Pia Does Hollywood (Elder Races, #8.6)

Muffling a snort, Pia indulged in a full body stretch. She had managed to sleep several hours, which was very good news. While she wasn’t as rested as she would be if she had slept in her bed at home, she felt like she had gotten enough rest to get through the day with plenty of energy.

Her thigh itched, and absently she scratched it. She had panicked when she had begun to itch after her first shot of the protocol, but Dr. Medina had assured her it was just the drug beginning to wear off. As long as she could tolerate the irritation for the twenty-four hours or so, she was still good, still on track.

She put a hand over her stomach and whispered, “Because you’re staying right where you belong, no matter what. Little Stinkpot.”

With that, she stood, collected her overnight bag and went to the back of the plane to shower and prepare for her day. She dressed casually, in a long, dark blue maxi dress, sandals, and a sheer, lightweight sweater, and took time with her makeup. While this was supposed to be an informal visit, from what she knew about the Light Fae Queen, Tatiana was relentlessly elegant, so she wanted to look nice.

When she stepped out, Eva was ready and waiting to shower too. Then Quentin and Aryal stirred and took their turns, and then Daniel stepped out of the cockpit to serve them a quick continental breakfast. After that, there was nothing left for Pia to do but watch out of a plane window and get more nervous about the upcoming week.

Tatiana was not just relentlessly elegant. She was relentlessly inquisitive as well, and in D.C. she had asked uncomfortable questions about Pia’s real nature. Pia wasn’t looking forward to the next week, which was all the more reason to rip that Band-Aid off and get it over with. Otherwise the trip would have been hanging over her head, perhaps for months. Now, at least, they could get on with their lives soon enough.

On Monday, to be precise.

So while she was unenthusiastic, she was certainly composed enough when the plane touched down.

Hey, baby, Dragos said in her head.

When she heard his dark, Powerful mental voice, surprised pleasure flowed through her. Hey yourself. How did you get here so quickly? No wait, never mind—I’m not supposed to know that.

She could hear the smile in his voice as he asked, Did you get any sleep?

I sure did. Covering her mouth, she yawned. I missed you, though. How did your night go?

I went fishing and flew up around Big Sur, he said. It was good, but I missed you too.

She confessed, I dreamed about the little stinkpot.

The little stinkpot? He laughed. How did it manage to get that nickname?

In my dream, I was hiking, and Stinkpot was hiding in some underbrush. Sharing the small story with Dragos had her grinning all over again. In the dream, it had gold eyes like yours, but that’s all I could see. I tried to coax it out for a hug, but it still doesn’t want to come out and say hi yet.

It will when it’s ready.

Yes, I know it will.

As they talked, the plane taxied down the runaway to an eventual stop. Okay, Dragos said. I don’t want to distract you. I just wanted to let you know I was in town.

I’m glad you did, she said. Talk to you later?

Absolutely. Just call whenever you have any time to yourself, and I’ll hear.

Without ceremony, the jet’s built-in airstairs were deployed. Quentin and Aryal descended first, and Pia followed, with Eva staying guard at her back.

As she stepped out of the hull of the plane, she paused at the top of the stairs to take in the scene.

The morning was cloudless, bright and already warm. On the east lay the San Gabriel Mountains, and at the edge of the western horizon, blue water sparkled in the sun. As they had chosen a private airstrip for landing, there was a minimum of bustle around the edges of the wide, open area.

Several Porsche SUVs waited nearby, and ten armed Light Fae guard spread out in a semicircle nearby, broadly circling a tall blond woman with short, curly hair. All eleven wore the signature tan and blue uniforms, and the woman was also armed.

Quentin said in her head, That’s a lot of guards for an informal meetup, especially when they knew you would have your own security with you.

Is that why you and Aryal are hesitating? Pia replied. Look how they’re watching the surrounding area. They’re guarding the woman—is that one of Tatiana’s daughters?

Yes, that’s the younger daughter. Bailey, I think her name is.

As they hesitated, the blond woman strode forward to the bottom of the airstairs, looking up at Pia.

She said to Quentin, Let’s go.

After a moment, Quentin said, Okay. But I want to know why they think they need to have so many guards—either to meet us or to guard Bailey—in the heart of their own demesne.

Oy vey. With so many watching her, she would not roll her eyes.

She muttered in Quentin’s head, If you’re going to poke your nose around and ask questions, fine, just be sure to be discreet about it.