Chapter 16
“Over the House Speaker’s chair, you’ll notice the portrait of Governor Greggory Delane, our first governor after we were declared the fifty-fourth state. He was elected at a time when the populations in the newly discovered folded spaces had not yet diversified, and he was one of only three governors in our state’s history to be fae.”
Three they know about. I know at least one more. I didn’t say it aloud as I hung near the back of the tour group. And by group, I meant the tour guide, a family of four, and me. It was going to be a lot harder to slip away than I thought.
“Is this really what the living do for fun these days?”
Roy asked.
“Shh,” I hissed, which was a little silly, since I was the only one who could hear him. I shuffled farther from the other members of the tour and kept my voice down.
“Did you find the offices?”
“Yeah, she should walk you right by them if she takes the hall around this room. There are two people inside.”
I nodded that I understood as the tour guide turned.
“Try to keep up, everyone,” she said in her crisp tone.
Everyone being me.
I followed the family out of the room. The couple had two young children. The oldest, a boy, was six at most.
He poked down the hall, dragging his feet, then stopped and spit his gum in his palm. He looked around before trudging up to a marble statue of former Governor Delane.
“Danny, don’t—” his father started, but it was too late.
The boy squished the gum into the side of the statue at the same time the tour guide turned.
A look of horror crossed her face. “Did he just—?”
“He didn’t mean any harm,” the father said, but the tour guide was already running over to the statue.
She pulled a tissue out of her pocket and pulled at the sticky gum. “This statue was commissioned by …”
I won’t get a better opening than this. I crept away from the commotion and followed Roy down the hall.
I’d already activated the charm that blocked my image from cameras, so now I just needed to worry about the two people Roy had seen. He led me to a pair of large oak doors. He floated through them, and I waited outside, leaning against the wall and trying to look inconspicuous.
Roy stuck his head through the wood. “One went to the back. Just a receptionist left.”
Okay, one door guard. Time to see what I was up against. I pasted on a smile and walked inside.
“Aunt Margie?”
The old woman looked up and adjusted her purpleframed glasses. Her thin lips parted into a smile. “Why, Alexis Caine, look at you. How are you, dear?” She stepped around her desk and wrapped her frail arms around me.
Margie wasn’t actually my aunt. She’d been my father’s personal assistant back when he’d been a big-shot defense attorney. After my mother was hospitalized up until the time I went to academy, and even after that during summer breaks, Margie was the one who took me to the doctor’s office and helped Brad, Casey, and me pick out new clothes for school each year. She was probably one of the only people outside the family who knew my real identity, and she knew only because she’d already been a friend of the family before I’d been sent to academy. There weren’t many people on that list.
“I’m good, I’m good,” I said, still stunned to see her here. I hadn’t known she’d stayed with my father all these years. How he’d earned her loyalty—not to mention her silence—was beyond me. I looked down at her desk and noticed a large brown box with pictures of her grandkids and a colorful mug in it. “Are you packing?”
“Oh. Retirement. It’s time.” She waved a hand in the air as if it was nothing, but the stony look that touched her eyes said otherwise. “The chief of staff and I had a falling-out, but that’s not important.” Her expression softened. “I’ve been watching you on the news. I’m so proud of you, out there helping the police with their cases.”
I blushed. Yes, only Margie could be sitting in the middle of an office held by Humans First Party members and proclaim she was proud of a witch.
“Well, Margie, it’s great seeing you again. I was wondering—can I head back to my father’s office?”
“Are you two talking again?” Margie had always been an advocate for reconciliation. “I’m so glad to hear that, but he’s not in the office, dear. I can’t let you back.”
Wow, I couldn’t even get past the door guard, who’d known me all my life. She made a small comment about needing to finish packing. Then she picked up a small plaque from her desk and shoved it in the box, her movement more aggravated than her words had let on.
I stepped up to her desk and put my hands on the rim of the cardboard. “Can I tell you a secret you won’t let get out?”
She leaned forward, always up for good gossip. I wondered once again if my father hadn’t employed binding oaths to silence rumors about me.
“I’ll be honest,” I said, pitching my voice low in a stage whisper. “I’m here to snoop. You know I’ve been working for the police, right?” I knew she did because she’d just told me, but I wanted it fresh in her mind.“I’m sure you know they questioned my father in connection with Coleman’s death. Well, I’ve been looking into the Coleman case, and I think it’s possible the chief of staff could be involved. I’m looking for evidence.”
All of which was mostly true. The chief of staff was one of the aides on my suspect list, but I was implying a lot I wasn’t saying. I saw the missing pieces slide into place in her expression.
“Graham? That awful man could be behind it?” The way she said it wasn’t a question, so I didn’t answer.“He could even be framing Mr. Caine? I can’t let that happen. So, you want to snoop?”
I nodded.
She looked around, looked down at her desk, and then picked up her box. “You know what? I think I’ll leave an hour early today. What are they going to do? Fire me?” As she passed me, she whispered, “Mr. Graham and the governor’s offices are through the door on the left.” She winked, and then she let herself out the office.
“Okay, Roy; you said there was a second person back here?”
“Yeah, through the door on your right.”
Damn. That was where the lieutenant governor’s office was, and where I wanted to go. Regardless of what I’d implied, Bartholomew was the one I needed to check out. Still, it couldn’t hurt to also check the chief of staff’s office. With any luck, by the time I finish, the person behind the other door will be gone.
“Roy, keep watch here.”
