“You need a name.” I covered the receiver for a moment. “We need a team name.” “Hunters,” Raphael said. “Valiant Knights of the Fur,” Dali said. “Justice Group,” Jim said. “Since Justice League is taken.” “Fools.” Doolittle shook his head. “Fools,” I said into the receiver.”

“Kate makes good sausage," Jim said.Six pairs of eyes stared at me. Thank you, Mr. Wonderful. Just what I needed."Oh yeah," Andrea snapped her fingers. "The links? The ones we had the beginning of the month? I didn't know you made those. I thought they were bought. They were so good." Her smile was positively cherubic. Of all the times not to be able to shoot laser beams out of my eyes..."What do you put into your sausage, Kate?" Raphael wanted to know, giving me a perfectly innocent look.Werejaguars with big mouths with a pinch of werehyena thrown in. "Venison and rabbit.""That sounds like some fine sausage," Doolittle said. "Will you share the recipe?""Sure.""I had no idea you were a sausage expert," Curran said with a completely straight face.Die, die, die, die...Even Derek cracked a smile. Raphael put his head down on the table and jerked a little."Is he choking?" Dali asked, wrinkling her forehead."No, he just needs a moment," Curran said. "Young bouda males. Easily excitable.”

“Raphael turned me over and looked at me, his face close to mine. "You and I will never be done.You're my mate."He kissed the corner of my mouth. I almost cried."I stopped sleeping since you left," he said "I'll sleep for a couple of hours, wake up, you're not there." I closed my eyes."I need an answer, Andrea," he said."An answer?""Mate. Yes or no.""Do you need to ask?" I whispered. "You're my mate.”

“If the lot of you survives, Curran will flay the skin off your backs," Doolittle said."That's what I always love about you, Doctor." Raphael grinned. "You're a cup-halfway-full kind of guy. All flowers and sunshine.”

“We need a bigger gun.”“We need a shower,” Raphael said.“Gun first. Shower later.”Ten minutes later I walked into the Order’s office. A group of knights standing in the hallway turned at my approach: Mauro, the huge Samoan knight; Tobias, as usual dapper; and Gene, the seasoned former Georgia Bureau of Investigations detective. They looked at me. The conversation died.My clothes were torn and bloody. Soot stained my skin. My hair stuck out in clumps caked with dirt and blood. The reek of a dead cat emanated from me in a foul cloud.I walked past them into the armory, opened the glass case, took Boom Baby out, grabbed a box of Silver Hawk cartridges, and walked out.Nobody said a thing.”

“I snapped the crossbow into the top of the mount, took a canvas bundle from the cart, and unrolled it. Crossbow bolts, tipped with the Galahad warheads.“This is my baby.” I petted the stock.“You have a strange relationship with your weapons,” Roman said.“You have no idea,” Raphael told him.“This from a man with a living staff and a man who once drove four hours both ways for a sword he then put on his wall,” I murmured.“It was an Angus Trim,” Raphael said.“It’s a sharpened strip of metal.”“You have an Angus Trim sword?” Kate’s eyes lit up.“Bought it at an estate auction,” Raphael said. “If we get out of this alive, you are invited to come to my house and play with it.”It was good that Curran wasn’t here and I was secure in our relationship, because that totally could be taken the wrong way.”

“Don't worry, he's coming with me to investigate things.""In the city?" Jim asked."Yes.""That's a great idea. You both should go. To the city."Curran and I looked at each other."He's trying to get rid of us," I said."You think he's planning a coup?" Curran wondered."I hope so." I turned to Jim. "Is there any chance you'd overthrow the tyrannical Beast Lord and his psychotic Consort?""Yeah, I want a vacation," Curran said.Jim leaned toward us and said in a lowered voice, "You couldn't pay me enough. This is your mess, you deal with it. I have enough on my plate."He walked away."Too bad," Curran said."I don't know, I think we could convince him to seize the reins of power."Curran shook his head. "Nahh. He's too smart for that.”