Rocked by Love (Gargoyles, #4)(53)

“We know the identity of the Hierophant,” Dag snarled. “And we should do something about him.”

“We think we know,” Kylie corrected. “Nothing in the video or in Ott’s notes positively IDs the figure giving the speech as the Hierophant. So all we really know with one hundred percent certainty is that Richard Foye-Carver is a member of the Order of Eternal Darkness.”

“We also know that he’s nearly untouchable,” Wynn reminded the brooding Guardians. “But we also know about this big strike that the local sect is planning to launch.”

Kylie nodded. “Right. I think it makes more sense to focus on that. I mean, the Hierophant has existed forever, right? I mean, there’s always someone around who’s going to step up and lead the nocturnis, whether it’s Carver or someone else. While it’s a nice idea that we could take him out and throw the whole nest of vipers into chaos, (a) we don’t really know that would happen, and (b) it might not be enough to stop whatever they have planned.”

“But if we concentrate on discovering that plan and stopping it…” Wynn followed easily behind her friend’s train of thought.

“Then we accomplish two things at once. We keep the Order from channeling a whole bunch of power to the Seven—”

“Potentially freeing Shaab-Na on top of Uhlthor.”

“—and we buy ourselves more time to figure out if there is a feasible way to take out the Hierophant without getting ourselves killed or put on the fugitive lists of half the nations on earth.”

The Guardians exchanged a silent glance. Kylie could almost hear them whining to each other about how much it sucked when the “human females” stuck their noses into things. Especially when they made such good points.

“Fine,” Dag snapped. He returned to his seat next to Knox, looking like a prince holding court. A big, battered, grump-ass prince with the ability to turn into a gargoyle and eviscerate errant nobles, but still. “But we do not know what the nocturnis have planned, nor when their strike will occur.”

“And that’s what we have to concentrate on finding out.”

“How?” Knox demanded.

Kylie and Wynn exchanged glances, and the witch slumped back with a groan. “Don’t tell me. More research.”

“Hey, I thought you said you were getting good at it?”

“Doesn’t mean I like it,” Wynn grumbled. “And it doesn’t mean I don’t get to try things my way first.”

Kylie raised an eyebrow. “Your way being…?”

“I’ll spell it. You still have that drive from your informant? Or the note? The note would be even better.”

Kylie frowned and thought back. “The drive, yeah. I might have the note, too, but I’d have to look in the office.”

“I may be able to do a trace, especially if it’s handwritten, and find out where he was over the past few weeks. Maybe we can find the Order’s meeting spot. Sure, it’s a long shot, but it beats the alternative.”

“Then I’ll take the alternative,” Kylie said. “I think I might have to go to the deep for this one. If the Order is going to have any online presence, or if its members are going to set up any online communication, it’s going to be there. I don’t think they’re Instagramming ritual snapshots.”

“The deep?” Dag asked.

“The deep Web,” Kylie clarified. “The dark Web, the darknet.”

They all gave her the same reaction—the blank stare. Really, dealing with geeks was just so much easier sometimes.

She tried to break it down for them. “Basically, it’s all the places on the Internet that don’t get indexed and aren’t searchable on your average search engine. You can’t Google it. It’s only accessible to anonymous users—you know, theoretically—and it tries to keep the identities of its users anonymous through complex routing and other little tricks of the trade. But anyone who wants to discuss things that are illegal, immoral, or liable to cause one form of government authority or another to come after them, that’s where they hang out.”

“Sounds perfect for our little friends.”

“Which is why I’ll be taking a look. You just say a prayer for me that I don’t stumble across anything too gross while I’m looking. Some of the shit people talk about down there is just nasty.”

Dag watched her shudder and frowned. “And what will Knox and I do while you two search for the answers to this nocturni strike?”

Kylie and Wynn exchanged glances before Wynn turned to her fiancé and fluttered her eyelashes. “Sit around and look pretty?”

He bared his teeth at her.

“You guys are still in charge of security,” the witch said, more seriously this time. “Plus, we’re going to need someone or someones to scout out any places we think might warrant interest from the Order in terms of good target locations. I know Knox would prefer I not go out exposed like that.”

“And don’t forget,” Kylie added, “I meant it when I said that when the shit really hits the fan, I am not going to be charging into battle armed with a laptop and a gaming headset. Wynn and I might be hogging the glory for the moment, but when it comes down to kicking ass and taking names? That is aaaallll you two.”