Tegan guided me out of the room and I breathed a sigh of relief. Still, the oppressive air in the office meant I dared speak only in a whisper. “I could have cut the tension between you two with a knife.”
Tegan had a tense expression on his face as stared straight ahead. “Don’t trust these walls. Wait until we’re out of here.”
I snapped my jaws shut and had to resist the urge to start sprinting. We received a snooty look from the desk clerk as we passed, but the sunshine outside was much more welcoming, if a bit old in the tooth.
My mind was packed with questions as we walked down the street. I was so distracted I couldn’t even enjoy the view, though I did wait until we were halfway down the street before barraging Tegan with questions.
“So why didn’t you want to tell that woman where we were staying?” I asked him.
“Because she asked,” he replied.
I blinked at him. “That doesn’t make any sense.”
“As a bounty hunter I’ve made it a habit not to tell anyone where I’m staying, especially when they’re curious enough to ask,” he explained.
“So you gave her a fake inn name?”
He grinned and shook his head. “No. The secret to giving false information is to sprinkle a little truth in it. There is an inn with that name in the city, but I’ve never had the displeasure of staying at its, shall we say, soiled premises.”
“So what’s the name mean?”
“Joke.”
I snorted. “Seriously?”
He chuckled. “The founder had a sense of humor, if not a sense for cleanliness.”
“And the fake names?”
“Better to err on the side of caution. We can always give our real names on the contract.”
Everything he said made sense, but I couldn’t shake the unease that plagued my thoughts. “You really don’t trust them, do you?”
Tegan stared ahead and pursed his lips. “No.”
“Why?”
“Call it hunter instinct,” he mused as we walked eastward with the setting sun at our backs. “Their smiles were wide but I didn’t feel any warmth from them.”
I wrapped my arms around myself and shivered. “It was cold in there, wasn’t it? Like a funeral parlor.”
“When will you make your decision?” he wondered.
I shrugged. “I don’t know. Not today.”
“Then let’s get back to the inn for a warm meal and a soft bed.”
We ventured across the city and the river and eventually arrived back at Torc Fiain. The place was as lively as ever as customers arrived for an early supper hour. Tegan turned to me as we entered and nodded at the open doors of the dining area from where lively noises floated out.
“Are you hungry?” he asked me.
I set my hand on my stomach and shook my head. “I don’t think I can eat for a week after that interview.”
His smile faded a little, though he tried to hide it. “I’m sure the smell of Torc Fiain’s fine cooking will return your appetite to you by tomorrow morning.”
“Then I’ll gladly go for an early night,” I commented as I looked up at the stairs. “And my feet agree with me.”
We walked upstairs and reached the doors to our rooms where Tegan turned to face me. His good humor faltered as he looked into my eyes. “Whatever happens tonight, don’t open your door for anyone but me. Understood?”
My face drooped and my eyes widened slightly. “Do you think something’s going to happen?”
He pursed his lips as he cast his gaze down the hall. “I wouldn’t be surprised if we see the extent of the Keys’ influence tonight. No group as large as they have ever kept their power by allowing others to brush off their offer so lightly.”
My heart skipped a beat and I cast a side glance at my door. “You, um, wouldn’t want to share a room with me, would you?”
He lifted an eyebrow and there was a twinkle in his eyes. “You wouldn’t mind?”
I frowned and put my hands on my hips. “For protection, you dolt.”
He shrugged. “I was merely asking for clarification. Your idea, however, does have its merits. Two against any intruders would be better odds, though your powers will soon be useless.”
I opened my mouth to ask for clarification, but he nodded at the window behind me. I turned and saw the fading light. “Because I’m a day witch?” I asked him as I returned my attention to him.
“You’ll be unable to use any magic while the sun is gone,” Tegan warned me.
I lifted my hands and wiggled my fingers in front of me. “Nothing at all?”
“Nothing.”
I dropped my arms to my sides and shrugged. “I guess it isn’t too important. I don’t seem to be able to use them.”
“There was the instance in the swamps where you proved your prowess,” Tegan reminded me before he nodded at his door. “But before we discuss such a topic in the hallway, allow me to fetch my things and prepare a bed for myself in your room. I’ll meet you in your room.”
I nodded and slipped inside. The hearth was cold and the growing shadows outside shrouded the world in bleak darkness. I wrapped my arms around myself as I pondered what had transpired on that very long day. So much and yet so little had happened I felt as though I’d taken one step forward only to be shoved backward into an abyss of confusion and more than a little fear.
I wrapped my arms tighter around myself and shivered. “Just when I thought I had a plan only to make God laugh. . .”
“Somebody called?” Tegan teased as he opened the door and stepped inside. He carried a bundle of blankets in his arms as he shut the door behind him with his foot.
I snorted. “I was just thinking aloud, that’s all.”
“About the day?” he guessed as he strolled over to the hearth and dropped his ‘bed’ onto the bare floor.
“I’m that easy to read?” I wondered.
“More like we’re both thinking about the same thing,” he replied as he knelt before the fire and tossed a flame onto some prepared logs. A fire flared up and cast the room in its soft light. He twisted his head around and the fire illuminated half his face. His beautiful green eyes shone with a tenderness that made my cheeks warm. “Don’t try to hide your concern. It’s understandable for you to be worried and concealing it under a fake smile won’t help.”
I shuffled over to my bed and plopped my butt down on the long side that faced him. My face was nearly as long as I leaned back on my hands and pursed my lips. “Then I have to ask the big question on my mind: what do we do now?”
“We decided whether or not to join the Keys,” Tegan reminded me.
My ears perked up. “Then you’re joining, too?”
“Shouldn’t I be?” he countered.
I shrugged. “I don’t know. I mean, you already have a job and you don’t need to be a Key to me.”
Tegan smiled over at me. “If you’re suggesting that I might abandon you after so long then rest assured I’ll be staying by your side.”
My heart warmed at his words. Tegan began building his ‘nest’ of a bed while I looked at myself in the full-length mirror. The trees had mucked up my shirt, but there were no cuts or loose threads to speak of. Admiring my attire reminded me of something and I spun around to face Tegan.
“What about Mrs. Brogan’s shop?” I asked him.
“We’ll have to disturb her slumber in the morning,” he told me as he plumped up a pillow. He lifted his gaze to the bed and eyed my half a dozen assorted plush cushions. “You wouldn’t mind my borrowing one of those, would you?”
I snorted and walked over to my bed where I grabbed an armful. “If you’re sleeping on the floor then I think I can spare one or two.”
“And maybe a blanket or three?” he inquired as I walked over to him. I opened my arms and dumped the pillows on top of his head. Tegan playfully winced but his smile didn’t fade. “So would that be a yes?”
“That would be a don’t-push-your-luck,” I countered but I still moved over to the bed and snatched the top sheet. I turned to him and tossed the bundle at him.
He caught the blanket in his arms and grinned over the top at me. “Much obliged.”
I grabbed a pillow and lifted my arm to throw but then I realized I’d be down another cushion. “Later. . .” I promised myself.
That’s when a knock came from the door.