A Local Habitation
Page 47
“I object to having you appear behind me without warning,” I said.
Quentin nodded. “That’s, um, pretty much my problem, too.”
April smiled, an expression that looked entirely artificial. “Acceptable. I will refrain from abrupt materialization in your immediate vicinity without prior notification of my arrival.”
It took me a moment to puzzle through that one. “So you won’t appear suddenly?” I guessed. I wasn’t going to make assumptions with someone who seemed to view silly things like “physics” as a mere convenience.
“Yes.”
“Good.” I glanced back toward Quentin, and saw that he was starting to relax again. “Can I help you with something?”
“Mother says you are going to assist us.”
“We’re going to try.”
“Mother says you are here about the disconnection of the residents of this network.”
Silence was becoming a major punctuation in this conversation. I looked to Quentin, who shook his head and spread his hands to show that he hadn’t understood it either. “What?”
“The ones that have gone off- line. You will determine what has caused them to remain isolated from the network.”
Oh. She was talking about the murders. “Yes. We’re going to find out why people are being killed.”
She frowned, looking puzzled. Then the expression faded, and she asked, “Why?”
I shrugged. “Somebody has to.”
“That makes no sense,” she said, frowning again.
“I rarely do. It’s one of my best traits.”
Quentin snorted, trying not to laugh.
“Gordan does not trust you,” April said.
“I knew that, actually.”
“Mother trusts you.” She shook her head. “I still do not know whether I trust you.”
“I’m glad you can be honest about that,” I said. She was starting to unnerve me. There were too many little inconsistencies in the way she behaved and the way she was made, and it was getting harder to resist the urge to wave my hand through the space her body appeared to occupy just to find out whether or not she was there.
“Honesty is the only sensible option.”
Maybe for computer-powered Dryads, but the rest of Faerie seemed to be having a bit more of a problem with it. Slowly, I asked, “Why are you here?”
“Mother requested that I notify you if any company personnel exited the presence of their assigned partners.”
“And?”
“Gordan and Terrie have departed from one another’s company.”
Swell. “Message received. Where are they?”
“Gordan is located in her cubicle. Terrie is located in the cafeteria.”
“All right. Why don’t you go take care of whatever else you need to do, and I’ll see if I can explain to them why this isn’t okay, all right?”
April gave me a long, measuring look, expression alien as ever. It was like watching an anthropologist trying to figure out a foreign culture—and who knows? Maybe that’s what she was doing. “Understood,” she said finally, and vanished in a flicker of static and ozone.
“Right,” I said, eyeing the space where she’d been before turning to pull the keys out of my pocket and toss them to Quentin. He caught them without pausing to think; good reflexes.
He gave me a bewildered look. “What are you giving me these for?”
“I need to go knock some heads together. Repeatedly. I want you to lock yourself in.”
“Uh.” Quentin’s eyebrows rose, expression turning dubious. “Have you never seen a horror movie in your entire life? Splitting the party is never a good idea.”
“I got that. I also got the part where if I’m creeping around the knowe worrying about you, I’m even more likely to do something stupid. Stay put. Lock the door, and don’t let anyone in, even if they sound like me, unless they know the password.”
“April isn’t going to use the door.”
“I don’t really think April is particularly dangerous, unless you’re threatening her mom. Maybe you should see if you can get her to come back. Asking her some questions might be good for you.”
“Toby—”
“Just do it.”
He looked like he was going to keep arguing. Then he sighed, shoulders sagging, and asked, “What’s the password?”
I managed a fleeting smile as I rose and walked toward the door. “How about ‘do your homework’?”
“Catty,” he said, forcing a smile of his own.
“Exactly,” I said, and stepped out of the room. I waited in front of the door while Quentin closed and locked it, throwing the bolt with a decisive “click.” That done, I started down the hall.
SIXTEEN
I WAS STARTING TO FIND MY WAY AROUND. The hall where Colin’s office was located led to a larger hall, which led in turn to a pair of wide double doors that opened on the company lawn. A dozen cats were splayed on the grass, distributed around the door like spokes radiating from a wheel. They lifted their heads when I stepped out, watching my approach. I frowned. They’d come because of Barbara—if Tybalt was to be believed, she’d been the only true Cait Sidhe in Fremont—but they’d stayed for reasons of their own.
That’s the thing about cats: they remember a time when there were true faerie kings for them to look at, not just Kings and Queens of Cats and the imitations we have today. Cats watch from corners and hearths, and they see history happening, and they never forget a minute. Some people say cats are the memory of Faerie, and that as long as there’s one cat that remembers us, Faerie will never die. People say some weird things, but sometimes, there’s truth there that we can’t see. They can say whatever they like about the cats of Faerie; I still say most of them are damned nuisances. And that includes mine.
I crossed the lawn, stepping around cats as I walked toward the main building. They watched me intently, and I paused, frowning. Despite the feline population explosion on the grounds, I hadn’t seen a single cat inside. “You guys have a problem with enclosed spaces?” I asked. They didn’t respond, making no move to either follow or move away. “Right.”
Shaking my head, I went inside.
The emptiness of the main building was even eerier now that I knew what was happening. My footsteps echoed as I walked along the hall, heading toward the cubicle maze. More than anything, I wanted to evacuate the place—send the survivors home, or even back to Shadowed Hills, and figure out who our killer was without hanging around in this giant technological crypt. But that wasn’t going to happen.
