Chapter 39 #2
“I would rather be on my yacht pleasing my wife with a little half-turn ass on the side.”
I shuddered at that considering what had happened a few days after I moved in. Willa had been tending to her restaurant, and I’d had a little too much scotch during one of Mosavi’s ‘lessons.’ He was every bit as rough and dominant as I’d imagined he would be.
“Just so you know, that’s never going to happen again.”
“Just like you would never take me up on my offer to live with me.” He flashed a devious grin and I turned away. “Next time I’ll have Roscoe serve us food afterward.”
“Can you please not make him wear the maid’s outfit anymore? It’s really going to his head.”
“It’s hilarious. It’s like having my very own court jester.”
“You’re such an ass.”
We stepped into a clearing with several artificial caves carved into the large hills.
Norwich was relatively flat, but further out into the woods were large sandstone hills.
The last time we were here, everything had been gold and orange, but now even the leafiest trees had lost their foliage, and the only green remaining were the large Douglas Firs and other conifers blanketing the hills.
A small, rapid stream split the little feral village in half, a crooked log bridge connecting it. Several werewolves smoked herbs around a large bonfire while others carried freshly killed game to log butchering tables.
“This is what I always imagined hell would look like,” Mosavi muttered.
“Don’t be so crass. It’s unbecoming,” Willa scolded. “It’s quaint and lovely. It’s been a while since I was out in the middle of nature. There’s always something so peaceful about it.”
“Norwich is peaceful enough,” Mosavi said. “This place offers nothing that we cannot have better.”
The larger elder turned back to Darius and frowned, shaking his head. “Do you ever find joy in anything anymore, little brother?”
“I find joy in many things.”
“Such as?”
“My wife.”
The elder leaned in closer to him. “And?”
“I have all the money I could ever want. I have a nice house. Cars. I can go anywhere in the world I please. I live in comfort and luxury you could only dream of.”
“All of those things bring you joy?”
“Are you hard of hearing?”
Mosavi’s brother smiled. “My ears hear your words, but they do not hear joy when you speak them.”
“It must be all the caked-in dirt.”
The feral elder frowned again.
“Why have you called me here?” Mosavi asked, posturing aggressively. “Did you expect me to find joy in the oppressive stenches that settle over this place like smog?”
“I simply wanted to share the solstice with my brother.” He held out a familiar leather pouch. “We should smoke.”
It quickly became clear what the other elder was doing, and part of me—a very small part—wanted to warn Mosavi. The rest of me wanted to see what hilarity would ensue once that herb stripped every last bit of his smugness away.
The feral elder glanced at me and gave a half-grin.
“This looks different than I remember.”
“Do you no longer smoke?” Mosavi’s brother handed him a pipe carved with intricate designs. The craftsmanship seemed almost ancient.
“I smoke, yes. Only the finest tobacco.”
“Would you turn down tanbaku?”
Mosavi’s eyes widened. “How did you get something so fine?”
“We are not completely cut off from the Midna. We do make trades.”
The smaller elder loosened the collar of his dress shirt before unbuttoning the top half.
He’d wanted to make a statement, which was why he’d dressed up before trudging through the woods, but I could tell he regretted the decision.
He wasn’t wearing a blazer this time, but his nice slacks had become dusty with small tears from thorns and leafless underbrush.
“This doesn’t look like tanbaku,” Mosavi said suspiciously, his tone softening a little as he grabbed the pipe. “But it has been a long time. Perhaps a little couldn’t hurt. It would at least mask the smell of musky animals.”
And with that, the larger elder put an arm across Mosavi’s shoulder and led him to the cave where we’d all had our visions.
“Do you have your phone?” I whispered, turning my attention to a bewildered Willa.
She reached into her cleavage and pulled out a diamond-studded case with her smartphone inside. “Of course. Why?”
“You’re definitely gonna want to record this.”
“I loooove you,” Mosavi slurred while leaning against me on the long walk back out of the woods. “You smell soooo good.”
“Oh God, this is the best Christmas present I’ve ever gotten,” I said, trying to hold back laughter.
Willa and I had been watching Darius’s mental decline for the last three hours as he and his brother caught up.
Because of the way the herb worked, he was going to remember every embarrassing detail once he was sober—but he would also remember whatever visions he had.
We had also been recording the interaction between the two, which had started out lighthearted but soon darkened into something more serious and personal.
After my own experience with this, I felt it wasn’t my place to stay, but Willa wanted to remain.
He was her husband, and there was a lot that Mosavi had kept to himself over the centuries.
