having to call in any favors to get them to go away.”
“I don’t think you need to worry about that,” Thea said. “Detective Holgersen also said he’s been straight-up told not to bother investigating furies.”
That perked Alecto up. “Has he?”
“He’s pretty mad about it.”
Alecto chuckled. “So it was my sister calling in the favors. Now that’s interesting.”
“What do you mean?” Thea asked.
“I didn’t get them to back off,” Alecto said. “So it must have been Megaira.”
“Why would she do that?” Victor asked. “She’s the one who tried to pin it on us in the first place.”
“But it didn’t work as well as she hoped,” Alecto said. “So she went to plan B and shut the whole investigation down. Someone with enough authority to be troublesome must have heard our side of the story, and started poking around Fury Unlimited.”
“Or it could just be that Holgersen’s boss is one of the ones who don’t believe in purple dragon people,” Thea said with a shrug. “And that’s why he told Holgersen to back off.”
But Alecto shook her head. “Trust me, Maggie reached out to someone. We trade in hexes. Those are useful things, for a career in politics. We have friends at pretty much every level of government.”
Thea stared at her. “You’re telling me you just, what, hex their rivals for them? What happened to not hexing anybody undeserving?”
Victor, who had had many an argument with Thea over the concept of deserving , snickered. “Show me an undeserving politician.”
Alecto nodded at him. “Pretty much that.”
Thea sighed. She didn’t have the energy to take up another fight anyway. “Fair enough, I guess.”
Holgersen called her that same night.
“If you want to know about the protest, I wasn’t allowed to go,” Thea said.
“I didn’t even know there was a protest,” said Holgersen. “Denise Forrester has agreed to meet with you, as long as I’m present and we’re in public. She seemed to think you have some way to appear human.”
“I do. Where and when?”
“You know the Fairview Diner off Route 63?”
“I can find it.”
“Brunch on Sunday, eleven o’clock.”
Thea arrived at the appointed time to find Holgersen and Dr. Forrester already seated. The doctor shrank back in the booth when she caught Thea’s eye.
Holgersen, on the other hand, didn’t even recognize Thea until she sat down. Then he stared at her for a solid thirty seconds, mouth slightly open, before Thea sighed and said, “No.”
“No?” Holgersen asked. “No what?”
“No, I was not on Celebrity Dance-Off . Is that what you were going to ask?”
He looked completely befuddled, but Dr. Forrester smiled and said, “You were Baird Frost’s girlfriend!”
“The Benjamin Stake guy?” Holgersen looked from Dr. Forrester to Thea.
“I didn’t realize,” Dr. Forrester said. “I never knew you as a human.”
“Funny, I was just thinking the same thing about you,” Thea snapped.
“You’re quipping again,” said Holgersen. “It really doesn’t become you.”
“And you’re just trying to break the tension,” said Thea. She looked back at the doctor, who looked nervous again.
“Why didn’t you kill me?” Dr. Forrester asked quietly. “That last day, when you got away?”
Thea shrugged. “It wasn’t necessary. Funny though, even though I didn’t kill you, when I very obviously could have killed you, you were awfully quick to accuse me of killing Boyd Lexington. And his family. And several of his neighbors. Despite the fact that I’d never even met the guy.”
“I saw the picture of you, holding Talbott,” Dr. Forrester said. “And you were…”
“I was…?” Thea prompted. She leaned forward to peer at— into —Dr. Forrester.
Shame. There might not be a murdered boy clinging to her back, but she’s wearing shame, almost as thick and heavy as Mr. Delacroix was.
“You feel guilty !” Thea said out loud. “It’s not that you think
“I don’t think you need to worry about that,” Thea said. “Detective Holgersen also said he’s been straight-up told not to bother investigating furies.”
That perked Alecto up. “Has he?”
“He’s pretty mad about it.”
Alecto chuckled. “So it was my sister calling in the favors. Now that’s interesting.”
“What do you mean?” Thea asked.
“I didn’t get them to back off,” Alecto said. “So it must have been Megaira.”
“Why would she do that?” Victor asked. “She’s the one who tried to pin it on us in the first place.”
“But it didn’t work as well as she hoped,” Alecto said. “So she went to plan B and shut the whole investigation down. Someone with enough authority to be troublesome must have heard our side of the story, and started poking around Fury Unlimited.”
“Or it could just be that Holgersen’s boss is one of the ones who don’t believe in purple dragon people,” Thea said with a shrug. “And that’s why he told Holgersen to back off.”
But Alecto shook her head. “Trust me, Maggie reached out to someone. We trade in hexes. Those are useful things, for a career in politics. We have friends at pretty much every level of government.”
Thea stared at her. “You’re telling me you just, what, hex their rivals for them? What happened to not hexing anybody undeserving?”
Victor, who had had many an argument with Thea over the concept of deserving , snickered. “Show me an undeserving politician.”
Alecto nodded at him. “Pretty much that.”
Thea sighed. She didn’t have the energy to take up another fight anyway. “Fair enough, I guess.”
Holgersen called her that same night.
“If you want to know about the protest, I wasn’t allowed to go,” Thea said.
“I didn’t even know there was a protest,” said Holgersen. “Denise Forrester has agreed to meet with you, as long as I’m present and we’re in public. She seemed to think you have some way to appear human.”
“I do. Where and when?”
“You know the Fairview Diner off Route 63?”
“I can find it.”
“Brunch on Sunday, eleven o’clock.”
Thea arrived at the appointed time to find Holgersen and Dr. Forrester already seated. The doctor shrank back in the booth when she caught Thea’s eye.
Holgersen, on the other hand, didn’t even recognize Thea until she sat down. Then he stared at her for a solid thirty seconds, mouth slightly open, before Thea sighed and said, “No.”
“No?” Holgersen asked. “No what?”
“No, I was not on Celebrity Dance-Off . Is that what you were going to ask?”
He looked completely befuddled, but Dr. Forrester smiled and said, “You were Baird Frost’s girlfriend!”
“The Benjamin Stake guy?” Holgersen looked from Dr. Forrester to Thea.
“I didn’t realize,” Dr. Forrester said. “I never knew you as a human.”
“Funny, I was just thinking the same thing about you,” Thea snapped.
“You’re quipping again,” said Holgersen. “It really doesn’t become you.”
“And you’re just trying to break the tension,” said Thea. She looked back at the doctor, who looked nervous again.
“Why didn’t you kill me?” Dr. Forrester asked quietly. “That last day, when you got away?”
Thea shrugged. “It wasn’t necessary. Funny though, even though I didn’t kill you, when I very obviously could have killed you, you were awfully quick to accuse me of killing Boyd Lexington. And his family. And several of his neighbors. Despite the fact that I’d never even met the guy.”
“I saw the picture of you, holding Talbott,” Dr. Forrester said. “And you were…”
“I was…?” Thea prompted. She leaned forward to peer at— into —Dr. Forrester.
Shame. There might not be a murdered boy clinging to her back, but she’s wearing shame, almost as thick and heavy as Mr. Delacroix was.
“You feel guilty !” Thea said out loud. “It’s not that you think
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