“Yup.” I left them to talk about what they needed to look for. Raphael knew the score and what we were looking for. He also knew what to keep, what to give to the Tribunal, and what to leave with Korey. I trusted him to handle it.
I went to the back of the BMW, ignoring the wolves around me. Many watched as I popped open the truck and began to arm up—talwar, katana, sidearm, thigh daggers, and boot daggers.
“She’s a walking arsenal,” someone whispered. “Do you think she’ll need all of that?”
“It’s not about what you need,” I said loudly as I added a case of throwing knives on my belt. “It’s about what you might need. Never go into a fight unprepared.”
“Wolves don’t need all that. We have teeth,” one scoffed.
“You have numbers,” I corrected, turning on the werewolf as I closed the trunk, then opened my mouth. “And my teeth are better.”
“Move for her,” Korey ordered. The werewolves, both in human form and wolf, made a path.
I entered alone, noting the silent halls. The few fae and witches on duty let me pass without much concern. I was always heavily armed when I came in. The werewolves had only pointed it out because they had seen me preparing, something not many got to watch.
No one questioned me when I started climbing the stairs to Eliphas’ tower. Once I hit the third floor, there were no guards. I walked slowly, knowing Eliphas didn’t have anything similar to werecat magic. Werecats could pinpoint the type and location of any supernatural in their territory. It was a magic unique to them, and there were few who could recreate even a knock off of the werecats’ territorial awareness. Most couldn’t differentiate between different supernatural types or couldn’t get the location perfectly accurate. I knew Eliphas had neither. There were too many living things in the prison. That’s why his border defenses were so important.
When I reached the top of the stairs, all six flights up, I wasn’t out of breath. It was just another day. I knocked once, then opened the door.
I wanted Eliphas to know I was coming.
30
Chapter Thirty
“Ah, Executioner Sahni. What a pleasant surprise.” Eliphas looked up, his eyes still bandaged.
Liar.
“I wanted to ask you a few questions,” I said, closing the door behind me.
“You could have asked any of the witches below to call for me.” He was annoyed. He didn’t like anyone in his personal space.
“I could have, but I figured it would be nice to drop in on you and not force you to go down all those steps in your current condition.” I smiled, locking the door. I did everything slowly, with purpose, so he knew what was happening around him. Not that I thought his blindness would be a problem.
“What news do you bring?” he asked, leaning back in his seat. “I would offer to get you a drink, but I’m afraid those are on the floor below.”
“Well, I was hoping to know where your eyes are. Kartane didn’t have them.” I looked around the room, not seeing any evidence they were around. It didn’t even look like a fight had taken place, but I knew it was possible someone cleaned up already.
“You found the traitor? Oh good. Well, if he lost them, I’m certain I can do a spell to track them down. It might take some time, but I don’t need any assistance. A shame he’s misplaced them. They are very important to me.”
“They are, aren’t they? Why didn’t you try to track them earlier? It would have been helpful in locating your traitor.” It was my turn to be annoyed.
He knew a spell to find his eyes, huh? Well, Eliphas, you really are digging yourself quite the hole.
“I’ve been a little weak since they were taken. It was my last resort if you were having a hard time tracking him down.” Eliphas sighed. “I didn’t want to expend the energy until the prison was cleaned up.”
“Your eyes are in this room, aren’t they?” I asked softly. “You took them out and hid them, didn’t you?”
He straightened, realizing I had ulterior motives.
“How dare you? I’m a highly respected witch with allies in the Tribunal. Your bosses. I can see you fired for accusing me of something so heinous.”
“There’s nothing heinous about hiding the most vulnerable part of your body,” I said carefully. I wanted him to walk into it.