Page 69 of Dream Weaver

I bit my lip. Did I look that unapproachable?

Yes, I realized. I did.

The thought filled me with shame.

“Yes. Please,” I added quickly. “Thanks.”

Some of the tension went out of his shoulders. “What can you tell me about this Liselle?”

I told him everything, down to any detail that might prove significant. Being in supernatural law enforcement, Ingo knew much more about such things than I did. So, I described thewoman, her house, the brazier she wanted, and the mind-bending I suspected her of. I showed him the sketches I’d made, along with her card.

Ingo frowned at the runes. “Mind if I take a few pictures and send them to the agency?”

I gulped, looking at Pippa. As an agent of the ADMSA, Ingo was required to report suspicious supernatural activity. But as a member of our family, he had a duty to protect, and protect he did — including protecting us from the attention of that agency.

“Can you keep it incognito?” I asked.

“I’ll call it a routine check, and if they ask, I can say I have to protect my source. But I can’t promise that no one will start putting two and two together. I’ll do my best, though.”

I looked at Pippa, then nodded.

“Do it.” Then I hastened to add, “Thank you.”

While Ingo submitted the pictures through his phone, Pippa fingered Liselle’s business card.

“Very fancy,” she muttered. It wasn’t a compliment. “Embossed and everything.”

I nodded. “Some kind of flower, I think.”

A weird, spiky flower.

“Edelweiss,” Pippa mused.

My blood ran cold, and I stared.

Pippa tilted her head. “What?”

I snatched it out of her hands. “Edelweiss? Are you sure?”

“Well, I’m no Heidi, and I’ve never been to the Alps, but yes, I’m sure.” She typed into her phone, then held up the image her search had turned up. “See? Edelweiss.”

I stared, then started sputtering. “My father stopped by the shop today—”

Pippa’s eyes went wide. “Your father was here?”

I made a face. “He was passing through, and he dropped into the shop.” I dug through my memory for what he had said.

It’s that damned Edelweiss Corporation again. They’ve been bought out by a couple of magic-wielders…

I explained to Ingo, who started typing into his phone.

“Edelweiss Corporation…” He waited, frowning at the screen. “Luxury property development with projects in Colorado, New Mexico, Montana, Oregon… All over the West, it looks like.” Another pause as he skimmed through what he’d found. “New partnership announced a few months ago with Steinmeier Associates…”

I made a face. “That would be that bitch, Liselle.”

I chastised myself, then decided it wasn’t snippy if it was the plain truth. What kind of person messed with someone’s child?

Ingo set his phone aside. “I can’t access classified agency files from here. We’ll have to wait until tomorrow to run a background check.” Then he rubbed his jaw and looked at me. “Actually, I could drive into town now if you don’t want to wait.”

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