Page 43 of Elven Lies

“Isn’t everything?” Rowan asked before winking at the shifter.

Maxwell’s body tensed, like he was about to surge toward the elf, but he froze when Rebecca asked her next question.

“Well, how about this, then? Does anyone have any better ideas than hunting down this alleged key-maker?”

The four members of her council still in their seats either shook their heads or stared at the table. Bor dipped his head with a sigh and started massaging both temples.

No better options than jumping on this long shot Rowan had suggested, and now she couldn’t even punish him for literallyspying on this meeting right outside the door, because he was the only one here with an idea.

Itwasa long shot, but it was better than nothing.

Setting her jaw, she returned her attention to Rowan and nodded. “Fine. Where do we find this key-maker, Blackmoon?”

A tittering laugh escaped him. “I can’ttellyou. I have to take you there myself and show you.”

“Out of the question,” Maxwell growled.

“Hold on.” Rebecca lifted a hand to stop him. “If there’s a chance this key opens something beneficial to us, that’s a chance I’m willing to take. So if you have to show us, Blackmoon, then take us there and show us.”

“Absolutely.” Rowan took several more steps toward her, strutting around again like he still in the middle of a performance. “I would love to. On one condition.”

By the Blood, it never stopped with him.

“Which is?” Rebecca prompted.

“I’ll take you there, Roth-Da’al,” he said, pointing at her. “Andonlyyou.”

“You are in no position to make any demands at all, elf!” Maxwell shouted. “Certainly not like this.”

Rowan shrugged. “Those are my terms. Take ’em or leave ’em.”

“Why would anyone agree to let you do anything alone with the Roth-Da’al?” Maxwell argued. “After everything you’ve already compromised since the moment you arrived? You can’t laugh your way out of this one. It won’t happen.”

“I’ll laugh as much as I like, thank you very much.” The Blackmoon Elf spun around, this time to face the shifter head-on. “And correct me if I’m wrong, but I thought the Roth-Da’al called the shots. You can grumble and complain all you want, but it won’t make a difference.”

“No one trusts you enough to allow this.”

“Oh, and I suppose you’re about to tell me they trustyou, is that it?” Rowan spat. “The lone wolf heading the charge. When was the last time you got friendly with anyone in the city, wolf? Or any city? Plus,I’vegot contacts. What doyouhave? Targets? Lunch?”

“Keep running your mouth, elf,” Maxwell snarled, “and you won’t be using it much longer.”

While they bickered away and postulated, trying to one-up each other for no reason Rebecca could discern other than this had become their new pastime, Maxwell and Rowan had drawn steadily toward each other and the center of her office, giving everyone else in the room quite the show.

Even when it looked like they were about to come to physical blows again, right here in front of everyone, no one moved to intervene.

Rebecca couldn’t blame the others for not wanting to put themselves between their Head of Security and their newest operative. But if someone didn’t do something, this meeting would stop being a brainstorming session on how to find Shade more resources and would turn into something else altogether.

Like an emergency response situation when these two hurt each other and themselves because they couldn’t figure out how to play nice.

There was already one banged-up katari in the infirmary. Rebecca couldn’t afford to lose anyone else. Not with everything Shade faced now.

But these two were bound to explode eventually. If they didn’t shape up fast, the collateral damage would cost everyone more than they could afford. And now Rebecca was starting to worry her already precarious hold over Rowan teetered on the edge of failing entirely.

15

Rebecca’s head pounded with the effort of trying to maintain her composure. She wanted to give Maxwell and Rowan space and time to solve their own issues, but both of those were currently in short supply.

“Say that again, elf,” Maxwell growled, cocking back a fist as he loomed over Rowan.

---