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"I do recall saying exactly that same thing before we embarked on this pointless excursion. "
I rubbed my eyes. Being able to find Raquel, or even Anne's office, had always been a long shot, but I'd secretly hoped we'd run into someone that we could pump for information or something. I had no doubt that Reth with all his glamoured glory could get some poor sap to spill all sorts of beans. But we hadn't seen a single soul the whole time we'd been stalking the halls.
Wait. The whole time I'd been following Reth through the halls.
I looked at him, my eyes narrowed. "You'd really like it if this whole effort was a failure, wouldn't you?" Much as I doubted he cared one way or the other about Raquel's future, one thing he was invested in was me. And no Raquel meant no more faerie names, which meant no more touching Lend. Maybe forever.
He tilted his head to the side, face inscrutable.
"I can't believe this. " I turned on my heel and stalked back down the hall. "Of course you wouldn't really be helping me. " I knew where we should go, and without Reth to lead me in paths to deliberately avoid any and everyone, I was going to find something out.
I walked as fast as I could without looking crazy in case we did run into someone, quickly navigating the labyrinthine halls to my old training room. I pulled my hand up just short of trying to palm the lock. Odds were, nothing would happen, but what if they'd coded the place to recognize my hand and set off an alarm?
"Bleep," I muttered.
"Problem?" Reth said, leaning in way too close to my ear. Faeries and personal bubbles, honestly. I tried not to shiver at the way his breath trailed warm and sweet down my neck.
"No. " Screw technology, I would do this old school. I pulled my hand back, made a fist, and then knocked. Loudly. Repeatedly. Maybe a bit desperately, because I was fast running out of time and if he didn't open the door. . .
The door slid open, revealing the shocked and angry face of Bud. "What the-"
I pushed him back into the room and let the door close behind us, shutting Reth out in the hall.
"What are you doing back here?" His face was an unhealthy shade of red. "Are you daft? You were lucky to get out of here once. If they catch you again, you can bet that-"
"I need help. They're going to try Raquel. "
He let out a heavy breath and rubbed his eyes, staring at the floor. "I'd thought as much. "
"Do you know where they're keeping her? I need to break her out before the trial, because after that I might not ever be able to find her again. " It was too terrible to think about. I wouldn't lose Raquel, not like I'd lost Lish.
He put his calloused, heavy hands on my shoulders and fixed his muddy brown eyes on mine. "Listen, kid. I always liked you. And I liked Raquel, too. But, trust me, you don't want any part of this. Best to leave IPCA to itself and get free and clear again, forever. Disappear. "
I opened my mouth to argue when it hit me-that look in Bud's eyes? It was fear. Bud was like a grizzly bear. He was stronger and tougher than even a werewolf, and he didn't have any supernatural abilities other than his infinite capacity to yell at me for not practicing my self-defense techniques.
"What's going on?" I asked.
He dropped his hands and sat wearily on a beat-up folding chair surrounded by free weights against the wall. "This place, well, it's never been perfect but I always believed in the core of it. That we were doing good. But ever since Anne-Laurie LeFevre swooped in, it's all gone to pot faster than a gremlin can chew through the hull of a supertanker. "
"With the arrests?"
"More than that. There are rumors-and I stay out of all this, mind you-but rumors of dealings with creatures we're meant to protect the world from. Things that sure as all heck go against our charter. Things it's safer for both of us not to know about. I'm asking you to leave it be. I'll keep an eye out for Raquel, but she made her bed with IPCA and she'll have to sleep in it. She wouldn't want you here any more than I do. "
I scowled, my stomach crawling inside my abdomen like a living thing. Something serious was going down here to have Bud scared. I was in over my head.
Eh, what else was new. I shrugged. "Raquel wouldn't leave me. I'm not going to give up on getting her out. "
He sighed heavily. "You always were too stubborn. I've half a mind to set off the alarm just to get you to run away. "
"Aww, come on. You wouldn't do that. We both know I was your favorite student. "
He snorted.
"No idea where they're keeping Raquel?"
"None. And if I knew, I wouldn't tell you. Get out. Have a life. And stay out of mine. You're more dangerous than anything else here. "
"Psh. I'm the epitome of cuteness. See? Perky! That's me. Not dangerous. "
