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"It's easier to deal with when I'm busy," I admitted, deftly batting away their praise. "I'm sure I'll have a meltdown or something later, once Typhon is better and I get to sit down and really think about everything."

"When you have questions, reach out to me or at least Lain. You have my number now, and I'm always happy to answer questions."

"What if it's a really stupid question? I don't know anything about anything when it comes to all this." Nothing outside of books, anyway.

"I trust you not to ask anything truly stupid, but if you're worried it is, you can ask Lain first. He knows more than he likes to let on. If he doesn't have an answer, get in touch with me."

That reminded me that I needed to have a long conversation with my best friend. It hadn't really sunk in that Lain was so enmeshed in this strange world and apparently had been for awhile.

"I do have a one question, if you have a moment?"

Ori nodded. "Sure. What is it?"

"What…" I hesitated, but I had to know. It'd been eating at me the whole time Typhon was recovering at Lelo's. "What happened? I mean, I know what happened, but what about after? My car was in the ditch. People died on that road. That guy took the truck, but surely he didn't leave with dead bodies?" The thought made my stomach churn, memories of the two men screaming flickering through my mind. "What happened to the man in charge? I didn't see him after."

Ori sighed heavily, but they didn't seem frustrated. It looked more like a deep exhaustion. "It's been a chaotic few days," they admitted. "Dale Kamp towed your car. We can help you file an insurance claim, by the way. Talk to Will Dodd and he can help you. It'll be a little tricky, but he can write you a report saying it was a hit and run."

It made sense that Detective Parker's partner on the force would know about the weird side of town, but it was another thing to think about him falsifying reports to cover up what had happened.

"I'll call him," I agreed somewhat faintly. "And the rest?"

"The accident happened within the boundaries of the Lawrence clan's territory, luckily. They disposed of the bodies," they said delicately, as though that would make the idea more palatable.

"Disposed..?" That faint feeling only got worse as I desperately tried not to think about the ramifications of that word.

"It's been dealt with. How about we leave it at that?"

"Probably a good idea."

"What about the rumors? Surely people are talking about this?" I couldn't help but press. "There's no way something hasn't slipped out."

"You'd be surprised at how experienced we are with keeping our secrets contained. We've been doing this for a long time, Quinn. You don't have to worry about anyone finding out about what happened. Well, no one outside the community, at least," Ori assured me.

The idea of a whole hidden side of my town that I knew almost nothing about helping me hide a secret that involved people dying wasn't the comfort I'm sure Ori thought it was. I'd never be able to look at the folks of Lowery's Crossing the same after all this. I still had so many questions about literally everything, but for now, they could wait. Ori was shifting their weight slightly, not quite fidgeting, but obviously they had places to be.

"One last thing, then I'll let you go," I promised. "The man who tried to collar Typhon. The one in charge. Is he still something we should worry about?" My last memory of the man was him stumbling away from Typhon, blood gushing from his nearly severed hand. I remembered him clambering into the truck with the other injured man, likely going for his phone or radio or however they communicated with their people. Since our town wasn't swarmed with armed pseudo-soldiers, I had to assume they hadn't made contact.

"His name was Elden Krenshaw, according to Wyatt, and no, you don't have to worry about him." A savage, almost primal pleasure shone in Ori's eyes for a second, almost too fast to see. Ori usually held themself almost aloof, the deceptively calm eye at the center of the hurricane, but in that moment, I caught a glimpse of the destructive power pulling at the edges of them. Then it passed and Ori was once again their usual inscrutable self.

"I'll let you get back inside," they went on, as if nothing had happened. They leaned into their car and pulled out a large canvas bag, passing it to me. "You remember how to change the dressings on Typhon's wounds, I assume?"

I took the bag with a nod, getting a gentle waft of herbs as I did. "I paid attention, but Lelo ordered me to call her if I had questions or if anything changed."

"That applies to me as well. If you can't reach one of us, call the other. We usually stay in close contact." They glanced back up at my house for a moment, then back at me. "I get the feeling that you don't like compliments, but I'm going to give you one anyway."

I couldn't help but cringe. "You really don't have to do that."

They ignored me, of course. "Not many would have done what you did. I'm not sure I would have, to be honest. Most would have seen Typhon's true form and called the police, at best, which would have ended with him shot or back wherever he came from. Instead, you took him in, treated his injuries, and protected him. Believe whatever you will, but to many people, that's pretty heroic."

Ori was right about one thing: I certainly didn't believe that. Belaboring the point would only make it worse, though, so I just shrugged. "I just want him to be safe."

They smiled faintly but let it go. "Get some rest. I'll be by in the morning." Then they were gone, driving down the long driveway and turning onto the main road, disappearing from sight.

For the first time in almost a week, I had a moment alone. Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath to center myself. There was finally a gentle warmth to the brisk mountain breeze, a promise that spring really was here to stay. Soon, my little haven would be awash with flowers. Fresh green grass already poked through the last remnants of melting snow, cropped close in the backyard where Hash Brown had been grazing.

For a moment, I let myself imagine what it would be like once summer came. I could see me and Typhon sitting on the back porch at sunset with Romulus between us, tail wagging, while the mule wandered around the yard. Maybe once Typhon had recovered, we could build a permanent place for Hash Brown. It was too easy to imagine us working together, building not just a shelter, but a future.

A splinter of doubt worked itself into my daydream. Would Typhon even want this life? Out here on the edge of town, cut off from everyone, with only me and the animals for company? He'd been content with this so far, but he'd also been injured and in hiding. What if he changed once he healed? Would someone as smart and gorgeous and fascinating as Typhon really want to stay here with someone as boring and introverted as me? Just dealing with my usual customers for the few minutes a day I saw them usually left my social battery drained. What was Typhon like when he could truly be himself? Surely he'd want more out of life than what I could offer him?