She shrugged. “Does it matter?”
“I guess not.” I was too sick of arguing by then to give her any sass, plus a Scion wasn’t exactly the best candidate for sassing in the first place. “Then maybe you could enlighten us? Tell us more about jerk face and his parentage.”
Maharani smiled and spread her hands, a generous gesture. “I have all the time in the world.”
15
All the time in the world. “Very funny,” I said, groaning.
Though to be fair, the fact that a Scion was comfy enough to get all punny with me should have been reassuring. It was certainly a step up from “We’re always watching, Mr. Albrecht.”
Beatrice Rex tilted her head as she checked between the shelves and aisles. “Who’s this, now? Is there someone else out there with you?”
Maharani held a hand over her chest, bowing her head slightly. “My apologies. My name is Maharani. I am a Scion of the Lorica, and perhaps, in some ways, an ally to Mr. Albrecht.” She turned to Florian, giving him a small smile as she nodded in greeting. “Florian. It’s good to see you again.”
Florian beamed. “Same.”
He was always ready with the smiles, always eager to please and be someone else’s friend. It was a little reassuring, how his demeanor with Maharani was changed, more amiable. It helped to make him a sort of social barometer for how I was going to behave with her, too. If someone like Florian trusted her, then surely I had no reason to be a jerk myself.
Beatrice leaned one hand against her counter, cocking her hip. “Okay, spill. Did I violate some super obscure Lorica ordinance? Are you here to collect on something? You people have nothing on me. I pay my taxes, same as everyone else in the Black Market.”
Rani shook her head and laughed softly. “On the contrary, I’m just here as a shopper.” She placed a bag on the counter, setting it down gingerly by the handles. “I think I’ll take this one. I could stand to have something more functional. I might be moving apartments soon, and this would really help. You know how it is.”
“Oh.” Beatrice blushed to the tips of her ears, her hand flying over her mouth, like she wished she could take back what she said. “I’m so sorry. I’ll just, um, pack that up for you. So sorry.”
“It’s quite all right,” Rani said, smiling. “Though I confess, I only came to shop. I wasn’t expecting to eavesdrop on such a curious conversation. For that, I apologize.”
“That’s the guy I was talking about,” I said, once again casting a finger at the doorway. “Were you around when he was being a dick to me?”
Florian coughed into his fist. “To be fair, you were both being dicks to each other.”
I shot him another glare, and he withered immediately, glancing away. Traitor.
Rani looked at the door. “I admit, I wasn’t around for the spectacle. I picked up on your discussion with Ms. Rex, however, and as I said, I might know one or two things about Mr. Abernathy that might prove interesting to you. We have a file on him.” Her eyes flitted between the three of us. “We have files on everyone.”
“Okay, that’s just creepy,” Beatrice murmured.
That much was obvious to me. The Lorica trained their watchful Eyes on everyone in the arcane underground, even if they wouldn’t admit it. I held my breath, my mouth slightly open as I waited for Rani to spill the beans.
“Quilliam J. Abernathy is suspected to be in his early twenties. Despite the Lorica’s desire to keep tabs on anyone and everyone who may be a threat, he eludes our best efforts at obtaining specifics on his data – and that includes his parentage.”
“Well, that hardly helps us.” I threw my hands up. “At least you’re admitting that you know he’s dangerous.”
Rani nodded. “Indeed. However, we have little evidence of actual criminal activity on Mr. Abernathy’s part. You cannot simply throw someone into the Lorica’s high security Prism without proof. My understanding is that he is a troubled young man. His upbringing might have been privileged, but it wasn’t without its dark moments.”
I raised my hand, shaking my head. “Oh, no. Nope. If this is the part where you give me his heart-tugging backstory, I’m not buying any of it.”
“Then I shall refrain from discussing the matter, as the Lorica also knows too little on the subject. I will, however, prove that our information network is far more reliable than you assume. It is certainly curious how Quilliam’s family is so influential, so much that even their true identity can be kept so secret. However, by a process of elimination, we have whittled the options down to a handful of suspects.”
Florian frowned as he listened, his face screwed up. “Why are you telling us this? I thought the Lorica was all about keeping its own secrets.”
Rani lifted her nose. “Because one hopes that, if and when the time comes, dear Florian, you and your friends will be willing to lend the Lorica your own strengths. There are many potential threats to this city. The state. No, even the nation. We may not see eye to eye on policy and other matters, but I believe it is prudent to form loose alliances. The others within the Heart might disagree, but I did not become a Scion without raising a few hackles.” The smile that played on her lips was self-satisfied, and more than a little proud.
“Okay, hit the pause button.” Beatrice lifted her hands. “The Heart? What is that, exactly?”
“It’s the Lorica’s ruling council,” I said hurriedly, eager to get back to Rani’s story. “You’ve got all the diffe
rent parts of the body – the Hands, the Mouths, the Eyes and Wings – and the Heart controls them all.”