I put my foot on his dash and retied my shoelaces. “What do you think is wrong with him?”
Christian removed his sunglasses and squinted at the bright snow. “Probably what’s wrong with all of us. We’re fecking loons. Get your foot off my dash.”
I dropped my leg and unbuckled my seat belt. “I thought you guys were best buddies.”
“I’m not having this discussion again. Now quit flapping your gums, and let’s get this over with.”
“Enjoy your reprieve,” I said playfully. “When you get back, you’ll be staring at a computer screen for the rest of the night.”
He shut off the engine. “On that note, there are some sick bastards in this world.”
I got out of the car and met up with him next to the building. “Why? What did you see?”
“Last night, there were pets going up for sale.”
“Pets?”
“Aye. Some of those humans you love so much have an infatuation with Shifters. They volunteer to become their pets. Leather collars and everything.”
I snorted. “Do they wear a leash?”
“The higher authority frowns upon that kind of thing, but it’s entirely legal. The demand for pets is higher than the supply, so some of them coordinate with marketeers to find the highest bidder. That way the human gets a little something out of it in addition to fulfilling whatever sexual fantasy they’re searching for.”
“So it’s a sex thing?”
We rounded the corner.
“It makes some Shifters feel empowered to have dominion over a human pet. Shifters were once slaves within our world. I guess freedom isn’t enough for some and they want a taste of that power. A pet is a servant.”
“A servant with a collar. Sounds more like a slave. Do they care which animal bids on them? Wolf? Panther? Sheep?” When Christian ignored my remarks, I egged him on. “What about a cow? Do they get to milk them?”
He held the door open and gave me a scathing glance. “My deepest condolences to the woman who dropped you on your head.”
I reached in my pocket and tossed a receipt onto the floor. Without looking back, I knew he’d bent down to pick it up. Just as we reached the bar, I tossed something else from my pocket onto the ground.
Christian slammed his hand on the bar with the scraps of paper beneath it. “Now you’re just goading me.”
Hooper turned and gave Christian a look of annoyance. He licked one of his lip rings and ambled toward us. “Is there something I can get for you?”
Christian lifted his hand, revealing the wadded-up papers. “She’ll be having a trash can.”
“He’ll have world peace,” I said. “Could we trouble you for a minute? A friend of ours left his keys here last night, so we thought we’d come in and look around. Has anyone turned anything in?”
He looked between my mismatched eyes. “I remember you now. Is the car still out there?” he asked with a smile.
“Yep.”
“Must be a jalopy. Most of the keys lost in here never get found, and neither do the cars.”
Theft wasn’t a crime that could land a man in Breed jail, so what would deter someone from taking the Jeep? “Would you mind looking around? Maybe one of the waitresses placed them behind the bar or something and didn’t relay the message. My friend here will check the men’s room.” I patted Christian on the shoulder and he wrenched away, heading toward the restrooms. He didn’t look angry. In fact, his stoic expression made me want to try harder to get a reaction. “Check every stall!” I yelled out.
Hooper winked. “Be right back.”
After he disappeared behind the bar, I plopped down on a stool and spun around to face the club. A few people were hanging out, but it wasn’t as busy as the evening hours. When I crossed my legs, an attractive man with long hair winked at me. He must have liked the no-makeup-and-crazy-hair look.
A familiar face strode by on his way out. “Careful, Butterfly. That one’s a Vampire.”
I stared at the man’s bleached hair and hopped off my stool. “Hey, Chaos. Your little ruse didn’t work.”
