“We investigate,” Rem said, crouching so he could get a better look at the ruins of my car. “You’ll want to get a hotel close by, as I expect we’ll have a lot of questions for you. This sort of aggression doesn’t just magically go away.”
“No, it doesn’t,” Wayne agreed. “It’s probable that any hotel we pick will be damaged as a result of this.”
“Yes, we will need to notify the hotel of the situation and get their consent to stay in their building. We’ll also leave a plainclothes officer on duty, although that may not prevent violence. It’ll simplify them submitting their report to police, however.”
Shaking his head, Wayne joined me on the sidewalk and checked his phone before wrinkling his nose and dialing a number. “Wayne Barnes. I need to get an exemption, as I’m a male hybrid lycanthrope, and some assholes have been threatening a woman I’m keeping company with. I have a police officer present and willing to confirm the situation.”
“I could have called for you,” Rem replied.
Without bothering to mute the phone or even pull it away from his ear, Wayne replied, “It’s faster if I call, I’d rather the CDC know I’m not in the mood for bureaucratic nonsense, and if I’m denied an exemption, I have an already mangled truck here I can take my temper out on. If I get my exemption, I won’t have to take my temper out on this defenseless truck.”
“I really did mangle it, didn’t I?” I doubted even the world’s best mechanic could put the damned thing back together again. “If he hadn’t squished my car with his truck, I wouldn’t have had to mangle his truck. That seems fair.”
“That’s right, Joyce. If he hadn’t crushed your car, you wouldn’t have had to mangle his truck. You did an excellent job with the mangling, too. Ah, yes. Sorry about that. I was praising the lady for her excessive use of force on a truck.”
“That makes me sound like I’m a violent person,” I complained.
“You were provoked,” he replied. “Sorry. Yes, I’d like an exemption only in situations where my companion is threatened. What do you mean I have to give you a duration? If someone threatens her, I’m going to retaliate. I would prefer to retaliate legally, but if you want the truth, I’ll do it even if you don’t grant me the exemption. It’d be a lot more pleasant for all of us if I’m granted the exemption. This duration nonsense is ridiculous. Fine. Set it for a year, and then I’ll complain when I have to get it renewed. What do you mean a year is too long? No, not every single lycanthrope woman on this planet seduces her mate within thirty days. If you give me a year, she might not reject me for rushing her. Yes, I’m going to insist on a year, and you may as well renew it. Should we change status, I’ll call you. If I thought she would bite within thirty days, I wouldn’t have asked for a year. Also, you might want to give an exemption to Joyce Gray, too. She does not seem to be in the mood to allow anyone to trespass on what she perceives to be her territory. I seem to have become part of her territory in the past day. I would really appreciate if the CDC did not annoy her into changing her mind. I’m really going to need that year to convince her I’m worth keeping around. She absolutely does not like other lycanthropes.” Wayne scowled, listening to the person on the other end of the line. “Yes. Exactly. For those reasons. I think a year is reasonable, considering the unfortunate challenges I’m faced with.”
My virus found him amusing, as did I. I could work with a year, especially when I’d been hired to keep him busy for a few days. I’d have to keep my virus contained, but as long as she could somewhat keep him clothed, I could work with her needs and my distrust of other lycanthropes.
“Okay. Good. Thank you.” Wayne hung up. “Exemptions are acquired. You can call the CDC for the certification numbers.”
I bet the person had pulled up my record, saw I’d claimed a bounty for Wayne, and opted to play along to make sure my job wasn’t botched. When the CDC dished out the controlled substances for a bounty, they meant business.
A hit of pixie dust would’ve done me a lot of good, and I retrieved my purse from the store to make sure the precious vials had survived intact. They had. I slung it over my shoulder and gave it a loving pat.
I’d never been in a situation where I needed violence while high on pixie dust. Would I try to cuddle the assholes into submission? Would I become even more violent if my cuddle session with my preferred target was interrupted?
Fuck it. I wanted to find out.
“You’re scheming something,” Wayne announced.
“Why do you think I’m scheming something?”
“You’re smiling, and honestly, I’ve never been so scared in my life.”
Huh. My smile scared him? I allowed myself my widest canine grin. “Good.”
“You have a wicked side, Joyce, and I like it.”
Of course he did. He was a single male lycanthrope. Nothing about single male lycanthropes counted as sane. I’d just have to do my best to avoid falling prey to his clutches and my virus’s insistence we should keep him.
“Just find us a hotel, Wayne. One that won’t protest too loudly if I have to throw an idiot through a window.”
Chapter Six
To my surprise,the cheap hotels in the area wanted nothing to do with a potential pack of lycanthropes busting up their buildings, but the area’s sole luxury hotel welcomed us with open arms. They did request the presence of a cop on the property; they also printed and signed a waiver stating they understood we might be bringing trouble to their door, and promised we wouldn’t be responsible for any damages.
Apparently, the hotel had no problem with idiots paying for their renovations, and they wanted to remodel one of their ground floor suites, which happened to boast a spa tub. While I had no idea what a spa tub was, Wayne did, and he practically skipped down the hall to our room.
“You’re way too excited about this, Barnes.”
“You will be excited about this once you see what it is.”
“It’s a bathtub.”
“No, Joyce. It’s not just a bathtub. It’s a very nice bathtub. If I’m particularly lucky, you’ll invite me to share it with you.”
