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“No, sorry, but about not staying in your apartment. Move in with me!”

Paige crinkled her brow at the offer. “In your nest?”

“Sure. I’ve got plenty of room. We’ll get an air mattress and lay it out. It’ll be the perfect solution until we find a cure. We can work on it anytime we choose, and if anything changes with your wound, I’ll be right there to assess it.”

Paige drew her chin back toward her chest and wiggled her eyebrows. “That’s really kind, Dewey, but what about Dickens?”

“What about him? Bring him, too. I wouldn’t mind having a cat around.”

Paige shoved her glasses higher on her nose. “Are you sure?”

“Positive. Just pack up some stuff, and we’ll stop by the SmartMart for an air mattress on the way back over to the library.”

A smile spread across Paige’s lips, and she nodded. “Okay. I’ll pack a bag.”

“Wait,” Dewey shouted.

Paige froze in a half squat as she rose from the couch. “What?”

“Let’s finish the popcorn and movie first. Then we’ll go.”

She offered the dragon an amused glance as she shook her head and pressed play. They finished the film despite Paige’s apprehension. Her leg bobbed up and down as the credits began to roll and, with a worried glance outside, she leapt from her seat.

“I’ll clean up. You pack a bag!” Dewey said as he flew from his seat.

Paige glanced around at the mess of empty candy wrappers, popcorn bucket, and wads of used napkins. “Sounds perfect. I think I got the better end of the deal.”

She flitted from the living room into her bedroom and flicked on a light. She hovered inside the doorway, biting her lower lip as she wrapped her arms around her midriff. Her nose wrinkled, and images of what occurred here mere hours earlier raced through her mind.

She shook her head and forced herself across the room to her closet. She dragged her suitcase from the back corner, flung it onto the bed, and filled it in minutes. With it zipped shut and rolled toward the door, she retrieved Dickens’s carrier and a duffel bag from the top shelf of the closet.

She snapped open the duffel and hurried into the living room, then she tossed in Dickens’s bowl and several cans of cat food. Dewey stuffed the trash into her trash can, his horns wiggling as he grimaced with effort to cram it all into the small black container.

“Almost ready. Wow!” she said as she scanned the living room. “You were quick!”

“Whew,” Dewey said, raking a scaly paw across his forehead. “You almost ready?”

“Yep. I just have to wrangle Dickens into the carrier.”

“Okay, Paige. I’ll hop into mine, and we’ll head out.”

Paige gave him a nod and a smile as she dumped the duffel on the top of her rolling suitcase and left it near the door.

She dashed into the bedroom and set the open carrier on the bed. On her hands and knees, she searched under the mattress for Dickens. Two glowing eyes squinted at her from near the top.

“Come on, Dicky. We’re going on a trip.”

Paige reached a hand under the bed and rubbed his back.

She snapped it back seconds later, a thin, red slice on it. “Ouch! Dickens, you little monster! Get out here!”

With clenched teeth, Paige stuck her hands under the bed again and dragged the cat from under it. Dickens clung to the area rug underneath, his claws raking through the rug’s thick pile as she tugged him backward.

He made a dash for the middle again as she adjusted her hands to lift him into the carrier.

“Oh no, you don’t,” she growled, clamping down on the tabby and lifting him from the ground.

After a struggle, she managed to shove him inside the carrier and zip it shut. She flicked away the bead of sweat from her brow as she heaved the carrier’s strap over her shoulder.