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“So, back to the fairy,” Hart said briskly, saving me from myself. “I’d like to talk with her.”

“That’s not currently possible. I can tell ya that she has an accent like mine, but she covers it up. The fairy came here pretending to be the lover of a centaur. When she stabbed me, her true self emerged. She’s full of hate, especially towards me.”

Hart tried to use his phone to take a photo of the fairy statue. His phone photos turned solid black or had only the background of the foyer visible.

“The magick must be keeping her from showing up. Perhaps it is some new fairy defense,” Jessing said.

Hart nodded. “We may have to get an artist to draw her.”

The energy causing her to be invisible might also be a kind that developed a necessary knack for hiding itself. I tucked this away as one more thing to share with Mulan when we spoke about what I’d learned.

“I know someone who draws well,” I said, snapping my fingers. “I think he’s in the library upstairs right now. Wait here, please. I’ll return shortly.”

Chapter Fourteen

Itook the steps two at a time to get up them quickly. Rasmus had drawn Zara’s former human image for me before I knew her. We’d used it to search for her identity online.

I was winded by the time I reached the third floor. Panting, I knocked on the new library’s door and waited.

“Enter,” Rasmus said.

Still breathing hard, I went inside. Rasmus and Zara were stacking books in small piles. They looked quite entranced with their task.

“I’m sorry to interrupt, but I need yer help, Rasmus.”

“Of course. What kind of help?”

I drew in a deep breath so I’d have enough air to speak. I still hadn’t recovered completely from the arrow incident. I tired too fast and got winded more easily. But I still breathed air daily, so I really couldn’t complain. Things could have gone much worse for me than struggling with shortness of breath.

Of course, the stabbing no one knew about probably hadn’t helped, either.

“I need ya to draw the female fairy Mulan froze. The enforcers are here. They’re trying to confirm her identity butit fails to show her. I think Mulan’s magick won’t let the statue show up.”

“How strange,” Zara said. “May I come to see this as well?”

“Sure,” I said, unable to think of a reason why that might be bad. “The enforcers are here to help me find out for sure who’s trying to kill me and help put a stop to it.”

Zara smiled tolerantly at my explanation. “Yes. Rasmus explained their purpose. I find it quite fascinating that they are not subject to your working restraints.”

I shrugged. “Well, they have constraints too, just not like mine. Everyone working for the Shadow Breakers follows a set of rules to do their work. It is for everyone’s safety and to ensure the best possible outcomes. The Shadow Breakers are not lawless magickals.”

Zara lifted a brow. “Because the lawless ones are the paranormals you arrest.”

“Yes,” I said, wishing she’d just leave it there. I felt sure I knew where this was going and needed to cut it off before it could get out of hand. I smiled at Rasmus. “I’m sorry to interrupt yer organizing.”

“It’s no problem at all. Let me retrieve my drawing pad from my old bedroom. I kept it there for nights I couldn’t sleep.”

The guardian was sleeping in my room now but hadn’t moved all his stuff to our quarters. His old bedroom was now being used as his office. He had a desk set up in there to work. When I was otherwise occupied, Rasmus stayed close to Zara by using his Orlin-sanctioned pretend-brother status. I appreciated him for it.

I waited at the top of the stairs for them. When they appeared, I started down. With their longer strides, I needed to get a head start. At the bottom of the stairs, I walked back to a now staring Hart and Jessing.

Their gazes remained locked onto both guardians, but kept straying to Rasmus. And I knew what they were thinking. It was the same thing everyone thought when they didn’t look any farther than our appearances. They wondered what someone who looked like Rasmus saw in someone who looked like me.

They had no way of knowing that we weren’t even magickal equals because Rasmus was in a whole other category. However, compared to Jessing and Hart, I was a rock star. I was more powerful than either of them or any of the other magickals they knew, including Ezra. If the enforcers realized it, though, they gave no indication.

Jessing’s gaze turned to me when I got close. “I am impressed, Aran of The Dagda. Your guardian is a beautiful male. You traded up a skyscraper’s worth,” she said in a loud whisper that I felt sure everyone heard.

I made the introductions quickly. Rasmus and Zara nodded to the enforcers without saying more than a simple hello. I could see they were keeping their neutrality firmly in place with my co-worker guests.