Black Truth, White Lies (Black Hat Bureau 3)

I was slowly leaning in that direction too, but my witch nature made me too curious for my own good.

“What are the odds,” I asked into the quiet, “these other locations aren’t related to Samford?”

As much as I didn’t want to hear it, I required confirmation he was thinking what I was thinking.

“We have three aquatic fae creatures known to kill humans dropped within a fifty-mile radius.”

“Do you think an old acquaintance of mine was trying to locate me within a general area?”

Dump a bunch of monsters and see how long it took me to put in an appearance, that kind of thing.

“That seems to be the likeliest scenario. It was pure luck they hit Samford first.”

From the moment I accepted the director’s deal, I had known the risks involved in me returning to active duty, even as a consultant, while remaining stationary. Eventually, my enemies were bound to find me. And discover Colby. But I hadn’t expected the bottom to drop out this fast.

“Why aquatic fae?” I watched my ceiling fan spin. “That’s not exactly subtle.”

“If we’re right, they weren’t going for subtle. They chose species who would react with extreme aggression under the right conditions. A fae dependent on water to survive who wakes up in the middle of a landlocked area is going to panic and jump straight into survival mode.”

“They’ll head for the nearest body of water,” I mulled it over. “The creek here, the pool in Javelle.”

“The kelpie,” he filled me in, “was nesting in a water purification plant.”

“That reminds me.” I exhaled. “Aedan is babysitting the pups in the creek. A friend of his is picking them up in the morning. He’s going to drop them in the Everglades.”

“That—” he chuckled, “—is the equivalent of a parent telling a child flushing a goldfish sends it to heaven.”

“Do I want to know what you’re trying to tell me, or do I want to plead ignorance?”

“Dobhar-chú pup fur is valued for its softness, and their meat for its tenderness.”

So, Aedan hadn’t been kidding about the hat thing. Good to know.

“What is wrong with people?” I shot off the bed. “I’m going to tear him a new one. Want to listen in?”

“They’ll die without their mother,” he told me, voice soft. “You can’t foster them. Other females will eat them. You can’t bottle-feed them. They can only tolerate the unique secretions of their mother for the first six to eight weeks, and no one in their right mind would attempt to milk a dobhar-chú anyway.”

The fight drained out of me, and I slumped back onto the bed. “Well, that’s depressing.”

“I wasn’t sure, or I would have mentioned it earlier. I made some calls on the way here to verify.”

“I can’t believe Aedan lied to me.” I had to set ground rules. “That’s not acceptable.”

“I wouldn’t be too hard on him.”

“Really?” I scoffed at his gentle rebuke. “This coming from you?”

“He didn’t want to upset you with knowledge that won’t change anything. I can appreciate that.”

“I’m sure you can.” I shut my eyes. “Please tell me you don’t withhold information for my own good.”

“There are topics of a personal nature I find difficult to discuss,” he confessed, “but I’m working on it.”

“Does this mean I’m one step closer to receiving a copy of Dating Dae for Dummies?”

His soft laugh went a long way toward melting my anger. Dang it. I had to learn to be tougher on him.

“I don’t make this easy on you, do I?” His voice lowered. “It’s all so new, and confusing.”