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Brittney gave me a very pointed look. “You think I won’t do it? I’m talking about going into the city or something like that and carrying it around. Like, maybe get an appraisal or something at a jewelry store. There’s jewelry stores here, right?”

“There are,” I said. What she was suggesting would undoubtedly draw out the Fae. “If we do this, I need you to stay out of the way, listen to me when I tell you to move.” I had serious doubts about whether she would comply, but I knew her well enough to know that she’d find a way to do whatever the hell she wanted.

“They don’t just want your diamond, they want me, too. You’re not the only one who stole from them.” She picked up her discarded bowl and crossed the room. “I’m not throwing this in the garbage can.”

I didn’t care what she did with the bowl and waved my hand at her.

Visions of her lying dead on the floor and bleeding out while I was unable to reach her filled my mind. But she wasn’t my deceased wife; she was an entirely different animal.

Because of the diamond, I was able to cross into restricted Realms. I’d been able to enter the First, and I’d make it to the Seventh if I had to.

And fate help that Realm if they took her from me. I’d raze it to the ground.

“Why do you throw dishes away? Such a waste,” she muttered and disappeared through the doorway.

Washing dishes wasn’t something I was going to do. Why bother when they were so easily replaced? Most of my meals didn’t require ceramic or glassware.

After I went back down to the ritual chamber and grabbed the diamond, I found Brittney in the kitchen. Sure enough, she’d washed the bowl and her utensil. She’d located a small towel and placed the dish upside down on it, on the counter. She must have raided the bathroom for the towel.

“Are you ready to go?” I asked.

“Yeah, I think so.” She patted herself down and then moved around the room, opening drawers until she found steak knives. “I can slide these into my waistband or tuck them in my pocket.”

Her hoodie had a big, loose pocket in the front that she tucked the blades into. “We’ll go downstairs. Come.”

Brittney followed me, and headed straight for one of the tables. “I want this,” she announced. She lifted an ornate weapon with a six-inch blade. “The detail on this thing is sick.”

It was pretty. I’d confiscated it from a powerful demon years ago and admired the etched metalwork and the rubies imbedded around the hilt. “You can take it,” I told her.

She grinned and I swept some scrolls and random papers out of the way to find the leather belt I was looking for.

“Here,” I said, holding it toward her. She approached, lifting the hem of her sweater so I could fasten it around her waist.

Once we had all her knives situated securely, I slid my cellphone from my pocket and ordered a car. “I just called for a car. It will be here shortly.”

She wrinkled her nose. “You have this secret lair, even the door hidden, but you have people come here.”

“Car services know the consequences of not using discretion,” I informed her. “They don’t last long in the business if they talk.”

She nodded at me and turned in a circle. “Are the birds coming?”

“I’ll call them when we need them.”

With a glance at the back of the room, I walked over to a cabinet and opened the doors. I’d sent the crows out to scout, but they hadn’t returned. That could be good or bad, depending. They were either caught and trapped, possibly killed, or they were still searching.

I pulled a holster and a couple of larger leather belts from the cabinet and arranged them over my suit and around my hips when Brittney came over to me. “How is that comfortable?” she asked.

“It works with the material. Presentation is everything. I already told you.” I tightened the straps.

“You look like you're about to go all Bruce Lee on a corporate business meeting,” she retorted.

My shoulders heaved with a sigh. “Let’s go, the car is waiting.”

Brittney trudged up the stairs after me while I patted myself down, double-checking that I had everything we would need. I couldn't think of anything else to bring, and it tore at me, the thought of not being prepared. It was difficult to prepare for a situation one had never encountered before.

Carefully, I opened the door and scanned the horizon. I’d heard the vehicle pull up, and the sound of the driver breathing, but that didn’t mean no one was lying in wait, disguising themselves so they would remain undetected.

Brittney placed her palm on my back. “Are we going?” she asked.