“Stone, after all this time together, don’t you know I can take care of myself?” Cassie gave him a frown and her partner shrugged sheepishly.
“I know you’re a capable officer, it’s just that you’re so small…so delicate.”
“Small and delicate?” Cassie barked a laugh. “Those would be the last words I’d think of to describe myself! You’re just a big lug, Stone—like all Kindred.” She looked at Commander Sylvan. “No offense intended.”
“None taken,” the Kindred commander said mildly. “The size difference between our two peoples is well-known. But just because humans are smaller than us, doesn’t mean they’re less intelligent or capable.” He looked at Stone as he spoke.
“Of course not.” Stone sighed and ran a hand through his dark blond hair. “All right,” he said at last. “If Captain Perkins approves it, we’ll go.” He pointed at Cassie. “But we’ll need to find a way to check in with each other. I want to be sure you’re safe.”
“You should both be working in the same place— Xempi Gozeriam likes to keep everything important to him close. His laboratory and filming studio are both located inside his palace,” Sylvan told them. “I saw both when he gave me a tour of his facilities, hoping to make a deal.”
“Is that also how you got a contact on Bachanalius?” Stone asked, raising an eyebrow.
Sylvan nodded.
“I cultivated him after Gozeriam swore vengeance on me. He’s one of the outer palace guards—which is possibly why he didn’t know what Gozeriam had planned with the Imposter and the Pain Fruit. I would have liked to get a contact closer to Gozeriam himself, but he vets his inner circle very carefully.”
“Well, as long as your contact can get us in, it shouldn’t matter,” Cassie said. She looked at Stone. “What do you say, partner? You up for this?”
Stone frowned but nodded slowly.
“I am, but only if you promise to be safe.”
“Of course.” Cassie nodded. She reached out and squeezed his hand comfortingly. “We’ll both take all the necessary precautions. Come on, Stone—we can do this. Don’t you want to catch that bastard?”
Stone’s eyes hardened.
“More than anything,” he growled. “All right, Commander Sylvan—we’re in,” he said, turning to the other Kindred.
“Very good.” Sylvan nodded. “I’ll put in a call to your Captain at once. In the meantime, let’s get the two of you outfitted so you look the part.” He frowned. “It’s extremely important that you appear to be what you claim. Gozeriam can have absolutely no idea that you’re not who you say you are or the consequences could be…”
“Fatal,” Stone finished for him, grimly. “Don’t worry, Commander—he won’t have any idea.”
“Good, then let’s get started.” Sylvan nodded at both of them and Cassie and Stone nodded back.
Inside Cassie’s stomach, a whole swarm of butterflies had just taken off. This assignment could either be the adventure of a lifetime…or the end of her life altogether.
What had she gotten herself into?
Twenty
“Okay, doll—you’re ready to go.” Kat—the woman who Sylvan had assigned to get them costumed for their parts—stood back and nodded her head approvingly. She had a full figure and thick auburn hair as well as an assured, professional air about her that made Cassie inclined to trust her.
But no matter how trustworthy Kat seemed, she couldn’t help grimacing at her reflection in the 3-D viewer.
“Seriously? I have to wear this? I thought I was supposed to be a body-guard—not a dominatrix!”
Actually, the costume Kat had created for her looked less like a dominatrix and more like the flimsy “armor” female characters wore in RPG video games.
Cassie was wearing a gold “breastplate” which was actually just a gold metal bra that molded to her breasts and left her midriff bare. The bottom half of the outfit was a kind of metal bikini bottom with two long strips of crimson fabric attached at the front and the back, which left her hips and the sides of her legs bare. A pair of leather, high-heeled boots that came up to her thighs was her footwear.
The whole thing looked ridiculous to Cassie. The only saving grace, as far as she was concerned, was the long black cloak that hooked to the top straps of her golden metal bra and was long enough to pull around and partially hide her.
“You don’t like it?” Kat asked, frowning. “Why? Because it doesn’t cover your curves like that bulky suit you were wearing when you walked in here?”
“Hey!” Cassie exclaimed. “I like my suits—they’re very professional. You can’t go around dressed like a bikini model when you’re a police detective,” she pointed out. “Skimpy clothes don’t exactly command respect.”
“I can see that.” Kat nodded. “But you don’t have to dress like a nun or a commercial for the Men’s Warehouse either. You could find something a little more flattering to wear without losing the respect of your male colleagues.” She raised an eyebrow at Cassie. “Or is it just that you’re ashamed of your curves and you want to hide them?”