The 9 lives of Cats and Gods (Merry Men Book 1)

Life 3

1.
Bash

Good Day,

I know who you are. And I know what you have done. In one week's time I will send all of my evidence to the police. If you want to stop me, you're going to have to kill me.

Sebastian (Bash) Blake
Nottingham Academy
Oak Harbor, WA

Robin
"Come on please? Just one?" I whine, following Marianna around her room while she gathers laundry. It's a beautiful Saturday morning and I have murderers to turn into victims.
"Robin you promised Courdelion we're lying low," Rocket says, from where he's lying on her bed trying to do homework. We're very unhelpful friends when it comes to laundry. That said we already did ours.
"Yeah and if you keep bringing that up you're not my friend anymore. He doesn't need to know," I sigh.
"He's completely going to know, if any murders occur in a fifty mile radius of where you are he's probably gonna blame you to be safe," Rocket says.
"He's probably gonna be right," Marianna says.
"He'll forgive me he's too much of a vigilante in spirit to be really cross come on?" I groan, holding out my phone, "Three hundred new posts this morning alone. People—all over the world at this point, crying for justice. Look at this one—this one, right down in Bremerton—not an hour away, she says her rapist got out yesterday she's afraid to leave her flat please?"
"Why'd you let him go on the facebook page?" Marianna asks Rocket.
"I can't take his phone."
"You can, actually. You're bigger than him," Marianna says.
"He's mean though. He bites."
"Guys—I'm going to go without you and I'll just have fun on my own—,"
"Robby you had a car chase that was fun wasn't it?" Rocket sighs.
"That was two whole weeks ago. Bash hasn't even sent another murder letter and he accused me of murder only three times yesterday in third period. I'm bored, I've nothing to do this weekend, why not help someone —I didn't know you had this?" I'm semi-helping mostly hindering Marianna with the laundry and came upon a red soft bra with like, lace on it. It's very pretty anyway.
"Shut up," she says, taking it, blushing, "I got it off Amazon. It's stupid I'm gonna return it."
"No, it's pretty, you should wear it you'd look pretty," I say.
"Ew," Rocket says, "Get a room you two."
"You're literally in my room also both of you have seen me naked," Marianna says. That's for medical reasons she got shot. It wasn't naked naked either it was just more all of us were slightly shot so stripping down to underwear to sew ourselves up type of deal.
"Yeah, I've also seen him naked. I've also seen him shoot someone through the eyeball. I've had lots of traumatic things happen to me that I don't plan on repeating," Rocket says.
"Look at me, wear it, doesn't have to be around me, you'd look nice," I say, letting her take it, "Right? I think it looks pretty—Rocket—,"
"I'm no longer participating in this conversation."
"You were participating in it when it was about murder," I say, lying on top of him.
"Yeah I know I've got problems. So do you. I've been reading articles on the internet. I think you've got a god complex."
"You didn't have to read articles online for that I could have told you, yeah, definitely," I say, tugging on his ear, "Come on? Come help me kill somebody? Please?"
"You know if we don't go with him, he's gonna go alone and have fun alone and we're gonna worry about him getting caught."
"Look, the Senator is protecting us, god knows why, not one of us needs to go to prison, all right? We're fucking close," Rocket sighs.
"Pretty please with sugar on top and I'll not wake up you up doing impressions of Nicholas Cage for a week?" I plead.
"You were gonna do that this week?"
"Absolutely, yeah, I've been meaning to for a while, to be honest."
"Fucking fine. You're fucking impossible," Rocket pushes me off the bed as I say 'yay'.
"Fine, we'll go with you, but you've got to lie to Friar Lightman," Marianna says.
"Done, fucking love lying to authority figures."                   

Bash
"Are you sure you don't mind going all weekend?" My aunt asks, as she watches while I arrange my things in the trunk of her car. "I know you have homework—,"
"No, my projects are complete." Mailed another letter yesterday. My first one for the third letter got returned to sender the ink on the address got smudged. So we're a little behind schedule but nothing major. I still have a ten percent chance of living through thanksgiving so now it will be a nice last time to spend with my aunt so she doesn't have any sad memories or anything.
"Okay, good," she nods, watching as I pack up.
"Oh and I've chatted with Special Agent Courdelion he's going to be more civil in his communication is with you in the future," I say, going to get in the passenger seat.
"What?!" She scurries around the car to get in, staring at me as I fold myself up in the seat as much as possible.
"What—what are you talking about? You spoke to him he—,"
"He's allowing me to consult. Don't worry everything is in hand," I say, coolly.
"Bash, I don't want them using you," she says, not even starting the car.
"Trust me. I'm in control," I say, "I'm always in control. You do know that."
"Yeah, I do, but still. The FBI, these people."
"I am in control. I promise that, things are going as I wish them to," I say.
"I don't want to lose you."
"Okay."
"BASH!"
"I'm not going to make a promise I can't keep. I could die tomorrow of —an aneurism. A lightening strike. Literally anything."
"Or a serial killer you baited into attacking you."
"Mmmhmm, that too."
"Look at me, please, Bash, look at me," she says, tapping my shoulder. I tip my head her way but look past her as always. "I love you. I do not want to lose you. I do not want anything to happen to you you do us so much good here the world needs you alive and solving mysteries."
"I'm walking the path I'm meant to, and the only one I can. I promise that. It does involve staying alive as long as I can. I promise that as well," I say, gently, putting my hand over hers.
"Okay," she sighs a little.
"Now, where's our mystery destination? You said that you hadn't finalized it yet," I say, settling back into my seat.
"Yeah um, I was looking it up still ah—we're going star gazing in Olympia national park, and then we're going to our hotel, okay? We're going to sit in the hotel and eat cheerios and pringles, and sleep in until forever, and you can tell me all about your classes and your research and whatever you want to talk about okay? I have enough snack food in the back seat to last us all weekend."
"Can we order pizza?" She likes pizza.
"Sure."
"Do you want to hear everything I think and know about the British East India company, or about the effects of the longbow on warfare? Because I'm open to either one or I can think about that and be quiet?" I offer.
"How about you tell me one on the ride and the other one when we get there?" She asks.
"That's fair okay I'm going with longbow first I think you'll like it better."
"Since when are you into weapons?" She laughs, "Is it for a class?"
"It came up for a project, I got involved," I shrug a little.
"Oh, before you get started, we will be out of cell service here soon so if you want to down load anything or text your friends then do now," she says, quickly.
"You know I don't talk to people as a rule, and my best friend is off committing homicide so he won't be talking to me."
"Please tell me you're kidding."
"I am not."
"Bash!"
"I did say probably."
"Is this your best friend who is—"
"Who is also my mortal enemy yes."
"Bash!"