Page 55 of Moody as a Minotaur

I followed his gaze to the same table they’d claimed the night before.

“For Magic’s sake…” I mumbled. I hadn’t seen them come in either. How was I supposed to protect Parker when I was so… so…befuddled?

Half an hour later, after I’d thankfully managed to sink a few balls before Parker cleared the table, Finley wandered over with a pint in his hand. I swore every supe in the bar held their breath, anxious to see what would happen next.

“I’ve been watching Parker whip your ass,” he said to me.

Since I couldn’t deny it, I didn’t say anything. I didn’t usually play this horribly.

“So, I thought I could give you a break for the next round.” He placed a quarter on the corner of the table, an indication he would play the winner.

I grimaced but agreed. It smarted that he assumed Parker would win, but I’d been playing shit tonight, so I couldn’t fault his logic. Parker, though, was surprisingly calm. It was like laying a trap for the hunters didn’t bother him in the least. Honestly, I would have expected him to be antsier than me.

It didn’t take long for me to lose. Again. I surrendered the pool table to Fin and Parker.

Then I grabbed my ale from the nearest table. I wished it was magically enhanced, but it was better than nothing. I took a long draw and hoped it’d steady my jumpy nerves.

After the first ball dropped into a pocket, Fin glanced toward the table where Kyle and Tammy were sitting. Tammy nodded and Fin took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

“So, this might sound a bit weird, but you both seemed interested in our paranormal investigations,” Fin said.

I swallowed hard. Holy fuck, our bait had worked. My heart’s tempo picked up so fast I felt light-headed.

Parker, bless him, grinned and nodded. “Yeah. They didn’t have anything like that in the culinary art program I went to after high school. I feel like I missed out.”

“It is pretty wild. I might not have heard about it either, if it hadn’t been for that class I’m taking.” Fin nodded eagerly. “Anyway, Tammy was saying that the group is open to other people too. Like, you don’t have to be a university student to join. They thought you might want to check it out. See what it’s like.” He shrugged. “Or whatever.”

Parker and I both looked at the two hunters. Kyle averted his eyes, but Tammy smiled and nodded. It always surprised me how normal they could look. How friendly. How good their mask was. I barely suppressed the shiver threatening to roll down my spine.

“Are you sure?” Parker asked after he missed his shot. It was one I’d seen him make hundreds of times before. Had he missed on purpose to extend the game, or was he not as calm as he appeared? “Because it’s been a long time since either of us have been in university. And we wouldn’t want to show up and make things weird for you.”

Finley took his shot, then grinned in Parker’s direction. “Nana started auditing my class a few weeks ago. You couldn’t make things any weirder than that.”

“Oh my God, she didn’t tell me that,” Parker said as he covered his mouth with his hand to cover his laughter. “Seriously? How does my mom not know about that? Does Nana sit beside you?”

“You know the Nana-nator,” Finley said. “She has everyone, including the professor, wrapped around her finger.”

Parker wiped tears from his eyes. “Fuck. I bet. That’s awesome.”

“She’s something,” Finley agreed, as he chalked his pool cue. “Anyway, what do you think? Apparently, the next meeting is on Tuesday night on campus. It’ll be my first official meeting too. I’m excited to hear all the stories.” He looked at me. “I don’t think they’ll be too scary. But I get it if the idea of paranormal beasties still creeps you out.”

“I’ve decided to face my fears.” I’d been doing that a lot in the last few days. Even now, for example, when I’d been confronted by the fear of throwing up all over the pool table.

“So, you’ll come?”

I glanced at Parker. “I’m game if you are.”

“That’s the spirit!” Finley clapped me on my shoulder. “What do you think, Pow Cow?”

Parker scowled. “What did I say about calling me that?”

Finley laughed. “Come on. Say you’ll come.”

Parker rolled his eyes. “Fine, we’ll come. But I can’t stay late. We’ll have to drive back from the city that night.”

“Yeah, sure. It’s at like six or seven or something. I’ll text you the deets.”

“Great!” Parker said.