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“Can’t hurt. All theories on the table at this point.”
“Will do.”
“Oh and on the lemur thing? Since he didn’t specify, tell Kaj to order a dozen stuffed lemur toys and skin those. And be sure and put the cotton carcasses in a trash bag for extra effect. Pretty sure the old man is fucking with him. Lemurs are one of Juliette’s favorite animals. He’s testing. Seeing what he knows about his daughter and who he’ll be loyal to. Him or her.”
“That man is one cahnie cajun. I love it.”
“Later Jericho.”
“Later Boss.”
****
The ride on Nitro’s Swamp Dragon turned into an addictive experience Vex wanted to keep repeating. The combination of speed with the sights and smells of the swamp were exhilarating to his new heightened senses he’d gained from only one bite from his bat brother.
Skul was going to shit a gold brick when he learned his odd new marsh mate also experienced cognitive differences that resembled Vex’s gifts. Skul obtained the formula their alchemist had created to utilize the bat saliva and concluded that if Nitro hadn’t overdosed, neither of them would likely be experiencing any exchange of symptoms beyond five minutes. But since he’d had such a quantity, it seemed to not just extend and multiply the effects of the bat’s saliva but permanently alter him.
The question now was, what would happen if Nitro drank more of his blood? Or if he drank another King’s blood. Would he gain their gifts the same way? Skul was currently attempting to theoretically replicate the bat accident that had occurred. But given the unique bond those bats formed with their trainer and the unique bond Nitro had with her, the freak marriage of species that had never been seen before might likely never be seen again.
But that wouldn’t stop Skul from finding a workaround.
“Gonna stop at this Swamp Shop for some supplies,” Nitro said into the headset, slowing the boat. Vex spotted a small house that appeared to be sitting on the water in a canopy of trees not far ahead. The South Swamp was turning into a practical world all its own. The off-grid self-sufficiency was beyond astonishing with its simplicity.
He parked the boat next to a long pier and they made their way along the floating path. He spotted a young kid fishing off the other side of the house that wasn’t as small as he’d first assessed.
They were in Hurricane’s Hatch, he remembered as he followed Nitro. He eyed the sign above the door.Skelton’s Swamp Shop.What sort of shop was it?
Nitro passed the entrance and continued along the side of the house to a large back area with a shop half the size of the front structure. Nitro entered the shop and dinged a bell, looking around. “Skelton,” he called. “It’s Nitro.”
“Be right there.”
Vex followed the voice to the right side of one of the stalls.
“She runs the place,” Nitro muttered. “One of the best mechanics in the swamp, but her specialty is clocks.”
She? “I’ll wait on the other side,” he muttered, turning before he could be detained.
His need to put plenty of distance between him and the female species was without a doubt due to their bond deal with the Marsh Men. That and their epically failing prodigy school. They’d all had a go at the dilemma and it was utterly clear to Vex what the problem was. The ever emotional females with the inconsistent needs that mocked logic and reason. The flaw breeched barriers constructed to keep out these moral pathogens, bringing their very elite to their squabbling knees. Thus leading to this hands-on assignment they were all given to troubleshoot the issue. Vex had watched countless footage of their couples only to have his perplexities multiplied. Every theory they employed ended in near disasters, leaving them with only a handful of couples remaining and thirteen confounded Kings.
It was the solution they lacked. And how quickly that turned into a race between his brothers. All vying to prove their theories to the other. He took a seat on the ledge of a railing, looking at the majestic tree line of cypress.
“I wouldn’t sit on that mister.”
Vex turned, finding a young girl sitting on a bucket with a fishing pole, minding whatever business she had with the water before her. He realized it was the same one he’d seen when he arrived. “Thank you.” He eyed her, wondering at what age the females developed the issues that plagued their school.
“I’m Rosavelt,” she said, still not looking at him. “My mom owns this place. Her name’s JoLynn but she makes everybody call her Joe. Ever since my daddy died ‘cause his parachute malfunctioned she’s made people call her that. Some people think she wants to be a man, but Maw-Maw says she isn’t wanting to, she’s required to. Colt—that’s my dumb brother who knows it all—says she wouldn’t need to be a man if she hadn’t gotten our daddy killed.” She reeled her line in. “He’s just mad that momma wanted to move to the city and that’s why daddy joined the army so he could give her what she wanted.” She examined her hook and reached down in her bucket, picking up a fresh worm and working the wriggling thing onto the hook. “Sorry, buddy,” she said quietly. “Now, go catch me a big one.” She cast her line back in and scooted her bucket closer. “It’s called a tragedy,” she muttered.
“What is?” Vex wondered, eyeing the flawless little face, skin tanned by many fishing days maybe.
“The way my daddy died. His parachute not opening on a jump he’d done a thousand times. I was only two, so I don’t really remember him but I look at all the pictures sometimes. Now momma won’t leave the swamp cuz she feels guilty. She’s been saying she’s sorry to daddy for a long while now. Working all the time so she can build his dream house on the land he got from our great Paw-Paw. We got pretty far on it till the last hurricane knocked it all down and blew apart the little camper she’d just put out there so Mr. Dale could have something to stay in while she paid him to build it. He’s really slow,” she said, flashing sky blue eyes at him. “Momma said he’s thorough, Maw-Maw says he’s lazy.”
“And what do you say?”
She gave a shrug. “I don’t say much cuz I’m only nine. Nobody listens to nine year olds.”
“Well…I do,” he said, side-eyeing her skinny hunched frame.
“I say he’s doing the best he can and people just want things faster than they’re meant to be done. He’s nice and let’s me hammer sometimes.”
