Sun Broken (The Wild Hunt #11) - Yasmine Galenorn Page 0,42

of what to ask next. He slid a note across the desk go me: ask about any new members.

“Did you notice anybody new at the club meetings over the past month? Of the Spooks, that is.”

Amy paused. After a moment, she said, “Yeah, there were a few strangers there. Two or three. A couple of them struck me as odd because while they were new, they were too friendly. Striking up conversations right and left. That seemed strange, because the Spooks tend to be aloof and reticent. And as strange as that seemed, even stranger was how quickly they were welcomed in.”

“Did you catch their names? Were they male or female?”

“One was a woman…the other a man. They never came in together, though.”

I frowned, then looked at the functions on the chat bar. “Is there a way I can post a few pictures here, to see if you recognize any of the faces?”

Shannon came on the chat again. “Yes, see the image icon to the left? Click on that, and you can upload a picture.”

“I just want to know if you saw any of these people when you were there.” I quickly uploaded the “before” pictures of our five victims, including Chaya.

A moment later, Amy said, “At least three of them look familiar. I wasn’t on duty all the time, so the others may have been there, as well.” She identified Chaya, Mendin, and Blink. Blink was one of the other victims, and had died as horribly as the others.

“Thank you. Were any of them the man or woman you were talking about?”

“No, that I’m sure of.”

“Did you see them talking to the overly friendly pair?” I knew I was hoping for too much, but if I didn’t ask, I wouldn’t find out.

Amy paused, then said, “I don’t really remember, not all that well. I was really busy and couldn’t stand around watching the group. But those three were definitely there.”

I thanked her, then asked if there was anything else she might be able to add, but she had to go. As Shannon curtly wished us good luck and hung up, I leaned back, staring at the screen.

“So, Fire & Fang is sitting on a number of unsanctioned activities. Ghosts? Of course they’re going to pick the most marginalized group, because they have no voice.” I was livid. I could too easily see Pain and Shayla ending up in a place like that. “When the fuck is the city going to get it together to help the streeps?”

“Never. Because there will always be homeless people, whether by circumstance or by choice. And even though there’s enough to go around, the rich keep doing whatever they can to get richer off the backs of the poor.” Yutani shook his head. “It’s a fact of life. Sad and heartbreaking? Yes. But with politics what they are, things aren’t going to change without a drastic shakeup.”

“So…I’m thinking we need to visit Fire & Fang. And we need someone who can pass for a Spook.” I leaned back.

“Herne’s not going to like what you’re thinking,” Yutani said.

“Maybe not, but you and I both know it’s the best way to find out what’s going on.” I met his gaze. “My gut tells me that’s where our killer met the victims.”

We sat there in silence for a moment until we heard a commotion in the waiting room that told us Herne was back from his mission. Feeling the weight of the world on my shoulders, I motioned to Yutani. “Come on, let’s go face the music and tell Herne what we’re planning.”

With an arch of the eyebrows, he followed me.

Chapter Ten

Herne looked exhausted and Viktor was scowling. Herne waved toward the break room. “I need coffee, and I need sugar.”

Any time Herne needed a drink, whether caffeine or alcohol, I knew things had gone badly. I hustled my ass into the break room and poured him a large mug of black coffee. We had half a raspberry cheesecake in the refrigerator, but somehow, I felt that something harder was called for. I found two packages of Oreos in the cupboard and set them on the table, then decided that the cheesecake would go well with the cookies, so added it to the mix. Talia joined me, finding paper plates and silverware.

Herne and Viktor sat down. Viktor was scowling. As Herne dumped three spoons of sugar and a good third of a cup of cream in his coffee, the rest of us joined them. Angel cut the