Kelly’s back stiffened at the sight of the male who opened the door. Not who he expected then. I raked my eyes up and down the figure. Middle aged with a bit of a paunch, smelling of alcohol and the reek of piloris adhering to his garments. Piloris was a recreational drug the human’s nicknamed ‘helping hand’ as it acted as an aphrodisiac. His eyes were red rimmed and puffy. I mentally filed this fact away, as it could be from the drugs and alcohol, grief, or a mix of the two. Finding out which option it was would form part of my investigation.
“Come on in,” the man said, stepping to one side, gesturing to encourage us to walk past him. “I gave Harley and the rest of the staff time off. Time like this, it should be just family.”
Kelly dipped his head before brushing past him. “Completely understandable, m’lord.”
Ah, so this man was not a beloved family retainer, but the equivalent to the Hand of my own House. I had to tread carefully here, then. If I offended him, he’d no doubt get word back to my House and the Council, who would come down on me hard. It could spell the end of my career as an official Hunter before it ever truly began.
I smiled, being careful to keep my teeth hidden, recalling Richard’s initial reaction. I thrust my hand forward, mimicking the greeting Kelly had shown me.
Lord Roe stared at me for a moment, his gaze flicking between my eyes and my out-thrust hand. He took it, shaking it using a much weaker grip than Kelly’s. His hand was clammy and felt as if it lacked strength. His skin was soft and uncalloused. This was a pampered man. Pampered doesn’t necessarily mean spoiled, I reminded myself.
“It’s nice to meet you, m’lord,” I said, “though I deeply regret the circumstances.”
He jerked back, taking his hand with him. “Just Roe,” he said, blinking rapidly. “No need to Lord this and that with us.”
“How is Shane?” Kelly asked him as Roe closed the door behind me.
“He’s taken to his bed,” Roe replied. “You won’t be able to talk to him. Carlos, either,” he added.
Kelly’s lips pinched together tightly. “I’m sorry, sir, but we will need to talk to everyone in the household. From the smallest child able to form sentences to the oldest, family and employee alike.” Roe looked mutinous at this.
“Not tonight, of course,” I broke in, hoping to head off an explosive beginning to my investigation. “The tragedy is too fresh as of yet and I myself have only just arrived. I need to get my bearings.” I moved to stand next to Kelly, not wishing for us to appear divided.
Roe nodded, his shoulders relaxing. “Maybe tomorrow,” he agreed grudgingly. “I can’t promise Shane will be in any fit state for a few days, if ever. Jeddah and he were very close.”
“Shane is the Councilman’s bonded,” Kelly murmured as Roe walked past us. I found it curious that he didn’t say Shane was the victim’s bearer, but rather focused on his relationship to the Councilman.
“Come, I’ll show you both up. I had Jarrett prepare you rooms with a shared bathroom between.” His lips twisted. “It goes without saying that there is to be no night-time visits between the two of you.”
I stopped in my tracks, my nostrils flaring. Was this a slight on my being an unsupervised omega and Kelly an alpha, or on our lower social stations, or was he projecting his own thoughts on what he’d do in our place? His comment I added to the mental column I'd placed his use of piloris in. I mentally jotted a question mark next to the word ‘bearer’ in the same list. There were tawdry secrets here, I was certain of it, but whether or not they had any bearing on the deaths I was here to investigate, only time would tell.
“You won’t have to worry about that,” Kelly replied stiffly. “That is, I might show him how to use our plumbing and explain some customs, maybe even give him a run down on the case thus far, seeing as it’s the height of the day for his kind, even if it is close to bedtime for the rest of us.”
“Right, of course. No offense meant, but he is rather exotic and they can mesmerize the unwary, and well, he is an omega gallivanting about all alone.” Roe led us upstairs and down a side passage. I added ‘bigot’ to my mental musings. Had Jeddah chafed under the rules and sought escape, only to find his ruin?
So far, all I had were questions. Hopefully tomorrow, we’d also get some answers.