Drink Deep - Chloe Neill [36]
“I noticed,” I said.
“So, anyway, long story short, we’re at a dead end. Maybe your talk with Lorelei will clear things up. You psyched for the trip?”
“I’d be more psyched if this was a casual visit, and not a trip to an isolated island to solve a magical problem she might have caused.”
“Eh, piece of cake,” Jeff said.
“We’ll see about that. But that’s not actually why I’m calling. I need a favor.”
“In addition to the helicopter ride?”
“In addition to that. I need to talk to Tate.”
Silence.
“Are you sure that’s a good idea?”
I could hear the question he wasn’t asking—are you sure it’s a good idea to visit the man responsible for the death of your lover? But I’d already thought that one through.
“Of course it’s not a good idea,” I said. “But he’s talked to the GP, and he’s spreading rumors about what went down that night. He’s not the type to waste energy unless there’s something in it for him, and I want to know what that is.”
“He could just be baiting you into visiting him.”
“He probably is. But that doesn’t make the trip any less necessary.”
“Okay. I’ll talk to Catcher and Chuck. There are protocols, I imagine.”
“Understood. But he’s making trouble for the House, so I can’t just let this go. Do the best you can.”
We said our good-byes, and I hung up with Jeff, but the call left me with a lingering worry. I wasn’t crazy about the idea of visiting Tate. I was pretty sure he wasn’t human, and I was already facing down one unknown magical creature tonight. Two was really pushing it.
“Big girl panties,” I quietly reminded myself. “Big girl panties.”
And since I was playing grown-up, I dialed Mallory’s number.
She’d been a little growly when we’d talked before, but as BFF it was my job to check in. Since I didn’t claim my own money-grubbing family (aside from borrowing the family name, which I actually liked), Mallory has been my primary family. Hell, we’d been each other’s family. And losing Ethan had reminded me how much I needed her.
Of course, I wasn’t exactly surprised when the phone flipped to voice mail almost immediately.
“Hey, it’s me,” I told her. “I just wanted to give you a call and wish you luck on your exams. Kick ass, and impress Simon, and become a real, live sorceress, and all that other inspirational crap. Go, Mallory! And now that I sound like a perky teenager, which I am most definitely not, I’m going to hang up now. Call me when you can.”
I flipped the phone closed and silently wished her luck. I’d seen Mallory stressed to the gills a few weeks ago, crying from the stress of the work she was doing—and the physical pain. Apparently, funneling the power of the universe through your body was a tough job. It certainly wasn’t anything I wanted a part of. Dealing with vampires was more than enough work for me.
My chores done, I showered and dressed. I wasn’t exactly sure what to wear to accuse a siren of ruining Chicago’s water, but I decided the full leather ensemble was a little aggressive. I stuck with the leather jacket, but paired it with jeans and a thin, long-sleeved T-shirt. My Cadogan medal and boots were my accessories, as was my dagger. I figured dropping out of a helicopter with a thirty-two-inch sword probably wasn’t the most diplomatic of entrances.
When I was dressed, I headed to the Ops Room to update Kelley. She sat at the conference table, reviewing information on a tablet computer. Lindsey sat at one of the computer stations on the wall; Juliet was nowhere in sight.
“What’s up, ladies?”
Kelley glanced up from her toy. “Good evening, Merit. Did Frank find you?”
“Unfortunately, yes,” I said, checking my wall file for information. We usually received “Dailies,” updates about House visitors, news and happenings. Since we were short-staffed, they were closer to “Weeklies,” and Kelley paged us if anything needed to be relayed immediately.
“He questioned my ability to