Page 43 of Shifting Winds
“Do you know him?” I asked Cain.
The driver sighed. “Yes. The Council has sent you a …”
“Spy?” I offered helpfully.
Cain pulled into the driveway, carefully avoiding the shimmering wards. “He’s a good kid, Miss Quinn. Take it easy on him, if you don’t mind.”
“Depends on how easy he takes it on me, but I have no plans to let him through the wards, so he may need a ride home.”
Cain inclined his head. “Take care of yourself.”
“You do the same. Thanks for the ride.” I dug in my purse and tossed him a twenty.
The shifter rolled his eyes but tucked the bill into his shirt pocket.
I got out and walked up to the young man. “Whatever they’ve told you is probably a lie. You won’t be allowed through the wards, and if you try to get through, I won’t be held responsible for what happens. Do you understand?”
“Umm. Yes. I’m uh Marek.”
“Evie.” He was tall and lanky, somewhere in his late teens to early twenties, and still holding on to the scrawniness of youth.One day, he’d be a handsome man, but right now, he looked like a kid who’d received an assignment he was totally unprepared for.
A pang of sympathy hit me. “Who do you belong to?”
“I’m one of Rowan’s.”
My eyes narrowed. Was this a favor or was there something else going on I wasn’t privy to? “Who assigned you to me?”
“Lord Rowan volunteered me for this assignment.”
“And when was this?”
Marek swallowed. “About five minutes ago. I was at that awesome cafe when I got the call.”
“How long are you here for?”
Marek lifted a scrawny shoulder in a careless shrug. “Until Lord Rowan says I can go home.”
“Great. And what are you supposed to do?”
Marek fidgeted. “Um. Not tell you what I’m supposed to do,” he said sheepishly.
I’d thought about powering down the wards a touch until this answer. “Alright then, Marek. I like your Lord, but I don’t take kindly to spies. The wards will fry your ass if you get frisky with them. Try, don’t try. It’s no skin off my back either way. Got it?”
“Er. Yes ma’am.”
I held my index finger up. “And none of that. Call me Evie.”
“Yes, Evie.”
“Good. I’ll see you around, Marek.”
I stepped through the wards.
“Uh. Miss Evie?”
I turned.
“What if I have to go to the bathroom?”
