Page 6

Sunday, April 19, 2167

The Emerald Ward

Dragon Heights, Wyoming

The next timea dragon invited me to go shopping, I would do everything in my power to politely refuse their offer. While Wanda kept her word and smoothed the way for my purchases, she had opinions and let me know what she thought I should buy. The bed proved to be the only acquisition she left to my preference.

Everything needed to be better, which forced me to defend my choices, accept when she made good points on buying something cheap solely because it was cheap, and otherwise reevaluate my priorities.

Losing five thousand dollars for furniture pained me, but the dragon had gotten me good deals on just about everything. I was forced to admire her choice of desk; it would bring a great deal of joy down the road, large enough to store everything I might want during an investigation. I hadn’t meant to get a good computer chair, but Wanda promised my back would hate me if I tried to use a kitchen chair.

Thanks to her influence, the furniture store intended on delivering, assembling, and moving everything into their proper spots beginning in two hours.

The new tablet would make the lost time less of an issue, and I planned on reading every newspaper online I could find on everything going on in Dragon Heights while making a better plan.

When we finally escaped from the furniture store, I said, “I really appreciate your help. Where is the pet store? I need to get everything Garnet needs.”

“This way.” She gestured down the street. “If they don’t deliver, I’ll recruit one of the younglings to help ferry everything to your home. You will want several places for her to sleep where you spend the most time in your home. The desk should be large enough where she can have a bed near your feet, which will be cozy for her.”

“And litter boxes, as my apartment only has one bathroom.”

“A wise choice. You’ll want toys and things to occupy her when she is busy. I’ll help you. While Garnet is the only carbunclo in Dragon Heights at current, we are familiar with them and their care. They are prized even among dragons.”

“I guess the titanium dragons giving her to me is a big deal, then.”

Garnet still slept, which made me rather easy prey for the dragon, as I didn’t want to disturb her.

“That is putting it mildly. I will tell you a secret. Most carbunclo will eat kibble if they want something to eat but it’s not regular mealtime.” Wanda escorted me to the nearby pet store and grabbed a cart. “Let’s start with the scratching posts and trees.”

I appreciated her foresight, as those would take up the most space in my apartment and in the cart. To my horror, the store had two entire aisles dedicated to cat trees, wheels the carbunclo could run on, and things to encourage bad habits like diving down from her lofty perch onto my head.

At least I could put an end to the dragon’s tendency to force her opinion on me. I cuddled my kitten and woke her up with gentle nudges and scratches. “Garnet, we’re picking toys and nice things for you. Do you want to pick your new tree?”

The kitten yawned, purred, and peered around with wide eyes. Aware she would become a wisp at her whim rather than mine, I put her on the floor to let her explore. “Look around, and once you find the one you like most, come paw me and show me, okay?”

The carbunclo bounded off to investigate the scratching posts, trees, and wheels. She squeaked and bounced around while I laughed at her antics. To my amusement, she went for one of the wheels, pawed at it, and upon discovering it would move, she jumped on and began an elaborate game of chase with the toy out of reach.

After five minutes, I determined the wheel would be coming home with us. I swooped in, snagged the kitten, and cuddled with her. “You can take the wheel home, little baby. Pick a tree you think would be fun to play with.”

I placed her on the floor, turned her in the direction of trees, and set her loose. I quickly determined she lived for toys that dangled, and I realized I’d made a mistake asking a kitten to pick anything.

She wanted to play, play, play.

“I have failed as a kitten parent, but the results are too hilarious to be upset over it. Obviously, her tree needs to have places to dangle toys for her amusement and soft places for her to sleep when she exhausts herself.”

Wanda laughed and pointed at a sizable cat tree with four toys hanging off the platforms. “Put her on that one and see if she likes it. That’ll fit in your home?”

“I don’t have a lot in the living or bedroom, so I can fit the wheel in one and the tree in the other and still have space for my new furniture, but I’ll be seeding the floor with cat beds.” I shrugged. “It seems like a small price to pay.”

Waiting until the carbunclo panted from her play, I scooped her up and set her on the tree Wanda had pointed out. Within a minute, she’d curled up in one of the hammocks and settled in for a nap.

