Page 17 of Hiss and Make Up
“Hold still, will ya?” she said. “Unless you want me to miss and have this little guy wrap himself around your arm.”
That worked.
Marc snapped his head forward and stared at the pillowcase, holding the ends wide open and steady. Sierra smirked. She was much less annoyed with his squeamishness than she might have been a few years ago. Even less than yesterday. His concern for his family coupled with his fear of a few wiggly reptiles was almost endearing.
Almost.
She didn’t have time to contemplate how cute he was when he was afraid. Not while she was still holding a squirming snake on the end of a stick. Refocusing, Sierra tucked the little guy into the pillowcase and pinched the top shut. Then she spun the bag a couple of times and wrapped the end in a loose knot.
“There.” She took the snake and its temporary home from Marc.
He exhaled, and his whole body wobbled now that the stiffness of sheer terror had washed away. She bit her lip, fighting back a smile.
Sierra turned to Denise and nodded at the snake-infested deck box. “Don’t worry about those guys. They can’t get out.”
Denise flinched. “Then how did they get in there?”
“They didn’t. At least not on their own.” Sierra had no idea how they got in there. But she was certain these snakes—who didn’t belong in this state much less in Denise’s backyard—didn’t lift that lid and slither in there on their own. “I’ll have someone out here to pick up the rest of them later today. Tomorrow at the latest. They’ll stay put until then. And it’s not sealed tight, so they have enough air for now.”
“Who cares if they have air?” Denise shrieked, her strong, solid persona cracking at the seams. She took a deep breath and shook her head. “I don’t understand. How did they get in there?”
“Were you guys here all morning?” Sierra asked.
“No,” she stammered. “We were at the farmer’s market.”
Marc nodded in acknowledgment. “They go every Saturday morning.”
“Hmm.”
“Hmm?”Denise echoed, throwing her arms in the air. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing.” Marc put a hand on his sister’s arm. “Sierra’s trying to figure this out. Just like us. She’s trying to help.”
Denise’s shoulders dropped at Marc’s touch, but she kept her eyes lasered on Sierra.
“I can take another look around the property, if you want,” Sierra offered.
After a quick nod of approval, Denise left to check on the kids, muttering about how the older ones probably had the little ones tied up in a closet by now. Once she disappeared inside, Sierra turned to Marc.
“Something’s not right.”
“Yeah, you’re holding a snake like it’s a sack of kittens. Can we put that somewhere?”
Sierra looked at the pillowcase and decided not to inform him that a sack of kittens would be far more difficult to manage. More dangerous too. While Marc followed her to the car, she filled him in on her confusion. “These really don’t belong here.”
“No kidding.”
“I mean they don’t belong anywhere near here. I don’t think they’re native to this area.”
“Are you sure?”
“No. Not yet.”
Marc stopped walking a few feet from the car. “Wait, if they aren’t from this area, and you said they couldn’t get in the box on their own, what the hell is going on here?”
Sierra shook her head and looked around the property and surrounding neighborhood. “I have no idea. Not yet anyway.”
“What do you mean ‘not yet?’ I know that look. Stop it.”
