Chapter 25
Farrow
I didn’t want to go see my boss, and not just because there was always a certain amount of slime on his desk. It was more a case of once I started this process, I didn’t know how it was going to end. But if I didn’t start the process, it was going to be a lot worse if someone else did.
For me and Timothy.
The more often I went to see him, the more likely it was that he’d find a way to access magic and start making wishes, and the more wishes he made, the sooner someone else noticed his magic. Not only that, but his father knew people who hunted sorcerers.
How long before his father decided it was in his best interest to turn in his son, the same way he’d turned in his wife?
Not every sorcerer was a troublemaking asshole who deserved to die.
But sometimes it was hard to tell, especially when they were new to magic.
My boss opened his office door and beckoned me in.
I wiped my hands on my pants and stood. For a heartbeat, I wanted to make this meeting about something else, anything else.
I should’ve known that first video would lead to trouble.
That following Crispin’s advice and setting up a Scream and Steam account was only going to create new problems, even as it solved the old ones.
Now I had the money I needed to get my own place, but my brother was riding my ass about being a streamer. He wanted me to meet his new friends—being discovered was freaking me out more than fucking around with a sorcerer.
My own anxiety about Timothy had led me here because if word got out, I’d be booted out of Bridges so fast I’d trip over my own tail and land horns first in a pile of shit. Plotting and scheming was far too much effort, and Timothy now kept me up at night for all the wrong reasons…
…and some of the right ones.
I sat as my boss closed the door.
There was a trail of slime over his touchscreen that made me wonder how it even worked because if I flicked water on mine, it got confused and didn’t do anything.
“It’s not like you to request a meeting without an issue, so I’m going to assume…” One of his eye stalks tilted to the side in question, but all four of his eyes remained focused on me.
“Yeah, there’s an issue.”
His toothless mouth opened a little too wide. “Problem with your Steam account?” He shook his head. “They like you to have them, to give everyone a glimpse into the human world, but they’re dangerous. Every year we lose a good Bridge Guardian because they wanted new scream footage.”
I hoped that wouldn’t be Crispin one day. He was careful and smart, but he was also a risk-taker. So even though he considered all the things that might go wrong when setting up, that didn’t mean he hadn’t missed something.
The tip of my tail tapped my calf. Even though I’d run through various options of what to say, I had no idea what the best approach was.
I hadn’t even told Crispin about my deal with Timothy.
Or the way I’d crossed a boundary and kissed him.
Fucked him. Worse, I didn’t regret it. Keeping secrets from my friend should’ve been my first warning that something was wrong.
I resisted the urge to fidget and took the dive. “Indirectly, yes.”
“How so?”
I explained to him how I’d recorded Timothy and, on the advice of a friend, created the account. Then I kind of came unstuck. How much did I tell him? Did I mention how close I’d become, or did I stick to the observable facts?
If I was doing this right, I needed to get it all out; otherwise, the lies might bite me on the ass and trip me up later.
“He caught me recording one night.” That was mostly true. “Which made it easier to set up shots.”
His eyestalks bobbed in agreement, but he didn’t speak, giving me the room to continue talking. I needed to keep going.
“It was then I realized things weren’t adding up.”
My boss became motionless—even his slime didn’t drip. “What do you mean?”
“There was no sign of magic in that house when I first visited, but it began to form, and not around the small child. Around Timothy. I got curious about his family. He claimed the dragon tattoo on his arm was in memory of his mother.”
My boss leaned back.
This is where I potentially got my ass kicked in a way that was going to make my tail ache.
“I’d seen the tattoo, but it hadn’t troubled me.
” That was a fucking lie, but I’d rather look a little dense than negligent.
“Humans seem to be obsessed with dragons…but with the glimmer of magic, I got a little paranoid. So, I researched the family. Timothy’s mother was a sorcerer.
She escaped through a bridge and died here. ”
My boss’s slick fingers swiped over the screen as he pulled up my search records. He was silent as he read about Timothy’s mother. “You think he has her blood?”
“If she used him to draw on magic, it’s possible that my presence in his life triggered a renewed connection.” I’d broken Timothy and put him in danger. “His father is connected to hunters, and he turned in his wife.”
My boss swore. No one liked hunters. They didn’t care who they killed as long as they got to kill. They were worse than sorcerers using children to access magic. At least the sorcerers weren’t killing children.
Hunters did. They claimed it was to stop the sorcerers.
“I don’t know what’s more concerning. That you’ve grown close to the human, he is accessing magic, or that his father is connected to hunters.” Two eyestalks watched the screen, and the other two stared at me, which was disturbing.
My tail twitched. “He can access it and use it. He is a potential Santa.”
“I gathered that.” My boss tapped his screen, no doubt making notes and recommending me for extra training. No bonus, and no more Scream and Steam.
“I’ve given him a tracker. I told him it was so I could find him after his father kicked him out.”
My boss grumbled as he swiped the screen. “That’s safer than living at home.”
“I warned him against making wishes.”
My boss’s lips worked as if he was trying to swallow some vile-tasting morsel. “He hasn’t been contacted by any sorcerers?”
“To the best of my knowledge, no. He has been very cooperative and forthcoming.”
All four eyes turned to look at me. “I’m sure he’s been very cooperative.”
Well, when put like that, it did sound bad. “He likes…performing.”
“We can’t leave a potential Santa in the human world. He will eventually attract the attention of sorcerers and hunters, and they will misuse his powers and him for their own gain.”
I studied the slime-smeared desk, wishing for another way. “What now?”
“Leave it with me, but keep monitoring him and doing your recording. Don’t make him suspicious.
” He lifted his hand. “I know you trust him. But he may say something to the wrong person without realizing, and then, before we can say Pied Piper, we will be overrun with children. I do not want to be turned into a sentient pile of glitter.”
“Sentient?” A shudder raced down my spine to the tip of my tail. That was even worse. I thought the monster turned into glitter was dead; instead, he was in a million pieces.
“Yes.” My boss studied me.
“They’re still glitter, aren’t they?”
“Sadly, we have not found anyone capable of returning him to his former self.” All four eyestalks bobbed, and he licked his lips. “We haven’t had a Santa on our side for a long time.”
Even though that was a possible outcome, hearing it aloud made my stomach drop. Even though I shouldn’t, I wanted to warn Timothy, so he knew what was coming. I wanted him to understand I was protecting him.
For him to forgive me, but I wasn’t sure that was possible a second time.