by Charley Case
“Oh, uh, Stephanie Hess,” Finn said, giving the receptionist a smile and leaning an elbow on the counter surrounding the desk. “What’s your name, by the way?”
The young woman began typing and flashed a smile. “Gretchen. I’m sorry, I didn't catch your names.”
“Oh, I’m agent McLain, and this is agent,” Finn glanced at Mila, his beard parting in a huge smile, “Vallon. We just wrapped up a big case in Hawaii chasing down some communists.”
Mila raised an eyebrow, obviously confused. Finn realized she must not have seen the movie he was referencing. Granted, it wasn’t one of the most famous Duke films, but it was worth seeing. He would have to sit her down and make her watch it with him.
“Communists?” Gretchen asked, spinning around and loading the printer’s paper tray. “I thought the Red Scare was, like, a hundred years ago.”
Mila rolled her eyes at Finn. “It wasn't quite a hundred years ago, but it was a long time ago. Far before our time.” She gave Finn a knowing stare, trying to force him to stay on track. “Agent McLain is pulling your leg. We can't talk about our cases with civilians.”
Pulling a couple of sheets from the printer, Gretchen turned and handed them to Mila. “Oh, that’s funny,” she said without humor. “I’ll let the dean know you stopped by. We want to be helpful to law enforcement, but we still need to document everything. Is there a number where he can reach you if he has questions?”
Mila was prepared for the question and pulled out a small piece of paper with the number for the FBI headquarters in Washington. When Preston said he would take care of it, she had been much more into the idea.
Gretchen stared at the paper and nodded. “Okay. Let us know if there is anything else you two need.”
Finn nodded, putting his sunglasses back on with a flourish. “The only thing we need is a case to follow and a bad guy to apprehend.”
Gretchen cocked her head to the side and blinked in confusion.
Mila rolled her eyes. “Come on, McLain. We have bad guys to get. Thanks for all your help, Gretchen.”
“Sure. No problem.” She waved. “Have fun.”
Mila led the way outside and turned on Finn as soon as they were out of view. “What the fuck was that all about? If that girl had had any kind of clue, we would have been found out in a split second. And what was that about chasing down communists in Hawaii?”
Finn chuckled. “It’s the plot to Big Jim McLain.”
She put a hand over her eyes and shook her head. “Let me guess. A John Wayne movie?”
Finn reached out and gave her shoulder a squeeze. “Haven’t you learned that there’s a Duke movie for all occasions?”
“I’m beginning to see that. They may not always be a perfect fit, but you seem to have a talent for forcing them into shape. Come on, let’s take a look at this schedule and let Penny know whats going on. She was not happy to be left in the car.”
Finn started walking. “Yeah, I’ve seen a lot of FBI movies, and not once have they had a dragon for a partner.”
“Well, Bruce Lee played an agent in a movie called Enter the Dragon, but that’s about as close as I can get,” Mila said, opening the door to the Hellcat.
“Shir?” Penny asked. The box of Charleston Chews they had left with her sat empty in the cupholder.
“Yup. We got it.” Mila shook the papers in her hand. “It was easier than I thought it was going to be.”
Finn climbed into the passenger seat and took the schedule when Mila handed it to him, so she could start the car. Penny climbed onto Finn's shoulder and read along with him.
“It says here she’s in the Engineering School,” Finn commented.
“Chi. Squee, shir.” Penny pointed halfway down the schedule.
“Oh, yeah. That’s in fifteen minutes,” Finn said, checking the clock on the dash.
“What is?” Mila asked, pulling out of the parking lot and onto the access road.
“She has a Calculus IV class in a few minutes, and she’s coming from a lab across campus.” Finn pulled up the map of the university Penny had found online. “If we go sit in this outdoor area, we’ll be able to see her walking between buildings.”
“We still don't know what she looks like,” Mila argued. “Not really.”
“Her student ID photo is in here.” He held up the papers, showing the grainy photo.
