Brave the Tempest (Cassie Palme) - Karen Chance Page 0,108

Like the voice when he said, “Hundreds.”

* * *

* * *

“Look who I found,” Tami said, breaking into my thoughts.

“And look who we found,” Saffy and Vi said, pushing Rhea through the door. She was clutching her blouse as if she was afraid they’d rip it off her.

“I—I don’t have a suit,” she stammered, looking at me for rescue.

She didn’t find it. I was still back in that room, staring at a desk full of monsters, as evidenced by the chills flooding my arms despite the sun’s heat. I wasn’t in any mood to rescue anybody.

“I have one that ought to fit you, in the top drawer of the dresser,” I told her.

“See?” Saffy said, and went to locate it. It was just a plain red maillot, not a bikini, but Rhea looked at it like it might have been a snake.

“Go on,” Saffy said, giving her a little push toward the bathroom. “Go change.”

“I—but the children—”

“Are fine with the boys for a while,” Tami said. “I already told them, this is big girl time.”

“But . . . but you need a suit,” Rhea told Saffy. “And I don’t mind if—”

“Suit?” Vi said, putting down the collapsed chaises she’d brought in with her and starting to strip off. “Who the hell needs one of those? You’ll just get tan lines.”

“Okay,” Saffy said, smiling at Rhea’s horrified expression. “I mean, if you want to go commando—”

Rhea stared at her blankly for a second, and then snatched the suit and fled.

Vi laughed. “I’m too much woman for her.”

Saffy grinned and slapped her ass. “You’re almost too much for me!”

They proceeded to lather up, and the smell of coconut butter drifted over the balcony. It smelled good. I turned over before my buns burned, and put a hat over my face because I didn’t need any more freckles.

Of course, cutting out distractions was a mistake.

“Hundreds?” Pritkin was still on his feet. “We have one demigod, in case you haven’t noticed! The fey also have one, if your information is accurate. Perhaps my math is faulty, but is that not two? Against hundreds?”

“Oh, we have at least one more than that,” Adra murmured. “If the rumors are true.”

“What rumors?” I asked.

“Those that speak of Lady Nimue, of the fey. They say she also had a goddess for a mother.” He had been tracing something on his desk blotter with a finger, but at that he looked up at me.

I looked back.

And, suddenly, everything made a lot more sense.

“I need to talk to Pritkin,” I whispered, but Adra shook his head.

“I have need of him.”

“For what?”

The eyebrow quirked again. “What do you think? It could be mere coincidence that two of our ancient enemies return on the same day. And if they were both like the creature you released from that book, I would tend to think so. But this Kulullû disturbs me—”

“Why? Because he decided to attack the consul’s?” I said, wanting another answer, any other answer! We’d barely overcome one of those things; what the hell were we supposed to do against hundreds? “Maybe . . . maybe he had a grudge like the first one. Maybe he just got loose—”

“Maybe. And maybe not. We must find out.” He looked at Pritkin. “If you will accompany me?”

And Pritkin nodded.

I stared at him, an even more horrible feeling coming over me. “What—this has nothing—you’re not going anywhere!”

“It makes sense, Cassie,” Pritkin said, because apparently, he was insane.

“How does this make sense? How does any of this—”

“We must investigate. If there is even a chance that our enemies are attempting the same thing that the gods once did, and looking for extra troops among the demons—”

I stared from him to Adra, who was sitting there with that same little non-expression on his fake face. “Then take someone else!”

“Jonas won’t believe someone else.” That was Pritkin. He pulled me off a little way, like Mircea had in his office, and why people kept doing that, I didn’t know. I didn’t need privacy! I was perfectly happy to say everything to Adra’s face!

“Cassie,” he said softly. “Try to understand. The Circle was not pleased about the bargain the demon council struck with the senate. They fear that a demon/vampire force may give the vampires an advantage over them after the war is over. In fact, they are not pleased about working with the demons at all—”

“Strange bedfellows,” Adra repeated, not even trying to pretend he couldn’t hear.

Pritkin shot him a purely evil glance. “—and would never