Her Ineffective Husband

"They keep cooking red meat, and I am an obligate carnivore! I eat every kind of meat I'm allowed to have!" Gephardt huffed and got up from the floor on his own. He then sat on the couch, putting the empty cups on the floor since there was no center table. Then… he lay down and used Keagan's lap as a pillow. "She's going to take a while, and I'm sleepy. Make your fleshiness useful."

A faint blush came to Keagan as she suddenly found a handsome man lying next to her, his head on her lap. It was just that Gephardt was one of the weirdest people she had met. Wren was even weirder for playing along with this person. No matter, if Gephardt wanted to be a cat, then let him be a cat.

Keagan used a hand to caress the man's head while the other rested on Gephardt's shoulder. The hair was so soft as if she was stroking a cat's neck. She just noticed how hair would fall out after some stroking. Her eyes flickered. Humans shouldn't lose this much hair when stroked.

"…Gephardt, are you shedding?"

"Yeah, it's that time of the year."

…

Yawn! Gephardt yawned so unapologetically as he walked with Keagan to the car. They were asked to wait for Wren inside instead. That was when Keagan saw the same driver and car that Wren used yesterday. This must be her work car; Keagan figured this was not the most expensive car Wren owned. She just used this one to get around without attracting too many eyes.

The driver noticed them coming and smiled their way. He then opened the door for them. "Master Gephardt, I didn't expect you to get here on your own. Did you use a phone app, or did you ask the street dwellers for directions?"

"Hey, I can go around however I want." Gephardt huffed as he got into the backseat. However, he left his foot out so Otto wouldn't close the door just yet. "I need an address for a place later. I promised them cat food of the best kind."

"Just let me know which street it is." Otto chuckled, making Gephardt frown at his image deeper. However, the cat pulled his foot inside, letting Otto close the door. He then opened the door for the navigator's seat. "Miss Allard, if you will."

Keagan wondered why she going to sit there, but she figured Gephardt would rather get cozy with Wren in the backseat instead. She sat inside and waited for Wren to arrive. However, her eyes couldn't help but look around the gorgeous interior of the car. She even saw an older version of a digital radio on the console. It still had dials instead of buttons.

As for the station, it was broadcasting a news report about the strange murders in the neighboring city. The government was asking the people to be wary of going out at night. There was a wild animal on the loose, and Animal Control had yet to catch it.

"…madam, we're ready to leave." Otto's voice faintly sounded outside, and Keagan saw Wren walking toward her car. Otto would open the backseat, but his hand stayed on the handle. After all, someone else arrived at the parking lot through the elevator.

"Ah, Madam Chastain, fancy running into you today!" A loud man greeted Wren in such a friendly manner that Keagan wondered if Wren was secretly a social bug. However, the kind of face she made told Keagan that the other person was actually acting obnoxious instead. Even Otto seemed to be displeased by the existence of that man.

"Mr. Houston, the board just finished discussing your terms this morning." Wren didn't exude an ounce of familiarity. She even crossed her arms on her chest as if giving him a clue about the results. "Are you here to check up on its status?"

The man who came had a rather round body, but his eyes and gaze were the sharpest. He stroked his goatee and nodded. "Should I inconvenience you for a moment? I can buy you lunch for the trouble."

Wren stared at the man for a moment before saying in her coldest tone. "I decline."

Mr. Houston narrowed his eyes in her direction, but Wren just moved to walk closer to her car again. However, before she could go inside, he spoke again, "I heard Mr. Kosarin is returning to the country again next week. With the frequency of his trips, would it be proper to think that he's been soul-searching? Or is he looking for a cure for his sterility?"

"It's funny how you have the nerve to say that to my face," Wren smirked, her eyes glinting in red light as if an apex predator casting her gaze at a lesser one. "Should I convey your intentions to him when I see him again? After all, unlike you, he can return to Golden Bloom freely."

"…humph, so that's how it is." Mr. Houston huffed and moved to enter the building through the entrance from the parking floor. "Let's see how good you can play this game, Madam."

Wren only turned away and waited for Otto to open the backseat door for her. She got inside, and Otto moved to the driver's seat. He drove away before the fat man could glance at them again. Without paying more attention to the fat man, Wren just attended to Gephardt's need for her attention. Then, she looked up to find Keagan looking at her from the navigator's seat. 

With a smile, Wren spoke, "Did that frighten you? Humans are not liches to succumb to greed, but they are even worse than those. Don't worry, that doesn't happen all the time."

"Uhm, did you divorce Mr. Kosarin because he can't give you children, Madam?" Keagan couldn't help but to ask. After all, she wanted to have an insight into Wren's married life to know how to tread around the other members of the Chastain household.

"No, he's not sterile, and that's not why he's ineffective as my husband." Wren shook her head before leaning her elbow against the car window, stroking Gephardt's head on her lap. "Don't worry too much about him in the future."

Keagan's eyes flickered, but she decided to believe Wren. For now, she just kept to herself as they made their way to the seafood buffet restaurant. Then again, the news on the radio continued to broadcast about the killings. It grew so grim that Otto had to switch it to a station for music.

At this, Wren murmured as if trying not to wake up Gephardt, "Miss Allard, it's best for you to stay home at night these days. We wouldn't know when those things would strike again."

Keagan nodded before turning to watch the changing scenery outside the window. "…I wish Elijah remembers that, too."