Page 10 of The Pushy Pixies Are Going Down
And second of all, why the hell was a faerie food delivery company picking something up from a sanctuary? Shouldn’t they be the ones giving the sanctuary food? Not the other way around.
I looked at the rest of the photos and paid more attention to the timestamps. From everything I could see, the supposeddeliverytruck was picking up things of varying sizes every time they stopped by.
When I flipped to the last page of the folder and read over the notes, I shook my head in disgust. According to everything Higgins researched, Faerie Friends Food Supply didn’t even exist.
The business wasn’t registered, there was no website, no social media presence, no phone number, nothing.
So then who in the hell was picking up things from the sanctuary, and why were they doing it in a fake business truck?
What I wouldn’t give for some X-ray vision right now. I’d love to see what was inside those boxes.
Sola landed softly on the table in front of me, having finished her breakfast, and I stared at my amazing familiar.
Humans grabbing her, hurting her, pulling out her feathers.
Terror.
I sucked in a deep breath at the memory that Sola had sent me the first time I’d touched her. The people at that sanctuary had pulled out her feathers and done who knew what else to her. They were evil, dangerous, horrible people who absolutely should not be working with faeries or any other living creature.
But if they’d plucked her feathers out like that, did that mean all those boxes were filled with faerie… parts? Were they selling things, like firebird feathers for good luck? Or maybe pixie dust, which was toxic to humans in large doses so some people used it to hurt others? Or dragon scales that people ground up and used in creams and lotions for healing?
I shook my head, disgusted with these men and everything they represented. I’d seen so much depravity when I’d been a detective. It was part of the reason I’d quit.
Not the whole reason, and certainly not the main one, but the horror of what humans did to each other and other creatures had gotten to be too much for me.
Sola leapt from the table and landed on my shoulder, making me jump.
“Damn, you startled me.” I gave her a few pets and shook off those thoughts. I was in a much better place now. I didn’t need to think about all of that.
With a sigh, I put all the photos and paperwork back into the folder, ending with the picture of Paul Ferguson on top, giving the guy one last look.
Just as I went to shut the folder, Sola squawked loudly and started flapping her wings, hitting me in the head over and over again.
I ducked automatically, not that it helped when she was on my shoulder. “Oh my god! Sola! What’s wrong? What’s gotten into you?”
She squawked again, hopped off my shoulder onto the table, and started jumping up and down on top of the folder. She bent in half, squawking down at her own feet as she hopped around and flapped her wings, freaking out—and freaking me out too.
I stared at her in shock. She’d never acted like this before. What the hell was her problem?
My brow furrowed as I really took her in.
She wasn’t just hopping around on top of the folder, she was stomping her clawed feet on Paul Ferguson’s face and squawking right at him.
Reaching out for the bond I could always feel between us, I immediately registered the absolute terror Sola felt while looking at that man’s face.
Without hesitation, I scooped her up, ignoring all the wiggles, held her against my chest, and slammed the stupid folder shut, not giving even one fuck that my familiar had messed up the photo with her claws. Higgins could print a new one for all I cared.
“Shh. I’ve got you, baby girl. You’re okay. You’re safe.”
She let out a soft, sad, and scared-sounding chirp that broke my heart.
“I’ve got you. I won’t let him get you. Never again, baby girl. No one will ever hurt you. Never, ever, ever again.”
She trembled in my arms, but she also tucked her face into my chest, rubbing her head against me, and I could sense she was taking comfort in my embrace.
Not to be left out, Odin meowed from the table where he’d hopped up. I held out one hand to him, and he immediately came over. He rubbed against me, then started rubbing along Sola’s side and face, purring up a storm.
The cat lovin’ seemed to help calm my familiar even more than I could, and once she seemed better, I set her on my lap, scooting my chair back enough to make room for both her and Odin.
