“Yes, that one,” Bowie encourages. “Right there.”
Oh no. Oh no. Oh no!
“Just a wee bit harder.”
Esther hits my absolute favorite spot. I have no control over myself when someone scratches behind that ear. It’s just so good!
I lose it. My leg jitters and flails, as if possessed by a throng of itchy gremlins. It thumps the floor wildly. My tail flails and my tongue lolls from my mouth. I am a puddle of bliss at Esther’s feet, and I hope she never stops.So good, so good, so good.
Bowie’s laughter is the first thing I hear as I come back to my senses.
Albert rises to collect little Esther, giving my head a nice pat. “Very good wolf,” he says and scoops her into his arms. “And you, small miss, must be to bed. Say good night to your new friend.”
“Good night, Beans,” says Esther. I miss her already.
I’m still recovering from the delirium as Bowie stands from his chair and thanks them for speaking with him.
“We’re off to follow the trail right away,” he says. “Don’t give up hope.”
I stumble somewhat drunkenly to his side. His hand lands on my head. I lean into the touch. I can’t help it. I’m quickly coming to adore him even though he just unabashedly exploited my greatest weakness.
“Thank you,” says Rahel, the sadness returning to her voice.
I shake off the lingering effects of Esther’s affection and sober up. Bowie and I have an important job ahead of us. I glance once more around the humble home, its missing member a hole in the very heart of this sweet family.
We must bring Beth home to her little sister. To Albert and Rahel. I know I can find her. I just hope she’ll be all right when I do.
Chapter 8
“Oh, my dear Andras,” says Bowie as we leave the last of the missing girls’ houses. “I cannot believe my luck in finding the most tolerant, the most kind, and the most clever werewolf in the land!”
I snuffle-snort next to him. He’s had me put on the Beans performance twice more tonight, and I can’t find it in myself to be bothered, even though I do feel rather silly when I entirely lose my mind in front of strangers.
But that spot! It’s magical.
“You’re not mad, are you?” he asks, though his face holds its usual mirth. He already knows I’m not mad.
I snarl because it’s fun. And because we need all the levity we can get in these circumstances, which if I dwell on them, are overwhelmingly depressing. I can’t sink that low, or I’ll be useless to the girls. So I don’t dwell on it. Instead, I nip Bowie on his rump, then make a break for the tree line.
“Ouch!” He races after me, faster than I knew he could go, and overtakes me with ease. Suddenly, he’s in my path, and I must swerve to avoid running straight into him.
Bowie lunges, tackling me from the side, knocking us both to the ground. In the grassy field, he rolls me to my flank and triumphantly pins me with an arm around my furry ruff. His laughter is a delight.
“Didn’t know I could do that, hmm?”
I didn’t. He’s faster than me. A lot faster. What else can he do?
“That’s what you get for biting my ass, you wild creature.”
He deserved it. I roll out from under his arm, stand, and stretch. My fur is all wrong, so I give a vigorous shake to right it. Meanwhile, Bowie stays lying in the long grass, flopped onto his back, staring up at me with those shining blue eyes of his.
It’s been a difficult night. Seeing families in anguish over missing daughters is an experience I wouldn’t wish on anyone. Bowie treated each grieving family member with tenderness as I stalked around their homes, making sure to commit each unique scent to memory. The task was hard on us both.
I couldn’t help but notice how he tempers himself around strangers. He loses the hint of flamboyance I’ve come to associate with him and becomes more proper, more reserved. I wonder at that, but it’s not my place to ask.
“Do you feel like shifting and telling me what you’ve learned?” He slides his arm beneath his head and crosses his ankles as if lying in this field was actually our end goal for tonight. “You don’t have to, of course. I’m just curious what you’re thinking.”
We do need to talk. I don’t know what he’s learned either; I was too busy tuning him out and concentrating on the smells to keep up with his conversations with the families. But what I actually want to do right now is lick him. One big slurp, maybe two, right across those chiseled cheeks of his.
