She had a smart mouth and I doubted that this Institute was a better job if it led to her running away. But, maybe the Institute was the exception and would be a lucrative career.
“It’s policy to complete the background investigations until the prospective employee rescinds the offer. Now with that out of the way, what can you tell me about the Institute of Reawakening?”
“It’s in Ashton, but super exclusive. Look lady, we really need to go. Class is gonna start soon. You should check it out. They give tours since they don’t let many people attend.”
“Thank you for your time. If you think of anything else, can you leave a message for me at Wolf Agency?”
“Okay, but we don’t know anything else.”
“Just in case. That’s where you can reach me.”
Once the girls left, I rounded on Miles.
“Am I under surveillance now? I don’t need you babysitting me. I’ve got a handle on my magic. Tell the Guild Master that I don’t need you shadowing me?
“Are you done?”
“Yes,” and turned my back on the infuriating man.
“You’re just mad because I helped you.”
That gave me pause. “I’d have gotten the answers out of them even without you here.”
“The Guild Master didn’t ask me to babysit. I’m doing it for myself. I personally think you are a risk and could be lethal. I won’t have that on my conscience. And, you don’t have control. You’re deluded if you think you do. It’s not a matter of if you lose control Marty, but when.”
I didn’t need this. Miles breathing down my neck would only scare away witnesses and to think I refused getting Roc’s assistance for the same reason. And, I didn’t trust Miles. First training and now stalking, Miles certainly was a multi-skilled enforcer.
“Well, unless you need to follow me home, I’m leaving.”
“I’ll be watching you.” He gave me a salute and I barely resisted the urge to give him the finger. “See you tomorrow, trainee.”
“Yeah, can hardly wait.”
I needed to return to Lochlan’s house. In my rush this morning, I forgot to get the address for Mr. Hamm, so I could set up surveillance for his supposedly unfaithful spouse. And, a visit to the Institute of Reawakening was definitely a must. Having to backtrack just wasted time I didn’t have. If Sterling was pushing for us to close cases it meant our financial situation was even more dire than I thought.
Back at Lochlan’s house, I found Callie and Jennica curled up on the couch munching on something.
“You look worse than us,” said Callie.
“The training is harder than I imagined. What are you eating?”
“Biscuits. They are surprisingly good,” said Callie.
“Since when do we have biscuits?”
“Since someone left them as a gift on our door,” said Callie.
I froze.
“You are eating food that was left at the door and don’t know who it came from?”
“Yeah,” said Callie.
I smacked the biscuit out of Callie’s hand. Then snacked the remaining ones from the table and threw them on the floor. Muffin tried to eat them, but I quickly stomped on them until they were crumbs.
“Why did you do that?” asked Callie.
Jennica looked like I kicked a kitten and even Muffin looked upset. “What is your deal?”
“Why would you eat random food anywhere in the fae lands?” I asked.
“We didn’t think it was that big of a deal, Marty,” said Jennica.
“You two have the survival instincts of a lemming. Did it not occur to either of you that it might not be safe to eat these?”
“Are you throwing a party with all of the noise going on down here?” asked Sterling, who came down the stairs.
I knew he heard our entire conversation and his question was meant to defuse the situation. With his shifter hearing, he knew exactly what we were talking about and it wasn’t anything like a party.
“Marty, you and I are going to the Earthly Realm,” he said.
“Fine. And you two, stay away from biscuits and other mystery food,” I said.
Muffin and I followed Sterling out. We made small talk on the way to the portal, but I was on alert, scanning for signs of my father. Those lousy biscuits, such an innocent item, but packed with so much meaning.
“Since we have no idea when we’ll get time together, tell me about your case.”
I caught him up to date on my case and he told me about his cases. Why isn’t he asking about my biscuit freak out? He was being uncharacteristically patient.
Once back on the Earthly Realm, Sterling directed me towards the Mid Line.
“Where are we going?”
“It’s a surprise,” he said.
“Okay.”
People made considerable effort to move around Muffin. One man went to the drastic measure of throwing himself into a pond to get away from the devil dog. It was melodramatic, but funny at the same time. Muffin didn’t mind. He continued walking next to us — his tongue dangling out of his mouth in a dog-like manner.
Sterling stopped at BAM, or Big Ass Mega Burger, one of my favorite places to eat. Just seeing the sign made my mouth water. This was my happy place and I hadn’t been here since I went with Lochlan. I frowned, thinking of the fae. Resisting him was proving difficult and he crept into my thoughts more and more.
“So, we’re doing lunch?” I asked.
“That’s usually why someone comes to a restaurant, unless you’d prefer watching everyone eat instead.”
“Nope, most definitely not. You’re buying.”
We ordered and brought our food to one of the few empty booths. BAM was always busy and it created a constant background noise, which was perfect for having conversations you didn’t want anyone to hear. That was probably why Sterling chose this place.
“So what do you want to talk about?” I asked, wanting to get to the point. Going out to lunch when we have so much going on was a waste of time even if it was for a BAM burger.
“To the point as always. When have I not taken care of you or had your best interests at heart?”
Where
