Chapter 24 Furyon
Furyon
“Ranchers been flooding the office with reports of sick animals all morning,” Echo says, frowning at Bishop and me when we return from Varek’s place.
I’ve never felt helpless like this in my job, and I’m beyond frustrated. A desperate need to see Lemon and talk to her chokes me.
Every tattoo on my body aches, the twinge stealing deep into my bones.
I’m powerful in my own right, but apparently not powerful enough to fix this.
The animals’ pain becomes mine, and not being able to find the source is killing me.
I run my hands through my hair, growling as I rip it out of the elastic and toss it messily back up.
Echo glances over at me from beneath bushy black brows. “I know this is killing you, but we’ll figure it out, Furyon. I’ve gotta believe that.”
Bishop stares at her. “Your father got any sick cattle yet?”
She nods, her expression sorrowful. “Yeah. Started last night. I got a whole speech about it this morning. I told him we’re doing everything we can, but it seems like everywhere we turn is a dead end.”
I stare at the female who’s been my closest friend and confidante since I moved to this beautiful, wild, free haven.
She doesn’t look away when my stare grows long.
Like always, her steady nature is something I can draw peace from.
Despite that, nerves bundle deep in my core, that sense something’s incredibly wrong and growing worse.
I usually don’t worry about what I can’t control, but this is different.
This feels like it’s pulling our haven apart at the seams, at least for the animals.
How long until it starts affecting Gulch residents too?
I don’t know if that’s even possible because we don’t know what we don’t know.
But when I think about Lemon getting sick, or Oz or Bluebell or Echo, I want to rip something to shreds, my protective instinct running rampant.
Echo flips through a new toxicology report we got from a sheriff’s office in another haven. “I know you wanted a second opinion, Furyon, but there’s nothing new. They don’t know what it is either.”
“I’m goin’ home,” the sheriff announces. “I need to think about all this, try to see a new angle. I’ll catch up with y’all later.”
My comm watch buzzes, pulling me away from answering him. Oz’s name hovers over the blue band. Shit, I hope everything’s okay with Lemon.
Thinking of her sends warmth through my body, fingers twitching as my horns flex and straighten. My core tightens. “Answer Oz.”
“Furyon!” Oz shouts over the obvious din of a rodeo crowd. Guess they made it from the Punishers game to the bull riding event.
I clear my throat. “Everything alright, Oz?”
“You should come down here!” He lets out a hysterical peal of laughter. “Gods, oh my gods, okay, I’m just busy at the moment!”
I have no idea who he’s talking to.
Breathless, he continues on between giggles, “Okay, I know we invited Lemon out, but I think you should come. She misses you; I can tell. And I want to see her eyes light up when she sees you.”
Heat shreds through me at his words.
My woman.
My mate.
She needs me.
I rise and grab my hat. “On my way.”
He doesn’t bother to say anything, just hangs up mid-cheer.
Echo gives me a carefully neutral look. “You gonna check on the animals while you’re out there?”
I nod. “You know I will. We haven’t heard from any of the rodeo circuit ranchers, so I’ll talk to them while I’m at it.”
“Well,” her tone is pleasantly neutral, “have fun.”
I sigh, crossing my arms as I lean against her desk. “Echo, you ain’t still suspicious of Lemon at this point, are you?”
She matches my sigh and leans back, her swivel chair creaking under her weight.
“It’s not that I think she’s our culprit necessarily; it’s just that we have no idea what’s happening, and it could be her.
Maybe not even on purpose. But don’t you find it weird this started the day she arrived? In her yard?”
I shake my head. “I think it’s coincidence. She’s…” I trail off. I haven’t told anyone about the mate thing yet because Lemon and I haven’t had time to talk about what it really means long-term. I know she wants to return to Rainbow haven, and I…don’t. But I would for her.
“It’s not her, Ek. Trust me on that.”
Echo snorts, the gold ring in her snout jiggling against her upper lip. “Maybe not. Maybe so. You turn up with white eyeballs, and I’m gonna get Bishop to arrest that girl, though, no matter how much you like her.”
I plant my hands on her desk and lean over, giving her a meaningful look. “I like her a lot, Ek. I’m gonna get that woman tattooed on my body the moment Cairn has a free spot out at the shop.”
