Page 62 of Fang Fatale

...and more a confession booth.

"You trust those guys outside?"

Her voice is quiet but sharp.

"With my life," I say. "Which sounds dramatic, but is entirely literal."

She sets her mug down.

"I don't trust anyone anymore."

"I don't expect you to."

I slip into the adjoining living room to stoke the fire, unsure whether she wants solitude or simply another heartbeat nearby in case being alone gets too noisy. The wood is old and stubborn, but eventually flames crawl through the logs, slowly licking warmth back into the bones of the house.

When I turn around, she's standing in the doorway, arms crossed, eyes reflecting the firelight like they've been dusted with gold leaf.

"You can have the bedroom," I say, and I mean it. "It's got an actual mattress, clean sheets, and nothing haunted except the wallpaper."

She snorts, which is more of a compliment than anything I've received in the last decade.

"You really think I'm that fragile?"

She says it with enough bite to convince almost anyone.

Not me.

Fragile isn't the word I'd use.

Exhausted.

Cornered.

Braver than she has any right to be.

But never fragile.

"I think you're owed a good night's sleep after the day you've had."

I almost add, You deserve more than that, but stop myself. That's the sort of sentimental nonsense I usually mock in other people.

"Besides, I've slept in crypts. This couch is positively decadent by comparison."

She edges into the living room and kneels beside the fire.

"You always this chivalrous, or is it just the damsel effect?"

"I'm selective," I say. "Mostly, I just have a weakness for people who make me laugh."

Birdie tucks a loose strand of hair behind her ear and glances at me from the corner of her eye.

"Are you going to tell me what's going on, or are we just going to keep playing house until I get murdered in my sleep?"

She's right, of course.

I lower myself onto the couch, which groans in protest.

"Leland Brooks wants you back. Not because he loves you, but because you're the only loose end in his entire operation. If he can't get what he wants through lawyers and bribes, he'll escalate until nobody's standing. The brokers he hired don't care about your safety."