The Others 03 Vision in Silver (41 page)

Moonsday, Maius 28

“A
rroo!”

Meg jolted, dropped the stack of mail, and rushed to the front counter. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

Sam grinned at her. “Nothing. I just wanted you to know the police are here.”

Her heart banged in her chest. It banged a little harder when Skippy, catching on that something was happening, rushed to the glass door and looked as if he’d crash through it.

“You could have said the police are here,” she grumbled. “You
are
in human form. And don’t be standing on the shelf like that.”

“But I can’t see if I don’t stand on it.”

“There’s nothing more to see.” She gave his shirt a tug. “Come help me with the mail. The ponies will be here in a minute.”

“I didn’t see Karl or Michael in the car,” Sam said, following her into the sorting room. “How come they weren’t in the car?”

“I don’t know. Maybe they’re in another car today since Lieutenant Montgomery and Captain Burke have a meeting with Simon.” Why had Simon called to tell her about the meeting? So she would know where to find him? Was the phone call a substitute for a Wolf howl to say,
I am here
? Did Karl and Michael make similar calls to Ruth and Merri Lee? She would ask when she met the other girls for the Quiet Mind class.

“They had another man in the car. Is he a bad guy?” Sam asked.

“No, he’s a guest.”

“Arooeeooeeoo! Arooeeooeeoo!”

Skippy would keep that up until he forgot why he was howling. Or until he was distracted.

Out of desperation, Meg dug into the sack Tess had given her and came up with a chocolate chip cookie for Sam and a cow-shaped cookie for Skippy. “Go. Eat. Be quiet and let me finish sorting the mail.”

Sam dashed into the front room, opened the go-through, and plopped on the Wolf bed. Skippy rushed to join the boy and get his share of the cookies.

Peace. Well, a crunchy silence. Meg finished sorting the last stack of mail, then pulled the new box of sugar lumps out of her carry sack. Hearing the clomp of pony hooves, she opened the sorting room’s delivery doors—and watched the ponies hustle past her and surround the three men who had been about to enter the consulate.

Snow swirled around the men’s legs as dense fog covered the delivery area.

This wasn’t playful showing off. This was a tipping point.

“Hey, Meg!” Sam called. “Come see! It’s all foggy outside.”

The ponies had never shown interest in an expected visitor before, let alone displayed intimidating behavior. Not knowing what else to do, she went with what had worked before. When in doubt, insist on good manners.

“Avalanche! Fog! Stop showing off and come over here to get your stacks of mail.” She could barely see them. Since the men weren’t screaming or shouting for help, she had to figure Quicksand hadn’t done anything—yet.

A movement at the edge of her vision. Air riding Tornado.

“Air? Is something wrong?”

The Elemental looked at her. “Many things. But not here.”

The snow fell faster and the fog got thicker. No sign of Air and Tornado now, but Meg had the feeling they weren’t that far away. And it was obvious Air wasn’t going to call off the ponies.

Meg raised her voice. “I guess nobody wants a sugar lump today.”

Snow instantly stopped falling. Fog began to dissipate as the ponies, including Tornado, hustled to the delivery door and got in line, with Thunder in his usual lead position.

“Whew,” Meg said. “I was worried that I was going to have to eat all that sugar by myself.” Smiling, she raised a hand in greeting to Lieutenant
Montgomery. After a moment’s hesitation, he returned the greeting before he followed Captain Burke and the stranger into the consulate.

Meg filled the baskets with mail, handed out sugar lumps as the special Moonsday treat, and refused to think about anything else until she was in the bathroom washing her hands.

Many things were wrong. But not here.

Maybe that was why, despite the ponies’ behavior, she hadn’t felt even the lightest prickling beneath her skin.

*   *   *

The stranger’s voice and movements hid it well, but he smelled nervous. And wet.

All the humans smelled wet.

Peering through the blinds that covered the conference room’s windows, Simon looked at the mound of melting snow, then at the three men.

he called to the Crow perched on the wall that separated Henry’s yard from the delivery area.

Feeling a warning swirl of air around his ankles, Simon decided not to ask why the Elementals’ ponies had focused on the humans. He moved back to the table as Captain Burke introduced Agent Greg O’Sullivan of the ITF. Simon, in turn, introduced the other
terra indigene
who were participating in the meeting: Vlad and Stavros, Blair and Elliot, Henry, and Tess.

