Damsel Under Stress

Page 117

“And Ethelinda is the ultimate distraction,” I said.
“Not such a bad day, after all, then,” Owen said, giving my shoulder an extra squeeze.
“Speak for yourself,” I groaned. “Can I take a break from being a victim for a while? I don’t enjoy playing damsel in distress.”
“Next time I’m in terrible danger, you’re welcome to come to my rescue,” Owen said with a teasing grin. He sounded almost giddy with relief. I guessed he wasn’t mad at me anymore. All it took to make him get over his hurt feelings and restore our relationship was me nearly getting killed. It wasn’t a relationship counseling technique I’d recommend.
“Count on it,” I assured him. “But I wouldn’t mind if we avoided terrible danger for a while. I’m looking forward to some typing and filing, maybe updating our marketing campaign. Just as long as I’m not being chased by anything or put under any spells. And in case anyone is wondering, I’d be happy to help train some other immunes to cope with immunity loss, but I am not going through that again.”
“No, you’re not,” Owen said firmly.
“Now, I believe all of us need to rest and tend our wounds,” Merlin said. Marcia helped Rod up, and I thought he looked steady enough to walk on his own, but he kept his arm tight around her. Ethan managed to get back on his feet, and then Merlin did something magical over Philip, who soon sat up, blinking. The weary lot of us headed out of the caverns, much to the dragons’ dismay, and ran into Sam before we reached the train station.
“It turns out he was only bluffing partway,” the gargoyle said. “He did have someone set up in Times Square to demonstrate magic, but we apprehended him under the code provision against public use of magic with intent to expose magic to outsiders. We also caught a few minor incidents around town that weren’t too difficult to deal with. The secret still seems to be safe, and there’s no buzz about the word being out.”
“It’s a gargoyle, and it’s talking,” Marcia said.
“Yes, it is, just like the other gargoyles back there, and can we talk about it later?” I replied, patting her on the arm.
The train station was deserted except for a few security guards who didn’t seem to see us. Rocky and Rollo’s car was still sitting in front of the station. “I’ll get Katie home,” Owen said. “She should probably stay with me until she gets her immunity back.”
The others piled into the car. I heard Marcia ask, “Hey, how are the gargoyles going to drive?” as Owen turned me away and summoned a cab. I was not looking forward to the conversation I knew would be in my future.
I fell asleep on Owen’s shoulder between the station and his house. He nudged me awake, then helped me out of the cab. He walked me up the steps and then guided me up the indoor stairs to his part of the town house. Loony met both of us at the door, and this time she rubbed against my ankles instead of hissing at me.
“Looks like I’m fully me again,” I commented as I listened to her purring at my feet. “I just wish I felt more like myself.”
“I think both of us could use a stiff drink.”
“Oh, very good idea.”
“As you know, I’m not much of a drinker, but I do have a medicinal bottle around.” He winked. “Even Gloria approves of that.”
I wished I could smile at his joke, but I didn’t feel like joking at the moment. I wasn’t sure what freaked me out more, nearly being magically burned at the stake, Marcia being in the middle of it all, Owen letting the bad guys go to save me, Owen having nearly blown up Grand Central in an attempt to catch the bad guys, or Owen having actually yelled at me, which was possibly a once-in-a-lifetime thing. Whatever it was, I felt deeply unsettled, like my universe had gone out of whack and I didn’t know how to set it right.
In contrast to my dark mood, Owen was in bubbly overdrive. He practically bounced as I followed him back to the kitchen and watched him rummage in cabinets. He pulled a bottle out of the back of one cabinet. “I doubt you’d want to drink this straight, but I’m sure we could put it in something. Hot or cold?”
I blinked out of a stupor. “Huh?”
“Do you want a hot drink or a cold drink?”
You’d think that after almost being burned I wouldn’t want anything hot for a while, but I realized I was shivering like I’d never be warm again. “Hot, please.”
“Okay, then how about that hot toddy like I made when you fell through the ice?”
“Sounds good.” While he made drinks, I sat wearily at the kitchen table. Loony jumped up into my lap and I stroked her fur automatically, letting her purring hypnotize me. I barely noticed when Owen put a drink in front of me. Loony put a paw on my hand and meowed to get my attention, and I blinked back to reality to see the drink.