by Geonn Cannon
“Puppy,” Dale whispered, and the gun swung to the side, and her whole body seemed to go limp. She sobbed the word again, “Puppy,” and fell forward. Ari caught her, held her, closed her eyes as she breathed in Dale’s scent. “What did I do? Oh god, I could have shot you.”
“No. You couldn’t have.” Ari kissed her hair and squeezed her tighter. “I love you, Dale.”
Dale was crying openly now, sobbing against Ari’s shoulder. “I love you, Ariadne. I love you, Ariadne. I love you, Ariadne...”
Ari eventually lost count of how many times Dale said it, but she was willing to listen to as many repetitions as necessary until Dale felt heard.
Chapter Twenty-Six
As good as it felt to put her arm around Dale to guide her out of the plane, Ari’s mood was improved even more when Isaac turned around and she saw the smug grin melt off his face. By the time they reached the ground and were walking toward him, he looked positively ill. He looked at Dale, almost betrayed, and then turned to Ari with an angry scowl.
“What the hell did you do to her?”
“She talked to me,” Dale said. “She reminded me who I am.”
Isaac said, “Miss Frye... Dale... please. You read the essays. You know what they are. You know what wolves have done!”
“Yeah. And I know what humanity has done. To canidae, to each other, to anyone who is different. If you want to be scared of anyone, be scared of us. Maybe wolves started the war. Maybe they were just defending themselves against humans. I don’t know and honestly, I don’t care. I’m not interested in trying to classify an entire species as good or bad. I know this wolf. And that one. Hey, Milo.” She nodded at Milo. “And I’ve known bad canidae. I’ve known bad humans, and I don’t think you’re one of them. I think you’re confused, like I was. I think you saw something that looked like the truth and you let that poison you. It made you scared.”
“We should be scared! When these wolves rise up--”
“If,” Dale said. “And right now, they have no reason to fight. But if you publish that book, you’ll give them an enemy, and you can be damn sure they’ll defend themselves. You said you researched Ari, but there’s one thing you didn’t pay close enough attention to. Ariadne doesn’t start wars. She ends them.”
Ari tightened her hand on Dale’s hip, her eyes still locked on Isaac. “Stay away from the people I love, Mr. Hayden.”
They walked away from him. Ari stopped, let go of Dale, and walked back to where he was standing. He lifted his chin and raised his eyebrows, anticipating more conversation. Instead, Ari punched him. It was a solid blow, completely unrestrained, the kind of punch she’d rarely thrown. Isaac went down hard, flailing in a futile attempt to break his fall, ending up flat on his ass with one hand covering the lower half of his face. He stared up at her with a shocked expression.
“That’s for giving her the damn book in the first place.”
She turned and walked away from him. Dale out her hand, and Ari took it even though her knuckles throbbed when Dale squeezed them. It was a good pain.
Milo fell into step next to them. “I don’t want to be a spoilsport, but I’m not sure all three of us will fit on the bike. I could take Dale, come back...”
“Actually,” Dale said, “I could really use some air. I saw a bus stop down the road. The walk will help clear my head.”
“Do you want company?”
Dale started to answer, then gripped Ari’s hand. “I need to think. Just think. Talking won’t help, so I would just be completely in my head.”
“I understand.”
Ari started to pull her hand away, but Dale gripped it tighter. “No, I’m... I’m saying that I won’t talk, and I don’t want to have a conversation, but if you’re okay with that, then I’d really like for you to walk with me.”
“I can do that. Absolutely.” She held out her hand to Milo. “Thanks for the ride.”
“Any time. See you back at Gwen’s? She’s going to want to make sure little foxy here is okay.”
Dale raised an eyebrow. “Foxy...?”
“Cause of the red,” Milo said, winking and then wincing. “Trying to be cute. Too soon?”
Ari took her helmet so Milo wouldn’t have to figure out what to do with it, then turned to see Isaac was still sitting where she had dropped him. She turned her back to him, slipped her arm around Dale’s waist, and Dale put her head on Ari’s shoulder as they walked away from the plane.
