by Mikea Howard
“Eh, who’s buzzin’?” someone called from behind the door.
Sadie tapped her alpha’s chest with her palm saying, “I’ll do the talking.” Not waiting for his approval, she turned back around.
A man with slicked back hair and an unshaven face answered. “Whatcha want, babe?”
“I’m lookin’ for the fella that flopped here, named Oldrich.”
Rubbing his chin, glancing up at Domek suspiciously, he addressed her. “Whatcha want with him?” Nodding at Dom, he asked, “He a Dick?”
Sadie elbowed her alpha, preventing him from cutting in. “Nah, he’s my fire extinguisher. You seen him though?”
“Just cause you’re a looker, I’ll tell ya ta check with JayJay downstairs in the drum. Doan tell him I sent ya though. Savvy?”
“Thanks, you’re the bee’s knees for this.” Smiling, she grabbed Domek’s hand, pulling him down six flights.
“What in the night skies was that about?” Dom practically roared.
Sadie smiled up at him. “A lead on whom to ask next.”
Domek muttered something about how he should at least understand their conversation since he stood right there.
Pretending his statement didn’t reach her ears she strode into the speakeasy. Still holding his hand, she dragged him up to the back corner bar.
“Hey, I’m lookin’ for JayJay,” she said to the man drying glasses.
“Ya lookin’ for a new goof? Cause I’m a better catch than that daisy.”
Winking at him, Sadie motioned toward Domek. “I already got my own sheik, right here.”
“So you’re already rationed. Whatcha want with him then?” He gave her a gimlet eye. “Ya workin’ with the coppers or something. Cause I ain’t gonna finger him.”
Sadie laughed. “No, just lookin’ for a friend.”
He smiled. “All right dollface, he’s the bird over there, trying to talk up that moll.”
“Thank you.” Turning to translate for Domek, she caught a frown on his face. She smiled resisting bubbling mirth, but gave up when he threw his hands up in the air.
“Seriously, Sadie. What is going on?” he growled.
Coughing out, “Oh goddess, I’m sorry.” Trying to pull back her laughter and catching her breath, she explained, “So that guy in the corner may know where Oldrich is.”
“Okay, I guess you should go speak in ‘not English.’ Find out where we’re going, and if he makes eyes at you like the last two did, he’s getting punched. I can only tolerate so much, Sadie. These men keep insisting on pushing it. I don’t care what information he has, he’d better watch it.”
Sadie’s stomach fluttered with a thrill at his words, she didn’t care about other men, but hearing Domek express jealousy was the cat’s particulars. Familiarity hit her as they approached the man indicated as JayJay. She knew him as Jason, had fixed up his car for him, and Dom had nothing to worry about.
That bartender calling him a ‘daisy’ made sense, becoming even clearer when his ‘moll’ turned around. He spoke to an exquisite man in a dress. She couldn’t compete with that skirt in a number of ways in JayJay’s eyes.
Sadie elbowed Domek again expecting an already opened mouth ready to say something. His grunt indicated that she may have been wrong, because he clearly didn’t expect a knock in the gut.
As they got closer, Jason’s eyes lit up in recognition. His eyes traveled back to the beast behind her, and his growing smile faded.
Muttering in a low voice, “I don’t owe you no lettuce, why you bringing your bruiser, Sadie?”
At her laugh, he turned his eyes up, seeing her smile. “Hey, Jason, this is my friend, Domek.”
“I ain’t a maroon. You ain’t nailing me for somethin’ are ya?”
“Nope, we’re looking for Oldrich. Word is you may know where to find him.”
“Sadie, ya know I think you’re a fine broad, but this kinda stuff puts me behind the eight ball. Plus I’m on the nut, so this’ll take some cabbage. You wanna nibble one while we talk about it?”
Glancing at Domek, she asked, “Do you want a drink?” At his glare, she said, “Okay, do you want to buy Jason one? Corn?”
He eyed Jason, and waited for the man’s nod then walked to the bar.
Jason looked skeptical. “So what’s my mecha doin’ witha mug like that?”
Shooting a glare at him. “You know you wish you had a mug like that.” While she didn’t believe Domek dumb in the slightest, letting Jason assume it for now would be prudent.
“Ah, he does have a nice puss, is he on active duty? Cause I do like that.”
“Jason, no more feathers. I need Oldrich,” Sadie stressed, as her alpha approached. Although he could hear every word from across the room, she happily waited for him before getting any real information.
As Domek placed bourbon in front of him, Jason said, “Right, enough static. I need at least one C for that information.”
“Jason, I ain’t a chump. That’s too much for finding.” Glancing at Domek, she waited for his nod before negotiating on his behalf again. “Half.”
“I’d argue with any other dame, but you were fair pricing to fix my Flivver. Half, then I’ll give you the address. But listen up, we here like Oldy, so doan send him off on the lam again. If you’re tryin’ to pop him off . . .” He eyed Sadie’s dismayed face. “Well doan let your goof hurt him. Kay?”
Sadie glanced at Domek, as he muttered, “I wouldn’t even know how to hurt an owl.”
