Chapter Eighteen

Ford had just opened the passenger door for Violet and called for Pyro to jump out of the truck bed when Shep approached.

“A raccoon, bunnies, and now a fuckin’ porcupine.”

“Sounds like the start of a bad joke. Lemme guess, they all walk into the school.” The tailgate screeched as Ford lowered it and began snapping leashes on puppies. “What’s the punch line?”

“Me, I guess. I bet a bunch of kids think they’re awfully damn funny right now, tryin’ to turn the school into a petting zoo.” Shep seemed to register Violet’s presence, and, as usual, his poker face was shit. He conveyed, loud and clear, his surprise over her tagging along. “Violet. Hey.”

She waved. “Hi, Will. Nice to see you again.”

“Violet’s lookin’ for a slice of country life,” Ford said, giving her a wink as he handed her Trouble’s leash. “We’re gonna play this like a training drill—only with a short leash instead of a long lead rope. Keep a tight hold of him, otherwise Trouble might get too close to the porcupine and end up with a snout full of quills.”

Violet hoisted Trouble into her arms and rubbed the underside of his chin. “We don’t want that, do we? That’s why we’re just going to sniff out the creature and…” She glanced to Ford to fill in the rest of the plan.

“Herd him outside so he can hightail it back to where he belongs.”

“Or her,” Violet added, as if she were a pro at animal rights.

“How presumptuous of me,” Ford said. “Don’t wanna be sexist and call the prickly vermin a dude if it’s a chick.”

“Exactly.” Violet lowered Trouble to the ground. “You ready to put your skills to good use? Afterward there will be treats, and even better, so, so much cuddling.”

Hopefully, that reward would extend to Ford as well. It’d been too long since he’d gotten his arms around her without an audience.

Ford handed Tank’s and Nitro’s leashes to Shep. “Same speech I gave her. The puppies’ll track the porcupine, but let Pyro and me take lead.” He squatted and patted his canine companion’s side as he hooked a rope onto the red collar. “I know, I don’t usually bother with a leash with you, but it’s for your own good. Ready to get to work?”

Pyro gave an enthusiastic bark that the puppies echoed, and they were on their way, a ragtag group of marshals on the hunt for a fugitive.

“You both are acting like this is so normal,” Violet said. “Is this normal?”

Shep headed up the ramp to the double-door entrance of the school. “Not sure normal applies in Uncertainty. Kids have been pullin’ pranks for generations. Hell, it’s something Ford, Tucker, Easton, Murph, and I would’ve done back in the day.”

“Only we wouldn’t get caught,” Ford added. “Well, we got away with fifty, sixty percent at least.”

Violet tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “So you know who did this?”

“Not yet,” he and Shep said at the same time. Then Shep took over the explaining. “After we get the animals out of the building, we’ll review the video footage. It’s always blurry and dim, so it’s a bit like lookin’ for smoke in a cloud of fog, but we can often make out hoodies or hats or whatnot. The kids wear ’em to school ’cause they haven’t got a lick of sense.

“After the last few pranks—three bunnies numbered one, two, and four, as if we hadn’t already pulled that trick of making the admin think there was one missing—and a few weeks later a racoon in the cafeteria that scared the bejeebies out of the lunch ladies. Anyway, we upgraded to high-res cameras, including one aimed right at the parking lot.”

A light tug slowed Pyro’s eager pace. “We used to wait till the next school day to hear how our pranks went over. Kids these days can’t help but drive by several times to catch a peek at their handiwork.”

The giant retractable key ring on Shep’s belt zinged as he used one of his many keys to unlock the doors. “The porcupine was just yonder, at the far end of the lobby. I spotted a moving blob and shined my flashlight inside. I caught sight of quills, but by the time I got the doors open, it’d melted into the darkness. Figured I could either go pokin’ around for the rest of the evening and end up with an ass full of quills, or I could call for backup.”

As soon as they stepped inside the building, the dogs went wild sniffing the ground. Ford lowered his voice into authoritative mode. “Seek.”

Pyro nearly jerked Ford’s arm out of the socket as he headed across the lobby, nose to the ground. It’d been years since Ford had used a leash on him, and unlike the puppies, he didn’t do anything slow.

“He’s got a bead on it,” Ford said as Pyro charged down the hallway to the right, and then he picked up his own pace and rushed on after him.

…

Where even was she right now? In the middle of an odd dream—one she’d later wake up from and think, How didn’t I realize I was asleep? The situation was way too bizarre to be real.

Trouble tugged on his leash, headed in the same direction Ford had gone, and Violet had to half-run to keep up.

Lights flicked on, bathing the hallway in light, and she skidded to a stop a handful of yards short of Ford and a growling Pyro. “Holy shit. That’s a porcupine. I’ve never seen one in real life before.”

The creature had been up on its haunches, scratching its side, an oddly human gesture. It turned, its stumpy face and beady black eyes staring out from the type of hairdo Violet ended up with whenever she went to bed with wet locks.

“Aww, it’s so cute.” In fact, Violet experienced the same syrupy phenomenon as whenever she saw Trouble. “I kinda want to pet it.”

