KDBookOnline
Share Us
“I appreciate this,” Cecilia replied, and she headed down the steps. “Don’t get attached to that lemur, okay? They’re nasty blights when the dragons aren’t working their magic.”
“But they’re adorable nasty blights, so I’ll enjoy it while it lasts.”
The brothel matron laughed, waved a hand, and headed for her home.
I stayed on the steps until she made it inside without incident.
With the lemur in tow, I entered my home and wondered what I, a washed-out cop with no prospects, might be able to do. Even if I tracked the attacker down, what could I do about it?
How long would I last before my past caught up with me and chased me away again? I would find out, and I worried it would happen sooner than later.
FOUR
“This one isn’t doing so well.”
Sunday, April 19, 2167
The Gray Ward
Dragon Heights, Wyoming
An older and taller version of Cedrick manned the bounty office, and he regarded me through narrowed eyes. Like most dragons, the titanium carried himself with confidence. If I believed his expression, he believed me to be a worm, albeit an interesting one he had no interest in dispatching.
The lemur, which remained docile thanks to draconic magic, slept in my cupped hands, and I held it out. “This one isn’t doing so well.”
The dragon’s expression changed to something a little more neutral, and he came to investigate the lemur. “I see you were wise to wear gloves. These have a rather toxic bite.”
“It hasn’t tried to bite me, but it’s very sluggish, and I couldn’t find anything it would eat. I was able to give it water, but that was it.”
Going to the counter, the dragon retrieved a pair of gloves, slid them on, and took the lemur from me. “You must be Kinsley. Cedrick has told us much about you, the bounty huntress with a heart of gold and a weak spot for the animals.”
I nodded. “I know I can’t keep any of the lemurs, but they’re wretchedly cute. Will it be all right?”
“This one is a little girl, and she’ll be fine once in a better environment for her. She’s a little weak, but she isn’t obviously injured. She’s likely just hungry and scared. Those are curable enough problems. Let me go put her in the back, and I will bring your payment. How long have you had her?”
“I picked her up last night fairly late, and I came as soon as I could.”
“Good, then she did not get cold during the night. It’s a bit nippy out there for this time of year.”
I hadn’t noticed, but as soon as I’d figured out how to keep the lemur contained, I’d taken the quickest shower of my life before flopping into bed.
With free rent on the horizon and cash in hand, I would indulge and buy a new bed. I’d gotten mine at a thrift store, likely something a teen or child had outgrown.
I’d even indulge in a queen sized if the money worked out.
Ten minutes later, the dragon handed me a fairly thick envelope. “I took the liberty of auditing your bounties after Cedrick informed me you’d brought in a good number of live, healthy lemurs. We do adjust and audit if we receive rare acquisitions, but you need to ask if there was an audit done.”
Huh. I hadn’t known that—and I had checked the fine print. “That’s not what the contract says.”
The dragon flashed me a rather toothy grin. “We try to be fair, and the contract does say what we should be paying out. I recommend you request for your account to be audited mid-month. We try to be finished by the end of the first week, but delays sometimes happen. We also do not charge back if we were the one to make a mistake.”
“I’ll do that, thank you.”
“Tell me, Miss Kinsley. Do you plan on petitioning?”
I stared at him with wide eyes. “Me? No, not particularly. I couldn’t afford that bill anyway. Why do you ask?”
“You are liked, especially among the titanium dragons. Our magic sings when you bring us our bounties. We can tell, you know.” The dragon smirked. “Cedrick told me what you would do to us if we were to summon a rain of kittens, puppies, or ponies.”