“Absolutely,” Teddy said. “You trust me, right?”
Echo nodded, a large sigh of relief escaping their chest. They looked beat. “I’m sorry.”
“For what?” Teddy said. “We all have our quirks. We’re cursebreakers. It comes with the territory. Heir’s is being a massive douchebag. He can’t help it and we won’t judge him for it, right?”
Teddy winked and Echo let out a small laugh.
“Saint turned your ocean sounds on upstairs if you want to go take a breather. I could bring you some tea?”
“The herbal one?” Echo asked. “My throat has been feeling tickly.”
“I’ll put some extra honey in there.”
Echo smiled and slipped away, and Teddy waited until they were gone before slumping against the countertop, rubbing his face with both hands.
His phone pinged in his pocket and the dread he had almost forgotten rushed back to the surface. He pulled the phone out and before he even looked he knew who it was. Asking where he was, wanting to know where he would be going next. Every move noted. Every step mapped out.
He typed out a bland response that left no room for further conversation. He knew it would come back to bite him in the ass, but he didn’t have the will to smooth things over.
Shaking his head, he got to work making Echo their tea and dropping it off to the snuggle pile in their room before softly closing the door.
He made a pit stop at his own room to grab his full-sized journal and pen before entering Saint’s, where he found him at his desk, eye to a microscope.
More than animals, exactly, Saint was fascinated by microorganisms and bugs. His room was an entomologist’s wet dream. Tanks filled with all manner of creepy crawlies lined every wall and surface, the air humid and heavy with the scent of damp earth.
It was the only thing about Saint that Teddy would have said was more suited to Eerie. Eerie was terrified of bugs, and Teddy suspected Saint’s love may have started there, with the terrorizing of his brother.
Teddy settled onto Saint’s bed as he worked, writing out his thoughts about the case as he often did. The only difference between this and what would ultimately end up on his official reports was that these were addressed to someone much more personal.
Little Bird,
I have good news! We had a break in the case today. Well, it might be a bit optimistic to call it a break, and I’m sure you’d scrunch your nose at me for even thinking it—ever the pessimist—but it’s more than we’ve found in weeks.
I miss that scrunch so much. I miss everything about you, to be fair. But, sick as it makes me, I’ve learned to live with it. That gaping hole inside me I’m trying to fill by throwing myself into fixing everything and everyone else.
Anyway, the case we’ve been tracking for ages now has been so strange. I already told you about Saint inviting me to tag along to one of his weirder cases, just to take my mind off things. Remember that letter? About the cursed animals and the drugs made from their venom?
Well, it turns out we finally found a clue about one user, so we’re thinking of tracking them down to see what we can learn. Maybe tail them for a bit? I’m not sure. I’m with Saint now trying to brainstorm what we’re gonna do next…
“Done?” Saint asked, and Teddy glanced at the page before closing his journal.
“For now, I can be,” he said, knowing he’d never truly be done with pouring his soul out to his little bird. “Anything?”
“Just more of the snake venom we found before. Worthingham is our best bet now.”
Teddy slid off the bed and onto the floor, since every other surface was covered in terrariums and heating lamps. “Let’s find him, then.”
“Easy enough,” Saint said, turning his phone toward Teddy and a very detailed, very open social media profile scrolled past his eyes.
“Wow, he really does share everything,” Teddy said.
“Zero self-preservation, that one. So I’m thinking…club night.”
“Excuse me?” Teddy balked.
“He’s hitting different clubs each night and has a different pretty boy in his lap every time. I’m willing to bet someone pretty would have an easy time getting a few drinks into and a few answers out of him.”
“I don’t want civilians in the way. What if he goes batshit again like at the country club?” Teddy said.
