liked animals, often more than mortals and immortals, and wasn't above bringing the poor little bugger a bowl of milk or something to help it see its way through winter. Or if it looked uncared for, maybe even le ng it sleep in the garage for the night, where it would be protected from the elements. She could always take it to an animal shelter in the morning.
"Oh, what a cu e," she murmured, slinging the cross bow over her shoulder by the strap as she got close enough to be er make out the animal. It was a chubby li le sucker, white and black and digging away as if scratching at kitty litter. As she moved closer, she crooned, "Here kitty, kitty."
The cat s lled at her call, growled, and stomped its feet like a child throwing a tantrum. It made Drina chuckle as she con nued forward, and she bent forward, trying to make herself smaller and less threatening as she continued to call, "Here kitty, kitty," hoping to lure it to her. Animals were so adorable really; cute, cuddly, affec onate. In the darkest part of the front garden though it was, she could s ll make out that it was hunkered down to the ground, looking oddly flat and wide. Not starving then, but -
Drina stopped abruptly, a choked sound slipping from her throat as the damned thing li ed its tail and somehow pissed at her. She was a good eight or ten feet away s ll, and the damned thing hit her right in the face and chest and -
Dear Lord, the smell was the most god-awful stench she'd ever encountered. Drina staggered back, wondering with horror what the hell the animal had been ea ng that its urine would smell so damned foul. That was followed by the wonder as to whether it was some damned mutant to be able to pee out its bu at her, but they were brief thoughts that flashed across her mind, and in the next moment were gone, replaced with dismay as her eyes began to s ng as if someone had shoved burning hot pokers in her eyes.
Gagging and choking, Drina stumbled and fell on her bu and rolled to the side. Her hands rose to cover her burning eyes, and moans were gargling from her mouth.
"Drina?"
She hadn't heard the front door open, but she heard Teddy's shout and the stomp of his feet as he raced down the front steps.
"What the hell - Dear God, it's a skunk!" His approaching footsteps stopped abruptly on that almost false o squawk, and then con nued more cau ously, appearing to curve to the side a bit rather than approach directly, as he mu ered, "Shoo! Shoo you li le bugger. Don't make me shoot you, you damned varmint. Christ, you've been sprayed. I can smell you from here. Oh God Almighty. What the hell were you thinking playing with a skunk? For Christ's sake. Shoo!" he repeated. "Damn, did it get you in the face?
Shoo!"
Drina was lying s ll now, curled on her side with eyes closed, wai ng for the nanos to fix whatever the heck the cat urine had done and listening to Teddy with confusion. She couldn't tell from one moment to the next who he was addressing, herself or the cat, and she hadn't a clue what he was talking about, except he seemed afraid of the li le beast that had done this to her. Not that she blamed him really, considering the agony she was in, but the creature wasn't much bigger than a ki en, and Teddy did have a damned gun and - cripes her eyes hurt.
"Shoot the damned thing," Drina growled, deciding maybe she didn't like animals so much anymore.
"I'm not shoo ng it. It'll wake up the whole damned neighborhood. Could give one of the old biddies in the retirement home across the street a heart attack, and - "
"Then throw a damned snowball at it," she demanded furious.
"Teddy? What's happening?" Leonora's voice called out from the general vicinity of what Drina guessed was the porch.
"Why is the bella Alexandrina rolling on the snow?" Alessandro's voice sounded next. "Is she making the snow angels?"
"No, she's not making the damned snow angels," Teddy muttered with exasperation.
"Oh dear, is that a skunk?" Leonora asked.
"No," Alessandro gasped with horror. "No the smelly cat!"
"I've told you, Alessandro darling, they aren't cats."
"They look like the cats. Like the big