“Have I told you how nice you look in your suit?”
He smoothed his hands down the front. “It is a nice one.”
“Yes, it is.”
And it had cost me almost five hundred dollars. That’s what it had taken for him to be on his best behavior for this meeting. Though I hated to admit it, the savings account Lucas set up for me came in handy for cases like this. If I hadn’t rescued him from Purgatory, I wouldn’t have gotten stuck with Kerbasi. I didn’t mind using Lucas’ money when it came to the guardian.
We headed down the first-floor hall until we reached the suite number O’Connell had given me. I could sense Yerik inside along with two nervous humans. Though I’d made a point of being ten minutes early, the daimoun had still gotten there first.
I went inside and passed an empty reception desk. Toward the back, there were two offices. I caught sight of O’Connell standing in the doorway of one of them and sensed Yerik in the room behind him. The agent’s expression turned to one of relief when he saw me.
“Melena, I’m glad to see you here.” He stepped back to allow me through.
I cast a quick glance at Yerik, who leaned against the wall. He was wearing his kilt again, but he also had a pair of black boots on his feet. He seemed to think that qualified as “dressed up.”
“The big guy didn’t give you a hard time, did he?” I asked the agent.
O’Connell’s lips thinned. “That’s a matter of perspective.”
“Sensor.” Yerik nodded at me.
“Daimoun.”
“What’s a daimoun?” This came from a middle-aged man with thinning brown hair and a slight paunch pushing against his gray jacket. He’d come into the room behind me.
“Melena Sanders, this is Mr. Woods,” O’Connell said, waving an arm at the man. “I spoke to you about him.”
He’d warned me his boss would be at the meeting as well, but I considered that a good thing. It meant they were taking the raid seriously.
Mr. Woods held out his hand. “It’s good to finally meet you in person. Now what is a daimoun?”
His palm was sweaty. The older man put on a stern front, but his emotions were a cross between nervousness and skepticism. I shook his hand and let go.
“Someone who is half-demon and half-angel. Don’t ask how that came about. I’m waiting until I’m really drunk before asking for the full story.”
“You could ask me now,” Yerik said, amusement in his eyes.
“No, really, I couldn’t.”
I’d still not decided if I wanted to know how and angel and demon hooked up.
“Why don’t you take a seat?” O’Connell suggested.
I ran my gaze over to the doorway where Kerbasi stood and met his eyes before taking a chair next to Yerik. For the moment, the guardian was invisible. The suit I’d purchased for him wasn’t only for his good behavior during the meeting, but also an incentive for him to pry into the minds of the DHS agents and make sure their intentions were good. He’d refused to do it again without some compensation.
I folded my hands in my lap. “So I take it you’ve decided to participate in the raid?”
“That depends on you,” Woods replied.
Both of the agents had taken seats behind a large oak desk. Yerik remained standing.
“How so?” I cocked my head.
“We’ve been looking for a liaison who could intermediate between our agency and the supernatural population. Your military background and service to your country makes you a good candidate. O’Connell has also spoken highly of you. Would you consider taking such a position?”
I kept my face blank. “I’m not certain that’s a good idea.”
“Why not?”
I resisted tapping my fingers on the arm of my chair. How much to tell him?
“The raid I’ve asked you to join is targeting a group of sensors. They are the same race as me. The supernatural world hates my kind more than you can possibly imagine and wouldn’t care for me being their intermediary.” Assuming any of them would have anything to do with the agency in the first place.
Woods directed his attention to Yerik. “I gather with your background you must be powerful and influential, yet you’ve chosen to let Ms. Sanders lead the raid. Why is that?”
I braced myself and hoped he didn’t tell them about my father. If they found out this wasn’t only about justice, but also revenge, they might rethink their decision to participate. Or at least stipulate I not be the one leading the operation.
“Good question.” The daimoun glanced at me. “For one, she’s proven she is a capable and strong woman. For two, she knows our targets very well. How they think. How they act. She can anticipate their moves far better than anyone else. With the proper backup, we can conduct this operation quickly and quietly with minimal casualties.”
“In the midst of a battle with many races involved, who would she protect first?” Brown asked.
There was something shrewd in his eyes. I was willing to bet this man had been an interrogator before he rose up the ranks and that he’d been good at reading body language. Yerik was too old and experienced to give anything away, but he also knew which tells to give so the older man would feel he’d gotten truthful answers.
“It’s not about race to Melena. It’s about protecting the weak and innocent.”
Brown nodded. “Excellent answer. If you’d said humans would be her choice, I wouldn’t have believed you.”
Of course, he wouldn’t. I’d attacked his agents when they’d tried kidnapping a family of mystics last year. Something told me Yerik knew that. The daimoun was older than Kerbasi and could probably read human minds, too. What surprised me was that he’d told the truth.
He really believed I’d protect innocents first, which I would have appreciated if he wasn’t willing to use that weakness against me. We both knew the lure of Jerome wouldn’t be quite enough to get me to invade Purgatory and keep secrets from Lucas if not for the nerou trapped there. They were the innocents I wanted to help.
“She’s one of a kind, our Melena.” Yerik patted me on the shoulder.
I resisted the urge to break his fingers.
Brown crossed his arms. “Do you believe she’ll make a good liaison between our people and yours?”
Kerbasi snorted. “They have no idea.”
No one else could hear him. I chose to ignore him.
“She is headstrong and independent. While this can be annoying at times,” he paused to give me a censorious look. “It also means she is not easily influenced or coerced. She’ll do what she thinks is best for all parties involved.”
