Sweat prickled at my forehead as I prodded at the thorny tangle of memories from that night. The fox, my car smashed and smoking, waking up to pain and darkness... Seeing so much black I thought I died, my soul trapped in a black nothingness until my eyes adjusted and saw something overhead. Trees? They were blocking out the stars above.
Focus! Focus on the fox.
The man, he was a man, but that was far as identifying facts went. He could have been wearing a tuxedo or a tutu or been buck naked, I only saw the impossible features on his face. The rest was a total blur.
“I’m sorry,” I said when we finished. “I wish I could be more helpful.”
His mouth moved upwards yet failed to fully turn into a smile. “You did just fine.” Nobody believed him.
Did he believe me? I hardly came across as helpful, let alone credible.
The car accident happened months ago. Only one witness with a spotty memory came forward. What hope was there of solving anything?
Seeing Chase shift triggered my memory of a fox shifter. I’d jumped on the idea, so eager to make sense of an event that still baffled me months later. But I rarely trusted my own mind these days. Why should this be an exception? What if it was all in my head?
Distracted and disturbed, I definitely ended up in the wrong place to meet Chase. A bullpen with busy people and no-nonsense haircuts.
"Hey, you lost?" A man stood from his seat, leaning over his desk to address me.
"Uh, I’m looking for Chase Sl—Agent Slate."
"Chase, huh?" The man chuckled as his grey eyes catalogued me. “Some advice?AgentSlate is reliable about half the time, butChase?He’s only good for once.” He winked in an imitation of the other man.
"W-what?"
"He doesn’t do repeatsever.Don’t take anything he promises too seriously."
We’re in this together.
The words ran through my mind even as I stumbled over explanations. "We-we’re not, I-I’m not… Um, I’m here to file a report?"
"…You’re not the temp dispatcher from our third floor?" As I shook my head, he cursed under his breath while realizing his mistake. “I’m sorry.”
"It’s okay. Nothing, nothing’s happening between me and, uh, between us." I didn’t want to get Chase in more trouble because of an office rumor.
"Good." The man swigged from his coffee cup. “Sleeping with a witness is seriously off limits, even if he’s dying to get on the fox case.” He nearly choked on his next mouthful. “God, what’s with me today? Let’s just pretend this didn’t happen, okay?”
I nodded and he let me go on my way, even though I still didn’t know where I was going. The smell of marinara sauce led me. I stumbled on a breakroom and someone heating leftovers instead of the cafeteria. A familiar voice reached my ears from inside.
“—not even a real case, all in his head.”
That… that did not sound good at all.
“—you’re upset?”
“Of course I am! Does he remember I’m an investigator, not a babysitter? If I’m stuck on the sidelines one more time, saddled with—"
That was enough of that conversation.
This was a mistake. For so many reasons, including Chase’s real opinions on the matter.
Even if he wasn’t interested, I thought he cared, I thought… no. He’d just inadvertently shared his true feelings with me. I amounted to no more than an annoyance, a chore he felt stuck with. I’d happily unburden him.
It was time to get out of here.
6.Foxes and the Hounds who Don’t Love Them
Chase
