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His hands tightened on my shoulders, almost enough to bruise. His expression was grim. “Beyond that, Silver and I want to know who was involved in planning and coordinating the attack on you. The Wolves were hired by someone with deep pockets who didn’t use normal channels. Flint searched and couldn't find any trace of the second transaction that paid them after Greene’s was canceled. He and Silver believe the attempt on your life is connected to the shadow. The guess is that the enemy thinks killing you will kill the case. We need to find who is pulling the strings on this threat and stop them. So I can deal with being unhappy if it makes the world safer for you.”
That last sentence eased a lot of anger out of me. “Has Silver ever interacted with an actual human being for fun?”
The smile Walker gave me was wry. “He’s not really a people person, no. Maybe he needs a slide presentation to socialize him better.”
I laughed.
Bowing to the inevitable, I showered and made use of the lotions and soaps Dove provided.
Jewelry lay tumbled on the bed when I came out of the shower. Golden hairpins and a bracelet. The bracelet was oddly light when I picked it up. I ran my fingers along its edge. I’d seen this style once before, on one of the holos Elise watched.
It uncoiled, snapping into a knife. A kind of memory plastic that had been textured to appear like metal. Walker was the most thoughtful lover in the world. Tiny and inadequate the knife might be, but still better than nothing.
The makeup artist and hair stylists arrived and I settled in a chair for them to work. One slapped my hand every time I raised it towards my face when his applications tickled. The other colored and twisted my hair, tugging on my scalp. By the time they finished, I was ripe for murder.
My newly ash blond hair in an updo and decorated with tiny flowers, I stepped into the shoes that came with the outfit. My arches winced. I walked into the room where Walker was still in shirtsleeves. He cleaned up nicely; the tailoring emphasized the lean lines of him. His long black hair was braided back, emphasizing the strong lines of his cheekbones and jaw. The red jewel gleamed on his forehead. Not a conventionally handsome man, but the sight of him made my heart speed up.
“Five-inch heels?” I asked.
He didn’t answer, eyes running from my feet to my face. A brow raised; they’d altered the shape of my face and cheekbones subtly, enough that facial recognition wouldn’t get a good capture. Makeup as effective camouflage!
Though with the onyx, everyone would know what I was. I had no idea how they planned to hide it.
I waited for his answer, staring over his shoulder at the screen on the wall. He’d been researching Wendigo legends as well.
“You know, it’s a pity we need to be there so soon,” he said meditatively. My eyes flew to his face at the warm sound of his voice. Appreciative heat danced in his eyes. “You’re a masterpiece. A pity I can’t unwrap you yet.”
“I’ll let you search out where the other knife is hidden if I don’t need to use it,” I murmured. An odd feeling tightened in my chest as he walked over and tilted my chin up. Even in the sky-high heels, I barely came to his shoulder.
“Then I hope there’s no violence. I assume it’s hidden in your shoes, so I’ll start at your hair.”
THREE
Alys
The grav hummed as Walker made the turn for the final approach. Below us, the Capitol Building rose like a pearl from a sea of blue-green, close-clipped grass. Clouds of lights drifted on the wind—lesser spirits imprisoned in physical forms held tiny lanterns. Warded chains attached to stakes allowed them to be moved as needed.
The casual enslavement brought bile creeping into my throat. The Compact technically forbade it, but greater spirits weren’t likely to be moved by the misuse of minor spirits.
“So much for humanity’s moral superiority,” I hissed softly.
Walker’s gaze flicked to the drifting lights, and his face hardened. He tapped a message into his comm. “That, Silver will stop. It’s been banned for years. No idea why they opted for that decoration style unless it’s to distract him from political shenanigans this evening.”
We began our descent as security took over the navigation.
Walker brushed a kiss over my naked knuckles. “Remember, you’ll have others covering you for security, since you’re still under active threat.”
“I can take care of myself.”
“Yes, and you’ll look lovely doing it. But I’m the nervous type, and I like having reassurance.”
I couldn’t help the laugh that escaped, despite my uneasiness. Even with a Judge in residence at Walker’s house, I didn’t like leaving Dmitri exposed. “We’ll go back to the house as soon as we get the information? And, Walker, sometimes my empathy comes and goes. Touching is surest, but even that doesn’t always work.”
Walker tucked a strand of my hair back. Despite the treatment the hairdresser had given it, bits were already working their way free from the sleek twist she’d put it in. “If that happens, it happens. We’ll head home when Cohen leaves, regardless. There’ll be other opportunities—it’s just that this is one time you can be incognito.”
“Incognito?” My hand drifted to the onyx.
Walker cut the power to the vehicle. Before one of the valets reached us, he flicked my forehead and pocketed the gem. I stared at him, jaw dropping.
