v e r o

“One time I almost got stuck there.”

“And that’s how people die, bub.”

“End of the world kicking your ass too? I just wish it would hurry up and end. It’s dragged on long enough already.”

“I’m just hoping for something to happen. Good or bad.”

“I just want to sleep forever.”

“See, I sensed this was where things were going. The point of a partnership is that we both bring shit to the table. So, what do you bring to the table?”

“Brains, actual people skills.”

Do you have any evidence to support it?

“No, but I can probably dig some up.”

He raised an eyebrow about her conditions. “If this is where you extort me or something into doing all the work, I’m so not into that.” He sighed. “But I don’t exactly wanna get killed off either, at any point in time, so you know, fair.”

“But you did so good working by yourself getting the meds.”

“They are only humans, what do you expect them to do against demons?”

“Oh. Well.. I was not aware of this.”

Veronique nodded. “Yeah, it’s a thing. They don’t really protect us, especially now that the demons popped up. They are more about protecting themselves personally. They disbanded the last time I checked.”

If they had, the bodies would’ve slowed, wouldn’t they? I’d finally get a break. Or, you know, maybe they have and there’s just a delay with getting the corpses down to the morgue. When people are dead, the living lose all urgency, it’s pretty funny. The death industry is a good place to work if you have a tendency to procrastinate.

That’s an impressive theory.

“They have, I think. I don’t know. I only hear about that shit, I haven’t even come across one crime scene. Even the dude that was dumped in front of The Squeeze-In. I didn’t even see him before they took him away.”

“But they’re supposed to protect people.”

“What about your friend, hm?”

“That is not what police are intended to do, correct?”

“People are getting fucking murdered, I’d like to put a little faith in the people trying to find out who did it.”

“It’d be better to put faith in, I dunno, a rock with a cop badge on it.”

“Claims. Seems like it would do you some good to shut your damn mouth, then.”

“Super not reassuring. Like, at all. You really need to work on your pitch. Never mind, moving on. I might be in the market for someone to help me acquire stuff to help people. What with, you know, everything being run by demons. Provided it doesn’t devolve into torture and murder. I realize I’m setting the bar really fucking low, which is a fucking testament to my life right now.”

Veronique raised an eyebrow when he said that he needed help in that department. She ignored the comments he made about setting the bar low with asking for her help, not going to take that as an offensive comment yet. “Okay. I’ll help,” she said, crossing her arms. “But under my conditions. I’m not going off to get myself killed right away, you know.”

“Do you know any of them?”