Outfoxed (The Fox Witch #1) - R.J. Blain Page 0,87
but they wouldn’t push any unions until the paperwork expires or they cut a deal with me.”
“And if you do cut a deal with them, you obviously didn’t want me badly enough.”
“However much I dislike that way of thinking, you are correct.”
“Cut a deal, then; whoever set this bounty up knows you have me in your custody, so make an arrangement. If that arrangement happens to involve Carlos, I’m probably going to try to break your nose with a stick. But Anna is nice, and she could use the money and a chance to get out of the Alley, so you could make use of her.”
“Even when you’re in a corner, you’re still trying to help others?” Sandro chuckled. “I almost pity the family who’ll take you without a full disclosure of what they’re getting into. You’re going to turn their world upside down on them. And yes, that does factor into why I want you. I can be a ruthless bastard when needed, and I need somebody who will temper that. And if you’re upset with something I plan to do, there’s probably a good reason for it, so at least I’ll think twice before doing it.”
“Thinking twice is better than not thinking at all.”
“It’s a common failing among the rich and powerful. They like to think their first thought is the only way.”
“And you don’t?”
“I try not to, but I’m guilty. I saw you, and my first thought involved flipping my middle finger at the person who set the bounty and keeping you for myself. I recognize this is what happened, so that counts as something, right?”
“Potentially as you being a lunatic.”
Sandro chuckled. “You may be right. Now it’s time for the bad news.”
“What’s the bad news?”
“I have had no reason, until now, to set up a guest bedroom, and I’ve been monitoring your bounty situation, so I haven’t had time to get everything. That means you get to enjoy my bed, and I can be a bastard after a night or two on the couch. I wake up creaky and cranky.”
“Who doesn’t after a night on a couch? Honestly, in most of my cellars, I’m lucky if I’m not on the ground anyway. I can take the couch. Lying down is not fun right now, Sandro. I’ll probably want to sleep in a damned chair. Please tell me you’re spoiled enough to have a half-decent chair in this place.”
“I do. It’s in my study, where I do my reading while waiting for the storms to blow over.”
“Well, show me to your study, then. I’ll live there until we figure something out.” I could use some quality time with some books, and until we figured out a plan, all I could do was wait.
Thirteen
You’re a mess.
Thursday, May 14, 2043.
Asylum, Oklahoma.
The Alley.
* * *
Sandro hated the idea of cooperating and allowing the people behind my bounty to play their games, but when I pointed out they’d been willing to give him a hundred thousand as a bonus for preventing me from kicking the bucket early and arranging for my treatments, he stopped and thought about it.
That hundred thousand redefined the playing field, and neither one of us understood how I could possibly be worth so much to someone in the East. At my recommendation, Sandro sent a message through the bounty system, and he included the copy of the provisional contract.
The reply consisted of five words: may the best man win.
My fox preened over having caught the interest of two men, and she liked that both were willing to go the extra mile for me. She favored Sandro, but I got the feeling she didn’t particularly care which one won the war. They battled over me, which demonstrated their interest.
They postured in a way she understood, and she liked it.
I needed a bucket of ice water and some time to remind my fox she needed to behave until winter, when I expected her to get rowdy and interested in men.
As she often did, she ignored me.
Damned saucy vixen, making my life even more difficult.
I did sleep in his chair, and after several arguments over it, Sandro agreed to set it up where Anna could sneak into his home, steal me when he wasn’t looking, and earn part of my bounty. His negotiations with those behind my bounty went well enough, and he’d be compensated for making the arrangements under a single condition: they would make it possible for him to find out the location of the auction if he