I was still numbly staring at the black screen on my phone when Captain Cicely approached. “Problem, O’Hare?”
“Too many to count,” I answered before finally pulling my eyes from the dark screen.
Captain Cicely’s sigh sounded soul deep. “How in the hell do you look worse each and every day I see you, O’Hare? I’ve given you one order—get some fucking rest, and you can’t seem to follow that. You’re obviously shit at following orders.”
I would have been cowed had it not been for the concern filling the captain’s voice. “Life’s not playing into the restful hand lately, Captain.”
“No, I suppose it isn’t. Meet me in my office.” Captain Cicely waved me forward as she walked away. Pushing my aching body out of my chair, I dutifully followed.
“Have a seat.” She pointed to the chair in front of her desk and heavily sat. “Now, tell me why you still look like shit.”
For a brief moment, I considered not telling the captain about what Phlox, Leon, Boone and I discussed last night. That thought was fleeting, and soon I spilled the tea. Captain Cicely quietly listened, her deep brown skin turning ashen when Imentioned two new djinn that were possibly on the playing field. That ashen shade turned green when I added what I’d found out from Hellfire Rayburn regarding fairy affinities.
“Sweet Gaia, I need a drink.” Despite her words, I didn’t expect the captain to reach into a drawer and pull out a bottle of vodka. “It’s a human drink, but I like it, and it’s the beverage for the job.” Two glasses followed and soon held a shot each. Scooting one my direction, Captain Cicely said, “Drink up, O’Hare.”
“We’re on the clock,” I argued while reaching for the alcohol.
“That we are, and yet the occasion still calls for it. Are you going to ignore this order too?”
I shook my head and downed the shot. The burn softened into warmth. Captain Cicely didn’t pour another. Instead, she put the bottle back and grabbed the glasses too, clearing her desk.
“Better?” she asked.
I toggled my hand back and forth. “I think it would take several more, but it’s a start.”
“When you’re off the clock, you can indulge more. That was just to take the edge off this clusterfuck. Just when I think fairies can’t get any more terrifying, they go and prove me wrong. One day, the legal leash is going to pull a little too tightly against their skin. I only hope I’m long gone when that day rolls around.”
As a witch, Captain Cicely’s lifespan was far longer than mine or Boone’s. He and I had a much better chance of being long gone by the time that day came.
I was glad to see a little of Captain Cicely’s color return. Clasping her hands and leaning her forearms against her desk, the captain said, “Pushing aside our terrifying overseers, otherwise known as Fairy… You’re telling me Huxley’s found not one, but two djinn?”
“That’s what Aurelia says.”
Captain Cicely’s expression went disturbingly lax and her gaze distant. The room became eerily quiet. I considered getting up and allowing the captain time to digest what I’d said. Maybe she needed a bit of privacy to work through the guilt she harbored regarding djinn. While Captain Cicely herself had never created a djinn nor contributed to the making of one, her ancestors had. It was a heavy burden to bear. I wasn’t sure if it was right or wrong that she felt that way. I wasn’t a witch and therefore didn’t feel like I was in a position to judge. Humanity had enough atrocities to atone for. I didn’t need to take on the mantle of another species’ regrets.
“I need some time,” Captain Cicely finally said, although I still wasn’t certain if she was speaking to me or not. I took the opportunity to leave the heavy atmosphere clouding her office. Not that the atmosphere in the bullpen was a lot better.
Sitting down at my desk, I called Warlock Holland. He answered promptly and after getting through the initial concerns that I was calling because something nefarious had happened to his son, I was able to ask Boone’s pops the same question I’d posed to Hellfire Rayburn. Disturbingly, I was informed that stripping a body of all its “soft and squishy” parts would be possible for any mildly capable warlock. I added that disturbing thought to the growing list, piling it on to be dissected at a later date.
I swear I only meant to rest my head on my desk. Two hours later, I woke to Becks’s gentle shakes and soft voice telling me the captain wanted me to go home and that I wasn’t to come back to work until I’d managed a full night’s sleep.
Too tired to argue, I packed up and headed out. I desperately wanted to follow the captain’s orders, but some commands were easier to heed than others.
I climbed into my SUV with the full weight of my years pressing down on me. My eyes were gritty, and my body feltstiff and achy. I suppose there was only so long the human body could run with little sleep, and I’d hit that wall. Cracking a yawn, I turned the air-conditioning on high and cranked the radio up as loud as it would go. I just needed to stay awake long enough to get back to Boone. I kept my mind awake and busy during the drive by formulating a plan. I’d go home, walk in the door, place a hand over Boone’s mouth—silencing any further discussion about Huxley, skeletal remains, and the horribly disturbing fact that there was more than one species out there that could strip the flesh from bone. I’d drag Boone to bed and make him the little spoon.
We’d need to eat and shower at some point, but my plan was flexible enough to deal with those necessities. The important part was that there was a bed, Boone, and sleep involved. That was enough for—
“Lydia Boone is not where she should be.”
“Jesus H. Christ!” My vehicle dangerously swerved, narrowly missing the car in the oncoming lane. More than one car honked their horn. Hell, I might have laid on the horn too. God knew I had no idea what I’d done in the last fifteen seconds.
Yanking the wheel, I earned another honk as I jerked my SUV to the curb and threw it in park. Heart hammering, my blood thundered through my veins, making it difficult to hear my own thoughts, let alone process what Aurelia had just said.
“You damn near killed me.” Along with whoever was in the car I almost hit. “You have got to stop popping in when I’m driving.” I laid my forehead on the steering wheel while quickly turning down the music. I hadn’t even gotten up the courage to look at my latest passenger.
I was in the process of raising my head when Aurelia’s words hit home. My body stilled while my focus sharpened. “What do you mean Lydia’s not where she should be?” A second thought quickly followed. “Did Boone send you?”
When I finally got a good look at Aurelia, it was to find narrowed, glowing Caribbean blue eyes slanted my way. Fuzzy Britches was on Aurelia’s shoulder, tail wrapped around Aurelia’s arm and from what I could see, blissfully asleep.
