t know about?”
“No.” My palms began to sweat, but I refused to wipe them on my pants and give myself away. “That would require leaving Evermore,” I said, trying my best to maintain a neutral tone.
“What’s wrong with that?”
So much for my attempt at nonchalance. Based on his response, I was ninety percent chalance. “I don’t have time to commit to a mainland trip while I’m in the middle of a double homicide investigation. It’s one battle after another around here. ”
“Which is why my boss would like to have this meeting. He might have information that can help you.”
I parked at the forest entrance, and we started to unload the flatbed. “Face them toward the forest so that’s the direction they run when I undo the curse.”
Gage lined his dozen in an arrow formation. “Not that it’s any of my business, but I don’t understand why the island doesn’t have walls.”
I set a hog statue on the ground and looked at him. “Excuse me?”
“For an island with security issues, there should be walls. You’re not the Spartans, you know. It wouldn’t be a sign of weakness.”
“We’re not in prison either. Walls would send the wrong message to the Neighbors.” I could think of a few Neighbors who would riot over losing their water view.
“Do you like it here, cut off from civilization?”
“We have the internet.”
“And golf, I see. Do you golf?”
“Not well. If I’m going to the trouble of swinging a club, I’d prefer to hit something larger than a ball.” My gaze dropped to his crotch.
He raised his eyebrows. “My darling Maya, do you always wake up on the wrong side of the bed?”
“No, sometimes I stay asleep.” I gestured to the truck. “Shall we?”
“Aren’t you going to undo their curse first?”
Oh, right. I’d been so distracted by the prospect of returning to the mainland that I almost forgot. “Get in the truck. I’ll only be a minute.”
I darted to the front of the herd and released my snakes. When I felt the burst of energy spark in my eyes, I scanned the statues and then made a run for the truck as the grunting and squealing commenced. No need to be the architect of my own demise.