###
Gwen shot to her feet as soon as the front door opened, her expression hopeful but guarded. Dale entered cautiously, twisting her fingers together as she looked at Gwen and Milo. Dale had spent the entire bus ride wondering what she would say, what she could possibly tell them to explain her actions over the past few days. Ari told her about the book while they were walking, how reading the essays was like reciting a magic spell. She insisted Dale wasn’t to blame for the hatred she’d been spewing, but it had to come from somewhere, right? There had to be some part of her, maybe hidden deep inside, that thought canidae were mutts who deserved to be put down.
“Hi, Mom,” she said, and unexpectedly began to cry.
Gwen crossed the room in two long strides and gathered Dale in a hug. “It’s okay, sweetheart. It wasn’t you. It wasn’t your heart.”
Dale sniffled and stepped back. “The things I said...”
Milo put a hand on Dale’s shoulder. “If you want forgiveness, we’ll give it to you. But no one in this room feels like it’s necessary. People have killed because of that book. You managed to keep it to a couple of slurs. I think in the grand scheme of things, we can overlook a few bad days.”
Dale swallowed the lump in her throat and turned to look at Ari. “The things I said to you.”
Ari shook her head. “It wasn’t you.”
“But it was.”
Gwen cupped Dale’s cheek. “Listen to me, Dale. We all tend to be fearful of the unknown. Our genes tend to see differences as a threat. I’m not saying we’re all born racist, I’m saying that the fear is an easy response. It’s an ignorant response, and it’s one that can be unlearned and ignored. Those essays made it harder for you to ignore that part of your brain. It shut a door. Ari opened it again.”
Dale looked at Ari and smiled. The barbed wire around her brain was gone. Every time she touched Ari on the bus ride, her heart had swelled and then caved in on itself when she remembered some of the awful things she’d said after reading the essays.
Gwen said, “I’m sure that when Ari gets you home, you’ll find your center again. You’ll--”
“I-I’m not going home with Ari.”
Everyone in the room went still. Ari squared her shoulders and seemed braced for a killing blow.
“Not right away,” Dale said. “I can’t. She got through to me on the plane, and I feel like myself for the first time in days, but that doesn’t change the fact that when I woke up this morning, I was disgusted by the idea of being in the same room with her. I wanted to hurt her. I wanted to hurt all of you, I didn’t care if all of you died because of me. I don’t know if that’s a switch that can be flipped, or if it’s going to stay flipped, or...”
“I get it,” Ari said, though she sounded on the verge of tears. “We need to be sure. I understand. We can call Diana and Lucy, see if you can stay with them. Or I could stay here and you could go home...”
“No, I think I need neutral territory. Puppy, please don’t think this is about you, or us, or--”
“I don’t. I know. It’s smart. I... I’ve just... missed you.”
Dale released Gwen and went to Ari. “I’m back, puppy. I just need to make sure I’m all the way back before I trust myself. I hope it won’t be long, I want to get back to normal, but I had some dark, awful thoughts...”
Ari laid two fingers across Dale’s lips. “I don’t care how long it takes for you to get back to me, as long as you’re walking in my direction.”
Dale hugged Ari, who tightened the embrace. “I’m
going to marry you, Ariadne. I’ve never wanted anything more than I want that.”
“I know.” She moved her lips so that only Dale would hear her when she said, “I love you, Dale. I never stopped loving you, no matter what happened. I want you to know that.”
Dale could only nod, worried anything else would make her start crying again.
When they eventually broke the embrace, Dale saw that Gwen and Milo had vanished at some point, no doubt silently vacating the room to give them some privacy.
“You can come out now,” Ari called.
Milo came out of the garage. “I thought I heard someone trying to steal my bike. Gwen was gonna scare ‘em off.”
“Sure,” Ari said. “I’m going to take Dale home. Let her pack, call Diana to make sure she’s okay with having a houseguest for an indefinite amount of time. And you can figure out what to do with this.”
