I swallowed thickly and nausea crept over me. When my heart began to race, I stood up and distanced myself from the group. “She mentioned something about being followed. I gave her my pepper spray before I left last night because I thought it was just another fan. Oh, no. Daphne, she has a little girl. Did you know that?”
“No. I didn’t really bond with her the way you have with all the girls. Dean is super pissed, and he contacted the Council, but they don’t give a hoot about a missing dancer. Then he called the higher authority to send a Regulator out to investigate, but they won’t bother.”
Regulators of the Security Force worked for the higher authority—leaders of different Breeds that were in charge of the courts. They weren’t technically government since each big city had one. The only cases they focused on were high-profile crimes. Regulators were dangerous men with katanas. They served warrants, performed investigations, and got the job done.
“See if Dean called her family, or if he has their number on record. I doubt it, but maybe they know something.” I tapped my fingernail on my tooth, pacing in a small circle. I could feel a few eyes on me from the table, mostly from the men. Their ears had perked up when I raised my voice, so I made an effort to remain calm. “Daphne, tell Dean he needs to hire a PI.”
My eyes skated over to Reno and an idea sprang to mind.
“I’ll try,” she said. “But if he has to pay out of his own pocket, I don’t know if he will. Dean said the owner doesn’t want any part of it and suggested Skye was probably mixed up in something illegal.”
“Bullshit!” I yelled. I toned it down when Hope made a stinky face at me. Not that the Weston pack cared about cursing around the kids, but maybe I kind of did.
“Daph, I might have someone who can help. I’ll see what I can do. Skye is a sweet girl and this just makes me sick to my stomach. Call me if you hear anything.”
“You take care of yourself. First Lacy and now Skye. I just can’t believe this is happening in our club. All the girls are on edge, so do me a favor and buy yourself something better than a can of mace.”
“Will do, chickypoo.”
I hung up the phone and pulled in a sharp breath to calm myself. When I returned to my seat, Reno and Wheeler’s eyes were locked on me. Hard.
Lexi had migrated onto Austin’s lap where she was preoccupied with nibbling on his earlobe. His eyes hooded and she smiled mischievously.
“Better cut that out, Ladybug,” I heard him say.
Melody pulled Jericho’s hand so hard that one of his fat rings popped off. He finally capitulated and stood up, towering over her. Izzy followed behind them and Melody led the way toward a glass machine filled with colorful stuffed animals. Meanwhile, Denver and Maizy were behind me, throwing balls at a machine.
“Something wrong?” Reno asked in a low voice. The sounds of ringing bells and squealing children overlapped, making it difficult to hear him.
“I’d like to talk to you later, if that’s okay.”
He pinched his chin and nodded. “No sweat.”
A balloon string unraveled from the back of April’s chair, sending the shiny object into the rafters overhead.
“Holy smokes, I didn’t mean to do that,” she said. “I’m sorry, Naya.”
I laughed softly. “There are ten more. She won’t miss it.”
“That’s some gift you got her.” April pointed toward the box full of purses, scarves, and beads. They were items I would normally have given to charity, but I’d been saving them over the past year for just this occasion.
“Girls love to play dress-up, and she can always use a few accessories. It was no trouble.” What I didn’t mention to April was that some of the purses were designer.
Wheeler couldn’t take his pale brown eyes off me. “What was the call about?”
“My hairdresser couldn’t fit me in at three, so it’s a crisis.”
He gripped the edge of the table and leaned back, looking his usual snarly self.
I shoved all my anxiety into a mental drawer and closed it tight. There would be plenty of time to think about it later, and worrying would only ruin the party. I squeezed my hands into tight fists beneath the table, then stretched out all the muscles so they’d quit shaking. I’d always had a sweet spot for Skye because of the nice things she’d say about people. She wasn’t catty; that came with years of practice in a job like ours.
An hour later, everyone had eaten enough cake and pizza to sedate an elephant. Maizy was the belle of the ball, her face beaming each time she reappeared to look at her gifts and give her mom a hug. She loved physical affection, and maybe that wasn’t so common among some children her age—especially humans. Shifters adored family, so it was good to see that rubbing off on her.
While Lynn cleaned off the table, William packed up the gifts and hauled them to the car.