Storykiller (34 page)

“Okay, tell me what to do.”

Half an hour later, Tal prepared to leave and Tessa tailed her into the living room. She noticed that Robin made a point of not saying goodbye. “Tal?” Tessa called, walking over to her.

“Scion,” she said.

“I just wanted to thank you.”

“Sure,” Tal nodded, stuffing her hands into her jacket pockets. She closed her eyes and chanted the now familiar words and disappeared in a snap of blue light and
energy.

“So friendly,” Tessa muttered, and then looked back at Brand standing in the doorway.
“Did you get it?”

Brand looked up from a small notebook he had in his hand. “I think so.”

“Good,” Tessa said, nodding and heading back into the kitchen. She looked around at the group, realizing just now that
Fenris had disappeared, again. “Does anyone know how to reach Fenris?”

Everyone looked at her blankly.

“Why?” Robin asked, doing a half decent job of concealing his rage at the mention of the name.

“Because I think it’s time I finally agreed to find The Advocate. And he seems to think he knows how to do that.”

In the morning, Tessa woke to find Robin gone from her room. She slid on beat-up bunny rabbit slippers and walked to the end of the hall to peek in on Brand and Micah, asleep on her father’s bed. Micah was curled into a ball in one corner of the bed while Brand was splayed across two thirds of it, snoring softly. The Shiki, still a sweet, striped grey cat with a few bandages, slept inside a two-foot diameter ring of salt on the floor. Tessa shook her head at the incredible weirdness of her life.

Downstairs, Tessa looked out the broken dining room window to the backyard and saw Robin shooting arrows into the tree. He seemed decidedly un-calm. She wished he could understand the depth of her feelings for him, but she supposed that was impossible since she was just beginning to understand them herself.

Brand entered the kitchen and poured cereal into a bowl. He yawned and waved a hello at her and then held up the box, silently asking if she wanted to partake. Tessa nodded, and he poured another. They ate for a minute before speaking at all.

“Where’s Micah?” Tessa asked between spoonfuls.

“Still sleeping,” Brand said, looking up from the kiddie
puzzles on the back of the box.

“And the Shiki?”
Tessa asked, looking at him.

“Sleeping in its
circle of salt
,” Brand said, looking back at Tessa.

“You know anything about that thing?” Tessa asked.

“No,” he said, but she could tell from his tone he’d been thinking the same thing.

“Can you find out?”

“Yes,” he said, and she knew they were on the same unpopular page. A moment later, Micah walked in the room. Tessa and Brand looked up, their mouths simultaneously dropping open.

“What—” Tessa started

“—Is that?” Brand finished.

“It’s Jeff,” Micah said, looking at the Shiki and reaching for the box of cereal and a bowl.

“Jeff?” Tessa and Brand repeated, staring dumbfounded at what appeared to be a green dragon about two feet long flying about the kitchen, occasionally yawning.

“Yes, the Shiki. He wants to be called Jeff,” Micah said, pouring milk in her bowl as the Shiki (Jeff, apparently) tittered lightly and landed on the kitchen island. Tessa couldn’t take her eyes off of it.

“Ooookay. Why—” she started.

“—Is it a dragon?” Brand finished, and Tessa nodded in agreement.

“He changes shape based on my mood,” Micah said, shrugging as if this was completely normal information to be sharing.

“And you’re feeling—”

“—Dragon-y?” Brand finished for Tessa a third time.

“I guess so,” Micah said, taking a bite of cereal.

“Mike,” Tessa said, trying to look at her friend and not the dragon on her kitchen counter. “This thing, it’s not a pet, it’s dangerous. You saw what it did to, well,
us
.”

“I know,” Micah said, looking at the Shiki.

“So…” Tessa said, trailing off uncomfortably.

“I’m not killing him,” Micah said.

“Who said kill?” Brand asked, unable to look away from the thing.

“I know what you were thinking,” Micah said, casting her eyes clearly at Tessa.

“Okay, okay, not kill. What about release?”

“I can’t,” Micah said, shaking her head. “You said it yourself, he’s dangerous. At least this way, he’s under my control.”

“And you’re sure you have it, er,
him
under control?” Tessa asked, unsure.

“Yes,” Micah said, her tone flat and certain. “Jeff and I have an understanding. Don’t we, Jeff?” She looked at the Shiki. The dragon tittered again as if agreeing. There was a long pause, during which Tessa and Brand exchanged a glance while Micah ate cereal. Brand shrugged helplessly at Tessa.

“Okay,” Tessa said. “For now.
But Brand is going to look into this further. This is not a closed topic.”

“Fine,” Micah said and picked up her cereal bowl. “C’mon Jeff,” she said, heading into the living room. Jeff lifted up and flew after her, landing on her shoulder as she disappeared around the corner.

Fenris walked in the front door, skipping the doorbell, and Tessa rolled her eyes. He must have her house bugged, how else did he always know exactly when to show up? She would have Brand look into it later.
“Are you ever going to get the hang of the whole knocking thing?”

Fenris threw a languid smile in her direction. “No.”

Tessa threw up her hands and walked into the backyard. Fenris cast his eyes at the dragon and then at Micah.

Micah shrugged casually. “He’s called Jeff,” she said.

Fenris nodded appreciatively. “Nice.” He sat down on a couch and they watched cartoons, chuckling occasionally. Brand shook his head at the surreal sight and returned to his cereal in the kitchen mumbling to himself.

“The Big Bad Wolf is watching cartoons with my best friend and her pet dragon. Everything is fine, everything is fine, I’m not freaking out,
I’m not
.”

