Keeper

V. Good Talk

"This is where you work?" Detective Velez said, appalled as she took in the sight of the faded, grey Hamistagan Plaza. The ground floor windows were broken out and the exterior of the building marred with spray-painted gang signs. "I thought you worked in HR, not a crack den."

Morgan almost felt defensive. She was attached to the building. It had its charms, deathtrap though it might have been if there was ever a fire. "The upstairs is nicer. We hardly ever smoke crack in it," she said, starting to feel a little light-headed. She unlocked the surprisingly sturdy main door with a wave of her key fob and then staggered in, followed by the wary detective. The inside of the lower floor looked like the burned-out waiting room of a dentist's office, complete with a rack of old, yellowed magazines. Morgan collapsed onto one of the worn couches, reveling in the familiar scent of mothballs as she pulled out her newly cracked phone and selected the right contact.

Gayevoi, gods bless him, picked up on the first ring. Without any preamble, Morgan groaned out, "I'm downstairs and hurt, boss. I've got a seer with me."

"On my way," Gayevoi responded. He sounded worried, which she could understand.

"Oh, and could you maybe grab a bottle of vodka for my friend and I? I'll love you forever," Morgan said. She was definitely feeling the blood loss now.

There was a sound of assent and then he ended the call. Morgan sighed and relaxed, mostly ignoring the way the couch tried to swallow her body whole. It was comfortable, if somewhat like being eaten by a particularly voracious marshmallow. The pain was really beginning to sink in now that her adrenaline was wearing off. She didn't scream, but her jaw was tight enough that it felt like teeth were going to crack. Morgan did her best to stay very still so she didn't hurt herself more by flailing around.

"We need to call you an ambulance," Velez said urgently.

"I've got someone with medical training on the way," Morgan said as calmly as she could. She was trying to figure out a way out of her current situation. "You want to talk about what that thing was? The big, wolf-looking one you shot? Personally, I'd rather not."

"Tell me about it," the detective said unsteadily. Nerves gave her voice a strained quality. "I heard it...talk."

That was definitely going to be hard to explain away. Maybe it was better just to come clean. At least she's taking it better than I did, Morgan mused. Then again, her first introduction had been Stheno, which had been a hell of a rocky start. Morgan had started her work as a keeper as a timid soul. The first moment she'd seen the gorgon's true form after surgery, she'd let out a scream she was still embarrassed by. "How many fairy tales have you read?" Morgan groaned out. She felt so tired that it was hard to keep her eyes open. That was probably lost blood too. "Imagine they're maybe five percent right, and the rest is just stuff scary enough to give an Australian goosebumps. It's a lot more complicated than that, but seeing is believing and you're definitely not going to believe me until you see it. Normally, things like that don't come out in the daylight or in a way that everything can see. Someone was sending a message."

"No fucking way," Velez said numbly.

"Oh yeah, watch your language. Gayevoi doesn't like it when people swear. You'll owe him a quarter every time you do," Morgan mumbled. She heard the sound of hooves on the stairs and sighed in relief. Soon the pain would be gone, even if her clothes would still be in ruins.

"Well fuck him," the detective snapped, coming back to herself now that she had irritation to use as a shield.

"Don't say I didn't warn you," Morgan said. She forced herself to sit up, sucking in a breath in a sharp hiss as she moved.