The Queen loosened Mrs. Hudson’s leash enough for the pug, who was unharmed, to scamper over to me and lick my face. I scooped her up, her warm little body a welcome comfort.
Her Majesty was resplendent in red leather pants and a red sweater that hugged her curves. Her dark lustrous hair was pulled into a high ponytail. “Do you plan to continue to dig up my past?” she said.
“No.”
“And what of your present, Ashira Cohen? Were I to ask you about Jezebels, how forthcoming would you be?”
A sense of calm settled over me. “If you were my ally? Entirely.”
She quirked a brow.
With one final pat, I released Mrs. Hudson, who immediately attacked a stray dandelion.
“You’ve always kept your word. I can’t—no, I don’t want to undertake this fight on my own.” I stood up. “For now, will you help me find Jonah?”
The Queen handed me the leash, along with my purse that she’d also been holding. “It’s doubtful I’ll find him faster than you.”
I swallowed the knot in my throat. She didn’t want the alliance. Nodding, I started off across the lawn with the puppy, bound for the tiny plaza and my way home, when the Queen called my name.
“That was a compliment, chica. Learn to recognize them.”
A flash of gold flew at me. I caught the item one-handed. It was a token, the same as Moran had, heavy and permanent. The all-access pass.
My giddy grin was barely professional. “Is this the beginning of a beautiful friendship?”
She rolled her eyes, but there was a hint of a smile on her lips as she walked away.
I was practically skipping as Mrs. Hudson and I emerged at Moriarty, still parked in the parkade next to Harbour Center. I’d won over this mysterious, smart, conniving, and dangerous woman. Think she’d lend me her stylist?
I checked the time on my phone and winced. I hadn’t been gone as long as I’d feared, maybe three hours, but parking fees around here were a bitch.
As I got the pug settled in the car, a photo came through of a man with half of his face puckered in old burn scars, carrying groceries.
Arkady: Avi Chomsky. Zihuatanejo edition. This him?
I zoomed in on the photo, but while the general facial features matched my memory, I couldn’t make a definitive call. He was definitely a contender. This was the most real that my reunion with Dad had ever been. I was excited for this new door, this new chapter in our relationship to open up.
Me: I’ll see you in Mexico.
Arkady wouldn’t be in Zihuatanejo to greet me because he had to dash back to Ottawa to deal with a family issue that had come up. Levi did not throw a shit fit when I phoned him upon hearing what had happened in Hedon, which I gave him all the credit for. But he was so relieved that I’d gotten out in one piece that he didn’t seem capable of any other emotion. Even the alliance and my shiny new token only warranted a faint “way to go.”
Shock and joy warred within me. I had the gold coin, I’d secured a valuable ally. But at the same time, all I wanted was to ask Levi to cancel all his meetings so that he could curl up under the covers with me. I wanted to forget about my dad and Mexico and Rafael and codenames, just stay in, eat biscotti, watch Netflix, and try to remember how to breathe fully without worrying that I’d run out of air.
“You can’t just take off,” I said to Levi’s grumble that I was taking Rafael to Mexico. “You’ll give Veronica a brain aneurysm.” I pulled the emergency brake up, cutting the engine, but leaving the radio on. I patted the passenger seat and the pug scrambled forward with a happy bark.
“Isn’t that your life goal?” Levi said.
“Obviously, but I have to be the one to make her head explode. It’s no fun if I only get an assist and not the actual score on goal. Besides, I’m not taking Rafael for his stellar company. He’s a contingency plan. If the scroll is there, he has to handle it.”
“All right. Hey, maybe we could get away for a weekend? I find myself thinking fond thoughts of a certain hot tub in Tofino.”
God, yes. That would be my reward, after the Queen, and all the emotions surrounding finally seeing Dad. Alone time with Levi.
“It’s a date.” I eyed my apartment window. “I should go upstairs and pack. The flight’s in three hours.”
“Don’t you just heave things into a suitcase? I don’t see this as a stressful issue for you.”
“Priya’s home. I haven’t spoken to her since last night.” Today had proven that life could throw a deadly curveball at any moment. Relationship issues were not to be put off, not when you valued the person involved.
The traffic report ended and the radio announcer moved into the news. The first story was the passing of local philanthropist Richard Frieden, age seventy-nine. It cut to a sound bite from Jackson Wu.
“As you all know,” Jackson said, “Richard was a lifelong friend, mentor, and business partner of mine. Not to mention a great supporter of the Untainted Party.”
Levi snorted. “Try one of the original founders of the party. The guy was a weasel.”
I snapped off the radio. “Okay Coach, I’m going in.”
“You got a plan?” Levi said.
I glanced at Mrs. Hudson. “Even better.”
Given the amount of kisses that Priya lavished on the pug, you’d think they’d been stranded on a desert island at some point with only each other for company, and after a tragic separation where Priya feared the dog lost at sea, were together
