“Okay, but not with him. Ambrose is a flirt. I’m not sure how the guys would handle that,” I admit.
Humans.He slinks away, clearly losing interest in my dilemma. I watch him scurry over the counter, stopping in a few places to smell or decide where to go next. My phone vibrates and I look down.
A. Decker:The seer is en route, shouldn’t be more than an hour or two.
Me:Sounds good. I’ll be waiting.
I don’t know why the guys possibly seeing and meeting Decker has me so nervous. It’s not like I have anything I need to hide. Nothing ever happened between us except that one kiss. That thought makes me cringe.
I’m honestly more worried about them putting up a stink about who I work with and giving me a hard time about it, but there’s a small piece of me that’s worried about them seeing Decker and how friendly he is. I don’t want it to bother them enough to challenge the slight truce I think we’ve formed and what may come of it.
Maybe I’ll get lucky and avoid the situation altogether. I mean, this could be the day they don’t insist on micromanaging every aspect of my life since I came back. I did tell them they didn’t need to worry about me leaving town. Grayson made it seem like they would come if I called, so the simple solution is not to call and to stay at the station. Easy.
“I’m going to let Pop know the MBI is sending over a seer,” I tell Percival. “Want to come with?” He’s holding something small and shiny in his little paw. I can’t quite make out what it is.
I think you can manage without me for a little while, he says snootily, barely looking away from his bauble.
“You just want to see what you can dig up and pilfer.” I snort. He may have me pegged as a horny witch, but I think I know his weakness too. He doesn’t even bother denying my words, just lifts his little face and looks at me expectantly, waiting for me to leave.
“Hexes, I’m going to need to bribe him to like me.”
I like crayfish and duck eggs,he calls after I leave the room, proving his hearing is very keen.
“Unbelievable,” I mutter but take note of the information for future use.
I tap on Dad’s door before turning the knob. He leaps back from the desk, where Belinda is sitting, and scrubs his hand over his lower face. Belinda makes herself busy looking down at the desktop.
“So…” I rock back on my heels, wishing I would have waited for him to respond to my knock before coming in. This is so awkward. I think I caught them kissing.Gross.After clearing my throat, I tell them, “MBI is sending over a seer with a probe. If all goes as expected, you can use that in lieu of a trial for self-defense.”
“If they even charge you.” Dad looks at Belinda. “With that kind of info, they may not even move forward with a trial.”
“That’s what I’m hoping. They are also going to look into your husband.” I wince around the word. “Do you know if he does forbidden magic?”
Belinda nods. “Definitely, I’ve seen him,” she confirms. It makes me wonder why he wouldn’t LoJack her if he’s willing to do so to his apprentices.
As if she can read the question on my face, she stands up and lifts her shirt, then pushes down her slacks to expose her hip. There’s a brand stamped into her flesh. The skin is raised and rough, but there’s a wide gash that runs through the image that looks fresher. I bounce my eyes up to hers.
The pain of the brand would be enough, but what she had to do to herself to nullify it would have been even worse. I swallow, not breaking our connection, and find a new respect for the woman. She may seem mild mannered, but she’s got a spine of steel under all that meekness.
“What the hell, Bee?” Dad shouts. Belinda flinches and lets her pants spring free from her grip to cover the scars.
“It’s fine, Marty. I don’t even remember it’s there all the time.” She gives him a placating smile.
“He did that to you?” My dad is seething. I’m worried it’s going to freak out Belinda—considering the shit she’s probably been through, I wouldn’t be surprised—but she handles his rage with grace and not an ounce of fear.
“He tried,” is her only reply.
Dad stands stock-still for a breath, but then he’s reaching for her. With a gentle touch, he gathers her in his arms and nuzzles the side of her head near her ear.
I excuse myself from the room and close the door softly behind me. “What’s wrong?” Remy asks, and my eyes pop open to find him just a few steps away.
“What are you doing here?” I push off the wall.
“I asked you first,” he counters.
I narrow my gaze. Our childishness isn’t going to work forever. “It has nothing to do with me, I can tell you about it later,” I hedge, keeping my voice low. I won’t chance anyone overhearing what I just learned. Hell, I probably shouldn’t even tell him since it’s Belinda’s private business, but it’s hard to keep such shit to yourself.
Remy roams his gaze over me, and after a moment, he gives me a tiny nod, agreeing to drop it for now. “Are you going to tell me why you’re here?” I ask, stepping away from Dad’s office door.
