Page 47 of The Heir
“Sure, no problem.” Freya gave me a smile. “I would leave as well, if I could. Have fun.”
We’d gotten down one flight of stairs when Thor came jogging after us. “Where are you going?”
“I already cleared it with Freya. I’m taking Linea sight-seeing.”
“Where?” Thor’s lips were pulled tight in two thin lines.
“Just to where I used to work, the park, and that sort of thing.”
“We’re not here to have fun. This is serious business.”
Indiana frowned. “What the fuck, Thor. Calm down. Don’t pretend like you need Linea or me when you and Freya have it covered. You’re just jealous that you can’t get out in the sun with us.”
Thor’s gaze fell on me. “Is this about you meeting up with Shiva?”
I didn’t look away. “That’s none of your business.”
Indiana’s eyes darted between Thor and me. “Shiva? No, Linea didn’t ask me to take her to him. I was the one who suggested us getting out of this meeting. I want to say hi to my old colleagues. You get that, don’t you?”
Thor kept looking into my eyes as if he wanted me to read his mind. In that moment, I wished that I could because his emotions were raw and intense enough to affect me.
“Oh, there you are.” Celeste’s head popped out from the landing above us. “We’re starting the meeting back up again, are you coming?”
Thor hesitated for a second and then he backed up a step and barked an order at Indiana. “Keep her safe.” The moment he walked away, Indiana broke into a smile and nodded his head for me to follow him.
“Let’s get the hell out of this yawn fest.” Indiana moved with a speed and agility that made it hard for me to keep up with him.
“Do you always walk so fast?”
Slowing down a little, Indiana explained, “That’s the thing about France. People here walk everywhere. If you lived here, you would get used to it. The headquarters isn’t that far but on our way there, I want to show you my favorite shop. It’s an antique store with real things from before the Toxic War. My exploration team would collect valuables from outside the safe zone. Helmes and his crew are experts at restoring the things and giving them new life.”
My legs took longer steps than normal as I speed walked beside him. “I would love to see the shop. Do you think I could ask your friends and colleagues some questions about their culture? My mother and I would particularly like to know about their views on faith and spirituality.”
“Sure. Ask away. They’re grown-ups, and French people typically don’t have a problem saying no if they don’t want to answer a question.”
Indiana had a boyish smile on his face when he led me through the colorful streets, telling me stories about his year living here with Aubri. “Over there Aubri once got physical with a woman who came on to me. I had to pick my woman up and carry her away.” Indiana laughed. “I loved every second of it because that same day she had accused me of being possessive.”
“I wouldn’t want to get into a fight with Aubri.”
“No, right?” He smiled and then his gaze drifted to something behind me that made his eyes light up. “That store over there has the best ice cream in France.”
I turned to see what shop he was talking about.
“Rumor is that in the back there’s a secret entrance to a hardcore BDSM club.”
I stared at the innocent looking ice cream shop with colorful writing in the window. When a man entered, I wondered if he might be a sadist or a masochist.
“Remember Bjorn, the Explorer who was into BDSM? When you asked Banni to guide him to a place for likeminded people, this was one of the four addresses Banni gave him.”
Indiana kept walking while my blue shoes felt glued to the street, curious to see if the man who just entered would exit with an ice cream or if he was going to a sex club.
“Come on,” Indiana hurried me along.
“Why would they place a BDSM club in the back of an ice cream shop?”
“Who knows? The French are weird like that.”
“Is it because people are ashamed of going to places like that?”
