Pretty Little Fliers Read online

  I glanced over at the officer. The German shepherd’s head rested limply on his arm, her side rising and falling in quick pants.

  “What happened to her?”

  The officer’s throat bobbed. “We chased some criminals a few streets over. There’s been a string of muggings around the Darkmoon district lately and we—”

  We sidestepped a group of drunken revelers who crowded together in the middle of the cramped street, neon blues and purples from the signs above us illuminating their bleary-eyed faces. They raised bottles in a toast.

  The officer glanced back as we passed them.

  I lifted a brow at him. “Yeah, drunk and disorderly. I think you’ll have to let it go this time.”

  He shook himself. “Right.”

  I took a right down a dark alleyway, and brick walls rose high on either side of us. “Then what?”

  “Oh.” He let out a little grunt as he shifted the dog in his arms to squeeze down the narrow passage. She whimpered in pain. “We chased them down an alley, and Daisy led the way. I was a few steps behind her, and all I saw was a flash. Then she cried and collapsed.”

  I kicked an empty crate out of the way and a couple of rats scurried away, squeaking.

  Hey!

  Watch where you’re going.

  “What happened to the muggers?” I glanced back over my shoulder. Deep shadows obscured the cop’s features.

  He shook his head. “They got away.”

  I raised a brow. “Because you stopped to help your dog?”

  “Of course.”

  I blinked and spun back around, eyes on the ground in front of me. Glass crunched under my boots. Wow. Either this guy was a saint, or way too into his dog. Maybe both. Because no cop I’d ever come across would have passed up a chance to stick it to a “bad guy,” even if that came at a cost.

  I stopped about halfway down the alley at a black metal door that I’d have walked right past if I didn’t know to look for it.

  “Hang back.”

  The cop retreated a few steps.

  I sighed. Will was literally my only friend in the world. And while I was no stranger to him being angry with me, for anything from eating his fortune cookie to interrupting his nap, bringing a cop to his back-alley clinic was probably going to be the last grain of sand.

  I took a deep breath, my shoulders hiked into my ears, then lifted a fist and knocked. I shifted on my feet as I waited. The muffled sounds of partying in the street and Daisy’s labored breathing filled the silence.

  Slink!

  A metal panel on the door slid open, and two dark, narrowed eyes gazed out at me. “Password?”

  I lifted a hand and wiggled my fingers.

  “Oh! Hey, Jolene!” The eyes softened.

  The panel slid shut, several locks clicked, and then the door swung open. Pale light spilled into the alleyway, and I jerked my head at the cop to follow.

  Heidi, Will’s assistant, stepped out from behind the door and grinned at me. Twin black braids hung over the shoulders of her white lab coat. Underneath it she wore a polka dot tube top and leggings.

  She winked an almond-shaped eye. “We got ramen.”

  I sniffed the air. The salty, meaty aroma made my stomach grumble. When was the last time I’d eaten? Yesterday?

  Heidi tipped her head toward the back room. “I ate all mine, but you know Will. So slow. I’m sure you could steal some if you hur—” She stopped midsentence as the cop and his dog stepped into the tiny waiting room behind me. A few beat-up chairs lined the wall, and a tall counter surrounded Heidi’s spot at the receptionist’s desk.

  Her mouth fell open. “Ohhhhhh no.” Her eyes widened, fixed on the cop’s face.

  I gulped. Yeah, this wasn’t going to go well.

  I cleared my throat and swept my hands to the side. “Heidi, this is Officer…?” I raised my brows at him, suddenly remembering I didn’t know his name.

  “Flint.” His throat bobbed, eyes ringed in red as though he’d been crying. “Peter Flint. This is my dog, Daisy. Can you help her?”

  The dog whined.

  Will pushed through from the back room, eyes down on the bowl of ramen in his hands. He sported his typical blue scrubs, but his leather sandals and messy hair made a sharp contrast to the professional attire.

  We all held still, silent.

  Will twirled noodles around a pair of chopsticks. “Jolene, if you think I’m gonna share, you’re wrong, because you had a chance, sister. We asked you if you wanted anything from Wong’s, and you said you had a client so—”

  He looked up and froze. His blue eyes widened as he took in the scene, then narrowed to tiny slits under his heavy brow. His mouth flattened, and a muscle in his jaw jumped behind his five o’clock shadow.