Mila glanced at the image then the map when they stopped at a stop sign. “It’s not a very good photo, but it’ll do. I think I can park in the lot over there.” She turned on her signal and took a right. Three minutes later, they were walking towards the area Finn had pointed out.
“Stay in the hammock, Penny. I have a feeling you would draw a crowd of gawkers. Probably try to snatch you up and take you to a lab or something.” Finn joked, receiving an eye roll form both Penny and Mila, but she did climb into the mesh hammock under his jacket.
“We should use a concealment for Penny. That way, she could come out in public more.”
Finn shook his head, a stern look on his face. “You can't say that.” He whispered. “Dragons are far too proud to have their looks concealed. That would be like me asking you to put on clown makeup when you go out.”
“Well, if I was infiltrating a gang of clowns…” Mila shrugged, letting the rest go unsaid.
“Shir chi.” Pennys muffled voice said.
Mila chuckled. “Okay. I get it. No need to call me a clown. My everyday makeup isn’t that heavy.”
Chapter Fourteen
Finn found them a bench under a large tree that had kept most of the snow off the seat. After brushing off what was left, he and Mila sat down. Penny climbed out of her hammock and sat beside Finn. He kept his jacket over her, so she stayed out of sight.
Classes were going, so the area was relatively empty, save for a few small groups moving between buildings. Finn began scanning the groups but didn't see any read heads. In fact, he was having trouble seeing any hair.
“This might be harder than I thought. Everyone has a hat on.” Finn said, reaching for his Charleston Chews, only to realize that Penny ate them all in the car.
“Well, it is winter. People tend to wear hats this time of year.”
Finn grumped at not having his candies on hand. “Well, it’s damn inconvenient.”
Mila laughed. “Not if you have cold ears. Speaking of which, I need to get a hat myself. Especially if we’re going to be sitting outside a lot. My Mexican blood is complaining louder than my Idaho blood.” She cupped her fingers over her nose to keep it from freezing off.
“It’s not even that cold.”
She scooted closer to him for warmth. “Said like a true four hundred pound person. You produce more heat than our whole condo.”
“Plus, we dwarves handle hot and cold temperatures better than most.”
“So you keep reminding me.” She said, worming her way under his arm. “I think you forget just how little meat I have on my bones.”
He squeezed her close. “You have enough meat for me.”
“Such a charmer.” She laughed. “I think it's about time.”
The doors to several buildings crowded as groups of students piled out.
Finn focused on faces, still scanning for red hair, but there were so many students he was having trouble differentiating them.
Mila narrowed her eyes but kept her hands cupped over her nose. “I don't see her. There are so many people.”
Penny chuckled, looking at the two of them like they were blind, and pointed. “Shir? Chi chi.”
Finn and Mila followed the talon and immediately spotted Stephanie. She wasn't even wearing a hat, her bright red curls shining in the afternoon sun like a beacon.
“Oh, right. I see her,” Finn said. “No need to ask how my eyes are doing.”
“Chi?”
“Yes, I’m sure.” He chuckled. “Man, you’re a jerk sometimes.”
“She’s our jerk, though, and I wouldn't want it any other way,” Mila said, reaching a
cross Finn and giving Penny a fist bump.
“So, how do we do this?” Finn asked, getting down to business. “It looks like she’s with half a dozen other girls. Do we just go up and pull her to the side?”
Mila pulled the runic paper from her jacket pocket. “Sure. We have badges and everything.”
“Let’s hang back a second. I want to see if I can detect any magic coming from her,” Finn said, opening himself up so he could see her aura.
As soon as his vision changed ever so slightly, he lost sight of Stephanie. He blinked and returned his view to normal, and she was there again. He switched back and forth, but to Finn's shock, she didn't have an aura at all.
“How is that even possible?” he muttered.
“How is what possible?” Mila asked, watching the attractive young woman walk across the brick walkway with her friends.
“She doesn't have an aura.”
