Taking a step towards them I froze when the yellow and white behemoth turned burning eyes on me. The air rushed out of me as if someone had delivered a crushing blow to my solar plexus, and I was filled with the need to put as much space between us as possible. Just as I was sure that Killian was not human, I had no doubt that the animal staring me down was not truly a cat. I had no idea what kind of creature it was, and was fairly certain that I didn’t want to find out.
Overcome with renewed concern for Loki, I swallowed the panic that fluttered in the back of my throat like a caged bird. Gritting my teeth against the fear that wanted to propel me out of the door, I stood my ground, but couldn’t summon the courage to step between them. Each was slunk low to the floor, legs spread wide and tails raised like slowly waving flags.
“Hey, Dumb and Dumber, you want to give me a hand before this turns into bloodshed?” I said.
Snapping out of his fascinated study of Loki, Killian glanced at his cat, or whatever the hell it was, and frowned.
“Ashiel. Knock it off.”
At first I wanted to laugh and ask him if that was all he had up his sleeve, but to my surprise, the tension in the air dissipated in the slow blink of gleaming yellow eyes. I could do nothing more than watch, mouth agape, as the large creature sat back on his haunches and proceeded to wash his face in a display of utter calm. Likewise, Loki assumed a stance of indifference by stretching out across the floor, only the occasional twitch of his tail belying his appearance of tranquility.
“Well, that was about as weird as an ogre in drag,” I muttered.
Together, Holbrook and Killian looked at me as if I had sprouted a second head, but I just ignored them and got back to the matter at hand.
“So, are you going to share that information about Shoup?”
Killian momentarily looked as though he’d like to sic his beast of a cat on me, but thankfully just crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head. “Not going to happen.”
“This woman could be associated with a raving lunatic, and you won’t pony up her address because you want to protect her privacy?” I asked, mirroring his stance.
Laying a hand on my shoulder, Holbrook pulled me around to face him. “You’re not helping the situation here. Maybe you should let me do the talking. I’m the one with the badge remember, and you do seem to lack a bit of…” he started to say, and noticing the sharpness of my gaze let the rest of his words die away.
“Lack a bit of, what?” I demanded, uncrossing my arms to settle my hands on my hips.
“I simply meant that, perhaps it would be better if someone a little more…tactful…asked the questions.”
“More tactful?” I parroted, wincing at the sharp edge to my voice. He wanted to quibble over manners while this jerk was acting all high and mighty, lording his precious intel over us? Didn’t Holbrook understand that Johnson was out there, waiting for the right moment to strike and finish what he’d started? He wouldn’t need to protect me from Samson if Johnson got to me first. “Why are you taking his side?”
“I’m not taking anyone’s side. I’m trying to do my job, and you’re throwing a hissy fit.”
“No, I’m not,” I snarled, though even I could hear the whine in my voice.
Gentling his voice, Holbrook asked, “Why don’t you go wait outside?”
“Wait outside?” I repeated, my voice fading into a faint croak. He was dismissing me like an errant child. The display cases on the counter shuddered when I slammed my fist down on the smooth wood, making both of the men jump while the cats barely batted an eyelash. “This is such horseshit!”
Not waiting for a response from Holbrook, sure that whatever he had to say would just piss me off, I stomped over to where Loki was sprawled on the floor and picked him up. Turning on my heel, I stormed out of the shop, letting the door slam shut behind me. The merry tinkle of the bell above the door somewhat diminished the effect of my dramatic exit, riling my anger all the more.
Kicking at a clump of ice and road grime clinging to the wheel well of the SUV I narrowly avoided slipping on a patch of ice and falling on my ass. The sudden rush of adrenaline at my near fall worked to soothe my anger more than anything Holbrook could have done or said. Looking up, I spotted Collins and Hill watching me from inside their SUV, those damned smirks in place again.
Great. Everyone in the FBI is going to think I’m a bumbling idiot before the day is through. If they don’t already.
Hunching my shoulders up around my ears, as much to protect them from the chill wind as to hide my mortification, I opened the door of the SUV and let Loki down onto the seat before getting in after him. Closing the door with a slam, I propped my chin on my fist and waited for Holbrook to hurry up so we could get the hell out of here. By the time he joined me in the car my anger had cooled, leaving me fueled only by my desire to find Johnson. Buckling my seatbelt, I resolutely ignored the fine wrinkles around his dazzling eyes that meant he was desperately trying not to laugh.
I slouched down in my seat and crossed my arms over my chest. “Shut up.”
“Didn’t say a word,” he replied, his voice warm with amusement.
“Hillbilly ass.”
“Furry drama queen.”