Franklin’s shoulders tensed before sagging, his expression twisted and pensive. Scrubbing his hands over his face, Franklin heaved a loud sigh before he delved into the case he was currently working, along with his suspicions.
I sat there, silently listening, my mouth parting with increased incredulousness. When Franklin was finished, I hesitantly asked, “You really think the two different dump sites are related to each other?”
Franklin reluctantly nodded. “I do.”
“That’s fucking bizarre,” Phlox said. He’d moved closer as Franklin spoke until Phlox’s elbows were planted on the table, his chin settled in his cupped hands. “I’ve never heard of something like that. What about you, Leon?”
“No. Never.”
“I didn’t think so.” Phlox tilted his head, his long hair pillowing on the table. “What do you make of it, Franklin?”
Franklin’s bark of laughter made me jump. “God, I wish I knew. First thing’s first. We need to verify that I’m right. Now that we’ve got possible IDs, I can get dental records. That’ll be faster than DNA.”
His answer puzzled me. “You know what would be even faster? Asking me to bring back their souls.” I raised a challenging eyebrow, wondering why Franklin hadn’t asked me yet.
Head dropping so his chin nearly touched his chest, Franklin took a deep breath. “There’s just been so much going on. We’ve got company and—”
“You mean Leon and me?” Phlox sounded two parts incredulous and one part incensed. “We don’t need babysitting.”
Franklin grimaced. “I know, but it didn’t seem polite.”
“It is refreshing to see some manners have survived in this day and age.” I was beginning to get used to Leon’s cool, calm voice. It was almost soothing.
“And completely unnecessary in this case,” Phlox assured. “Leon and I will be just fine here on our own.”
I leaned over, cupping Franklin’s tired cheek. “I appreciate your thoughtfulness. Why don’t I go into work with you in the morning? I’m sure Captain Cicely will be okay with it.” For potentially legal purposes, I hadn’t completely stopped charging the captain for my services, but I did offer one hell of a discount.
“Let me speak with Captain Cicely first. You stay home for a bit and get some sleep.”
I gave Franklin’s weary eyes a good once-over. “No offense, but you look like you could use the rest more than me.”
“Not gonna argue that, but a good night’s sleep doesn’t appear to be in the cards right now.”
I hated how right Franklin was. “Yeah, I know. But—” My words cut off as my cell rang. I checked the clock. It was almost a quarter to three in the morning. Given the time difference, Pops made the most sense, but he rarely called at this time. Not unless it was an emergency.
Scrambling for my phone, I checked the caller ID, my confusion mounting. “It’s Leander,” I said before pushing the accept button. “You okay?” I immediately asked. Leander rarely called me duringnormalhours. I couldn’t imagine why he was doing so now. The barking in the background made it difficult tohear Leander’s voice. His raised voice telling the dogs to settle was all that came through at first.
“Leander?” Worry made me sit up straighter. Franklin’s tired eyes sharpened with interest.
“Whose Leander?” Phlox asked.
“Necromancer,” Franklin quickly answered just as Leander’s voice came across the line.
“Erasmus?” Leander said, sounding mostly exasperated. I didn’t like the touch of anxiety and possibly fear tinging my name. “Is that you?”
“It’s me. What’s wrong? Why are the dogs upset?” They wouldn’t stop barking. I could even hear some deep growls in the mix.
“No idea,” Leander answered. “Princess started it. She’s been a bit twitchy the past couple of days. Not sure if the other dogs are picking up on that or if their upset is independent of her concern. Tonight, her hackles went up. She’s been starin’ at a corner of the house. The rest of the kids are upset about the same thing. They’ve been barkin’ like this for the last twenty minutes or so. Nothin’ I say settles them and—” The barking quieted, leaving behind confused whimpers and grumbled growls. “Thank Gaia,” Leander muttered. “My ears are ringin’.”
I shifted, holding the phone out so Franklin could hear. I should have placed it on speaker, but wasn’t sure if Leander would be okay with Phlox and Leon listening in. While I was concerned about Leander, I was still confused why he called me. I didn’t have to wait long.
“What did you say that council jackass can do?” Leander asked, tension leaking through the connection.
Franklin and I shared a concerned look. “We’re not entirely certain. There’s a lot of speculation and—”
“No shit. I don’t need to know everything. If I remember right, you said this guy can manipulate shadows. Is that right?”
“As far as we know. Why do you ask?” My heart pounded. It was a question I had to ask but dreaded the answer to.
