Read Online Skin Deep by Mark Del Franco - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Mark Del Franco
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wrinkled her nose. “Don’t think so. The District’s SWAT team is being blamed for now. They took out a brownie, and the only other fey involved was a druid team member named Janice Crawford. She got hit by a bullet, but she’s okay apparently. InterSec is stalling. Maybe you could call Terryn to see what’s going on.”
Laura did not raise her head but stayed focused on the messages. “Terryn macCullen? Why would I call him?”
Saffin shrugged. “You guys are friends, aren’t you? He might return your call.”
Her mind raced as she tried to recall mentioning Terryn at the office. They had routine Guild/InterSec interactions, but that was expected. Laura wondered what she had done to imply she knew Terryn as more than a colleague at another agency. Saffin was observant, and she had been with Laura a long, long time. She must have picked up on a pattern Laura hadn’t noticed she was creating.
“I was thinking,” said Saffin into Laura’s silence. “This might be a good angle for the ceremony, a fey person getting wounded during a joint human-fey exercise. I can do a preliminary interview with this Janice Crawford if you like.”
It’s a great idea, Laura thought. It was why she valued Saffin so much. No one else could cover for her like Saf did, run things in a pinch, and have the intuition for the big picture all at the same time. “Let’s wait and see what develops. We don’t want egg on our faces if something screwy was going on there. Good thinking, though. Anything else?”
“There’s a sale at Talbots,” she said.
“I don’t have time, Saf.”
Saffin smirked over her shoulder as she left the office. “Oh, I know. I’ll be back in forty-five minutes. Don’t forget to eat lunch.”
“I won’t be here when you get back. Text me if you need anything,” Laura called after her.
Laura did a mental inventory as she stared out the window. The ceremony was under control. Hornbeck was a problem. She debated bringing in Guildmaster Rhys to get the senator to back off, but the idea didn’t sit well. It felt like conceding she couldn’t handle him. On the other hand, she couldn’t avoid Aaron Foyle much longer, and she had no idea how much time she would need to deal with the SWAT-team investigation. She considered tossing Hornbeck on Resha Dunne’s lap. But the way the two of them liked to hear their own voices, the ceremony would be over before a decision had been made. She shook her head. She liked the Archives project and didn’t want to see it ruined. She sighed and picked up the phone to call Hornbeck.
CHAPTER 6
IN THE PARKING garage beneath the Guildhouse, a new SUV was parked in Janice Crawford’s spot. Laura opened the unlocked door, slid into the driver’s seat, and popped the glove carpet. Keys, registration, insurance information—all in Janice Crawford’s name—stacked in a neat pile. She started the engine, and the radio came on to Janice’s favorite station—heavy metal. Whoever had taken care of the car had set all the radio selections for her. She adjusted the rearview mirror, barely noticing that the face that looked back was Janice’s. When she wore a glamour, she was the glamour.
Exiting the garage, she turned in to light traffic, scanning back and forth from the side mirrors to the rearview for a full city block. She had been followed so many times, the behavior was automatic. No cars stood out, although several were black with tinted windows. In D.C., that was like saying a car had wheels.
The District police station house for Anacostia was a large and modern building, implying on the one hand that the neighborhood needed a heavy police presence while on the other hand indicating that the city cared enough about it to construct a forward-looking building. Laura skipped the parking lot and parked on the Irving Street side of the building in a space reserved for police vehicles.
She pulled her PDA out of her duffel bag and gave her email a quick check. Saffin
Laura did not raise her head but stayed focused on the messages. “Terryn macCullen? Why would I call him?”
Saffin shrugged. “You guys are friends, aren’t you? He might return your call.”
Her mind raced as she tried to recall mentioning Terryn at the office. They had routine Guild/InterSec interactions, but that was expected. Laura wondered what she had done to imply she knew Terryn as more than a colleague at another agency. Saffin was observant, and she had been with Laura a long, long time. She must have picked up on a pattern Laura hadn’t noticed she was creating.
“I was thinking,” said Saffin into Laura’s silence. “This might be a good angle for the ceremony, a fey person getting wounded during a joint human-fey exercise. I can do a preliminary interview with this Janice Crawford if you like.”
It’s a great idea, Laura thought. It was why she valued Saffin so much. No one else could cover for her like Saf did, run things in a pinch, and have the intuition for the big picture all at the same time. “Let’s wait and see what develops. We don’t want egg on our faces if something screwy was going on there. Good thinking, though. Anything else?”
“There’s a sale at Talbots,” she said.
“I don’t have time, Saf.”
Saffin smirked over her shoulder as she left the office. “Oh, I know. I’ll be back in forty-five minutes. Don’t forget to eat lunch.”
“I won’t be here when you get back. Text me if you need anything,” Laura called after her.
Laura did a mental inventory as she stared out the window. The ceremony was under control. Hornbeck was a problem. She debated bringing in Guildmaster Rhys to get the senator to back off, but the idea didn’t sit well. It felt like conceding she couldn’t handle him. On the other hand, she couldn’t avoid Aaron Foyle much longer, and she had no idea how much time she would need to deal with the SWAT-team investigation. She considered tossing Hornbeck on Resha Dunne’s lap. But the way the two of them liked to hear their own voices, the ceremony would be over before a decision had been made. She shook her head. She liked the Archives project and didn’t want to see it ruined. She sighed and picked up the phone to call Hornbeck.
CHAPTER 6
IN THE PARKING garage beneath the Guildhouse, a new SUV was parked in Janice Crawford’s spot. Laura opened the unlocked door, slid into the driver’s seat, and popped the glove carpet. Keys, registration, insurance information—all in Janice Crawford’s name—stacked in a neat pile. She started the engine, and the radio came on to Janice’s favorite station—heavy metal. Whoever had taken care of the car had set all the radio selections for her. She adjusted the rearview mirror, barely noticing that the face that looked back was Janice’s. When she wore a glamour, she was the glamour.
Exiting the garage, she turned in to light traffic, scanning back and forth from the side mirrors to the rearview for a full city block. She had been followed so many times, the behavior was automatic. No cars stood out, although several were black with tinted windows. In D.C., that was like saying a car had wheels.
The District police station house for Anacostia was a large and modern building, implying on the one hand that the neighborhood needed a heavy police presence while on the other hand indicating that the city cared enough about it to construct a forward-looking building. Laura skipped the parking lot and parked on the Irving Street side of the building in a space reserved for police vehicles.
She pulled her PDA out of her duffel bag and gave her email a quick check. Saffin
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