Ford gave her a don’t you dare glare. “Trust me, you don’t. That goes for you, too, Pyro.”

As if Trouble had only now realized there was a foreign animal, he began barking like mad, which set off a chain reaction with his siblings. TNT, on the case and just as explosive.

The porcupine’s quills flared, going from bedhead to static electricity.

Violet’s blood pressure spiked, and she backpedaled, dragging a stubborn Trouble with her. Elongated teeth clattered together as the animal became agitated. It lumbered around, displaying its raised, extra-spiked backside, and Ford and Pyro gave it extra space as well.

A series of squeaky grunting noises came from the creature, as if it were swearing at them for interrupting what’d been a nice, leisurely stroll through the school halls. With its teeth out and the quills in ready-to-fire position, the urge to pet it waned, and its agitation set the dogs off again.

“Hold the puppies back,” Ford said, throwing out an arm. “Just a second, Pyro. Let’s come up with a plan.” He glanced around and then indicated a door to Violet’s right. “Is that still a janitor’s closet?”

“Yep,” Will said from her other side. “Doubt it’s changed much since you and Trina turned it into your own personal make-out room. We keep it locked now, of course. I don’t want any teen pregnancies on my watch.”

A heavy exhale came out as Ford ran a hand through his hair. “Gee, thanks for that.”

Will looked from him to Violet, somewhat chagrined. The toxic flare in her gut made it hard to pretend she didn’t want to hunt down this Trina chick and strangle her.

Fortunately, they had their hands full with other things. Country things, apparently. Even with the creature in view and prattling on and on, she could hardly believe this was real life. And people said Florida had all the perplexing news stories.

Tank and Nitro continued to sniff the ground. Then they went to barking, towing Will in the direction of the lobby they’d come from. “Uh-oh. What if there’s more than one?”

Will unhooked the key ring from his belt. “I’m going to go check the other hallway.” He tossed the keys to Violet. They clanged together as they fell through her hands and onto the floor—sports had never been her jam.

Luckily, Will was already off and running, and Ford had his eyes on the porcupine and Pyro as they egged each other on.

Trouble, on the other hand, circled the keys and growled, absolutely on top of the mission.

“Good job, buddy. We need those, so thanks so much for helping me find them.” Violet retrieved the key ring. Thanks to the extra adrenaline and slight tremble in her hand, it took two tries to unlock the closet.

“Is there a big push broom in there?” Ford asked, and she scanned the area. Roomy enough for a make-out session for sure, if you didn’t mind the overwhelming scent of three to five types of cleaner.

Paper towels, spray bottles, a mop and bucket, and…

“Found the broom.” She grabbed the wooden handle, fighting the wide bottom as it snagged on the bucket and then the doorjamb. Didn’t help that she was trying to prevent Trouble from taking a drink from the murky contents of the bucket. “No. I’ll get you clean water later.”

As soon as she finagled the push broom free, relief filled her.

For two whole seconds, before Ford extended his palm for it. So much for her short-lived celebration. She rocked into motion again, rushing the broom over to him.

The porcupine spun and snapped its teeth at her, and a squeal escaped as her heartbeat tripled. Trouble decided to defend her honor, and her pulse skyrocketed into the danger zone as she used her foot to nudge him away from a snout-full of pain.

Violet retreated, keeping Trouble close to her side.

“Now I need you to backtrack the way we came and prop open the doors,” Ford said, his voice low and placid. Did he truly feel that nonchalant, or did he simply have years of practice pretending to be while in tense situations? “Then give us a wide berth so Pyro and I can get our boy—or girl—pointed in the right direction and nudge it on out the door.”

The squawky grunts grew in intensity, leading Violet to believe the porcupine was either on board with or opposed to the plan.

“Oh, and in case there is another one, watch for it,” Ford called after her as she ran down the hallway, as if she had any idea what that meant.

Like give a shout if she saw the porcupine’s significant other? Try to catch it? Assure it they were going to get them out of here in one piece?

Let Trouble handle it?

Since the puppy in question began sniffing every single locker before finding a pencil to gnaw on, she scooped him up and ran. “Buddy, I hope you’re more qualified for this than I am. I needed an escape from life, and suddenly I’m breaking animals out of high school.”

Once Violet had propped open the doors and ensured the kickstand thingies could hold them, she rushed across the lobby.

Ford and Pyro had managed to get their porcupine turned around and halfway down the hall, Pyro barking and growling at it to stay the course while Ford wielded the broom like a hockey stick.

Holding Trouble firmly, Violet darted into the other hallway lined with lockers. Hopefully she and her fierce hound would be enough of a deterrent for the porcupine to head outside instead of in their direction.

“We’ve got to look scary, ’kay?”

Trouble licked her chin, causing an undercurrent of adoration that made her mostly okay with his total lack of obedience.

In the distance, Nitro and Tank barked out a cacophonous racket. One that was growing louder and louder…

They rounded the corner of the hallway at a full sprint, Will hot on their heels.

Trouble jumped out of her arms and rushed toward his siblings, leaving Violet to race after the end of his leash.

