Page 25 of Paws & Order

Respectfully Yours

Every hair on my arms stands at attention.

"That's new," I whisper.

Cassian's brow furrows.

"Yeah."

I stare at the note.

The language feels strange. Formal. Old-fashioned. Almost polite.

Which somehow makes it worse.

Cassian reaches for his phone.

"I don't know who this is," he says quietly. "But we're about to find out."

CHAPTER 8

CASSIAN

We take the evidence back to my apartment.

The day is pale and gray, the kind of weather that makes Blackthorn Bay feel like a snow globe you wish you could crawl inside.

Liza is still on edge, but less so now that we're not surrounded by other people's opinions.

"Do you want me here," I ask, pouring her a mug of coffee, "or would you rather have the run of your own place?"

She glances toward the tulip in its new vase and sighs.

"Stay."

The word comes out before she can soften it.

A second later, she adds, "At least until you're bored out of your skull."

"Doubtful."

I settle at the kitchen table, lining up the coins for another look.

Liza disappears into her bedroom, probably trying to reset her nerves.

A minute later, Gomez appears.

His tail swishes lazily as he hops onto the table and sniffs each coin in turn.

Then he freezes, and the fur along his spine lifts.

Slowly, he turns toward the empty corner of the room, and hisses.

Every muscle in my body locks. My hand goes instinctively to my sidearm. Pointless, if you know anything about magic. But you don't undo a lifetime of training in an afternoon.

Liza appears beside me.

"What is it?"