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CHAPTER EIGHT

I hurried back to the office, where they were waiting for me in the breakroom. Orik had scrounged up some large cat carriers.

“I have fishing nets. Since we can’t kill them, I figured we can try some of this.” He held out a spray that we used to knock out a few of the lower level sub-Fae. “And I’m bringing a few tennis racquets. If all else fails, we can hit them with those and it shouldn’t kill them.”

“Cripes, this is ridiculous. They’re dangerous pests. You’d think there would be an exception made for them.”

“Well, there isn’t. Anyway, the cat carriers can be used to transport them. They were the quickest and easiest carriers to get. My wife made me promise to wash them out before I bring them home.” Orik and his family loved Maine Coons, too, and had six of them. One for each child, I thought.

“Duran enchanted them so that nothing inside can use magic,” he continued. “What do you think?”

“It’s a better plan than I had. Except I learned one thing from Ami.

The coxigans absolutely love sugary drinks, and get drunk off too much sugar.

Let’s grab some concentrated grape juice—we can dilute it so it’s syrupy sweet.

We’ll also want some plastic storage containers to set out the juice.

” I turned to Sophia. “Do we have any in the office, or will we need to stop and buy some?”

“Let me check,” she said, starting to open cupboards.

“Also, Ami will help us with one of the Fae portals. She said we can send the coxigans through it. I want to find her something special as a thank-you, so make a note, Sophia. She’s a selkie,” I added. “In case anybody knows what selkies tend to like?”

“Why don’t you ask her?” Dante asked.

“Because, I want to surprise her. And I don’t know her well enough yet to know what she loves, beyond doing hair and nails.” I shrugged. “Anyway, I suppose we should get going.”

Sophia returned. “I don’t see that we have any plastic containers that are suitable. We’ll have to stop and buy some.”

“We need to buy concentrated grape juice, while we’re at it,” I said. “Okay, Sophia and Carson, you stay here and continue to see if you can find anything out about Terrance or…what’s her name? The woman from Brim Fire. Dante, you can ride with me. Duran, can you ride with Orik?”

“Not a problem,” he said. “As long as you let me have two minutes alone with whoever it is kidnapped Penelope.”

I snorted. “We’ll get them, don’t worry. I’m not leaving Penn to the lions.”

As we headed out, we agreed to stop at the nearest market—Smithson’s Grocer’s—to buy the juice and the containers.

* * *

Merry was waiting for us, an anxious look on her face.

She escorted us in, where we saw a golden retriever.

The dog was trembling. “Thank you so much for coming early. Those damned creatures tried to attack my dog. I managed to get both of us inside, but they were pelting us with stones. And then the red one tried to bite Moophy—my dog.”

Thinking about the acidic bites of the red coxigans, I was relieved when Merry verified that the creature hadn’t managed to finish the attack. But it was a matter of time, if we didn’t clear them out.

“You and Moophy stay inside while we get to work.”

Merry paused. “If you need help?—”

“No, although we could use a pitcher, if you have one, and some water.” I pointed toward the kitchen.

“Of course,” Merry said, sounding a little confused. But she led us to the kitchen, which overlooked the backyard. “Here, will this work?” She brought out an acrylic pitcher with a handle on it. It held about a quart of liquid.

“That should be fine. Is the back door unlocked?”

“Yes, you can go right out that way if you like.” She knelt down to pet Moophy, who was following close behind her. “I’m so sorry, baby. We’ll take care of those things.”

“Why don’t you go in the living room and relax while we work?” I said.

Merry nodded. “All right.”

As she headed through the door, Dante’s eyes lingered on her.

“No fraternizing with clients, remember?” I said, keeping my voice low.

He glanced at me. “I know, I know. All right, what first?”

“We make up a super thick drink with the grape juice concentrate, then take it out back and pour it into these containers and hope it helps us do our job,” I said.

Orik stood ready, should any of the coxigans try to sneak in when we opened the door.

Dante, Duran, and I hurried outside. Duran carried the juice and I carried the containers.

Orik and Dante brought the rest of the equipment, including the cat carriers.

Before the coxigans could charge, Orik set the carriers on the patio table, leaving them open.

I poured grape juice in the containers and set them inside, then filled two more containers and set them on the patio.