Palm out, she stood facing her alpha. “Fifty.” He chuckled, handing over the money, which she in turn slammed down on the table, her hand resting on top of it.
“Address?”
Jason provided Oldrich’s new location, nodding when she said, “You sure?” Sadie smiled. “It really was ducky seein’ you again.”
Conscious of how intimidation only worked because of Domek, she still liked that he didn’t take her for a dumbdora.
Chapter 32
As they exited, Domek turned to her asking, “You know where that is?”
She continued walking but answered, “It’s just a couple blocks northwest of here.” Chewing on her bottom lip she nervously snuck quick glances his way as they trekked up the street.
Grabbing her hand, Dom spoke, “You know I didn’t need to be elbowed in the bar. We have men who like men, and women who like women in our pack right?”
“What?”
“I assume you appear uncomfortable because you thought I cared Jason was gay.”
Sadie couldn’t help herself, laughing out loud. “What?!”
“Apparently, I don’t know. What had you acting so worried after walking out of that bar?”
Taking a deep breath, Sadie remembered she spoke to her alpha, who would not only sense, but would not tolerate any lack of honesty. She unloaded every worry at once. “Are you mad at the diesel-speak, that I led you around, or treated you like meat, that I spent the packs money, and what if he lied?!”
Domek laughed. “Are we in a part of town where people are concerned about what someone else might be doing?”
Sadie’s peepers slanted at speakeasies, gin joints, and even bordellos in the vicinity. “Definitely not. Why?”
Within seconds, Domek had her against the nearest building, grabbing her ass and hiking her up so his thigh could rub against her pussy. He kissed her soundly, pushing his tongue into her mouth with the same rhythm she rode his leg.
Still in control while driving Sadie nearly to the edge in seconds, he pulled back. “Not here.” Placing a gentle kiss on her face he murmured, “You were so sexy in there, negotiating for your alpha. Do not even imagine, for one moment that you disappointed me.”
Pulling back he took his time lowering her, with a look that said ‘we�
��ll finish this later’. Sadie, sure soot covered her back from being pressed against dirty bricks, couldn’t care less about a soiled outfit. She smirked, leading him up the road two blocks north, but closer to the river.
Sadie motioned toward a building directly across from the dock on the water. “Well this is the address. Please tell me you smell owl.”
At his pleased expression, she took a deep breath, noting a dusty odor and smiled back. Domek said, “That smell, little rabbit, is an owl. Let’s check if he’s home,” knocking on the door.
Shuffling sounded on the door’s other side before being answered. The entrance revealed a short, stooped over man with a full, long, white beard. He had on thick horn rimmed glasses making his eyes big and round.
He already looks like an owl.
Harrumphing he stated, “There you are. I expected you two days ago, what took you so long?” Neither Sadie nor Domek could reply as the bird, Oldrich, turned around and walked back into the house calling, “Close the door behind you.”
Sadie squinted in question at Domek who shrugged saying, “Owls.”
She followed Dom in, turning to close the door. As it clicked shut most of the noise from outside disappeared, like someone turned the volume almost all the way down. Blessed silence. Spinning around to Domek with wide eyes, full of excitement, she grinned. He took a deep breath, cracked a huge smile, then held his hand out to her and waited. When she grasped his fingers, he turned, heading into the living room.
“You may as well sit down,” Oldrich called from the kitchen. “You want tea?”
When she shook her head no, Domek replied, “No thank you,” and pulled her in close to him on the couch.
Sadie studied the place. Some kind of fabric covered each wall, which she assumed blocked the noise. Knick-knacks and newspapers filled every single inch of the space. While it might’ve been an organized area, too much stuff crowded the room to know. She tried putting together how he could have accumulated so much stuff. Oldrich couldn’t have lived here for long if they received correct information. It didn’t seem likely that he’d move all this stuff with him.
Startled, she faced the owl when he groaned, flopping into the chair across from her. He tossed the glasses rubbing his eyes bringing his gaze up to her and Domek. His peepers were still big; it wasn’t the spectacles making them appear that way. Thick eyebrows popped up off his face like horns accentuating his eyes further.
“Stupid glasses. I don’t need ‘em.” Pointing at himself with a dramatic gesture. “Owl eyes. But they mask my features a bit, makes it easier. All us birds that can shift have a harder time blending.”
“Oh. I bet not having to listen to the rumble of town helps too. What’s on the walls blocking the noise?”
“I don’t know.” At her perplexed expression Oldrich sighed. “Look girl, I’m a Great Horned Owl. We don’t make our nests, we take someone else's. Noise bothered them, not me, so they put it up. I made it my own, by adding some of those figurines over there though.” He pointed in the corner.
She glanced at Domek then viewed the tchotchkes. “Oh those are nice.”
Sadie jumped at the burst of loud laughter following her words. When she turned back toward him he had a huge smile, eyes twinkling with tears. “Do I look like I’d collect those stupid things?” He shook his head, wiping away tears from his cheeks, and continued, “Those belonged to the hawk that used to live here, the little hoarder. I’m just teasing you. Anyway, I guess you found JayJay since you found me. I told him he could let you two know when you came askin’.”
