A nasty piece of work he had called beautiful twice in one conversation. “Um…”
“You begin to see why I don’t want you anywhere near her.”
“I understood, on some level, that Midas had fae blood.” I washed my face but couldn’t meet my eyes. “I’m still wrapping my head around the fact I had no frakking idea how much fae blood everyone else and their mommas have in this city.”
“You’ll get there.” The jerk had the nerve to laugh. “Now where are you?”
The last several hours spent on pack land had pulled me out of a tailspin and given me a glimpse of what life might be like if Midas and I continued down this path. I didn’t want to share it. No, that wasn’t it. I didn’t want to tarnish it.
“I’ll be back in the city in two hours.” I winced at my rumpled dress. “I’ll change then head to HQ.”
“I’ll put in calls to the team, see who’s available for—”
“Lisbeth.” I thumped my forehead on the mirror. “I met her last night.”
“That’s…interesting.”
“It totally slipped my mind.” I bumped my head again. “What kind of person forgets something like that?”
“You really remember her?” He sounded thoughtful. “Huh.”
“What does that mean? Why aren’t you having a fit?”
“There’s a geas on the team, similar to the one on me. You’ve bumped into one another any number of times, Linus did too, but you forget. All of it. It’s a precautionary measure.”
“I assume that was another vow I took and then promptly forgot?”
“Yup.” He didn’t sound sorry about it. “Try not to think about it. You’ll only give yourself a headache.”
“Why do I remember her then?” I thought back on what he had said. “Why do I remember this time?”
“I’m not sure.”
Lisbeth recognized me enough to call for help, but that wasn’t saying much. I was out in the supernatural public. The potentate had to be, therefore his apprentice did too.
“I passed her off to Ford.” I exhaled. “I’ll ask where he stashed her.”
Her first order of business would have been to contact Bishop or me. That she hadn’t made me question if she was in any shape to reach out to us. It also made me wonder why Ford hadn’t mentioned her earlier. Unless…he didn’t remember her either. He wasn’t OPA, so why would the geas affect him?
“I’ll see you soon.” I ended the call then went to find the guys. “Ford, I’ve got a question before you go.”
The two of them had gone outside to chat, and I hated that my arrival threaded tension through them both.
“Shoot.” He straightened from his lean against a nearby tree. “What’s up?”
“Do you remember Lisbeth, from last night?”
“Lisbeth.” He shook his head. “Pretty name, but no.” He sobered at my expression. “Should I?”
“A member of my team was exposed to the drug. I found her on the street and called you for backup.”
“I would have taken her to Abbott, and he would have been at the Faraday. He was doing health screenings for the elders.” His frown deepened. “I don’t remember doing it, though.”
Fingers crossed, I dialed Abbott. “Tell me you’ve got a patient.”
“I’ve always got a patient, but I believe I know the one you’re interested in. Ms. Lisbeth No Last Name.”
“Yes.” I sagged on my bones. “That’s her.”
“Interesting case,” he murmured. “She’s got a geas on her.” He paused as if waiting for confirmation I might as well give him. “I remember everything I’ve said or done when I’m around her, but I forget it once I leave the room.” He sounded thoughtful. “I assume you’re immune, since you don’t appear to have the same limitations as me.”
“We’re not sure.” I had a delayed recall of her, which might be a fluke or might herald a flaw developing in the magic. “Either way, if she’s good to go, I’ll pick her up in two hours.”
“I can release her into your care, but she’ll need supervision for a few days.”
“All right.” I would check with Bishop for the nurse’s information he used for Ford and see if we couldn’t hire her for Lisbeth. “I can handle that.”
We said goodbye, and I hung up with a grateful heart that Lisbeth hadn’t been lost in the shuffle.
“I have to go home, change, hit HQ, then meet Abbott.” I kept my distance from Midas and Ford to avoid sparking more conflict, but I was itching to go, and that meant giving Midas an out if he required one. “I can take a Swyft if you’ve got more to do here.”
“That might be for the best.” He rocked forward onto the balls of his feet then settled back onto his heels, deciding against a more personal goodbye. “I have to meet with Krista’s parents, then I’m going with Mom to visit the teens. We’ll need to address the events of last night with their parents too.”
“I understand.” I waved to them and headed down the path. “See you at home.”
The pause between the words leaving my mouth and him returning them stretched throughout infinity.
“See you at home.”
The resulting lightness in my chest as I picked my way to the road I blamed on eagerness to return to the city. The goofy smile was harder to explain away, so I didn’t even try. I just enjoyed the feeling of belonging while it lasted.
Eight
A stop at home provided me with a change of clothes, a quick breakfast, and a café mocha.
I called Gayle, but she wasn’t answering her phone, and I figured she must still be in quarantine with the rest of the pack. Worried as she was about Deric, she wouldn’t have left him to detox alone.
The trip to HQ was, as always, convoluted, but it had decided to be at the base closest to my apartment, for which I was thankful. I wanted to brief the team on what I knew, find out what they had learned, and then get to Abbott’s and reclaim Lisbeth before she slipped our collective memories again.
All the screens were lit, minus hers, when I entered HQ, and Bishop tossed me a chocolate donut with rainbow sprinkles from a box emblazoned with a familiar logo.
Ambrose swooped around the hand holding the pastry until I took pity on him and dropped it into the void while no one was looking.
Much to my amusement, my chocoholic tendencies were definitely rubbing off on him. I just hoped the reverse wasn’t true of his murderous ones.
“I have the preliminary report on Faete,” Reece said without preamble. “We’ve got a problem.”
“Hit me.” I stole another donut and ate it before Ambrose guilted me out of it too. “How bad is it?”
“The cleaners’ database pinged on a match for the primary component.”
The best thing about the cleaners had to be their expansive database. Thanks to their in with all factions, it collated historical data on every crime involving supernaturals within city limits. Bishop nicknamed her DORA, and it caught on, but I had no idea what it meant, and still no one would tell me.