Orik handed me a tennis racket. He was carrying one, too.

“All right, let’s try to round them up,” I said, feeling ridiculous. “Though I’m not wearing white!”

At that moment, the red coxigan flew off of the branch it was sitting on and dive-bombed me, spewing a thin line of fire as it passed.

I tried to duck, but a few of the narrow flames strafed my arm and my jacket started to smell.

I cursed, making sure that the flames hadn’t taken hold, then turned back to see the entire lot of them—and this time it looked like more than a dozen—were descending on us.

Don’t kill them, don’t kill them , I kept thinking as I tried to swat them away.

Orik swung his tennis racket, hitting a green one and lobbing it toward the patio.

He smiled, and I thought I detected a hint of satisfaction when the coxigan went streaking back, rolling head over heels in the air.

It landed on the patio, shaking its head, but then it sniffed the air and froze.

I watched as it crawled over to one of the containers and began lapping up juice, like a cat lapping up water.

A cackle brought me back to focus. The red one was taking aim at me again.

Why the fuck it had set its sites on me, I wasn’t sure, but it seemed to feel I was the primary target because it dive bombed me again.

I brought up the racket, hoping that somehow, my non-existent tennis skills might suddenly appear.

As I swung at the coxigan, it managed to evade the racket and it wrapped itself around my wrist and bit into my hand.

The needle sharp teeth pierced deep, and it felt like I’d stuck my hand in a vat of acid. I shrieked, trying to shake it off. Dante rushed over, attempting to pry the creature off of me. It was clenching my wrist with its arms and legs, holding on for dear life.

“You little shit!” I ran over to a nearby tree and brought my arm back, swinging directly toward the trunk as hard as I could.

The coxigan gasped, letting go with its teeth, but it couldn’t fly off quickly enough and I slammed it into the bark, not giving a damn whether or not I killed it.

The creature let go and fell to the ground.

Dante quickly grabbed it up and dropped it in a sack.

I looked at my hand. There was a gaping bite wound there, already festering from the acid. I shook my head as Dante started to reach for it. “We have to catch them all.”

As we turned, I noticed that at least half of them were gathered near the containers of grape juice. Orik was going after another, and Duran was staring at my hand, shaking his head.

“Get the drunk ones in one of the carriers and shut it!” I raced over, scooping up two of the coxigans from one of the containers on the patio.

I tossed them into one of the carriers, as Dante added the red one.

There were already two of them in there, drinking from the grape juice inside the carrier. Dante slammed the door and locked it.

Five down and…I counted the remaining ones.

There were eight left, but one of them was in the other container, and another was lapping up juice on the patio.

I took out another package of grape juice concentrate and opened it, spreading it directly on the table.

The fragrance was strong, and apparently the coxigans had super scent, because three of the eight made a beeline for it.

As they landed on the table, Duran grabbed them—along with the one on the concrete slab—and shoved them in the open carrier, then hooked the door shut.

That left four, still hanging out in a hydrangea bush.

I motioned to Duran. “Go ask her if she has any tulle or a net or something along that order.”

He hurried toward the kitchen door and slipped inside.

Orik started toward the bushes but I stopped him. “Wait. If we can get something like a net we can catch them all.”

They were staring at us, huddled together. I paused, closing my eyes. Reaching out, I tried to sense what they were feeling. A moment later, I felt a wave of fear and confusion. They truly didn’t understand why we were trying to catch them.

“They don’t understand,” I said. “They’re just being true to their nature, and they don’t understand what they’re doing wrong.

They’re like cats.” Damn it. Now I understood why we weren’t allowed to kill them.

They weren’t like us, nor were they like most of the Fae.

The bite on my hand had been malicious, yes, but not all of them were like that.

Duran returned with a macrame wall tapestry, loosely knotted.

The spaces between the knots weren’t big enough for the coxigans to get there.

Orik took it, then cautiously circled the bush.

The coxigans stared at him, uncertain, and the moment he got close enough, he tossed it over the bush.

It landed on top of them and Orik rushed forward to make certain they couldn’t escape.

I brought one of the cat carriers over and, between the two of us, we managed to scoop up the remaining four coxigans and slip them inside the carrier, making sure the others didn’t escape.