“I can see that. Listen, grab any of my clothes you think will fit you. There should be a duffel bag in the closet. Anything you might need, take it. We need to leave in ten minutes. Okay?”
“Got it,” I said, finally recovering enough to do what needed to be done.
There wasn’t much in Declan’s dresser or closet that would fit me. The guy was as broad as a linebacker. I settled for a few T-shirts that looked like they’d shrunk a bit over time, some socks, and a few pairs of athletic shorts with drawstrings I could cinch. Unfortunately, his giant size twelve shoes didn’t come close to fitting me, so I’d have to wear my wet, muddy shoes. Once we got somewhere safe, I could try a spell to dry them.
Declan stuffed some things into a backpack, then slung it over his shoulder. “Ready?”
“Do you have any idea where we can go?” I said, pulling the zipper shut on the duffel bag.
“I have one other option. It’s not quite as secure as the other apartment, but it may be more hidden. It’s a small townhouse out in a human neighborhood.” His face twisted into a wince. “Uh, ittechnicallydoesn’t even belong to me. It was where a feral bear shifter lived. I helped the cops track him down after he went mad and started attacking ladies out in one of the parks. The guy got killed in the standoff with a witch police detective I’d been working with. Turns out, the guy had purchased the townhouse in cash and prepaid the property taxes for like a decade. No friends, no family, no one to claim it. I haven’t told anyone about it. I check on it every couple weeks. There is quite literallyno wayanyone could know we’re there.”
“Isn’t your car still at the park, though? How are we gonna get there? Walk? Another taxi?”
He gave me a knowing grin. “It is, but I learned alongtime ago to always have backup plans. I’ve got an old beater SUV as my spare. I keep it parked around behind the house.”
I blinked in surprise. What kind of life did this guy live? Spare cars, safe houses, enchanted guns? He was like a secret agent from a human movie. I supposed it made sense. In his line of work, things were a bit more dangerous than atypicalprivate detective. The people he investigated were able to do worse things than some random human who was mad about having pictures taken of him while out with his mistress.
“Well, that’s pretty cool,” I said, then froze as I remembered something.
“What’s wrong?” Declan asked with a frown.
“Hang on,” I said, tossing him my bag and turning on a heel.
“Where are you going?” Declan called.
I returned a few seconds later, grunting as I carried his fiddle leaf fig tree from the kitchen. The plant and ceramic pot weighed about thirty pounds total, but the planter had built-in handholds that made it a little easier.
“Got it,” I said.
Declan frowned, his brows drawing together as he shook his head. “Why…why are you bringing that?”
I gave him a helpless shrug. “I didn’t want it to die. If we’re gone for days, it’ll need water and stuff, and it’s important to you. I saw it when you first showed me. I don’t want to be the reason something special in your life gets fucked over.”
Declan’s eyes softened, and what I could only call happy surprise washed across his features.
He nodded slowly. I could tell he wanted to argue, but then he stepped forward and took the plant from me. “Thanks,” he muttered.
Calling the SUV abeaterwas actually being kind. The thing had more rust on it than it did paint. He had to be joking.
“Am I gonna get tetanus riding in this thing?” I said as he opened the trunk and put the plant inside.
“Hope your shots are up to date.”
I gave him a sidelong glance. “Was that a dog joke?”
He winked at me as he closed the back door. “You are a canine.”
“Asshole,” I said, giving him a playful shove.
He smiled at me, and we stood there on the curb, looking at each other. Some strange, electric connection passed between us. There was no way he didn’t feel it too. A crazy part of my mind screamed at me to lunge forward and kiss him, but at the last possible second, I came to my senses.
“Uh, I guess we should go,” I said, tearing my eyes from his.
“Yeah,” he said slowly. “Yeah, I guess so.”
The drive to the new safe house was less interesting than the last one. The townhouse was smack in the middle of a basic human suburb. Had it not been night, I imagined men would be outside, mowing the lawn, and kids would be riding their bikes in the street. Much different from seeing wraiths and ghosts hovering in the streets and alleys of Tombstone Station.
Pulling into the garage, Declan closed the door and exited the car.
