“Did they find any new leads?”
“Do they think they can find him?”
“Your family scares me.”
The questions came so fast I couldn’t even identify who said what—except for that last one, that came from Grove. (Not only was his voice distinctive, no one else in the squad would say such a potentially offensive thing.)
Considering how my teammates had tiptoed around me since Considine was captured, I was shocked by the waterfall of questions. “Um…?” I edged into the room and tried to get my bearings.
April cleared her throat, silencing the clamor. “Did the slayers find anything?”
Bitter disappointment left an ashy taste in my mouth. “There’s still no sign of Considine, but most of today was spent setting up the necessary processes and starting to scout locations.”
It was expected—even though slayers hit the ground running we still needed leads to start the hunt.
But his absence…it was like living with a gaping chest wound that never stopped hurting, and I still couldn’t forgive myself fornot telling him I loved him.
I inhaled and made myself focus on something productive—something that might actually get him back. “A team visited the county Register of Deeds and cross referenced their finds with the county’s online real estate records. Turns out, Gisila has some property in Magiford.”
Juggernaut whistled. “Woah—now that’s an angle I never would have dreamed of.”
“And it makes sense,” Medium-Sized Robert rumbled.
We all turned to look up at him, and he shifted uncomfortably—which spawned a feeling of camaraderie in my heart. “Well…Gisila keeps showing up with loads of hired fighters. It makes sense she’d have properties where she can organize them.”
“They’ll be searching the properties using discreet methods tonight,” I said. “Hopefully that will uncover some new leads.”
“What does discreet mean?” Juggernaut asked.
“Don’t ask. It’s probably not legal,” April said.
“You’re not too tired, are you?” Tetiana frowning with concern. “If you’re ordering the slayers around during the day and working your usual shift at night, when do you sleep?”
“I caught a few hours while my grandparents ran the command center,” I said.
Grove folded his arms across his chest and gave me a judgy look. “A few hours isn’t enough sleep for a human!”
“I slept better than I have the past few days,” I said, honestly.
“Truth,” Orrin said, stepping into the meeting room after me. “She previously slept very fitfully in the break room.”
I frowned at Orrin—who was still shadowing me during our shifts.
The fae unrepentantly met my gaze while he sipped at his to go cup of tea.
Binx peered out through the open door. “Captain Reese and Sarge are coming down the hallway with someone. I think it’s the specialist. We should sit down.” She sauntered away, heading for the table she always shared with Brody.
“Oh, right.” Brody nodded to me before he hurried after the fellow shifter. “Hey, maybe he already found something during the other shifts!”
“Unlikely,” Clarence yanked his cravat off and tossed it on his table. “The department would have been abuzz when we arrived if that were true.”
April grimaced. “You’re probably right—unfortunately.”
The team’s spirits seemed momentarily deflated, until Captain Reese barged in with a wolfish smile. “Night shift! Allow me to introduce you to the specialist who will be key in helping us search for the oracle, Vale of the Winter Courts.”
Winter Courts? Courts, plural? How is that possible?
Before I could further muse the issue over, the specialist stepped into the muster meeting room, and I swear the temperature dropped.
