Fat Johnny's Burger, E Craig Road, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Nevada, Friday, December 11th, 2015 13:30f

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Nobody bothered her because of the wings. A girl with wings in Vegas was as normal as a banker wearing an Italian suit on Wall Street. Though the latter should beware of falling girls. Just saying.

Sara had parked Chloe outside and went in to get some well-deserved refreshments. Five months of repeated Apocalypses made her crave junk food. At least this burger wasn't spiced by the blood of her enemies.

The cops at least had the decency of not showing up until she finished her milkshake and fries. She heard a commotion outside and sensed that Chloe was annoyed. When she got outside, people were taking pictures of the Pale Horse.

"Hey, you're bothering my horse," She shouted at the passersby.

"You are the one torturing this poor animal? Look how thin it is!" A man shouted at her.

"I am rehabilitating her if you care," she said and started recording with her phone. Nevada was a single-consent state. After Chloe and dogs, lawyers became Sara's third-best kind of pet.

"You are a monster!" He yelled in her face.

"Dude, no need to waste water spitting," Sara winced. "Chloe is healthy. She's just lean like that, no matter how much she eats. You're bothering her."

People at the burger shop started recording them too. Sara took note of that.

"This is animal cruelty!" He shouted. And why did you dye her fur green?"

"That's her natural color. Chloe is pale green, why do you think I named her Chloe? Doh. If you don't believe me, take some fur and try to remove the paint. Here, let me brush her for you."

He grabbed her wrist. "That's assault on a minor," Sara warned.

"I called the cops! You are going nowhere!" The guy didn't listen.

Sara yanked her arm free and approached the saddlebags. "Yeah, no. I'm going places, this is Vegas. I need to at least check the Strip."

The guy grabbed her arm again. Sara screeched like a little girl and moved so she would be blocking him from the people recording through the windows Chloe helped by moving in front of Sara. "Ah! Pervert! Stop touching me! Help! I'm being molested! Somebody help!" She also flailed her phone everywhere, including down and near the man's pants.

Chloe snorted the equivalent of a horse chortle. The horse wanted to kick the guy but would probably split his pelvis, tailbone, and half his spine. Sara shook her head as she replied with a mental "don't".

The sirens blared. The guy decided it was a good moment to release Sara, though he tried to grab her phone. Of curse he failed. Sara was eight times faster than a scrawny thirteen years old girl. Stronger too but she didn't want to maim the man. Getting him on the sex offender list was enough. Even after all she went through, Sara was still petty. And the guy messed with Chloe. He should be happy he wasn't getting the scythe treatment.

"Back off, pervert! Pedophile! Help, he groped me!"

"Step away from the girl," the cop car loudspeaker blared. "Keep your hands where I can see."

"Fuck you!" The guy shouted at her and moved away, trying to run.

Sara ignored him and groomed the Pale Horse. "Good girl."

The cops got out of the car. They rounded the guy and arrested him after a five-yard chase. Sara watched with a disdainful glare. Chloe whinnied. After they shoved the annoying man into the cruiser, one cop approached Sara, notepad, and pen in hand. Her phone was in her jeans pocket, sending a copy of the video to another phone through Bluetooth. She wanted to use those to incriminate the Millers but she had five though she intended to hand the one over to the cops. The more evidence they had, the deeper they would bury the Karen guy. What was a Karen guy called? Sara didn't remember. Too much Apocalypse.

"What's your age, Miss?"

Telling them she was not a minor was an impossible sell. Honesty, then. "Thirteen, sir."

"Name and address?"

"I'd rather have my parents with me, sir."

"You are not suspect of any crime," the cop said. "We are here to help, you can trust us."

Sara nodded. "Thank you, sir." She removed the phone from her pocket and stopped recording. "You might want to take this device as evidence. It's unlocked. There's a video recording of the incident." She glanced over her shoulder. The people at the burger shop were still recording. Sara nudged her head toward the fast-food joint. Many of the peeping patrons decided to make themselves scarce. "We have other material witnesses over there. More video recordings too."

The cop took the phone and stared out the window, "I see them but I doubt their recordings have any audio. My partner has called for backup, we'll get their statements anyway. I still hadn't heard your name and address."

The girl bit down and swallowed her pride. She smiled, "Sara Miller, mother Heather Miller, father Nicholas Miller. Moved in recently from Seattle. They drive a navy blue 2000 civic license plate AGJ5351 from Washington. Registered in my father's name."

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

"How recently did your parents move in?"

"Less than a week ago," Sara was still smiling.

"And where are they now?"

Probably at the strip burning my inheritance, Sara wanted to say.

"I have no idea, sir."

"Where did you move to?"

"Also, no idea."

"Why is your horse green?"

"She was born that way. It is her natural color."

"I don't think horses come in green."

Smart cop. No chordate animal came in green. Not. A. Single. One. And Chloe technically only had the shape of a horse. She was a Celestial, not a beast.

"Well, there's always a first for everything."

"When was the last time you saw your parents, Sara?"

"Nine days ago. In Seattle, Washington."

"You said they moved to Vegas less than a week ago."

"Indeed, I did," she smirked.

"Didn't they take you south when they moved?"

"No, sir. I just arrived in Nevada today. Chloe here took me."

"You rode in on a horse all the way from Seattle."

"Mighty kind of our legislature to not demand a driver's license for horses, sir."

"Sara, I need to see your ID."

"Sorry, sir."

"I really need that ID."

"You might want to search for my parents at this point, sir."

