The Hero and the Hidden Royal - Renae Kaye Page 0,13

determined that we’ll eat dinner and learn a little more about each other first.”

Derek sniffed. “Fine. Okay. Dinner.”

“What time do you get home from work? Are you usually this late? I start early and finish by about four.”

“If I get home early and we eat early, that means we can get the talking over and done with and move on to other things, right?” There was hope in Derek’s voice as he asked the question. Sam gave him a mock scowl and a squeeze for his impertinence.

“Just tell me what time you usually get home.”

Derek sighed. “Fine. Bring dinner over at six.”

~~~~~~~~

Chapter Five

DEREK DIDN’T SLEEP ALL THAT well, but woke up with a spring in his step. The rain had cleared overnight and the sun was shining. It mirrored his mood, and he was completely visible the entire walk to work.

“Good morning, Elaine,” he said cheerily as he walked through the main doors of the Municipal offices. There were more than six different ways to enter the labyrinth of rooms behind the “front” of the employment office, but each employee was assigned a specific entrance strategy. Derek was a Level One employee and so was given the directive to enter and exit through the main doors, to give the appearance of a normal office. Level Two and Three employees entered through the tunnels connecting to buildings adjacent to the office.

“Oh, hi there, Derek. It’s wonderful to see you.”

Derek pretended he didn’t hear the slight emphasis on the word “see.” Perhaps he did slink into the office invisible more times than not. He walked toward the east corridor which would take him to his office, but Elaine stopped him.

“I wouldn’t go that way if I were you. It’s pretty busy. Take the south stairwell.”

“Busy?” Derek asked in confusion. “What’s happened?”

He wasn’t one for gossip and so didn’t keep up with the supos news, but for the east corridor to be busy meant that something to do with those with superpowers required top-level meetings, as all the meeting rooms were that way. As he could attest to, it wasn’t only the Royals who had powers, but it did seem that everything that required urgent meetings was related to the Royals.

The Royals from North and South Abarra just couldn’t seem to get along. It caused friction, but most who worked for the Municipal were neutral in their alliances.

“Was someone not invited to a party? North lose a contract to the South, so poached another butler as revenge?” Derek asked with a small grin as he approached Elaine’s desk. “This isn’t still about that wine tasting contest, is it?”

Elaine grimaced. “They do seem to get upset about the little things, don’t they? But no, this one is serious.” She leaned forward to whisper. “The Duke of Roses is missing. At the moment they’re all merely worried, but I’m sure the finger pointing will begin soon. Lots of people coming in. There’s a rumor that Queen Maialen is even coming in to talk to Sylvie.”

A missing Royal? That could be a problem. Dukes weren’t supposed to disappear. And it being Alesander? Since his superpower was frying electronics, it wasn’t like he could use a phone and ring someone if he were in trouble.

“Fine. I’ll take the south stairwell, but let me know if there’re any developments, will you?”

Elaine nodded and Derek headed off, worried about Alesander in spite of himself. Although not proven, it was assumed Derek came from that family line. They would probably never know if it had been the old Duke or one of his younger brothers who sired Derek’s grandmother in the late 1930s, but in his heart, Derek always thought of the current Duke of Roses as his cousin—probably three times removed, but cousin nonetheless.

Once in his office, Derek felt his good mood deflate a little. He’d dreamt of Sam all night, and woke feeling ten feet tall—he’d rescued a man last night. He’d also kissed that same man. But the cold light of day gave him a wakeup call—Derek was no supo that they would be asking for help to locate a missing Royal. And he definitely wasn’t a Royal either. Supos were helpful. Before her marriage, his mother had been a maid in the employ of the Castle Abarra where the sovereign of South Abarra lived. She used to tell him stories about keeping the teapot warm by using her hands while they waited for the Lady of the house to arrive in the morning tea room.

Despite Derek