O’Sullivan had asked to meet with Stavros, but now that he was in the same room, the man seemed reluctant to get close to the Toland Courtyard’s problem solver. Of course, Stavros had come to the meeting wearing his black-on-black shirt and the suit that had a sheen when the light struck the material in the right way. Like the multicolored sheen of oil on water—or the sheen of a Crow’s wing.

Taking his seat, Simon glanced at the humans. Burke set a folder on the table. O’Sullivan did the same. As Tess placed
two
folders in front of Simon, he saw the humans eyeing them, no doubt wondering what
he
had brought to this meeting.

“I appreciate you talking to me, especially during this difficult time,” O’Sullivan said.

“We all have information to share, messages to convey,” Simon replied.

Burke stiffened slightly. Montgomery looked alarmed. Would the lieutenant be less worried once he understood that the Lizzy would be safe now? Maybe. Then again, the message
was
intended to alarm the humans.

“Let’s begin.” Stavros smiled at O’Sullivan. “I recognize your voice. You were asking about jewelry. Since you couldn’t do it in Toland, have you come to Lakeside in order to accuse the Crowgard of stealing? Or are you now including the Sanguinati in those spurious accusations? After all, we, too, are capable of entering an apartment window set high above the ground, and unlike the Crows, all we need is a crack in order to enter.”

Simon asked Vlad.

O’Sullivan shook his head vehemently. “No, sir. No. I think the Crowgard and the Sanguinati are being blamed for these thefts in order to cover up an insurance scam.” He focused on Stavros. “The Crowgard had no reason to lie about where they found the settings. I don’t know much about the Crows, but it seems to me that if they were going to take something because the look of it appealed to them, they wouldn’t deface it and remove the gemstones. Why remove the sparkly bits?”

“A valid point,” Stavros conceded.

Opening the folder, O’Sullivan set several photos on the table. “These are photos of the stolen jewelry, taken by the insurance companies that wrote the policies for the pieces. These two pieces were allegedly seen being worn by the Crowgard in the Toland Courtyard. And this ring . . .” He took another photo out of the folder. “This ring was a one-of-a-kind commissioned piece with half a dozen diamonds. It was valued at six figures.”

Stavros studied the photo and shook his head. “It doesn’t matter how much it cost. It’s ugly.”

“We could make something just as good out of silver wire and chips of glass,” Vlad said.

That caught O’Sullivan’s attention,
Simon thought. He pointed at the photo. “That ring was inside Boo Bear.”

O’Sullivan blinked. “A
bear
ate the actual ring?”

“Careful,” Burke breathed, staring hard at O’Sullivan.

Simon wasn’t sure if O’Sullivan heard Burke, but all the
terra indigene
did.

Burke opened his folder and set three photos right above O’Sullivan’s set. Two photos were of the loose stones. The other photo was the ring. “Lieutenant Montgomery’s daughter Elizabeth arrived in Lakeside with a small suitcase and a stuffed bear that was her favorite toy. After an incident with a couple of young Wolves, we discovered a bag of jewels hidden inside the bear. That ring was also in the bag. The bear, and the bag of jewels, was handed over to Captain Scaffoldon as evidence in a homicide. Didn’t anyone in the Toland police force mention this to you?”

O’Sullivan frowned. Then he looked at Montgomery. “The woman who was killed at the train station.”

“Elayne Borden was Lizzy’s mother,” Montgomery said. “The gods know, Elayne was many things, but she wasn’t a thief.”

“No,” Simon said gently. “She wasn’t a thief. She didn’t steal anything, because nothing was stolen.”

“That’s what I’ve been thinking,” O’Sullivan said. “My theory is that members of the HFL were giving the jewelry to the movement but reporting the items as stolen to receive money from the insurance companies. The gems rather than the settings had the monetary value, so they were removed to be sold elsewhere or, more likely, used as currency for the purchase of supplies that would be shipped from Thaisia to Cel-Romano, which is where the HFL movement originated. The ITF believes that everyone involved in the so-called thefts belongs to the movement. That’s the only way this would work, from the companies selling the food and other supplies to the ships carrying the cargo, and everyone in between. But while Toland’s elite might be infatuated with the HFL movement, I’m guessing the companies providing the supplies and transportation are in it for the profit. When the jewels that were supposed to be the payment disappeared, so did the profit and the incentive to sell to the HFL.”

