A shiver raced through me, a reminder of how out of my depth I was. To my surprise, after briefly conferring with the server, he headed in my direction. Was this Maury? I’d assumed he’d be human, but maybe that was an oversight on my part. Not that my father was a Human First guy by any means, but he still didn’t have friends who were anything but.
The imp stopped in front of my table, and he scanned me over a second time before arching a brow. “You’re Hank’s son?”
“Maury?” I asked, my voice shockingly steady. The coffee must’ve helped.
His eyes crinkled as his grin revealed fangs. “Yeah, kid. That’s me.” He slid into the seat across from me with ease. I didn’t trust him per se, but not because of the imp thing. No, it was the familiar way he strode into the situation, as if he were used to dealing with desperate people, that rang my warning bells.
But we were in neutral territory, and if anyone might have a lead on my dad’s whereabouts, it’d be him.
“My dad said if anyone has information about the goings-on in this city, it’s you.”
“You’re aware information’s not free, right?” he said, arching a wizened brow.
My throat bobbed with my gulp. I should’ve anticipated that, right? However, a librarian’s salary wasn’t the sort that lent itself to dropping cash with ease. “I’ve got a little on me, but I wasn’t exactly prepared.”
“I don’t deal in money,” he said, those dark eyes shifting to the door and back. “And you’re protected here. If you’re not interested in the trade, then we’ll go our separate ways, no harm, no foul.”
And why didn’t that soothe me in the slightest?
“What do you deal in?” I asked, even though my nerves simmered on full boil.
“Favors and other sundry things,” he responded.
Right. Of course. I’d read countless stories about making deals with creatures and how that could go terribly wrong. I took a sip of my coffee again, letting the heat coil through me. I might have been desperate enough to call Maury, but the idea of owing him a favor…a shiver ran down my spine.
However, I had one thing I could work with.
“You aren’t the only one who deals in information,” I responded. “A librarian’s biggest asset is research, and I have access to Peregrine City’s archives.”
Maury’s brows lifted. “Well, now. That’s an interesting offer.” His dark, gimlet eyes studied me, and I shifted in my seat. Far too quickly I was realizing that I sat across from a very dangerous individual. The one safety net I clung to was that he couldn’t harm me here in Haven. “A trade, then. One piece of information now for one piece of information in the future.”
That, I could work with. “Shake on it?”
“No need,” he said, tapping the side of his head with one of his sharp claws. “I never forget a deal.”
Well, bully for me.
The server swung by again, all sharp angles and caution. “You’re back, Maury? You’re aware this isn’t your personal office, right?”
“This how you treat one of your best customers?” he joked, spreading his arms out on the back of the booth. Clearly, he was in his element here, and based on the softening of the server’s features, he wasn’t unwelcome either.
“Our best customers order more food,” she said with an arched brow. “Speaking of, you getting the burger special of the day?”
“What’s the meat today?” he asked.
“Your favorite. Goat,” she said with a hint of a grin.
“Sold.” He settled back in his seat.
“Food for you?” she asked, though the arch of her brow never wavered.
Given the state of my stomach, due to this whole meeting, I didn’t think I could manage. “The coffee’s fine for me, thanks.” As if to prove the fact, I took another sip. So helpful. I was a master negotiator at the ripe old age of twenty-five.
“No problem,” she said, slipping away just as fast.
“Gretel’s been a mainstay here for a while. She’s Sofia’s partner,” Maury explained. “I’ll give you that for free.”
“Sofia, as in Sofia Calderon?” I asked. “The witch who owns this place?”
