“You know, watching a new one pop up right before fighting whatever crazy things came out of it would make most people run away screaming.”
The halfling eyed Yurik with a raised eyebrow. “I’m not most people.”
“Yeah, we’ve figured that out by now. Why are you so interested?”
Cheyenne leaned over the table again. “Listen. My mom lives out in the middle of nowhere, pretty much. It’s just her and her housekeeper.”
“She’s got a housekeeper?” Bhandi scrunched her face again, finally belched, and sat back with a sigh.
“Yeah. You done?”
The troll woman gestured for the halfling to continue.
“They won’t leave the house. As in, my mom refuses to leave, despite having seen everything that happened in her backyard last night. That was why I called Sir and asked for a team to go up and protect her from whatever else tries to sneak Earthside. I let him think I was turning the whole thing over to you guys, ‘cause portals are half of what you people do, right?”
“You let him think.” Yurik snorted. “Well-played.”
“Well, I needed to keep my mom safe. That’s why I’m interested. Sir’s put me on portal duty, and if I see anything else, yeah, I’m gonna let him know. But if you guys have heard something I haven’t, I wanna hear it too. Leaving my mom up there with Rhynehart and a bunch of your guys in gear was hard.”
“Did you hear that? The Goth drow does have a heart.” Bhandi dragged the second pitcher toward her and dumped it over her tankard. A mere splash fell into her cup, and she shook the pitcher before scowling at it. “I need more.”
“Hold off on that for a minute, huh?” Yurik took the pitcher from her and set it on the opposite edge of the table. “Let the fellwine kick in.”
“Since when did you become my mom, asshole?”
He smacked her on the shoulder with the back of a hand and gestured toward Cheyenne. “Since we’re trying to have a serious conversation here. That’s the whole reason we met up.”
Bhandi folded her arms and slumped back in her chair. She almost slid sideways out of it but managed to correct herself. “Twenty minutes. Then I’m fillin’ up.”
“Whatever.”
Tate settled his forearms on the table and glanced at the full tavern around them. “We don’t know much, honestly. I mean, yeah, everyone knows about L’zar, and we’ve heard a few things from the other side of closed doors about new portals. So far, it sounds like Sir’s trying to pull active personnel off the reservations to form a scouting team. Kinda stupid, but that’s what Karzen told me, anyway.”
Yurik nodded. “It’s not any of us. We go out in the field to pull off the kind of operations where you’ve tagged along with us. No point tying up a tactical team for a new portal that just showed up. They’re gonna send the guys who handle rez regulation.”
“That’s a seriously stupid call.”
“Care to elaborate on that one?”
Cheyenne ran a hand through her hair, the chains jingling on her wrist. “These new portals need a tactical team. I mean, correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m pretty sure rez regulation and registering new O’gúleesh once they make the crossing doesn’t have shit to do with fighting shape-shifting things that aren’t supposed to be able to come through the portals at all.”
“Right.” Bhandi snorted. “And someone who’s spent their entire career stationed at a rez right next to those giant portal towers won’t have any insight into how to handle the new ones.”
The halfling cocked her head. “Sir didn’t have a clue about the new portal until I called him. If the top guy is that blind to what’s happening, you really think the Border patrol is gonna be prepared enough to handle something none of them have ever seen?” Cheyenne leaned closer and lowered her voice. “You guys said it yourselves. Everyone you work with was born Earthside. None of you made the crossing, so you have no idea what I’m talking about with those things spilling out onto this side. But a tactical team knows how to fight them off. Right?”
Yurik frowned at Tate, who stroked his hairless tattooed chin. “Sir’s grasping at straws.”
Cheyenne offered a small shrug. “I hate to break it to you guys, but Sir doesn’t know nearly as much as he thinks he does.”
“Ha!” Bhandi slapped a hand on the table. “Try saying that to his face.”
“Oh, I already have.”
The table fell silent as the three FRoE agents stared at Cheyenne in shock. Then they burst out laughing again. Bhandi thumped her fists on the table, sloshing around the dogfood-looking grub on the platter, and Tate nearly fell out of his chair when he doubled over and leaned too far sideways.
“Jesus.” Yurik wiped his eyes and glanced at the tavern’s ceiling. “You have a death wish, don’t you?”
“Hey, I don’t work for him.” Cheyenne shrugged, grinning. “I don’t work for anyone. Even if I did, that wouldn’t stop me from tellin’ it like it is.”
“No wonder Sir’s so pissed off all the time.” Tate chuckled. “He can’t control you, but he can’t afford to cut you loose, either.”
“He’ll figure out how it works eventually.” The halfling’s statement sent them into another round of uncontrollable laughter.
Bhandi stomped her feet over and over until her knees thumped the underside of the table and almost sent it flying. Ember rolled backward in her chair just in case, but Tate and Cheyenne caught the table and settled it upright before any of the dishes could slide onto the floor.
“Hey!” Ogsa leaned over the bar and pointed at the group in the corner. “Don’t make me throw you out!”
Bhandi spread her arms. “For laughing?”
“For acting like a bunch of lunatics and scaring off my customers.” The orc woman nodded at the front door, where two tall magicals in long crimson robes headed quickly out of the tavern.
“Nah.” Bhandi scoffed. “If they’re scared of a good time, they
