The Vanishing Stair (Truly Devious #2)(40)

Catalina stopped at the table. Alicia’s eyes widened. She looked as if she was on the verge of panic. Roger’s jaw clenched and his eyes narrowed. Catalina knew that he was frantically trying to come up with a way to handle whatever came next.

She smiled.

“Boo,” she said.

She might as well have dropped a live grenade on the table.

Alicia squeaked and scooted to the far corner of the booth.

Roger flinched. In the next instant he recovered. Anger leaped in his eyes.

“Damn it, Cat,” he said, “that was not funny.”

She swung around again and nearly collided with Slater for the third time that day.

“Are we done here?” he asked.

“Yes,” she said. She flashed him her most dazzling smile. “We’re done.”

Behind them the spell was shattered by a lot of frenetic motion and sound. Cups clattered in saucers. People resumed conversations. Waiters swung into action.

Outside on the street, Catalina walked in silence for a moment or two.

“I behaved like a civilized adult back there, didn’t I?” she said after a while.

“Depends on your definition of the term,” Slater said. “But revenge is still revenge, and you know what they say about embarking on that journey.”

She sighed. “That business about first digging two graves? I don’t think it will come to that, but I can tell you one thing.”

“What?”

“Payback doesn’t feel nearly as good as it should.”

“Karma bites.”





CHAPTER 17


Gwendolyn Swan picked up the receiver of the landline phone and called a familiar number.

Trey Danson took the call on the first ring.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

His voice went well with the image that he took pains to project—that of a brilliant attorney and financial advisor; a man who could be trusted to be discreet; a man who would keep your secrets and make your legal problems go away quietly. His main business was handling estates and trusts for wealthy individuals. That meant he kept a lot of secrets.

“Guess who just walked into my shop looking reasonably sane and wanting to know if I’d heard any rumors about artifacts from the collection of a certain dead collector,” Gwendolyn said.

“Shit. The fucking Foundation is already on this?”

“Afraid so. And Victor didn’t send one of the regular cleaners, either. Slater Arganbright is in town and asking questions about Royston. What’s more, Arganbright was not alone. Catalina Lark was with him.”

“Slow down. Are you saying that the Foundation sent Slater Arganbright?”

“It’s not like I’m going to make a mistake about the identity of an Arganbright, now, is it?”

“The rumors said that if he survived he would be spending the rest of his days in a locked room at Halcyon.”

“Well, he survived and he’s in Seattle.”

“What about his talent?”

“It’s not exactly the sort of question you can ask a person.” Gwendolyn touched the crystal locket at her throat. “It was obvious that he’s still sensitive to the vibe of paranormal objects, but there’s something different about him.”

“What?”

“I don’t know. All I can tell you is that when it comes to artifacts, he’s as strong as ever. Lark is strong, too. When I took the two of them downstairs, they both reacted to the atmosphere.”

“That doesn’t mean anything,” Trey said. “Most people with even minimal talent can sense that kind of energy if they find themselves in a confined space where there are a lot of hot artifacts.”

“Yes, but Lark was able to activate the dancers in the miniature ballroom. She got the master out from behind the curtains, too.”

“All right, so she’s strong. That’s not exactly a surprise. I already knew she does some crime scene work. The one we have to worry about here is Arganbright.”

“You mean he’s the one you have to worry about. I sell information and artifacts. That’s all. You paid me to let you know if anyone came around asking about Royston’s collection. I’ve done that. Now I’m out of this. You’re on your own.”

She ended the call before he could say anything else and put down the phone. The problem with Danson was that he had enough talent to make him both clever and dangerous. He paid well for rumors and information, but no amount of money was worth the risk of getting dragged any deeper into his current project. She did not want to tangle with the Foundation.

She picked up the phone again and made another call. The voice that answered on the first ring was male and gravel-rough.

“Pest control.”

“I found another rat in the trap today,” she said. “I’d like it removed as soon as possible.”

“It will be taken care of tonight.”

“Thank you.”

Gwendolyn ended the call and picked up a duster. The artifacts business was a dirty business. It sometimes seemed as if she spent half of each day cleaning up.





CHAPTER 18


Catalina shoved her hands deep into the pockets of her trench coat and watched Slater press a small electronic device against the high-tech lock on the back door of the big house. She heard a faint humming sound and then a muffled click.