Husband and I have gone through a lot of maple making furniture and furnishings in the workshop, so he went out to gather more. I spent the morning working out the chocolate cream pie recipe and making enough to take to the diner in the evening. It is one less project on the list, though Husband and I talked about a cherry pie too. So at least the list has not grown.

  The list also includes plastic. Husband thinks this will be needed for future projects. Since it will also come from corn oil, we should perhaps go back to Leon's shell, so that the workshop does not smell of corn oil forever. I thought I would smell of corn oil forever while we were making the cornoline. And we still need to make enough for Leon's truck.

  I went to the workshop to look at Husband's bicycle project writeup. I do not quite understand why he is so insistent on doing it on what he calls a "drafting table". Perhaps the drawings need to be done on paper, but the list of materials and parts could be kept in an online doc that I can look at anywhere. He has talked about not limiting my thinking with "preconceived notions", but I think he is thinking too hard about how we did things in Eorzea. I would have loved having shareable docs in Eorzea. Perhaps even sheets.

  When I got near the workshop I could see Deputy Frank trying to enter it. I saw him trying to turn the knob, then peering in the window. I switched to Ninja and Stealthed, and followed him from the workshop into the Pit. He went to the bar to talk to Sam.

  "Good afternoon, Mr. Daniels."

  "Still Sam, Frank. Want a beer?"

  "I'm on duty. I understand you let the Hyurcats use your shed…?"

  "Yeah, they've set it up as a workshop. They build furniture an' stuff. Couple o' the tables in here are theirs."

  "Are you aware of them storing any hazardous materials in the shed?"

  "Like what?"

  "Anything flammable, combustible, toxic…?"

  "Well, I can't say's I've done an inspection, no. Far as I know they don't got anything like that."

  "Mind if I look inside?"

  Sam thought about that for a moment. "Got a warrant?"

  "I just want to have a look around."

  "Sure. You got a warrant?"

  "It's your shed, right? You can show me around in it. Unless there's something you don't want me to see?"

  "It's my shed, but I'm lettin' the Hyurcats use it. Now, I ain't been a landlord before, but I think that means I can't just let you walk into their space without their permission. Or a warrant. Guessin' that's a no on the warrant?"

  "We would appreciate your cooperation with this investigation."

  "'We' bein' you an' the chip on yer shoulder? Hang on a minute." Sam pulled out his phone, dialed and listened. "Hey Steve, it's Sam. Got Frank here at the Pit. He wants to look around in yer workshop. That okay with you?...Somethin' about an investigation. Hold on." He addressed Deputy Frank. "What'all're you investigatin'?"

  "I'm not at liberty to share details about…"

  "Yeah, yeah, okay." Sam turned back to the phone while eyeing Deputy Frank. "He said somethin' 'bout hazardous materials...No, he ain't got one…Uh huh…Uh huh…Yeah…Got it. Okay, later."

  He pocketed the phone and cleared his throat. "Mr. Hyurcat is willin' to comply with yer request in the interest of maintainin' good community relations, long as it's understood this won't be a reg'lar thing, an' further requests will require due process an' proper authorization by an officer o' the court.

  "Further, any an' all items damaged or removed durin' yer visit will be signed for by you. I'll be present at all times to observe yer activities while on the premises."

  This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

  "He said all that?"

  "Sure did."

  Husband likes to use words as weapons, I think. Not as sharp as a sword or as precise as an arrow. More like my latex bomb.

  "All right. Lead the way."

  We all went out to the workshop. Sam used the key we gave him to unlock the door. As Deputy Frank entered, Sam asked, "Ser'sly, what's all this about?"

  Deputy Frank peered around the room. "There have been reports of the Hyurcats employing explosives."

  "Explosives? Them?"

  Husband called my linkpearl at that point, so I moved away. "Husband. Deputy Frank is in the workshop."

  I heard. Any idea why?

  "He has mentioned explosives. Has Leon reported us, do you think?"

  No, he'd be complicit for letting us work there. Besides, that's a different county, so our local sheriff's office wouldn't be involved.

  "I will try to find out, then. Love you."

  Love you too.

  I switched to Earth normal and entered the workshop doorway. "Hello, Sam."

  "Hey there. You got a visitor."

  Cabinets and drawers were open. The low-level tools Husband had left in them were spread out on the workbench. Deputy Frank was studying the paper on the drafting table.

  "Is there something I can help you find, Deputy?"

  He looked up at me. "Mrs. Hyurcat. Mind if I ask you some questions?"

  "What do you want to know?"

  "We have reports of you employing explosives against citizens of Wyatt."

  "Explosives?"

  "You allegedly referred to it at the time as a 'latex bomb'...?"

  "...You are joking?"

  "I assure you, ma'am, this is very serious."

  As well as using words like a latex bomb, Husband had come up with words about a latex bomb. "The latex bomb was not an explosive. It was a plastic bag full of plant resin. I had it with me when Dewey Brower and his friends attacked us, so I threw it at them."

  Sam peered at me. "Not at the bar, you didn't."

  "No. This was after we left the bar, when they met us on the road with weapons."

  He sighed softly. "Fuck."

  Deputy Frank took out a notebook. "Did you report this incident?"

  "We were not hurt. We thought the matter settled."

  "You said it was a bag filled with…plant resin?"

  "Tree sap, grass pulp and linseed oil. It was my attempt to make latex."

  "Why were you carrying a bag of that?"

  "I was attempting to make waterproof cloth." I pulled out the umbrella I had made with rubberized burlap. "This is one of my projects."

  The deputy examined the umbrella, running his fingers over the fabric. He opened and closed it. Sam looked at me. "Ya know…May's got umbrellas at her store for, what, ten, fifteen bucks…?"

  "We like to not need to spend money."

  Deputy Frank handed the umbrella back. "And you called the bag of plant resin a 'latex bomb'?"

  "Because it was full of latex, yes. Had it been full of water, I may have called it a 'water bomb'."

  "And who exactly did you throw it at?"

  "Dewey Brower and his friends. They were approaching with weapons and apparent hostile intent."

  "Can you identify these friends?"

  "I do not know their names. My husband calls them Beta Douche, Gamma Douche and Delta Douche."

  Sam snorted. "Think I know who you mean. They're the ones from the bar, right?"

  "Yes."

  Deputy Frank said, "The citizen reporting the incident claims you assaulted them."

  "Aw, c'mon, Frank!" said Sam. "I got a dozen witnesses who say Dewey an' his bros jumped the Hyurcats. You gonna b'lieve a guy that starts fights an' shoots up my bar over people who make pies an' furniture?"

  The deputy studied his notebook. He did not look happy. Perhaps he did not get what he came there for. Finally he said, "Thank you for your cooperation," and left.

  Sam and I watched him walk out to his police car and drive away.

  "You did not mention the gasoline."

  "Didn't see it in the shed."

  "Would you like us to fill your truck's tank?"

  "That'd be swell."