She reached under her shirt and pulled out the book of essays, tossing it onto the kitchen counter. Dale hissed, and backed up a step. Ari looked at her, confused.
“You knew I had that.”
“I know. I saw you take it. But I... I don’t want to be anywhere near it.”
Gwen pulled a hand towel hanging off the front of the oven and wrapped it around the book. “We’ll figure out something to do with it. Get her out of here.”
Ari nodded and ushered Dale out of the house. Once the door was closed behind them, Dale stopped and took a deep breath.
“There are copies of the essays in my desk at work.”
“I’ll burn them,” Ari said.
Dale nodded and put her arm around Ari’s shoulders. “Thank you, puppy.” They started for the car. “Did you solve the case? The tapestry, did you find it?”
“Sort of. I figured out where it is. That’s enough for me.” She kissed Dale’s temple. “You gave me the key. You showed me who I needed to talk to, and he spilled everything.”
“Way to go, puppy. I want to hear the whole story. Maybe not right now, but... I really am curious.”
“It’ll be waiting to be told as soon as you’re ready to hear it.”
She got Dale into the passenger seat and walked around the back. They might not be out of the woods yet, but she was confident she had Dale back. Her Dale, the real Dale, the woman who gave her strength and helped her through even the darkest woods. Together they could fight against anything the world wanted to throw at them next.
###
A few days later, on Wednesday, Ari was back at the W outside Elizabeth Burroughs’ room. Elizabeth had called the night before asking for a meeting before she checked out. The whole mystery around Crossing-Over Place seemed like a thousand years ago, but Ari was willing to answer any questions she might have. Dale was welcomed at the Macallan home with open arms. Both Diana and Lucy insisted she was welcome to stay as long as necessary even before Ari explained their circumstances. She and Dale hadn’t seen each other in person since, though they talked frequently on the phone.
Ari spent Monday and Tuesday at home, staring at the TV while random Netflix shows streamed across the screen. She didn’t want to take any new cases without Dale there to help her, doubted she would be able to focus on anything long enough to make a difference, so she was using Vivian’s check to take an indefinite vacation.
Elizabeth answered the door in a pinstripe black suit with a low-cut silk blouse underneath, her hair pinned back. She smiled and motioned Ari inside, returning to the closet to remove another outfit.
“Thank you for dropping by, Miss Willow.”
“I’m happy to help you get any closure I can. The rest of the family?”
Elizabeth said, “Eleanor and Evie went home. We’re planning to get together again soon. Just to try it out. We can certainly afford the plane tickets. Preston has been pretty busy figuring out what to keep and what to sell in the house. He’s going to sell the whole thing when it’s been cleared out. He’ll get something a little more practical to live in.”
“Probably the smart thing to do,” Ari said.
“We all agree. It’s sad that the house won’t be in the family anymore, but... well, you got to know us pretty well. None of us are really the sentimental sort.”
“Right.” There was a lull in conversation. “So I hear Crossing-Over Place turned up.”
Elizabeth paused in folding her clothes and looked at Ari. “Yes. Very fascinating story about how that happened. Turns out we had another sister we never knew about. Mom gave her the tapestry to keep her quiet, made the fake so none of us would notice it was missing, but then she felt guilty about trying to freeze Megan out of her inheritance. And, surprise surprise, Megan has two kids. The Burroughs name gets to live on after all.”
Ari walked to the window and looked down at the street below. “That sounds crazy.”
“Yeah.” Elizabeth said. “The only thing crazier would be if Mom tracked down an orphan, someone who had tried to track down her birth mother through many different agencies. Someone who was the right age, who looked like us, who had the right blood type, and would be willing to change her name in exchange for a quarter-million dollars. But that would be really insane, wouldn’t it?”
“Seems like the easiest answer is probably right. Your mother had a child no one knew about and wanted to make amends. Everyone gets what they want in the end.”
Elizabeth nodded, still packing. “A lot of work. It would be a shame if there was a tiny little flaw in her plan. Something small and stupid that might come out after a few drinks with someone who is better at holding her liquor. I drink a lot of wine, Miss Willow. I can hold my liquor.”
