Jason let out a low whistle. “Wow. I had no idea the market was that big.”
I nodded. “It is. A lot of former drug runners have gotten into the exotic animal trade since it’s also very profitable, but it’s a lot harder to get caught. For example, here in the states, while the DEA has 11,000 employees, the Fish and Wildlife Service only has under 400. And even the people who do get caught face penalties which are far less strict than those for people caught with drugs. If it’s your first offence, you probably won’t even get jail time.”
Jason shook his head. “Ok, you’ve convinced me. Although, I will add in the caveat that I write for the Willow Bay Whistler. Anything I write isn’t going to get the same kind of eyeballs on it that it would if I wrote it for the Times.”
“I know that,” I said. “But you’re the best reporter I know. If anyone can write something about the animal trade that will be amazing, it’s you. And even if only a few people get to read it, that’s still a few more people that will know about it than did before.”
“You got it,” Jason said. “But it will have to wait a few weeks, at least if you want prime positioning in the paper. No matter how amazing animals are, a dead body washing up on the shores of the bay is going to get the front page any week of the year.”
“I wouldn’t expect anything else,” I replied. We ate in silence for a few minutes, enjoying our food, then Jason spoke again.
“Listen, I was thinking about something the other day.”
“Oh yeah?”
“I was wondering the other day what your thoughts might be about eventually moving in together?” My fork stopped halfway to my mouth. “No pressure, obviously. I wasn’t thinking straight away, either. But I wanted to plant the seeds of thinking about it for the future, maybe.”
“Yes,” I spat out almost immediately. “I think… I think we should definitely think about it.”
I wasn’t entirely sure why I’d replied so quickly, and without thinking. Because the more I thought about it, the more I wasn’t sure it was a good idea. It wasn’t that I didn’t love Jason. No, it definitely wasn’t that. It was just that I wasn’t sure what living with someone would be like, when I’d have to hide such an essential part of myself almost all the time. After all, living with someone wasn’t good enough to be able to tell them about your magical powers; you had to be married.
The Witches’ Council evidently wasn’t run by people who were knowledgeable about 21st century customs.
And at the same time, I didn’t want to marry Jason without having lived with him first. Heck, marriage definitely wasn’t even on the table yet. Would I be able to hide my magic from him all the time? I had a tendency to use it to clean my clothes when I’d forgotten to do a load of laundry, or if I just wanted to save the environment a little bit. I had a tendency to use it to save my cooking when I’d forgotten about something that I left in the oven for too long. Would I be able to hide all of that from him for potentially years if we lived together? I just wasn’t sure I’d be able to. And I knew I didn’t want to.
Besides, what about Bee? I had conversations with her all the time. I’d have to be a lot more subtle about it, and I wouldn’t like that. I knew Bee wouldn’t, either.
“I’m glad you’re up for it,” Jason smiled at me. “I’ve been thinking about it for a while. After all, my dad’s house is a pretty decent size for just one person, but I also understand how you might not want to leave the rancher.”
The house Charlotte, Sophie and I lived in had belonged to Charlotte and my parents; after their deaths Sophie’s mom had kept it rather than sold it so we could live in it as adults.
“Thanks,” I told him. “It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve lived away from the rancher though. I spent years living away when I went to vet school, and I think the three of us always knew that it wouldn’t be a permanent thing. And of course, you never know, Charlotte might decide to move to Portland, and Sophie might decide to move out to live with Taylor.”
“That’s true, in which case I definitely wouldn’t be opposed to moving into your place, if that’s what you prefer. I just figured the girls probably don’t want me around as a permanent addition.”
I laughed. “It probably is a little bit too small for four people,” I conceded.
“There’s no rush though. Just felt like planting the first seeds. After all, in case you hadn’t noticed, I kinda like you,” Jason said with a grin as he reached across the table and put his hand over mine.
“I kinda like you too,” I replied as a blush crept up my face. And I knew I was absolutely, one hundred percent in love with Jason. I just wished I could tell him everything about me.
Chapter 10
I spent the night at Jason’s apartment–practicing for the future, maybe?–and in the morning made my way back to the house I shared with Charlotte and Sophie, since Jason had to do a bunch of follow-up work on his stories about Matt’s death. Being the only reporter in town didn’t usually take up a lot of his time, but whenever there was a big news story, he did have to work a decent amount.
Sophie had made pancakes, and as soon as I walked back into the house I grabbed a couple of them off the stack and popped them onto a plate, covering them in maple syrup before sitting down across from her at the dining table.
“So Jason found out who the owner of the truck was,” I told her, and she raised an eyebrow.
“He’s better at this stuff than you are,” she replied.
“No, he just asked Chief Gary for the info, and he gave it to him.”
Sophie barked out a laugh. “If only you’d thought of the simplest idea ever, instead of using your magic to cause property damage.”
“Speaking of property damage, watch out for Bee. I heard her yesterday herding her kittens to battle. I’m not sure who the battle is against, though.”
“Noted,” Sophie said. “So, where does the receiver of smuggled animals live?”
“Outside of Sisters,” I replied, and Sophie groaned.
“Great, I was hoping I’d be able to go the rest of my life without going back out there. I had an ex from Sisters.”
“Really? When?”
“When you were in vet school and weren’t paying any attention to your best friend’s life. It wasn’t one of my finest moments in life, he turned out to be less than ideal.”
“Ohhhh,” I grinned. “He’s the guy who ended up being arrested for running a meth lab in a shed behind his mom’s house, right?”
“Yes,” Sophie admitted. “As I said, not my finest hour.”
I laughed. “Well, unless his name is Richard Steele, you probably won’t run into him today. I vote we get going though, Sisters is like a three hour drive from here.”
“It’s a two hour drive if you give me the keys,” Sophie said. Despite the fact that my parents had died in a car accident, Sophie had always been an adventurous driver. I did have to admit, she was really good at it, though.
“Sure,” I said. “Give me ten minutes to finish eating, and we can head off. But first I want to go up to Portland and see the guy that was suing Matt Smith.”
“Tony… what was it, Fanchini?”
“Yeah, that’s him,” I nodded. “I looked him up the other day, he runs a bunch of different companies, and has an office on the south side of town. One of his companies is suing Matt. Or Matt’s company. Something like that.”
“Cool, let’s go.”
“Wait, aren’t you going to ask me if I even have a plan?” I asked.
Sophie grinned. “You never have a plan. Besides, winging it is much more fun. First Portland, then we visit Sisters. That’s as much of a plan as we need. We’re going to interview a murderer, then see if there are a whole bunch of smuggled animals being kept as pets in the middle of nowhere. This is my kind of Sunday!”