“Ellie, Smith.” Jago nodded in acknowledgement as the huge close-cropped man closed the doors behind them. “He used to look after us, and Father thought it a good idea to recall him to duty.” His tone revealed his opinion of that.
“Look after you?” Ellie leaned back for Ludo to fasten her seatbelt. “Like a butler?”
“No. More like a nanny.” Ludo scowled when Ellie bit back her snorts of laughter. “Hey, can you imagine the trouble little kid shifters, especially winged ones, get into? The accidents that happen?”
She hadn’t, but was now, and had to look down to hide more gulps of laughter.
“You’re imagining miniature versions of us, but with tiny wings, zooming into the air like balloons, and Smith lassoing us with ropes to bring us down, aren’t you?” Jago leaned in close and intimate.
“And wondering if he kept the ropes tied around us, like leashes, after. The answer’s yes.” Ludo was just as close on her other side. One consequence of sitting all together in the back seat. One advantage… Hmm. There could be more. Did the car have a privacy panel?
The two-mile drive seemed to take forever in the usual Hyde Park traffic, especially with them wringing concessions and promises out of her the closer they got.
Ellie privately thought Vikram must be mistaken. He’d seemed a little hyper on the night of the inauguration and must still be run off his feet with last-minute work over his project. The place had probably had people popping in and out all day to put the finishing touches to it, which would mean deliveries and supplies and—
“Look! Quick, Mr Smith!”
The nursemaid/chauffeur didn’t heed her warning or her pointing. Whereas she, or the twins, she betted, would have accelerated and shot into the elegant square just before two uniformed policemen finished placing NO ENTRY triangles in the road, blocking it to traffic, he slowed and swerved down another street. There were more police gathering, and an ambulance siren sounded back down the road. The car slowed to a stop in the traffic, and Jago and Ludo unsnapped their seat belts, preparing to dive out. Ellie copied and followed, rushing around the square’s gated central garden to the building, Haliford House.
“Keep back, please,” a woman police office said, trying to shepherd people away from the pavement in front of the buildings, presumably out of the street and square. Ellie was reminded of how she’d met the Calters, in the midst of a group of people milling in a London street.
“Vik!” Ludo called. “Over here! It’s us.” His friend rushed over. “What the hell’s going on?” He scowled at a knot of bystanders who turned at his voice and started talking amongst themselves, pointing at him and Jago. A couple even got out their phones and snapped pictures.
“Oh, man!” Vik ran both hands through his thick dark hair, shoving it from his face and leaving his hands laced behind his head after. “I don’t know exactly.” He broke off to stare at Ellie. She was glad she’d dressed in her own clothes, had changed out of the slutty secretary suit and shoes. “Oh, you’re still…” He waved a hand between the three of them. “That’s a really long date? How long do they last?”
“Vikram? The bomb threat or whatever the fuck it is?” Jago snapped.
“Oh, yeah. Sorry. Who would do anything like this to the project?”
“Breathe deeply,” Ellie advised. She went to touch his arm, to soothe the stressed, unfocussed man, but the twins’ hands stayed hers. She frowned at them, but they seemed oblivious to their actions. “Turn your back to the people. Face the garden. In…out.”
Vikram complied, nodding when she asked if he felt better. “Karen, the receptionist, came up and said someone had called, asking if we’d got the package. Just that, nothing about from who, the supplier. Could she check. Oh, and that it was right under her nose. So Karen checked and, yeah, there was shiny silver-paper box thing under the table in the lobby. She hadn’t noticed. I hadn’t noticed. Well, I’ve been busy, on all the floors. Then when Karen went back to the phone, to ask more questions of the caller, they said they hoped we liked it.”
“Then what?” Jago threw an arm around his friend.
“Erm, she came and got me. I was in the basement. I saw the box and thought I’d better ask people working there or who were there at the moment if anyone had left it. No one had. So I came outside to smoke and call you. And then this!” He indicated the street.
He looked even more confused when a police inspector came up. “Vikram Chadha? I understand your receptionist called the Metropolitan Police?”