“So, she doesn’t have access to her magic?” Mila guessed.
Finn shook his head. “No, even a Peabrain that hasn't awoken has an aura. Everyone has one. I think hers is being hidden on purpose.”
Penny pointed to the side, poking Finn to get his attention. “Squee.”
Finn glanced over and saw a tall man in a long black wool coat, flanked by five men and women dressed in campus police uniforms.
“Shit,” Finn grumbled. “The fun police.”
“I’m pretty sure they’re the regular police,” Mila quipped, standing along with Finn as the group approached.
“Shir shee. Squee chi,” Penny whispered as she dug into Finn's pocket and pulled out a quarter before scurrying off the bench and up the tree behind them.
“Penny wants us to keep them busy for a minute,” Finn said out of the side of his mouth.
“Why?” Mila said back, her lips not moving.
“She’s going to put a tracker of Stephanie,” was all he could say before the group was upon them.
The man in the overcoat had an angry look on his face that only got worse when he saw the two of them whispering to one another.
“You two. Stop right there.” He shouted, a little too loudly for as close as they were.
Several of the students noticed the exchange and, in true young person fashion, stopped to watch. Finn glanced to the side and saw that Stephanie was one of them, but he also caught the blue glimmer of Penny flying high overhead.
“What can we do for you…” Finn let the question linger.
“Dean Gurtz.” The tall coated man said, brushing back a head full of black hair. “And, who may I ask are you? Because your FBI story didn't check out. They don't seem to know you from Adam. My assistant told me you stole a student’s file earlier. I will need that back immediately.”
“I’m sorry, Gretchen told you we stole the file?” Finn asked, his eyebrow raised. “She printed it out for us. We showed her our badges and everything.” Finn pulled out his ‘badge’ and flipped it open for the Dean to see.
The man cocked an eyebrow looking from the paper to Finn. “That is just a piece of paper with some runes drawn on. I don't suppose you have a real badge in that ratty coat?”
Finn blinked, looking at the paper in his hand. It had never not worked before. He held the paper up to his face and stared at it. The runes should have been glowing purple with his power, but they had a slight green tinge to them.
Stuffing the paper in his pocket, he glanced at the group of police behind the dean and was shocked to see that two of them were elves, their ears on display poking up past their black caps. The other three looked human, but he quickly saw their auras come into focus and noted that two of them were Kashgar, and the third was a witch.
Finn sniffed and smelled the taint of dark magic all over them.
“We’re sorry that the main office didn't corroborate our story,” Mila stepped forward, speaking when Finn didn't respond, “but you know how it is with agents in the field. We have to keep things secret. It’s our job.”
Finn narrowed his eyes and saw that the dean was not what he appeared either. Finn had no idea how he had missed it at first, but this man was clearly a Kashgar, and he was mired in dark magic. It clung to him so thickly Finn felt like he could reach out and wipe some off with a finger. How had he missed this?
Glancing over towards Stephanie, who was staying at the edge of the crowd, Finn noticed Penny walking towards the young woman. The small dragon stumbled once, but leaped up onto Stephanie’s backpack and dropped a coin into one of the pockets. Penny blinked a few times, then retreated to the bricks and ran for everything she had towards the parking lot.
Why wasn't she flying? And Finn had only ever seen her stumble when she was drunk (not on alcohol; dragons can't get drunk on spirits) and only when she had been on a bender when they first met while trying to drown her sorrows. That stumble was more concerning than the fact that the dean was obviously in the employ of Hellena.
Finn's eyes went wide, and he snapped his head back around to see that Mila and the dean were starting to argue in earnest. Finn interrupted by holding out the schedule to the dean.
“Here.” Finn nearly threw the papers at him. “We’re sorry the head office was giving you trouble. We have what we need. Thank you. Come on, Agent Vallon. We need to go.”
To Mila's credit, she didn't even argue, just turned and followed Finn closely. The crowd of students seemed disappointed that nothing more was going to happen, and the dean and his people were all slightly slack-jawed at the turnaround.
