The metal stairs creaked as I climbed, giving ample warning of my arrival to anyone who was paying enough attention. And they were. Footsteps scattered, boxes scraped across the floor, and doors slammed. I couldn't help smiling. Even regular human cops couldn't have missed those noises, and it suggested the street folk on this level were very young indeed. Those who'd been on the streets for a while tended to meet their fate with a resigned acceptance and smart mouth.
Sunlight streamed in through the grimy windows on the upper floor, highlighting the motes of dust dancing on the air. This section of the building had obviously once been offices, but most of those were little more than broken shells, leaving a wasteland of debris and half-walls. My quarry waited in a far corner, in an office that had two whole walls and two half-walls. With all the smashed windows, it was probably the only part of this floor that provided any real protection from the chill of the wind.
Three boys were waiting for me, though I guess it wasn't fair to call them boys. They might have only looked fifteen or sixteen, but one look into their eyes suggested a life that had been harsher than most.
One boy—a gangly, pockmarked kid with matted brown hair and the most startling blue eyes—took several steps forward and said belligerently, “What do you want? This is our place, and we don't like strangers here.”
I stopped and grabbed my ID from my pocket. “Riley Jenson, from the Directorate,” I said. “We're investigating the death of Kaz Michaels, and I just need to ask you some questions.”
He looked at the ID, then at me. “You're a guardian?”
“Yep.”
“But you ain't no vampire.”
I raised my eyebrow. “What makes you so sure?”
“You don't smell like no vampire.”
I had to grin at that. It was nice to know that I wasn't the only one in the world who thought most vampires stank. “And you don't smell like a regular street kid.”
“The water is still connected to this dump, so there's no reason not to use it.” He looked me up and down, then said, “What are you, then?”
“Werewolf. You the boss here?”
He shrugged. “Depends on what you want.”
“I need to know everything possible about Kaz.”
“Why?”
“Because the person who murdered her has murdered someone else, and I need to stop him before he does it again.”
“By stop him, you mean kill him.” It was a statement, not a question.
I nodded. “That's what we guardians do, I'm afraid.”
He cocked his head a little on the side, then said, “You don't look that dangerous.”
I grinned again, liking the kid's attitude. “You should see me if I don't get coffee every hour, on the hour.”
He snorted softly, and amusement danced in his bright eyes. I had a feeling that despite his young years and somewhat puny looks, he was a force to be reckoned with. At least when it came to protecting “his” kids.
And I was betting now that the ones who were hidden hadn't so much run for protection, but were instead a surprise force ready to attack if and when it was needed.
“Can you help me?”
He shrugged. “I don't know a lot. Kaz kept pretty much to herself. She only came here for protection at night, like.”
“So she had no real friends?”
“No.” He hesitated. “Joe might know more. He hung around with Kaz a bit.”
“Then where can I find Joe?”
“Around. He mostly works the streets during the day. Safer than at night, even if it doesn't pay as well.”
I wasn't sure whether he meant working in the prostitution or stealing sense, and wasn't about to ask. “You think you can get him to talk to me?”
“That depends.”
I didn't ask on what. We both knew what he wanted out of the deal. “There's two hundred in it,” I said. “That's twenty bucks cash for everyone here.” And enough money to buy meals for the next couple of days if they were canny.
“Three,” he said.
I hesitated. Jack wouldn't approve an expense report, so this money was coming out of my own pocket. In the scheme of things it wasn't much, but I had a brother who liked to overspend and it was often me who picked up the slack to ensure we had food in the cupboard and coffee on the table. “Two-fifty.”
“You guardians are well paid. You can afford more than that.”
“Did I mention I have a serious coffee habit?”
He grinned. “Two seventy-five.”
“You drive a hard bargain.”
“Totally.” He held out his hand. “We got a deal?”
“Deal.” I clasped and shook it. The kid had a good grip for a scrawny human. “If you can you get Joe here this afternoon.”
He grinned. “I'll get him here by five.”