“Uh-huh,” Ari said, not willing to commit one way or the other to what Elizabeth was saying.
“Megan Garfield was born when Mom was six weeks pregnant with me and Evelyn.”
Ari couldn’t help but laugh. Elizabeth laughed, too. Ari said, “I guess Megan was a nine out of ten in everything else, so they decided to fudge the numbers a little. Smooth trick, getting her drunk.”
Elizabeth shrugged. “I didn’t even really have to get her drunk. She was eager to get to know us all. I don’t think it was really about the money. I honestly think she’s excited to have sisters. We’re a family. That’s something she’s never had, something she’s spent a long time trying to find.”
“It doesn’t bother you that she took your mother’s money?”
“Where else should it have gone? Charity? Okay, so in that case it goes to help someone have a better life. It’s helping Megan have a better life. So where’s the harm? I mainly called you to see if I was right.”
Ari said, “So you’re not going to throw a wrench in your mother’s plan?”
“Why bother? She went to a lot of trouble to make this happen. No one is going to look too closely. Eleanor would only be upset if Megan was older than her, which would mean giving up the locket, but at least Mom was kind enough to let her stay the oldest. So now we’re five instead of four. Worse things could have happened.”
“That’s an excellent way of looking at it. A happy ending for everyone.”
Elizabeth said, “I do love happy endings.” She zipped up her suitcase. “How about you? Happy ending? Everything work out with that girl of yours?”
“It’s in the process of working out, yeah.”
“That’s great. I wish I’d gotten a chance to meet her.”
Ari said, “You mean... meet her, or...” She glanced at the bed. “Meet her?”
Elizabeth grinned suggestively. “Either one works. But if you’re worried that this was a wasted vacation, you can rest easy.”
“Good to know. Are you ready to go?”
“Yep, on my way out.”
Ari nodded at the door. “I’ll escort you.”
“So chivalrous.”
They walked together to the elevator and stepped into the empty car when it arrived. Once the doors were closed, she turned to look at Ari.
“Did you know it wasn’t really about the tapestry?”<
br />
“No,” Ari admitted. “It was a good mystery. It almost drove me crazy, but I couldn’t walk away.”
Elizabeth said, “Okay. But you knew none of us cared about it. We would have been willing to let you drop the case. You stuck with it because... you were bored?”
They arrived at the lobby and stepped out of the elevator. Ari thought about her answer before she spoke. “I spent a long time hating my mother for something she did to me when I was young. Recently I discovered something else about her, something I disagree with, but I’m trying very hard not to let it ruin our relationship. Your mother told me you were all monsters. You all told me your mother was hateful. You were all exaggerating, and you were all telling the truth. I guess I wanted to get the middle ground. I wanted to prove there could be a middle ground, because I need it in my own life if I want to maintain the relationship I’ve created with my mother.”
“Did you find it?”
“I don’t know. I know it felt good to see you and your sisters hugging on that porch swing. I know that recent events in my life would have gone a lot worse if my mother wasn’t there. I’m definitely going to try.”
“That’s great. I’m glad our family helped you get to that decision.”
Ari said, “It’s not such a bad family, you know.”
“Yeah, sure, Megan had to be paid a quarter of a million dollars just to say she was part of it.”
“Don’t go by her. I would call myself a Burroughs for half that.”
Elizabeth laughed. She called an Uber for the airport and Ari waited with her at the curb until the car arrived and took her away.
Ari rolled her shoulders and breathed in the breeze coming up Seneca Street from Elliott Bay. She started walking west with no destination in mind. No open cases to worry about, no Dale waiting for her at home, nothing to stop her from just wandering her city. She wasn’t far from Pike Place. She could find somewhere, call Dale, see if she wanted to meet up for lunch. It would be like a good old-fashioned date, the only silver lining to their current situation. The late night conversations, the dates, the making out in the car. She knew Dale was back, knew whatever the book had done to her was faded and forgotten, but she was willing to wait as long as it took until Dale was equally convinced.
