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I hate liars with a passion.
To be fair, she hadn’t actually lied, but she’d been heavily skirting around some truths. The question was how deep the deception ran and why. Right now, I would have loved to have one of the Veredian mind readers to evaluate her. Then again, I enjoyed a challenge. And this particular female intrigued me in more ways than one.
“Find out all that you can. Do not be discreet, and make it clear any solid clue or information will be generously rewarded,” I said to my guards. “I want that killer to get nervous, and ideally to make a mistake.”
“Yes, Jakar,” Tagar replied.
“The security perimeter is active and linked to your devices,” Nowik said. “In case of trouble, backup will arrive in under three minutes, long before any intruder can reach you.”
“Perfect. You know your tasks,” I said.
The two males nodded before heading for the exit. Seconds after they opened the front door, Dawn burst out of her office, a panicked look on her face as she stared at my guards’ receding backs.
“They’ll be back,” I called out mockingly.
She gasped and jerked her head towards me. Her shock at finding me standing on the left side of the greeting hall gave way to palpable relief. That did funny things to me. I naturally felt protective of females, and this one definitely needed my aid. I loved the trusting and hopeful way she looked at me and listened to my words. And yet, my suspicions kept rearing their heads. Did Dawn fear me leaving because she had planned on having me assassinated overnight, or because she would never be able to solve this if we abandoned her?
“Keran,” she breathed, tension bleeding out of her shoulders as she came my way. She cast a confused look at the doors, which had closed behind my guards after their exit, before facing me again. “Where are they going?”
“To the strip club you were talking about earlier,” I deadpanned.
Shock and disappointment, quickly hidden, flitted over her features. “I see…”
“No, you don’t,” I said mockingly. “They’re going there for work, not for entertainment.”
“Right. Of course.”
My smile broadened at the sight of the heat creeping on her cheeks. She had the slightly tanned complexion of Middle Eastern or Mediterranean humans. Her long obsidian hair and green eyes hinted at the former. But the resemblance ended there. Dawn was taller than the average human, with broad shoulders and big bones. Although undoubtedly feminine, her facial features would never be defined as delicate. She had thick lips on a wide mouth. A strong, broad nose, and big upturned eyes with the longest natural lashes I’d ever seen.
By human standards, she wouldn’t qualify as even remotely attractive. Yet, my cock had perked up the minute I’d laid eyes on her.
She cleared her throat and glanced once more at the closed door. “Shouldn’t one of them have stayed behind to protect you?”
I snorted. “Are you planning on doing me ill?”
“Of course not! But you’re the future Magnar.”
“Security measures have been taken,” I said. “Now, I recall you mentioning food earlier.”
“Right! I have some adran steaks that I can make with a couple of sides,” she offered, that adorable nervosity creeping back into her voice. “I had planned something fancier from the catering service tomorrow, but—”
“Adran steaks sound perfect. Again, I do not need anything fancy,” I said, interrupting her.
“Great. This way then.” She gestured at a hallway, which I assumed led to the cafeteria.
“Tell me about yourself, Dawn. How did you end up here? Why this job? Why Haven?”
Although I asked the question in a conversational tone, I examined her face for any sign of the deception I expected.
“I just followed in my mother’s footsteps, I guess,” Dawn said with a nonchalance that revealed she had answered that question in a similar way many times before.
“You mean yourbirthmother, not the one who raised you, correct?” I said with false innocence.
Dawn froze, stopping dead in her tracks to look at me with a shocked expression. I held her gaze unwaveringly, daring her to lie.
“Shonda Merrick isn’t a public servant, and you look nothing like her,” I insisted. “So I can only presume you’re adopted.”
“Wow! I guess tact doesn’t feature very high in your list of diplomatic skills,” Dawn said, sounding slightly offended. “You don’t just throw something like this at someone’s face. It could be a very sore topic for me.”
