Flying Fur by Zenina Masters Page B

meantime, we are going to get together for a lawn bowling tournament. You are welcome to play for my team. It is girls versus boys.” Spike grinned. “We are going to wipe the floor with them.”
    “Or the lawn. Sure, I am in.”
    Two hours later, they were in the midst of a pitched battle when Tony and Teal were called away from the party to open the portal.
    Misty lined up her shot. “I wonder who has the bad taste to arrive during this moment.”
    She rolled the ball smoothly to her target, knocking the offending balls of the other team aside. Smiling brightly, she dusted her hands off and stepped aside.
    Chuck and the other men eyed the field with irritation. There was no move they could make that would not leave the girls in control of this round. She was firmly between them and an easy victory.
    Albert lined up his shot, and a moment before he released it, there was a shout from the Meditation Centre. All heads turned toward the centre where Teal was sprinting toward them.
    She skidded to a halt on the green and bent over. “We have a huge backlog on the way in. I need guides to take folks around and show them the ropes. I am afraid that the game is called on account of duty.”
    Misty sighed. “Should I go back to the Open Heart?”
    Teal grabbed her arm with wide eyes. “No, if you could do the guide thing, I would appreciate it.”
    Teebie nodded. “I will open the Open Heart to full capacity. We can get eighteen of them in there if necessary.”
    Teal smiled as everyone was at attention and ready to step into action. “Thanks and I am sorry that this messed up our game.”
    Teal, Ivy, Spike and Misty all headed to the Meditation Centre. It was aptly named; Misty had meditated there once a day, every day for the last week. It was incredibly soothing when she lost all hope of finding a mate.
    The first arrival was waiting with Tony. She was handed off to Ivy and then it was time to wait for the next one.
    Spike took the man who came through once he had finished his paperwork. He smiled at Misty and she perked up. This might not be such a boring week after all.
    “Misty, you are up. The next one is coming in five minutes. They are close together today. I wish I knew what was going on; it is like the transporters can’t even find the portal.” Teal rubbed the back of her neck. “Today is going to be a rough one.”
    “Does this happen a lot?”
    Tony looked up from the pile of paperwork that was actually growing while Misty watched. She rubbed her eyes and looked again. Yes, files were appearing under the stack that he was working on. Weird.
    “No, this doesn’t happen a lot. It has been a little more frequent of late, though. Dira is going to have to get with the transporters and make new pathways or something. This is getting ridiculous.”
    Tony and Teal moved to take up their greeting positions, and Misty moved to the side, out of the way but able to watch the newcomer.
    A flash of light illuminated the room and a figure staggered out of the glow. Tony and Teal moved to catch him, and Misty blinked as they eased him away from the drop point.
    She heard Tony soothing the newcomer. “Come on, predators have a rougher time entering the Crossroads.”
    The man grunted, and Tony led him off to the side, helping keep him steady while Teal gave him the briefing of how the Crossroads’ system worked and she gave him the wristband with the charm on it that would shift with him, pay for his purchases and open his hotel room or hostel door.
    “This is Misty; she is another guest here, but she has offered to help us with tours of the Crossroads today as we are a little slammed. He is staying at the hostel. Misty, I need you back here in an hour. We are about to get a flood of new arrivals, and while that is great for folks like you, it means a long day for us.”
    Misty smiled and snapped off a salute before greeting the newcomer. “My name is Misty; come this way.”
    He nodded and followed her. He was still