“I think that’ll do,” Wanda said, and she shook her head and laughed. “I’ll find an employee and call the younglings to help get this moved to your apartment.”

I waited for the dragon to leave before picking up my kitten and carrying her. She’d passed out so hard she didn’t stir when I moved her.

Wanda returned with the store employee, pointed out the wheel and the tree, and stated I’d be buying them before asking if they’d keep them at the register while we finished our shopping.

“Carbunclo are much like dragons, and they enjoy having hoards, which is why they are excellent companions for us and our kin. They understand us well. So, I recommend that you have many extra toys, adding new ones to her hoard at frequent intervals. When a toy ages, train her to deposit it into a basket with the understanding you will find a new but similar toy for her. She is wise. Have a second basket for her true treasures so no unfortunate mistakes are made. You will have to set limits, but buying baskets now will help with the inevitable whining when space becomes an issue. She will need a box for her more conventional treasures. A shoebox will be a good start for her. One for stones, one for jewelry, and so on. She will understand the jewelry and gems will have permanence while the toys will come and go.”

The gems and jewelry would bother me, but I would do my best for Garnet. “I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you.”

“She will care more about the effort you put in than the value of what you give her. Carbunclo are excellent at understanding intent. On that front, you will have no problems with her care. Is she your first pet of feline inclination?”

“She’s my first pet,” I admitted.

“Ah. This will bring you much joy, then. The toys are as much for her as they are for you to have fun with her.” Wanda dragged me across the store and went on a rampage through the cat toys, throwing a little of everything into the pair of carts. To my horror, she completely filled mine with beds and toys, and hers took care of the other necessities, including cases of wet kitten food, bags of kibble, bowls, water dishes, litter pans, and litter that would tide me over for a while.

Garnet slept through it all, and I managed to rein Wanda in using the requirement to return to my apartment in a timely fashion so everything could be received.

She coerced a few other dragons to help ferry everything to my home, thus freeing me to hurry back to the Gray Ward, wondering how I’d cope with so many invading my space.

* * *

Sunday, April 19, 2167

The Gray Ward

Dragon Heights, Wyoming

The benefitof not owning very much meant I had little to clean, and I had my apartment spotless within ten minutes of arriving home. I placed Garnet’s bottle of milk on the counter as I’d been instructed and put the rest of the leftovers away, making use of my favorite, fluffy towel to create a bed for Garnet on my table. I hoped she slept through the entire process of moving my new furniture in, as while I had her carrier, I disliked the idea of putting her in it.

I didn’t want her to feel like she was being punished. In reality, I would make use of the carrier as soon as my new furniture arrived.

After doing a third sweep of my home for cleanliness, I sat at the table and began investigating the new wonders of my tablet. I began with checking out the one city paper everyone could access without a subscription. I assumed the dragons paid the bill for the newspaper’s general operations.

As a result, I viewed it as biased in favor of the dragons but did a decent job of keeping residents appraised of news in the city.

As I wanted to deceive everyone around me, especially if someone was tracking my tablet’s activities, I began my reading with animal-centric reports. Every week, there were two set articles posted, one that contained speculation on the next rain and the reality of the rains. To my delight, some of the speculations entered the realm of the absurd, rarely aligning with reality.

Dragon Heights Newsclaimed they suspected a rain of mice when we’d gotten lemurs. The week we’d gotten the toads, they had guessed cats or rats.

Upon closer investigation, the forecasts were done in a parody style, mocking hurricane forecasts and following a set but amusing formula. The forecasts changed weekly, but as far as I could tell, all participants vied for who could write the most ridiculous entry in the growing collection.

The person to guess accurately first lost.

An hour and a half after making it home, someone knocked. I set the tablet down beside the sleeping Garnet and hurried over to answer.

Rather than one or two delivery people, as I expected, a herd of six people waited, including Wanda, who waved at me. “We meet again, Kinsley!”

I opened the door. “Thank you. Please, come in. I need to go contain the sleeping beast.”

My kitten hadn’t budged since I’d left my kitchen, and I gathered her into my arms. If she woke, I’d put her into her carrier so she wouldn’t bolt for freedom. I hurried back to the door. “Sorry about that. I don’t want to put her in the carrier unless it’s needed.”

