Leo looked ill at her description. "Oh gawd, it is Erika."
Otto frowned. "What are you talking about now?"
Leo let out another weary sigh. "Someone local has been Hogging that she works for an immortal shapeshifting warrior who hunts vampires. I had Sue check her out."
Otto looked even more perplexed. "Erika's not a Squire."
"Not technically," Leo said, "but while her father's off on his honeymoon, she's subbing for him and running errands for Ravyn."
"Well, if you really think it's Erika then why didn't you have Tad run a trace on the blog?"
Leo cocked his head in an offended manner. "Because that would involve me actually talking to Tad now, wouldn't it?"
"Yeah, and?"
Clearing his throat, Leo became sullen. In a low, almost embarrassed tone, he said, "I owe him money."
Otto gave him a droll stare. "What has that got to do with anything?"
Leo narrowed his eyes. "I owe him a lot of money."
"Good God, Leo," Kyl said angrily, "given how much you have, how much could you be into him for?"
"Everything, and I mean everything. Hell, I even owe him my Porsche."
Otto's jaw went slack. "You jeopardized us because of debt? You've got to be kidding me."
"Do I look like I'm joking?" No, he looked completely pissed. "Besides, it's not my fault. He cheats at cards."
Kyl made a disgusted noise. "You've been playing poker with him? Are you insane? That man's brain functions like a computer."
"Now you tell me."
Otto disregarded his outburst. "And because of that you put a civilian on a case that should have been turned over to one of us? Jeez, man, what were you thinking?"
Leo rose to his feet. "Get off my back, Otto. I'm the one in charge here in Seattle."
Otto sat back with his arms folded over his chest in a demeanor that said he answered to no one else. "Not if I kill you for incompetence."
Jessica gave an evil smile. "Need us to turn a blind eye?"
Leo narrowed his eyes on her. "Ha, ha. But that doesn't change the fact that we still need to find out definitively if Dark Angel is Erika. And if not Erika, then we need to know if Dark Angel is another one of us, or just a local lunatic."
Otto shook his head in disgust. "I'll check into it."
Leo looked less than convinced Otto could handle it. "And what are you going to do, Otto?"
"What you should have done. I'll simply ask her."
Leo laughed. "You haven't met her, have you?"
"No, why?"
He laughed even harder.
"Wear a Teflon jockstrap," Jessica said under her breath.
Otto rolled his eyes. "Oh, please."