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Fortunately, there did not appear to be any bees, wasps, hornets, or other creepy-crawlies that might try to kill me. Unwilling to damage the deceased butterflies, I went about my bounty collecting work making use of the boxes Erik had used to bring over his clothes and his general possessions. Unwilling to be caught flatfooted, I stashed my derringer in its bra holster, although I left the other weapons in the safe.
Then, bug by bug, I gathered my bounty, doing my best to preserve their wings. Garnet followed me, mewing and pointing at every bug she wanted to claim as her bounty until I gathered it and put it in the box I promised belonged to her.
One particularly large luna moth amazed me, and I directed my kitten to it, telling her I’d put it in her box. When I picked it up, I discovered the moth had come with part of a branch and leaves, and hundreds upon hundreds of tiny eggs dotted the leaves. The moth still clung to the branch, and I squeaked when it moved and fluttered its wings.
Of course. I should have known I’d somehow find a live one. Hoping the moth wouldn’t damage the rest of Garnet’s haul, I put it, branch, leaves, and all, into her box. Closing mine, I set Garnet’s on top, and stacked them together before rising to my feet. “Well, I guess we’ll go see Cedrick first, and we’ll come back and gather more soon.”
Garnet squeaked, shifted to her wisp form, and flew up to my shoulder before shifting back, snuggling against my neck.
I spent the entire walk admiring the fluttering wings overhead. Many of the butterflies clung to buildings, infusing the Gray Ward with a riot of color. By the time I made it to the bounty pickup point, I’d collected more than a few hitchhikers. Even Garnet dealt with a few butterflies and moths, and she regarded her passengers with wide eyes.
Cedrick opened the door at me and laughed. “You just won’t stop, will you?”
“Never. If there is a rain, I’m going to be hunting free money. The luna moth is still alive, and I think the rain yanked a bunch of her eggs along for the ride.”
“Eggs?” he blurted.
“There are a bunch of dots on the leaves she’s on. Those are eggs, aren’t they?”
“I mean, that is usually what the eggs look like, but you found the leaves with eggs with the moth?”
“Yes. I don’t think she’s doing well.”
“She’s dying. That’s how luna moths are. They hatch, they breed, and then they die. They don’t have stomachs or mouths. Before you freak out, that’s just nature’s intent for luna moths. This is how it works. They’re not like us. They can’t feel hunger. They just run out of energy and go to sleep.”
Huh. I stared at the moth in Garnet’s box. “Honestly, that makes me feel a little better about it.”
Cedrick claimed the boxes from me, setting them on the reception desk. “And which one of you lovely ladies has the luna moth?”
“She’s part of Garnet’s haul.”
“My father is going to regret the bounty rules with this, I’m sure.”
“I’m going to regret what?” the titanium dragon asked, sticking his head out of the back room. “I mean, my wallet always regrets when Kinsley comes in. She doesn’t play with her collections.”
“The luna moth is a summons, and it looks like she was summoned with the branch she laid her eggs on.” Cedrick lifted the moth and her branch, peeking under the leaves. “Yep. That’s a lot of eggs. I am not counting these eggs, Dad.”
“Damn it. Fine. I’ll get a count on the eggs.” Cedrick’s father came over, took the moth and the branch, and headed off. “And yes, Garnet gets paid for the eggs; we’ll try to hatch them in the menagerie. Cedrick, call around and see if there are any batches of new eggs for luna moths elsewhere. We may as well try to find a male or two for when these hatch.”
I grinned, as every egg being counted as a bounty would boost Garnet’s earnings nicely. “Lucky you, Garnet!”
My kitten squeaked and nuzzled my cheek.
“Now to see if I can get your hitchhikers off. You’re absolutely covered, Kinsley. Your back looks like you’re a writhing mass. Here, I’ll take a picture.” He did so, laughing the entire time. “Just be glad we planned this rain. The second option would not have ended well for anyone.”
“What was going to be targeted?”
“Spiders.”
“Please let the authorities know that should any rain consist of spiders while I am in this city, there will be no need to guess why the entirety of Dragon Heights burns. Only fire will do when faced with that many spiders.”
In the back room, Cedrick’s father laughed. “I’ll let them know that if we value our lives and homes, we will not summon spiders. Anything else we can’t summon?”
“Bees, hornets, and wasps come to mind.”
“Give her what she wants, Dad.”
The titanium dragon snickered. “I think we can manage that much, Kinsley. But you might have to deal with rains of questionable composition in the future. There are rules on what we can summon and when or the magic doesn’t work quite right.” The titanium dragon emerged from the back and stared down his nose at me. “Just bill me for therapy after you’re done collecting your bounty.”