  I scratched behind my ear and dropped my gaze. Man. If looks could kill, I’d be six feet under.

  “Jolene.” His voice came out a low growl. With trembling hands, he set his ramen on the tall counter beside him, then balled his hands into fists at his side. A vein popped out of his red, blotchy forehead, and he shrieked, “What in the actual fu—”

  I raised my hands and cut him off. “He came to me! Okay? You think I want this?” I took a few tentative steps toward my friend, palms raised like I was soothing an angry bear. Easy, boy. “The dog’s injured and needs our help and I didn’t have the heart to—”

  Huugghhhh!

  I spun in time to catch Daisy vomit up a nasty green glob. It pooled on the floor, sizzling and steaming. The dog’s black lips curled back from her teeth, foam and poison-green bile dripping from them.

  Heidi yelped and jumped back, then turned to Will. “I’ll get a sample.” She dug around in the pockets of her lab coat and pulled out a small glass vial with a cork stopper.

  My tall friend rolled his bloodshot eyes. “Oh, perfect.” He clasped his huge hands at his chest. “And it’s fatally cursed. Splendid.”

  Peter, the officer, looked like he was about to be sick himself. “Fatally?”

  Will scrunched up his nose and shot a long arm out. He grabbed me by the neck of my ratty Banshee band tee. “Jolene, a word?”

  He gritted his teeth and held a finger up to the cop. “Just a minute, Officer.” Will dragged me through the swinging door into the back.

  4

  Anger Issues

  I swatted at my friend’s hand, but he just tightened his grip around the neck of my shirt and pulled me closer to his livid face. His big eyes bulged and he bared his teeth.

  “You brought a cop here?!” he shouted. “Lovely, Jolene! Lovely!”

  I glared up at him, his face inches from mine. “Anyone ever tell you you’ve got a temper?” I tried, futilely, to pry his beefy hands off me.

  Before I knew him, Will had been one of Bijou Mer’s top surgeons. He’d mingled with the elite of the elite and lived a lifestyle of the utmost luxury. All until he lost his temper at a dinner party at some lord’s mansion and publicly shifted into a bear.

  As soon as word spread that he was a shifter, he’d lost his practice, his loft—everything.

  His nostrils flared, and he shouted in my face. “Funny, Jolene! Just hilarious!”

  I turned my head away and winced when some of his spit flew into my eye. Gross. I peeled my eyes open.

  Heidi’s take-out bowl of ramen sat on the metal exam table in the center of the small room. Score. I reached over and plucked the hard-boiled egg out.

  As I brought it to my mouth, Will slapped it out of my hand

  “Hey!”

  I pouted down at it where it now lay, still intact, on the floor. Underneath the savory smell of the food, I detected lemon cleaner… and cats. But hey, cleaner. Heidi kept the tiny place spick and span—five second rule, right? My stomach rumbled, and I reached for the food on the ground.

  Will shook me, and I blinked up into his red, blotchy face.

  “This is serious, Jolene!” he hissed. He shoved me away and turned, tugging at his wavy brown hair. “I can’t belie
ve you,” he grumbled as he paced.

  I stumbled back and tugged at my shirt, attempting to smooth it. The wrinkles weren’t entirely his fault. I sniffed my pit and crinkled my nose.

  I’d been wearing my favorite band tee for several days straight at this point, sleeping in it even, and the humid summer weather wasn’t doing me any favors. I’d have to check the couch cushions for laundry money.

  Will dropped onto a rolling stool and leaned his elbows on the table. He buried his face in his big hands.

  Angry Will, I could handle. Defeated Will? I shoved my hands in my pockets. Now I felt a little bad.

  “I’m sorry, okay? But he just showed up at my place, his police dog’s hurt, and he begged me to help.” My eyes flicked to the egg on the floor, my hunger suddenly gone, replaced by a tinge of guilt. “I know it’s a risk but… what was I supposed to do?”

