Page 96 of Knot Just Six
"Ugh, Trix, don't make me play twenty questions here. Personal or professional?"
There's another pause. "Uh. Maybe both?"
I groan. "Trix! Does itactuallyinvolve Loz?"
"… yes." Her voice is small.
I take a deep breath and mute my microphone. "Bondi, could you and your sexy butt grab me another coffee, please? And maybe a chocolate? Or, like, four? I think I'm going to need them."
Seb laughs. "Sure thing, Balga," he whispers, pushing himself up off the sofa, and disappearing into the kitchen. I blow him a kiss, then turn my attention back to the phone, brace myself, and unmute my microphone. "Trix, you've been working for Loz for nearly a year. Talk to her, face to face. Whatever it is, it'll be okay. She rarely murders anyone."
"Definitely not more than once," Seb mutters from the kitchen. I poke my tongue out at him.
"Uhhhh…" There's a deep inhale. "You know how Pack Zed wasn't available for her heat this month…? And she said tojust… book who was good onHeatseekers? But to make sure it was a pack who'd been supporting your research and who'd signed up to follow the voluntary standards?"
I nod, even though she can't see me. "Uh huh?"
"And you know how… how Christopher Townsend reported everything to the police and quit Pack Townsend when those heat photos of Loz got leaked?"
The faint tingle in my skull makes me wonder if a migraine is about to knock me off my feet for a day. "… uh huh…?" I pinch the bridge of my nose.
"Um… and you know how Ben got packed up last year? And… and how he wouldn't tell us who he packed up with…?"
"Yeah. He's occasionally a crappy brother and usually a terrible communicator. I hear military service does that to people. But what's that got to do with—"
"Um. So. Uh. You know howHeatseekerswas founded by Gillie McCormick? And they've signed the platform on to the voluntary standards your lot developed… and changed the setup on the platform so it can handle pack supporters as well as heat support packs…? Um, and, and, howHeatseekersbrought in workers' comp coverage… and, and how he and his pack did a few Go Sees as, uh, as a heat support pack to work out how to make the voluntary standards work for their platform… and ended up with a rep for being really, really good…"
I sigh. "Trix,pleaseget to the point."
"Um. Well. So… funny story, really, if you think about it… Pack McCormick have done so much, you know, heat supporters and pack support… and… they had an opening. It lined up perfectly with Loz's heat. Uh, I checked their reviews and I talked to them, like four times, and they seemed perfect. They just needed us to find them a support pack. But…"
Something in her voice sends a cold trickle down my spine. I shiver. "Oh… Trix… no…"
She lets out a high-pitched wail."I accidentally booked Lauren's heat in with Ben and his pack and now they're here and their pack supporters didn't show up…"
She inhales deeply. My stomach drops.
"... and the only backup pack supporter available is Christopher Townsend and now I don't know what to do!"
