Page 166 of Elven Shadow

She didn’t have to prove herself to anyone, least of all Maxwell Hannigan. Not to mention the fact that if she really was going in for this meeting with Harkennr, that self-important swindler calling himself a businessman would absolutely recognize her.

How could he not, even after all this time?

After what she’d done to him and his forces before she’d left him all alone in the dark to clean up the trail of death and destruction she’d left in her wake just to get away from him?

She couldn’t take Maxwell with her. Not in a million years. She couldn’t take anyone from Shade with her.

But now, Maxwell had gotten so excited about a real mission, he was finally fully occupied with something else.

And Rebecca was finally alone again. Unwatched. Unguarded.

Free to do whatever she wanted.

Yes, this was it. This was her chance.

She might never have another chance like this again.

Or if she did, Rebecca was already certain that by the time that chance presented itself, the poison in her veins would have already killed her.

Screw it. She was already half-dead at this point. To avoid becoming all-dead, she had to move right now.

As long as she didn’t get caught, she might even make it to tomorrow.

41

With aroaring surge of urgency fluttering in her gut toget moving, Rebecca dropped the stone figurine into the center desk drawer just as the door to her office burst open again, damn near startling her into summoning a crackling orb of battle magic in response.

“Okay, listen!” she snapped. “Even Head of Security needs to knock. Got it?”

“Right. Sorry.” Maxwell cleared his throat, then narrowed his eyes at her as he poked his head through the door. “One more thing, though. What about—”

Rebecca faked one of her most violent coughing fits yet, using it to both waylay his detailed questions and to cover up the sound of her palming one more vial of invisible meds from the center drawer. Only once she had it did she slump back in the office chair to keep coughing while slipping the vial into her jacket pocket.

Maxwell’s concerned frown was all she needed to see to know she’d given a convincing performance.

“Doesn’t sound good,” he muttered.

“It’s not,” she croaked between coughs. “I just need…”

She cleared her throat, swallowed, coughed heavily a few more times, then threw her head back in the chair and gasped for the breath she finally let herself take. “Damn. I just need some rest.”

“Right.” He nodded and hesitantly stepped through the door, watching her closely. “You should get as much as you need before tomorrow night.”

“My thoughts exactly,” she replied, feigning a return of weakness and illness she simply didn’t feel.

Not after her most recent vial-dose, anyway.

Rebecca pushed herself laboriously out of the chair and staggered toward the door. “I think I’m just gonna go crash for a while.”

“Good idea.”

She’d hoped he would just leave her alone once she stepped through the office door, but no. She should’ve known she wouldn’t bethatlucky.

Instead, Maxwell held the door open for her, pulled it shut once she entered the hallway, then resumed his previously obnoxious position of following her dutifully at a distance of no more than three feet.

Great. Now she reallyhadto go to her room. It wasn’t necessarily the worst thing, but it definitely wasn’t where she wanted to be right now.

Patience. Patience was still key, here.

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