Forging Day (Crucible of Change Book 1) (15 page)

Razaini, Frank, and Henry followed me upstairs. “I don’t know if you got a tour yet or not. Kat and my rooms are around that corner, just down the hall to the left. Mikah’s office is here.” I pointed to the right. “And Grammy’s rooms are around the corner and down that hall.” We went around the corner and headed up the last flight of stairs. “This is the exercise room. The bathroom and sauna are over there on the right. We’ll cut through there. The range is on the other side of the porch.”

They stopped and stared at the fully-equipped workout room. It had glass walls all around and the room was flooded with natural light. “If you want to work out at night, and don’t want anyone peeking, the control panel for the blinds and lighting is right here.” I pointed up. “We even have solar panels on the roof. Mikah always likes to have a backup plan. He hated when we used to get brown-outs when it gets really hot over the summer. Now we’re not completely dependent on the grid.”

In our mini-range, I pointed out where we stowed our bows and kept our loaner gear and showed them how to pick a proper bow for their strength and draw. While they picked bows and arrows and protective gear, I got out the small step ladder and rigged the bottle to the crossbeam near the end of the range. An experimental push set it swinging.

We practiced for a while. We’d take turns swinging the bottle when we retrieved arrows. They hadn’t really done archery before, so they were just as happy hitting the stationary target. The moving bottle turned out to be about as hard as I’d expected. I finally timed the swing well enough to hit the bottle, but that wasn’t good enough. A living creature trying to kill me wasn’t going to run a pattern while I tried to get my range.

I wasn’t very happy with how I performed, but at least it was a start. Razaini was doing pretty well by the time we called it for the day. She wasn’t hitting bull’s-eyes yet, but she was able to hit the target more often than not.

Henry shook his head. “I guess it’s not my thing. I’ll stick with hunting for bones.”

“I’m not ready to give up yet,” offered Frank, “but I’m done for today.”

When we came back downstairs, Kat was in the living room with a bottle of Mikah’s best whiskey. Kat worried me. She loved her job and she didn’t normally drink the hard stuff. I’d never seen her poach from Mikah’s stash.

“Hey, Miss Kitty. How are you doing? Can I do anything?”

“Congratulations, Mikah, you were right!” she shouted. “I called my boss. I told him I’d be in to work tomorrow. He asked if this Event thing had hit me. I told him it did. He had me send a picture. He hemmed and hawed, and then told me business was down right now, what with all that happened, and it might be a good time to use my vacation days.” She swiped at her eyes and took another slug of whiskey. “I asked him if he thought this was going to wear off in the next week. He said he was sorry, and then told me to send someone to pick up my personal things. He didn’t even want me coming in the damn door.”

I held her while she sobbed. “What am I going to do, Olivia? I loved my job. If Fred won’t let me work, some stranger isn’t going to hire me. What am I supposed to do now?”

Mikah’s voice made me twitch. “Kat, I’m so sorry. We’ll figure this out. But please don’t worry about the money right now. You’ll always have a place to live. This is your home. I’m certainly not going to turn you out on the street for not paying rent.”

She hugged him. “I’m sorry, Mikah. I know you weren’t trying to hurt my feelings. I should have listened.”

“You never know,” he said. “I might have been wrong. You made the braver choice and called.” He sighed and rubbed his eyes. “I have news for you too, Olivia. I did some calling, and Colby made bail on Friday. Apparently his girlfriend paid for him. It turns out I know her, or at least know of her. She’s an assistant DA and quite the barracuda. I don’t know how much she knows about how Colby got into jail in the first place, but I’d guess it’s everything. Please, be careful. She’s running for state attorney general right now. Vivian has always had political aspirations, and she’s not one to let some messiness with her boyfriend get in the way.”

He paused to yawn and shake his head. “One more thing, and then I’m going to bed. Kat already knows this, but please don’t go into the basement without Korembi. That’s where we had to stash the dinosaurs for now. One of the compys almost got Peeka, and Doctor Evil—” He got a look from Kat and smiled. “Sorry. Fluffy has been stalking Stella. I don’t care what you call him. That cat is not right in the head.”

He stood up and stretched, his back going
snap, crackle, pop
. “It’s been a long day. A long few days, really. I’m calling it a night. I suggest you do the same.” He didn’t say anything about the whiskey, but he did pluck the bottle out of Kat’s grasp and put it back under the bar.

