“Recently? Does it have to be recent?” Tess asked.
“Pretty recent. It depends on what the item is and how powerful the magic user doing the locator spell is. If it was money I had touched in the last hour and the mage was decent, he could probably track me for a couple of hours before losing me. If it were blood and the mage was really good, he might be able to track me even after a week or more. That was why I made sure to burn all the blood I lost at the motel.”
I felt Tess flex her muscles again. This time, I knew it was deliberate. She was doing it just enough to keep me at attention. Damn, she was a trial. I decided to ignore her. She couldn’t keep it up forever.
“I was thinking we should work on getting you a familiar,” I said to get her mind off the subject of my crotch.
“Really? You think I’m ready? I thought that would take a lot more training.”
“It’s not as difficult as burning your first tattoo. It might take a couple of days to get you prepared,” I said.
“And then poof, my familiar possesses my Harley?”
“Well, it’s not just poof. It’s more like sending out a call and waiting to see what answers. You never know what might respond, but it’ll be intelligent, to a point, and capable of providing you with transportation in its natural form.”
“Then I wouldn’t get a manticore like Beast?” Tess asked.
“No, I’m not saying you wouldn’t, but there are all manner of creatures that might respond. Rowle has a black dragon, and Walt had a Pegasus. I’ve seen a winged sphinx, a wyvern–”
“Wait, what’s a wyvern?” Tess interrupted.
“It’s like a small dragon.”
“Really? That would be cool.”
I had to grin at her enthusiasm. I remember similar feelings when I summoned Beast. It was a special time to meet someone who would spend the rest of your life with you. Bonding to a familiar was stronger than marriage. Granted the familiar could leave you, just like a spouse. However, I’d never heard of a Wanderer losing his familiar, but then, a week or so ago, I had never heard of a female Wanderer. Things, they were a-changin’.
“Yes, it’s seriously cool and something few magic users other than Wanderers ever attempt.”
“What about all the stories of witches and their cats?” Tess asked.
“They use a similar spell, but rarely can they summon self-aware creatures like Beast. I don’t know all the reasons. I don’t even know if Walt knew. If he did, it was one of the many things he never got the chance to teach me.”
“Couldn’t one of the other Wanderers have helped you out?”
“Probably, but you have to remember that we have jobs to take care of. Walt’s area was North America, so it became my responsibility. Only rarely did any of us go into someone else’s domain,” I said.
“Why is that exactly? I’d think you’d team up on anything serious.”
I found myself shrugging even though she wouldn’t see the movement and I wasn’t holding her tight enough for her to feel it. “We occasionally do; it’s just that we’re a pretty introverted group. It’s not that we wouldn’t help anytime someone express a need, but that so rarely happened.”
“So it’s not like what Beast claimed?”
I found myself frowning. “Just what did my familiar tell you?”
“He said that Wanderers are too conceited to ask for help. That they are cocky and too full of themselves to ever think they need help.”
“He actually said that?” I queried.
“Oh, yes, he definitely did.”
“And of course he didn’t ask you to keep his comments in confidence.”
“Ah, no. Why? Do you think I shouldn’t have repeated it?” Tess asked.
“No, I’m sure he knew you would mention it sooner or later and just didn’t care. Beast makes no bones about his opinions on my actions. For what it’s worth, he’s not entirely wrong. You give a man as much power as we have and we do have a tendency to let it go to our heads.”
“Hah, sounds just like a man,” Tess stopped talking for a minute or so, and we passed through Mt Dora, a spot on the map named for the 6200-foot high dormant volcano that stood a mile or so north of the highway. The mountain only rose five hundred feet above the road. Other than a lower speed limit, the community actually had a few homes, trees, and damn few people. I remembered a flag on a pole in front of a post office the last time I came through here, but it was no longer there.
Tess accelerated back to the speed limit on the west side of the village.
“You know you aren’t really like that,” she said.
“Say what?”
“What you said about power going to the heads of the Wanderers. I haven’t seen any sign of you being arrogant or full of yourself. I have seen you be a little reckless and cocky that you can handle whatever Fate throws at you, but you have also shown yourself to be caring and humane.”
“I–” I really didn’t know what to say. I don’t get real compliments often enough to know how to respond. “I thank you for the compliment. I hope I live up to your appraisal.”
“You’re also a pretty damn considerate lover,” Tess added and flexed her cheeks again.
“Ah, yes, well. I try.”
I heard laughter from above us and looked up to see Beast behind his sparrow glamour flying less than fifty feet over our heads.
“Should I stop?” Tess asked as she glanced up.
“Yes, let’s see what he found.”
She pulled the bike to the side of the road and killed the engine. Beast lit beside us. There was little traffic here. We hadn’t seen a car going either way in the last couple of minutes. I dropped our glamour and Beast did likewise. The manticore
