Page 94 of Princess Claimed

“Sure.” She nods. “DEFTA has cameras pointed everywhere. There’s literally not an inch of that building not covered.”

“Then how?” Crusher tips his head to the side.

Her fingers tighten on the edge of the table, like she thinks she can push their tips through the scratched wood. “There’s nothing on the recordings.”

“Are you sure?”

She nods. “Using Diederik’s passwords, I went over all the files myself.” She shakes her head. “Idiot keeps his passwords on a sticky note under his keyboard.”

“Get on with it.” I slap the table.

She startles, and Crusher shoots me a look. Suppressing a growl, I cast my eyes down.

“One second the body is there,” she continues, “and the next it’s gone. Same with the dagger. It was in an evidence box, but there’s no record of anyone touching it. After the body was gone, the security team checked the box. It was empty.”

“How is that possible?” Crusher asks.

She shakes her head and perfume rises around her. It’s a nice enough scent, but nothing compared to how Ana smells without artificial enhancements. My heart squeezes and pounds. What if that thing is already after Ana, and I’m on the other side of a fucking ocean?

“I talked to my friend in the tech department,” Elsbeth says. “Someone I trust.”

“You don’t trust everyone at DEFTA?” Crusher asks.

“You know I don’t.” She pulls her hands off the table and onto her lap. “Things at DEFTA got fucked up during the years Octavia was CEO. We hoped the princess would set things straight, but then…”

Crusher nods.

“I only trust vampires who were part of the syndicate long before Octavia came,” she says. “People I know are loyal to both the syndicate and the crown.”

“And…?” If she doesn’t finish this story soon, I might do something to make her finish. But I don’t want to do that. Crusher trusts this Elsbeth. She’s trying to help us.

“My friend in tech,” Elsbeth continues, “she said that, for both the body and that dagger to get out of the building without detection, dozens of recordings must have been altered. Or dozens of cameras shut off.” She shakes her head as if both methods are impossible.

“Assuming one or both of those things happened, it was definitely orchestrated by someone on the inside—more than one. Some of the security equipment needs the retinal scan of at least two DEFTA executives for access.”

“Fuck.” Crusher shakes his head. “Based on what you’re saying, not only is that demon still out there, Rasputin could still be alive.”

Elsbeth sighs. “I don’t know anything about that. All I know is that the body and dagger are gone, and something very strange is going on at DEFTA.”

Crusher’s expression shifts. So does Elsbeth’s. She slides under the table as he stands, and I turn to see what attracted their attention.

Fucking Diederik is winding his way through the crowd, smiling and nodding as he gets closer.

“Crusher,” he says. “Thank goodness I found you. I’ve got troubling news. Rasputin’s body is gone.”

Chapter

Thirty-Six

Crusher

Phil shoots to his feet, and his thighs slam into the booth’s table. In the commotion, Elsbeth slips under the table and out the back door. I’m not sure whether her boss saw her, but logic says he must have known she was here. How else did he find us?

“Fuck.” Phil grabs his side.

“Crusher, why haven’t you answered my calls?” Diederik sounds frantic. “I have important information.”

“So you just fucking said.” Phil glares at Diederik. He’s still pressing his hand into his side. Must have hit it on the table when he rose so suddenly.

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