Quentin nodded. “That’s, um, pretty much my problem, too.”
April smiled, an expression that looked entirely artificial. “Acceptable. I will refrain from abrupt materialization in your immediate vicinity without prior notification of my arrival.”
It took me a moment to puzzle through that one. “So you won’t appear suddenly?” I guessed. I wasn’t going to make assumptions with someone who seemed to view silly things like “physics” as a mere convenience.
“Yes.”
“Good.” I glanced back toward Quentin, and saw that he was starting to relax again. “Can I help you with something?”
“Mother says you are going to assist us.”
“We’re going to try.”
“Mother says you are here about the disconnection of the residents of this network.”
Silence was becoming a major punctuation in this conversation. I looked to Quentin, who shook his head and spread his hands to show that he hadn’t understood it either. “What?”
“The ones that have gone off- line. You will determine what has caused them to remain isolated from the network.”
Oh. She was talking about the murders. “Yes. We’re going to find out why people are being killed.”
She frowned, looking puzzled. Then the expression faded, and she asked, “Why?”
I shrugged. “Somebody has to.”
“That makes no sense,” she said, frowning again.
“I rarely do. It’s one of my best traits.”
Quentin snorted, trying not to laugh.
“Gordan does not trust you,” April said.
“I knew that, actually.”
“Mother trusts you.” She shook her head. “I still do not know whether I trust you.”
“I’m glad you can be honest about that,” I said. She was starting to unnerve me. There were too many little inconsistencies in the way she behaved and the way she was made, and it was getting harder to resist the urge to wave my hand through the space her body appeared to occupy just to find out whether or not she was there.
“Honesty is the only sensible option.”
Maybe for computer-powered Dryads, but the rest of Faerie seemed to be having a bit more of a problem with it. Slowly, I asked, “Why are you here?”
“Mother requested that I notify you if any company personnel exited the presence of their assigned partners.”
“And?”
“Gordan and Terrie have departed from one another’s company.”
Swell. “Message received. Where are they?”
“Gordan is located in her cubicle. Terrie is located in the cafeteria.”
“All right. Why don’t you go take care of whatever else you need to do, and I’ll see if I can explain to them why this isn’t okay, all right?”
April gave me a long, measuring look, expression alien as ever. It was like watching an anthropologist trying to figure out a foreign culture—and who knows? Maybe that’s what she was doing. “Understood,” she said finally, and vanished in a flicker of static and ozone.
“Right,” I said, eyeing the space where she’d been before turning to pull the keys out of my pocket and toss them to Quentin. He caught them without pausing to think; good reflexes.
He gave me a bewildered look. “What are you giving me these for?”
“I need to go knock some heads together. Repeatedly. I want you to lock yourself in.”
“Uh.” Quentin’s eyebrows rose, expression turning dubious. “Have you never seen a horror movie in your entire life? Splitting the party is never a good idea.”
“I got that. I also got the part where if I’m creeping around the knowe worrying about you, I’m even more likely to do something stupid. Stay put. Lock the door, and don’t let anyone in, even if they sound like me, unless they know the password.”
“April isn’t going to use the door.”
“I don’t really think April is particularly dangerous, unless you’re threatening her mom. Maybe you should see if you can get her to come back. Asking her some questions might be good for you.”
“Toby—”
“Just do it.”
He looked like he was going to keep arguing. Then he sighed, shoulders sagging, and asked, “What’s the password?”
I managed a fleeting smile as I rose and walked toward the door. “How about ‘do your homework’?”
“Catty,” he said, forcing a smile of his own.
“Exactly,” I said, and stepped out of the room. I waited in front of the door while Quentin closed and locked it, throwing the bolt with a decisive “click.” That done, I started down the hall.
SIXTEEN
I WAS STARTING TO FIND MY WAY AROUND. The hall where Colin’s office was located led to a larger hall, which led in turn to a pair of wide double doors that opened on the company lawn. A dozen cats were splayed on the grass, distributed around the door like spokes radiating from a wheel. They lifted their heads when I stepped out, watching my approach. I frowned. They’d come because of Barbara—if Tybalt was to be believed, she’d been the only true Cait Sidhe in Fremont—but they’d stayed for reasons of their own.
That’s the thing about cats: they remember a time when there were true faerie kings for them to look at, not just Kings and Queens of Cats and the imitations we have today. Cats watch from corners and hearths, and they see history happening, and they never forget a minute. Some people say cats are the memory of Faerie, and that as long as there’s one cat that remembers us, Faerie will never die. People say some weird things, but sometimes, there’s truth there that we can’t see. They can say whatever they like about the cats of Faerie; I still say most of them are damned nuisances. And that includes mine.
I crossed the lawn, stepping around cats as I walked toward the main building. They watched me intently, and I paused, frowning. Despite the feline population explosion on the grounds, I hadn’t seen a single cat inside. “You guys have a problem with enclosed spaces?” I asked. They didn’t respond, making no move to either follow or move away. “Right.”
Shaking my head, I went inside.
The emptiness of the main building was even eerier now that I knew what was happening. My footsteps echoed as I walked along the hall, heading toward the cubicle maze. More than anything, I wanted to evacuate the place—send the survivors home, or even back to Shadowed Hills, and figure out who our killer was without hanging around in this giant technological crypt. But that wasn’t going to happen.
