Timebound(71)

I pulled the office chair toward me, then turned it around and straddled it, rolling slightly toward her perch on the desk and leaning my arms against the padded backrest. She wrinkled her nose at my unladylike position while I calculated how effective the chair would be as a weapon if I stood and brought the heavy base up hard and fast beneath her chin.

I was about to ask how she knew who I was, when I suddenly realized who she resembled. “So you’re Brother Conwell’s daughter? The one who was Chosen at such a young age?”

The smug expression faded for a moment, and then it was back. “Could be.”

“Of course you are. You favor him nearly as much as I do my aunt Prudence.”

“If you knew you looked like her, did you really think you could walk in here and no one would notice? Especially wearing a key of CHRONOS? Security called the office the moment you walked in.”

I was very surprised she knew about CHRONOS, but I tried to keep a blank face. “I thought that might happen.” I shrugged, hoping she was gullible enough to swallow the lie. “But it’s probably for the best. Otherwise, I’d have wasted a lot of time trying to prove to you who I am. This way, we can get straight to business.”

Eve raised her eyebrows ever so slightly. “Business?”

I nodded. “I’ve learned all I possibly can from my grandmother. From what I see, she’s waging a hopeless battle and I don’t like to be on the losing side. What I don’t know yet is whether your side has anything better to offer. When will your father be here? I really should be talking directly to him, I think.”

“The executive meeting is usually an hour or a bit more—I expect it will end on schedule since we don’t like to waste Sister Paula’s time.” Her use of the president’s first name was so clearly an intentional bit of name-dropping that it was hard to keep from rolling my eyes at her pretentiousness.

“Daddy doesn’t know you’re here yet—I don’t like to disturb him when he’s preparing for services, and I thought you’d be a lovely surprise when he comes in after the meeting. They can be so stressful.” She pushed herself up to sit on the big desk, and crossed her legs at the ankle.

“But you aren’t really in a position to bargain with anyone, are you, Kate? From what I’ve heard, you won’t even exist if I take your key.”

I gave her my best wicked grin. “I’d like to see you try.” That was only a tiny lie, since I was growing fond of the idea of wiping that perpetual sneer from her face. “But even if you succeeded, and I don’t think you would, do you really believe my aunt—or my grandfather—would be happy with your decision? When I’ve come here freely, of my own accord?”

That one set her back a bit. “I can’t see why they would care one way or another. From what I’ve been told, you’ve never met either of them.”

“True,” I admitted. “But for many people, blood is thicker than water. Are you aware that all four of my grandparents were—” I stopped. I wasn’t sure exactly how much she knew about CHRONOS and the origins of Brother Cyrus, so I kept it vague. “Were originally of CHRONOS? This key isn’t around my neck simply to ensure my continued existence. I activated it the very first time I held it.”

She tossed her blonde hair back over her shoulder. “That’s not possible. It takes months—years in most cases.”

I arched one eyebrow and held her gaze as I reached into the collar of my shirt, pulling the medallion from beneath the layers of fabric. “How many Cyrists have blood as pure as mine, Eve?”

A flicker of doubt passed over her face. She eyed the CHRONOS key with an expression that bordered on lust, and it occurred to me that she had probably rarely been allowed to hold one. Katherine had located ten of the twenty-four that had been in the field when headquarters were destroyed. Even if the Cyrists had found all of the remaining keys, which seemed very unlikely, that left only fourteen, divided among the thousands of Cyrist temples. I doubted they would have more than one in any region.

“What color is it for you?”

“Kind of pink,” she said, watching me warily.

“Really? My dad sees it as pink as well. It’s blue for me.” I gave her a little smile and centered the medallion in my hand, pulling up the display instantly. Eve drew in a sharp breath as the navigation control board appeared between us and then she lurched toward me.

I pulled my finger off the center. As the control panel vanished, I slipped the medallion back beneath my shirt and she relaxed. Her reaction answered one question, at least—apparently I could use the CHRONOS key from this office if I had to.