her throat, she shot me a snarky
glance. Moving to the elevator, she disappeared without a single
word.
Toby laughed under his breath. “Woo, boy. She is pissed at you, Rose." Feeling a wad of fear well up in my throat, I nodded. I had done far worse than steal her collar. I had embarrassed her in front of our coworkers. She would not let this end well. Turning back, I saw Maynard leaning in his doorframe waiting for me. "Your turn, Rose,” he announced as calmly as possible. He leaned his head slightly to the right and spotted my Werewolf protégé. “Morning, Toby.” He paused. “You might as well join us on this one." Toby looked awestruck for a moment, but quickly let it drop realizing the disciplining was complete. It was time to get back to work.
Holding his coffee carefully, Toby followed me into Maynard's office. I couldn't help but notice how he clung to my heels as we walked, almost like a loyal pet. The wolf was starting to show dominance while he was in human form.Interesting. Sliding into one of the cushy chairs, I set my coffee mug on the edge of Maynard's desk. His office was a mixture of black and wood tones. I wondered if it made a tree Demon uneasy to have a wooden desk. It didn't seem to bother Maynard, although there were more potted plants in his office than in the rest of the building. It was his personal forest. Long ago the Dendros Demons were protectors of forests. There were rumors some Dendros had never left their posts. They were still fighting off developers and loggers encroaching on their trees. Maybe Maynard still needed his own little grove to protect. Crossing my legs, I folded my hands in my lap and waited. I saw Toby do the same out of the corner of my eye.
Maynard shut his office door and walked around to his padded leather chair. He looked at Toby then back to me as he sat down. “Why do I keep putting up with you, Rose?" I shrugged. “Because I'm a pretty good Seeker?" Maynard snorted. “Must be it.” He leaned back with a squeak of leather. “I'm not going to scold you, but you know messing with a Witch is dangerous business, especially if the Tribunal learns of it. You know how they feel about one of their own being assaulted by another Inhuman." He was doing his best to be my friend and not my boss. I wasn't sure it was working out so well. Still it was good advice. The Brimstone Tribunal, a coven of thirteen Witches, was especially protective of other Witches in the syndicate. It was almost a weird form of nepotism. Maynard lifted a red folder from his desk and tossed it to me. Flipping it open, I quickly started to leaf through a series of black and white photos. I didn't recognize any of the subjects but they all looked like—
"Vampires,” Maynard confirmed, a step ahead of my inevitable question. “A whole brood in downtown. They've been snatching tourists off the Strip. One or two I might be able to turn the other way, but this is becoming an epidemic. They've killed four this week already." And it was only Tuesday.
Toby laughed under his breath. “Woo, boy. She is pissed at you, Rose." Feeling a wad of fear well up in my throat, I nodded. I had done far worse than steal her collar. I had embarrassed her in front of our coworkers. She would not let this end well. Turning back, I saw Maynard leaning in his doorframe waiting for me. "Your turn, Rose,” he announced as calmly as possible. He leaned his head slightly to the right and spotted my Werewolf protégé. “Morning, Toby.” He paused. “You might as well join us on this one." Toby looked awestruck for a moment, but quickly let it drop realizing the disciplining was complete. It was time to get back to work.
Holding his coffee carefully, Toby followed me into Maynard's office. I couldn't help but notice how he clung to my heels as we walked, almost like a loyal pet. The wolf was starting to show dominance while he was in human form.Interesting. Sliding into one of the cushy chairs, I set my coffee mug on the edge of Maynard's desk. His office was a mixture of black and wood tones. I wondered if it made a tree Demon uneasy to have a wooden desk. It didn't seem to bother Maynard, although there were more potted plants in his office than in the rest of the building. It was his personal forest. Long ago the Dendros Demons were protectors of forests. There were rumors some Dendros had never left their posts. They were still fighting off developers and loggers encroaching on their trees. Maybe Maynard still needed his own little grove to protect. Crossing my legs, I folded my hands in my lap and waited. I saw Toby do the same out of the corner of my eye.
Maynard shut his office door and walked around to his padded leather chair. He looked at Toby then back to me as he sat down. “Why do I keep putting up with you, Rose?" I shrugged. “Because I'm a pretty good Seeker?" Maynard snorted. “Must be it.” He leaned back with a squeak of leather. “I'm not going to scold you, but you know messing with a Witch is dangerous business, especially if the Tribunal learns of it. You know how they feel about one of their own being assaulted by another Inhuman." He was doing his best to be my friend and not my boss. I wasn't sure it was working out so well. Still it was good advice. The Brimstone Tribunal, a coven of thirteen Witches, was especially protective of other Witches in the syndicate. It was almost a weird form of nepotism. Maynard lifted a red folder from his desk and tossed it to me. Flipping it open, I quickly started to leaf through a series of black and white photos. I didn't recognize any of the subjects but they all looked like—
"Vampires,” Maynard confirmed, a step ahead of my inevitable question. “A whole brood in downtown. They've been snatching tourists off the Strip. One or two I might be able to turn the other way, but this is becoming an epidemic. They've killed four this week already." And it was only Tuesday.