Page 37 of Seer

I absently picked up the bill, swallowing against the tightness in my throat. Dammit, I’d never in a million years expect someone who looked like Greg to go for me, but rejection still hurt, especially when it was shoved in my face.

I paid and left a good-sized tip for the server. In the parking lot, Greg already had the SUV running. As soon as I buckled my seat belt, he got us moving.

I mentally rolled my eyes. Apparently I’d be getting the silent treatment just for existing. Whatever, dude.

But I didn’t know how long it would take to get to Greg’s place, and I had questions. The fucker could at least answer those.

“So tell me about this game.”

Greg shot me a startled look, like he hadn’t been expecting me to speak to him. That’s right, asshole. I’ve dealt with worse bullies than you.

“Um,” he said. “Ellis and Shane said you mentioned being an NPC. Where did you hear that?”

I waved a hand dismissively. “I overheard a couple of shifters talking. Tell me about the game.”

He shook his head. “There’s no game. It’s—we’re trying to hide in plain sight.”

“Meaning what?”

He glanced at me again, more of an evaluating look this time. Then he gazed back at the road ahead and said, “When the Elves gave the original families the magic, it was six months after World War II had ended. People were still paranoid about spies and keeping secrets. There was some initialcommunication between the magical families, but they decided it’d be safer for the Wonders if they went no-contact.”

“You mean if one family or Wonder was exposed, they wouldn’t lead the authorities to the others?”

He nodded. “Exactly. During the Cold War, it was even worse. It wasn’t until around 1980 that Ian Churston, who was the teenage son of a DM in Australia, figured out how we could all communicate with each other and no one listening in would be the wiser. He’d started playingDungeons & Dragons.”

“Ohhhh.”

“Right. As long as they threw in references to DMs and campaigns, they could talk on the phone or in public about paranormal beings and magic without anyone batting an eye.”

“Smart.”

“It was. And over time we’ve become a lot more lax, but the basics are still there. As a District Monitor, I’m the DM of this district.”

I couldn’t stop the laugh. “Okay, that makes sense.”

He flashed a grin. “And anyone not in the know about magic and Wonders is an NPC.”

“Got it. And you and the shifters have all called me a Cassandra?”

Greg grimaced. “Yeah, that’s obviously a pre-D&D reference. I don’t know when it originated, but it’s used to mean a magic carrier whose abilities are emerging but who we haven’t found yet.”

“Because in the Greek myth, nobody believed Cassandra when she told them about her visions.”

“Right.”

What would it have been like to have been born to parents who understood and supported my abilities? I shook my head. Life sucked, and all you could do was try to make each day suck less.

Greg turned the SUV into the parking garage of a medium-grade apartment complex. I was surprised he didn’t live somewhere nicer, being a successful business owner and all. Maybe he was as frugal as I was. Or he spent his money on other things.

He pulled into a parking spot next to a baby blue Ford Bronco with a fabric roof. He pointed at it and said, “That’s Uncle Edgar’s.”

I looked from Greg to the Bronco and back again. “Um, does your uncle do a lot of off-roading?”

He snorted. “Among other things.”

We got out of the SUV, and I followed Greg to the elevator, making sure to keep at least a foot of space between us at all times. Wouldn’t want to get my magic cooties on him so he’d have to endure resonating with a fatty or anything. Hopefully Greg’s uncle would be friendlier.

The elevator was an ancient metal box with cracked tile flooring. My apartment wasn’t luxurious, but it was better than this. The elevator stopped on the fifth floor. The hallway had stained beige indoor-outdoor carpeting, but at least it didn’t smell as bad as it looked.