He blinked at me, completely dumbfounded.
“I’ve dealt with spawn who wanted to take your crown before. Who’s to say you aren’t another one? After all, King Dahlmar is at a very public finance conference.”
“He is the impostor. I am not demon spawn.” He puffed up, taking offense.
“Yes, well, obviously you would say that.” I didn’t add the “duh” because it was just too insulting. “So here’s what we’re going to do. I’m going to leave this restaurant and in exactly twenty-four hours I will meet you at the place where you and your men delivered my sire’s head to me. If you’re you, you’re bound to remember that. When you get there, you’ll have to cross the line of protection and I’ll be dousing all three of you with holy water. You pass the test, we’ll talk.”
He looked irate and opened his mouth to argue, but I didn’t let him.
“Look. You need food and rest and more of a plan than just ‘find the siren and kill the bitch.’ I’ve got things to do, too. So . . . twenty-four hours. Nothing critical is likely to happen in your country before tomorrow, and Creede will keep you safe until then.” The waiter came up with Dahlmar’s food. I’d timed it perfectly. I rose as the waiter began setting dishes on the table in front of the king. Ivan was glowering at me from his spot in the telephone nook. Creede was looking very thoughtful. They were probably them. Probably. I’d find out tomorrow.
11
I’d had one of the most physically and emotionally draining days of my life. I was freaking exhausted. I did not have the energy to go back to Birchwoods. I just didn’t. So I called, left a message at the night desk, and crashed on the floor of my office, using a cushion from one of the chairs as a pillow. I often have recurring nightmares when I’m stressed, but if I dreamed that night, I didn’t remember it.
I woke to the sound of purring and the feel of sharp little claws pricking my thigh. It didn’t hurt, exactly, but it wasn’t something I could ignore. I cracked open my eyes. Bright sunshine had filled most of the room. A few more minutes and my arm would’ve been burning.
I started to roll over and Minnie the Mouser leapt to safety. “How in the hell did you get in here?” She hadn’t come in with me last night, that was for sure.
She moved to sit by the door, her expression and posture saying as plainly as words that she wanted out. Now. I got up, stretched, and obliged her. As I did I noticed a couple of significant things. First, on my desk were a huge carafe of coffee, an empty mug, and an ice bucket holding ice and two of the canned diet shakes that I use for food in a pinch. Second, my gym bag was sitting on the floor next to my desk. Third, it was 3:00.
P.M.
Holy crap. I’d slept most of the day away. No wonder my mouth felt like something the cat had dragged in to die. But I was more than a little alarmed that people had been able to come and go in my office without my knowing it.
As long as I was up, I grabbed the gym bag and went down the hall to the bathroom and set about doing those things one does to get the day started on the right foot. The third-floor bathroom isn’t large, but it’s not tiny, either. Modest by current standards, it would’ve been considered positively luxurious back when the house was built. In those days, not everybody had indoor plumbing and the standard was one bath for an entire house. But this building had been a mansion. Along with real parquet floors and a stained-glass window on the landing between the first and second floors, it had a bathroom on every floor. The original tub had probably been a big, claw-footed monstrosity, but that had gone the way of the dodo during a sixties rehab.
Now we had a shower and a matching oversized tub in flamingo pink. They exactly matched the pedestal sink and toilet. The wallpaper was candy-cane striped in pink, silver, black, and white. It was loud but undeniably eye-catching. It occurred to me that I could now afford to change it if I wanted. The thought was startling. I looked around again. If the design magazines I’d seen in the rec room at Birchwoods were any indication, this look was coming back in vogue. And I had to admit I really did like the candy-striped paper. The air felt lighter suddenly, as though the room itself had breathed a sigh of relief. I smiled and started to dig through the cupboards.
I keep travel sizes of my toiletries at the office. My hours are so weird that it just makes sense for me, so I was able to get cleaned up and dressed in something more comfortable and less wrinkled than the skirt and top I’d slept in.
Zipping open the gym bag, I found the lavender and white tracksuit my gran had bought me for my last birthday. Thinking of Gran made me sad. She was probably having a really hard time. God knows Mom has her flaws, but my gran loves her as only a mother can. Getting picked up again meant serious jail time. The good news, Mom might dry out, get into AA. But I’d gotten my siren blood through her. If Dr. Marloe was correct—and I was pretty sure she was—sirens do not get on well with other women. Locking my mother in jail with hundreds of other women would be a recipe for disaster, no matter how richly she might deserve it. I wondered if we could use the Americans with Disabilities Act to mitigate her sentence. I didn’t know, but I could at least mention it to my mother’s attorney. Once she had one.
Once I was presentable, I went into the office and ate. I was just finishing when I heard the gentle double whump of a walker on stairs. Damn it, Dottie!
“That had better not be Dawna’s new assistant coming up those steps. We have an agreement. No stairs,” I called out.
There was a pause and I was almost sure I heard soft laughter. “I’m going slow.”
I growled with the last bit of chocolate mocha in my mouth. “I’ll come down.”
Jumping out of my chair, I hurried out the door and down the hall. Dottie had stopped at the second-floor landing. Her walker could be used as sort of a chair when turned backward, and she was sitting comfortably, the light from the stained-glass window painting her with a vibrant rainbow of colors.
I sat on one of the steps facing her. “You said no more stairs.”
“No.” She smiled beatifically. “You said no more stairs. I simply didn’t argue.”
That wasn’t how I remembered it, but she might be right. Even if she was wrong, I knew she’d just blame the faulty memory of old age and do what she wanted. I was beginning to realize just how hardheaded she could be and wondered if hiring her had been the best idea after all.
“I’m the boss,” I reminded her.
“Yes, dear, you are,” she said in a tone that clearly said I wasn’t—or that even if I was, it really didn’t matter.
“I suppose you’ve already made this trip once, bringing up my breakfast?” I gave her a stern look.
“No, that was Bubba. He insisted that if he did it, nobody would notice. If Mr. Creede had known you were right next door, asleep on the floor—well, you know he’s quite taken with you.”
“John was here?” It was a stupid question. But I’d only just had my coffee. I didn’t know what to think about the rest of her comment. But it did make me think well of Bubba that he hadn’t said anything.
She nodded. “Along with the client and his bodyguard. They spent the night. Ron seemed to recognize the man with Mr. Creede. Bubba said he was gushing over the man, which I got the impression was unusual.”
I found myself chuckling. I couldn’t help it. I probably should’ve guessed that John would bring Ivan and the king back here. The wards are excellent. I make sure of that. If King Dahlmar had enough money for a decent hotel, he wouldn’t be running around in a souvenir T-shirt and a cheap pair of no-name-brand jeans. That this hadn’t occurred to me before meant that I’d been further off my game than I’d thought. I’d needed a good night’s sleep.