Her voice was low and quiet. “Because then he would know she wasn’t his.”
Suddenly her earlier behavior made sense. She didn’t inquire whether we wounded the fox because she hoped we’d killed it. She wanted to know whether her daughter was injured.
“Why didn’t Kari come to you when she got stuck in her fox form? Does she know to hide her identity from her father?”
“No. Kari didn’t even know she was a shifter.” She burst into tears. “This is all my fault. If only I’d been truthful with her. She must be so frightened.”
“There are no shifters in the family?”
“My husband and I are human. It’s the only world she knows.” She broke eye contact again, unwilling to look at me. “The affair was brief but intense. I think him being a fox shifter was part of the allure. I broke it off when my husband started to get suspicious. Once I found out I was pregnant, I ended the relationship. I started giving Kari potions in her bottle to stunt her shifting ability and called them her vitamins. My husband was none the wiser.”
“Why not tell Kari?”
“To protect her, of course. If my husband knew the truth…” She sucked in a breath. “I worried he’d take my betrayal out on her. She’s almost an adult. I was planning to tell her then. Give her the choice whether to live authentically or not.”
“But that choice was taken away.”
She nodded. “First by me. Then by whatever spell bypassed the potion and triggered her ability. Once you told me about the fox sighting, I knew it was Kari. I waited until my husband was asleep and then I went to search for her. I’ve been keeping her safe since then. I think she’s afraid to stay in the park. It’s too dangerous.”
I recommended a wolf wand to see whether it would help her shift back to human form. Now that Kari was away from the stone’s influence, it might help her shift back. I suspected it was the girl’s inexperience that kept her trapped in fox form. If the wolf wand failed to work, I suggested calling a healer.
Her eyes shone with relief. “Are you sure she can be human again?”
“Yes, I think so.”
She buried her face in her hands. “Thank you,” she whispered.
I left Hampstead Heath feeling a little lighter than I felt on the way here. I hadn’t found the stone, but Trevor’s revelation and Kari’s imminent return to human form were major steps forward.
As I reached the corner, my phone rang. I pulled it from my pocket expecting to see Kami’s name. No Caller ID.
“Hello. I have no interest in extending my car’s warranty because I don’t own a car,” I said.
“Interesting way to answer your phone.”
I perked up. “Hey, Romeo. Good timing. I’ve made real progress today.”
“That’s terrific. How close are we to that date?”
I snorted. “That’s how you measure my progress?”
“If I let you measure me, will that make us even?”
Good grief. “I believe I said let’s keep things professional. Speaking of which, why don’t I swing by your office and tell you what I found out?”
“I’d love that. Unfortunately I’m not in the office right now.”
“I guess that update will have to wait then.” I couldn’t risk meeting him in a public place where we might be overhead. I wasn’t planning to be completely forthcoming, but I certainly didn’t want Maeron’s spies to eavesdrop on the information I did choose to share.
Romeo hesitated. “If you’re willing, you could swing by my place. We’ll have privacy, which I assume is what you’re after.”
“For professional reasons, Romeo,” I reminded him.
“Message received.” He gave me the address and told me to take the elevator to the 10th floor.
I was basically backtracking to the same area I’d been earlier. Terrific.
“I’ll be there as fast as I can.”
Two buses and two blocks later and I was back in familiar territory. A little too familiar, actually.
I looked at the number on my phone and looked at the building again.
Arcadia.
I counted the floors. Ten.
Romeo lived in the penthouse.
Huh.
I breezed into the lobby and went straight to the lone elevator. There was no doorman or security guard on duty. I hit the button and traveled to the top.
The doors opened straight into the flat. You would think he’d have tighter security in place given recent events.
“Romeo?” I resisted the urge to call ‘where for art thou?’
His penthouse was much nicer than mine. His took up the entire top floor of the building. The walls were almost entirely made of glass, which left little room for artwork or other personal mementos. The furniture was sleek with clean lines and in bold colors like purple and red. I spotted a spiral staircase that appeared to lead to the roof. I felt a pang of jealousy. Although the style didn’t appeal to me, his flat could comfortably house my menagerie several times over.
Romeo stepped through a doorway holding two flutes bubbling with pale golden liquid. His trousers were so tight they threatened to rip open and his white shirt was unbuttoned far enough to his expose his broad, hairy chest. Nope. Not my type.
“What part of professional did you misunderstand?”
He grinned and handed me a flute. “Oh, come on. One drink won’t kill you.”
I held the glass out of politeness, but I had no desire to drink.
Romeo gestured to the purple sofa. “Have a seat and tell me what you’ve learned. I’m all ears.”
I perched on the edge of the cushion and set the flute on the glass coffee table. “Before I start, why didn’t you tell me about the wolf in your lobby?”
He appeared momentarily stunned. “I don’t know what you mean. What wolf?”
The elderly woman definitely said the pack handled it.
“You had a berserker right here in your lobby.”
“How do you know about that?”
I ignored his question. “Why didn’t you tell me? I’m supposed to be tracking the pattern of berserkers.”
“I figured you had enough on your plate. I was planning to tell you during our next update, which is now.” He offered an easygoing smile, but I wasn’t buying it. Romeo had no intention of telling me about the berserker in his own building and I was pretty sure I knew why.
“You knew if you told me about him that I’d figure out you’re the only wolf living in this building. The last thing you wanted was an investigation on your doorstep.” Romeo had been part of the cleanup crew at The Crown. “You found the schoolbag with the stone, didn’t you?”
“I was looking for clues to what happened. I unzipped the bag and turned to show Barry, another crew member, but he was already on the floor twitching. He fought the change with every fiber of his being.” Romeo dragged a hand through his dark hair. “Man, he couldn’t fight it to save his life. I saw the stone and wondered if there was a connection. Wondered why it didn’t change me, too.”
“So you continued to test it on other wolves and hired me to do your dirty work.”
“No, I did the real dirty work, moving the stone around the city to test its effects and the potential radius. I sent you to get more information about it.”