Last second, she completed a home-plate slide and snagged it, her knees and palms burning as she hit the floor.

Wait, is that a mouse?

The rodent apparently decided her prone form was less threatening than her pursuers and skittered over the top of her.

“Ew, ew, ew.” Violet swatted at her head, failing to repress a shudder.

Nitro and Tank charged right on after the mouse, using Violet’s back and butt as a launchpad.

Will yanked on the leashes, forcing the puppies to stop in their tracks, and squatted to check on her. “Sorry,” he said through labored breaths. “I didn’t see you in time. You okay?”

Her hip bones throbbed, her hands and knees stung, and a mouse had crawled over the top of her. And yet, as she rolled onto her side, a laugh came out instead of the assurance she’d most likely survive.

The dogs were still barking up a storm at the mouse, who’d paused in the hallway, a foot or so from the lobby, as if it weren’t going to bother to flee if the puppies didn’t give chase.

Then it must’ve caught sight of the porcupine, Pyro, and Ford and his broom, because it skidded across the tile and rushed out the open door.

“Pull back, pull back,” Ford yelled as he and Pyro rounded the corner. The push broom had quills sticking out from its bristles, so the makeshift puck had put up quite a fight. Sure enough, its grunted complaints echoed through the lobby. “Dude, it’s for your own good.”

Will clutched the two leashes in his fist and reeled Tank and Nitro away from the mouth of the lobby. They fought their restraints, desperate to go help Pyro as he barked and urged the porcupine toward the door.

Violet reinforced her own grip on Trouble’s leash, but he’d turned his attention to her shoelaces and was ever-so-helpfully biting at the ends and untying them for her.

Once the porcupine spotted freedom, the prickly beast followed its smaller mouse cousin outside, and Ford quickly kicked up the stands and yanked the doors closed behind them.

Violet returned her head to the cool tile floor, wondering if it’d be odd to take a quick nap.

Then again, when in Alabama… Odd seemed to have a new meaning here, as in there might be a variety of woodland creatures roaming the hallways of the school. Speaking of…

“Did you find another porcupine?” she asked Will.

“Nah,” he said. “Just a pile of porcupine shit. Right as I was about to turn the dogs around, they unearthed that mouse. Figured it’d be a good training exercise for ’em.”

Right. Training. Not odd at all.

Next thing she knew, Ford and Pyro were looming over her.

She smiled up at Ford’s sexy, rugged face. “So? Did Trouble and I do a good job?”

Ford glanced at her puppy, who’d moved from untying her shoelaces to attacking a stray gum wrapper. “I mean, he’s not entirely focused, and you’re takin’ a nap, but hiccups are common during first jobs. I’d give you guys a C. Maybe even a C plus.”

“Did you hear that, buddy? We passed.” Violet pushed herself to a seated position and held her hand up for Trouble to smack it—not that she’d taught him that trick.

The traitor ignored it and leaped on top of his sister, choosing to bite her ear and start a fight instead of celebrating.

Pyro nudged her side, so she turned to shower him with affection. “You got an A plus, plus, didn’t you? You’re such a brave dog.”

Ford crouched down on Violet’s other side, forearms braced on his knees. One corner of his mouth kicked up while two creases appeared between his eyebrows, as if he couldn’t settle on concerned or amused. “Bet you’ll rethink coming along the next time I get a strange emergency call.”

“Are you kidding me? That was such a rush! Save mud bogging and…”

Will’s focus was on untangling the leashes, and naturally the dogs had decided to help by climbing on and licking him.

Violet lowered her voice to a whisper. “Afterward in the shower…” Yep, her cheeks were turning red; she could tell by the heat that accompanied her bold declaration. Lingering on it would only make her trip over her words, so she charged on, her voice returning to a normal decibel.

“This is the most adventurous date I’ve ever been on. Most guys go for the typical dinner and a movie.” She patted the side of Ford’s face and left her palm against his stubbled skin. “But you, you pull out all the stops.”

“Anything for my girl.” He slid his hand behind her neck as he guided her mouth to his. He began to pull away and then dove back in, capturing her lower lip between his teeth and topping the kiss off with a sensual nip. “Shep, we might need those keys to the janitor’s closet. You go on ahead, and we’ll lock up in a few.”

Violet smacked his arm and did her best to hold a dirty look. “Nice try. One, a few minutes? Seriously? You think that’s motivating? And two, I don’t want some hussy’s leftover make-out spot.”

Obviously she didn’t mean the hussy part.

Well, she did her best not to, even as the envy coating her insides thickened. There’d been times in the past she’d caught women flirting with Benjamin, but she’d never felt jealous. Partially because she thought the two of them were unshakable.

But even when she’d caught him at Maisy’s wedding, this desperate sort of need to claim him as hers hadn’t come along for the ride.

“Sounds like I’d better find us a nicer spot, then.” Ford grabbed her hand and helped her to her feet.

“I’d suggest you do,” Violet said, and then they grinned at each other and all the world was right.

Which was wild, considering she’d just survived her first bazaar, a run-in with Cheryl, and a porcupine hunt in one hectic night.