Meaning Joe probably wasn't working the streets, but hiding out nearby. This kid was a shark. “You got a name?”
He hesitated. “Mike.”
I lightly linked to his mind, quickly skimming the surface. I saw no lie in his thoughts, about either his name or anything else he'd said.
“Well, Mike, I'll be back at five, then.”
I nodded to the two kids behind him, then walked out. Once in the car, I checked the computer for any messages then leaned back in the seat, wondering what to do. Cole wouldn't have finished his report on Armel's murder yet, and I didn't want to go back to the office. Quinn had business meetings all day, so he was off the list as well. Even my friend Dia wasn't around. She'd gone up to Queensland for a month-long vacation.
I blew out a breath and started up the car. With nowhere else to go, I headed home to grab some lunch.
Liander was sitting in the living room when I arrived, newspaper in hand and his feet crossed on the table. The sun streaming in through the windows made his silver hair gleam like ice, and his normally pale skin took on an almost golden glow.
He finally looked healthy. For a while there, he'd been looking frailer than a ghost, and moving like an old man. Though I guess almost getting gutted would do that to you.“Some people have a good life,” I said, throwing my bag on the table before heading into the kitchen to turn on the kettle and investigate the fridge.
“Some people hate the confinement the doctors are forcing on them,” he said dryly. “There's leftover lasagna in the fridge if you want to zap that for lunch.”
“Sounds like a plan,” I said, pulling out the tray. “How much longer do you have to rest?”
“Until the soreness goes away.”
I shoved two slices of lasagna into the microwave, then leaned against the door frame and frowned at him. “I thought it had.”
He suddenly looked sheepish and made a show of looking at the paper again. “Well, it did, but then Rhoan and I got a little overadventurous, and I think it strained things.”
I snorted softly. “No sympathy from me, then. You want a coffee?”
“As long as you're not going to tell me to get it myself.”
“I'm not that mean.” I made two coffees and carted them across to the coffee table, then went back to grab the lasagna. I handed Liander his, then plonked down on the other sofa.
“So how's the love life?” he said, after several mouthfuls.
I grinned. “A hell of a lot safer than yours, from the sound of it.”
“No problems on the Quinn front?”
“He's being quite the gentleman.”
Liander snorted. “That'll change once you start acting like a proper wolf again.”
I gave him an exasperated look. “I am acting like a proper wolf.”
“Have you gone back to the clubs? Taken other partners yet?”
“You know I haven't. I'm happy as I am, Liander, and Quinn and I do share something special.”
“He's not a wolf, my girl. And your wolf soul will always hunger for its mate, no matter how happy you might be with Quinn.”
“You're not telling me something I don't know. I'm just not ready to venture fully out of the cave yet.”
“You know, if I ever meet Kellen again, he's going to get a very large piece of my mind.”
“Don't you dare. He was doing what was right for us both.”
He snorted softly. I ignored him and continued to eat the lasagna. One of the many good things about Liander coming to live with us was the fact that the quality of the meals we were getting had improved—mainly because he could cook and Rhoan and I couldn't.
I took a sip of coffee to wash it down, then said, “I had something of a close call yesterday, actually.”
“Oh?” He raised a gray eyebrow, amusement teasing the corners of his silvery eyes. “Do tell.”
“You remember Kye? The bodyguard Patrin employed?”
“The one Rhoan reckons was more than just a wolf?”
“Yeah. Turns out he's a bounty hunter, and he sort of saved my butt.”
“Well, it is a cute butt.”
I grinned. “Maybe so, but I doubt that's the reason he saved it.”
“So, you got hot and heavy with him as a thank-you?”
“Not intentionally.” Liander's eyebrows rose again, so I added, “I blame the moon heat and the fact that he smelled so good.” He kissed damn good, too, but that was beside the point.
“So why didn't it go any further?”
“It's hard to concentrate on loving when there are a couple of hellhounds wanting to tear you to pieces.”
“I guess.” He took a mouthful of food, then added, “You intending to see him again?”
“No. I don't really like him, and I certainly don't trust him.”