Page 58 of Bent Out of Shade
Off my hesitation, Orange Hair nodded. “It’s fine. Honestly.”
“Thanks.”
I waded through the smattering of employees. None of them gave me a second look, but that was almost worse because all my old insecurities around invisibility came roaring back. I pinched the inside of my wrist to dispel the negative thinking. These people were busy working. Nothing more. The world didn’t revolve around me.
Nora was a petite woman wearing a pair of chunky soled leather boots with heavy silver buckles that weighed half as much as she did. A shock of blond hair fell over her green eyes, her head bobbing along to the music drifting out from her headphones.
“Nora?” I crouched down to eye level to wave at her.
She pulled one side of the headphones off. “Yeah?”
“I’m Miriam.”
Nora looked at me blankly for a moment, then jumped up and set her laptop on her red chair. “Seriously? Awesome. Come on.” She hurried toward a glass conference room door, egging me to follow her with an impish grin.
We took our seats at the large round table in a room that smelled of coffee.
“If you don’t mind me asking,” I said, “how did you go from a degree in folklore and mythology to video games?”
Nora smiled. “Spoken like someone who hasn’t played one.”
“Does Tetris count?”
“Sure, but not in this context. Historically, storytelling has been at the heart of a lot of games, and it’s gotten far more sophisticated. I’m a die-hard gamer.” She laughed at my stony stare. “Shifter ones too, but I meant video games. I love worldbuilding and mythology, so this job? It’s a dream. Way better than academia, which is where I’d have ended up with my master’s degree. Now.” She bounced on the ergonomic leather chair. “You got the ring?”
“Yes.” I slid it over to her, and her breath caught.
“Hello, beauty. Show me your secrets.” She flipped it over, her bottom lip caught between her teeth, and ran her fingernail along each decorative groove.
A tiny needle shot out, and Nora squealed in delight.
My shoulders slumped. Giulia had handed it over without any expectation of its return, but I couldn’t take it away from her. It was from Laurent, and given her reaction to my dinner invitation, the cat gargoyle didn’t have many friends.
The trouble was, I couldn’t give it to Nora and then steal it back either, because that was all kinds of shitty.
The raven shifter used the hard case of her phone to push the needle back in, a sheepish expression on her face. “The rumors of this being Lucrezia Borgia’s poison ring are likely just that, but better safe than sorry.”
I placed my hand over the ring and sighed. “I can’t give this to you.”
Nora sat back in her seat. “You want the information first? No prob.”
“It’s not that. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have gotten your hopes up for the ring. It’s not mine to give, and I was wrong to come here.” I put it back in my purse.
She cocked her head, studying me. “We can play for it.”
“God no.” I stood up. “No offense.”
“Why not? It’s easy enough to get the information that way.”
I snorted. “I know how playing shifter games brings things into existence.”
“So?”
“Not interested in complicating my life that way.” I turned around to leave, the ring in my pocket, but she stuck her leg out, blocking me.
“It doesn’t have to be connected to you.”
I planted my hands on my hips. “I’m not playing a game and shuffling the consequences onto someone else.”
