“Oh, goodness, I hadn’t even called him yet to let him know when I could start,” Hallie said, annoyed with herself. Wilona’s unexpected appearance had completely taken over her evening.
“Don’t worry about that. I’ll let him know you’d spoken to Regina Talbot. What about a weapon?” Girard asked.
“Ah. Well, I don’t really know how to use one. So, no, thank you,” Hallie said. She still wasn’t entirely comfortable being around the guns and other weaponry that the investigators carried as a matter of course. She’d fired a gun more than once, and hadn’t liked the experience. She couldn’t imagine having to carry one day-to-day.
“Alright. I’ll pass that on. Looks like we’ll miss our dinner tomorrow, but I’ll see you in the morning,” Girard said, his voice shading from his professional tone into the warmer tone Hallie was growing used to, reminding Hallie that he wasn’t alone at his end of the call. She had a moment’s regret about the dinner, quickly overtaken by her nervous excitement about the mission ahead.
Hallie said goodbye and ended the call, only then realising that the television had fallen silent and Rosalia was staring at her with wide eyes.
“You’re working for the Conclave? Going to Paradise?” Rosalia’s voice rose through the questions. “Tomorrow?”
“Seems like it,” Hallie agreed. “I’m sorry. Short notice. Will you be alright on your own?”
“Of course I will,” Rosalia said, dismissing the worry before it could fully form in Hallie’s mind. “But, Paradise? Will you try to take pictures? Or at least, tell me what it’s like?”
Rosalia had once thought about escaping to Paradise, Hallie remembered, only to realise that because of her past association with one of thehochlen, it was unlikely that the community would have accepted her. All the same, the island remained a tantalising lure for many low citykarlenfed up with being ruled over by elite who were rarely seen outside their hill-top residences. It was the only place outside the city that Rosalia had ever expressed an interest in visiting and Hallie felt a pang of regret for her friend that she’d most likely never get to see it.
“I will,” Hallie promised. “I’m curious to know what it’s like, too. I wonder if it’s a bit like the old parts of the city?”
“Oh, it might be,” Rosalia said, eyes bright with interest. “And it’s a proper island, too, so I imagine there’s lots of great seafood. You’ll have to try the local food, too.”
“I will,” Hallie said again, laughing. Trust Rosalia to want to know about the food on offer almost before anything else. “Right now, I need to go and pack.” She got up from the table with excitement coursing over her skin. She was getting to go to a completely new place, far away from everything that was familiar to her, to see completely new things. And to witness first hand the community on Paradise, which she had thought would always be closed to her. She wasn’t sure she’d be able to sleep at all.
Chapter four
Halliewaswaitingoutsidethe front door when Girard arrived, a few minutes early, a large and heavy bag at her feet. Not used to packing for any kind of journey, and not knowing how long she would have to carry her bag for, she had tried not to over-pack but suspected she had failed in that goal. Bearing in mind Girard’s warning that the weather was likely to be changeable, she’d decided that having a couple of spare sets of dry clothes would be a good idea. Not knowing what they were heading into, she’d decided against her usual jeans and leather jacket and instead had on a pair of dark-coloured, outdoor trousers, weatherproofed on the outside but with a fine lining inside to keep her warm, and a hip-length jacket in similar colours that was also weatherproofed. Under the jacket she had on an old long-sleeved top and sweatshirt that had both seen better days, the outfit finished off with a knitted hat, a scarf looped around her throat and matching gloves in her pocket. The hat, scarf and gloves set, in a deep red shade that she loved,had been an unexpected gift from Cotovatre, and all carried a hint of the lady’s magic, promising to keep her warm and dry. An additional hint of magic came from the egg-likezauber, tucked into one of her trouser pockets where it should stay warm and dry but still be close to her. Thezauberpulsed faintly as her attention drifted to it. She wasn’t sure she would ever get used to carrying around an ancient object of power as habitually and casually as she carried her phone and house key, but thezauberhad attached itself to her and did not like being left behind.
As Girard drew the vehicle to a stop, Hallie picked up her backpack. The backpack, like the outdoor clothing, had come from Cotovatre, but she hoped she wouldn’t need to carry it too far. Despite trying to pack light, it was heavy in her hands. She headed for the back of the car as, from their last journey together, she knew that luggage went in the back. Girard got out and held out his hand. After a moment of confusion, Hallie surrendered her bag to him and watched as he set it inside the boot, next to a similar-sized backpack that must be his. He closed the boot and paused, looking at her, eyes bright.
Hallie suspected that there were many among the elite, his people, who would consider him quite ordinary looking, but he was anything but ordinary to her. He had skin almost as pale as her own, a shock of dull blond hair that seemed to be almost permanently tousled, as if he continually ran his hands through it, and pale blue eyes that were warm as they rested on her face. Hallie could happily look at him for a long while, but it wasn’t his appearance that drew her to him. It was the quiet and deep integrity he carried with him. A rare quality in any population, in her experience, but one which she had never thought to find among the elite.
“Good morning,” he said. He took a quick look around them, making sure there was no one else there, then took a half step forward and pressed a brief, warm kiss on her mouth. Shemanaged not to grab hold of him as he stepped back. In the time they’d managed to spend together since returning from Vertiger, they’d shared a good number of kisses. Hallie always found herself wanting more.
But this wasn’t a personal meeting. They were supposed to be working. So she followed his lead and settled into the passenger seat, clipping her seat belt in place while he started the car. “I never asked, how are we getting to the island?”
“I’m not sure I want to spoil the surprise quite yet,” Girard said, mischief in the sideways look he sent her.
“Will it be safe?” Hallie asked, the warmth of the kiss forgotten as apprehension swept over her.
“As safe as anything is,” Girard promised her. He was telling the truth. As one of the three people in the world who knew about her magic, he knew how futile it would be to lie to her. And because she knew him, she also knew he would always try to tell the truth, no matter who he was speaking to.
“Alright.” She sat back in the seat as the car pulled away from her front door.
“Isoud wanted me to send you her best wishes,” Girard said. “She’s a bit frustrated that she wasn’t invited on this trip.”
“I can imagine,” Hallie said, unable to help the laugh in her voice. Isoud Sabard had an almost insatiable curiosity. It stood her well in her work leading the forensic team. “I’m sure she’ll find something to keep her busy, though.”
“No doubt,” Girard agreed easily. “If you look in the glove compartment, the director gave me a tablet for you. It’s charged up and loaded with the background information we have on the community and the liaison, Waller Howther.” He shook his head slightly. “I went over the information we have last night. It’s a lot less than we would normally have. We’ve only got old maps for the island. No recent images, and very little information about the people there.” He shrugged. “I suppose that makes senseas they moved there to get away from us.” There was a quiet, self-deprecating humour in Girard’s words that Hallie suspected would not be shared by many of his fellowhochlen. Or, rather, their fellowhochlen. She had to remember she was - technically - one of them.
Hallie pulled the slim computer tablet out of the compartment and eyed it with both suspicion and longing. She’d seen the forensic team and Girard using similar tablets in their work, and had secretly coveted one for herself. But now it was in her hands, she found she had no idea what to do with it.
“The power button’s on the side. The home screen will have a bunch of icons on it. Press one to open the document and read it,” Girard said. He was watching the road as he navigated a set of close-together junctions, no judgement in his voice. He knew her well enough to understand that tablets weren’t used in low city.
The screen sprang to life, showing the time and date along with a series of little squares. “Oh, it’s a bit like a phone screen.”
“Yes, same principles as the more advanced phones.”
“Good. Let’s see…” Hallie selected one of the icons and a dense block of text took over the screen. “Oh, this is useful. Background on the founding of the colony.”
