Page 106 of Stalk the Dark
She ducked her head. “No, I suppose we don’t need to eat.”
“Will you sit with me whileIdo?”
She hesitated before taking a seat opposite me.
“Tell me about yourself.” I spooned stew into my mouth while she stared at me like I’d sprouted two heads. “What?”
“You want to know about me? I’m dead, dear.”
“But you were alive once. So…what did you do? Did you always work here? What about family? Friends? Hobbies?”
She frowned and looked away. “It’s been a long time since I thought about any of those things…I suppose I used to sew, embroidery. I was very good at it. I wanted to be a seamstress, but we fell on hard times, and Mother…She found me a position here at the castle.”
“How long ago was that?”
She took a deep breath and smiled. “A long time ago. Now, eat up that stew before it gets cold.”
I ate in silence for a few moments, aware that she was watching me carefully. I threw her a smile. “If you don’t stop staring at me like that, I’ll start to suspect you’ve poisoned the stew and you’re waiting for me to keel over.”
She gasped, eyes flying wide. “Why, I wouldneverdo such a thing.”
“It’s fine. I’m joking.”
“And aren’t jests meant to be funny?”
“Oh, come on, it was kinda funny, right?”
She cracked a small smile. “Maybe a little.”
My spoon scraped the bottom of the bowl, and I sat back with a satisfied belch that had her eyes widening once more. “That was delicious.”
“I’m glad you enjoyed it, dear.”
I sipped my tea, and she watched me with the kind of expression that preceded a question. I waited, andshe finally leaned forward in her seat, elbows on the table.
“You’re not her, are you?”
“Sorry? Her? Her who?”
She shook her head. “Of course you’re not. Shame.” She pushed back her chair and rounded the table to gather the bowl and plate. “Off to bed with you now. You need your sleep.”
I glanced at the darkened doorway that led to the many corridors between the kitchen and my bedroom.
“Don’t worry, child, the way will be lit. We have the east wing under control. The lost ones won’t harm you.”
“Thanks again for the food and the company.”
“Oh, anytime, dear, anytime.”
I had a feeling I’d be taking her up on her offer.
The next twodays went in a blur because we actually got a small case. A faeblood owned store was robbed in the seedier part of Dracul territory, an area they called Brimswood Park due to the huge park that sat on its borders—home to a couple of half-blood fae clans who had more fae in them than human.
Dracul territory seemed to attract all sorts. Back in the Fringe, I’d barely come across any faebloods or half-bloods, and you wouldn’t find any purebloods inany part of the city. They’d refused to sign the Accords and retreated to the Evergreen—a vast forestland just outside the city wards where they had their own customs and rules.
Brimswood was the closest thing to the Evergreen that you’d find in the city, and not even the vampires ventured inside. Luckily for us, our case didn’t point to the park, and we were able to track the thief to a local bar where he was attempting to sell the stolen goods to a pawn shop owner by the name of Neeval Crux.
It felt good to be achieving something other than data input, and as the afternoon came to a close, the cherry on the cake dropped with a call from Lorenzo.
