That wasmoney. In her name. In an amount she’d maybe known before but had never seen written out. This… surely this wasn’t a salary, or even a stipend for being stuck in Heck?
But she hadn’t read those initial papers, had she?
“Attie, I’ll be right back,” Aofe called, grabbing her crutches as she headed toward the workroom.
She’d left the sponsorship documents on the table, hoping that by seeing them there, she’d get the motivation to read them rather than have them mock her all the time. And though she swore in this moment that she’d read them fully—eventually—there was something in particular she was looking for.
It didn’t take her long to find the section, or the number. An initial starting amount for her introduction to Heck that still made her blink in shock, but then a consistent weekly stipend. Generous, considering there was a note that also clarified this was in addition to their salary determined by their sponsor, but still nowhere near what that bank note claimed was hers.
Aofe leaned back in the chair, pressing the heel of her palm into her temple. All of this was too much. Not the amount of money at her disposal—which was, incidentally, too much—but the implications of that sum.
Despite what Kizros had said, Perennial Bloom was not thriving. They weren’t exactly suffering, but while they maintained a level of comfort, eventually, costs would increase. Maintaining would no longer be enough for survival.
Yet, the sum in her account could have changed that. It could go toward upgrades to the shelving, replacement of glass in the greenhouse, new supplies and tools for the workroom. That step outside the front door could get fixed, and he’d have leftover funds to splurge on some nice things for himself. It was proof he was still capable of sponsoring her.
So why had Kizros put the money under her name? And where in the blazes had it come from?
She grunted, annoyed with herself for not only ignoring these sponsorship documents for so long, butfor not asking questions sooner. What was Kizros doing to get this kind of money?
Her mind first conjured illegal trading or black-market plants, but then she realized Kizros would never be able to pull something like that off with his twitching eye and tail. But there could have been other things, like selling his magic talent to the park service or an underground plantfighting ring.
Actually, now that she considered it, Tim would be excellent in something like that. Maybe she should look into that scene.
Aofe shook her head of the distraction. No, the Kizros she knew and loved would never be involved with anything less than proper business. Which still didn’t answer her question or quell the desire to dig into his ledger and personal finances.
Of course, she’d never do that. There would be a perfectly reasonable explanation as to why he’d been shifty since…
Since that morning he’d gone on errands.
Yes, she had noticed his inability to give her a straight answer, and the avoidance of his tasks. Did it have to do with the surprise, or was his antsy behavior a result of putting a massive deposit into her account? Could the two be related?
Aofe was just about to grab a new sheet of paper to start organizing her thoughts and questions when Attie’s muffled yip echoed into the back room.
“Attie?” she called.
No skittering claws came to greet her.
Aofe frowned, then stuck her arms through her crutches again before leaving the workroom. There was only the click of her crutches on the floor as she walked the hallway back to the shop.
“Attie?” There was no giant silver fox by the door, and a nervousness formed in her belly. Aofe moved closer, trying to see to the end of the window where Attie might be so focused she was ignoring Aofe. Sometimes those mail drayks flying by caught her attention, or some demon’s pet who looked small enough for a snack. More often, a little bug found its way in through the gap in the back door and Attie would chase it into the dark backs of the aisles.
But there was no Attie in either spot, and that’s when Aofe turned and noticed the missing bell on the door.
“I didn’t think he’d be so foolish.”
Aofe jerked toward the voice as Tholvich stepped out of the aisle, blocking her from the exit. He examined the bell in his hand, the metal that had kept it aloft bent in his grip.
“What Ididexpect, though,” he continued, tossing the bell up and catching it, “was for his human to not think twice about locking the door behind him.”
Fuck.
Aofe weighed her options. The door to the garden was her closest escape, but it’s not like she could get far, if she even made it to the door. Tholvich was massive, and she was slow at best on her crutches. Not to mention the aisles she would have to weave, only for her to rush into a glass building with even more precious plantsthan in here.
As Tholvich took a step closer, she took one back. “Where’s Attie?”
The blue demon shrugged. “Out back.”
Cold gripped her veins, but Tholvich rolled his eyes. “I didn’tkillthe atteapir. Just leashed it outside so that weaponized tail wouldn’t get in my way.”
