“This isn’t all from the chimera,” Grayson said, stating the obvious.
“Nope.” Zane slowly got to his feet. He rolled his shoulder with a wince and used a hand to massage it out. “I’d say we weren’t Russ’s first visitors this morning.”
Cass looked toward the shallow hall on the left, which had two doors. “Where is Russ?”
When she went to get up, he stopped her with a hand on her leg. She gave him a frown that he ignored. “Not you. Let Zane check it out.” He had a feeling he knew what Zane would find.
She sank back down.
He looked to Zane, who snorted and headed over to check out the rest of the condo. He was back in moments. “Clear.”
Thought so.
He eyed Grayson. “You catch any signatures?”
Grayson leaned back against the cabinet. “Slider. Unsanctioned.”
Zane’s expression darkened. “The lack of Guild backing means it had to be a hired gun.”
Or worse. “Got any names that come to mind?”
“One or two.”
“Could one of you elaborate?” Cass asked. When they both turned to look at her, she added, “Maybe start with how that thing got in here and why no one is pounding on the door right now.”
“Really good soundproofing.” Based on Cass’s unamused expression, his lame humor attempt fell flat.
Zane stepped in, pulling his phone out of his back pocket as he picked his way through the living room. “I need to make some calls, see if I can’t get some eyes on the security here and then maybe take a dip in the darker waters, see what rises to the top.”
“Maybe start with Candace at the Guild,” Grayson suggested as his friend headed toward the sliding glass doors leading to the balcony. “She can probably get into the traffic cams. Not so sure about the interior ones.”
Zane stopped with a hand on the door and gave him a look. “Pretty sure the interior cameras are a bust, but maybe we’ll catch a break on the others.” He muscled open the cracked sliding glass door and stepped out onto the balcony.
Cass waited until the door slid closed before asking, “Whoever took Russ, do you think they’ll go after Sofia?”
“Not yet.” Grayson got to his feet then helped her do the same. “They’ll be busy with Russ.”
“And who is ‘they’?” A better question was why they’d gone after Russ.
Grayson only answered with a question of his own. “Do you know what a Slider is?”
She shook her head. “I don’t think so.”
“They’re one of the more specialized mage classifications and tend to get recruited into Family or government infrastructures. They’re one of the few who can use dimensional rifts to move from one place to another. Information about them isn’t publicized, but years ago, I ran into one, which is why I recognized the signature type.”
She frowned. “Okay, it’s a little frightening to realize someone could pop in anywhere at any time and just snatch you away.”
“If it helps any, their magic has its limits.” He shook out his arms, feeling the aches and pains release their grip on his muscles. “Sliders tend to go through rifts alone, but they can take a rider, although it makes the jump difficult. The one I met was attached to a Family, and he was basically the heir apparent’s bodyguard. According to him, so long as he had access to what he called a lock, he could move his charge with him through the rifts. He never explained what the lock was, but my impression was it was unique to his charge.”
Cass grimaced. “That makes me feel a little better.” She looked over to where Zane was pacing on the balcony, phone in hand, face set in grim lines. “That also means they had to have a lock on Russ, which suggests they know him.”
“Probably, or at least whoever the Slider works for knows him.”
She turned back to him. “Just how far can these Sliders go? Like, can they jump from one city to another or…”
“Short distances. At least, that was my understanding. Say, from here to the parking lot or here to next door—that kind of thing. Anything farther is too risky, especially if they’re bringing someone with them. I’m not exactly clear on why, but I know it has something to do with how deep they go into a rift.”
“Kind of like how Oracles can only go forward so far without risking a spiral,” she said almost to herself as she looked back into the living room. “And the chimera? Why leave that behind?”
