Nathan fought the urge to wince. He was still calling them ‘traitors.’ That didn’t bode well. He tried not to fidget. “It went well. I was put in contact with a halfling named?—”
Sloan’s lip curled. “Ahalfling? Why not one of the traitors themselves? Were they too afraid to face you?” Something satisfied, even smug, crossed his face.
Nathan chose his words carefully. “I don’t know exactly, sir. I think they’re pretty wary at this point. I also think sending the halfling was also their way of checking the validity of my offer. If I wasn’t willing to work with him, they’d know I wasn’t serious about the truce.”
Sloan massaged the bridge of his nose. “Despicable. Wedon’twant a truce with the halflings. You can make your argument that they don’t kill people, and while that’s technically true, theyarestill demons. I don’t think associating with demons of any kind is wise. If you want to have a truce with the traitors, fine, but the halflings are a different matter entirely.”
Anxiety twisted like a coiled serpent within him. “All due respect, commander, but I think it would be wise to have a truce with both the humans and the halflings. At this point, they’re rather entwined, anyway. Moving against the halflings would incite the humans.”
Sloan hummed noncommittally. “Yes, well, I suppose we’ll see. You said you spoke to this halfling, then? How’d that go?” His lip curled distastefully, like the thought of being in a room with one was nauseating.
Nathan fought to keep his face impassive. “It went well enough. He agreed to meet in a public location of my choosing at noon. He said he wanted to make sure I was being truthful.”
Sloan barked out a laugh. “That’s rich coming from a demon.”
Nathan gritted his teeth together. “He said he’d talk to the humans about letting me meet with them next. I was hoping you could send me a copy of the footage. I’d like to let them see it so they can be on the lookout.” He didn’t mention the Rink or Storm’s text from this morning. He didn’t think it was wise to tell Sloan that he’d already been invited to see their base of operations. A part of him worried what Sloan would do with the knowledge of the base’s location.
“Yes, I can send that to your email. So you feel confident about how this is going?”
Nathan couldn’t read Sloan’s shuttered expression. “Yes, I do. The halfling was perfectly polite. I’m confident that if I play by their rules, they’ll become more trusting, and a lasting truce may truly be possible. Then we can all focus on the real mission—protecting people.”
Sloan’s pale blue eyes were like shards of ice. “Good. Show them the footage, gain their trust. See if they’ll invite you to their base. They have to be operating from somewhere.”
“Their base? Why?”
Sloan’s cool gaze didn’t waver. “Because I’m ordering it, Captain Accardi.”
Nathan’s stomach lurched with anxiety. He lowered his eyes and nodded deferentially. “Yes, sir. Of course.”
“And keep me apprised of the situation, would you? I want to know what’s happening every step of the way.”
An alarm bell rang in the back of Nathan’s head. “Of course, Commander.”
“And let me know what they say about the footage. Which reminds me—I contacted the coroner. She’s one you’ve met before. I’d like you to go and take a look at the body. It’ll be at the morgue until the end of the week. That’s when they’ll cremate.”
Nathan winced. He’d like nothingless, but he understood Sloan’s reasons for asking. The coroner wasn’t trained to recognize demonic activity like the paladins were, which was likely why she reached out. He wondered if he might invite one of the defectors along, too, so they would be completely in the loop about the case.
“I’ll do that first thing tomorrow, Commander.”
Sloan nodded. “You’re dismissed, then. Go with God, Captain.”
“And you, as well.”
Nathan ducked out of the room as quickly as he’d come, breathing out a sigh of relief. Sloan obviously wasn’t thrilled that he was actually pursuing this truce, and Nathan didn’t like that he was pushing for the location of their base. The paladins had tried to kill them more than once. What reason did Sloan have for wanting to know where their base was? Was he planning something? The idea of Nathan being inadvertently complicit in whatever Sloan was planning made him feel physically sick. He wanted this truce to work. Maybe including them in the case would show Sloan how good things could be if they all worked together. Protecting the innocent was still the goal, wasn’t it?
He tugged his phone from his jeans and opened up the chat with Storm.
Ok, I’d love to come by tonight. What’s the address?
There wasn’t an immediate response, so he pocketed his phone and headed toward the training yard. His squad was meeting for drills today, since their next patrol was tomorrow night.
The midmorning sun was bright, the air warm. There were a dozen men and women out on the running track, and half his squad was already at the weapons shed, picking out practice swords.
“Morning, Cap,” Aidan called, tossing him a wooden sword.
“Good morning, team. We’ll run through some technique drills first, then some sparring, and top it off with a nice, brisk run. Sound good?”
“No, terrible,” Judah drawled. He was fresh from graduation, nineteen and far more sarcastic than he should be. Nathan cuffed him over the back of the head, and he laughed.
