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I nodded. What else was there to say? A simple look at history made clear that there were always those who would hate based on any reason—race, religion, gender, culture, political ideology. Hate was a thread through much of history, and I had my doubts that it would ever vanish. SAFARI was the hate group that was creating trouble here, but there were countless others in history and there would be others yet to come.
“Sadly, we can’t turn all the haters into swine.”
“It’s easier than slaughter,” Beatrice said. “It wears off, incidentally. My hope is that they’ll reflect on their errors and feel remorse. Remorse will return them to human shape.”
“So pigs and gators, hmm?” I thought about Sir George.
“The occasional serpent, a few squirrels . . . oh, and I restored the bison for a while. Created enough of them to help repopulate the Bad Lands.” Beatrice continued striding through the crowd. “Iggy has a few usual spells and hexes to share with you, as do I.”
“Is that what you intend to do with the SAFARI group?”
She laughed again. “No, dear. I intend to torture them until I know everything and feed them to George.”
“Oh.” I swallowed hard. I was squeamish, but torture wasn’t something I could embrace. Hell, the last person who attempted to kill me was my assistant these days. “And Daphne?”
Beatrice patted my cheek, but she said nothing else.
As we patrolled, redirecting tourists, seeking Daphne, and looking for straydraugrnoshing on tourists, I decided that some questions were best left unanswered.
Chapter Twenty-Five
By the timewe arrived at Bill’s Tavern, I was no closer to answers than when I’d started the day. We’d killed severaldraugr, which didn’t bother Beatrice.
“Obedience leads to longevity under my rule.” She wiped blood from her face with a silk handkerchief that she then tucked in a pocket. “Never leave blood behind unless you nullify it. Quite a few unpleasant compulsions can be wrought with enough of a victim’s blood.”
I pushed away thoughts of all the places I’d bled over the years.
“Geneviève!” Jesse grabbed me as we walked toward the bar, scooping me up in a hug.
“Dead lady,” I whispered in warning as I was in his embrace.
When he put me down, he stood so as not to block my ability to draw a weapon.
“I gave her those weapons, child.” Beatrice sounded calm, but Jesse didn’t recognize that she was being friendly. I could see his pulse pounding faster.
“He’s mine, grandmother.” I put my hand on Jesse’s arm. “This man, the women with him, they are my family as much as Mama Lauren. I would slaughter the nation for them.”
She nodded, understanding the weight of my repeating her words to Eli. “I am only here to collect the Chaddock man. These others are yourloyalminions, and so safe from me.”
“Minion?” Jesse echoed.
I ignored him. “I need a drink.”
“Rough day at the office?” came a voice from behind me.
And there was Eli. I all but melted into his embrace, tilting my head to invite a kiss. He brushed his lips over mine, still not excessive on public displays of affection.
“Honey, I’m home,” I said as we pulled apart. “Did you miss me?”
“Did I miss a memo?” Jesse asked. “I mean, I know you were together but—"
Eli and I exchanged a look. He shrugged. This was my decision, my friends.
“I need to freshen up,” Beatrice said, walking away to give me privacy.
A long moment passed as I tried to figure out exactly what to say. Finally, I settled on simple and direct. “We’re married.” I took Eli’s hand. “It’s done.”
Jesse’s eyes widened. “Whoa! You eloped or—"
