Proof of Life (The Potentate of Atlanta #4) - Hailey Edwards Page 0,7

the grove,” Seanan told Midas as she joined us. “One wrong move from that cat, and the whole stand of trees would have gone up in smoke. Most weren’t sentient, but we would have lost three elders who are meditating.”

Behind my hand, I explained to Midas, “That means sleeping as a tree for a decade or two.”

“It’s not a bad gig, honestly.” She anchored her hands on her hips. “I’m looking forward to my time.”

From what I could tell, Seanan was a sapling compared to Fergus. Her skin was a warm brown, so were her eyes and her hair, but she wore a human glamour in front of customers that made it impossible to guess her true appearance. “When will that be?”

“Two centuries, give or take.” She winked. “They make us earn our vacations around here.”

While she built up the fire, Midas and I helped two of the waitstaff carry in the supplies for our lesson.

The evening didn’t go as Midas had planned, but we had a good time. Seanan awarded me winner of the prettiest pizza, which wasn’t saying much, then challenged us to a race to see who could eat their lopsided—but delicious—creation the fastest.

No surprise, Midas won. He was a gwyllgi, after all.

As we tidied up our workstations, Seanan reappeared with two boxes, one balanced on each palm.

“Dad made these for you.” She presented the top one to Midas. “This is apple streusel.” Then handed me the other. “This one is really just a giant chocolate chip cookie disguised as a dessert pizza.”

“I would have asked for lessons sooner if I had known we got prizes.” I leaned down and inhaled. “This smells amazing.” Ambrose smoothed his hand reverently along the lid, and Midas mostly hid his jolt of surprise. At times, my shadow still managed to unnerve Midas when he popped in. “I’ve never seen it on the menu.”

“There’s not a big dessert pizza market,” she confessed. “He makes them for family, but that’s about it.”

A wide smile blossomed across my face. “Now I feel even more special.”

“Before your head gets too big to fit out the door, I should remind you that Midas’s family orders our pie by the dozens.” She turned to go. “Nightly.”

“You’re saying I’m only special by association?” I clutched my pizza tighter. “That’s harsh.”

Tossing a wave over her shoulder as she left, she chuckled. “That’s small business for you.”

Juggling his box, Midas removed two twenties from his wallet then placed them on the table.

You could tell a lot about a person by how they treated others, particularly those in the service industry.

Fergus would get his trunk in a twist over it, but Seanan had earned the tip for salvaging our date night.

Out on the sidewalk, I breathed in the cooling night air and the sweet hit of dessert pizza when Midas opened the lid on his.

“I had fun.” He passed me a slice of his treat. “This was nice.”

Answering before I took a bite required iron will, but I managed. “I’m glad you enjoyed yourself.”

“You’re amazing, you know that?”

“That’s the carbs talking. Wait until after you see your food baby, then we’ll see.”

We had to walk past Choco-Loco on our way back to the Faraday, and we came to a stop together as if we had planned it.

All that remained was a charred husk, but despite the temperatures required to do that sort of damage, no other buildings had been harmed. That, paired with what Gray told us Aubrey mentioned to him, had me convinced the coven was behind this.

“We have plenty to keep us busy tomorrow.” I forced myself to walk on. “We can’t do a thing tonight.”

The majority of the restaurant staff was human and would have gone home when the store closed at five. That didn’t give them a pass, it just meant waiting until daylight to make calls, secure their alibies, and question them about Chef Daaé’s last-known whereabouts. The after-dark crew would be mostly paras, and better informed, but we had to get our hands on a full list of employees before we started eliminating names.

Usually, I left potential arson up to the sentinels, but this case hit too close to home for me to ignore.

“We have enough time for a movie.” A smile twitched his lips. “I noticed a copy of It Came from Under the Kitchen Sink arrived.”

“You don’t have to watch.” I snorted. “I know you think it’s lame.”

“But you don’t, and that’s what matters.”

Hank watched our approach from his position before the