Page 2

Kiy

I stretched out, and the chair beneath me creaked. Several eyes flicked to me, waiting to see if I was going to break another piece of furniture. Gariss would have a fit if I cost him more money, so I returned to my normal sitting position carefully. I wasn’t just the biggest in the office, I was the furriest and always too warm. A thermostat war is one thing. But a thermostat war in an office full of temperamental monsters? Well, let's just say it didn't end well for any of us or my desk.

A harrumph across the office distracted me from the paperwork I was half-heartedly trying to complete. Our resident Gargoyle, Eli, was staring at his phone. He’d been doing that a lot recently. I’d normally make a joke. Suggest a woman was involved. Except he was even more grumpy than usual, and I suspected a woman actually was involved. I watched him grumble as his mood darkened even more. Maybe just a little tease would cheer him up?

“Absolutely not. Leave him alone.” Gariss walked up to me, seemingly having read my mind.

Eli looked up and scowled. I waved and flashed him a grin. He shook his head and began tapping thick stone fingers on his reinforced phone screen, his face a picture of concentration. I spun on my chair to face Gariss, trying not to react to the loud creak it made. His moose skull face was impassive. I was sure he had emotions. But how could you ever read what they were on a skull?

Gariss dropped a file on my desk.

“Who’s this then?” I picked up the file and moved to open it.

“Someone who needs a bit more gentle support than our usual clientele.”

“I’m gentle support?”

Gariss rubbed his forehead with large fingers. “Yes. You have a personality which some people find… friendly-ish.”

“Boss, that’s the nicest thing you ever said to me!”

“Yes, well, be that as it may, you are also huge and capable of flattening those that deserve it. And I suspect she might also need a bit of that, too.”

I looked at the file. “It’s a bit empty?” There was no backstory in here. Just the basic facts and financials.

“She wouldn’t tell me much. The cops were around and, honestly Kiy, she sounded scared. Not just ‘I’ve been arrested for the first time’, scared. But more. My gut instinct is that she needs someone to look out for her.”

I nodded. Gariss might be an impenetrable old bastard, but he had a heart. And the instincts to know when to use it. I trusted his judgement. “I’ll give her the full Kiy care package!”

“Please don’t. Just be supportive.”

“But the care package comes with soup! And massages!”

“No massaging the clients. It’s inappropriate and we’ve already lost Sable to a woman.”

Sable had found his mate and moved to Graybury to be with her. With Gariss’ permission, he’d opened his own branch of Appalachian Bail and Bounties. He called often, and we were happy for him, but I suspected Gariss missed him. He’d been talking about going to Graybury for a trip soon. “When do you need me to go to the cop shop?”

“As soon as possible.”

“On it boss.” I tucked my phone and taser into my belt and took the most indirect route out of the office so I could pat Eli on the back. He grumbled, but said nothing. I tried to sneak a glance at the phone he was still staring at, but he twisted to cover it.

Once I was out of the building, I stood for a moment, enjoying the cool air. It smelled like snow was coming. Out here the weather could turn from mild and sunny to the whole town being snowed in within hours.

I didn’t mind. I’d happily lie in the snow like a husky and enjoy the cold while everyone else hid away. Usually, I ended up ferrying supplies for people and checking on those who lived the farthest out. It made a nice change from chasing criminals.

By the time I reached the prison, I was certain. Snow was coming and maybe with it, a storm. It wasn’t close yet. But it had the potential to be a big one. As a cub, I’d lived outside and I’d learned to read the weather as instinctively as I knew how to breathe. I fired off a text to our local mountain rescue to warn them.

A human cop waved me down before I stepped inside.

“You here for the girl?”

“Yep.” I didn’t know this guy well, but he’d always seemed decent in the past.

“There’s more to the story, but if she won’t talk, we can’t go easy on her.”

I nodded. “I’ll see what I can do.”

Inside, I filled out the paperwork and the officer on duty went to get her. As I waited, a wave of scent flowed through the dark, dank room. The honey scent of snowdrops. For a moment, it felt like the world was spinning faster than it should be. Like it had always been spinning slightly too fast, and I’d only just realised. I couldn’t stay upright. Then she walked in and everything slowed. Everything balanced out, and I’d never been so sure of my footing. I’d never been so sure of myself.

“This is Kiy,” the cop said to her, gesturing towards me.

Why was he standing so close to her? I didn’t like it. My throat tightened to form a growl before I froze in shock at my reaction. I wasn’t normally like this. I’d never been possessive. But I couldn’t stand the thought of anyone being nearer to her than I was.

“Hi.”

Her voice was breathy, like the wind. She looked up at me through her dark eyelashes. Her posture was all scrunched up, like she was trying to make herself as small as possible. I wanted her to stand tall. To take up the space she deserved. To see she was worth the room she occupied. Her eyes were ringed with red and my heart ached to soothe her. The silence was growing uncomfortable now as I realized I’d just been staring at her. All I wanted to do was stare at her. Dark hair fell to her shoulders and light brown eyes darted around the room constantly. I gave myself a mental shake.

“Hi. I’ve signed your paperwork. You are officially on bail on my dime now. So don’t make a run for it, or I’m going to have to hunt you down!” My usual half joke somehow hit differently this time. Something flickered in her eyes. A small flash of fire. Chasing her didn’t seem like that bad of a way to spend my time.

“Thank you.”

“I’ll drive you home.”

“You don’t have to.”

“I insist.”

She nodded, and I led her to my car. My brain screamed at me to speak. To say anything, but all I could focus on was the feeling of being next to her. Of how right it seemed for her to be there. Of how my whole life outwardly seemed the same as it had been 10 minutes ago. But it wasn’t. Everything was different. Including me. And none of it made any sense.