But that’s not why I’d shivered. Off and on all day, I’d had this feeling that I was being watched. I knew I was being paranoid, not least because the two men I was with made “paranoid” into a competitive sport. They’d been sending out so many competing probes and shields and glamours that only very old and very purebred Alfar could have kept themselves concealed.
“You sure?” Anyan asked, his deep voice concerned. Right at that moment, the feeling of being watched suddenly ceased. It had to be my imagination.
So I smiled, nodding. “Yeah, really. I’m fine.”
And I should have been fine, knowing—from what Anyan had told us the night before about the Sensors—that there was supposed to be no chance such a very old, very powerful purebred Alfar could ever be in Borealis.
That said, Anyan’s words had raised more concerns than they answered, and Julian and I had stayed up late the night before talking everything through. On the one hand, everything Anyan had said explained why the Alfar hadn’t succeeded in spying here; why the Borderlands were invisible to them. And why they should be relatively safe for our team.
In reality, however, we were now left with a whole slew of unsettling issues. After all, if unregistered, visiting purebloods were sure to give themselves away, then serious questions had to be asked about how my mother had been brought here to be killed. And about who was running these labs and doing the actual killing.
As soon as we were alone last night, Julian and I had started asking such questions, turning to good old Sherlock Holmes for help. Holmes, after all, was famous for using Occam’s razor to help him solve crime. It was a theory urging that the simplest, most sufficient explanation of a particular problem was usually the correct one. If I applied Occam’s razor to the problem that was my mother, a strange pureblood dying in a territory that was supposed to be guarded against unregistered pureblood or halfling entry, there was only one obvious explanation: Some of the registered halflings in the Borderlands couldn’t be trusted.
There had to be people on the ground working as guards, or some of the Sensors had to be covering up for unregistered power signatures, or both.
We knew better than to ask Anyan whether or not that person was one of his friends and contacts here. Anyan wasn’t a man who trusted easily, nor was he stupid or naive. The man was a warrior, through and through, and the fact that he genuinely appeared to believe in Capitola and whomever she worked for spoke volumes.
But Julian and I both knew something didn’t add up about my mother dying in Borealis, and Anyan, earlier, had admitted as much. Before saying good night to Julian and me the previous evening, Anyan had told us to sleep tight, that we should be safe here in Borealis. I’d started to understand that Anyan communicated more through what he didn’t say than what he did. And the barghest never said we were safe here, just that we should be safe.
So neither Julian nor I had slept very well, and I watched Anyan and Ryu interact with the local team processing the crime scene through bleary eyes. Being an official Alfar employee, Ryu was undoubtedly unwelcome, and he’d been treated with distrust when we first arrived. But he was also damned good at his job, and he’d quickly ingratiated himself with the other investigators.
Meanwhile, Anyan was wandering around sniffing things, in what I assumed was his own barghestian style of detective work.
So Julian and I tucked ourselves away in a corner. I knew I wasn’t of any use in this place, and I think my fellow halfling was just trying to be supportive. That said, I was glad I was here. Being part of this investigation, in whatever way I could, felt right. The safety of my father and all my other loved ones rested on this investigation.
I can’t let Jarl run around trying to get back at me through my friends and family, I thought, just as Julian interrupted my dark reverie.
“How’re you holding up?” he asked, his tone careful. “How was the lab this morning?”
“Just like Anyan said,” I replied. “There was nothing there. But I did call home while he poked around.”
That morning, Anyan and I had driven south to Kankakee and the other abandoned laboratory while Ryu and Julian slept through their weird vampire comas. Ryu had been pissed when he found out we’d gone without him, but Kankakee was about two and a half hours away from Borealis, and if we ever wanted to wrap things up here, we couldn’t wait for sleeping beauties.
Plus, that lab had been the long-abandoned one, and it had already been cleaned out. Anyan had sniffed around while I used the opportunity to make phone calls.
“That’s good. How’s your dad?” Julian asked.
