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"I know where Stacia is hiding." He motioned toward Menol y, who tossed a steno pad on the table. "We can get her, if we go now. We can take her down, because she won't be expecting this. She has no clue Kim's been outted. There's not a single cord connecting the two psychical y. I also know her weakness--Kim observed it, though Stacia seems to have no clue that anybody else knows."
"Why . . . why did my foster daughter do this?" Carter started to stand, then fel back in his chair, his voice cracking.
This was tearing him up. I could see it, and it made me want to go over and wrap my arms around him and whisper that everything would be okay.
Which it wouldn't, but the desire was stil there.
"Kim wants to be powerful. She hates her human half, and she hates her mother for abandoning her. Stacia's a strong role model, if you like uberbitches. Kim wanted to explore her demon heritage, and you never gave her permission for that. You raised her to be human. She despises what she perceives as her vulnerabilities." Menol y was reading off the steno pad. She looked up and shrugged. "I just took down what Vanzir told me."
Carter hung his head. "I was trying to raise her to be civilized. I would have eventual y taken her to meet her grandfather and asked that he help her."
"Does she know who you are?" I asked.
He shook his head. "No . . . I had not yet told her. I didn't want . . . I didn't want her to grow up thinking she could have everything she wanted just by asking merely because she's the foster daughter of a half-Titan. I couldn't give her back her speech, but there are so many things I would have given her over time."
"I'm afraid it's too late." Vanzir let out a long sigh--whether of impatience or frustration, I wasn't sure.
"What do you mean?"
"Kim couldn't handle having me probe her mind. She went into a deep coma--so deep I couldn't reach her. When I disconnected . . . she died."
Carter let out a cry and pushed away from the table. For a moment I thought he was going to attack Vanzir, but he just limped past him, heading toward the living room. We could hear him sobbing.
"He real y did love her." I glanced at the hal way. "Someone should go comfort him, but I'm not sure who would do best."
"Let me," Camil e said. "I did this for you when Mother died. I'm used to it." She headed down the hal , and we could hear her voice, slightly muffled, settle into a soothing cadence.
Smoky frowned but said nothing.
Tril ian shook his head. "Damn it . . . she shouldn't have to do that. She's suffering enough right now, with her father disowning her. Speaking of which, I'd like to kil that fucking self-righteous bastard. I don't care what you"--he glanced at Menol y--"or you"--and then at me--"think about that. I won't touch him because Sephreh is your father, and Camil e wouldn't forgive me, but the man makes me want to kick his ass from here to Dahnsburg."
"Camil e gives help as a matter of course," I said. "I think it's part of who she is. And when she hurts, it makes her feel better to help someone else. A displaced way of soothing her own worries. We can talk about Father later, though. Right now, we need to plan out a strike on Stacia. Vanzir, do you real y think it's possible?"
He thought for a moment, then nodded. "It won't be easy, that I can tel you--but I guarantee you, if we go in ful y armed and with every person we can, we have a chance of taking her down."
"Then let's do it." I pul ed over the steno pad and got out my laptop. "Tel us everything you know--and everything that we need to know. And don't leave anything out. When we walk out of her safe house, I want her head on a stick and her body sliced to ribbons. Leave no one standing."
CHAPTER 22
After Carter left, carrying Kim's body with him, we swung into action, printing out maps and raiding our arsenal as we gathered anything and everything we could take with us that might have an effect on the Bonecrusher.
Vanzir came through the door, leading Amber by the hand. Chase was right on his heels. "I cal ed him," he said before I could ask why Chase was fol owing him. "After I realized what Kim had done. I figured we'd be going for Stacia, and Amber would need to be protected."
Amber looked shaken. "Al the dead bodies out there . . ."
"Demons. Raiding the house. Trust me, if they catch you, they'l strip that pendant off your neck and kil you. Or worse--and yes, there are worse things than being kil ed. Trust me." Menol y frowned. "Chase, can you take her down to my bar and stash her in the safe room? You know where it is. I'l give you the key. Nobody can get at her there."
Camil e frowned. "Take Maggie, too. We're going to need Iris." She turned to Chase. "We're headed out to raid Stacia--we found the Bonecrusher."
Chase blinked. "Of course I'l take them. You think it wil be safe for me to take her, though? I don't have the firepower you do."
"I can solve this," Smoky said. "I'l take you both through the Ionyc Sea. It wil take moments, and it shouldn't hurt your baby."
Chase picked up Maggie, cuddling her to his shoulder as Smoky wrapped his arms around the detective and Amber. Before Amber could say a word, they vanished. A few moments later, Smoky reappeared.
"They're safe. Chase wil wait there for your cal ."
"That takes care of that," Camil e said. "Let's get a move on. Get everything ready that might be useful."