The cop weighed his options, then decided it was not worth the trouble.

"I'll table that for later. Now, about that man. What did he do to you?"

"Guy starts screaming I am mistreating my horse. Chloe is as healthy as a fiddle, she just had this supermodel lean body type, you know? Also, he accused me of dyeing her. She's natural pale green."

"Do you mind if I search the saddlebags?"

"No consent."

"Sara..."

"Besides, you should know better than to mess with an unknown horse. Chloe is very sensitive sir. We rather not have an accident. Still no consent."

The cop again frowned, pondering if he should push. Something at the back of his mind was saying, don't mess with that girl. It was her Presence Skill sending all the right signals (as far as Sara was concerned) to his senses.

"Okay, back to the man. He was screaming."

"Indeed he was. You have it recorded in that device I gave to you."

"What happened next?"

"I was arguing with him, then he started grabbing me. I screamed for help. People in the burger shop just kept recording. He was really grabby, you know? Bothered me really badly."

She defensively moved her arms and legs, appearing bashful. Sara wouldn't lie but if the cop reached the wrong conclusion... She was really pissed at the guy.

"Did he touch you in any inappropriate place?"

"He touched me in places I'd rather not be touched, sir. The answer you seek is in the video."

"Do you have any drugs, money, or guns in those saddlebags?"

"No comments, sir. This consensual encounter is over. I'll exercise my right to remain silent."

Sara turned around, making sure she had enough room to keep her wings from hitting the officer, then approached Chloe to mount. She thought this cop was really a good guy.

"Sara, wait!" The officer called.

The girl finished mounting anyway. She said nothing, content with just staring at the cop.

"I'm going to check for your parents on the system. Wait for a moment."

She waited. The cop went and took his time. Meanwhile, two other police cruisers arrived. Sara fished in her saddlebags and took a sheet of paper and another cheap phone to start another video recording. The newcomers walked around Chloe, checking the horse.

"That's animal mistreatment, Miss," one of them snickered.

"I am nursing her back to health," Sara said as she extended the paper to him. A photocopy of the vet's report. "Sorry, my horse has a clean bill of health."

"That's from Washington. Worthless down here." The cop snickered.

They started peppering her with questions but she tuned them off, focused on the cop checking on the Millers. He finally returned.

"Miss Miller," the first cop said with a worried face. "I'm afraid your parents..."

"What is it? Speak, please!" Sara begged with boosted Presence.

"The Millers were found dead yesterday morning. Murdered in their hotel suite."

Her breath caught. She had no idea how she should feel. But... her revenge was cut short. She started to shake. Sara closed her eyes and remembered when she buried Mary and Kelly in the previous reality. The tears came easily. She started to shake and sob as she covered her face with her hands. At the same time, she mentally begged Chloe to get the fuck out of there. The Pale Horse whinnied, reared, and walked away.

"Chloe, wait! Stop!" Sara shouted. The horse, of course, didn't obey. The girl pretended to panic. "Help!" Chloe got on the street and accelerated, going into a gallop and then breaking the speed limit. Behind her, Sara saw the cops scrambling into their cruisers.

*

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Donovan Way, North Las Vegas, Clark County, Nevada, Friday, December 11th, 2015 14:45f

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Chloe jumped down on the overpass and ran north on the road parallel to the train tracks. At about a hundred miles per hour. Magic horses from Heaven were the best. Sara heard the sirens behind but good luck to them. In two minutes she would be out of the city limits. While Chloe had less than three miles to reach the exit point, the cops needed to drive almost nine miles on busy highways.

By the time they reached the railroad overpass on the beltway, Sara was just a cloud of dust in the desert as she rode straight north, toward the mountains. They would probably put up an arrest warrant for her. Sara knew exactly how to beat that, though. It was two years too early but she was sure she could pull it off.

The Celestial duo rode up the mountains, down the valleys, jumped over a fence of a wildlife reserve, then found a wood cabin in the middle of the mountain woods. A good place to lay low until nightfall before traveling north. She was afraid they would send a helicopter after her.

Dismounting, she found a placard in front of the cabin. "Deadman Canyon. Hidden Forest Cabin restoration project, 2009. No campfires allowed. Please clean up after yourself." She tapped her chin. "No wonder it's deserted. Who would be crazy enough to come here during winter? There might be a stove inside but no way I'm lighting it up."

Sara could sunbathe in Antarctica's winter and be perfectly nice and cozy (assuming she found some sunlight). Resting in a cabin during the Mojave winter? Easy. As for Chloe, Sara was suspecting the horse could bathe in liquid nitrogen and find it tepid.

The cabin was unlocked and had several items of interest to hikers inside. It had a neat stack of firewood and a stove. Sara sat on a bench to think. The Millers were murdered in Vegas. Knowing them, the couple of idiots spent too much money and got involved with the wrong kind of people and then lost their stupid lives. She wondered why the fuck people who came across a windfall of money, either legally or by stealing immediately went on to spend said money, instead of laying low.

Live fast, die young?

Now she had no way to find the truth. Outside, Chloe kicked the door twice to get her attention. Why would she do that, the door was open. Chloe put her head inside and glared at Sara. Then she flared the flames on her hooves so strongly it left a patch of frost on the porch. Death's Pale Horse was furious. At her.

Sara's jaw dropped. She slapped her forehead.

"I am the only person in this world who can really talk to them. Chloe, what we've been thinking?" Chloe whinnied. "Okay, sorry. What I've been thinking. Or not thinking. We need to go back."