  Will scoffed, his voice dangerously quiet. “You were supposed to say, ‘Sorry, Officer, I’m not a vet. Best of luck.’” He raised his thick brows. “That is what you’re supposed to do!” He slammed his hands on the exam table, and the bowls rattled.

  I jumped.

  “You, of all people, should understand what you’ve just done.” He shook his head. “Does he want to put the handcuffs on me now? Or wait till after I’ve operated on his dog?” His eyes blazed.

  “You’d probably enjoy it.” I mean, the cop was easy on the eyes.

  He glared at me.

  My lips quirked to the side. “Does that mean you’ll help?”

  He threw up his hands. “Oh. And what about when Ludolf finds out I had a cop in here? You think he’s going to love that?”

  I rolled my eyes. “It’s not my fault you got a ‘favor’ from him.”

  When Will had lost it all, he’d been forced to go to Ludolf Caterwaul, mob king of Bijou Mer’s secret shifter underground, for assistance. He’d been hoping to get a position as a doctor somewhere, but the mob boss had set Will up here, in the Darkmoon Night Market District, with the small clinic.

  While Will mostly worked on animals, he also patched up Ludolf’s goons whenever needed. Plus, my friend paid a monthly “protection” fee, like many other shifters in the night market, to keep the same goons from roughing him up or vandalizing his clinic.

  I’d opted to keep my independence from Ludolf, thank you very much. The dog-scratch-dog world of shifters made my skin crawl. I didn’t want to owe anyone anything.

  I stalked a few steps forward and stopped across the exam table from Will. “Look, the cop already knew about you, and if I hadn’t helped him, what then? His dog dies? You think he’s going to be in a great mood? He’d have come back for me and found you out anyway.” I crossed my arms and glared at my friend.

  He kept his eyes down on the table in front of him, mouth pinched.

  “Besides, he….” I shifted on my feet. “He seems different. Like he might actually be a good cop.”

  Will glared at me and circled a hand in front of his face. “Oh, and the fact that he’s gorgeous had nothing to do with how good he seems, I’m sure.”

  “Look, you helping or not, cause that dog is out there dying?” I hiked my brows.

  My friend stood, towering over me. “Fine.” He shook a thick finger at me. “But only because at this point, I don’t really have a choice, do I?”

  I rolled my eyes, but grinned. “Thanks, friend.” I spun toward the door behind me.

  “Oh, we’re not friends anymore.”

  I glanced over my shoulder as I pushed through the swinging door to the lobby.

  Will glared at me. “I’m never speaking to you again.” He planted his hands on his hips. “Which won’t be hard, since I’ll be in jail!”

  I spun away and grinned. Heidi wrung her hands, a vial of the poison green vomit between them.

  Peter, his face pale, blinked at me.

  “Head on in.” I thumbed over my shoulder. “He’ll see you.”

  My grin dropped as my eyes landed on Daisy. The dog convulsed in the officer’s arms.

  I gulped and stood back, holding the door as he rushed past me.

  5

  Speak!

  Will flicked his wand, and the bowls of ramen with assorted tubs of condiments and toppings cleared. He pointed at the exam table. “Lay her there.”

  Peter slowly laid Daisy down, cradling her head in the crook of his arm. Her tongue hung out of her mouth and her eyelids fluttered. Foam and bile clung to the dog’s lips.

  Heidi shuffled next to my friend and held up the green vial. “Test it?”

  Will nodded, and she got to work at the back counter, her back to us. Jars of swabs, metal instruments, and stoppered bottles of glowing potions littered the counter beside a metal sink.

  “Back up. I need room to work!” Will waved his hands and I took a few steps away, pushing my back against the wall.

  Peter, lips tight, gave Will a once-over, then backed away from his dog and stood beside me. The small room was barely big enough to fit the four of us plus the dog and the exam table.

  I swiped a bead of sweat away from my hairline. “I can’t believe you don’t even have a window in here.” The room was muggy. And I was definitely feeling the heat while brushing shoulders with the tall, handsome cop beside me.

  Will scowled at me over his shoulder. “Oh, so sorry it’s not the royal palace, princess.” He went back to shining his lit wand into the dog’s eyes. Her pupils contracted, but she didn’t react in any other way.

