There was a light rap on the door that brought our heads around. Nate poked his head in. “Everything okay in here, sweetheart?”
Red pushed awkwardly to her feet and put her hands on her hips. “Other than the fact I’m so hungry I could gnaw my arm off, everything’s good.”
“Well then”—Nate grinned as he sauntered in—“I guess I’d better take you home for lunch.” He pulled her into his arms and pressed a kiss to the side of her neck before murmuring, “But eating might have to wait. You’re looking damned sexy right now.”
Red winked at me. “See what I mean? Love this man.” Then she leaned around Nate and called, “Nicky!”
Nicky stuck his head in the office, looking uncharacteristically sheepish. “Yeah?”
“I love ya, you son of a bitch,” she told him. “So I’m glad you’re back in town. But you break Trish’s heart, and I don’t care how off the grid you go, I’ll make it my personal mission in life to hunt you down and kick your ass. Are we clear on that?”
“Crystal clear, kid.”
“Good.” She jerked her chin toward the door. “Now get the hell outta here and go with Trish to pay a visit to Halloran’s girlfriend so she doesn’t end up as tiger bait. And let me know if you find out why those vamps were craving a Sandman sandwich.”
I hurried from the room with Nicky, shutting Red’s office door behind me, but not before catching a glimpse of her and Nate in a passionate kiss. I sighed and glanced over at Nicky out of the corner of my eye.
“Well, that went better than expected,” he mumbled once we were safely down the hall. “What did Red say after she booted me and Nate?”
I shrugged. “You know. Girl stuff.”
“No, really,” he said, punching the button for the elevator.
Luckily, the elevator doors slid open at that moment, letting out a handful of men in black suits gruffly leading a powerfully built man wearing sunglasses and an impeccably tailored suit, his red gold curls pulled back in a ponytail at the nape of his neck.
“Gideon?” I gasped as the agents shouldered between Nicky and me. I’d only met him once, when Lavender’s mom had demanded Red’s and my presence at her country club for tea so she could inspect her daughter’s bridesmaids. Although the entire experience had been so unbelievably uncomfortable I wanted nothing more than to wipe it from my memory, Gideon was impossible to forget.
Gideon shrugged easily out of the grasp of the man holding him, letting them all know he’d only been coming along for show anyway, and turned toward me, giving me a sharp nod. “Ms. Muffet. Pleasure to see you again.”
“Nicky Blue,” I introduced, “this is Gideon Montrose—he’s a dear friend of Lavender Seelie and bodyguard to the fairy king and queen.”
Nicky instinctively reached out a hand in greeting, but the handshake was awkward with Gideon’s massive wrists in magic-dampening manacles.
“Pleased to meet you, Mr. Blue,” Gideon said with a nod. “I’ve heard a great deal about you.”
Nicky grunted but offered the man a grin. “Can’t say I’ve heard of you—but I imagine that’s by design.”
“What’s going on?” I asked Gideon. “Why are you being brought in?”
“It’s not your concern,” a pinch-faced agent interjected, grabbing Gideon’s arm.
Gideon jerked away and shoved the guy. Before the man could react, I stepped between them and put a hand against the guy’s chest, holding him off.
“Who the hell are you, Tale?” I demanded. “I haven’t seen you before.” Because I would’ve recognized your rat face and beady little eyes.
“Norman Fredericks,” he replied, looking down his long nose at me. “I’ve been working on special assignment with the Agency as the Tale liaison.”
I heard Nicky snort. “Freddy the Ferret.”
Ferret? Well, I wasn’t far off. . . .
“Haven’t seen you in a good twenty years,” Nicky said, his tone cordial, but a coldness coming into his eyes. “Not since you got pinched by the feds for money laundering for the Ordinaries.”
Freddy’s beady eyes narrowed on Nicky. “My talents were underappreciated by the Tales back then. I get the respect I deserve now.”
“I’m sure you do,” Nicky drawled.
“What does the Agency have to do with Gideon?” I cut in, bringing us back to the point before they could get into a full-blown pissing match.
“We caught him trafficking fairy dust to Ordinaries,” one of the other agents explained. I didn’t like the look of him much better than I did Freddy the Ferret.
When I glanced at Gideon, his face was impassive, completely unreadable. But I could smell a rat both literally and figuratively. The Seelies were the only authorized fairy dust distributors among the Tales; and having the corner on the market raked in millions of dollars every year. I seriously doubted Papa Seelie would jeopardize his empire by selling to Ordinaries. And even if he was expanding their market, Gideon didn’t strike me as the kind of guy to get caught doing it.
“I’m sure there’s been some kind of mistake,” I said, forcing a smile. “Turn Gideon over to me and I’ll get to the bottom of things.”
“I don’t take orders from little girls,” Freddy scoffed.
Nicky was up in his grill in a heartbeat, his expression deadly. “You’d better watch your mouth, Ferret.”
Freddy laughed. “Right. And what are you going to do about it?” He shook his head. “Word is you’ve gone soft, Nicky. Your wife buys it and you go running off to hide?”
I grabbed Nicky’s arm and pulled him back a few feet, pressing my hand against his chest. “It’s all right, Nicky. I’ll handle this.”
“Yeah, Nicky,” Freddy taunted. “Listen to your little girlfriend. She’ll handle it. You sure as shit can’t, you pussy.”
Nicky moved so fast I didn’t even see it coming. In one swift motion he grabbed Freddy’s hand and twisted his arm at such an unnatural angle, the guy dropped to the floor with a howl of pain. “Who’s the pussy now, Freddy?” Nicky spat. “Huh? Who’s the pussy now, you rat-faced little fuck?”
Next thing I knew, all hell was breaking loose. The other agents went for Nicky, but Gideon busted the manacles apart with a quick jerk of his wrists and stepped in. His fist connected with the nose of one man, dropping him, and then had the other one on the ground so fast I didn’t even see how.
“What the hell is going on?”
Nicky immediately let go of Freddy at the sound of Red’s voice and took a step back.
“I asked a question,” Red snapped. “Somebody better give me a goddamn answer!”
Freddy got to his feet and straightened his suit. “Assistant Director Little, we were bringing in this suspect when we were assaulted by your associates. You’d better believe I’ll be filing a complaint with Director Addin.”
Red grunted. “Get in line, Rat-boy. Next time you want to bring someone in, you Agency sellouts might want to call first. Now get outta my building.”
“Assistant Director—”
Red batted her eyes at Freddy, daring him to go there. “I’m hungry, you little shit, and you’re in my way. Are you seriously gonna push me on this?”
Freddy cast a furious glare at Nicky, knocking into him as he passed, then motioned for his cronies to follow him. As soon as the elevator doors had closed on them, Red jerked her chin at Gideon. “So are you guilty?”
Gideon’s lips curled up on one side in an amused smirk. “Of many things. But not of the things of which they were accusing me.”
“And what would those things be?” Red demanded.
He quickly repeated what he’d already told us. “The king is decidedly unhappy with someone selling D on the black market to Ordinaries and trying to make it look as if it’s his people doing it. He sent me out tonight to gather intelligence.”