Campbell played with the brim of his hat. “David is…was…a friend from long ago. He has an older set of values, which are no longer of use to anyone, anymore, but I didn’t know that about him until today.”
“Older values?” She took the flask as he offered it again. “I told Staff Sergeant Hopson of the Sundre RCMP that as far as I could ascertain, Martin ap Golden’s death was accidental.”
Campbell considered her for a long moment. “Thank you,” he said at last.
“I’m pretty sure that’s exactly what it was,” she added. “Someone tried to revive him, which means they didn’t mean to kill him. But that doesn’t mean I think you’re a sterling character, Campbell. Your values might have changed, but you’re still up to something hinkey in that arena.”
Campbell’s smile was easy. “Don’t dig too deeply, Chief Canmore.”
“I’m betting that if I asked you to show me your provincial license to grow marijuana, you wouldn’t be able to do it.”
“Are you asking?” He seemed amused.
“Not yet.”
“Ah.” He took the flask back and drank deeply. “People like us, Harley…we have to look out for ourselves.”
She shook her head. “That’s where you’re wrong. I told Bohdan the same thing this morning. If we want to be legally recognized someday, we have to live by the same rules as humans do.”
“But until then, we have to survive,” Campbell replied. “And while we are outside the law, some of the things we must do to survive will also be outside those laws.”
She studied him. “I guess we’re going to have to disagree on that one.”
“Maybe. But I have high hopes I can talk you into seeing things my way, Harley Firebird.”
She grimaced. “I’ve only been here a week, but I already like this town. It’s my job to protect it, but I think that even if it wasn’t, I’d still want to step up if someone threatened these people. They’ve been through enough.”
“They have,” Campbell said, his tone heavy with agreement. “And even though I know you won’t believe me, I will tell you just this once that everything I do, I do for Falconer. Nothing I do impacts negatively on the people here. I won’t allow it.”
She shivered and pulled the blanket in tighter.
Campbell got to his feet and moved over to the glass counter, where the stack of printer paper sat. He took out a gold pen and wrote upon the paper and came back to the orange crate, folding the paper.
“What are you doing?”
“I have a gift for you.” He reached into his coat. For the first time she consciously noted that his coat was a light thing, barely adequate for spring thaw, let alone the deep winter chill of the mountains.
He put a cellphone down on top of the folded bedsheets and tapped it. “Burner phone. No registration needed.” He put a plastic chip embedded into a credit-card sized piece of plastic on top of it. “A pay-as-you-go phone card.”
He put the folded piece of paper on top of the phone. “Don’t lose that.”
“What is it?”
“The email address for Dr. Michael Jones in Toledo.”
“I’m guessing that’s not Toledo, Ohio.”
He shook his head. “If there is a world-class expert in treating the old races, Jones would be it. He helped me. He could help you.”
Harley jumped. “You were in Toledo?”
“For six months. It was world-view altering.” His tone sounded like he was confessing.
Uncomfortable, she shifted the paper aside to look at the phone once more. “A burner phone. Why didn’t I think of that?”
“Because you’re a law-abiding citizen,” Campbell told her. “Anyway, I’m glad you didn’t think of it sooner, because now I have your number.”
___________
The next book in the Harley Firebird Series
The next book in the Harley Firebird series will be released in May 2021. Sign up for Taylen’s email list to be among the first to hear details about the book and upcoming dates.
See over the page!
SPECIAL OFFER – FREE URBAN FANTASY
A drought-ridden Arizona town hires a very special kind of rainmaker: A siren.
But when it comes time to pay for her services, Mayor Archer Bertrand has a change of heart. After all, the old races are legally non-people and can’t sign contracts.
That was just his first mistake.
This short story is set in the old races-inhabited world of Magorian & Jones, written by Taylen Carver. It is not commercially released, but provided free to readers and fans of the series.
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https://taylencarver.com/rainmaker-landing-page/
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Best-selling Canadian author Taylen Carver writes edgy urban fantasy, doesn’t pull punches, and would rather be writing unless otherwise notified. When not writing, Taylen can usually be found inside speculative fiction of other authors. Favorites include Jim Butcher, Charlaine Harris, Kevin Hearne, Laurell K. Hamilton, and Emma Bull.
OTHER BOOKS BY TAYLEN CARVER
For reviews, excerpts, and more about each title, visit Taylen’s site and click on the cover
