8. She wants to fight you.
EIGHT
She wants to fight you.
Quinn
I stood in the snow, staring at my phone for a long time. Bailey hadn’t seriously attempted to use her wayfinder magic since the incident with Audrey, claiming she’d make a mess of her perfect life. I’d felt her fear, so I hadn’t pushed her on the matter.
Most of her bravado masked her fears and uncertainties.
I loved her a little more each and every time she overcame one of her inner demons, especially the ones that told her she didn’t deserve me.
The first time she’d hunted for my company in bed without me making the first move, I’d worried my heart might burst from love and pride.
She’d come so far, and most of the time, she didn’t even realize it.
I worried what she would find with her magic—and what she’d do about it. Tapping my foot, I considered my options, which were few. Stocking up on neutralizer and notifying my grandfather the hives needed to treat and vaccinate would be the first step. Unlike humans, gorgons could be vaccinated.
Few opted for the treatment; it made them feel like animals. I’d hate myself for doing it, but spreading word of the Dover hive’s fate might convince them.
I hoped.
I returned to the rental, got settled behind the wheel, and called my gorgon grandfather.
“What do you need, Samuel?”
“Get the hives started on treatments for rabies and vaccinations. Strongly suggest it, and tell them what happened to the Dover hive. I’m worried.”
“Already on it. I figured you would suggest it. I’ll also make certain they understand that Bailey is your bride and hive queen. I’ll also make a note they should strongly discourage the former cadet creating problems for you and your bride.”
I’d be very surprised if the idiot survived strong discouragement from angered gorgon males. I should’ve cared more, but I nodded. “Thank you.” With him leading the charge, I could focus on tailing Bailey and taking care of the whelps. “I talked to Bailey.”
“What did she say?”
“She wants to fight you.”
“Of course she does. You’re going to ask me to lose, aren’t you?”
“No. I’m going to ask you to fight her like you mean it, even if it means she loses.
Losing to you won’t make her lose the bid for adoption.
It’ll prove her determination even more.
I’m backing her, and should you defeat her, I’m confident I can beat you—and while I love my grandmother dearly, I win that fight with a look. ”
“Ah. I see. Yes, if your goal is to prove your determination to adopt, I’ll make sure I’m overseeing the matches and will be your final opponent.
Everyone knows I will not take it easy on you just because you’re my grandson.
No, if anything, they know I’ll be harsher on you and your bride.
You have to live up to the family name, after all.
And should you win, losing to my grandson and bride is not a shame.
Should she fairly beat me, it’s a good thing.
And as for your grandmother, she’s used to being knocked out early. She’ll forgive you for petrifying her.”
“Bailey wouldn’t forgive herself if Grandmother was hurt, so I’ll end that fight before it really begins. I’ll give Bailey a chance to tussle with you a little first, though. If Bailey needs a breather, well, I’ll let Grandmother beat on me for a while first.”
My grandfather laughed. “She’ll enjoy that. She’s going to try to spank you both if given a chance despite knowing she’ll lose.”
“You’re in?”
“We’re in. I’ll claim the role of overseer of the match.
You just worry about those whelps and your bride.
I’ll impress upon the hives you’re planning on adopting them, so you two are there to endure a beating and fight.
You need to control your temper, though.
Bailey needs to prove her dedication to the whelps.
Granted, I don’t think it’ll be much of a fight.
Bailey wears her emotions on her sleeve.
The whelps are smart. They’ll see how much she wants to love them from the first match. ”
I nodded. “I know how it works. I’ll keep my temper in check.”
“You’re unreasonable when it comes to your bride. Frankly, I’m amazed you haven’t retrieved her yet.”
“I’m regretting I haven’t. She’s about to create a great deal of trouble, I’m sure.”
“Well, don’t worry about the gorgon situation. I’m handling things. As your bride is always creating trouble, I feel I need to remind you that she’s capable of handling the trouble she creates.”
I sighed. “That’s a stretch. Remember the hotel?”
“That’s hardly her fault. She was sick and didn’t know then she could go to you for help. That has changed.”
A lot had changed. “I’m still worried.”
“As am I. Be careful. I fear this will get much worse before it gets better.”
Bailey
A snowy, empty parking lot at a long-dead strip mall made the ideal place to put my wayward wayfinding magic to the test. Blizzard appreciated the chance to stretch his legs and roll in the snow while I prepared the piddly ritual required to breathe a trail to life.
