Total pages in book: 127
Estimated words: 119764 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 599(@200wpm)___ 479(@250wpm)___ 399(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 119764 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 599(@200wpm)___ 479(@250wpm)___ 399(@300wpm)
I help haul her up.
She groans and puts a hand to her lower back, hobbling after me. “Fucking floors. They’re the worst.”
“Agreed.” I offer her my arm to help her walk, but she bats it away. Neither of us says anything until we get outside, and Murr comes over to us. I wrap the towel around his waist while he holds the box out to Aggie. I speak up, now that we’re alone. “We found some antique cups, but we also found a problem.”
Aggie’s brows go up. “What is it?”
“We ran into Thess,” I say. “And she had a few proposals for us. I wanted to talk to you alone before we decided anything.”
“Sounds ominous.” She crosses her arms over her chest and gives me an impatient look. “Well, go on. I’m old and don’t have forever.”
Is there a good way to word this sort of thing? If there is, I can’t think of it. “Someone wants one of your puppies.”
CHAPTER 85
DAKOTA
Aggie doesn’t freak out like I thought she would at the thought of someone wanting the puppies. I tell her what I know of the situation from Thess, and her eyes get soft when she hears Jonah needs a guide dog. “I don’t know how to train for that,” she admits. “And Stella’s kinda dumb. I love her, but she’s about as observant as a brick.”
“I think Thess said that he’d be able to teach it some commands, and whatever he can do is better than nothing.”
She nods, thinking. “I’d have to meet him. I’m not giving my babies to just anyone.”
“Of course not.”
“Did that shitty-ass nomad show back up at the fort? Is that why they’re asking after my dogs?” She scowls. “Is that what this is about?”
I shake my head, then take the box from Murr and set it down. “No, I think Thess is close to the family. She remembered that we have dogs and wanted to come and talk to us about it first. I told her I’d run the idea past you but I couldn’t guarantee anything. No discussion of money or goods. And she didn’t mention a nomad.”
Aggie glances at Murr. “You think your buddy could have made it back to the fort by now?”
He huffs as if the idea is ridiculous. “Tiny legs. No go far.”
“I do like the idea of him having tiny legs,” Aggie admits. “And okay, we’ll assume everything is on the up and up. I still want to meet him before I decide anything, and they’re far too small to leave Mama just yet.” She pulls the lid off the box and frowns at the mess of old newspapers and fabric in the box. “What the fuck is all this?”
“A couple of teacups from an antique store. We looked for the most gilded, ridiculous ones.”
She puts the lid back on and her eyes look suspiciously misty. “That’s perfect. We’ll have to hide this so she doesn’t find them ahead of time. What about ingredients for a cake? Party hats?”
I grimace. “We didn’t get that far, but we might be able to trade for foodstuffs at the fort. Thess suggested it. That might be easier than having to hunt down ingredients that haven’t been picked over a dozen times already.”
Aggie makes a face. “Sounds like we need to visit the fort. I hate forts.”
“I do, too.” So much. In my experience, the people that usually run the forts get power-hungry and start lording over everyone. They tend to treat women like they’re commodities, and I’ve heard of forts where they kicked out the elderly because they were considered a drain on resources. It’s like they’re the worst versions of humanity, all clustered into one spot. “But I can’t deny that they have a lot of stuff that we don’t. Thess assures us that we’d be able to come and go without being bothered, and I have to trust her.”
“You might have to, but I don’t,” Aggie grumbles.
Murr puts a big hand on my shoulder, then steps forward and puts a hand on Aggie’s shoulder, too. “Murr no leave Aggie fort. Murr keep safe.”
“I trust you, Big Meat.” She pats his hand. “Maybe it won’t be so bad. We don’t have to stay overnight if we can just fly away. It’ll be like an afternoon visit to the store or something. A store in a shit part of town.”
Which brings me to the other thing we need to discuss. “And speaking of forts…there’s a doctor there. Thess knows him well and says that he’s skilled. I think he should take a look at Dottie.”
Aggie just arches one brow, her forehead crinkling up. “Dottie ain’t gonna like that.”
“Is she okay?” I ask. “She’s lying down again. I’m worried.”
“She always says she’s fine. It’s not like I’m gonna waterboard the truth out of her. If she says she’s fine, she’s fine.”