Echo’s dark brows rise. “You serious right now?” She lashes her long tail side to side like a cornered cat.
“I’m serious.” I stare at her.
Echo stares right back. After an eternity, she sighs and drops her arms, slipping her hands into her jeans pockets.
“Furyon, I’ve adored you since the moment we became friends.
I trust your judgment. I respect everything about who you are.
That’s why we’re good partners. If she’s that important to you, I’ll try to be more… welcoming.”
I grin as I shoot her a wink. “I’d mightily appreciate that, bestie. That woman does something to me I never thought I’d get to have.”
She shudders. “Gross. I don’t need that play-by-play, though.
Nor do I want the mental image of you two naked, so let’s never discuss that again ‘cause I’m pretty sure that’s what you’re referencing.
” She curls her upper lip back. “Damn, and she’s a vampire too, so I bet your whole place is covered in blood, ain’t it?
You better be careful before you attract some predators with that smell. ”
I snort out a laugh. “She is a predator, Ek. Since you asked so sweetly, I won’t tell you about how I asked Lemon to hunt me. That was sexy as fuck.”
She slaps both hands over her long ears and jerks her head toward the door. “Hells naw. Git.”
I elbow her in the gut as I pass by her. She feigns pain and drops back into her chair, lashing out at my back with her tail. She slaps me hard as fuck, but it makes me chuckle.
“You’re faster than you look,” I tease.
“And you’re slower than you should be,” she snarks back.
I shoot her a final smile as I grab my bag and head out the door to my truck.
I drive faster than I ought to getting to Rip Shorthorn’s ranch.
He’s the Punishers’ coach, well, for a little while longer.
We tried to get another Gulcher to come home and coach the team, but Manorin declined, opting to live full-time in a cute little haven in Massachusetts with his pretty succubus mate.
They’ve got a home out here, but I don’t see them as much as I’d like to.
Rip always hosts a bull riding event and food truck rodeo after Punishers home games. He’s a Gulcher through and through, but I swear he’s Pine Gulch’s most popular resident on account of the regular parties.
Shit, maybe we could get downtown PG to accept him as Keeper. He didn’t test positive for the Keeper test at Hearth HQ, obviously, or he’d be a Keeper in one of the havens. But maybe we don’t need someone who’s classically trained by monster leadership.
He’s already a politician of sorts, and he’d be good at it.
I make a mental note to talk to Sheriff Rygold about that next time I see him.
Who knows if downtown would allow it though.
Or if Rip’s even interested in taking on another role.
He’s got a new grandcalf on the way, and it wouldn’t surprise me at all if his goal is to spend more time at home.
I park my truck in the field behind his barn and pick my way through hundreds of vehicles toward the arena. Between the arena and other buildings, a circle of a dozen or more food trucks already host throngs of monsters.
Shouts rise up from the stands, so the bull riding must have started already.
I can tell Lemon’s here. It’s like I can feel her in my chest, tugging at me even though we haven’t claimed one another or even discussed if that’s a thing we’ll do.
But as I pick my way through the crowd to the dirt pathway encircling the arena, I know it’s a convo we’re gonna have soon.
Up ahead, she’s walking with Bluebell by her side.
Bluebell holds a tray full of nachos, and Lemon’s got a hot dog in each hand, giggling at something Bluebell’s saying.
The girls look joyous together, and I take a moment to fucking appreciate what the gods blessed my woman with.
Tonight, she’s got on a tee that exposes a few inches of her thick waist. A fitted, ruffled skirt highlights a peach of an ass I’d like to bite every inch of and adorn the most gorgeous thighs I’ve ever seen.
Good girl that she is, she’s wearing those slightly more reasonable turquoise cowboy boots.
Not that I wouldn’t love to see her in the pink sparkly ones, but I’m thinking those need to be a bedroom adornment.
And now I’m hard.
Someone clears their throat. I glance to the left and chuckle when Bryony and her sister wave at me with knowing looks.
“Beautiful night, ain’t it?” Bryony bats white lashes at me.
I point at the elderly twins. “Do not put me front and center on The Gossip for a third week in a row, ladies. Surely there’s other dramatics going on here tonight that are more interesting than my love life.”
Bryony shrugs and examines her nails. Her sister glances into the arena and sips her drink. “Bye now, Furyon.”