Iron Crowned Page 0,66

everything...."

"It's a human thing," I said, only partially lying. "A job in this world. Please, Mom. Just ask him if he'll talk to me for a minute?"

More silence, then another sigh. "Hang on."

I waited, nervously twisting the fabric of my bed's duvet. What would happen? The two most likely options were that either my mom would relay his refusal or they would simply hang up on me. But, no. It was Roland's voice I heard next.

"Yes?" Cold. Wary.

After everything that had just happened to me in the Otherworld, hearing his voice nearly broke me. I wanted to sob and beg him to forgive me. Beg him to love me again. My mom had undoubtedly done a fair share of that already, though. She'd clearly had no luck. I had no reason to believe I'd fare any better, so I made my tone match his as I swallowed back tears. Just business here.

"I need a referral," I said brusquely. "To a private investigator. One who isn't going to be freaked out by the stuff we deal with. I figured you must know someone."

"You need a P.I. to deal with some monster?" he asked harshly.

"No, no. It actually should be pretty mundane - all human stuff. But considering what we do ... Well, I thought I should have someone prepared in case things get weird." I didn't have any reason for Deanna to interact directly with a P.I. - or for me even to mention her - but I wanted to be safe.

"Well," said Roland. "Let's make it clear: 'we' don't do the same kinds of things."

With great effort, I bit off the retorts that wanted to burst out of me. I wanted to explain for the hundredth time that I'd never expected - or wanted - to reach this level of involvement in the Otherworld. Again, I opted for directness.

"Please, Roland," I said simply. "This is for a human family. Just forget about me for a minute."

When he didn't respond, I thought for sure the anticipated hang-up would come. "Enrique Valdez," he said at last. "You should be able to look up his number. I'll call too and give him a heads-up."

"Oh, Roland. Thank you so - "

Click.

There it was. I pulled the phone away and held it in front of me again, staring at it as though it were to blame for all my problems. A few moments later, I tossed it on the floor. Anger surged through me, quickly fading into sadness. My eyes fell on my travel pack in the corner, the pack containing the Iron Crown. That - and all it represented - was the source of my problems.

I fell back onto my bed, staring up at the glow-in-the-dark stars stuck on my ceiling. Roland, Dorian ... I was losing the men in my life. Why, why had Dorian done that? Why had he let me fall in love with him, only to play me? Was that what love meant to him? Was that how all his relationships worked? He'd hurt me, hurt me so terribly, and the petty, dark voice that lived inside me said that if sleeping with Kiyo had hurt Dorian in return, it was no more than he deserved.

Kiyo.

Kiyo was all I had left now, and I didn't know if I could trust him either. Before I could ruminate very much on that particular woe, a cold presence filled the room. I sat up quickly, putting aside all my self-pity as Volusian materialized before me.

"Mistress," he said.

"Volusian," I replied. "What's going on?"

"I've come with a message, as you requested." As always, his words were emotionless, yet he somehow conveyed the feeling that he resented every one of them. "Queen Katrice has responded to your news of the Iron Crown."

That was fast, even for the Otherworld. "And?"

"And, she has agreed to a temporary truce."

I shot up from the bed. "You have got to be kidding."

Volusian didn't respond. I'd long since learned that any comment I made about him joking or kidding was treated rhetorically. Volusian did not joke or kid.

"It worked," I murmured, more to myself than him. "I can't believe it. Dorian was right."

"Indeed. But I assume my mistress will not resume carnal relations with him."

I made a face. If there was anyone I hated discussing my sex life with more than Jasmine, it was Volusian. "No. It doesn't matter if he was right. He lied to me to make it happen. He should have told me the whole story. He used half-truth