“Oh, fine. Nell must’ve glamoured him. He’s convinced I’m on a Caribbean cruise.”
“Well, that’s okay, I guess?”
“Yeah, I guess. I’m rather annoyed Nell’s futzing with my father’s brains again. But I also know I made a total shambles of my leaving, so at least my dad isn’t worried about me the way he would be otherwise.”
“How’s everyone else?”
“Fine. Rockabill never changes, thank the gods.”
After I’d spoken with my dad and Nell, I’d called Grizzie and Tracy. Things at the store were slow and I wasn’t needed, although I still felt guilty for abandoning them. But I didn’t detail that for Julian, knowing that Julian didn’t need to know every facet of my oh-so-exciting life in Maine. And I also left out the part where, after my phone calls were made, I had almost eagerly gone back to watching the barghest sniff around. Indeed, when I’d walked back into the abandoned lab, I’d found Anyan sniffing at the corner I’d just abandoned. Walking toward him, I had indulged in a wild fantasy of him taking a moment to sniff me.
I didn’t think Julian wanted to know that information any more than he did the boring facts of my day-to-day life. Although, I figured, this is as good a time as any…
“So how are you doing?” I asked, turning the tables on my fellow halfling.
Julian blinked. “Me? I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be fine?”
“Well, I think this must be a lot for you. Going from the Territory, where halflings are treated pretty shitty, to here, where they rule.”
Julian looked away from me, then took off his glasses, nervously cleaning them with the bottom of his T-shirt.
“It’s interesting, that’s certain.”
“Interesting?” I asked incredulously, giving him my best gimlet eye.
“All right,” he acceded very quietly. “It’s fucking awesome.”
I giggled. “I know.”
“I mean, those women last night…”
“So foxy!”
“Huh?”
“They’re so foxy!”
Julian blinked at me. “I meant how strong they were. And confident.”
“Oh,” I said. “Yes. They are strong and confident. For sure. And they’re so foxy!”
“I suppose,” he said, frowning at me.
“You’re not much into the females, are you?” I asked, grinning up at him.
“No, not so much,” he replied with a laugh. “What gave it away?”
“Julian, those women last night were seriously hot. Even I was a little turned on. You? Couldn’t care less. But I’ve noticed that when a hot male is around…” I waggled my eyebrows as Julian blushed shyly. “Especially one male in particular,” I teased, letting my eyes slide across the room to where Anyan stood talking with a local technician. I’d already noticed that the barghest was filling out his jeans particularly well that day. I’d also noticed Julian noticing earlier.
My fellow halfling’s eyes widened and I thought he was going to protest, but instead he shook his head ruefully.
“Well, I’m not the only one who enjoys the view,” he said, eyeing me pointedly. Just like him, I was about to protest, when I realized it would do no good.
“It’s true. You’ve got me.” I giggled. “I can’t help it.”
“I know. Those thighs.”
“Oh, the thighs.” I groaned in agreement. “And that keister.”
“Oh, yes,” Julian murmured as we both turned to stare with appreciative eyes at Anyan. “And let’s not forget that…”
“Package!” came a loud shout from the doorway, causing Julian and me nearly to jump out of our skins. We looked at each other with wild eyes.
“Package! I’m here to collect a package?” the voice shouted again, revealing a woman standing in the doorway and wearing some sort of delivery-service uniform.
Julian and I looked from her, to each other, to Anyan, before bursting into hysterical laughter.
“Brilliant,” I said, wiping the tears from my eyes as our giggles finally subsided. “Just brilliant. Package,” I said again, snorting my unladylike snort of amusement one last time.
“Too good,” Julian agreed, chuckling still. “Almost as good as the man himself.”
“Almost as good as powerful halflings?” I queried.
Julian’s face fell at that comment, and my own heart missed a beat at the look in his eyes. He looked so heartsore and despondent, even as I thought I saw a glimmer of something hopeful.