Free Hounded by Kevin Hearne Page A

invisibility on us—a wonderful trick, that—and we hoofed it out of there without delay.
    The goddess of the hunt was seething. » My first new hunt in an age of man, « she said through gritted teeth, » and it was ruined by Aenghus Óg. Well, I will be avenged. The huntress can be patient. «
    » You’re better adjusted than I am, « I said, though I thought her a dangerous sociopath. » I’m about out of patience. «

Chapter 7
    With much apologizing and simultaneous thanks for the gift of her company, I suggested to Flidais once I returned home that if I were to be attacked shortly by a party of Fir Bolgs, I had much to do in the way of preparation. She was only too happy to take the hint, and her leave.
    » If you prevail, Druid, perhaps we can hunt at leisure in the near future. You have my blessing. « She gave Oberon an affectionate pat on the head—from which he tried to recoil—bade us both farewell, then winked out of sight and returned to her chariot. We may have had her blessing, but we wouldn’t have her bow at our back. She could not afford to be seen taking my side against the Tuatha Dé Danann.
    I expelled a deep breath, releasing some of the tension her mere presence had caused, and sank into a chair by my kitchen table. Oberon approached me, head down, tail between his legs.
    › Atticus, I’m sorry, ‹ he said.
    It was not your fault , I reminded him. She used you like a weapon, and Aenghus Óg wanted that man to be killed. But now you and I must face the consequences .
    › Because I killed him, ‹ Oberon said.
    Flidais made you kill him. Nevertheless, that means that you will be killed in turn, if the police figure out you’re the one who did it .
    › I don’t even remember doing it. ‹
    I know. And that is why we will never hunt with her again. She had a strong influence on me as well, and I did not like being under her control, even a little bit .
    › You never hunted with her before? ‹
    Never in animal form. I hunted with her for a good while in the Ukraine once. She helped me out with my archery on horseback. It’s bloody tough, I’ll tell you, but Genghis Khan’s hordes could do it, so of course I had to learn .
    › I have no idea what you’re talking about right now. ‹
    Never mind. Listen, we have to get you cleaned up. Into the bath .
    › Can’t I just roll around in the dirt? ‹
    No, we need to get you superclean. Any blood found on you will automatically get you killed at this point .
    › You won’t let them find me, though, right? ‹
    Not if I can help it, Oberon. Come on, let’s go .
    I rose from my chair, and Oberon began to trot in front of me down the hall to the bathroom, his tail wagging again. › Will you tell me about Genghis Khan’s whores while I’m in the bath? ‹
    Hordes, not whores. He had both, though, now that you mention it .
    › Sounds like he was a busy guy. ‹
    You have no idea .
    We had a good time with the suds and the short version of Khan’s empire, after which I had to see to my preparations for the Fir Bolgs—the full extent of which was nothing more than a good night’s sleep. They would not attack me in my home, figuring it would be too well protected—and it was. They would wait for me to set foot off my property, and then they would gang up on me like a bunch of schoolyard bullies. So I relaxed and got my beauty rest.
    In the morning, I calmly made myself an omelet with cheese and chives, poured some Tabasco on it, and nibbled on a piece of whole wheat toast. I cooked up some sausages too, but most of them went to Oberon. I made us a pot of coffee to wash it down, some freshly ground organic stuff from Central America (I usually take mine black, but Oberon likes it with Irish Crème Coffee-mate and cooled down with a few ice cubes).
    › Did Genghis Khan take his coffee black? ‹ Oberon asked me. After my bathtime story, he wanted to be the Genghis Khan of dogs. He wanted a harem full of French poodles, all of whom were