I was getting tired of everyone talking over my head. “
She
is right here and
she
still doesn’t think this is a good idea.”
“For once we are in agreement,” Kerbasi said between mouthfuls of a candy bar he’d just pulled out.
Yerik caught my glance at the door and his lips twitched. He couldn’t see the guardian, but he must have guessed he was there.
Brown’s voice brought my attention forward. “You say the supernaturals abhor your race, yet we’ve got quite a bit of surveillance footage of you interacting with them—peacefully. That tells me you’ve broken past that barrier and at least gained a certain degree of trust.”
He clearly hadn’t caught all my moments with sups.
“It’s tenuous,” I said. “And taking this position would not warm them toward me.”
Yerik shifted. “I beg to differ—especially if I endorse it.”
I was getting outmaneuvered all around. “I have an adopted daughter to consider. She’s still got over a year of high school left and needs to finish it here. If taking the position means I have to move or travel around a lot I’m not doing it.”
“This would be your office and agent O’Connell your partner. Travel would be minimal. You’d also receive a salary and health benefits for your daughter.”
Now he was luring me in. A paying job with benefits was exactly what I’d been trying to find since Felisha died and I lost my job. If they were still watching me, they must have figured that out.
“I’ll have to think about it.”
“When is this raid to take place?” O’Connell asked.
“Saturday night,” Yerik answered.
The younger agent rubbed his chin. “We won’t start coordinating our end of the operation until you accept. Delays at this late stage could result in problems getting assets and equipment in place on time.”
I liked it better when O’Connell stayed quiet.
So what did I do? Lucas had a right to hear about this and get his say—whether I listened to him or not. I also needed time to weigh the pros and cons, but they weren’t giving me a chance. We had a little over two days to get this mission planned and everything in place. Considering the dangers of going after Jerome, we couldn’t afford to waste any more time.
“Fine. I’ll take the job.”
All the men smiled—except Kerbasi, who grumbled about how he’d technically be stuck with the job, too.
“Good.” Brown took a notepad and pen from the desk. “Now we can get to business. Tell me what type of weaponry and security you expect to find in this place?”
“We might start with the plague virus they may be hiding there,” I suggested. “It would be a good idea to have a few folks from the CDC there if it is present.”
“Very well.” He jotted down a few notes. “What else?”
***
It was several hours later before we finished. Even Yerik looked worn out by the time we left the office building and stepped outside. Snow was falling and the temperature had dropped. Maybe I should have worn something heavier than my jacket, considering it had to be at least negative forty-five.
“You did well back there,” Yerik said, stopping us after we got away from the building. “I believe we might pull this operation off without too many casualties and hopefully contain the plague while we’re at it.”
“Until we have a cure, there isn’t much hope of that.”
His frowned. “That’s also at the top of my list.”
I’d already briefed him—using the untraceable phone he’d given me—about the news from Nik. He knew our best chance was the nerou in Purgatory, but Yerik wasn’t ready to bring supernaturals out yet. There were still things he needed to do—whatever those things might be.
He indicated we should continue moving toward the parking lot. “I need you to go to Derrick’s and update him on the latest developments. I’ve got somewhere else I must go.”
“Where’s that?” I asked.
“My wife is flying into town. I’ve set up a house for her here so I can keep a closer eye on her. She’d like to meet you when time allows.”
His wife was a sensor like me, but mortal and at least seventy years old. Since Yerik couldn’t flash her across the world and he couldn’t keep using so much of his powers to visit, it made sense to move her.
“She could have stayed at my place.” Just because I didn’t care for him all that much didn’t mean I wouldn’t be nice to his wife.
“The last thing we need is another sensor in your house,” Kerbasi said from behind us, where he was still invisible. “Two is already enough.”
Yerik didn’t hear the guardian. “We prefer our privacy.”
Fair enough. There was no need to ask more about that.
“Can’t I just call the alpha? Do I have to go there?”
“Remember the favor you asked during our last call?” He lifted a brow.
I avoided glancing back at Kerbasi. The guardian had no idea about the favor and we couldn’t discuss it in front of him.
“Yeah, I remember.”
“Go to the alpha’s house.” Yerik flashed away.
“What favor?” The guardian came up beside me.
“Nothing you’d care about. So did you pick up anything in the agent’s heads while we were in there?” I asked.
“They truly believe hiring you is beneficial to them, but they’re fearful about the supernatural population in general. One of their primary goals is to find as many of their weaknesses as possible. They hope that by joining forces for this raid they might learn more.”
I mulled that one over. “Then maybe it’s a good thing I took the job. It’ll make it easier to keep an eye on them.”
Chapter Twelve
Kariann stood waiting at the gate this time when I pulled up to Derrick’s place. I looked at Kerbasi, whose jaw could have been carved from granite.
“You’re going to make me get out, aren’t you?” he asked.
“Sorry. You haven’t exactly made a lot of friends here.”
Not to mention I really needed him to stay away during my visit.
The guardian let out a martyred sigh. “We will get dinner after this, won’t we?”
“Sure.”
“Very well.” He opened the Jeep door and got out.
I was beginning to appreciate Derrick’s barrier wall. It gave me a break from the guardian and kept Lucas from flashing directly to me. He’d have to come to the gate first and get permission. We’d need that early warning, considering who waited for me inside.
Kariann settled in the passenger seat. “I missed you.”
“Like a thorn in your side, I’m sure.” I drove the vehicle through the gate.