Page 46 of Heart and Soul
“What, that he’s handsome to a degree of justified arrogance? Is that what you’re saying?”
Russo beams proudly. “Whoa, now, better pump those brakes.”
“I’m only agreeing that he would absolutely fit in. But thiscommunity, as you put it, is notoriously,dangerouslyprivate.” Her threatening look screams at me to drop the subject.
“Okay, so, executive decision. I’mtellinghim,” I announce. Hillerman stiffens, and Jay shifts his weight uncomfortably.
“Agent Davies, you are not saying a word, and that’s an order that comes down from On High, as far as you’re concerned. This conversation is over.”
“I’m sure by now you know exactly where you can shove your authority, Special AgentHypocrite. If you can recruit a vampire master, then I can recruit a human. Look, Nora Jacobs took out Elijah, and we eliminated King Paul. Beyona’s got to be desperate for another recruit for her necromancy ring, so let’s give her one. We need a high-powered sorcerer nobody knows. With a little help, Russo can knock that shit outta the park.”
“Shayne,” Jay warns.
“I’m not waiting for another bomb, Jay. We need to do this, and we need to do it right now. You said yourself he’d believe. He’s got it mostly figured out all by himself. Look at him. I just mentioned vampires and sorcerers, and he hasn’t batted an eye.”
Jay tries again. “Shayne.”
“Russo, it’s all true. Everything you’ve heard, everything you’ve suspected about the supernatural world—it’s real, and it’s here in Detroit. That’s what we’re dealing with. Vampires and werewolves, magic and monsters, okay? You always knew it. You could almost feel it, couldn’t you?” I scrutinize Russo’s reaction, which is…nothing. He seems completely unaffected, which scares me, because it means he’s waiting for me to deliver a punch line. He thinks I must be joking.
“Shayne,” Brenner says for the third time, “I already told him.”
“You…what?”
“He was there. At the crime scene. He saw Nick Gorgeous shield me from the blast. There wasn’t a scratch on him. How do I explain that?”
“Wait, does Nick know he was seen?”
“No. Russo didn’t bring it up until we left.”
Hillerman stares at Russo with a strange look, almost as though she’s afraid of him. “You’ve known for the past hour? But, you don’t…”
“I don’t what?” he asks calmly.
“You don’t…” Hillerman looks him up and down. It’s like she can’t believe what she’s seeing. “You don’t seem any different.”
“Different, how?”
I help her out. “She means, you don’t have a pitchfork in your hands. See, for most humans, the only way they find this out is…”
“Like me,” Jay says.
“Likeus,” Hillerman adds.
Russo nods gravely. “Right. I get it.”
“I doubt that,” she fires back.
“No, I do.”
“You can’t. I’m sorry, it’s just not that simple. I think it’s better for all of us if you walk away right now and consider this whole conversation a stress-induced joke.”
I peel my socks off. “Yeah, no. Russo, look at me. What she means is this isn’t some shadow you thought you might have seen when you were half asleep, and this isn’t a story that you heard from a guy who knew a guy whose grandpa once had a conversation with a tree. This is broad-ass daylight, walking and talking among you, right under your nose.” I pull my T-shirt over my head. “This is your best friend’s fiancée, who you’ve seen every day for weeks, who you loaned your old truck to.” I push my pants and panties down my long legs. “Don’t look away. Do you see me blushing? Just keep your eyes on mine. If you don’t see it actually happen, your brain will find ways to reject it.” Standing in the buff, I smile with no hint of embarrassment. “Russo, this is me.”
With a shiver of underworld current, I shift, my point of view lowering to half my human height. I look up at the human faces high above me. Brenner and Hillerman watch Russo closely. His eyes have doubled in size. I can hear his breaths deepening as he struggles to maintain composure.
Okay, I didn’t really think this through, and now I’m not sure what to do. Should I wag my tail like a dog? I sit down, but that feels even more awkward, so I prance up to Russo. He’s holding my shoe. I snatch it in my teeth and drop it onto my pile of clothes.
Russo follows my every move with growing emotion. At first he seems wondrous, like a kid seeing Santa Claus. But just as he seems about to break into a wide smile, he averts his eyes and takes a deep breath. His brow is creased with concern.