“Once you show us what is being taken out, you can just relax. We’ll have everything moved in within an hour. A few items need to be assembled, but they’re used to that and it won’t take them long.”

Aware I owned little and would be turning my apartment from a barren landscape to something closer to a home, I guided Wanda and the herd of workers through the apartment to my bedroom, grimacing at the small size of my bed.

If they judged me, they did so quietly and careful to keep their expression from changing. With startling efficiency, they made off with the mattress and the box spring, returning in a second trip to remove the bolts from the bed’s frame and taking it out in pieces. While most handled the bed, a pair took over my living room, requiring me to show them where I wanted my new desk and cat tree to go.

The cat tree came in preassembled along with the rest of Garnet’s new empire. The wheel fit near my table, saving enough room in my bedroom I might be able to get a dresser or another cat tree for my new pet.

The desk came with an unexpected bookcase, which I believed Wanda had procured when I’d taken my eyes off her for more than two seconds. Rather than question it, I pretended I’d gotten more bookcases than sense or books to go on them. It took the workers thirty minutes to conquer the desk, but they assembled the set of bookcases and computer chair in record time. Within an hour and a half, everything was in its proper place.

The workers left, leaving me alone with Wanda and a young boy.

“Yours?” I asked, noticing the similarities in their faces.

“He’s my youngest, and he promised he’d do anything if only he could meet the kitten.”

I laughed, crouched down so I was at eye level with him, and smiled. “And what’s your name?”

“Jamie! I’m three years old,” he announced, and he held up three fingers. “I love kittens, but I’m not old enough yet to have one. Maybe next year if I’m really good.”

“Kittens are a huge responsibility.” I scratched behind Garnet’s ear and cooed at her to wake her up. “Garnet, Jamie wants to meet you.”

The carbunclo kitten yawned and blinked, and then she purred and wiggled in my hold. Translating that as interest in being worshipped by a dragon’s son, I showed Jamie how to hold and pet her. “You’ll have to work hard and show your mum you’re responsible enough to care for a kitten.”

“Is Garnet a boy kitten or a girl kitten?” Jamie held her with care and pet her, his eyes wide. “Her fur is soft but her paws are hard!”

“Garnet’s a baby girl. And she has hard paws because she’s a carbunclo. Most kittens have soft paws with tiny little toe beans.”

“Toe beans are the best.” Jamie held Garnet out to me. “Thank you for letting me hold your kitten, miss.”

I took Garnet and snuggled with her to reassure her everything was okay. “You’re welcome, Jamie. If you’re serious about getting a kitten, have your mum help you rescue cats and learn to take care of them.”

“Well played,” Wanda mouthed at me and waved her fist where her son couldn’t see.

I grinned at having outwitted a dragon.

Within ten minutes, I managed to get the mother and son to leave, dancing through thanking them for having come out for the delivery. The instant I closed the door, I breathed a relieved sigh and set Garnet on the floor. “I think we’re both going to need to do some serious exploration of this place. I’m sure in a few months, I’ll miss all the money I spent, but at least we’ll be comfortable when everything goes wrong.”

Garnet bounced off in the direction of the living room, and a few moments later, she squeaked, and I heard the faint noise of her hard at work chasing the toy in her new wheel.

“One of us will be happier than the other,” I muttered. I went to my table to gather my work and transfer it to my desk. I predicted I would spend many hours using my tablet to spare myself from going to the library unless absolutely necessary.

With two mysteries to solve, I’d need to push my skills to their limits in addition to managing my time so I could hide my true intentions. Until I learned who I could trust, I would trust no one—not even those who had asked for my help. I’d been a cop long enough to understand that while many criminals were stupid, some were smart enough to act innocent and seek help in solving the crime of their creation.

Uncertain if my research could be monitored by the dragons, I masked my activities by handwriting my notes and taking the time to open every single article I could on my tablet, creating groupings of twenty-five tabs to read over. I made a point of disabling the tablet’s connection to the internet after I opened the articles I wanted to investigate. In every grouping, I had three to five articles relevant to both of my searches with an equal mix of other subjects, including business, education, and the stock market. To throw additional kinks into the research of anyone snooping on my activities, I also checked into every animal shelter in the city while also researching how to care for my kitten.

