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“Yep. He catches them, it’s slideshows until they crack and confess everything.” I reached for Kara’s plate. The ghost of a twinkle lit her eyes as she pulled it closer to her. Slowly, she put a bite in her mouth.
“I wouldn’t have thought they’d consider Dmitri as an asset, at his age. Inciting Robert’s anger like this—” Walker cut himself off, turning to gaze at me.
Kara flinched and put her fork down. I sank my head into my hand.
“It’s fine, Kara. Really. If you feel guilty, you can try to keep ‘Mitri out of my room in the morning. That’s enough punishment for anyone.”
Walker’s comm chimed, and he sighed. He left the room, returning to me as I showed Kara where her room was. He carried a small pack.
“I shouldn’t be gone long, but it’s urgent. Be safe, Alys. Please don’t blow the house up or get bloodstains on the carpets.”
Rising to my feet, tired and still a little sore, I kissed him softly. “You go take care of whatever urgent accounting matter you have to handle now, but hurry up and get back here, otherwise I can’t promise what will happen to your supply of sweets.”
He grinned at me and kissed me a little harder, then headed out the door, taking my heart with him. Damn Walker. Why did he have to be so great?
SIX
Alys
The shriek woke me before the impact hit. For someone weighing thirty pounds, Dimitri landed as if he weighed twice that.
“He got away,” came Kara’s unrepentant voice from the door as chilly feet and hands swarmed over me. The moving lump that was Dmitri burrowed under the blanket, leaving a sticky trail that smelled like orange juice. “It’s almost noon.”
“Up!” There were giggles as he emerged from under the covers and pulled the small decorative quilt off the comforter, wearing it like a cape. He was in his play clothes and covered in crumbs.
I widened my eyes, frowned horribly, and spoke from deep in my chest. “Thief! Give it back!”
He screeched, jumped off the bed, and ran. As I gave chase, arms outstretched, his shriek bounced off the walls down the hall. He turned for the kitchen and cannoned into Robert. My bare feet slid on the wooden floor as I tried to dodge the tangle of them, skidded, and hit the wall.
At least the walls were sturdy enough that I didn’t leave a hole.
Robert steadied his coffee, blinked, then said, “Good afternoon. You have a meeting with Silver at one o’clock. You might want to get fully dressed beforehand.”
Dmitri was crushing Robert’s pants leg in his fist, eyes huge. I smiled. He squealed and ducked behind Robert, peeking out. With ostentatious slowness, not a flicker of a smile disturbing his grave expression, Robert strolled to the table. Dmitri hid by his legs, until my son lost patience and tried to run out of the room past me, giggling.
I picked him up, his arms around my neck, and over his head I gave Robert the nod I’d copied from Elise. She did regal so well. Just wearing a t-shirt and underwear probably undermined it a little, but no time like the present to start practicing.
Dmitri wriggled and I let him slide down.
“Sea?” he asked hopefully.
“Garden,” I answered. I didn’t want to risk Walker’s furniture just yet. He gigged and ran outside, me following close behind.
Carl, Dove’s son, joined us. When he had the time, he played with Dimitri also and Dimitri worshiped him as only a very small boy can an adult who tosses him in the air. It was fun to watch the two of them together, though Carl was looking unusually subdued.
As Dimitri wandered over to inspect a stack of rocks and try to push it over again, I asked, “What's wrong, Carl?”
He shrugged. “The usual. Don't get me wrong, I like Dmitri and I like you, but I'd rather be doing something that makes a difference. Rather than sitting here helping my mother keep house.”
I knew about the arrangement from eavesdropping on his conversation with Dove when I first came to Walker’s house. He’d been brought to the Capitol but had to wait until he was twenty-one to join the Wardens. It seemed a little unfair to me, since eighteen was the minimum age. On the other hand, family politics. On an imagined third hand, Carl was showing all the signs of someone who was slowly melting from being forced to sit idle. I was very familiar with that feeling.
Why not offer an alternative?
“Have you thought about going into private security before you joined the wardens?” I asked.
Carl shook his head. “It goes the other way around. You get the training from the Wardens, then you go into private security.”
“This might be a special case. You're familiar to Dmitri and Kara and Elise, and you come from a secured household. If Walker trusts you, I would trust you to guard Dimitri. I think the same goes for Robert. Why not see if there's a position available for you to act as Dmitri’s bodyguard when I’m out on a mission?”
