And she was such a busybody, even worse than Hella. Godsdamned females, always in his business. He ruthlessly smashed the flare of familial affection that tried to rise as the ghost of their laughter echoed through his mind. He couldn’t show any weakness, or she’d pounce and start asking personal questions.
He grunted as he successfully passed through her final security measures and pinged her, a proverbial knock at the door, and waited for her to answer, his fingers knotting into fists.
My little Rathal, whatever brings you to my door at such a late hour?
His eyes closed at the familiar growling pitch of her voice. It brought up a mental image of the former Empress. With a golden pelt and her imposing aura, Anu was a towering giant even by Rijiteran standards, her muscular bulk standing well over nine feet in height, and those golden eyes smiling at him from his memories had a knot forming in his throat.
“Hello, Anu. I have news I would like to share with you,” he told her, his voice steady despite the tumbling trip down memory lane as the humans would say.
Ah, but I want to know how Callie is doing first. Tell me, have you won her over yet? You were always skilled at wooing anyone but these humans are stubborn. Did you bite off more than you could chew?
He sneered at the laughter in her question. “That’s none of your business.”
The thunderous disembodied echo of her glee added a throbbing just behind his eyes.
I knew it! Ah, Callie is the most stubborn of the group. You should have chosen Sam. She’s sweet.
There was a sly edge to the way she said that and he had the distinct impression that there was a trap laid there ready to spring on whoever believed it.
“You believe me a fool, don’t you?” he asked dryly. He’d seen the way Aga the Deathless watched the small human female. He liked his hide attached, thank you very much. Besides, as lovely as Sam was, Callie had captivated him from the moment he first saw her. To him, there were no other females.
You’re no fun. Very well, child. Tell me your news.
“The Unity moves…” he explained, telling her the plans he’d seen. Anu listened intently, only asking a few questions here and there and once he was done he heard her sigh.
Yes, I’ve been monitoring them as well. They are trying a multi front approach, the idiots, trying to split our forces and leave us vulnerable, but that leaves themselves open as well. Ah well, let them march themselves to their doom. We will intercept. Thank you, Rathal. I look forward to seeing you rejoin us. I have missed you.
That pesky knot reformed in his throat and he had to clear it several times before it dissipated.
“Yes, well, as you should. Goodbye, Anu."
He closed the relay, cutting off more of her laughter. He wished they still used a physical Link so he could throw it across the room. There was something deeply satisfying about that sort of ending to a conversation.
He stood and stretched his arms overhead, trying to loosen the tension in his shoulders when a knock came at his door. He snapped his head to glare at whoever dared, his mouth open tobark orders, when the door opened and the twins entered, their bodies stiff.
His arms dropped to his side and he collapsed back into the chair to stare sightlessly at the ceiling.
“She’s escaped again, hasn’t she?”
“Yes,” Hassa growled. “We don’t know how she got out of her room. We were standing right outside her door.”
“We heard a noise and entered, but she was gone. No trace.”
He grinned at the ceiling, his heartbeat picking up speed as the anticipation of the impending hunt seeped through his melancholy and he thought maybe this time Callie might be playing, rather than simply trying to escape. She’d been in a fiery good mood after the Assembly, laughing as he’d hauled her to her room. That look she’d shot his way as the door had closed her away from him had been a challenge, he was sure of it now.
He turned his head to the side to give his cousins a baleful glare, though his grin was ruining the effect. “I do believe we have some holes in our security, dear ones. You should be thanking Callie for pointing them out.”
Rixa’s head came up in affront, her hackles rising but Hassa’s wheezing laugh cut off whatever scolding he’d been about to receive.
“She is clever. A good match. I like her,” Hassa chortled, coming to bump her large head against his shoulder. He raised a hand and stroked it over her ears and neck, chuckling along with her. “So do I.” He gave her a last affectionate pat and hopped to his feet, pulling his robe off as he went. “You two can go home and rest. I’ll hunt her down this time alone.”
Rixa brushed against him as she passed to stand next to her sister. “Very well. Don’t be too hard on her. She fights with herself still. Good hunting.”
He waved goodbye over his shoulder and left the room. When he got to Callie’s he raised his nose in the air and breathed indeeply, scenting her out. The air filtration and recycling on Erral was very good, so only a lingering trace of her was in the hallway from when he’d brought her this way earlier. Inside her room it was of course, stronger, but the very last place she’d stood was in her washroom, right in the center. He stood there with his hands on his hips and looked around. It was a decent sized room. There was only the single door and no windows. Where in the hell did she go?
He crouched and ran the soft pads of his fingers along the floor, feeling for any seam and trying to think back to the blueprints of the palace. The plumbing wasn’t overly large, certainly not wide enough to fit a person through them so she hadn’t somehow found a pipe to escape through. He cocked his head at the ceiling, rising to reach up and feel along the smooth stone. There was nothing up here, either.
He dropped to all fours and sniffed, following her scent trail to the wall that held a closet for her drying cloths. It was a narrow structure, no wider than two feet. It was floor to ceiling in height. He pulled open the door and looked inside. Folded drying cloths and hair oils greeting him, answerless. Her scent was stronger towards the bottom though, so he bent down and looked at the bottom shelf. It was empty. Ah, but she’d made a mistake. He grinned and reached out a claw to set the shelf properly. One corner had been just slightly ajar, and it easily wiggled in place. His grin widened as he pulled the shelf out and the whole back portion came out with it, revealing a small square tunnel.