“She did? Karen? Karen!” yelled Vikram. “She’s over there. Come on.” He led the man over.
“Why the hell would she do that? This is ridiculous,” Ludo fumed.
And awful publicity, Ellie silently added. “Vik asked who’d do something like this to the project. It could be about the project, couldn’t it? You mentioned something at the opening about keys to the garden. I know these west London garden squares have a snobby reputation. The majority of these townhouses are still residential, aren’t they? One theory could be that the neighbours hated the noise and mess from the conversion of the building, and they’re probably not happy about the new use of the building.” Although she had her own theory why this and the twins’ other new business had been singled out.
“So nothing to do with us being shifters?” Ludo queried, his head cocked.
“Well, didn’t you think the vandalism at the pub might be connected, and it wasn’t, that it wasn’t anything?”
“I agree this is probably hysteria.” Jago nodded. “Which is why I’m going in to check the damn thing out.”
Before he could step forward, Smith was in front of him, a solid shaven-headed, besuited man-mountain. “Your father would not like that,” he said.
“He’s not here to see it,” snapped Jago.
“He gave me full authority to act as I see fit to carry out his orders, in his stead.” The words rumbled out of the huge man like rocks tumbling down a mountain side. He moved slightly, pushing back his suit jacket a little, and although Ellie didn’t see what Jago did, she saw his reaction. Jago flicked a slight glance towards Ludo, exchanging some silent message, and Ellie thought she should intervene. She didn’t want either of them shot, not even with a tranquilizer dart, by an over-zealous employee.
“Maybe no one will have to go inside. Don’t the police have things like infra-red and X-Rays to detect bombs remotely? Let me see what I can find out.”
She slipped from the men, but by the time she’d got to the door of the building, police were forming a live cordon, moving everyone back. She greeted a constable she knew from shifter meetings, and another officer who’d come with him once. She didn’t know if the former was a shifter or not. The inspector from earlier did not look happy.
“Evacuate the whole square? In Central London? You’d better be effing kidding me!” he yelled into his shoulder radio.
“Excuse me, Inspector, but couldn’t you send in a bomb-detecting robot?” Ellie enquired.
“Oh, why didn’t I think of that!” he deadpanned. Then his eyes narrowed. “Maxwell, the shifters’ champion, isn’t it? Oh, happy to see the police now, are you? Not accusing us of wilful negligence and profiling and pre-formed judgement and—”
“The robot?” Ellie persisted. She did tend to make enemies of officials.
“In the next county, for your information. Be here in about three hours.”
Three hours? Anything could happen in that time. She prayed nothing would, but even the inconvenience of having to evacuate and the loss of business or trade by people nearby would not make the public predisposed towards shifters. She disobeyed the inspector’s orders for her to move back, and wasn’t surprised when Jago and Ludo joined her, followed by Smith.
“There’s nothing in there,” Jago announced. “Bombs, poison—we’d know. We’d be able to hear ticking or scent chemicals.” He started forward.
“And if you attempt to enter, in direct non-compliance with a police officer’s orde
rs, I’d be happy to arrest you.” The inspector blocked his path.
“On what charge?” Jago scoffed.
“Breach of the peace.” The inspector smirked. “It’s used to remove offenders from a scene rapidly.”
“Offenders?” Ludo scorned.
“The police can arrest a person if it’s reasonable to believe that if the person remains, he would continue with his course of conduct and a breach of the peace would occur,” Ellie informed them.
“Watch a lot of cop shows, do you? Anyone would think you were a lawyer,” the inspector sneered.
A sudden ripple of movement in the crowd and the scratch of claws on concrete and panting had them turning round. An English Springer Spaniel, all fawn and brown fur and floppy ears, was being brought to the scene by an officer in a hi-vis vest.
“Robot enough for you?” the inspector enquired.
“You can’t send a dog in where there could be a bomb!” Ellie was incensed.
“Thought there wasn’t one?” her enemy sniped.
“Sir, news crews are arriving!” a woman called.
The inspector groaned.
“Don’t you dare commit animal cruelty,” Ellie ordered.