Tessa stood on the porch stairs and waited for Robin to finish his shot.

“What?” he asked as he released the arrow.

“Fenris is here,” she said. “Will you come in?”

Robin hung his head and then put the bow and quiver down on the picnic table nearby.

“Are you mad at me?” Tessa asked as he walked to her. After realizing the intensity of her feelings for him, suddenly the idea of him being mad at her was devastating. And that made her feel a little uncomfortable. Standing on the step to the house, she was a bit taller and he looked up at her as she touched his face. “Please don’t be mad at me,” she whispered before he could answer.

“I’m not mad at you,” he said. “I’m worried. They’re entirely different.”

Tessa nodded and bent her head down and kissed him. “Then don’t worry either,” she said, and led him into the house by the hand. In the living room,
Tessa felt Robin tense just at the sight of Fenris. But he then noticed the dragon and balked.

“Jeff,” Micah said, seeing his expression.

“The Shiki,” Tessa added, as way of explanation.

“So, how does this work?” Tessa asked Fenris, still holding Robin’s hand

“There’s someone I can take you to. She can help you find The Advocate,” he said.

“Where?” Tessa asked.

“We can drive partway and then it’s
about half a day’s hike. We’ll have to camp overnight, as we can only call on her at dawn and sunset,” he said. Robin shook his head, clearly hating the plan. Tessa squeezed Robin’s hand.

“Robin comes,” she said, and before Fenris could protest, she added, “It’s non-negotiable.”

Fenris sighed. “Fine.” He stood up. “Gather your supplies, we should leave within the hour. I’ll be back.” Tessa watched him go.

“I hate that fucking guy,” Robin grumbled.

Tessa squeezed his hand again. “I know.” Micah and Brand looked at Tessa. “You guys are staying. And Snow is the babysitter. I don’t even want to hear about it.” They both looked down, but after yesterday’s horror show they seemed less inclined to complain. Tessa looked at Robin. “There’s some camping equipment in the basement. Will you start putting together what we need? I’m going to call Snow and get her over here.” Robin nodded and left the room.

Forty minutes later, everything was ready and Snow was in the living room, looking like a grouchy supermodel, as per usual.

“You do know I’m not
actually
Heckle and Jeckle’s babysitter, right, Scion?”

Micah and Brand looked at one another. “Heckle and Jeckle?” the asked, confused. And then Brand lit up.

“We’ve been given minion names!” he said, clapping excitedly.

“Upgrade!” Micah shouted, her fist vigorously pumping the air. Then they stopped abruptly and cut mean sarcastic looks at Snow, who looked away, bored.

“Snow,” Tessa began, “I greatly appreciate your help. That said, you owe them both for saving your life the other night. You will return that favor by taking them to your home. They will stay with you tonight, you will drive them to school like a good babysitter and pick them up at exactly 2:50 p.m. tomorrow. They will stay with you until I return, and if they have so much as a scratch on them when I pick them up, I will take it out of you in pounds of flesh.” Snow crossed her arms and sat down huffily without a word. Tessa turned to Brand and Micah. “For your parts, you will behave like angels, get in zero mischief, and do nothing that puts you in any kind of insane Story jeopardy. Grey has agreed to watch out for you during classes tomorrow and to go with you to Snow’s after school.”

“We need
two
babysitters?” Brand said incredulous.

“Yes,” Tessa said without missing a beat, and then added, “We also need as many allies as humanly possible.” Brand shrugged in acceptance, and Micah looked at Jeff as he crawled into her lap, shifting effortlessly from a dragon into a cat. “When I get back, we’re all at a table and puzzling this out. The more research you can do between now and then, the better.” Someone knocked on the door and, for a moment, Tessa marveled that Fenris had actually knocked. She opened it without looking and then turned to see Detectives Wade and Ripley on her porch. Again.

Wade looked at the pile of camping equipment on the floor of the foyer, “Going somewhere, Miss Battle?”

“You guys ever take a day off?” she asked.

“No,” Wade said, stepping inside without being invited. Ripley followed her, looking slightly apologetic about it. “Seriously, Miss Battle,” Wade said, kicking at the tent on the floor. “I thought I asked you not to leave the county.”

“I’m not,” Tessa said and then looked at the two of them pointedly. “Is there something I can do for you two?”

“Where’s your father?” Wade asked.

“San Francisco again. On business,” Tessa said, irritated.

“What’s the phone number?” Ripley asked. Tessa walked into the kitchen and returned with a business card. She deliberately handed it to Ripley while staring down Wade.

“And now you know as much as I do,” Tessa said.

“Not close to your father, Miss Battle?” Wade asked.

“Yes, years of boarding schools have made us the best of friends. And if that’s all, please leave my house.”

The two detectives turned and walked to the door. Ripley was halfway down the walk when Wade turned back around. “I’ll be coming for you this week, Miss Battle,” she said.

“If you bother me again, it better be to charge me with something,” Tessa said.

Wade smiled thinly. “Don’t worry, it will be.”

Tessa shut the door on Wade and leaned up against it. She watched her friends staring back at her, silent and anxious. Jeff meowed. “I cannot catch a goddamn break,” Tessa said, and the room nodded in agreement, even a begrudging Snow.

The long drive and the hike to the campsite had been absurdly uncomfortable. The tension so thick you could cut it with a giant freaking magical axe. Half an hour into the drive, Tessa had given up on trying to lighten the mood and settled into a somber pout that put both Fenris and Robin
to shame.