It was the alarm, of course, that I’d received notice of via my phone. The funny thing was, I didn’t recall setting it before leaving for dinner. However, that didn’t mean that I hadn’t done it. Much like a person may unplug an iron out of habit but not have a specific memory of the act, it was entirely possible that I’d set the alarm as a matter of routine without consciously thinking about it. (There was even an app on my phone that let me activate it remotely, so I might have even done it by accident.)
Regardless of how the alarm had come on, I had popped up expecting to find an intruder to deal with, but such had not been the case. The only person whom I could tell had been inside recently was me. In fact, I only discovered one thing that might be construed as out of order: the door to Myshtal’s room was open, although I was certain I had closed it when I checked the embassy previously.
Just to make sure I was covering all the bases, I reached out both empathically and telepathically. I didn’t encounter any other minds or emotional vibes, so I felt confident that I wasn’t dealing with an invisible burglar or anything along those lines. Basically, it just appeared that there was a glitch in the system – something I’d have to get looked at.
At least now I have something for Kenyon to do, I thought. In fact, I spent a moment debating on whether to call him while the subject was fresh in my mind, but decided against it. I wasn’t sure if he was up, and it was almost as easy to text him. That being the case, I quickly tapped out a message outlining the issue and sent it.
Next, I pulled my empathic and telepathic abilities back to their normal range. Once that was done, I teleported up to my bedroom. The plan was to take a quick shower and go to bed, but I’d only just appeared when my phone rang. It was Myshtal. I let out a soft groan. With everything that had been going on regarding Mouse, I had completely forgotten about her.
“Hey,” I said upon answering, hopefully sounding more enthusiastic than I felt. “What are you up to?”
“On my way to a gala with Monique,” she answered. “Apparently there’s some kind of ‘no cell phone’ rule tonight, so I figured I’d call you now. Were you busy?”
“Not at all,” I said. “As a matter of fact…”
I trailed off as I suddenly heard a distinct sound echoing through the embassy – one that I knew, but had seldom heard: the doorbell.
Basically, the embassy sits on a walled estate, and the only official way in is through a gated entrance. (There are some secret entrances, but the number of people familiar with those is limited.) Typically, visitors drive up to the gate and either call or use an intercom located at the entry to reach someone inside the embassy. At that point, if they’re expected, they get buzzed in (and usually whoever they’re coming to see will meet them at the door).
In this instance, no one had called. No one had reached out via the intercom. Most importantly, I hadn’t buzzed anyone in. (Sure, people occasionally climbed over the wall – usually kids with too much time on their hands – but in those cases, they never rang the bell.) In short, hearing the doorbell was a little bit of a shock.
Once again reaching out empathically, I found myself surprised at who was at the door.
“I’m going to have to call you back,” I said to Myshtal, then barely waited for her acknowledgment before hanging up. As I did so, however, I noticed that Kenyon had responded to my message. I swiftly read the text from him, noting that he’d agreed to tackle the issue of the alarm first thing in the morning. I replied with a brief “Thanks,” before hastily putting my phone away.
Teleporting to the front door, I yanked it open and – even though I already knew who it was – found myself staring at who was outside.
Electra.
Chapter 24
She was dressed as she had been at dinner and was holding two large styrofoam cups with a straw in each.
“Here,” she said, thrusting one of the cups at me as she marched inside.
“What’s this?” I asked as I closed the door.
“Chocolate shake. Dad told me you had to take off, but I figured you shouldn’t have to miss dessert.”
“Uh, thanks,” I mumbled. “You didn’t have to do that.”
“I know, but I wanted to,” she declared with a smile. Then, without waiting for an invitation, she sauntered into the living room and took a seat on the sofa.
“How’d you get in?” I asked.
“You opened the door for me,” she answered with a wink, then patted the seat next to her, indicating I should sit.
“Funny,” I muttered as I plopped down next to her. “I meant the gate.”
“Oh, come on,” Electra cooed. “You’ve seen me in action.”
As she spoke, she held up a hand and I saw an arc of electricity dance across her fingertips.
“So you overrode the code,” I surmised. “Or disrupted the power supply, or something to make the lock disengage.”
“Something like that,” she stated with a smile. Then she gestured towards my shake, saying, “Hey, drink that before it melts. I raced like the dickens to get that to you, so you’d better not let it go to waste.”
Snickering at her playful demand, I took a big sip.
“How is it?” she asked.
“Good,” I replied. “It’s got a little bit of an unusual flavor, but still tastes good.”
“Great. I’m glad you like it.”
Taking another sip, I declared, “I do, but
