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The boy nodded a little too fast.
“Oh, um, all right. I-I have a Hatchling request form I wanted to put in. I've done a few jobs already, and I think I'm ready," he said, puffing out his chest.
Mykie raised her eyebrows and held out her hand again silently. The boy handed the form over. The girl that was being requested was only twelve. She knew nothing about the Cantil, and the boy wished that she would continue to stay ignorant until she was older. They had lost their mother to an attack by the Vultures due to living on the wrong side of town, which was done over a year ago. The boy's reason for the request was to have his sister protected when he had to work to keep up with rent.
Mykie tried to keep her face even and expressionless, but she had a feeling she was failing. "What are you willing to pay?"
"I'll agree to anything, if you provide protection for her," he pleaded.
Mykie tilted her head. "Anything? You're willing to agree to an open deal with me? I or Chance could call on you whenever there’s a job, and you won't be able to refuse."
"I have nothing else to give you. I don't have money or anything valuable to wager. I'm not at a level where I'd pass for any of the jobs most people are sent on. All I can give is free labor," the boy said in a low, meek voice.
Mykie nodded and tucked the informational sheet inside the folder she was given. It was a simple request, considering that he was only asking for protection.
"I feel it's reasonable. I want you to speak to James Brown and tell him he needs to come speak to me. He will be tasked with watching the girl," Mykie said.
The boy let out a sigh of relief. "All right. Thank you, Vesper. I won't make you regret it."
"You better not," she said. “You haven’t earned that protection, yet.”
He nodded sternly and left with more of a pep in his step, most likely to find the man she mentioned before. She pulled the folder off the table and slipped it into her bag to give Chance later.
"I didn't know it was your job to approve the Hatchling stuff. Did you ever have to fill one of those out for me?" Caspar asked.
"When we met, it wasn't my responsibility. After Jezebeth's father's death, I took over his jobs and more. That means I can approve and disapprove of some jobs, deal with the Hatchling stuff, and still keep up with my responsibilities from before." Mykie answered.
"She went from an unofficial leader people listened to, to an actual leader people would die for," Ryker stated.
Mykie frowned at Ryker. "I won't have anyone dying over me if I can help it."
She turned to look at Caspar. "I didn't fill one out for you due to the circumstances. It's more a formality and used to threaten the Hatchling that the Cantil know everything about them, so they shouldn't step out of line."
"Don't worry though, I did it for you," Ryker said and grinned at Mykie when she looked at him with wide eyes.
"You didn't tell me about that."
"I did one for all of the boys you've been associating with. It was a nice project to research everyone," Ryker explained.
"Where are you keeping them?" she asked.
"They're with the folders on your desk at home. Just in case you ever got...curious about the others," he said with a wicked smile.
"So, enough of this gang business. What's the update on the blonde that's messing around with your tough soldier?" Ryker asked, changing the subject.
"He means Noah and Dexter," Mykie said, answering Caspar's questioning look before he could vocalize anything. She then proceeded to tell Ryker all about the drama that happened Tuesday night. Neither Dexter nor Noah had been spotted since that night, but Jezebeth didn't seem to be worried about her prospective boyfriend.
"Which one are you rooting for?" Caspar asked once she was done with her story.
"It's cruel, but Noah has more of a chance with Dexter. However, Jezebeth is going through a tough time, so Dexter will be drawn back towards her again," Mykie said with a sigh. "He's put himself in a tough spot."
"Do you think he's considering throwing away the drama of picking and dating them both?" Ryker asked. "If he hasn't pitched a fit about your inclinations, I don't see how his thoughts haven't strayed to the same answer to his problems."
Mykie shrugged her shoulders. "I don’t think so. Jezebeth always wants the attention on herself, and she wouldn’t want to share Dexter’s attention."
"Even if refusing that option meant she'd lose Dexter altogether?" Caspar asked.
"Sometimes you have to take the risk if it means you can get the prize all to yourself," Ryker said.
