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Kane leapt over the counter with the grace of a jungle cat and appeared beside the table. “What can I tempt you with now, ladies?”
Naomi’s appreciative gaze skated from his face to his broad shoulders. “Oh, you mean the drinks.”
He feigned innocence. “Do I?”
“I’ll have another Hell on Wheels. The last one was out of this world.”
“Excellent choice. You have great taste.” He looked at me. “And you, miss?”
At least he didn’t call me ma’am. “I’m still working on mine.”
He swiveled back toward the bar and strode away.
Naomi eyed his backside. “If I lived here, I’d set up a remote office right at this table for a view like that.” She popped open her briefcase and set a thick file on the table with an audible thump. “Why don’t we get down to business? The sooner you answer my questions, the sooner I can soak up the ambience.”
“And the sooner you can return to headquarters.”
“Oh, I’m not in a rush to do that. Fairhaven is really growing on me. Such an interesting town.”
“You think? I have to imagine a well-traveled woman like yourself has visited far superior places.”
“What makes you think I’m well traveled?”
“You have that air about you. You look like a woman who’s seen a thing or two.” I had no idea what I was saying at this point, and I harbored severe regrets about this plan.
Naomi opened the file as Kane returned with the drink. “You’ve seen one city, you’ve seen them all.”
Kane accidentally bumped the table, causing my glass to tip. I instinctively reached for it and kept it from falling. I didn’t realize how quickly I must’ve moved until I felt Naomi’s eyes on me.
“Nice reflexes,” she remarked with surprise.
“Yeah. I played sports in high school.” It was a lame excuse, and we both knew it.
“Soccer?”
“And softball.” And volleyball. And track. I had more energy to expend than anyone else my age.
“I bet you were a pitcher.”
“I played right field.” I could’ve been a pitcher, but that would’ve resulted in too much attention. There were limits to how much I could take part without setting off alarm bells.Dial it down, Lorelei, Pops would remind me. Be good, but not too good. Participate, but don’t end up in the spotlight. It was a tricky balance to maintain. It became even more important after Pops died. At that point, I was alone with my secret.
I still was.
Naomi stared at me. “I’d really like to know what you are. The curiosity is killing me.”
I pretended to misunderstand. “Unemployed and in need of cash, which is why I asked about a job.”
Naomi moved her drink to the side. “Bruce Huang was a longtime employee of The Corporation. We received a report from him about certain events at the house where he lived on Thoreau Street. As fate would have it, we received the information after his unfortunate death, which made it impossible to ask follow-up questions.”
That was a partial lie. Bruce’s spirit had appeared at The Corporation’s headquarters to tell them he was solely responsible for stealing their corporate treasure as vengeance for imprisoning him. I knew this because I was the one who ordered his spirit to go there, albeit at his request. They’d likely asked questions, and he’d simply refused to answer them. His spirit would’ve been beyond their reach.
“What more do you need to know? And why ask me?”
“There were certain corporate assets in Mr. Huang’s possession when he died. We can’t find any trace of them. Given Mr. Shah’s untimely death at the same location, and his mention of your name, we thought you might be able to help us.”
“I’m sorry. I don’t know anything about any assets. Do you mean office equipment?”
Naomi’s expression gave nothing away. “No.”
