He met my eyes for a long moment, judging, and gave me the address.
It took almost ten minutes to convince Jesse I was well enough to drive. But we had two cars at the clinic, and Jesse still had to go back in for the Book of Mirrors, and…what can I say, I whined my way into it. Finally Jesse reached over to hand me back the keys. As I took them, he leaned forward and kissed me on the mouth, gently. “I’ll call you tomorrow; we’ll figure out getting the cars back,” he told me, and I just nodded.
Chapter 34
Jesse watched Scarlett pull away, making sure that the truck’s headlights were on and it was moving in a straight line. When she was finally out of sight, he trudged back into the clinic.
He headed for the desk he’d climbed on to hide the Book of Mirrors. It would only take a moment to retrieve the book from the ceiling tile. He would turn the book and the dead amulet over to Runa the next day. She’d know what to do with them.
Before he climbed up, though, Jesse sat down on the desk, intending to rest for just one second. He knew if he thought too hard about the events of the day, much less the last few days, his brain would melt into a puddle. Only a few days ago, Scarlett had been out of the picture, Runa had been his girlfriend, and his biggest problem was that his dream job wasn’t quite as challenging as he’d wanted. And now…he shook his head, trying to clear it.
Then, too tired to look for him, Jesse simply called, “Dashiell?”
The vampire was suddenly there. “Dios,” Jesse muttered, grabbing his heart. “I had forgotten about that.”
“Did you need something else, Detective?” the vampire asked politely, but Jesse thought he saw a twinkle in Dashiell’s eye. Maybe startling humans was just the kind of thing that never got old. Or something.
“We need to talk,” Jesse said.
“What about?”
“Your system,” Jesse said frankly. “This way that you have, of covering up crimes and crime scenes and then getting the police to cover what Scarlett misses. It’s not working for me.”
A look of annoyance flickered on Dashiell’s face. “Continue,” he said shortly.
“Right now, you’re trying to have it both ways,” Jesse began. “You’re trying to work outside the law but also use the law—including me—in illegal ways, whenever you think it’s useful. What I’d like to discuss is the possibility of streamlining this a little more. I think there may be a way that the police force can be involved in Old World crimes without you having to press a lot of minds or bribe anyone.”
Dashiell stared at him for a long moment, and Jesse fought the instinct to look away, to protect himself from having his mind pressed. After Scarlett left he had found one of the vampire amulets in Kirsten’s car, and he was prepared for that eventuality. But let Dashiell think that Jesse was just brave enough to face him.
They stayed like that for a long moment, until the amusement left the vampire’s face and he tilted his head slightly, as if considering Jesse for the first time.
“I’m listening,” Dashiell said at last.
Chapter 35
I stopped at Molly’s house for a quick shower and to get dressed in a clean T-shirt and jeans. I was now delighted that I hadn’t been able to wear my favorite canvas jacket to Kirsten’s party. It greeted me, whole and unstained, from the back of a chair, where I happily shrugged it on. The T-shirt and boxers I’d taken off went directly in the garbage can, but I was sorry I had to throw away the boots, an old birthday gift from my mom. At least Molly would have fun making me shop for new ones. While I was thinking of it, I called and left her a voice mail to let her know it was safe to come home.
I followed Dashiell’s directions all the way east to the Palisades, until I found a tiny stretch of beach with a small house that faced the ocean. It was after two in the morning, but I knocked hard on the back door and then went over to lean against the porch railing to wait, giving him time to get dressed and come out. I felt, rather than saw, when the man came up to lean against the railing next to me.
“Beautiful view,” I commented, although it was hard to make out much in the dark besides the flash of white water in the breaking waves.
“It is.”
“Kind of a long commute, though.”
“True.”
I turned around to face the house, leaning my elbows against the rails and turning my head to look at him. “Dashiell gave me your address, in case you were wondering. He knows that I’m here.”
Hayne frowned. “Miss Bernard, you say that like you think I’m going to murder you.”
I shrugged casually. “Just letting you know.”
“I see.” He looked back out at the ocean. “What is it you wanted to talk to me about?” he asked calmly. Which I suppose was a lot more polite than “What the fuck are you doing at my house at two a.m.,” which would have been my reaction.
“I’ve been on this case,” I began, “and I don’t know how much you already know about it, but it’s kept me awfully busy the last few days. I had this little thought sometimes, though, at the back of my mind, and every time I tried to chase it down it just escaped me. Then today I realized it was actually a question.” I looked at him and waited until he turned his head to meet my eyes. “How did Olivia and Mallory know where to find the Book of Mirrors?”
Hayne flinched. It was small, but it was there. He looked away again, without speaking. That was okay. I could do the talking for both of us. “After all,” I said, “Mallory was never really part of Kirsten’s society. And I doubt Kirsten told any of her witches about a secret that big, because that’s just not what leaders do. You don’t give the governor of Hawaii the code to the nuclear weapons stash, for crying out loud. But if you had to be traveling back and forth to San Diego and you had to explain your absence to, say, a spouse…”