Never before had I let my guard down the way I had with Callan. Of all the men in the world, why him? Why couldn’t I be attracted to someone safe like a dwarf or even a human? But no, I had to have the hots for a royal vampire with a lethal reputation.
I also worried about the information he’d obtained. Maeron had been smart to send Callan as a spy. Now the vampire prince knew everything I did and the royals could continue their hunt for the stone without me. Despite Callan’s promise to keep the information between us, there was a chance Maeron would wheedle it out of him. I couldn’t let Maeron find the stone first.
I left the flat and took the bus to the Circus to check in with my team. Trio trotted over to greet me. Three noses sniffed me, presumably for evidence of food. The dog would make quite the narcotics tracker. Kami, Stevie, and Neera were the only knights in the office.
“Where’s Minka?” I asked.
“Appointment,” Stevie said.
Kami looked up from her desk with a smile. “Hopefully a consultation for a personality transplant.”
“Hey, I’ve been dying to know what happened with Charles,” I said. “Do I hear wedding bells?”
Kami grimaced. “You hear the sound of a breaking heart.”
“Oh, no. What happened?”
“He thinks I work too much. He wants a woman who can dote on him.”
That would never be Kami’s style. “I’m sorry.”
“On the bright side, Neera met someone.” Kami tilted her head toward the earth witch.
Neera smiled. Her light brown hair was styled in a tight French braid today. She and Ione were fastidious about keeping their long hair secure so it didn’t get in the way during a fight. My hair was too fine and usually ended up falling out of whatever ponytail or braid I’d attempted.
“Her name is Roxanne and she owns a tea room near our new flat.”
“Convenient,” I said.
“Not if things don’t work out, but I’ll take my chances. How was your trip?” Neera asked.
I sat behind my desk. “Good. Learned a few things.”
The three knights watched me expectantly.
“That’s it?” Kami asked, when I failed to offer more. “You traveled out of House Lewis territory. How many of us can claim that?”
“The countryside is pretty.” No way was I telling them about the gala or Peyton Castle. It would lead to questions I didn’t want to answer.
“Any luck with your case?” Stevie asked.
“Some. What’d I miss here?” I leafed through the papers on my desk. Boring. More boring. Most boring. “Let me guess. You caught another troll hanging around London Bridge.”
Kami snorted. “If only. More like another berserker. Took three of us to subdue him.”
My chin snapped up. “Where? When?”
“Notting Hill. Freaked out in the middle of the market.”
The blades in my mind started whirring. “Did someone alert you or were you already there?”
“Ione, Neera, and I were on Portobello Road hunting for secondhand furniture for their new flat.”
“Say antiques,” Neera interjected. “It sounds better.”
My pulse sped up. “What happened to the werewolf after you subdued him?”
Kami polished her dagger with a compound bar. “Whisked away by his pack like a group of furry ninjas.”
The stone or object—whatever it was—was on the move again. But who was moving it and why?
“I need to talk to the werewolf,” I said. “Did you catch his name?”
“They called him Rafe,” Neera said.
I grabbed my bag that I’d placed on the back of the chair and slung it over my shoulder. “I need to go.”
Kami jumped to her feet. “I’ll go. I’ve got nothing on the schedule.”
I hesitated.
“Come on,” she urged. “I can identify him if the pack won’t help you.”
“The pack hired me to help them. It stands to reason they’ll cooperate.”
Kami gave me a pointed look. “You say that as though the pack always acts sensibly and in its own best interest.”
I sighed. “Good point.”
Kami beamed and tucked her dagger into its sheath. She waited until we were out of the building to interrogate me.
“Tell me about Devon. What’d you learn?”
“I already told you.”
She nudged my elbow. “Come on. I know you better than that. You were withholding information. I could tell.”
I told her about my stone theory. If nothing else, it would keep her from asking more probing questions.
“I might know someone who can help.”
I snorted. “A stone expert?”
“Sort of. We’ll drop in after you interrogate Mr. Meltdown.”
We took the bus to pack headquarters on Sloane Street and rang the bell at the window marked ‘visitors.’ Last time we’d been escorted by werewolves and had bypassed the usual protocols.
The window slid open and a set of amber eyes darted from Kami to me. “Yes?”
“We’re looking for Rafe,” I said. “We understand he was injured in Notting Hill recently.”
“Don’t know anyone by that name.” He started to close the window. Kami’s arm shot out to block it.
“Then find someone who does,” she snapped.
The werewolf glared at her. “I don’t take orders from witches.”
“I’m a knight first and foremost. Kamikaze Marwin, Knight of Boudica. You might know me as the Butcher of Britannia City.”
I swallowed a surprised laugh. “I’m London Hayes, also a Knight of Boudica. Tell Romeo Rice I’m asking to see Rafe. He’ll know why.”
“You can start by telling me.”
“That’s confidential,” I replied.
The werewolf’s snarl was subtle but audible. “Hold on a second.”
He slid the window closed.
“Why would you tell him that’s your name?” I whispered.
Kami shrugged. “I figured it was worth a shot. Your boyfriend’s nicknames get results.”
Good grief. “First, you didn’t destroy half of Birmingham. Second, he’s not my boyfriend.”
Kami gave me a long look. “I would’ve thought you’d lead with that second one.”
“You’re exasperating.”
To my great relief, the window slid open again. “He’s in the infirmary. Come to the door and we’ll buzz you in.”
A petite werewolf awaited us at the visitor’s entrance. Her name tag said ‘Victoria.’
“Is Rafe sick?” I asked.
“He’s recuperating.”
Kami and I followed her along a narrow corridor and down a staircase.
“Seems impractical to have the infirmary be so challenging to get to,” Kami commented.
“You can take it up with the architectural firm,” Victoria said. “They did their best with what they had to work with. This building dates back to 1889.”
“Who authorized the visit?” I asked. There was no way the two werewolves were senior enough to admit us.
“Romeo is meeting you there as soon as he gets out of a meeting,” she said.
That figured. I’d have to offer him a heavily edited report on Devon.
Victoria pressed her palm flat on a pad attached to the door and it clicked open.
“High security for a bay of sick wolves,” I remarked.
“We don’t always utilize it, but as you obviously know, we’ve had a few pack members go missing recently, so we’ve bumped up security measures.”
“Why would we know?” Kami queried.
Victoria shot us a quizzical look. “They told me you’re both knights. Isn’t that why you’re here?”