“Get this…these civilians out of here now!” the inspector yelled to his officers.
Civilians… “And non-civilians?” Ellie enquired, determined to save the dog and the day. She searched among the rank of officers and locked eyes with Andy, she recalled his name as being, praying he was a shifter. “You’d be happy with a police officer volunteering? One who could tell you in a few seconds, from a distance, there’s nothing untoward in a space? And in doing so, act as an ambassador for his species, showcasing some of their abilities”—she raised her voice over attempts to interrupt her—“that make them valuable to society?”
“What—”
“I’ll do it.” PC Andy stepped from the line. He swallowed, adjusting his helmet on his dark hair.
Ellie stood on her tiptoes, turned back towards the entrance to the square and whistled, shrill and piercing. “Sorry,” she apologized to the whimpering spaniel, and Ludo and Jago and two police officers who were wincing. “Sorry. Didn’t realize.” She waved at the camera crew and reporters. “Over here! Quick! All of you. History in the making!”
“Ellie…” Jago’s lips were a thin line, and he shielded her as people broke through the lines and rushed forward.
“Well, Inspector?” Ellie pointed to the now three officers, presumably all non-human, at the door of Haliford House. “Are you going to explain how shifter officers enhance any unit, police, military, by volunteering for assignments only they with their abilities can perform?”
“Cutting equipment costs and saving animals with no voice from being used?” Ludo threw in, taking Ellie’s other hand. “Jump in anytime, Inspector?”
They moved her and themselves back for the journalists to get into position and record the moment, the great coup for shifter communities.
“There could be specialized shifter units!” Ellie mused. Her first court appearances as an expert witness had been in a trial for theft, where her research had backed up the wolf shifter’s assertion that he knew who’d robbed him because he’d tracked the man’s scent. She’d testified to shifters’ scenting abilities, so this new development would be building and capitalizing on that… Oh, there’d need to be strong rights in place to deal with possible exploitation within the ranks, never mind weaponizing preternatural powers and—
“Got it!” Andy stood at the doorway carrying a square box wrapped in silver paper. It shone in the weak sunlight. “I can tell you there’s nothing dangerous in here.”
“Well, open it, then!” someone in the crowd shouted.
Fumbling, Andy ripped off the layer of decorative paper, like the world’s lamest game of Pass the Parcel. He half closed his eyes as he knocked the lid off the gift box he uncovered. What was he expecting? A spring-loaded glitter bomb? But no multicoloured particles flew out. Instead the constable pulled out a decorative silver dish filled with glitzy wrapped candies and read out the small rectangular card lying on top: ‘“Have a sweet housewarming.”’` Those gathered around jeered.
“See? Told you there’d be no harm to the business,” Ellie said. “Look. My feeling is your CEO was just sending you a message, scare you a little, bring you into line.”
“What?” The gasp came from behind them, and Ellie turned to see Michael Langton, the CEO, standing there. The normally dapper man was dishevelled, red-faced and sweating, his hair a mess. “Oh, thank God, boys!” He grabbed Ludo and Jago into a hug. “They saw it in the office, saw it on Twitter, and I got here as soon as I could.” He gave a short laugh. “Had to run here! Excuse the appearance. I just couldn’t…” He gave up on speech to hug them tighter, before stepping back and wiping his brow.
“I just hope Arthur hasn’t heard. Wouldn’t want him worried.” He dabbed moisture from his eyes.
Smith shook his head. “The duke won’t know from me.”
“Ellie.” Ludo’s eyes were narrowed. “What did you say? You thought Michael was behind this, and the threat to Chris? That Michael would wish us harm?”
“Well.” She shrugged. Not now she didn’t. The older man’s distress and relief were genuine.
“He’s like a surrogate father to us.”
She’d never heard Ludo’s voice so cold. Ellie coughed to clear her throat. “I see that.”
The crowd ebbed and jostled them. Cursing, Jago guided Ellie away, over to the garden railing. “Calling a whole lot of people, some with camera equipment, into this space was a risky thing to do, Ellie. Stupid, even. I know you’re devoted to the cause, to shifters’ rights, drawing society’s attention to us and—”
“Aren’t you?” she gasped.
