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I stiffened in the Paragon’s hands.Oooh, this is why I knew this was a terrible idea!This is turning into the worst day of my life. Work, magic, work!
The Paragon stared at me for three full seconds, then twirled in a circle, still holding me. “Ama, however, is better looking—sorry, but her coat is glossier and fuller. Noctus’s doing, you know. He’s a terrific pet parent—if not a tad overbearing,” he stage whispered to me.
“I beg your pardon?” Noctus growled.
“What, what? Did you say something, Noctus?” The Paragon beamed at the elf king.
I hung from the Paragon’s hands, my heart recovering.I’m so glad the Paragon has the attention span of a goldfish.With my heart beginning to slow to something near a normal rate, I waited until the Paragon wilted under Noctus’s glare before I expertly wriggled out of his hands.
I landed paws first on the sidewalk, then took off, sprinting toward the cul-de-sac entrance.
Noctus—with his expert cat wrangling skills—stepped into my way so I smashed into his legs and picked me up before I could recover. “Why does the shadow keep attempting to run away?”
“Funny thing, I neglected to tell her we were coming to see you today. Haha, oops!” The Paragon sheepishly scratched the back of his head.
Noctus cradled me like he used to when I was Ama. I stiffly let him roll me onto my back, my paws pointed up to the air.
I don’t know what to do. I didn’t want to come here like this, and now it’s going to be even more complicated. How do I even act? I’m going to have to overthink every action and word I say to make sure I don’t give anything away. I was such an idiot for trusting the Paragon!
“There’s a difference between not expecting to meet someone, and being terrified,” Noctus said.
“Mmm.” The Paragon held his hands out to take me. “She might have said, previously, she didn’t want to meet you. She’s just a tad scared of you—don’t take it personally, she did just find out elves exist, and one is actively trying to kill her.”
“So you’ve said.” Noctus turned away from the Paragon, blocking his sight of me. “Why, then, would you bring her here when youknewshe didn’t want to?”
“Because she’s a shadow.” The fun and jokes left the Paragon’s voice. He sighed as he fell in line with Noctus, glancing at me. “It was underhanded to bring her—and I apologize for it, Chloe. But if your tracker is involved with the organization, and even seems to be knowledgeable of the leadership within it, you’re the best lead we have.”
So it’s all about the organization. Not me.
He’d been obvious about it during the meeting with Queen Leila, but I’d thought the Cloisters would still attempt to help me in some way that didn’t directly benefit their ongoing search. Silly me.
“We cannot afford any mistakes,” the Paragon continued. “You need every possible advantage you can get in this situation, which includes consorting with elves.” He held his hand out, palm up.
Thankfully I hadn’t pretended to be Ama in months, or I would have automatically tapped my paw to his palm in a high five. But, when the Paragon glanced from me to Noctus, I realized I probably appeared to be a little too relaxed in the arms of someone I’d been desperate not to meet.
Right, I need to focus. I must get through this meeting with a convincing enough act that the Paragon doesn’t get suspicious. Here I go!
I squirmed in Noctus’s arms, wriggling fiercely enough that I should have been able to slip out of a less experienced grasp.
Noctus, however, was well versed with my typical antics. He ignored me and shifted me to one arm so he could open the front door.
He stepped through the gate built behind the front door of his Cape Cod home, and for a moment the dizzying swirl of portal magic made my stomach flop.
Noctus emerged in his villa, gliding past the gold gate with its ornamental flourishes that he pushed back into place once the Paragon popped out of the portal.
“This way, Paragon.” Noctus continued to ignore my struggles as I tried to wriggle out of his grasp, leading the Paragon to the drawing room he was usually received in—I think it was an effort to limit the view of the villa.
This particular drawing room was opulent, but not to the point of being gaudy.
Cathedral ceilings, decorated with golden fleurs-de-lis, were lit up by four extravagant chandeliers that sent tiny rainbows cascading through the room.
“Now, then. Noctus, please allow me to introduce you to Chloe Anderson, who was recently revealed to be a shadow. Chloe, this is Noctus, the elf contact I spoke of,” the Paragon gestured from me to Noctus—who was still holding me.
So he’s not planning on telling me Noctus is a Mors elf. Interesting.
I paddled my paws in the air, signaling my desire to be put down.
Noctus set me on a settee, his hand familiarly grazing under my chin in a gesture the Paragon didn’t see—he was scowling so deeply his fluffy white eyebrows were squatting low over his eyes.
