I wouldn’t be surprised if she were the one who told Cornelius. Knowing her, she probably drove him to that meeting with Linus.
A big oddly shaped spider crossed my desk and stopped directly in front of me. Jadwiga and I stared at each other.
Slowly, carefully, I reached to the side, slid a drawer open, and pulled out a plastic container.
No sudden movements. I hummed softly, sending my magic out, and raised the container, holding it upside down.
“Hush little baby, don’t say a word . . .”
Wait, what am I doing? She’s a spider.
An inch. Another.
“Momma’s gonna buy you a mocking bird . . .”
Jadwiga held still.
Maybe it’s working.
The shadow of the container fell on the queen of spiders.
Jadwiga bolted across the desk and skittered down onto the carpet, up the wall, and into an AC vent.
Damn it. I tossed the container back into the drawer.
The sound of panting made me raise my head. Rooster sat in the doorway of my office, her gaze fixed on a point above her head.
Ah. “My sister got under your skin.”
The empty air tore in random spots and melted into Konstantin in his sunny angel form. He was carrying Arthur’s rubber band machine gun.
“It’s the principle of the thing,” he said. “As the best illusion Prime in the world, I have a reputation to uphold.”
“Please, come in.”
He entered, sat in my client chair, and put my nephew’s contraption onto the table. “This awkward weapon came for you by drone. I volunteered to deliver it.”
Nevada reminding me of my promise.
“Have you tested it?” I asked, nodding at the weapon.
He nodded. “Surprisingly it works.”
Rooster put her head on his thigh and looked at me. He petted her.
“Traitor,” I told her.
“It’s not her fault. Dogs like me.”
“How about spiders?”
He chuckled. “Not at all, I’m afraid.”
“Of course now that I know you have subverted your guard, I’ll need to replace her.”
“No need.” Konstantin scratched Rooster’s ear. “Arkan landed in Houston twenty minutes ago under an assumed identity. I would guess we have until dawn. He likes to be dramatic. Also, visibility is particularly poor before sunrise. Dusk would also work, but he doesn’t want to stumble around this massive house in the dark.”
It was all coming to an end.
“A penny for your thoughts?” he asked.
“I’ve realized I’m a talented amateur who has a long way to go and I’m dealing with that.”
“Ah. And here I thought you were brooding in here because Alessandro is talking to his mother. I stopped by for a few moments. It seemed very emotional.”
I smiled at him. “I quite liked my future mother-in-law.”
Rooster decided to lie down, and Konstantin put one leg over the other. “Oh? What is it you like about her?”
“She has excellent aim.”
He frowned.
We sat in silence for a few moments.
“Arkan will attack tomorrow,” Konstantin said. “Have you given any thought to what will come after?”
I had given all sorts of thoughts to what would come after, but my plate was rather full at the moment. “I don’t follow.”
Konstantin’s face shifted.
The golden angel was gone. The man remaining in his place was handsome but very much human. He was still blond, but his skin had lost the perfect golden tan. His features were refined, but harsh. A square jaw, an uncompromising mouth, clear focused eyes under thick blond eyebrows. A scar crossed his left cheek from the temple down to the chin, just missing the corner of his mouth. It was almost the same color as his face, so it had to be old, but whatever had made it must have cut deep.
Rooster let out a soft woof. He bent down and stroked her head, and she went quiet.
“I thought it would be best to have this conversation face-to-face.”
His voice matched the new him. Brisk, to the point, without his usual relaxed informality. He was showing me the real Konstantin and I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to be flattered or alarmed.
“May I see the wings?”
He showed me his. It was only fair.
I let my wings out. They opened above my shoulders, a beautiful shimmering green. I pushed with my magic, and jet-black rolled over them from my back to the feather tips, turning them bloodred for a split second.
Konstantin raised his eyebrows.
I let the black color in my feathers die and shook the green feathers slightly, keeping all of my magic to myself. “Can you continue with the conversation, or would you like me to put them away?”