Chapter Forty-Seven – The Dragon’s Favorite Strays
Chapter Forty-Seven
DAKOTA
Rabbit and Aggie take off for the vet’s office, after getting some very grudging instructions from Curtis. Dottie and I sit on the hood of a nearby car to wait for them to return. We’re more or less babysitting Curtis, who’s still trapped under Murr’s claws.
Dottie can’t resist being a little mean about it, either. “I bet Murr wouldn’t mind a little snack. He looks hungry.”
“I told you where the dog was,” Curtis yells back at us. “You need to let me go!”
“And we will,” I promise. “Just as soon as they return with Stella.”
“I told you where she was. I don’t have a reason to lie.”
“You have every reason to lie,” Dottie scoffs. She scowls in his direction, as if his very presence offends her. “You’ve been lying since the day we met you. How many other helpless poor old ladies have you robbed?”
“You’re nuts if you think you’re helpless,” he says. “You two have been a problem since the day I met you. All of you.”
“For the record, you came after me and my daughter,” I say. “That’s on you.”
“And if that dog isn’t where she’s supposed to be,” Dottie warns, her tone menacing. “I’m going to fuck you up.”
“Oh please,” Curtis says. I see a hand come out from between Murr’s massive claws, but he’s not able to grab on to anything. “You’re lucky you’ve got a dragon protecting you.”
I’m well aware that Murr gives us a huge advantage. I’m choosing to see it as a good thing and not a bad thing, however. “And you’re unlucky that you don’t. Guess it sucks to be you.”
He mutters something under his breath.
Dottie puts a hand to her ear. “What’s that? We didn’t hear you.”
“I said you’re all dragon lovers,” Curtis yells back. “And you’re gonna get what you deserve!”
She looks over at me, feigning surprise. “What we deserve? Oh, I dunno…a full belly and our dog back from a criminal? Doesn’t sound so bad to me.”
I grin at her. “No, it doesn’t.”
“And you’re the only one loving up on the dragon at the moment anyhow,” she comments.
My grin turns to mortification. “I am not!”
“You are, and it’s all right, honey.” She reaches over and pats my arm. “I don’t judge. He’s ten times better than this sack of shit called Curtis.”
I laugh.
“Oh, ha ha,” Curtis yells at us. “Yuck it up now, ladies. You won’t be laughing when the fort comes after you.”
We exchange a look. Dottie calls back at him. “What are you talking about?”
“You think you’re hidden out here because you’re not in the fort?” Curtis says, his tone strident and carrying across the parking lot. “I told them all about you. How a bunch of ladies were holed up in a bookstore with a dragon. I wouldn’t be surprised if they come after you sooner rather than later, and then we’ll see who’s laughing.”
I stare at him, trying to discern if he’s joking or not. What’s the point in telling a fort about us? We’re not bothering them. We’re not hunting for food anywhere close to the fort. It’s in the Downtown Dallas area and we’re in Fort Worth. There’s plenty of room for everyone, especially given that no one drives a car anymore. Ten miles might as well be a hundred.
But my instincts are prickling a warning anyhow. “The fort doesn’t care about us,” I say. “Why would they?”
“They’d care if I told them you had a ton of food and batteries. Told them I saw some solar panels, too. Imagine they’ll come by to check it out.”
My jaw drops. That lying sack of shit. We don’t have any of that. Or rather, we don’t have solar panels or batteries – those are rarer than unicorns in the After. And the only reason we have a ton of food is thanks to Murr. If what he says is true and he’s told them that, they won’t be able to resist checking out our home and raiding it to steal whatever we have.
“He’s lying,” Dottie says, seeing my reaction. She doesn’t sound convinced, though.
“What if he’s not?”
“If he’s not, then you have a big damn dragon that will protect you.” She gestures at Murr. “And dragons are supposed to be invulnerable.”
Maybe in their dragon form, but I remember shooting Murr in the arm with my arrow. I also have a young, vulnerable daughter and the thought of her being dragged to a fort terrifies me, because I’ve seen how women get treated when they lose any power they have. Murr might be safe, but he can’t be at our side at all times.
And I’ve seen the collateral damage that happens when two angry, fire-breathing dragons take to the skies. Even if they’re trying to be careful, it’s too easy to set their surroundings on fire. Like it or not, Murr is a liability as much as he is protection.
Is it time for us to move on from the bookstore already? The thought makes me sick to my stomach, but I’m not sure what other choice we have.
