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He stood. “Let’s take a walk.”
A few moments later, they were waiting by the elevator and Sara was goggling at her boss. “They’rerecruitingme? Why?”
“You should be flattered. They only recruit the best.”
“Yeah? Well, they’re going to have to impress the hell out of me. Their agents are assholes, and they’re edging in on our cases.”
“Don’t judge too swiftly.” He shot her a sideways look, something like amusement in his eyes. “I think you might be intrigued.”
She said nothing as she followed him into the elevator. He used a key to open what looked like a utility panel, but turned out to be access to a series of sub-basements. He hit the button for sub-level ten.
“I thought Homeland was based on the sixth floor.”
“Not exactly.”
She frowned. “What does that mean?”
“It means you’re about to get an education. I’m sorry you’re getting tossed in like this. As the liaison to Division 6, I should have given you a proper orientation.”
“Why didn’t you?”
“Leviathan wants you expedited.”
“Who?”
“Nikko Leviathan. The director here,” Porter continued, when Sara only shook her head, entirely clueless.
“Okay, but why?”
Porter shot her a grin. “He wants you on the Braddock case,” he said as the elevator slid to a stop. “Get ready. You’re about to go down the rabbit hole.”
The doors slid open, and Sara took an involuntary step back, not able to believe what she saw, but also unable to deny her own eyes.
Outside the elevator lay a whole new world. A world where a wolf slunk across a reception area, becoming human by the time it reached the far side. A hulk of a man with pale orange skin and cloven feet stood at a granite counter calmly filling out a form. And the woman behind the counter had blood red eyes and some sort of mist swirling around her.
There were humans, too. At least they looked like humans. But they really weren’t the ones drawing her attention.
“A little overwhelming the first time, isn’t it?”
Hell yes.Her heart was pounding so loud she could barely hear herself think, and her palms had started to sweat. The rabbit hole, he’d said? Try a wormhole to hell.
She looked at Porter, calling on every ounce of self-control to keep her voice from shaking. To keep from revealing how much her world had just tilted. “This is for real?”
“You okay?”
She forced a bright and perky smile. “Absolutely.” And then, just to prove the point, she stepped out of the elevator and took a deep breath. Since nobody with fangs rushed to assault her, she took another tentative step, then looked around.
And the truth was that despite the rather bizarre appearance of some of the beings occupying the space, the room had a familiar feel. The hustle and bustle of the criminal justice system at work. “This is a reception area?” she asked.
“You got it, but it’s appointment-only or under escort. There’s no public access. That’s on the sixth floor for humans and creatures that pass as human. Or the other creatures capable of hiding their true form with a glamour. They’re escorted down by staff. Creatures that would stand out are brought in through an entrance off the parking structure. One of the reserved levels.
He shot her a wry smile. “As you might imagine, a number of the creatures who pass through this office would cause a bit of a stir if they marched through the building’s main lobby.”
“Yeah. I guess they would.”
“Bottom line is that no one comes past reception without an escort.” He studied her face. “You’re really okay?”
She nodded slowly, letting this new reality sink in.It was real.The creatures that had fascinated her father. The stories that she’d analyzed in college. It was all real. All hidden in plain sight. “Yeah,” she said, feeling more and more like Alice with each passing moment. And, oh, how she longed to explore Wonderland. “Yeah,” she repeated. “I’m fine. It—it makes sense.”
