"Yasmine Galenorn - Sisters of the Moon 02 - Changeling" - читать интересную книгу автора (Galenorn Yasmine)

"What do you think? Do I look like I need help?" I said.

She gave me a pained look. "I don't have time for this. My children are hungry. Do you need help, or
don't you?"

Oh Great Mother, the gods save me now. It was bad enough I'd been softhearted enough to let
her go, but to be forced into accepting a favor from an entree? "Beggars can't be choosers, I
guess," I muttered, ego shot to hell.

A twinkle raced through her eyes, and she tittered and puffed up her chest. "Say it, then."

"Say what?"

"Mice rule, cats drool."

I huffed. "What? You expect me to—wait!"

She turned tail at my outburst and was sauntering off.

"Come back. Please!"

"You going to say it?" she asked over her shoulder.

I squirmed. With no choice, I hung my head and hoped to hell nobody ever caught wind of this.
"Mice rule, cats drool." That was it. Utter humiliation. My night was complete.

She sniffed, satisfied, then slowly examined my tail. A nibble here, a nibble there, and she broke
through the twigs attached to the cockleburs entangled in my fur. I swished my tail back and forth.
The weight of the burrs threw off my balance a little, but I was free, and that's all that mattered. I
grudgingly thanked the mouse as she skittered away.

Another shuffle from the woods, and I made tracks, too. I had the suspicion there might be a Were
hiding in the forest, but I also knew some demons had the ability to use cat magic, so I wasn't
about to count on whatever was stalking me to be feline-friendly. Taking a deep breath, I loped
across the lawn toward the house.

The back door on the porch was locked, but I'd installed a cat door. Camille had warded it to match
my aura, so the alarms would be set off by anybody who crept through except me.

Once inside the enclosed back porch, I scratched at the kitchen door until Iris opened it. She picked
me up and chucked me under the chin, and I gave in without a fight. Iris loved cats and treated me
like her personal puss. The Talonhaltija was short and stocky, milkmaid pretty, with a smile that
would melt a glacier. She'd been bound to a family in Finland until they all died out, and then the
house sprite joined the OIA—the Otherworld Intelligence Agency—for which my sisters and I
worked. They assigned her to remain Earthside as our assistant.

At first, she just worked in Camille's store, but after a nasty encounter with the demon Bad Ass
Luke, Iris moved in with us. She took care of the house and helped us out when we needed it. It
was kind of like having our favorite aunt around.