Crush clapped Niko on the shoulder. “I didn’t know you could see anything, friend. Don’t worry, my buddies are good about staying out of sight. I’ve got eyes all over the property. This is a big piece of real estate you got out here.”
“Any news?”
“That Gravewalker doesn’t tell me jack shit. Got a mouth on him though. Between you and me, I’d knock his lights out under different circumstances. Cocky little son of a bitch. I’m surprised Switch has held it together.”
“Where’s the boy?”
“Switch is keeping a close eye on him. I don’t know where they are. I can’t even find the damn bathroom in this place. Maybe I should stay outside.”
Niko walked at a sedate pace. “No, you’re safer inside. We appreciate your assistance.”
“Anything I can do to help. That’s a damn shame what happened to your friend. She’s a sweet girl, and I hope you guys find her.”
Niko rested his palm over a sharp pain that lanced through his chest. Perhaps it was just an energy spike.
Though Wyatt had booked his flight, Niko hadn’t been prepared for all the security checks. His swords had to go through as checked luggage, and that required packaging them in accordance with their rules. After the flight, he had to ask an older woman to help him at the baggage claim. The modern world posed so many new obstacles that it made him appreciate the difficulties of his past.
“You’re welcome to stay as long as you like,” Niko offered. “Kira does the cooking, and she can make you something anytime you’re hungry.”
Crush’s light pulsed. “I don’t like other people waiting on me like I’m some kind of Daddy Warbucks. No offense. You got yourself a nice setup here, but I’ll fix my own sandwich if I get hungry.”
Niko entered the room, and Wyatt’s smoky-blue light spun into view from his chair. The room smelled like french fries and peanuts.
“Hey, buddy. Did that cab driver I sent find you?”
“Yes.” Niko eased up to the desk, and when he found the edge, he turned and leaned against it. “Tell me every detail of what happened.”
A wrapper rustled as Wyatt took a bite of food. “Someone snuck their ass into the courtyard and snatched Gem. We found her kimono by the pool. She doesn’t just leave her stuff lying around like that. There was water everywhere, and I swear, we didn’t hear a thing. Switch picked up more than one scent, but he lost the trail.”
“Viktor said you found a coin.”
“Yeah.” His chair squeaked, and then he said, “Here.”
Niko held out his hand, palm up. When Wyatt gave him the coin, Niko considered the weight of it before feeling the edges and both sides.
“Some weird writing on it. Looks really old.”
Niko bit the edge and tasted it with his tongue. He was absolutely certain that Cyrus had left it behind. It had always been his calling card. “What did the security cameras in the city reveal?”
“You’re a lunatic if you think I’m going to check every camera in Cognito. We don’t live near the human district anyhow. For all I know, they flew out in a helicopter. That’s possible, you know. There’s a lot of land out there. I once heard of a guy making an escape using one of those antigravity—”
“Stay focused,” Niko said, knowing how Wyatt’s train of thought often went off the rails.
Wyatt finished what was probably a candy bar as the familiar sound of the thin wrapper drifted into the wastebasket. “Crush showed up with all his Shifter buddies. Look, I know Viktor gave them the green light, but I don’t like a bunch of wolves running around the property. Makes me nervous.”
“You know what makes me nervous?” Crush asked. “Men who let women go swimming alone at night.”
Wyatt’s chair squeaked, and his blue line funneled in a circular motion. “Don’t try to pin that on me. We come and go as we like around here, old man. I’m not anyone’s watchdog. The courtyard is walled in. It’s not like we have secret tunnels or doors out there. What are the odds that someone would scale three stories and execute the ultimate heist?”
“A heist is a robbery. What you’ve got is a kidnapping.”
“Stealing is stealing.”
Niko rapped his knuckles on the table. “Has anyone called or left a note?”
“A note?” Wyatt snorted. “I doubt any messenger can reach the door with all the wolves running around, not to mention the land mines on the property. Did you know that Crush let them sniff your dirty clothes before you arrived?”
“And if I hadn’t let them, they would have torn him apart before he hit the front door,” Crush retorted.
