Effie’s frown tilted up into a cheeky grin. “I was wondering how long it was going to take you to ask me that. I’m not as old as the rest of the guys, but I just celebrated my sixty-seventh birthday last month.”
“Holy shit,” I blurted before immediately clapping a hand over my mouth in embarrassment. “Sorry.”
Effie’s laughter filled the air as she leaned back in her desk chair. “Don’t be. Age is weird for supes, so I’m still relatively young for what I am. Ambrose is only a hundred and fifty, which is basically an infant in elf years. That’s why he’s such a douche.”
A surprised giggle slipped out of my mouth at that. “He doesn’t like humans very much does he?”
Effie shook her head. “Nah, he’s got his hang ups about humans like a lot of monsters do. It’s only been just over fifty years since the Accords, which is just a drop for most of them.”
I’d never thought about it like that before. I’d learned about the Accords in school and it seemed like such a long time since they’d been passed because my mom hadn’t even been born yet. I knew that prior to the Accords being written and ratified by the United Nations, there had been almost seventy years of the Age of Knowing where humans knew about monsters. That didn’t mean that the humans accepted them right away though.
For me, supernatural creatures had always been a part of society, for better or for worse. But for Cash and the rest, they’d lived a large chunk of their lives in the shadows.
It was nearly impossible to wrap my head around.
“Am I breaking your brain too much?” Effie asked, putting a cool hand over mine.
“No, it’s just a lot to take in, I never had to really think about it in New Ham—” I stopped myself before I could finish my sentence, my chest going cold.
I’d been doing so well at keeping any information that could be used to trace me back to Mike to myself. But Effie had a way of making a person feel completely comfortable.
Effie looked like she wanted to say something, but I was already standing. “Do you need me for anything else tonight?”
“No, but are you okay?” Effie questioned with a frown.
“Totally fine.” I plastered a fake smile onto my face. “Just tired.”
Effie stood, her vines snaking out to smooth the green pleats of her dress as she led the way to the door.
I stepped out onto the wooden planks of the dock and turned to find Effie watching me with a strange expression.
“I know we’ve just met, but you can trust me, Daphne,” Effie said, her lips twisting into a frown.
I didn’t know how to respond to that. Trust was not something I’d felt in a long time. It took Wendy ages for me to trust her enough to help me, and we’d been friends long before Mike came into my life.
But Effie didn’t know any of that. To her, I was just Daphne, the shy receptionist with hot pink hair. She didn’t know about Mina, the woman who let her husband knock her around and bully her for far longer than she should have.
“...I’ll keep that in mind, thanks,” I finally answered, my words coming out tinged with disbelief.
Effie’s shoulders sank with a sigh as she took in my suddenly defensive posture. “See you tomorrow?”
I nodded and waved as she shut and locked the shop door.
The Wharf was still bustling with nightlife as people headed to a late dinner or to one of the bars or pubs that were sprinkled in between the souvenir shops.
My entire body felt stiff and tense after a long day of being out of my comfort zone. All I needed to end the day was a nice hot shower and to call Wendy and reassure her that I hadn’t been gobbled up on my first day working at a monster tattoo parlor.
Seven
Linda Ronstadt’sBlue Bayouwailed from the speakers of Dallan’s favorite bar on the Wharf. The Dive was literally just that. A greasy, grimy dive bar that was more for the workers on the Wharf rather than any tourists.
Dallan liked to drag the rest of us here any chance he got to play pool, throw darts or just generally shoot the shit.
Most days I didn’t mind it. They served ice cold beer and it was the perfect way to wind down after a long day of tattooing.
But tonight a restless feeling crawled up my back, making me feel antsy.
“You all right?” Dallan asked from across the table. He was nursing a giant stein of beer, the foam clinging to one of his tentacles as he took a massive swig.
