Page 17 of Secrets of the Forgotten Heir

‘Thank you.’

‘I’d better get off, but I’ll see you bright and early and ready to start work tomorrow.’

Ugh. Bright and early. My nemesis.

Yanni was obviously preparing to leave – she no doubt had a tonne of police business to attend to – but I had a question I needed her to answer first. ‘Yanni, about the job.’ I tried to keep my voice as level as possible.

‘Yes?’ Her eyes narrowed. ‘What about it?’

‘How do you feel about me bringing a dog along?’

Her expression didn’t change but I could practically hear her brain screeching to a halt. Her mouth hung open in surprise.

Was that a no, or… ?

Chapter Eleven

Yanni groaned, though a smile twitched the corner of her lips. ‘I feel like this is the type of question I can’t say no to,’ she said.

‘Well, I’m not saying I wouldn’t try to sneak her in if you did, but… ’

She chuckled and her smile widened. ‘Fine – as long as she behaves herself.’

‘She will,’ I promised with a rush of relief. Probably. Hopefully. There was a chance Eva might eat a document or two, but that was a small price to pay for workplace morale.

I was so used to having Eva with me now that I’d hate to be without her, plus I wasn’t sure how she’d cope with being left at home alone all day. What if she tore the place to shreds? Maddie would probably be there protecting the secret of the extinguished Flameandthe furniture but even so… Eva and I had been joined at the hip for the last three years and I knew that I’d struggle without her.

Relieved that wasn’t going to happen, I was about to say goodbye when Yanni spoke again. ‘You’re staying at your house with Maddie?’ she asked.

‘Yes, of course. Why?’

A hint of a frown crossed her features before she wiped it away. ‘Could you keep an eye on her for me? She’s been a bit short with me these last couple of weeks, though I’m sure it’s only the stress of opening the tattoo shop.’

‘She’s opening a shop?’ I tried to hide my surprise. It didn’t work.

Yanni shook her head. ‘You two have a lot to catch up on.’

I nodded sombrely. ‘We do.’

For a moment, I thought she’d hug me again so I instinctively drew in a deep breath and steeled my muscles. Instead she leaned forward and kissed my cheek. ‘Tell Amara to take it easy, okay?’ Then she walked away with her characteristic swagger.

There had been a time in my life when I’d wanted to be like Yanni, full of self-belief, authority and rules, but as I grew up I came to appreciate that life was not always black and white. I was pretty sure authority was there to be defied, though I still wanted her self-belief, the confidence to say, ‘No, officer, I did not see that traffic sign,’ with absolute conviction.

As I walked down the corridor, I glanced through the windows into the rooms. In the first one there was a couple with a newborn that was constantly flicking from human to tabby kitten. Adorable. And slightly terrifying. But mostly adorable.

In the next room a teenager was scowling impressively as casts were being set around both their arms. Ouch. I guessed someone was allergic to the bone-healing potion. If that had been me, I’d have been a heck of a lot more careful than this kid evidently had been.

When I reached the third window, I slowed because I could see Warren Storcrest through the slats of the blinds. He was a brute of a man, only a couple of inches shorter than Yanni. If memory served me right, he was either a whale or a shark shifter, though he could have easily been some other great sea creature. He wasdefinitelya water shifter, I knew that much.

I never remembered him looking so frail. His skin was pallid and his cheeks hollow, though he was forcing himself to smile at the young woman beside him. From the way he was sitting up and stroking her head like she was still a child, I assumed she was his daughter Jennifer. He was obviously alright;shewas the one that needed soothing. I left them to it.

Fraser Banks was waiting patiently in the corridor; he was here to see Warren, but he’d clearly accepted that family should go first. He leant against the wall whilst he waited for Jennifer to leave.

He nodded as I walked past him. I nodded in return – fractionally – because mum didn’t raise me to be rude.

The blinds were closed in the next room so I knocked on the door. ‘Knock, knock,’ I said, in that way people do when they want to make it clear who’s there. ‘Can I come in?’

‘The door’s open,’ a voice called from inside.

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