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“It can’t be helped,” I murmured, trying to reassure myself.
“Please repeat command,” the Auto said, in a stiff female voice that tried to thread the needle between comforting and authoritative.
“I didn’t give a command. I was having an emotion out loud.”
“Increase motion sensitivity?”
“No. Do not increase motion sensitivity.” I didn’t even know what that was, but it proved Autos weren’t all created equal. “Continue to destination, please.”
“Continuing to destination.”
I thought about applauding her, but didn’t want to risk it.
• • •
The House was quiet. There were vampires in the foyer and front parlor, whispering as I walked through. They smiled or offered nods but didn’t speak.
I could feel the Egregore as I got closer to my father’s office, and knew my mother’s sword was there. The monster called to it, trying to push through me to move closer to the magic contained there.
When I stepped into the doorway, the throbbing of power was nearly loud enough to drown out my heartbeat.
It doesn’t matter,I told myself.It can’t matter.
My mother leaned over the conference table and a spread of paper, katana belted at her side over jeans and a black top. My father was at his desk in his typical suit.
“Hey,” she said, standing straight. The word was an echo behind the pulse of magic, and I made myself concentrate on thelingering buzz of power my parents put into the room, which was lighter and brighter than the sword’s.
The monster wasn’t interested in that, so it receded. For now.
“I was just looking over the proposed security updates,” she said, but her smile faded as she squinted, looked at my face. “What happened?” She strode toward me, steel in her eyes. Not just my mother, but Sentinel of Cadogan House.
My father frowned and moved around his desk. “What happened to your face?”
“My face?”
When he reached me, he brushed fingers over my cheek.
Damn. The bruise hadn’t faded completely, and I’d totally forgotten about it. “We’ll get to that.”
He arched an eyebrow. “Will we?”
There was a knock at the threshold. Theo stood in the doorway, Yuen behind him. Yuen wore a dark suit; Theo, jeans and a fitted button-down shirt in pale blue gingham.
I gave Theo a hard look. He was supposed to show up alone, then report back to the Ombuds and save me the trouble of having to face them directly.
And I still hadn’t briefed my father. I opened my mouth to ask them to give us a minute, but Yuen strode inside with fury etched into his face.
“Ruadan called the Ombudsman’s office,” he said, settling angry eyes on my father. “Complained that Elisa visited them, attacked, instigated violence among the fairies.”
My first reaction was fury at the lie, but my father’s gaze—cold and icy—kept me silent. And the seconds that elapsed while he turned that gaze on me seemed to take a lifetime.
“Are you out of your mind?” His words were chilly and as sharp as his gaze. It wasn’t the first time that I’d angered him, and might not be the last. But even at twenty-three, I didn’t care for the feeling.
Then Gabriel stepped into the room, Connor behind him.
“And she was joined by Connor Keene,” Yuen said.
“I guess we’ve come at just the right moment,” Gabriel said, but my father’s eyes stayed on me.
