“Stick to the main narrative,” said Uncle Mike, holding up a hand to stop me. “What happened then?”
“Margaret realized Sarah had been lying about me, and started to move deeper into the room. So Sarah hit her from behind with a vase and knocked her out.” I allowed myself a small smile. “It was pretty darn brave of her.”
“She’s had some good examples,” said Uncle Mike. “Then what?”
“I searched Margaret for weapons and tied her up as best I could with a roll of electrical tape from my bag.” There was an empty card table nearby. I shrugged off my backpack and walked over to it. “I haven’t had a chance to see what all I got from her.”
“Show and tell was always my best class.”
I dropped my bag on the table. “Then let’s study.”
Margaret had been carrying over a dozen knives, three guns—two pistols, and one mousegun that had been concealed in her sock—a garrote, a blowgun, and a variety of darts, some of which had tiny corks on them to keep her from getting scratched. I handled those with the utmost care.
“Is that everything?” asked Mike, picking up one of the knives.
“Not quite.” I pulled out a set of brass knuckles and a lead-filled sap, dropping them on the pile. “That’s it. Well, that, and this. She had it around her neck.” I reached into my pocket and produced her anti-telepathy charm, holding it up for him to see.
Mike whistled, long and low. “That’s some serious hoodoo. You think she made it herself?”
There are a few spellbooks and grimoires in the family library. Rumor has it they all used to belong to Grandpa Thomas, which explains how he was able to make a deal with one of the Netherworlds before he disappeared. No one in the family has messed around with magic since. We Prices may be foolhardy, but we’re not stupid. “I don’t know,” I said. “If she’s a witch, she didn’t show it—and she was wearing the charm, which would have messed with any magic she was planning to use.”
“I’d have expected a tattoo, not a necklace, if she wasn’t the crafter.”
“Unless they wanted her to be able to take it off,” I said. “Maybe they’ve started using empaths to prevent more defections.” There are at least eight naturally empathic cryptid species, and some of them are human enough—or harmless enough—that the Covenant might be willing to let them live if they seemed to be useful. It wouldn’t be the best life for a unicorn or a cofgod, but it would be a life, and that was more than the Covenant was usually inclined to offer their kind.
“Then she’ll probably be in trouble for losing it.” Mike looked at the charm thoughtfully. “You sure it works?”
“Sarah started picking up on Margaret’s presence as soon as I took this off her so, yeah, I’m sure it works.”
“But does it work for people who aren’t her?”
“Only one way to find out,” I said, and looped the chain around my wrist, drawing it tight.
The effect was instantaneous. The soothing static of Sarah’s close presence cut out, replaced by silence. There was a shriek of dismay from the walkway above us, and Sarah ran into view, grabbing the railing and leaning far enough out that I was briefly afraid she might lose her balance and fall. “ Verity!Are you hurt?!”
“I’m fine, Sarah! I’m fine!” I unlooped the charm from my wrist, holding it up so she could see what was going on. The static immediately snapped back on. A mild headache came with it, like whiplash from that brief psychic silence. “We just wanted to see whether that necklace I took off of Margaret was what she used to block your telepathy.”
“It was,” said Sarah. She was looking at me like I was a ghost. “Please don’t do that again. I thought you’d died or something.”
If I’d suddenly vanished from her “view,” that was an understandable thing for her to think. “I won’t,” I said, and put the charm back down on the table. “Did they find you a room?”
“Yes, but there’s no Internet in this building.” Sarah looked even more distraught. “Artie’s going to be so worried.”
“So call him.” That would probably worry him even more, since “the Covenant found me and they have telepathy blockers but don’t worry, I’m fine” wasn’t the world’s most reassuring statement. That couldn’t be helped. “We’ll get the network up as soon as we can, but none of us is a computer genius, and it hasn’t been a priority.”
Mike eyed me. “I work in network administration.”
“Only one of us is a computer genius, and it hasn’t been a priority,” I amended. “Maybe you can help Uncle Mike get things set up. In the meanwhile, call Artie, tell him you’re not dead. It’ll probably be good for your nerves.”
“Okay,” said Sarah, and turned, vanishing back into the office. Ryan and Istas appeared a moment later, heading for the stairs.
“This day just never lets up,” I muttered, finally fishing my phone out of my pocket. I opened it and scrolled to the missed call log. Then I blinked. “Shit.”
“What?”
“The call I missed while I was at Sarah’s. It was from Dominic.”
“Verity—”
“No. I’m not letting him know we suspect him.” Suspect, my ass. Margaret had a telepathy blocker. I was ready to lock him up and throw away the key. Still. I hit “redial,” raised the phone to my ear, and waited.
Dominic picked up before the first ring had finished. “Are you all right?” he demanded.
“Yes,” I said, as calmly as I could. “Barely. Is she?”
“Peter found her before she regained consciousness. What did you hit her with? A brick?”
“Actually, it was Sarah. She managed to catch her from behind with a vase while she was looking for me. Nice timing on the phone call, by the way. It nearly got me captured.”
“Oh, God.” Dominic sighed raggedly. I realized for the first time how worn he sounded, like he was being yanked in too many directions at the same time. “I need you to do me a favor. It may sound like I’m trying to walk you into a trap, but I swear, I’m not.”
I was done believing him when he said that. I was still willing to play along. “I’ll listen if you’ll answer me one question.”
“Anything.”
“Are you the one who told them they needed to be using anti-telepathy charms?” If I didn’t ask, he’d suspect; Margaret’s charm was missing, after all.
Dominic’s sharp intake of air wasn’t quite a gasp, but it was a close cousin. “They’re what?”
“I’m taking that as a ‘no.’”
“Is Sarah all right?”
That was the only good question he could possibly have asked. “She’s shaken, but she’s not hurt, and they’re not going to find her again.” If I’d been thinking, I would have moved Sarah the second the Covenant came to town. I didn’t think. “What do you need me to do?”
“Get to Sunil and Rochak. The plan for tomorrow includes sweeping their neighborhood, looking for signs of cryptid inhabitation. They need to shut down the café and get out of there.”
Shit. Even if this was a trap, it wasn’t one that I could ignore. Sunil and Rochak were even more defenseless than Sarah, and they thought they were safe. Dominic and I were regulars. They knewus. They’d open their doors for him and welcome him in gladly.
I couldn’t save their sister. If there was a way for me to save them, I had to take it.
“On it,” I said.
“Thank you.”
“Just take care of yourself, okay? I’m worried about you.”
“You’re not alone in that.” Dominic laughed unhappily. “Sometimes I wish I’d never come to this cursed city. It’s changed everything.”