As there were approximately twenty carbunclo in the entirety of the United States, I’d have my hands full figuring out how best to care for her. Fortunately, most everything I read indicated the breed could handle just about everything, and as long as I provided the basics, she’d be fine.

Finding a vet qualified to care for her would be a problem, but unlike regular kittens, I wouldn’t have to worry about spaying her.

She wouldn’t breed with anything other than a male carbunclo, and he would have to prove himself worthy of her affection. If such a carbunclo came around, I had equal chance I would end up with two of them, and the bereft companion would receive a pair of kittens as an apology.

In good news for my sanity, Garnet would likely outlive me unless I sprouted scales and wings, and carbunclo tended to only have a litter of two to six kittens every twenty to thirty years. If she stayed with me, I would keep the kittens for a period of two years, after which I would need to find new homes for them much like the titanium dragons had done for Garnet.

The thought of the carbunclo leaving upset me, although I would be powerless to stop her.

Everything I read indicated the carbunclo returned to their owner with time, resulting in a household of three carbunclo and one beleaguered companion. In three to five years, I would need to worry about the problem, but only if a handsome male came calling she happened to like.

Argentinean and Chilean dragons tried to convince their carbunclo to breed with a less than ten percent success rate.

The carbunclo queens rarely liked the suitors enough to have kittens.

With my luck, I would end up with an apartment full of carbunclo and no sanity nor money left.

While she hadn’t been with me long, I would be heartbroken if she left me to have kittens. As a silver lining, if she did wander off to have kittens, she’d eventually return.

Eventually.

Once I learned as much of the basics about my kitten as I could, I returned to my research. As planned, I mixed in a variety of subjects to mask my activities. I dug out the entirety of my new notebook collection, labeled them based on general subject, and took notes. While I regretted needing to spend the time tracking financial news making headlines in Dragon Heights, it might come in useful later.

Money mattered, especially to those who didn’t have it but wanted it. Those who had it and didn’t want others to take it fought to keep their wealth in their possession. When the two sides clashed, death often happened.

For the moment, the financial news would give me a picture of the economic health of the city along with a list of names of the biggest players.

Wanda showed up several times, as she did a lot more than run a cell phone shop in the city. Cecilia had made the fiscal news once; she’d made a notable donation to a charity for the poor, earning the praise of several dragon clans.

The titanium dragons would drive me to the limits of my sanity, as they loved their money almost as much as they enjoyed creating new dragons to lord over.

The titanium dragons didn’t rule over Dragon Heights, but no matter how long I searched, I couldn’t find any information on who, precisely, held the reins over the city.

All the colors had a representative who attended a yearly gathering, which was when they handled the majority of the city’s business. The colors voted among themselves and presented their votes, grievances, and requests to the rulers.

I expanded my search to every news outlet, but I found nothing about the dragons in charge.

Interesting.

The only thing I learned for certain was that the rulers were a mated pair, old, and took steps to protect their identity. Every year, some fool challenged them.

Every year, the news outlets had a ball reporting on how badly the challenged had gotten their asses kicked before being permitted to crawl away with their lives and an adjusted attitude.

As I had no idea if the murdered pilgrims had anything to do with the city’s leadership, I compiled a list of articles to refer to later.

Then, as curiosity got the better of me, I checked to see if the tablet could access the public library. To my delight, it could. My library card gained me access to the digital system, including articles typically found in the paid subscriber section.

With a wealth of new information to pursue, I resumed my search, deliberately creating a pattern of mixing pleasure and curiosity to mask my general activities.

If anyone did check my notebooks, they would assume I chased knowledge as a hobby and had indulged the instant I could. I made it through one of the library’s newspapers before an inquisitive mew nearby informed me the kitten had tired of playing with her wheel. I reached down, picked her up to discover she panted, and abandoned my work to show her where her new water bowl was and give her a small saucer of her new milk. I petted her while making sure she caught her breath without issue.

When certain she had finished drinking, I picked her up, showed her the litter box and the toilet so she could decide for herself, and gave her a few minutes to explore her surroundings before coaxing her to my desk and setting her in her new bed. Within a few minutes, the carbunclo passed out, her sides rising and falling with each breath.

I returned to my work, determined to make progress on both cases.

Time was not a luxury I could afford.