Page 33 of Out of My Flocking Mind

“Just dumb luck, I guess.”

“At least you got the dumb part right.”

“Rude.” I sat on top of one desk, thankful to sit at least. I still felt like shit. “What are you even doing here?”

“You really want to ask me that when I catch you selling drugs to children.” The way he said that last part, the emphasis, made me want to laugh. Sure, anything sounded bad when someone said it in that tone.

Not that there was a good way to say that specific set of words.

“It’s for a good reason,” I pointed out.

Galen shook his head and rubbed his face. “I got word that there was a person at the school selling to Weres. Imagine my surprise to find you behind it.”

I smiled and held my hands out like jazz fingers. “Surprise!”

Not even a smile… “Come on, Grey, out with it. What are you doing here?”

“She’s helping me.”

I twisted at the new voice to find Harrison in the doorway. He used a different tone from the one I’d grown used to, the one he used when speaking just to me. It reminded me just how much frostier he was when dealing with others.

And in the same way, Galen’s voice dropped lower. What was this, some dick measuring contest?

I could get behind that sort of contest, just so long as I got to be the judge.

Of course, size wasn’t everything. That was like judging a cake contest without getting to try it!

No, focus!

I shook away the thought, but Harrison’s narrowed gaze said he’d probably guessed my line of thought.

“What is she helping you with?” Galen asked.

“It is a Mind issue. I have no reason to answer to you.”

“She isn’t a Mind,” Galen pointed out.

“And neither is she a Were.”

“She,” I said, breaking into their little fight, “is also right here and able to speak for herself.”

Both men looked my way, giving me the briefest of glances before returning to glare at each other.

Galen spoke first. “You have her here, endangering herself and the lives of others. I have to guess you were the one to make this?” He held up an empty bag with my sticker on the front. “I took it off a pack kid yesterday, and they let me know they’d gotten it here. Just what have you gotten her involved in?”

“I’m pretty sure I’m the one who gets others involved. I’m not some damsel in distress who others have to worry about. I’m not part of the problem—I am the whole damned problem, thank you very much.” I crossed my arms, pouting as the two promptly ignored me.

Harrison pulled his shoulders back, a low energy rushing through the room, a warning—which was a really bad sign.

The last thing we needed was these two assholes getting into some sort of fight here. Not only was it bad for our cover, but bad shit happened when council heads got into it. That tended to cause issues like wars, and it was never those in charge who paid the ultimate price for that.

“Let’s all calm down,” I said quickly, lifting my hands to settle them. “No reason to get testy here.”

The look they each gave me suggested they didn’t come close to agreeing, and boy, did that not help my headache.

“Galen, I’m here because there’s an issue with Cloud getting sold to kids here. You’ve seen that yourself.”

“I’ve seen your Cloud sold here,” he pointed out the difference.

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