“I think you and I have very different ways of collecting information.”
Chapter Fifteen
“So. Where do magical people hang out in this town?” I asked Darius after Oscar had dropped us off. He’d offered to talk to us again back at his office, but I’d politely declined. I had all I needed from him. Which was basically nothing. That wasn’t his fault, of course. This was real detective work. I was in over my head.
“They are spread out everywhere, hidden within the folds of Seattle.” Darius put his hands into the pockets of his stylish jeans as we slowly walked down the street to his borrowed Mercedes. It had been waiting for him in front of the hotel, and he’d led me to it earlier like he’d expected it to be there. I’d learned not to question those types of things.
I narrowed my eyes at his non-answer. “If you want to hang out with me, you have to help me. Otherwise, get gone.”
“Which type of magical people are you looking for?”
“Ideally, I need a hub where there’s a variety ofsupernatural people, not just mages. I want to size up what I’m dealing with, see who’s knowledgeable, and, of those people, pick out a few who can be leaned on for information. Any guy that skins people can’t be well liked. He’s probably ruthless. Or at least really grumpy.”
“Sociopaths are often liked by everyone.”
“Good tip. Liked by no one, or liked by everyone. Both are suspect.”
“Are you hungry?” he asked as he opened my car door for me.
“I can always eat.”
He nodded, like he knew that about me, and zipped over to his side of the car. My door was clicking shut as he was opening his.
A half-hour later, we parked on a street that looked similar to many of the streets I’d seen in Seattle: green, with leafy trees and clean sidewalks. I got out into the brisk night air and half missed the warm, sticky goodness of a New Orleans night. Then again, I didnotmiss the suffocating heat of a New Orleans summer.
“This place is so wholesome,” I said as I waited on the sidewalk for him. The car issued a soft beep as the alarm was turned on. He put the keys into his pocket. “It’s lovely, don’t get me wrong, but it’s so…sweet somehow, don’t you think? Like…heartfelt.”
“Those aren’t the words I’d use to describe it, no. But it is certainly more subdued. Not as wild, despitebeing more natural.”
“Natural, like…nature?”
“Yes. The trees you noticed.”
“Oh right, yeah.” I nodded in thought. “Kind of boring, though. But then, I haven’t met any of the magical people yet. I might still be surprised.”
“By surprised, you mean someone might try to kill you, or run from you, within the hour?”
“Exactly, yes. One can only hope.”
We walked past a few businesses before stopping in front of a blue establishment. Despite the fact that it was after nine o’clock at night, I opened the red door to a packed house. What was more, a bunch of people were eating breakfast.
“Oh,I like this place,” I said as Darius directed me toward a sign high over a counter that saidPlease wait to be seated.
A woman with rosy cheeks and frizzy hair stopped behind the counter, peering at us over her half-moon spectacles. Her eyes stuck to Darius for a moment before swinging to me. I felt the weight of her assessment, which meant she was magical in some way. She knew I was with a vampire, I could tell, and wondered if I was merely food.
I really hoped I didn’t end up as food.
“Table for two, please,” Darius said in a bored voice.
“Of course.” I got another eyeball before she camearound the counter and grabbed two menus out of a holder. “Follow me. I’ll seat you in the back. It’s quieter there.”
“No, no,” I said, stopping her. “If you have something with more hubbub, that’d be great. We can wait.”
She glanced at Darius before turning to survey the restaurant. Sheets of paper crowded the walls, all sporting handmade drawings. A small counter ran down the right and booths were stationed on the left, all occupied. Someone emerged from around a bend in the counter, indicating there was more seating back there, not visible from where we were standing. That was probably where she’d hoped to stash us. Out of sight.
“You’re pretty popular, then,” I said as she checked things out.
“When people wake up, they like to come in here for breakfast. Sometimes that’s in the morning, sometimes halfway through the day, sometimes in the evening, like your friend there, assuming he ate food, and sometimes in the middle of the night.”
