Page 45 of Wicked Deeds

“What can I do for you?”

“I wanted to let you know Gwen just turned up at Damon’s house.”

“What?” Aubrey’s mouth dropped open, her normally serene expression vanishing. “She’s in San Francisco? Since when?”

“Well, I don’t know when she landed, but she arrived here about thirty minutes ago. So if any of you were expecting to see her soon, there’s been a change of plans.”

“Did you ask why?” Aubrey asked, sounding half exasperated.

“I think she’s looking for ways to make sure she doesn’t have to deal with the Fae. Too many in London. But that’s all I know so far.”

Aubrey sighed. “Yes. Padma mentioned she’d been talking about that in her last few sessions. Damn. We should have seen this coming.”

I raised an eyebrow. “Should Padma be telling you what she and Gwen talk about?”

“Yes. She doesn’t tell us the details of their conversations, of course, but we’re kept informed of Gwen’s general progress.”

“Well, she’s here now,” I said. “She mentioned she’d booked a hotel; I’ve invited her to stay with me and Damon for a few days. She’s pretty freaked out about the Fae. Said she wanted to come here and meet the tanai who stayed behind. Did something happen to set her off?”

Aubrey frowned. “I have no idea.”

“Well, I’ll see if I can find out. And if Pinky is willing to talk to her. That might make her feel better. But…” I trailed off, unsure how to phrase what I wanted to say diplomatically. “But I wouldn’t bank on her coming back to England any time soon.”

“Thank you,” Aubrey said. Her mouth twisted with frustration before she got her expression back under control. I sympathized. She and the others in the UK Cestis had put a lotof effort into helping Gwen reestablish her life and now she’d…well, run away.

“It will be all right,” I said.

“I hope so.” Aubrey shook her head. “But she’s an adult, so we can’t stop her doing what she wants. She’ll make her own choices.”

“She will. I’ll keep you posted.”

“Right,” Aubrey said. “Call me if you need more help or if she says something more about why she left.”

“I’ll ask. But she might not tell me.”

Aubrey sighed. “She can be little prickly. Young for her age, even though she hasn’t had it easy. Padma thinks that spending so much time in the Fae as a servant means she hasn’t learned to assert herself in an adult way. But tell her we’re here if she needs to talk. To Padma, or me, or any of us.”

I was raised by a mother who had the ego of a perpetual teenager; I understood something of that problem. Yoshi might, too. Though he was her opposite. A teen who’d had to be an adult too soon. He was, if anything, too responsible. “Right now, she’s tired. Let’s give her a couple of days to get over the jet lag and I’ll see what else she has to say and if I can set something up with Pinky. I’ll keep you posted.”

I went back to Gwen. I wasn’t surprised to find Lianith perched on the chair next to hers, cleaning her whiskers. Gwen’s plate was empty but she was still sipping her coffee. “I see you two have bonded over bacon.”

“I only gave her a small piece.” Gwen’s tone was defensive.

“It’s fine,” I said. “Better for you two to get along.”

“What did Aubrey say?”

“She was happy you’re safe. Said to call her or Padma if you need anything.”

“She wasn’t mad?”

“Surprised, but not angry,” I reassured her. I nodded at her plate. “More?”

“Toast? Do you have marmalade?”

“No. But Amy, Damon’s housekeeper, makes great jam. I’ll find you some of that. Then you can shower and take a nap and I’ll see if Pinky’s free any time this week. I know she has a work deadline soon, so you might have to be patient.”

Chapter Twelve

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