“Got it,” Jimmy said. “I was due a mini-vacation anyway.”
“Where’s Grohn?” I asked, looking around. It’s not like he was easy to miss.
“Out back, unloading another truck. I better go tell him we’re going to be off for a few days. Do you need anything before you go?”
“No thanks,” I growled, still somewhat pissed. “Stay safe, though, okay?”
“I’ll be fine. Grohn and I will go spend some time in the mountains with my sleuth,” Jimmy said. “It’ll be good for him, and I’ll get to catch up with family.”
“Family sounds good,” I said. “They’re all you have”—I glanced at Monty—“even if you want to strangle them sometimes.”
“You two going to be okay?” Jimmy asked with a note of concern in his voice. “I couldn’t get the details, but it sounded heated in there for a minute.”
“Nothing we can’t resolve,” Monty said. “I’d appreciate your discretion regarding our guest this evening.”
“The less I know about her the better,” Jimmy said, raising a hand. “She is Grade-A petrifying, and there isn’t much that scares my kind.”
“Thanks for feeding my black hole,” I said, stepping out of the way and letting my hellhound move toward the door. “We’ll see you when you get back.”
Jimmy nodded and took off his apron before heading to the back. He paused and turned, his face serious.
“You’re dealing with the Morrigan; make sure you’re the ones that get back. Be careful out there.”
“We will,” I said as we left the Randy Rump.
At least I hoped we’d be back.
We made our way to the Dark Goat and got in. My hellhound tested the limits of his backseat domain with a magnificent sprawl, taking up all of the space in one long stretch. I thought I heard the doors creak as he pushed against them with his massive legs.
We drove in silence for a few minutes. I was still set to slow burn. I didn’t enjoy being roped into owing Badb Catha, but I understood why Monty did it.
“Would you have agreed if I had taken the time to explain the option to you?” Monty asked after some time, reading my thoughts. “I apologize if this feels like a deception.”
“Not like a deception,” I snapped. “No, I wouldn’t have agreed. I would’ve told you to take your insane plan and take a long walk off a short cliff. This is crazy, Monty, you have to see that.”
“No crazier than anything else we have done.”
“No crazier? Wrong, much crazier!”
“What would you have proposed?” Monty asked, glancing at me. “We go in and destroy them all in a hail of orbs and bullets? That plan would have lasted exactly two seconds before either Magnus cut through us or Haven became a killing ground.”
I kept silent for a few seconds, because he was right.
“Can you get them out? The people at Haven? Can you get them out in time?”
“I don’t know,” Monty said, turning to look out the window. “I’ve never heard of a Transporter moving so many people at once. It’s not just the patients; she has to move staff, too. Fortunately, it’s the evening shift and the staff will be minimal.”
“What about the detention level?”
“It should be safe from the attack,” Monty said. “I doubt any of Shadow Company’s sorcerers will gain access to those levels. Badb Catha won’t give them time. They will focus on the soft targets.”
“How do we call her off?” I asked, concerned. “Does the Death Goddess have an off switch?”
“None that I’m aware of,” Monty said. “It’s best to let her run her course and stay out of her way.”
“Right, nothing can go wrong with that strategy,” I growled. “Sorry, this whole op is such a flustercuck.”
“Excuse me? I think the correct term is cluster—”
“No, a flustercuck is before it happens,” I corrected. “The clusterfuck starts the moment I pull that trigger to shoot you.”
“About that,” Monty said. “Please try to avoid my head. I’m slowing down the round, not stopping it.”
I glanced at him again.
“You want me to aim at some non-lethal part of your body with a round designed to drop a dragon. Do you hear yourself?”
“Correct. I’m placing my life in your aim.”
“Do you realize how batshit that sounds?”
“Which part? Asking you to take a non-lethal shot or trusting you enough to place my life in your hands?”
“Both, Monty,” I said with a sigh. “This is beyond dangerous. What if…what if I miss?”
“I won’t exactly be in a position to chastise you about it, now, will I?” Monty said. “You won’t miss. I know you won’t.”
It was my turn to pinch the bridge of my nose.
“I think the schism scrambled what little sense you had left,” I said. “If we make it through this op, you go back to Haven for a full eval.”
“Agreed,” Monty said with a slight nod. “If we don’t, it won’t matter much, will it?”
“I’m not feeling the nihilist Monty,” I said. “Don’t mages ever try to encourage each other before a major battle?”
“Mages deal in reality, not false hope or wishful thinking. I fail to see anything to be encouraged about,” Monty said, staring at me. “We face overwhelming odds. We risk losing everyone we care for, along with our own lives in the process. Even you, with your curse, will not be able to stand against a dragon of Magnus’ power and age. What we need is to go into this evening armed with all the facts and operate on complete information, not hope or luck.”
“Mage pep talks suck,” I said. “My morale feels so lifted right now, thanks.”
“You’re welcome.”
We arrived at the trailer with ten minutes to spare.
TWENTY-SEVEN
Carlos was standing at the door as we approached.
“You’re early,” he said, glaring at me. “Douglas said ten o’clock.”
“Actually it was Rott, and early is better than late,” I said, returning his glare. “You plan on blocking our way, or do I have to shoot you this time?”
“You caught me off guard
