“I was working out some issues.” She answered cryptically meeting his eyes with a stare that screamed defiance.
“By yourself?” he looked at the dark pool of blood on the hardwood floors.
“I had a volunteer willing to spar with me.” Meg shrugged casually then looked behind the Senator at the waiting housemaid.
“I hope you don’t mind. I summoned Eloise myself.” Then to the maid directly she added, “I do apologize for the mess. I’m afraid most of it was unavoidable.”
Eloise didn’t move, waiting for permission from the Senator who waved her past him as one would shoo a gnat hovering around an ear.
With efficiency, the room started to be put right.
“So who was the unlucky volunteer?” The Senator looked around the room, kicking himself for not paying closer attention to his video monitoring.
“Isn’t it enough to know you have such an accommodating staff?”
Arkdone narrowed his eyes, his patience wearing thin.
“This person had no name, though he called himself the Punisher. He was part of the Gideon/Sirus amalgamation.” She shrugged as though none of this was terribly interesting to her.
“Gideon did this?”
“No. Are you listening, Senator? I said a nameless personality—the Punisher of Gideon’s system did this.”
“Where is he?”
“Taken care of,” she shrugged and reached around the Senator to snatch a few bags Ermos had finally finished bringing.
She sashayed to her bed and dumped the contents carefully across the comforter.
“Nice,” she smiled at the assortment. “Would you please bring the rest of the bags?” Meg waved her hand haughtily at the Senator who seemed to be simmering in his own stew, he was so mad at her nonchalance.
“You are not to fight my metamonarchs!”
“Spar.”
“Or spar with them!”
“Well, who am I supposed to play with then?” Meg pretended to pout.
“Did you kill him?”
“Of course not!” Meg narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “Now, don’t you start with the accusations!” She stamped her foot, her fists on her shapely hips. “I got enough of that from the Winter family.”
Deciding this tactic wasn’t going to work on the volatile girl, the Senator tried a different approach. “Are those bruises on your throat?”
Meg’s hand flew up to neck. She’d forgotten the chokehold Sirus put her in.
“You can’t play-fight and not get a little ruffed-up,” she answered dropping her hand and shrugging.
“I just don’t want you to get hurt, Meg. Could we please keep the sparring to a minimum?”
Meg just looked away and reached into a garment bag to pull out a crimson dress of sheer material built around a beautifully ornate bodice. The skirt hung floor length.
“You’re to wear that tonight,” the Senator smiled to himself, imagining her in such a graceful frock.
“Tell me about tonight,” Meg asked, holding the elegant gown to herself.
“We will be attending the Brisbee Benefit. A lot of deep pockets will be walking around deciding if they want to back me for the presidency. This will be a real test of your intent, Meg. This is one of the ways you’ll prove yourself to me.”
“I will not manipulate anyone for you until the Winters are safely back in the States, Senator. That was the deal.” Meg leveled her gaze at the Senator.
“I wouldn’t dream of altering the rules of engagement, my dear. Tonight, I just need you to be arm candy. It will help everyone see that the misunderstanding between my people and the Winter Clan was truly just that. We can also shift the attention to something juicier than you.”
“What is that?”
“My sources have confirmation that my closest opponent has fathered a child outside his marriage. The paternity results verify it.”
“How did you get a DNA sample from him to conduct the paternity test?” Meg asked, one brow rose suspiciously.
“The sooner you realize the unlimited resources I have, the better.”
“Unlimited?”
The Senator shrugged, humbly. “What can I say? I’m a likable fellow.”
“Who is coming to this event?”
“Other than the two of us, Michelle, Gideon and Ermos. That is, if you haven’t damaged my Monarch slave too badly.”
“He’ll live.”
“Yes, but can he dance?”
“I have no idea, but I can find out, if you’d like.”
The Senator looked over at Meg with raised brows.
“Don’t worry. I’m doing this research for my benefit, not yours. I need to know if I should wear steel-toed shoes,” she smiled, then held silent for a moment, searching the mind of the sleeping soldier in the next room.
“Hmm,” she finally said.
“What?”
“I’m sure he’ll be fine for tonight,” she smiled to herself as she reached into the bag to retrieve the box of impossibly high heels that matched the gown.
“Good. Good, well, I’ll leave you to put your things away. This will be a cocktail function, so Eloise, please make Miss Meg a light meal, she’ll be eating with me at the function.”
“As you wish, sir,” Eloise curtsied deeply.