She breathed out a sigh.Okay, that sucker punch could be reversed.For a split second, Katy thought she was going to be competing with a ghost for all of eternity.
“I don’t have time to argue this with you three, and I don’t know what you’re talking about with all this dire wolf history.What I do know is Azure needs a powerfulanimus, and he seems to think that if a female is mated to a male in a powerful position, then she will be powerful.And from what I’ve gathered, a dire wolf is powerful, right?”
“Just a bit.”Slick held up his hand with his thumb and pointer finger slightly apart.
“Then I can give the Council what they need to take Azure down.I can give them firsthand proof.I’m doing this.You can either help me or get the hell out of my way.”
All three males simply stared at her like she’d lost her mind.Katy turned to Otto.
“How long has that bastard treated you like crap?How long has he stomped on you, crushed you into the dirt, made you feel like you were nothing when all you’d ever done was serve him well?We can’t let him get away with this.”
“Katy get hurt.”Otto’s yellow eyes grew glassy.
“I’ll be fine.I’m made of tough stuff.Please, Otto,” she implored him.“As soon as Azure has his voodoo chick doing her mojo, you can contact Gage and bring in the calvary.”
Otto stared at her for several heartbeats before he finally responded.“You die, I bites you.”
“Biting dead people isn’t healthy, Otto.It’s like drugs.Just say no,” she told him as she followed him to the door.
He placed his hand on it.
“Otto.”Myron breathed out, but there was only sadness in it, no real objection.Just resolve.
“I’ve got to do this, Myron.Why else would I have been brought here if not for this reason?”
“Damn good female,” Slick muttered.
Myron nodded, his lips turning up slightly.“The hardheaded ones usually are.”
The door lit up and then dimmed.Katy didn’t give herself time to think about what she was doing.She wrapped her hand around the knob and turned it.As she started out of the room, she looked down at Otto, who walked beside her.His chin was lifted with determination, even though she didn’t miss the way his little hands trembled.“When I was a kid, for every Christmas and birthday, my dad would get me a typical gift.A doll, a play set, coloring books…, all the usual things.And every time, I’d say, ‘Is a puppy too much to ask for?’Because I always wanted a dog.But we live in New York City, and owning a dog is a major undertaking.Just taking it outside to go to the bathroom would be a half-hour ordeal every time, ya know?But as a kid, you don’t care.You just want what you want.”They made some turns down different hallways, and Katy trusted Otto to lead her where she wanted to go.“But now, if I was a kid again, I think I’d say something different.”
Otto blinked.“What?”
“I’d say, ‘Is a lizard too much to ask for?’Because they’re cool as shit.”
Otto’s little mouth turned up slightly, revealing the tops of his sharp teeth.“Yeahs we are.”
She laughed.“Oh, the way you talk.Dude, don’t change.”
They were silent in the last hallway.Then they stopped in front of a large, ornate wooden door.It was covered in snakes and painted black, but the eyes of the snakes were each a different color and looked way too real for Katy’s liking.
Otto knocked on the door.It was only a second before Azure’s voice carried through.“Come in.”
“You’re not going in with me,” Katy whispered as she looked down at him.“He might try to trap you to hurt me.You need to be able to get in contact with Gage.”Katy held out the phone, leaning down so Otto could reach it.“Go.I’ll be fine.”She had no idea if that was true.But she did know that Azure would instantly see how much Otto meant to her and immediately use that to his advantage.
Otto’s face was torn.He didn’t want to leave her.But he knew she was right.Finally, he gave a sharp nod and took the phone.Then he stepped across the hall and slunk into the shadows until she could no longer see him.Katy faced the door.She took a deep breath and let it out before entering the snake’s den.She had no idea how long it would be before Gage would get to her.And she knew a million things could go wrong with her plan.Like, literally everything.It was a pretty hole-filled plan, honestly.Good grief, why am I not better at this?I read.I watch crime documentaries.I feel like I should be more prepared for this scenario.More prepared for handing herself over to a snake king to siphon her apparent supernatural powers to make more beings like her, only they wouldn’t really be like her because the Damarian Creator wouldn’t have been the ones ordaining their creation.How does one prepare for that exactly, Katy?Then she ignored her own question as her eyes met Azure’s.The room wasn’t a throne room, but the snake’s office.
“Katy Dire.”Azure sounded pleased to see her.She wasn’t expecting that.“I was just about to send for you.”
“Oh?”
“It looks like your time as our guest has come to an end.”Azure’s snake-slit eyes glowed eerily.“Nox, the Alpha of Kingdom of Fangs, has agreed to pay the expenses it will cost to get you to Montana.Considering the mix-up with you ending up in my kingdom…”
“Mix-up?”Katy asked slowly.What the hell was going on?
“Well, you’re going to have a mate in the Kingdom of Fangs.That tattoo is a clear indication of it.My males never should have brought you here.”The Snake King shrugged.
Katy cleared her throat.“Interesting take on the situation.”Was this guy seriously acting likehehadn’t ordered her to be kidnapped and dropped on his damn creepy doorstep?“But I don’t need to go find my mate.I already know who he is, and I’m good to stay here.So, you can tell Nox, ‘Thanks, but no thanks.’”