He nodded, and I let myself through the door on the left. I thought I’d have a hall with two offices, but the first room was Graham’s office, with a door in the far wall that I assumed would take me to my father’s office.
I looked around.
There was nothing personal about this office. No photos on the desk. No stress breakers. No pens other than the standard blue and black. The desk drawers were locked, as were the filing cabinets, and nothing had been left in the wooden in-box on the side of the desk. I opened my senses, but aside from wards on the locks—pretty standard for any locking mechanism these days—no spells were present. Certainly nothing that jumped out as an artifact that could harbor stolen souls.
I checked in with Roy, but Bartholomew’s aide was still in the other office.
Well, Coleman had been governor for longer than he hadn’t. Maybe he’d left something behind. Something that might still be in my father’s office. Might as well take a peek. After all, I had to do something while I waited for the aide to leave.
I headed back to my father’s office. He’d been in it only two and a half weeks, but unlike his chief of staff, he at least had a photo on his desk. It was of Casey—not that I expected it to be a picture of me. A couple of files were on his desk, and I flipped through them. Reports.
Budgets. Nothing useful.
Closing my eyes, I opened my senses. Coleman had sat in the office several years, so I expected some sort of dark-magical resonance in the room, but there was nothing.
Not even wards. I frowned. Surely Coleman would have used spells in the room at some point during his time as governor. I walked the perimeter of the room, searching for traces of old magic. I even peeked inside the small bathroom tucked away in the corner. Nothing.
“Alex!”
I jumped as Roy materialized in the room.
“Don’t do that.”
“You’ve got to get out of here. Two men just showed up.”
The sound of conversation drifted into the room, and I knew one of the voices very well. My father. Oh crap.
They were in Graham’s office, but I had no doubt they were headed to this room. I glanced around, then dived into the bathroom. I left a small crack between the door and the frame.
“—which is why I’m reiterating the fact I think you should cut him loose,” the squirrelly faced aide said as he and my father walked into the office. The chief of staff, no doubt.
“You fully endorsed this plan when I made the decision, Graham.”
The aide frowned as my father crossed around the desk, his frustration showing in the edges of his mouth.
When my father sat, Graham lifted his hands, speaking with both palms up in a placating manner. “Yes, sir, but in light of recent circumstances … The man is a loose cannon. We have no idea what he’ll do next.”
“Which is why—” My father stopped as a knock sounded at the door.
“I’ll see him in.” Graham ducked out of the room.
I couldn’t see my father’s face, but his posture sagged as he let out a deep breath, and I realized he looked tired. Which was weird, because I never thought of my father as being human enough to be tired. Footsteps sounded outside the door, and his back straightened. He opened a file on his desk.
The door opened, but my father didn’t look up immediately.
He waited a full thirty seconds, as if he couldn’t rip his eyes off the page, and then slowly looked up.
Whoever was there, I couldn’t see yet. He must have stopped in the doorway.
“Come in,” my father said, but he made no gesture of greeting. He just went back to reading the file in front of him.
The door shut, and in walked Falin Andrews.
I gasped and clamped a hand over my mouth, trying to muffle the already escaped sound. Falin’s gaze flickered toward my hiding spot, and I backed farther into the darkness, trying to convince my heart to quiet down.
What is he doing here?
Falin sat, but didn’t say anything. My father kept reading the file. When he finally looked up, he closed the file cover, and the impression was very much that Falin’s visit was interrupting something far more important.
“I’d like a report on your progress,” Father said, leaning forward and steepling his fingers.
Falin nodded, one sharp movement of his head.
“I’ve been following some leads. There have been new developments.”
“Developments. Like my daughter?”
“Sir?”
I frowned in the darkness. What happened between Falin and Casey? Does Father know about the spellbook?
How could he?
“Your superiors spoke very highly of you.” My father opened the drawer and removed an envelope. “I must say I have not been impressed, particularly about the danger you put Alexis in.” He tossed the envelope onto the desk in front of Falin.
Me? He was talking about me?
“I must be dreaming,” I muttered, and Falin’s eyes flicked to the crack in the door again. Crap.
I waited for one of them to walk over and rip the door off the hinges, revealing me, but Falin just grabbed the envelope. I couldn’t see what was inside, but the lines in his face hardened. He looked up.
“I have certain expectations and—” A knock cut my father’s words short.
The door opened and Graham said, “Sir.”
My father stood. “Excuse me a moment.”
He walked out of the room, and the door closed behind him. Muted sounds of him talking to his aide reached my ears, but no words.
Falin leaned back in his chair, his gaze fixed on the door of my hiding spot. He glanced over his shoulder in the direction my father had gone. Then he stood. He headed straight for me.
Oh crap.
The door at the front of the room opened, and Falin froze.
“I’m afraid I’ll have to cut this meeting short,” my father said from the doorway.
Falin turned and walked away from my hiding spot.
Saved by my father? I couldn’t say that often.
As the door closed I heard my father say, “But Andrews, do not disappoint me.”Then the voices faded to a murmur and finally to silence.
I waited in the darkness. My calves and knees burned from crouching too long, and I stood, stretching my legs, but I didn’t venture out of the bathroom.
“They’re gone,” Roy said, sticking his head through my door.
Thank God. “Let’s get out of here.”
I didn’t even consider the fact I’d rushed out without checking Bartholomew’s office until I’d crossed the main lobby. Well, no turning back now. I’d just reached the front stairs of the statehouse when a hand landed on my shoulder.
“Alex Craft, what the hell were you thinking?”