Page 22 of Stalk the Dark
Excitement simmered low in my belly, but I wasn’t sure whether it was related to the possibility of seeing the rims, or because I’d be doing it with Ordell.
“I’ll take that deal.”
The carriage lurched, and I grabbed hold of his arm with both hands. Muscle flexed beneath my palms as he tugged on the reins. It took every effort not to squeeze. I let go quickly and clasped my hands in my lap.
He looked over at me, suddenly serious. “Do you know how to drive a carriage?”
“No, and my last attempt was pretty pathetic.”
“You should learn.”
Once again, not an offer but an order. Still, coming from him… “You want to teach me?” There was a definite lilt to my tone—a slight flirtatiousness. Totally unintentional, of course. I cleared my throat. “I’d like to learn. And you can teach me.” His brows flicked up, and I realizedIwas givinghiman order. I held his gaze, owning it.
I was hit with another smile, this one slow burn like melting chocolate. “We can start right now.” He held out the reins to me.
Ordell spentmost of our driving lesson holding on to my hands with his gloved ones. The contact felt intimate, even with the leather between us. It wasn’t as if I hadn’t held a man’s hands before, but not unless he was helping me up off a training mat or giving me a congratulatory shake. This was different because it was Ordell, and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t attracted to him.
By the time the fog marking the boundary between Old Town and New came into view, I was happy to relinquish full control to him and sit back and enjoy the ride.
“You did well,” he said.
“Oh, I’ll do great if you’re there to hold my hand every time.”
“That can be arranged.”
He was flirting with me, and I wanted him to because there was no harm in a little flirtatious banter. It didn’t have to go anywhere.
The fog rushed up to meet us. I tugged my phonefree of my jacket and switched it on just as we passed into the thick, cloying air that stuck to my tongue, leaving a residue with each breath. It lasted mere seconds, but I didn’t draw a full breath until we were through and the air was clear once more.
Reception bars sprang to life on my phone, but the battery was low, so I’d have to make this quick. “I’m going to make a call.” I hit speed dial for Micah. He answered on the third ring.
“Orina? Is everything okay?”
“Yes and no.” I filled him in on what Padma had told me about the fire, the dead operatives, about the Sangualex having taken over the Order offices in New Town. He listened without interruption, and by the time I was done, we were on a proper cement road with buildings springing up around us. “Padma says she called it all in and was told to suck it up. Micah, that can’t be true.” Micah was silent for several beats, and for a moment I thought we’d been cut off. “Micah? You there?”
“I’m here, just…thinking. Senior admin deals with anything Dracul territory related. They have a liaison officer. Padma would have been put through to that department.”
“You think it’s true? They told her she had to relinquish control to the Sangualex?”
Ordell took a right toward the carriage park and stables.
“I don’t know, Orina,” Micah said. “But I’m going tofind out. If it’s true, then they’ll have a problem with me. I briefed you based on the information they provided, and if that information was incorrect, I’ve sent you in unprepared.”
“This is not your fault. But if it is true, then you need to tell them it’s not working. Our operatives died fighting a fucking fire. We’re not trained for that. We shouldn’t have been put in that situation. You need to tell them that it stops now. We’re the Order, and we don’t take instructions from suckers. We need more manpower, and we need our offices back so we can do our fucking jobs.” My voice rose in pitch. “I can’t work like this, Micah. I need boots on ground. I need my place of operations. I need control.”
“Breathe, Orina. Breathe.”
I was clutching the phone so tightly my fingers ached. “I’m fine.”
“No, you’re not. And that’s partly my fault. I fucked up with the brief. If I’d known how the infrastructure had broken down there, I would have fought against them sending you. But Iwillfix this.”
“Oh, I can fix it. Those offices are ours, and I’m taking them back.”
“Orina, listen to me. Hold up until I can gather more information. If you’re going in there, you need to be armed with a High Council seal. I need to look into these reports Padma made too and find out why they declined to send more operatives. Call me again in a couple of days. Until then, keep a low profile.”
“I’ll call you in two days. Make sure you pick up.”
There was a smile in his voice. “Don’t I always?”
