Page 60 of Elven Lies

Rebecca hurried that way, beckoning Rowan with a sharp look to join her.

He kept laughing. “You really pulled through, Kaplan. I didn’t know what to expect, but I’m pleasantly surprised.”

The compliment made the old elf bluster and stammer that much more before he pointed toward the exit and shouted, “Just get out!”

Rowan lifted both hands and backed down the tunnel before spinning around to walk out through the darkness.

Rebecca followed him, their host close on her heels, as if he wouldn’t be satisfied until he saw them both back in the alley.

She didn’t blame him.

“Quickly. Quickly, now. I’m a very busy elf with quite a lot to do. Now, you have everything you need, I trust? Though, if you wanted somewhere truly secure, I recommend making your way back west to Winthrop & Dirledge. The Guardian there can offer you much more than I ever could.”

“Excellent advice,” Rowan replied, grinning. “Thank you. You know what? We might just find ourselves back over that way in the near future. You never know…”

Another rumbling groan filled the tunnel, then the darkness fractured beneath the late-afternoon sunlight flooding in when the door to the alley opened. Despite that alley being situated in shadow between the buildings on either side, the light of day was painfully bright compared to Mr. Kaplan’s hidden workshop.

Rebecca hurried through the open door, but Rowan stopped and turned toward Kaplan again, his grin sharpening. “This world’s a small one, you know. I’ll be sure to ask after you the next time I’m in Colorado.”

Still blustering and huffing, his cheeks taking on a surprising flush of color for the first time, Kaplan practically shoved Rowan backward into the alley, using the door in place of his own hands. “Then I’ll be certain to stay away longer than I planned!”

The door camouflaged against the alley’s brick wall slammed shut with a creak and another echoing boom, followed by thealley walls settling back into place with a much gentler rumble this time. In seconds, all evidence of one old elven gentleman’s private domicile had vanished without a trace.

Rowan threw his head back and laughed, which lasted far longer than Rebecca had the patience to endure. When he finally settled down, swiping at the corners of his eyes, she was already scowling at him.

Rowan met her gaze and chuckled again. “What? It’s all in good fun, you know.”

All in good fun forhim, sure. No one else.

“That could’ve been so much worse,” she said flatly.

“Good thing it wasn’t.”

Shaking her head, Rebecca spun on her heel and took off down the alley toward the street.

“Whoa, wait a minute.” Rowan stumbled after her and caught up as she turned onto the sidewalk without slowing. “Okay, how about this one? Do you even know where this Nexus building is?”

“Yeah, I’ve heard of it.”

“Really? And how is it you know so much about private storage facilities in Chicago? Oh wait. Do you have one too?”

Though she refused to look at him, his constant smirk tickled the side of her face. It was nothing like feeling Maxwell’s gaze. This was more like a mosquito that had landed on her cheek and kept coming back every time she tried to swat it away.

“No,” she said. “I don’t have my own secret storage unit at Nexus.”

“Well then, how?”

“Before I found Shade,” she said, “I ran with a different…group of people, I guess you’d call it.”

“Ooh, listen to that hesitation. I take it this different group had a different flavor to ’em too, yeah? Were theybadguys?”

“No. They were all incredible people, actually.”

Well, most of them, except the son-of-a-bitch Matahg who liked to call himself their boss when they could have argued it was more of a hostage situation in certain scenarios, but that was a whole lifetime ago, wasn’t it?

“The point is,” she continued, “this group I ran with—”

“Let me guess. You guys ran more of a Robin Hood kinda deal.”

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