Viktor had everyone secure all entrances. We worked swiftly to check every window and door in the entire mansion. Ronald was still locked up, and Christian assured us he wasn’t going anywhere. We needed to regroup first before worrying about him.
Niko was sitting on my right, our sectional facing Wyatt’s computer station. We had full view of the room, with the TV and beanbags to the left and the door up ahead on the right. Everyone must have been giving off extra energy, because Niko had his eyes closed. He sometimes shut his eyes or wore sunglasses in busy clubs when it got to be too much.
Claude entered Wyatt’s office and wiped his brow. “Blue and I checked every window on the third floor,” he said, breathing heavily and approaching the vending machine. “Give me a dollar.”
Wyatt continued clicking his mouse while working at his desktop. “I’m not a piggy bank.”
“Then give me your key.”
Wyatt sighed dramatically before reaching in his pocket and tossing Claude the key that opened the vending machine. It didn’t look like a regular key at all.
“Anyone else want something?” Claude asked, reaching for the bottled water.
Gem raised her hand. “Can I have the fruit punch drink?”
“Give Hunter the Sprite,” Shepherd said, holding out his hand.
Blue strutted in. “I could use a plain soda.”
Wyatt spun around in his chair and drummed his fingers on the armrests. “You see what you started, Mr. Nice Guy? The whole reason behind getting that machine was so that you guys would quit stealing all my—”
Blue yanked his slouchy beanie down to his chin. After passing out the drinks, she knelt behind Hunter and mussed his hair. “I heard what you did earlier. That was a real brave thing, kiddo.”
Wyatt got up and closed his machine. “There wasn’t much else the little monkey could do but go with her.”
“I don’t mean that part,” Blue said, rising to her feet. “I meant when he kicked her car.”
Shepherd glared up at Blue. “Don’t encourage him.”
“Too late,” she said, unscrewing the cap on her bottle. “He was smart to know when to pick his battles. Heshouldknow that. Sometimes you have to go along with things, and sometimes you don’t. He waited until he was safe, and that’s the most important part. I hope he put a dent in that car.”
Hunter’s profile revealed a smile.
Niko suddenly laughed and then cleared his throat. “Apologies,” he said, looking in Hunter’s direction. He must have noticed Hunter gloating as well.
Shepherd shook his head and twisted open Hunter’s Sprite bottle. He was too big for that particular beanbag chair and looked like a bull squatting on a lily pad.
Claude collapsed next to me. He was too tall for the couch and couldn’t recline his head on the back cushion like the rest of us. Blue enjoyed a long gulp of her drink and then plopped down beside Gem on the adjoining sofa. It was quiet for a minute, only the sound of the animated characters on TV filling the room.
Niko stroked his chin. “Lenore won’t flee—not unless she believes we’ll quietly eliminate her. She stands to lose too much, and if she disappears without a trace, she’ll sully her good name. I think she’s counting on us not going public because if we expose her, she’ll expose us.”
“And if she does split town?” Blue asked.
Niko crossed his feet at the ankles. “Then we won’t have to worry about her corrupting our leaders. Perhaps one day she’ll return after Ronald dies since he’s the only witness who could testify against her. But she’ll never regain her seat here or anywhere else.”
I folded my arms. “How long will that hand stay good in the freezer?”
Wyatt walked his chair toward us. “You need to get that thing out of there before I accidentally put it in the deep fryer.”
“I don’t think we need it anymore,” Shepherd said. “Maybe we should look up how to preserve skin, just in case. I don’t think the whole hand will keep indefinitely.”
Hunter giggled at the TV. Shepherd signaled us to tone down the conversation. We tried to shield Hunter to a degree, but keeping him in the dark was next to impossible. Not long ago, Shepherd decided we couldn’t treat him like the staff. We couldn’t banish him from the room each time work came up or make him eat in a different room.
Gem wrinkled her nose and scooted to the corner. She curled up and hugged a green pillow. “Where did Switch run off to? We were winning at pool.”
Claude chuckled and locked his fingers behind his head. “Is that what you call it?”
“I think he shifted.” Shepherd crawled out of his beanbag and stumbled to his feet. “He knew something was up when we locked all the windows, so be careful you don’t spook him.”