If I did find an abandoned big cat kitten for Quinn, I might have to put my magic in timeout until it developed a better sense of humor and some common sense on the side.
As I really didn’t want to figure out how to keep a big predator from eating my dogs, my friends, me, or my husband, I flung the chalk and said, “Find me an orphaned big kitty kitten that won’t eat me, my friends, my family, my pets, or my husband that actually wants to be adopted into my lunatic life—and it can’t be infected with any disease, or illness, or virus. ”
There. I was guaranteed failure with those requirements.
The falling chalk erupted into golden, sparkling light and slithered over the snow to create a trail for me to follow.
“You have got to be fucking kidding me.”
Perkette burst into helpless laughter.
“This is not funny, Perkette. This is the absolute opposite of funny.”
“This is fucking hilarious. You tried so hard to fail. You left out the part about a dumpster, but you added a ridiculous number of other clauses, so I can’t complain. It’s fate, Bailey. Just accept it.”
“Fate sucks. I’m inviting a predator capable of eating me into my home.”
“It is what it is. You’re driving.” Perkette tossed me the keys. “It’ll be good practice for you.”
“How is it I end up driving myself to the next disaster whenever I use my magic?”
“Stop whining and start driving, Bailey. If you think this is bad, after we pick up Quinn’s kitten, you get to drive us to the more serious disaster. I’ll be nice and give you a break if you need one. In other news, we’re going to need a lot more neutralizer.”
I glanced at the fifty pound bag of the highest grade neutralizer on the market, which took up a horrendous amount of space in the back. “You have got to be kidding me. That bag cost me ten thousand dollars, Perkette.”
“Get two or three more. We might need it.”
“What the fuck am I going to do with that much neutralizer?”
“Save lives.”
That shut me up, and I wondered just how major of an outbreak she expected; the fifty pound bag could potentially treat thousands to tens of thousands of people of the most dangerous ailments, rabies included.
If I went the risky treatment route, which had a one in five thousand chance of requiring a full set of vaccinations and general illness, a single pound of neutralizer could treat several thousand people.
It didn’t take much for internal treatments.
Topical treatments took a great deal more neutralizer.
It only took a two pound bag to treat someone with a glass coffin.
I sighed. “I’m going to wipe out the stocks if I buy that much, Perkette. The only reason I was able to get a fifty pound bag is because the distributor just got a new batch in.”
“Buy it in ten pound bags near expiration. When this goes down, my bet will be soon, and while the CDC won’t sell or use it on the general public, they will sell it to you. If a major outbreak doesn’t happen, no big deal. If it does, you’ll be set.”
“The SUV can’t hold that much neutralizer, us, a dog, and a cat.”
Perkette pointed at the SUV’s tow hitch. “It can. We get a trailer. For now, we’ll only get an extra hundred pounds. But if we think we need more, we pick up a trailer and we load it up with more neutralizer.”
Quinn had rumbled about wanting a small trailer to go camping in so we could escape the city on the weekends.
We’d have to exchange the SUV for a serious truck, but I thought we could get away with it.
I could afford the transfer fee to get the SUV back to New York.
If I got an extra hundred pounds of neutralizer before caving and getting a truck and a trailer, the entire back would be loaded with pink, sparkly powder.
“Quinn’s going to kill me when he finds out about this. ”
“He’ll congratulate you on your wisdom.”
“I willingly went on a road trip with you, Perkette. That’s the exact opposite of wise. Is this going to prove I shouldn’t be a police chief? It should.”
“Relax, Bailey. Just follow the magical trail. Everything will be just fine.”
Quinn
To catch my wife, I utilized every cheat at my disposal.
First, I visited the nearest NY State Police station, showed them my badge, and requested a track on my wife’s rental.
Perkins helped, offering his officiated card from the CDC, which claimed his wife was a misdemeanor-collecting fiend who needed adult supervision.
The card gave Perkins jurisdiction to conduct some police business in any state when the situation involved his wife.
The CDC viewed Tiffany Perkins as an invaluable menace, and they classified her brilliance as a national treasure, one that required my friend to be able to retrieve her as necessary.
That Tiffany kept her mischief to misdemeanors made all the difference in the world.
When I explained my wife was being promoted to be a police chief and classified as at risk, the state police joined my team and they got the ball rolling.