Page 9 of Moon Tamed

“I wasn’t asking for food, old man!”

“Then why did you involve the fudge cookies? Are you trying to bereft us of fudge cookies? I didn’t have a child. I helped bring a terror upon this world.”

Down the hall, someone laughed. A flock of hummingbirds swarmed the faction’s heir.

“He’s shy, so don’t you mind him. Do you like cookies?”

“Only when the fudge is clearly identified, apparently.”

“I have some fake chocolate brownies. Let’s go test our luck.”

“What are fake chocolate brownies?”

“It’s better you don’t ask. They started their life as broccoli.”

The broccoli brownies left me questioning everything I knew about life. A traumatized Calden retreated to his office, locked himself inside, and refused to come out. Allasandro Stephans sent me home early to give me adequate time to enjoy my evening and recover from his prank.

I returned to the temp agency an hour before my shift would normally end to report to my boss. I found Almon Friarin in his office waging war with a hefty stack of papers.

“Sir,” I said to catch his attention, else he wouldn’t realize I waited for him to notice me for up to an hour.

“Why are you back?”

“After feeding me a broccoli brownie, they sent me home to recover.”

“A what?”

“A brownie made of broccoli.”

“But why?”

“I have no idea, sir. The job seems manageable, but I’m not sure how long it’ll take.”

“They have you for as long as they need. Your contract will be renewed every quarter as needed.”

I nodded. “Do you want me to report in after every shift?”

“That’s not necessary. Email me every Friday if you’re not released. I don’t need any details regarding your work. I’m receiving updates from Mr. Stephans.”

That would save me a lot of time. “I’ll send a weekly email.”

“Send me any therapy bills.”

“Therapy bills?”

My boss reached across his desk, snagged a sheet of paper, and held it out. A grid of nine photos showed me catching the tablet and placing it on Calden Stephans’s chest.

“Oh. This.”

“If you need therapy due to large predators lunging at you, send me the bill. This goes beyond our typical terms.”

“The wolf did not alarm me,” I assured him. “I’m sure I’ll be fine. The hummingbirds are more threatening. They get upset if their chosen person doesn’t have a feeder.” I smiled at the memory of the birds scolding both of the Stephans. “They take their lunch very seriously.”

“Ah, yes. That is part of why you were chosen for the project. You aren’t afraid of most animals or birds.” My boss glared at the mountain of paperwork taking over his desk. “Are you interested in trading jobs?”

“No.”

“You could have hesitated for a moment, Coraline.”

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