“HFL members could donate the insurance money and pay for the supplies that way,” Burke said.

“A few of them have. But more of the members aren’t dedicated enough to feel a real pinch in their wallets.” O’Sullivan smiled grimly. “At first it’s kind of luscious and glamorous—a secret group within a very public movement. Secret handshakes and meetings late at night—or held during a public event under the noses of the followers who aren’t privy to the plans.”

“It sounds like a movie,” Stavros said. “Does the hero get to mate with many beautiful women?”

“Probably. Nicholas Scratch was oddly unavailable when I tried to talk to him, so I couldn’t ask about his sexual exploits.”

Montgomery winced. Simon noticed it. He was sure Burke had too.

“Suddenly the HFL’s great scheme to ship supplies to Cel-Romano falls apart.” O’Sullivan stared at Burke. “Did Felix Scaffoldon know you had found the jewels?”

Burke gave O’Sullivan his fierce-friendly smile but finally said, “He did accuse me of swapping the gemstones for fakes, but that’s a defamatory accusation. I handed over the bear, as he requested. I had nothing to do with whatever he found inside.”

“Since this supply scheme of the HFL’s depended so much on everyone making a profit, isn’t it odd to hide the fortune inside a child’s toy?” Stavros asked. “It assumes the toy will not be damaged or lost. It also could put the child in danger.”

“
Did
put the child in danger,” Vlad said. “Hiding the jewels that way is either arrogant or stupid.”

O’Sullivan looked at all of them. “Or habit? Maybe the person who hid the jewels in the bear used to hide things in toys when he or she was a child. Does that fit anyone connected with the thefts?”

“I can think of one person,” Montgomery said very softly.

“Lieutenant?” Burke asked.

Montgomery shook his head.

“Which still begs the question,” O’Sullivan said. “Where are the real gems?”

Vlad smiled, showing a fang. “Consider them lost for good.”

O’Sullivan blinked. “Gods,” he breathed. Then he said nothing else.

“You’re quite clever for a human,” Stavros said as he studied O’Sullivan. “I hope you will continue to be clever in the days ahead.” He sat back. “Based on that hope, I will talk to you as Vladimir and Simon talk to Lieutenant Montgomery and Captain Burke.”

“That’s a generous offer,” O’Sullivan finally said after a heavy silence. “Why make it now?”

Henry stirred, his first movement since the meeting began. “Because of what is coming.”

Simon glanced at Henry.

Tess set the pink diary in front of Montgomery, who sucked in a breath. Simon pushed one folder toward Burke and the other toward O’Sullivan.

Gently, because Montgomery had been gentle with the
terra indigene
’s grief, Simon said, “This is what the humans were looking for when they searched your apartment, when they broke into the efficiency apartments here. This is why your mate died . . . and why humans hunted the Lizzy even after that Scaffoldon took Boo Bear back to Toland.”

He sat back and let them read.

After a few minutes, Montgomery closed the diary and said, “Gods, Elayne. You died for this? For
this
?”

Burke and O’Sullivan closed the folders. Both men looked sad and . . . embarrassed.

“Your reaction is not what we expected,” Stavros said.

“This is rubbish,” O’Sullivan said. “I’m sorry for what it cost you and your daughter, Lieutenant, but this is rubbish.” He looked at Stavros. “You’re a lawyer. You know what is said here about the HFL is only the word of a woman who would be labeled hysterical, jealous, and vindictive. There’s no proof that the shortages people will be facing in Thaisia are the result of a farming association selling its crops to Cel-Romano under the table to get around the limit of goods that can be exported. Or that a steel company was doing the same. And without the real jewels, we can speculate about the insurance scam, but there’s no proof that Leo Borden or Nicholas Scratch knew the jewels were in Elayne Borden’s residence, let alone that one of them put the jewels into a child’s toy as a hiding place.”

“You have formulated a theory about all of those things,” Stavros countered. “You told us right here in this room.”