Page 24 of In Darkness Transformed
“I can help, too.”
“I know, sweetheart. One way or the other, we’ll manage.”
They lapsed into silence for a short time. He obviously had something on his mind but was reluctant to bring it up. She had no doubt what—or actually who—the subject would be when he finally corralled his thoughts.
With a deliberate show of casual interest, he finally asked, “So, how was dinner last night?”
She wouldn’t make it easy for him. She wasn’t some teenager subject to her father’s dictates about who she could date and who she couldn’t. “Good. It was fried chicken night at the diner.”
By this point, his mouth was a straight slash of frustration. “When I drove Bitti back to my house, the cruiser was parked here at the station.”
She walked over to the honor bar and bought a candy bar for each of them. As she opened her own, she sat back down. “I dropped it off for one of the guys to use since I wasn’t scheduled to patrol today.”
“Good thinking. About Eli, did he... did you—”
Okay, it was time to end this discussion once and for all. “Dad, stop right there. For the last time, we are not having this conversation. What Eli and I did or did not do last night is none of your business.”
Her father’s hand slammed down onto her desk. “You’ve already made that perfectly clear. I told you my concerns about him. Now it’s up to you to make the right decision.”
Enough was enough. “And if my definition of ‘right’ doesn’t match up with yours? What then, Dad?”
“Then you put all of us at risk.”
She threw her candy bar across the room and lurched up to her feet. “Don’t you dare lay that guilt trip on me. I’ve spent my entire life protecting our secrets. If you want to point fingers at the ones who’ll most likely bring the Paladins down on all of our heads, then Tiel and his friends are the ones you should be talking to, not me and not Eli.”
It was time to get out of there before the two of them did irreparable harm to their relationship. “It’s my day off. I’m going home.”
He caught up with her before she made it out of the door. “Look, I’m sorry. Maybe I was out of line.”
She glared into gray eyes that matched her own. “Seriously, Dad? Just maybe?”
“Fine. I was out of line.”
That was when she realize how tired he looked. It was easy to forget all he’d been through in the past week, starting with her being attacked and then his father being almost killed. “What can I do to help?”
His shoulders slumped in relief. “Once Will and his people are done poking around up on the mountain, we need to set up a schedule of people to stand watch to figure out how often Tiel and his friends are crossing over and where they hole up when they do. Once we know that, we can organize a group to end this threat before it gets out of hand.”
“Good thinking.” She paused to run through her own schedule in her head. Other than work, there wasn’t anything she couldn’t reschedule. “I’ll take first watch. When should I start?”
“Will’s expecting me to call later to see what they found up there. Once he gives me the all clear, I’ll let you know. But for now, plan on starting the stakeout late tomorrow afternoon or early evening.”
That made sense. Oddly enough, the people from Kalithia who were afflicted with the light disease preferred to cross into this world at night. It took time for them to acclimate to the bright light of the earth’s sun.
“All right. I’ve got a few things I need to get done if I’m going to spend tomorrow night up on the mountain.”
Her father clearly wasn’t happy with the situation. “I hate the idea of you up there alone, but right now I don’t have anyone else I can send. Maybe I’ll join you if your grandfather is doing better.”
“One way or another, we’ll get through this, Dad.” She gave him a quick hug. “I’ll park the ATV in that same spot. It’s far enough from Eli’s cabin that he shouldn’t hear me coming. I’ll skirt the clearing where he saw Tiel and me fighting. I don’t want to risk drawing him into this mess any further than he already is.”
“Good thinking. I’ll talk to you later.”
Once again she started to leave, but then turned back. “Do you ever wish we were human, Dad, and didn’t have to deal with all of this? I love our people, but life would be so much simpler if we didn’t have to watch every word we say. I know we came here to make sure I didn’t end up like Mom, but sometimes I swear I think we should’ve taken our chances in Kalithia.”
“Don’t talk like that. Your mom wouldn’t have wanted you to suffer like she did.” He grimaced. “Like I did.”
Like Tiel’s family would when they ended his violent rampage once and for all. Her heart hurt for all of them. No one took any pleasure hunting their own kind, but this last attack left them no choice.
“I really, really hate this, Dad.”
