“Let’s deal with the other sets first. Then we’ll discuss the need for you to possess your own.”
A small victory, but I would take it. “Are we done then?”
“For tonight, yes.” Headlights washed over his face, and his eyes gleamed golden as twin suns. The otherworldly sheen made me intensely curious what he hid beneath his suit. “Other loose ends might need tying off before all is said and done.”
Maybe Wu had been a sailor in a previous life. He sure was a knot enthusiast.
“I still can’t believe you flew to New York.” I tried not to laugh but failed. “Santiago is going to be full of himself for weeks after this.”
A resigned sigh escaped Wu. “I don’t suppose I could persuade you not to mention the trip to him.”
“Nope.” Dirt on Wu was worth too much to squander. “He and I are like oil and water most days. Ratting you out will earn me some much-needed bonus points with him.”
“What will you tell your partner about the photos when he notices they’re missing?”
“I’ll lie to him.” The acid taste of regret burned up my throat. “I don’t want him near any of this. He’s got a wife and a kid and a whole, normal life ahead of him. He’s already in this up to his neck, and he has no clue. I’m not letting him dig himself any deeper.”
“You’re doing the right thing,” he assured me as he turned up my driveway. “Humans are fragile, and they break easily.”
“What about Kapoor?” I found myself asking. “He’s human. The taskforce must have some human oversight.”
“Kapoor is a demi, but he chooses to identify as human.” Wu sounded mystified by that mindset, humanity as alien to him as my heritage was to me. “They are an unavoidable staple in higher management. This is their terrene, after all.” I couldn’t tell if he was joking, and he moved on before I could ask. “The bulk of our taskforce are charun, though there are a few demi among them.”
“Demi,” I clarified, “as in he’s half charun.”
“Yes.” Wu parked his SUV, and we sat there staring at my house. “He didn’t know until his mother was captured by the NSB and quarantined. He was eighteen, a senior in high school. The mandatory testing required of all mixed blood children exposed his heritage.”
I hazarded a guess. “He joined up to right the wrongs against his mother?”
“I’ve already told you not all fathers are as worthy of a child’s trust as yours. The same can be said for mothers.” His fingers tightened on the gearshift until his knuckles punched against his skin. “He hated her for a long time, for making him what he is, but mostly for not telling him what he was.” A sharp inhale moved through his chest, and he released his grip. “Kapoor joined to play exterminator. He was a smart kid, driven, and we needed people like him. He lasted a decade before he burned out on all the death he was dealing.”
I swallowed hard. “How nervous should I be that the NSB sent an exterminator after me?”
“He wasn’t there for you, not in that way.” Wu didn’t bother assuring me Kapoor wouldn’t have offed me if I hadn’t agreed to cooperate. “He’s been reclassified to what the taskforce calls a janitor. All cases and public disturbances with suspected charun involvement land on his desk.”
“That explains why he was cleaning up after us.” And why his reach exceeded his grasp on occasion.
“White Horse has been a special project for him,” Wu admitted. “Kapoor expressed an interest in you early on, no doubt expecting us to put you down. When no kill order was issued, his fascination shifted onto your coterie.” A growl revved up my throat that earned me an interested look from Wu. “He’s loyal to us. He won’t harm your people so long as you keep them in line.”
Gravel churned in my voice when I asked, “How do I know where the line starts and where it ends?”
“The academy will cover the basics, and I’ll tutor you on the laws involving coterie creation and sustainment.”
“Coteries are a thing outside the cadre? Other charun form them too?” I reflected on how it had been explained to me. “Miller told me each coterie is led by a high charun, that the groups vary in size and species, but the only true limit is how far their master’s control extends. I assumed that meant only cadre.”
“We’ve covered enough for one night.” He shut me down fast. “Call when you’ve finished with Rixton.”
“All right.” I slid out and stretched, the elastic fabric moving with me, and I plucked at my top. “Hey, do you want these clothes back or…?”
“Keep the outfit.” He cast me a knowing look. “You’ll need it again.”
Well, wasn’t that a comforting thought. “Night.”
“Goodnight.”
A deep ache in my bones for home had me mounting the stairs after Wu left instead of heading back to the sewing room at the Trudeaus’ for the night. With that in mind, I texted Uncle Harold to let him know where he could find me. I pulled up short when the front door opened under my hand. I was paranoid about locking it, always had been, since folks had a nasty habit of inviting themselves into our house.
On reflex, my right hand brushed my hip but found nothing. I hadn’t gone to see Summers armed. There had been no point with Wu and a member of my coterie on the fringes acting as backup. And it’s not like I would have shot her for having the nerve to bust me for breaking into her home.
Since Wu had been so helpful as to out my babysitter, I sent Thom a text then had to wonder if he would receive it if he was on all fours as Wu had implied. Still, I meant to back out and wait on him, I really did, but the moonlight chose that moment to glint off a puddle on the floorboards, and all my good intentions evaporated.
Shoving the door open wider illuminated boot prints tracked through the living room headed in the direction of the kitchen. I crept inside, avoiding squeaky planks, and let myself into the gun safe masquerading as our hall closet. I reached in, retrieved my shotgun plastered in screamo band stickers, and loaded her as quick as a heartbeat. With the weapon braced against my shoulder, I started clearing rooms, saving the kitchen, where the tracks vanished beneath the sheeting, for last.
Pulse thumping in my ears, I stepped through the slit in the plastic. There was so much blood… and then I spotted the source. I rushed over to the body and hit my knees, the gun smacking the floor under my hand. “Miller?”
Curled on his side, he rested his head on an outstretched arm. Blood pooled under him, pouring from a ragged wound above his hip. His breaths came short and hard, and he flinched when I touched him, but he didn’t answer.
“It’s okay.” I smoothed the damp hair from his forehead. “Thom’s on the way. He’ll know what to do. Just hang on until he gets here, okay?”
Miller gave no sign of hearing me over the incessant chattering of his teeth.
Footsteps echoed beyond the plastic, and I nestled the butt of the gun against my shoulder. “Show yourself.”
“It’s only me,” Thom said, parting the folds and entering the space with his hands held up where I could see them. “What happened?”
“No idea.” I lowered my weapon and shook my head. “I found him like this.”
“He’s lost a lot of blood.” Thom knelt beside Miller and checked his vitals. “I’ll do what I can to stabilize him, but we’re going to need to transfuse him. See if you can reach Cole.”
I pinged Cole, got no response, and cued up Santiago.
“You better be dying,” Santiago grumbled, “and not interrupting me for a home address you could Google.”
“I’m not dying,” I rushed, “but Miller might be. We need help.”
“Tell him to bring the full medical kit,” Thom instructed, his eyes flipping up to mine, “and tell him to come ready to bleed.”
“I heard him.” Santiago dropped the attitude. “I’ll be there in fifteen.”
“Where’s Cole?” The question slipped out before I checked the urge and winced in anticipation of punishment for my lapse.
Santiago didn’t disappoint. “Not here.”