We waited in silence. Finally the door swung inward to reveal a long, dim hallway and nothing else. We stepped inside and the door slammed shut behind us. Loch didn’t even pause.
We climbed two flights of stairs then came out in a small foyer. A beautiful brunette sat behind a gleaming, spotless desk. “Please sit,” she said, indicating the leather chairs behind us. “Mr. Sebastian will see you shortly.”
Loch crossed his arms and didn’t move. The receptionist shrugged a delicate shoulder and turned back to her com terminal. Time ticked past in tiny, frozen increments. Standing behind Loch, I settled in for a long wait.
Perhaps twenty minutes later, the brunette looked up from her com terminal. “Mr. Sebastian will see you now,” she said. She indicated the door to her right.
I trailed Loch through the door into a richly appointed office. Real wood floors covered by antique Persian rugs led to a wall of windows looking down on the main avenue through Sedition.
And between us and the windows sat Rhys Sebastian. Rhys and I had started off as friendly acquaintances and had slowly morphed into true friends.
Rhys had acquired a few hard-to-find items for me back when I worked for House von Hasenberg. Thanks to that acquaintance and my knowledge of his skill and discretion, he was one of the first people I’d turned to when I escaped. But back then, he’d been operating from up in the two hundreds.
Rhys had definitely done well for himself. We’d kept in touch regularly over the last two years. He had mentioned his business was doing well, but he had failed to mention how well.
And he knew Marcus.
I smiled under my scarf. This would be interesting.
Rhys stood. He was as tall and nearly as broad as Loch, with the same sense of contained violence that his expensive suit did little to hide. His hair was blond and cut close to his skull. But where Loch was roughly attractive, Rhys was perfectly, classically handsome—a statue of an ancient god brought to life.
“Loch, what brings you to my piece of the world?” Rhys asked as he came out from behind his desk. Rhys’s age had always been difficult for me to estimate, but after seeing him with Marcus, I guessed they were the same age—mid- to late- twenties.
“My friend needs a little something for personal protection,” Loch said. “I figured you could help out.”
Rhys flicked a dismissive glance at me, then paused and looked again. He pulled a blaster seemingly from thin air and pointed it at Loch. “Move away from the lady.”
Loch crossed his arms and stepped closer to me, blocking Rhys from view. “No.”
“It was not a request. Move or I will shoot you, and I won’t be aiming for a limb.”
“You can try,” Loch said.
I peeked around Loch’s shoulder. “Gentlemen, while this is all very amusing, perhaps we could get to the business at hand. Rhys, put the gun away unless you’re planning to shoot me, in which case, Marcus, you have my permission to shoot back.”
Rhys nodded and the gun disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. “Lady Ada, I had to be sure you weren’t being held against your will.”
“You two know each other,” Loch said, something strange in his voice.
“Surprise,” I said. I stepped up beside him. “In my defense, you didn’t specify which Rhys we were going to see, and these are new digs. Very nice, by the way.”
“It was your money that helped me get here, so you have my thanks.”
I tilted my head. “Does that mean you won’t alert the authorities now that I have a substantial price on my head?”
Loch cursed quietly but Rhys just grinned. “I’m rich as hell now. I don’t need your father’s money. And that would be a poor way to show my gratitude. But, in return, I insist you have dinner with me tonight.” A pointed glance at Loch. “Alone.”
“Like hell she will!” Loch growled.
I pushed back my own urge to accept just because Loch refused to let me make my own decisions. It was clear Rhys had added the “alone” stipulation just to yank Loch’s chain. Meeting Rhys again for dinner would be a risk, but he’d helped me before and nothing indicated he would betray me now. Plus he wouldn’t have offered if he didn’t have a reason.
“I’d be delighted,” I said, “as long as I can bring a guest.” Loch settled