Grove planted an elbow on his table. “What? Why? I thought Gisila flew the coop and left Magiford.”
“She did,” Sarge confirmed.
“And you just told us there were no new breakthroughs with the werewolf mercenaries and Orrin because of their geas,” Grove followed up.
“Yes.” Sarge strolled across the front of the room, pausing in front of the picture of theLuxe SejourHotel, a large luxury hotel located in downtown Magiford. “But the day shift task force picked up information that has led us to believe that despite leaving the city, Gisila Von Faulken is still paying for a suite inLuxe Sejour, which she’s been staying in since her arrival in September.”
She what?
When I’d last seen Gisila she’d made it pretty clear she intended to kill me, but when Considine had threatened her right back by staking a claim on my life, she’d run, recognizing he was the dominant predator. While I was recovering, Sarge had reached out to let me know Gisila had left Magiford. I’d been hoping she was leaving it for good.
Medium-Sized Robert—a troll who was quite large despite his misnomer of a name—rested his ham-sized fists on the table he was scrunched up to with Grove. “That would imply Gisila means to come back…doesn’t it?”
“We can’t say for certain,” Sarge said. “But it’s safe to say it’s an indication she’s not giving up on her plans yet.”
Binx raised her hand, waiting to speak until Sarge nodded at her. “Have we heard anything from Tutu? Last update we got, you said Captain Reese had reached out to her.”
“Yes.” Serg shifted uncomfortably. “Her secretary left Captain Reese a message expressing her thanks for our concern.”
Grove ruffled his hair—which was coppery and cut in a bunch of different lengths. Its chaotic appearance had me wondering if he cut chunks of it off to test his poisons on. “Tutu gave no sign she thought it was crazy her sister was trying to rob her? That’s cold.”
Gisila was the full sister of the famous, entrepreneurial Tutu, who owned a franchise of magical banks. (Gisila’s betrayal made sense. Dragons were infamously protective of their hoards, to the point where the only beings crazy enough to attempt to rob a hoard would naturally be another dragon shifter.)
“She may be internally adjusting her business’s defense system,” April pointed out.
“She may,” Sarge agreed in a tone that told me he didn’t think it was likely. “Regardless, she doesn’t have to keep us apprised of her business decisions, even if knowing would make it easier to predict Gisila’s movements.”
I narrowed my eyes, picking through the possible meanings. “Do you mean to keep me in the Cloisters until we know for certain Gisila isn’t returning to Magiford?”
“No,” Sarge said.
I relaxed, foolishly.
“Just until your partner is trained and ready to patrol with you,” Sarge added.
What?
I almost leaped to my feet, shocked and confused by Sarge’s sudden trust in Considine.
Sarge had been paranoid when Considine was skulking around the city as Ruin, and he’d done his best to keep me out of his clutches. Now, he was assigning Considine to me?
What did Considine do to inspire this change in attitude?
Considine had dragged me to the hospital when I’d been in a dangerous situation, and he had backed me up on numerous occasions…but he was Considine Maledictus: a vampire elder sopowerful and so dangerous that vampire slayers avoided him rather than face him. There was evidence our poisonous blood didn’t even work on him.
Considine—his arm still draped across the back of my chair—tapped my shoulder with his fingers. “You’re not getting rid of me,partner,” he drawled, oozing smugness.
I rubbed my temples, trying to ward off any possible stress headaches.
Sarge watched me for a moment, then continued. “While Blood and Considine will remain here, the rest of you will patrol as usual in the following teams…”
I leaned back in my chair, shock electrifying my entire body.
How did this happen—and why? Back at the hospital Considine made it clear he intervened because he found me entertaining. Now he suddenly says he likes me? I’d be tempted to say it’s an elaborate ruse, but he has no reason to go through all of this if he’s trying to take me out. He could squash me whenever he wanted. But why, then, is he doing all of this?
My brain felt like it was going to explode, and for once none of my training was of any use. In all of the subjects I’d been taught, “What To Do If A Vampire Says He Fancies You” was never covered.
“My team will begin by visitingLuxe SejourHotel, to see if we can uncover any additional information about Gisila’s stay,” Sarge said, shaking me out of my mental spiral. “If we’re lucky, she’s paid in advance, and we’ll know precisely how long her reservation runs. That’s all for muster. Dismissed.”