“What!” Sadie screeched, “He made us pay him!”
Domek laughed at her outrage as Oldrich cracked a smile. “He’s a good soul, trust me. JayJay wants to be a fakaloo artist or somesuch, but he won’t, just needs to stay away from the wrong crowds.” Giving Sadie a stern expression he added, “Like you should have. Quite a pickle you’re in girl.”
He focused on Domek. “I know what you’re lookin’ for. You ready to talk price?”
Chapter 33
Domek forgot how unnerving owls could be. Or rather, how unnerving someone with ‘sight’ could be. Not all owls had it. He’d previously met only one other that had soul sight; details he’d suppressed bubbled to the surface of his psyche.
Domek sat and watched as Eridon paced the kitchen waiting for the owl to pour them some tea. They had traveled for days in search of Otik, and it had taken some huffing and puffing to convince him that it was okay letting two wolves in. Owl Shifters, are only born, not made, the rarest of them being Barn Owls. The goddess allowed just one Barn Owl Shifter birth every decade. Needless to say, it made them a tad paranoid. Hence, it took almost an hour of discussion through the door to convince Otik that they were allies.
“Life as a sickly human child was not kind,” the long limbed, pale faced man with reddish blond hair and beak of a nose stated while handing a cup of tea to the beta. “It stains your soul, wolf.”
“Living without proper medicine could never be kind, owl. But that was life in the Scrub encampment. Blue Wolf’s residents were strong, requiring no modern medicine, but our parents thought, we, as humans, could live the same way. It taught me to survive until . . .” Domek knew what was left out, and so did Otik.
Easing his gaze in Domek’s direction, Otik continued, “Until you convinced a member that you would be an asset to his pack, as a wolf. However, you were not completely honest with them were you?”
Eridon took offense, his voice rumbled, “What do you mean? I have the ability to outthink anyone. I keep us one-step ahead of any enemy. I have always been honest about my ability, and proved it many times. How else could I’ve moved up in the pack?”
Otik’s solid black eyes focused intently on the beta as his head, shoulders, then torso did a little shimmy. Shaking as though something distasteful had hit his senses and he needed it off, now. Domek found the move reminiscent of birds shaking water from their feathers. Perhaps he had a disliking for ‘made’ Shifters. He’d heard it rumored that ‘born only’ species had a tendency toward prejudice.
The owl replied, “You felt weak, powerless, so you found things weaker and more powerless. Hurting them made you superior. You wanted to be a wolf so things stronger than you as a human, would be comparatively feeble.” Leaving the kitchen, Otik sat himself in his entry room addressing Domek. “Is that why you came so far seeking my counsel, Alpha? You knew, yet you hoped he could change?”
“He has been trained . . . No longer hurts things just to take pleasure in their pain.”
“But, Alpha, there is no difference between physical and psychological pain.” Otik had turned his black eyes onto him, peering into his soul this time. “This man has hurt one so much mentally, that they hurt themselves physically, hasn’t he?”
Domek thought of Karel, Kara’s twin sister, and her hollow sad eyes. She’d stopped interacting with the pack and began cutting herself . . . Moving away, he returned to the kitchen where Eridon still nervously paced while sipping his tea. He appeared wrapped up in his own contemplations, processing the owl’s statements.
Otik leaned in close to Domek, speaking in a low tone, “Some souls are born black, dear Alpha, and you just can’t save them.” He glanced in Eridon’s direction. “I need to speak in private with you about something. Something Gaia herself imprinted in your soul, Alpha. If you will please follow me.”
The lanky man stood, leading Domek across his house to a bedroom, and closed the door behind them. “Your soul has been fated.”
“Fated? How? Being more specific would be helpful, owl.”
“Our goddess has already picked which thread yours will be entwined with, the other half of your soul. From the city of diesel she will bring change to wolves with hammer, wrench, strength of mind and will. Thus in turn make you an even stronger presence in the
world of Shifters.”
“That is nonsense. Gaia and her fates don’t meddle in the lives of wolves. Nor would she taint me with a heretic dieselhead woman . . .” Domek stopped as both of their ears perked up at a creak outside the door.
Otik opened it quickly but no one stood there so they headed back. Eridon no longer paced, he leaned against the counter drinking his tea, woolgathering. Despite his appearance of calm, his pulse beat hard against his neck while taking shallow breaths.
Their already reluctant host squinted at the beta as he spoke under his breath to the alpha, “I ken you have a good soul. You want to believe the best, that there is hope. But I must warn you wolf, be wary of him.”
Domek mumbled, “From the city of diesel . . . hammer, wrench, strength of mind and will . . .” under his breath when the memory faded. His consciousness returned to the here and now, in Eureka, with an older, larger owl staring at him.
Sadie’s hand grasped his arm, regarding him with concern. “Alpha, are you ok?”
“Hi-de-ho, Alpha. Did you bring us something from your trip?” The old owl chuckled, pleased with his joke.
“Price, we were talking about your price for the information we seek,” Dom said shaking free of the old memory. “Before I agree to a price, I need proof that you have what we need. I agree to nothing until then.”