Silence fell and stretched. What had Justin said, about the Calters? As Ellie fought to recall, her phone message ringtone beeped out. She patted her pockets, but couldn’t feel her cell.
“Oh, it fell out in the car. I picked it up and meant to give it back to you.” Jago slid her cell from his pocket. When his gaze fell on it, he stiffened. “Justin?”
“A shifter and my ex,” Ellie replied, holding out her hand for her property. She had nothing to hide.
“And are you still on for meeting him this evening?” Jago enquired, still staring at the phone before slapping it into Ellie’s hand. “Seems he thinks he has more ‘intel’ for you, too.”
“Don’t read my messages!” Ellie folded her arms. “If you must know, Justin was helping me investigate Mi—” She clammed up but couldn’t stop herself flicking her gaze towards the CEO.
“Me.” Michael’s lips thinned. “For God’s sake! I would never do anything to hurt any of the family in any way. If you think—”
“You arranged to meet this guy?” Ludo cut in, incredulous. “Call him and tell him it’s off.”
“The hell? You don’t tell me what to do. In fact…” Ellie thumbed a quick message to Justin in answer to his. ‘“Meet you usual time, usual place.’ Send.” She pressed the Send icon and glared at the group opposite her. “And now, if you’ll excuse me, I have things to do.”
The office would be getting calls, emails and texts about the incident that had just happened, including the new light shone upon shifters and their value to society. It wasn’t fair to leave her co-workers to deal with it. Plus, she’d said she’d meet with species leaders.
“Mr. Calter!” a police officer shouted. “Could we speak to you, please?”
Jago, interpreting that as being him, held up a hand in the direction of the query. “Ellie. When we’re finished here, we’re going to check on Re-Fuel and Chris. Drop your plans and Smith will take you home.”
“You’re not the only ones with a life. Just as you have things to do, so do I. Oh, and I won’t need a ride to your house. I might not be going there at all. I’ll call and let you know what I’m doing.”
With a final glare and hoping the Calters were tied
up with the police’s questions and wouldn’t be able to go after her and stop her, Ellie turned and walked away. Serves them right. She didn’t like the hard, angry looks on their faces, or the coldness in their eyes as she did, though.
Chapter Nine
She didn’t go to the office. She wasn’t in a fit state to focus on work, being too angry at the twins’ behaviour and manner. Oh, and assumptions, that the whole world was there to do their bidding, was there for them, to make their lives easier. That they didn’t care about shifters’ rights still felt like a punch in the gut. She frowned. They hadn’t said that, exactly. More that they didn’t want attention drawn to shifters. Separatists. Having their cake and eating it, people said. All rights and recognition and no responsibilities. With their background, they simply assumed they were above others, other groups, other species, both human and paranormal. But them why step into the limelight? That awful woman’s, Tori’s, words came back to Ellie. But that couldn’t be right. It couldn’t be just to have sex with her?
She didn’t know how long she stomped around, her head whirling, but she calmed down at last and called the office, checking on things and advising, coordinating and liaising, Ellie looked to see where she was, and realized she’d have to hustle to meet Justin. They had tended to meet in a small park not far from the office, one mostly used as a shortcut between the four busy streets it sat between, but a nice enough green space in the bustle of the city. The benches around the fountain had served as a lunchtime sandwich and coffee spot, and the terrace, with its benches and awning, had been a sheltered place to decompress after work and decide where to have early dinner.
Justin wasn’t on the terrace, and she couldn’t see him on any of the benches around the edge of the small circle of grass in the centre either. She could hardly miss him—the park was rarely crowded, even in the height of summer, when people lay on the grass in their lunchbreaks. Ellie waited a few minutes, shivering a little in the late-afternoon chill, and headed for the corner of the park with the fountain. This section led to a wrought-iron gate to a smaller street, she recalled, seeing a woman enter, presumably to cross through into the busier main road and the Tube station.
Paranormal Dating Agency: Think of England (Kindle Worlds Novella) (Roar Britannia Book 1) Page 7