Page 25 of Happy Krampus Xmas & the Meet Not Cute
“When you stop being unreasonable and start thinking,” Gabe has the gall to say to me.
I push off his body and sit on the opposite side of the sofa. “What the fuck, Gabe! Can’t you just support me? This is important to me.”
“We did. We listened to your incomprehensible blabbering.” Bez decides to get involved.
“Latin ritual,” Gabe corrects him.
“For an eternity,” Bez grumbles.
“For a few minutes,” Gabe interjects again. I love when they both interact with me, but hate when they do it to prove a point.
“I needed to invoke his spirit,” I remind them.
“Look at our apartment. It’s like we entered a scene from one of your horror movies.” Gabe gestures at the one on the TV.
“Fucking creepy, if stupid,” Bez confesses.
“You are insufferable when you unite against me!” I stand up and skitter to the window wall. My eyes fall on the sideboard, noticing a plastic bag near the liquor bottles. “What’s this?” I grab it and shake it toward them.
“A microchip.” Gabe stands up and rounds the sofa, stalking slowly toward me.
“You meanthemicrochip you want to insert behind my ear to keep yourBig Brothereye on me.” I feel anger boiling up inside me. I told him I’d think about this microchip shite. He promised he’d talk to me before doing something. I hate when he makes decisions without asking me first. Like when he paid off all my debts or he transferred me near his office. Both things he did—as well as many others after that—for my well-being. But I’m not a child, and I want us to sit down and talk about life-altering decisions.
“Yes,” Bez says simply.
“You maddening, obstinate blockhead, do you hear yourself? I told you I needed to think about it.”
“I know.” Gabe’s placating reply has the opposite effect on me.
“So why?” I yell. “You know what? It doesn’t matter. I won’t be microchipped so that you can follow every step I take. I refuse to do it!”
“Do you?” Gabe’s icy voice timbre is almost threatening. I hate when he uses that superior tone with me.
“Stop that! Both of you!” I hiss, my heart is jackhammering inside my chest, and I feel so bloody murderous right now.
“What? We are just talking,” Gabe keeps going, taking another forceful step my way.
“Not for long,” Bez drawls.
“You aren’t. You with that raspy, growly voice, and Gabe with that I'll-fuck-a-yes-out-of-you stare.”
“Is it working?” Bez dares to ask me.
Unbearable, insufferable, bull-headed, cocksure dickheads!
“We all have trackers.” Gabe’s flat voice irritates me even more. He’s going to try another angle. I’ve worked on so many cases with him, I know all his methods of persuasion. The fact that he thinks he can use them on me makes me see red. “Even Ollie and Sully.”
I scoff, throwing the plastic bag on the white kitchen counter. “This is about the control freak inside you not letting me make a decision! You’re unbelievable.” I stomp angrily toward the entrance feeling the sudden need for fresh air.
“Where are you going? It’s snowing!” Bez takes one step toward me as Gabe’s phone starts to ring from somewhere near the sofa.
I look at the white flakes falling slowly out of the window. Wednesday decides this is the right moment to land at my feet. I take it as a sign. “For a stroll with Wednesday.” I wear Gabe’s black down jacket and over it, the dog carrier I use to take my hen outside.
“Little Wasp, stop!” Bez snarls; there’s an angry tic in his jaw and his hands are balled into fists. He does that when he’s having an innerkerfufflewith Gabe.
I place Wednesday in the carrier wrapped around my chest.
“Listen to Gabe. Don’t follow me, Bez. I need some me-time.” I grab my phone and the plastic horns next to it as well, pushingthem down on my curls. As I slip on my stiletto pumps, the phone keeps ringing. “You should answer that. It could be one of your brothers.”