I gave her a kiss and ignored the tickle of fur. “Want to have a sleepover, Miss Kitty? And I do mean sleep. I just don’t want to be alone.”

She kissed me back, breath warm with whiskey, and hugged me tight. “Sure thing, sweetie. I’ll meet you at your room.”

* * * *

I brushed my teeth and got ready for bed, tired now, but not sleepy. Maybe I should get used to being nocturnal. My eyes would certainly appreciate it. I turned on the night light, and got into bed naked. Kat rapped on the adjoining door, and then came in wearing a nightgown. I didn’t know she even owned a nightgown.

“That’s a new look for you.”

She half turned. “Maybe I should go.”

“No. I want you to stay. I wasn’t trying to upset you. I thought you always slept commando.”

“I did. But, Olivia, I’m a freaking cat. We’re not even the same species now.”

I hugged her. “Hey, no crazy talk. We’re still ourselves. We’ve just had cosmetic makeovers, extreme style.”

I kissed her cheek and pulled off her silky nightgown. Sleek fur covered her body. Happily, she had only one pair of breasts. Her nipples were smaller now, and I could see bare skin through the fur. “You’re beautiful. Please don’t hide.”

Kissing her was a little different. The shape of her face and mouth had changed, but we’d manage. She kissed me back, cautious, I think, of hurting me with her fangs.

“We’ll take it slow,” I whispered, and kissed her back. Her fur tickled my nose, and her delicate tongue tasted of mint and whiskey. Kissing her again, I pulled her close. Stroking my hands down her back and buttocks, I marveled at the silky fur.

Taking her hand I led her to the bed, stretching out on my side. She hesitated, and then joined me. Breast to breast, I returned to kissing her and exploring her new body. I caressed her belly, moving lower, and she grabbed my hand. “What if I’m a freak? I don’t know. I was afraid to find out.”

“Let’s find out together. If everything has changed, well, then, I guess we’ll have to improvise.”

She took a deep breath, let go of my wrist, and opened herself to me.

I stroked lower, feeling for the sensitive cleft between her legs. The outer lips were fur, but within, she had the same lovely parts I’d come to know over the past few days. She was warm and damp. She jumped when I stroked her gently, and purred deep in her throat when my fingers slid into her body, slick with her arousal. I played with her, caressing her sensitive bud as I moved my fingers in and out to the pulsing of her body.

She tensed for a moment when I moved down to kneel between her legs, and then gave a sigh. Purrs turned into throaty moans as I explored her gently with lips and tongue. Her body clenched around my fingers and she buried her hands in my hair, urging me on. Pulling her tight to me, I sucked hard on her clit, plunging her over the brink. She moaned, louder and faster, the moan turning into a distinct yowl. She writhed at my touch, until she finally gasped, “Enough!” and pulled my head away.

She shuddered again as I gently pinched her tight little nipples. She batted my hand away. “Oh my god, Olivia. Stop. I think I’m going to die.”

“There are worse ways to go,” I whispered in her ear, and stroked her sensitive flesh one more time, just to feel her jump.

Her eyes grew heavy as she snuggled against me. “...is your turn,” she murmured.

“Oh, yes,” I told her. With one arm wrapped around her, I pleasured myself with my other hand. I kissed her again, breathing faster, and moaned into the soft fur of her neck as I came.

Order from Chaos

Kat stretched languidly and rolled over to face me. “Mmmmm. I thought we were just going to sleep.”

I stroked her soft curves, eyes still closed. “We did sleep…later. Do you mind?”

“Oh, Goddess, no.”

“Want to share a shower and then get some food?”

She patted my butt and kissed me. “Oh, yes.”

* * * *

It was at least another hour and close to lunchtime before we made it downstairs Good thing the house had some pretty large hot water heaters. I’d never been cleaner, thanks to Kat, and I couldn’t begin to get the smile off of my face.

When we got downstairs, all of the Trolls were in the dining room, talking and watching the news. No Tessa, Mikah or Berto, which was kind of odd. There were sandwich fixings set out on the table, and a big pitcher of iced tea.

Korembi greeted us. “Olivia, Kat, good to see you both. There be messages for you. Mikah, he say his secretary call. Phones be crazy. She need him come in.”

