Wyatt chortled. “The kind who once glued a mall cop’s ass to a toilet seat.”
Christian pointed at him. “That prick had it coming.”
“You’re all too drunk to have a serious conversation,” Viktor said, his voice rising with irritation. “Tomorrow she’ll take stock of our kitchen supplies.”
Blue tucked her long hair behind her ears. “Why didn’t you prepare us?”
“Eh… surprises are necessary,” he said with a shrug. “I understand your concern, but she’ll keep our secrets and not intrude in our affairs. Each of you will treat her with the utmost respect. Just because she has refused money doesn’t mean she’ll be treated as less. I will provide her with everything she needs.”
“Does she have a name?” Niko asked.
Viktor combed the side of his beard with his fingers. “Kira will be our indentured servant.”
“Indentured implies she’s paying off a debt over a set period of time,” Niko pointed out.
Viktor’s eyelids fluttered. “This is not a temporary situation. It wasn’t an easy decision for me to make, but I lost a dear friend, and perhaps this is one way I can repay him in the afterlife. Keystone is her only option, so we made an arrangement. Her caretaker is dead, and she has no place to go.”
“You mean her father,” Christian added.
Viktor gave him a cross look. “Her father was her caretaker. And now, because of our friendship, that responsibility has fallen on me. I could not turn her away. It would have been cruel. You may find me at times abrasive and unfair, but a soft man cannot lead a dangerous operation such as ours. But as it so happens, I do have compassion.”
I shifted in my seat, uncertain about how a new person in the house would change the dynamic. I’d sort of fantasized about an elderly gentleman with kind eyes and failing ears working for us—someone mature enough to know how to keep secrets. But a young woman Viktor barely knew? Especially one who’d never been exposed to the temptations of the modern world?
“What’s her Breed?” I asked. “I’m assuming a Shifter like her father?”
Wyatt tapped his boot heel on the floor and gave me a peevish glance. “Why do you get in on all the secrets first, Lois Lane?”
“She is also a Shifter,” Viktor confirmed as he rose from his chair. “That is why she chose to travel by crate. Kira has never seen an airplane or a large city. She’s from the Old World, and a crate would make her animal feel safe. It’s not as uncommon as you might believe for Shifters to travel that way. It’s practical on long journeys. Have no worries—she won’t shift in our presence.”
“Wait a sec.” Blue cocked her head to the side. “Maybe we’re not working with this chick, but we have to introduce our animals if she’s going to live under the same roof. I fly freely around here, and I’m not about to get eaten by a bear in my own home.”
Viktor gently patted her head. “You’re safe. But you must trust me.”
“Then you should trust us.”
He lowered his arm. “Her secrets are hers alone, just as yours are. It is not my place to share what you have chosen to keep private. Every one of us has truths about our past that we don’t want others to see, and Kira is entitled to the same. Now go wait in the foyer. They should be here any moment.”
After everyone dispersed, I struggled to my feet and lingered behind. “Viktor, can I talk to you about something?” Tamping down the pain, I approached him.
He put his arm around me and strolled toward the warm fire. “My door is always open. You know this.”
We stopped at the hearth, and I turned to face him. “One of those case files looks promising. I know they don’t always pay since they’re old, but do you mind if I look into it?”
His brows sloped down. “Which case?”
“Vampire trafficking. The one with the girls going up on the black market. I think someone’s luring humans with false promises instead of random kidnappings, so it might make it easier to catch them. I found a website recently for people obsessed with Vampires. It’s clearly run by humans based on all the misinformation, but on page one of the message board was an offer to turn someone. Something about it made me stop, so I left a message. Today I got a reply. It’s not a sure thing, but I have a hunch it’s worth checking out. Besides, I’m going stir crazy around here, staring at files and the computer all day. I get that you need to keep me in a training period, but if you don’t let me out, I’m liable to stab someone in the eye with a fork. Starting with Wyatt and his overpriced vending machine.”
“His what?”
“Never mind. I’m just wondering where you think I’m most valuable. After all, you hired me for my hunting skills, not my ability to file.”
Viktor nodded. “Keep me updated.”
I blinked in surprise. “Well, that was easy. I thought you were going to shut me down.”
He tilted his head to the side. “Our world is a dark place. Yes, we have Councils, the Mageri, and the higher authority, but they are relatively new. Immortals have gone thousands of years without laws, and some men will resist the laws that bind them. Our ability to govern is a work in progress, so that is why organizations like Keystone exist. We cannot mirror what humans have done in creating a nation filled with prisons, so the higher authority rules with an iron fist and overlooks lesser crimes. No one has time to chase a car thief or lock up a drug addict. Vampire trafficking is another story. Those who illegally bring in new immortals for profit are a threat to our way of life.”
I blanched. “Is that what you think of me? A threat to everyone’s way of life?”
Viktor put his hand on my shoulder. “Of course not. But the approval process for making an immortal exists for a reason. Had I not intervened, you would have reached a point of no return.” He smiled warmly and lowered his arm. “I like initiative, and you’ll learn that working independently is permissible and sometimes necessary. I do not wish to lead a team who cannot think for themselves. You coming to me with this shows that you’re learning how we operate. If the lead is promising, I will speak to the person who initiated the investigation to negotiate payment. What is your plan with the suspect?”
“Bait him. In public, of course. I promise not to drain him in the bathroom.” When Viktor didn’t smile, I continued. “It shouldn’t be difficult to set a trap. Assuming he’s a Vampire, he won’t be able to tell that I’m not human.”
“Do you plan to do this alone?”
“No,” a voice called from the adjoining room.
I glimpsed a shadow beyond one of the archways. I didn’t need to see his face to know it was Christian.
I turned back to Viktor. “I won’t do anything crazy without your approval. The plan is to lay out a trap. I have a good feeling a human didn’t post that message and we’re dealing with a Vampire. That means he’s fishing on human sites for his prey.”