“I sincerely hope you have more of that herb,” Willa said, leaning in to kiss her husband on the lips. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so giddy.”
“I’m horny,” he blurted out, giving me another sniff.
“When we get home, dear,” Willa said, looking over at me. “Would you take care of it?”
“No!”
She sighed. “But I’m so very tired.”
“They’re your wifely duties!”
Mosavi began drooling on my shoulder half-asleep, and I shoved him awake.
“Oh, I don’t think he’ll last once we get home.” I shoved him again. “God, you’re heavy. Walk, damn it.”
“Who needs to walk when you can float? We’re floating.” He fell into me again. “Like all these butterflies.”
“Damn it,” I shouted, almost tripping over a root as his full weight crashed into me. “I’m tempted to leave him here.”
“As hilarious as that would be, there will be hungry witches about.” Willa rubbed her chin. “I wish I’d brought something to help him sober up, but I kind of like him this way.”
“I looove you, too,” Mosavi said with a lopsided grin as he turned to her, his eyes squinty as he stumbled. “Yer just the prettiest girl I ever done met.”
“What the hell is that accent?” Willa asked, cooing like a love-struck teenager. “You’re off the hook, Cody. He’s mine.”
“Just so we’re clear, I was never on the hook to begin with.”
“Mmhmm.”
I groaned and continued walking toward the clearing ahead. “Oh, thank God. We’re almost to the road. The car’s coming to pick us up, right?”
Willa didn’t respond.
“Right?” I asked a little louder as Mosavi fell into me again.
“Of course, dear.” She pulled out her phone. “Just need to make a quick call.”
Christmas Eve
“Roscoe, take it off,” I said through my teeth as the excited werewolf pranced around the dinner table, setting plates in front of everyone in a very tight, black and white maid’s outfit with every horrifying frill imaginable.
“Leave it on,” Mosavi said with a teasing grin before shoving a wad of cash into the lacey strap around Roscoe’s waist. “It pleases me.”
“Hell, I didn’t know I’d be paid,” Roscoe said, glaring at me before doing a clumsy twirl before putting a finger in his mouth, biting it seductively.
This was him getting back at me. At first, it had been just a mild irritation, but the maid outfits got more and more elaborate and harder to ignore.
Randall and Steve snickered at the other end of the table, and Blake lifted the skirt.
“Dude, are you wearing panties?”
Roscoe slapped Blake’s hand away. “Sir, I am a lady.” He made sure to say lady in a much deeper voice while looking at me.
“What would work better at blinding me right now? Bleach or chlorine?” Austin asked, looking over at Adam. “I can’t believe you had sex with that.”
“It was a dark and desperate time,” Adam said, shooting me a smile. “We’ve all done things we regret.”
“All right. I’ve had enough,” I said, shooting up from my chair while pulling out my phone. “You know what would please me? Entertainment with dinner.” I pulled up the video of Mosavi and began playing it.
“Take that stupid outfit off, Roscoe!” the mayor shouted in a panic.
I stopped the video and took a deep breath through my nose before sitting back down. “All right. Now we’re going to have a nice Christmas dinner.”
“I really hate you,” Mosavi growled.
“No, you don’t. You loooove me, remember?”
“Honey, don’t poke the bear anymore,” Willa whispered into my ear, sounding unusually worried. “So, how’s the construction coming along?” she asked, changing the subject.
“We’ve got the extra foundation laid, and more support beams in place. We’ll be able to start on the second floor soon,” Randall said.
“Second floor?” I asked loudly as Roscoe came back into the dining room now completely nude. “I thought you guys were just adding onto the house… laterally.”
“Roscoe,” Mosavi said calmly, closing his eyes while letting out a low growl. “I want you in clothing.”
“But I didn’t bring none except for the maid’s outfit.”
The mayor rubbed his temples in a circular motion. “Put on a pair of my sweatpants.”
“Yes, yer majesty,” he said before turning back around. “Oh! Dinner’s almost done.”
“We’re opening up the kitchen a little more, making the dining room bigger while also moving the front door to where the garage was.
The house is old, but she’s got some good bones,” Blake said, pulling a folded sheet of paper from his pocket and sliding it toward the mayor.
“Oh, and uh… we’re gonna need a bit more money to finish the project. ”
Mosavi picked up the paper and unfolded it. “What happened to all the money I’ve already given you?”
“You know… inflation. Tariffs. Taxes—contractor fees.”
Mosavi folded the paper and slid it back across the table. “I see.”
“Yeah, so, uh… we’ll need it before next month so we can finish.”