I glanced at the clock. I still had another twenty minutes to go before I was needed in Herne’s office, but Ray didn’t have to know that.
“Listen, I’ve got to go. I have a meeting to attend. I have to go.”
“Can I call you tonight?”
I wanted to blurt out that no, I had a date. But that would be a big mistake. So I just told him a flat no and hung up before he could say anything more. I was still sitting there, staring at my phone, when he texted me, asking me to let him know when I had time to get together. Putting my private phone on mute, I stuck it deep in my purse.
Feeling at loose ends, I left my office and went out in the waiting room, wanting to talk to someone who would understand.
Angel was at her desk, poring over the transcript, which was what I should have been doing.
“I got a problem.” I leaned on her desk. “Ray Fontaine has decided he wants back in my life. As my boyfriend.”
Angel blinked. “After the talk I had with him?”
“And after the talk I had with him. And I also discovered that something I suspected when we were going together was actually true. He’s extremely jealous and insecure. He doesn’t like the idea that his girlfriends might have slept with other men. He was actually asking about my sex life. As to how many men I’ve been with.”
“Oh good God. That’s the last thing you need to deal with right now.” She glanced up at the clock. “That new client’s going to be in soon. This will be the first time that I’ve done an intake on someone. I hope I do it right.”
“I wouldn’t worry too much. You seem to be getting the hang of matters pretty quickly. How are you finding the job?”
“I actually like it,” she said. “Oh, I wanted to ask. Tonight, do you mind driving me around to some car dealers so I can test drive a few? I called my bank and applied over the phone, and they can give me a loan for a new car.”
Well, that solved one problem. I fished out my car keys. “Here. You take my car and go wherever you need to.”
“How are you going to get home?”
I blushed. She studied my face for a moment then grinned.
“You’re going out with Herne, aren’t you?” When I didn’t answer, she laughed. “I knew it! Well, have fun and be safe, whatever you do.”
“We’re just going out for a cheeseburger. That’s all.” When she didn’t say anything, I added, “I mean it. All we’re doing is going out for a bite to eat.”
Just then the door opened, and in a man walked in. I recognized right away that he was Fae, but I wasn’t sure whether he was Light or Dark. He gave me a long look, then smiled at both Angel and me, and walked up to the desk.
“I have an appointment with Herne. My name is Barnaby.” His voice was gravelly, sounding lower than I thought it would be.
Angel checked her appointment book, marking off his name. “I have a form for you to fill out,” she said, handing him a clipboard with a sheet of paper on it and a pen attached. “If you’ll have a seat and fill out the information, I’ll let Herne know you’re here.”
Herne peeked out of the door, glancing around the waiting room. His gaze fell on Barnaby, then he glanced over at me and motioned for me to join him in his office. He held up five fingers to Angel and she nodded.
“That’s our client. He’s a clurichaun, one of the Irish Fae folk.” Herne settled behind his desk, pulling out a notebook and pen. “Don’t accept anything to drink from him. Clurichauns are pleasant enough, but they can ensnare others quite easily if they choose.”
“Don’t forget, I’m Fae by blood. Other Fae can’t entrap me with their glamour.” I glanced around. “Where should I sit?”
Herne laughed. “I’m sorry, I did forget. You don’t carry yourself with the usual energy of the Fae, and it’s probably because of your background rather than your actual nature. Why don’t you pull a chair over to the right of my desk and sit there. Halfway between the front and back, so to speak.”
I dragged one of the heavy leather chairs over to where he pointed by the side of his desk, and had just sat down when the office door opened. Angel escorted Barnaby in, then handed Herne a copy of the form that he had filled out. She left, shutting the door behind her.
“Please take a chair,” Herne said, motioning to one of the chairs opposite his desk. While Barnaby settled in, his feet dangling over the edge a good eight inches from the floor, Herne glanced over the form and then set it down to the side. “So what can I do for you?”
Barnaby glanced over at me, looking wary. “She’s…”
“A half-breed. I know.” I stared at him, feeling defensive.
“Ember is a new employee, and she’ll be working with me on a number of cases including yours. So, tell me what wrong.” Herne stared at the clurichaun, and I read the unstated warning. Either work with both of us, or get out of the office.
Barnaby cleared his throat and let out a slight huff, but apparently he decided to cave.
“As you know, I’m Light Fae. I live in the country, away from the main court. I’m having problems with a neighbor. He’s stealing my wine, and so far I’ve refrained from putting a haxit on him but so help me, if he doesn’t quit looting my cellar, I won’t be responsible for the outcome. I petitioned Névé but she suggested that I bring my problems to a private investigator. She suggested the Wild Hunt.”
Herne nodded, his face serious. He had to be good at his job, because I was fighting the temptation to giggle. Somehow, looting wine cellars didn’t seem quite too serious.
“Your neighbor, is he human? Fae?”
“He’s one of them damned wolf shifters.” Barnaby spat out the words shifters like he might have spat out the word shit. I had the feeling that the clurichaun didn’t care very much for the shifter community.
“Ah. And what is your neighbor’s name?”
“Trent. Elson Trent. He’s got a little farm next to my vineyard. I wouldn’t complain if he would come over and ask for a bottle now and then, but I’m running a business and I don’t cotton to thieves much.” Barnaby seemed to be spare on his words, but the emotion behind them was very real. He was a growly, gruff curmudgeon and I expected that he wasn’t an easy neighbor to have. But he was right, stealing was not exactly the most neighborly thing to do.
“All right. What do you want me to do? What do you expect to gain from hiring me? I need to ask that, so that there aren’t any feelings that I haven’t done my job if you decide to engage my services.”
I had to hand it to Herne. He was covering all bases.
Barnaby squinted, thinking. A moment later he said, “I’d like you to prove whether Elson is actually pilfering my vino. If he is, then I need proof to take him to court.” He frowned. “You realize, I don’t actually like taking people to court. I just want him to stop stealing from me.”
Herne nodded, glancing over at the form Barnaby had filled out. “Well, I can look into this next week. I’m on a case right now that has priority, but next week, I can do some snooping around. See what I can find out on Elson. Will that work for you?”
The clurichaun thought it over, then nodded. “That’s fine. I changed the lock three times on my storeroom. Somehow he keeps getting in. How much of a retainer do you want?”
“Why don’t we start off with two hundred? I’ll write out a slip and you can pay Angel at the front desk. It will be applied to the work I do as soon as I start. It’s a nonrefundable deposit, providing I’m able to take on the job once I look into it. If I find that I can’t take on the job, the fee will be returned to you.”
“All right. Why don’t you write me out what I’ll need.” Barnaby slid off of his chair, and waited by the desk as Herne wrote out a retainer invoice. He handed the paper to the clurichaun and walked him out to the front desk. When he returned, shutting the door behind him, I burst out into a soft laughter.