"Yes. As I said, somehow the fact we are connected on a Chi level enabled the connection to deepen. What you felt—" He paused and rose, finally meeting my gaze. His expression was carefully neutral, and the fire in his eyes had disappeared. "What you felt was the energy of my true self."
It was more than that. He knew it, and I knew it. But he obviously wasn’t going to admit it or explain it any more than he had.
I flexed my fingers, still feeling the energy of his touch on my arm—just as I could still feel the remnants of that connection burning deep inside. I suspected it wouldn’t be something I’d easily forget.
Yet I had to. No good would ever come of it. Both instinct and head were suggesting that, and I believed them both.
"What do you wish done with the shifter?" he said calmly, as if he weren’t aware of my thoughts or the tumult that still burned within me.
I took a deep breath that did little to calm anything, and said, "Can you get a name out of him?"
He nodded, then bent down and touched the shifter’s forehead again. "James Larson. He’s a small-time thief who generally survives by picking pockets at the St. Kilda market."
"I wonder why my father chose him to deliver the book."
Azriel shrugged as he rose. "That is something you will have to ask your father."
And my father was about as easy to get a straight answer from as Azriel. And he was a whole lot more difficult to find. "Can you erase any memory of us questioning him from Larson’s mind? You never know; my father might decide to use him again."
"He will not remember us. I have already ensured that."
"Good." I glanced at my watch. I really needed to get going if I was going to meet Mike in time. Then I had to get over to the Brindle. And if I didn’t start doing some work on Hunter’s case, the shit was going to hit the fan—although Hunter herself had yet to come through with her list. Nor had Catherine Alston. It was rather hard to follow up on things when I wasn’t getting full cooperation. But maybe that was the whole point. Maybe Madeline—or rather, the council—just wanted to see how I coped on my own.
"If these lists are important to solving this case, why not simply call her and ask for them?"
I snorted softly. "Because I’d really prefer to keep my contact with Hunter to a minimum."
"But would it not be better to solve this case quickly? That would at least prove to the council you are capable of such tasks."