“How do we get in?”
“Good question. Hang on.” There was an intercom set into the fence: high-security or not, they needed a way to know when they had guests. I got out of the car, moving to study it more closely. “Hey, Quentin, bring me the folder.”
“So I’m your servant now?”
“Very funny. Give me the damn folder.” I held out my hand. Laughing, he passed the folder over.
There was no security code in Sylvester’s directions; there wasn’t even mention of a security system. Lovely. I leaned forward, pressing what I assumed was the “talk” button. “Hello? Anyone there?” There was no reply. I shook my head, looking back at Quentin. “Ideas?”
He shrugged. “We could go home.”
“Unfortunately, no.” Sighing, I turned back to the intercom and hit the button again. “Hello? This is October Daye—I’m here to see January Torquill. Can someone let me in?” I waited several minutes, frowning. It was a nice day, but I didn’t want to spend it outside.
Finally, annoyed, I blew the intercom a kiss and said, “Speak ‘Friend’ and enter,” while projecting the firm belief that I’d entered the correct code. The smell of copper rose in the air as a sharp, stabbing pain hit me behind the eyes, making it clear that even if the spell didn’t work, my body’s limited magical resources had noticed it and debited me accordingly.
All fae have a limit to what they can do, and mine is lower than most. Just maintaining my human disguise can be a strain; when you add the rest of my daily magical wear-and-tear . . . let’s just say that I have more than my share of magical migraines.
At least the pain wasn’t for nothing. The intercom crackled, displaying the word “welcome” on the reader screen as the portcullis began cranking upward. I straightened. “Right. Let’s go.”
Quentin frowned. “What did you just do?”
“I picked the lock.” Seeing his disapproving expression, I sighed. “Look, we’re here because Sylvester’s worried. That justifies a little breaking and entering. Now get in the car.”
He rolled his eyes but did as he was told. The security system was more impressive than practical; it took almost five minutes for the portcullis to open, and that’s too long to wait for a door. With the purebloods, style almost always triumphs over substance. Once the opening was wide enough, we drove through, following the winding driveway down a short hill to the parking lot. The undergrowth dropped away, replaced by a well-manicured lawn that surrounded the two buildings at the blacktop’s far side. Trees rose in a forebidding tangle around us, the illusion of wilderness only leavened by glimpses of the city skyline. They’d done an excellent job with it, especially when you considered that they were in the middle of Silicon Valley, where very few people can afford their own private forests.
The buildings were red brick, connected by concrete paths that wound in seemingly random curves across the lawn. The taller building was five stories high; the smaller one was only two. It looked more like a private school than a computer company. There was a distinct lack of steel and chrome.
The strangest thing about the landscape was all the cats. There were about two dozen scattered around the almost empty parking lot, strolling lazily along, bathing themselves, or just dozing in the sun. Even more were on the grass, lounging, watching us come.
“Toby . . .”
“I see them.” The cats in our path didn’t even bother to run as we drove down the hill; they just sauntered away, tails in the air. I pulled into a spot near the front of the lot, stopping the engine, and they promptly surrounded the car. One bold calico leaped onto the hood, staring at us through the windshield.
“That’s just not right,” Quentin said.
A Local Habitation
Seanan McGuire's books
- Blue Dahlia
- A Man for Amanda
- Best Laid Plans
- Black Rose
- Carnal Innocence
- Dance Upon the Air
- Face the Fire
- Lawless
- Sacred Sins
- Vampire Games(Vampire Destiny Book 6)
- Moon Island(Vampire Destiny Book 7)
- Illusion(The Vampire Destiny Book 2)
- Fated(The Vampire Destiny Book 1)
- Upon A Midnight Clear
- The way Home
- Sarah's child(Spencer-Nyle Co. series #1)
- Overload
- Heartbreaker(Rescues (Kell Sabin) series #3)
- Midnight rainbow(Rescues (Kell Sabin) series #1)
- A game of chance(MacKenzie Family Saga series #5)
- MacKenzie's magic(MacKenzie Family Saga series #4)
- MacKenzie's mission(MacKenzie Family Saga #2)
- Death Angel
- Loving Evangeline(Patterson-Cannon Family series #1)
- A Billionaire's Redemption
- A Beautiful Forever
- A Bad Boy is Good to Find
- A Calculated Seduction
- A Changing Land
- A Christmas Night to Remember
- A Clandestine Corporate Affair
- A Convenient Proposal
- A Cowboy in Manhattan
- A Cowgirl's Secret
- A Daddy for Jacoby
- A Daring Liaison
- A Dash of Scandal
- A Different Kind of Forever
- A Facade to Shatter
- A Family of Their Own
- A Father's Name
- A Forever Christmas
- A Dishonorable Knight
- A Gentleman Never Tells
- A Greek Escape
- A Headstrong Woman
- A Hunger for the Forbidden
- A Knight in Central Park
- A Knight of Passion
- A Lady Under Siege
- A Legacy of Secrets
- A Life More Complete
- A Lily Among Thorns
- A Masquerade in the Moonlight
- At Last (The Idle Point, Maine Stories)
- A Little Bit Sinful
- An Inheritance of Shame
- A Shadow of Guilt
- After Hours (InterMix)
- A Whisper of Disgrace
- All the Right Moves
- A Summer to Remember
- A Wedding In Springtime
- Affairs of State
- A Midsummer Night's Demon
- A Passion for Pleasure
- A Touch of Notoriety
- A Profiler's Case for Seduction
- A Very Exclusive Engagement
- After the Fall
- And the Miss Ran Away With the Rake
- And Then She Fell
- Anything but Vanilla
- Anything for Her
- Anything You Can Do
- Assumed Identity
- Atonement
- Awakening Book One of the Trust Series
- A Moment on the Lips
- A Most Dangerous Profession
- A Mother's Homecoming
- A Rancher's Pride
- A Royal Wedding
- A Secret Birthright
- A Stranger at Castonbury
- A Study In Seduction
- A Taste of Desire
- A Town Called Valentine
- A Vampire for Christmas
- All They Need
- An Act of Persuasion
- An Unsinkable Love
- Angel's Rest
- Aschenpummel (German Edition)
- Baby for the Billionaire
- Back Where She Belongs
- Bad Mouth
- Barefoot in the Sun (Barefoot Bay)
- Be Good A New Adult Romance (RE12)
- Beauty and the Blacksmith