“No, Leland dug that panel up and brought it over here, which isn’t weird at all,” Tavish says sarcastically.
“Excuse me, Leland was wounded, so I was actually forced to saw and pry it free… okay, maybe it was Jeremy, but still. I got to nearly send him through the back windshield while he clung to the trunk as I sped off, though, so that was fun.”
I point at Cassel. “Your story seems a lot more interesting.”
Leland pushes Cassel out of the way. “Will you men allow me to tell my story so you two can finally get some sleep?”
Sleep sounds phenomenal. “I’m listening intently. So PI scurrying, hitman… what the fuck, you’re a hitman?” I ask in horror.
Leland looks confused now. “Did you think we were just like… store clerks or something?”
“I don’t know! When you guys said ‘hitman’ before, I thought it was like… an inside joke. I thought… maybe…”
“It’s fine, Leland is a PI now,” Jackson assures me.
Now??? But not before?
“And as I was perusing this fine man, he came across his greatest adversary…THE FENCE. With heart thundering in his chest, he clambered, he scrambled, and he clawed his way to the very top?—”
I eye the “very top,” kind of confused because it’s… not that tall of a fence.
“And as he mounted this fine and hearty wood, he reached the top where his pants snagged… and that was the moment I met this beautiful man’s moon.”
Clearly, my sleep-deprived mind is the issue here. I’m either misunderstanding things or mishearing things. Or maybe I fell asleep in the car. Yeah. That’s it.
“Ah, I see. Sure… and this?” I ask as I point to the hole in it. “What happened there?”
Leland’s head snaps around to Cassel who looks horrified as he tucks his head, jumps in a car, and just fucks off.
“We don’t speak about that.”
“I… see… It’s a very nice fence. I very much like it.”
Jackson waves me toward him. “Alright, Leland, they look pretty worn down and Waylon’s food is getting cold. Let’s go inside,” he says as he heads toward the door.
Tavish sets a hand on my back. “Come on. I’m sure it’s all very overwhelming, and I know Leland is a lot, but he’s not too bad of a weasel when you need someone to depend on. Let’s justsay if my life was in danger, I’d grudgingly call him first… but only if I was like… definitely going to die if I didn’t.”
“I heard that,” Leland says as he walks in with Jackson.
I follow behind them, thrilled when I see two familiar faces. I stuff the vase in Tavish’s hands and drop to my knees. “Hey there, Cayenne. Never in my life did I expect I’d get to see you in your home.”
The red mutt crawls onto my lap as her tail goes as fast as it can. All the while Sarge scrutinizes me, like he does every time we meet.
“Did he make you worship The Fence?” a teenager asks.
“I didn’t make him worship anything. I just explained to him how I met Jackson. Most children love hearing the story of how their parents met,” Leland says.
The teenager scoffs. “Uh-huh… sure.”
I never got to meet their son before… and until now, I honestly didn’t even realize they had one.
“Here, Leland got you some food.” Jackson holds the bag out for the teenager. “Waylon, this is Ellis. Ellis, this is Waylon.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” I say.
Waylon looks me up and down. “Wait… did you bring someone normal into the house? I’m kind of scared.”
“Oh shush,” Leland says. “You’d be sad if we were too normal.”
