head.
He’d gone to that lot solely to familiarize himself with the girl in case they were right and she’d inherited the belt. She hadn’t been wearing it. And while that certainly didn’t mean anything, now he found himself thinking about her at the oddest moments. Worse, he found himself thinking that if she
didn’t
have the belt—and if the mission ended up calling for no interaction between him and Tracy Tannin—he was going to be sorely disappointed. Especially since the adorable mortal might just prove to be the cure for his recent lack of interest in the female of the species.
Right now, though, he just needed to know what Taylor had discovered. “Anytime this year would be good,” he called into the kitchen, scowling at his brother-in-law who was still cuddling Zoë.
Taylor kissed Zoë’s ear, then slid her off his lap. “Let’s go calm down your brother,” he said. Taking her hand, he tugged her into the living room toward the couch, the pair looking perfectly comfortable together. Two halves of a whole. The unexpected thought cast a wave of melancholy over Hale, and he cringed. Just because he’d never experienced that kind of closeness didn’t mean he needed to start feeling all mushy. He was here on a job, and once it was over he could get back to his vacation and do a little female grazing. Somehow, some way, he’d get himself back into the groove.
“Okay, brother mine,” Taylor said, as he moved to the computer hutch. Hale got a glimpse of the monitor as Taylor sat down in the desk chair. The Venerate Council’s “News In Brief” page was up. The council had its own website, with a stellar search engine that accessed all sorts of supposedly inaccessible files. Being a superhero only went so far. They were living in an information age, after all, and crime-fighting superheroes needed all the information they could get. Taylor wasn’t a Protector, of course, but considering he was partnered with Zoë, Zephron had given him permission to access the site. Apparently Taylor had been using the search engine, and Hale could see the large point headlines from across the room:
Mortal-Protector Treaty talks continue. Controversy rages! Click here for point/counterpoint!
Rumors abound
—
Has Aphrodite’s Girdle been found? Follow this link for the latest news and commentary
.
All Protectors with undercover assignments in the mortal world are required to complete Form 789-A(5)
—
Statement of Undercover Operations
—
and to file same with the Mortal-Protector Liaison Office. Click here to download applicable forms and instructions
.
Hale made a mental note to get his Form 789 in on time as he waited for Taylor to quit rummaging through the papers on his desk.
“Okay,” Taylor said. “Listen to this.” He held up a computer printout and started reading. “Beloved silent film star... blah, blah ... survived by her granddaughter, Tracy Tannin ... yadda, yadda ... Okay, here we go—Tracy inherited the house and everything else.”
With one easy jump, Hale hopped to the top of the computer hutch and sat there, his feet swinging in front of the monitor. That Tracy had been the only real beneficiary was excellent. Spending some quality time with the woman was something he could handle just fine—and now she was even more entrenched as their primary lead.
“Do you mind?” Taylor asked.
“Sorry.” Hale dematerialized, clearing Taylor’s view. “This means that if Tahlula still had the belt when she died, now it’s Tracy’s.”
“Righto,” Taylor agreed.
“I take it Tracy wasn’t wearing the belt this afternoon,” Zoë said.
“Nope,” Hale agreed. “Besides, if she were, it would have shown up on the tracking device. According to Zephron, it hasn’t blipped again.”
“So, we don’t know for sure that Tracy has it,” Zoë said.
Unfortunately, Zoë was right. He looked down at Taylor and materialized.
“So what’s our next step, Mr. Investigator?”
“Way ahead
He’d gone to that lot solely to familiarize himself with the girl in case they were right and she’d inherited the belt. She hadn’t been wearing it. And while that certainly didn’t mean anything, now he found himself thinking about her at the oddest moments. Worse, he found himself thinking that if she
didn’t
have the belt—and if the mission ended up calling for no interaction between him and Tracy Tannin—he was going to be sorely disappointed. Especially since the adorable mortal might just prove to be the cure for his recent lack of interest in the female of the species.
Right now, though, he just needed to know what Taylor had discovered. “Anytime this year would be good,” he called into the kitchen, scowling at his brother-in-law who was still cuddling Zoë.
Taylor kissed Zoë’s ear, then slid her off his lap. “Let’s go calm down your brother,” he said. Taking her hand, he tugged her into the living room toward the couch, the pair looking perfectly comfortable together. Two halves of a whole. The unexpected thought cast a wave of melancholy over Hale, and he cringed. Just because he’d never experienced that kind of closeness didn’t mean he needed to start feeling all mushy. He was here on a job, and once it was over he could get back to his vacation and do a little female grazing. Somehow, some way, he’d get himself back into the groove.
“Okay, brother mine,” Taylor said, as he moved to the computer hutch. Hale got a glimpse of the monitor as Taylor sat down in the desk chair. The Venerate Council’s “News In Brief” page was up. The council had its own website, with a stellar search engine that accessed all sorts of supposedly inaccessible files. Being a superhero only went so far. They were living in an information age, after all, and crime-fighting superheroes needed all the information they could get. Taylor wasn’t a Protector, of course, but considering he was partnered with Zoë, Zephron had given him permission to access the site. Apparently Taylor had been using the search engine, and Hale could see the large point headlines from across the room:
Mortal-Protector Treaty talks continue. Controversy rages! Click here for point/counterpoint!
Rumors abound
—
Has Aphrodite’s Girdle been found? Follow this link for the latest news and commentary
.
All Protectors with undercover assignments in the mortal world are required to complete Form 789-A(5)
—
Statement of Undercover Operations
—
and to file same with the Mortal-Protector Liaison Office. Click here to download applicable forms and instructions
.
Hale made a mental note to get his Form 789 in on time as he waited for Taylor to quit rummaging through the papers on his desk.
“Okay,” Taylor said. “Listen to this.” He held up a computer printout and started reading. “Beloved silent film star... blah, blah ... survived by her granddaughter, Tracy Tannin ... yadda, yadda ... Okay, here we go—Tracy inherited the house and everything else.”
With one easy jump, Hale hopped to the top of the computer hutch and sat there, his feet swinging in front of the monitor. That Tracy had been the only real beneficiary was excellent. Spending some quality time with the woman was something he could handle just fine—and now she was even more entrenched as their primary lead.
“Do you mind?” Taylor asked.
“Sorry.” Hale dematerialized, clearing Taylor’s view. “This means that if Tahlula still had the belt when she died, now it’s Tracy’s.”
“Righto,” Taylor agreed.
“I take it Tracy wasn’t wearing the belt this afternoon,” Zoë said.
“Nope,” Hale agreed. “Besides, if she were, it would have shown up on the tracking device. According to Zephron, it hasn’t blipped again.”
“So, we don’t know for sure that Tracy has it,” Zoë said.
Unfortunately, Zoë was right. He looked down at Taylor and materialized.
“So what’s our next step, Mr. Investigator?”
“Way ahead
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