“What the hell was that?” Mila asked, making a point not to turn around.
“You know how magic is getting all twisted?”
She nodded. “Yeah. Oh, my god. Is that why they dropped their concealment spells? I thought they were trying to intimidate us or something.”
Finn shook his head. “Nope. Magic was all fucked up back there. It’s why my paper didn't work, and I think Penny lost her ability to fly. Not to mention the dean and his cronies stunk of the Dark Star’s magic. They were her people.”
Mila frowned. “She sent a fake dean over to drive us away?”
“I don't think so. I think Hellena has the actual dean on her payroll. Probably has him looking out for Stephanie. He never called the FBI. If he had, Preston’s people would have told him we were legit. This woman has her fingers deep in this school.”
They came to the car and found Penny on the hood, her eyes a little glassy.
“You okay?” Finn asked, leaning down and lifting her chin so he could look into her eyes.
“Chi,” Penny said, a smoke ring rising from a nostril.
“Did you lose control of your magic?” Mila asked, unlocking the car and opening the door.
Penny nodded. “Shir. Chi squee.” She held up her arms, and Finn picked her up like a child, carrying her around to the passenger side.
“I bet it was scary,” Finn said, patting her back. “You’re practically all magic. That could have been really dangerous for you.”
They climbed in, and Mila started the car, pulling out of the space and heading for the exit.
“I think we have a tail,” Mila said, looking in the rearview mirror.
Finn turned to see a campus police car tailing them. “Just get us off-campus. They won’t be able to do much once we leave.”
Mila stepped on it, taking the curved road out to the main streets at speed, making the tail have to cut someone off to get out of the parking lot in time. By the time he caught up with them, Mila had them headed down the main drag out of town.
She was so focused on the cop behind them, Mila nearly hit a jacked-up black truck that pulled out in front of her. She swerved and passed in the left lane.
“What the fuck? Don't people know how to drive around here?” She shouted, looking to see that the first truck had been joined by a second identical black truck. A third pulled out from a side street to join the convoy.
“Fuck. I think we have a new tail,” she said, her eyes wide.
“Just be cool
. We can still get out of here without a fight.”
The dragon snapped her neck to the side, making it crack all the way up. She smiled and gave a thumbs up.
“That is so gross,” Finn said, a look of disgust on his face. “You know I hate when you do that.”
Penny just shrugged.
Mila pulled up to a stoplight, still watching the trucks as they slowly changed lanes so that one was to either side and one behind them.
“I don't like the look of this, Finn.”
The truck on the driver's side pulled up, and they could see the passenger was wearing the same black fatigues the Dark Star’s men had at the lake house. Finn glanced over to his side, and it was more of the same. He glanced past the truck and saw two more trucks barreling down the side street they were stopped at, obviously going to try and box them in.
“Hey, Mila. You know how I said play it cool?”
“Yeah.”
“I was wrong. Get us the fuck out of here.” He pointed at the incoming trucks.
“Oh, fuck yeah. I always wanted an excuse to use the Cat in a car chase. Life has gotten so much better now that you and Penny are here.” Mila had an evil grin on her face.
She dropped the Hellcat into sport shifting mode and floored it. The engine roared, spinning the tires while the traction control tried to compensate for all 700 plus horsepower going to the back wheels. After a second, the black Challenger rocketed out of its own tire smoke, running the red light, and passing the two incoming trucks well before they had a chance to block it in.
To Finn's horror, Mila’s shouted, “Wahooo!” was barely audible over the screaming engine.
Chapter Fifteen
The heavy Hellcat danced between slower-moving cars, rocking on its stiff chassis, trying to keep the weight evenly distributed as the engine poured on the speed.
Finn’s knuckles were white where he gripped the center console and door handle tight enough he was afraid he might crush them. Penny was pinned to his chest in the violent acceleration and had her mouth open wide as she panted with fear. Mila was having the time of her life.