Mikah generally only handled custody cases and did guardian ad litem work. I could just imagine how many people were freaking out if their ex suddenly had pointed ears or fur. “Poor, Mikah. I bet he’s really getting slammed with cases.”

“Berto, he had to take some extra shifts. He said to tell you he’d be late tonight. Some of his clients, they only want Human nurses. Some of the nurses, they only want Human patients. Sound like more crazy hospital messes.”

“Berto doesn’t work in a hospital, Korembi. He does home hospice care. That’s how he met Mikah. He took care of Grammy before she passed.”

“Ah. I suppose that make more sense then.”

Kat and I got our lunch together. I was starving and it looked like she was, too.

Razaini said, “You got a few phone calls. I answered. I hope you don’t mind.”

“Of course not. You all are roomies at this point,” I told her.

“Someone named Quinn said to tell you he needed to cut his client load. He’s sorry for the short notice, and don’t worry about the last bill.”

“Great…Quinn was the guy that did the lawn and took care of the yard. I hate mowing.”

“So,” she continued, “This probably won’t make you feel any better. Nancy called after that. Her husband is concerned about her coming into this area, and going into people’s homes—what with all that’s happened. She did say she hoped he’d change his mind, but for now she has to give her notice, but she’d like her job back if he ever ‘pulls his head out’.”

“Oh, no—she was our cleaning lady. She was a sweetheart. Too bad her husband’s being a jerk.”

Kat and I stared at each other, both depressed. “I guess it’s up to us,” she said. “It’s not like I have a job to go to anymore.”

“My web design business wasn’t supporting me, anyway. I have plenty of free time.”

“Ladies, don’t be so glum,” Razaini said. “You aren’t alone. We’re living here too. We’ll all help out. Everyone had to work together at the dig sites to keep things running smoothly. Henry had a knack for writing up schedules that worked for everyone.”

I smiled at Razaini and Henry. “Thanks, you guys.”

Korembi looked around. “You be livin’ in a mansion. I always be thinking you was all trust fund babies.”

“This is Mikah’s house,” said Kat. “He rents me a room, but I have to work.”

“Technically, I don’t get my trust fund until I turn thirty,” I said.

Kat stared at me. “You have a trust fund?”

“My mom’s family left her some money. She had trusts made out to us three kids. She thought we wouldn’t be mature enough to handle the money before that. She never figured it would be an issue. No one predicted some stupid drunk driver would kill her. Cordie just got her trust this year. Mikah helped us get some hardship money early for school, but that was it. Meantime, Cordie’s paying my way since I can’t get my shit together.”

“You do beautiful graphic design work,” said Kat.

“Maybe, sometimes, but it doesn’t pay the bills.”

“So how you end up here?” asked Korembi.

“Cordie was making me crazy and we had a big fight over her telling me what to do. I told her I was leaving, except I didn’t have any money saved. I parked my car outside her office and lived out of it for a week. I set up shop near the door to her building and sold caricatures to her co-workers on their lunch breaks.” I smiled at the memory. “She was ignoring me at first, until I started giving away free ones of her swinging from a stripper pole. After that she made an arrangement with Berto and Mikah, so I ended up here.”

“You never mentioned a trust fund,” said Kat.

“It didn’t come up. Besides, I won’t have it for years.”

The doorbell rang. Kat looked at me and I felt like we should draw straws to see who got to frighten the visitor first. I headed toward the door, and heard Ted talking to someone.

He closed the door, holding some kind of flyer. “Morning, Olivia. You’re up. Wild night last night, eh?”

My cheeks got hot, but I was hoping he couldn’t tell through my new complexion. I guess we had been a bit loud.

“Come on, there’s news,” he said, and headed back toward the dining room. “There’s a neighborhood patrol meeting tonight,” he announced. “They’d like us all to come. It’ll be at the pavilion in the park. Here’s the flyer.” He handed it to Kat. “He said there was some kind of incident last night and that we need to step up security. If we want to know more, we have to go.”

Kat looked grave. “Did you read the flyer yet?”

“Nope. Just got it.”

“It says that remains were found last night in the park. For everyone’s safety, they’re calling a neighborhood meeting.”

“What be the time?” asked Korembi.

“It says they plan to start at six, so be there early. It also recommends you bring something to sit on.”