  He released her eyelids and they snapped shut. Will then peeled her lips back and looked at her gums. He crinkled his nose and turned his head to cough.

  “Smells like sulfur.” His eyes darted to Heidi. “Did you try the mandrake root yet?”

  She glanced back, her brow pinched. “Yeah, boss.” She shook her head and her braids bounced. “It was negative.”

  “What happened exactly, Officer?” Will didn’t look up from looking inside Daisy’s ears.

  Peter’s throat bobbed. “We were chasing criminals, there was a flash of light and—Daisy collapsed.”

  “What color?” Will pressed his ear to the dog’s heaving chest.

  “Huh?”

  “The light!” My friend rolled his eyes, impatient. “What color?”

  “Um.” Peter shook his head, his brow pinched. “Purple.”

  Will swept a hand over the dog’s tawny fur and reached across the table. He handed Heidi a clump of hairs. “Put it in some spider tears.” He turned to face Peter. “Aubergine or more of a lilac?”

  Peter blinked at him. “Uh….”

  Will rolled his eyes and leaned into one hip. “Dark or light purple?”

  “Dark.”

  Heidi held up a flask. The dog hairs floated inside a clear liquid. “Didn’t react.” She bit her lip. “What next?”

  “Honestly, I wasn’t trained in animal curses and this isn’t something I’ve seen before, so…” Will straightened. “I don’t know.”

  “Please.” Peter’s voice broke. “Please, you’ve got to try and save my dog.”

  Will folded his hairy arms across his chest. “Whatever this is, it’s powerful. And if I don’t get the antidote exactly right, if I’m off by even one ingredient….” He raised his brows and his gaze slid to me. “You’re up, slugger.” He jabbed his thumb at the convulsing dog on the table. Her nails rattled and tapped against the metal.

  “Me?” I pressed a hand to my chest. “I don’t know anything about curing curses or—”

  “You know what I mean.” He flashed his eyes at me. “Miss Pet Psychic extraordinaire.”

  “What do you want me to do?” I staunchly avoided looking at Peter, though I could feel his gaze intent on my face.

  Will took me by the shoulders, spun me around, and pushed me toward the dog. “Find out what she saw, what she heard. It might give us some clues.”

  “Fine,” I grumbled through my teeth. I stared down at the trembling dog, her eyes unseeing, bile dripping from her lips. Ev
en as a non-veterinarian, I could tell she didn’t have long, and I supposed I could at least do my part to help. I glanced over my shoulder. “Peter, I’m going to need you to leave.”

  He started. “What?”

  I hiked my brows up. “I need privacy to… you know.” I touched my middle fingers to my temples.

  The cop set his jaw. “No way. I’m not leaving Daisy.” He widened his stance.

  I rolled my eyes. “Whatever.” I let out a heavy sigh.

  “We don’t have all day, drama queen.” Will swept a palm toward the dog.

  I scoffed. “Oh, that’s rich coming from a—”

  “Will you please just help my dog!” Peter cried.

  Will, Heidi, and I turned slowly to face the cop.

  “Bossy,” Heidi muttered.

  “Someone’s got his panties in a twist.” Will folded his arms.

  I smirked and turned back to Daisy. I pulled a rolling stool over and plopped onto it. I’d have to get right up in her face to speak with her without the cop overhearing.

  I pointed at Peter. “If she bites my face off, I blame you.”

  He frowned in confusion.

  I turned my head away from the dog’s foul, hot pants, took a deep breath and held it, then lowered my lips close to her furry black ear. I let out a low whine, followed by two short huffs, a sniff, then (to my utter mortification) licked the side of her face. Ugh. I scraped my fur-covered tongue over my teeth. Dog language was so… boundary free.

  Did the person who cursed you say anything before the flash of light?

  The dog jerked and struggled to lift her head. She blinked her eyes rapidly, and her dark pupils focused on my face. She let out a pained cry.

  This human spoke to me? I must be dead.

  I rolled my eyes, then grunted and woofed quietly.

  Not yet, pooch. Now focus. Do you remember anything that might help us cure you?

  Daisy startled again and whipped her head toward me.