Page 28 of The Tracker's Rage
I wanted to tell him that I would do the same—move heaven and earthandentire realms if necessary—to help undo the pain I’d caused, that I was already trying to convince a powerful mage to give me some of the healing elixir he planned to create. But I didn’t have anything concrete, so why give him false hopes?
“We are very sorry, Mr. Blackridge,” Rosalina said, her tone sincere and repentant.
Aaron shook his head. “I would never blame you.” His voice trembled a little as he spoke. “I want you to know that. I appreciate you letting me know. You could have ignored this, turned a blind eye, but I see you have ethics.” He stood. “I’ll go now. I need to talk to Josh.” He started walking away without taking the folder, which contained his uncashed check for the second part of his payment, as well as a check from us, returning his deposit.
I picked it up and offered it to him. “Please, take this.”
He shook his head. “You did your job. I have no complaints.”
“I insist.”
He took it reluctantly. “I understand. Thank you.”
After he left, Rosalina and I slumped in our chairs.
“I think this is the hardest thing we’ve ever had to do since we opened the agency,” she said.
“Damn right it is.”
I didn’t want to have to do anything like that ever again.
Chapter 11
The next day was justas long and tiring as the previous. It started with training with Eric, my second to last session. We ran in the woods where he taught me to follow a trail using my sharp nose and keen eyes. He also spent some time teaching me a few tricks to use during fights, things like how to never expose my tender belly, how to use my tail for balance and feigning, and how to push and slice an opponent with my back legs if I fell.
At the office, we had a long day, contacting prospective customers, and doing a talk at a singles group explaining the benefits of a true mate versus an accidental one. We left our brochures behind, hoping that some of them might take the plunge and hire us.
Celina Morelli and Aaron Blackridge had been our only high profile customers so far. We were hoping for some more word-of-mouth business coming from them, but it wasn’t happening as fast as we would’ve liked, and in truth, we didn’t think Aaron would comfortably recommend us to anyone—no matter what he thought about our ethics. We had screwed up his life. Royally. And even if he didn’t think so, his friends probably would.
Being a glutton for punishment, I went to kick-boxing class and got my ass thoroughly exhausted. So at the end of the day, feeling as achy as if I’d been mugged and beaten, I keyed the lock to my condo and walked in. Rosalina had wanted me to go home with her since I still hadn’t moved any of my stuff over, but I was looking forward to a quiet night without expectations of any kind.
I walked into my bedroom and dropped my duffel bag on the floor. The mattress was still bare, but I had brought new sheets and a few other necessities for my first night at home.
After ordering some take-out, I made the bed and quickly realized I’d forgotten to bring a pillow. But I was so exhausted, I doubted I would even notice once I laid my head down. After that, I hung a shower curtain in the bathroom. Its vinyl smell impregnated the place, making my nose wrinkle.
That’s what you get for buying the cheapest liner available.
