Chapter 25
Gil
“Don’t you think you could have been a little more welcoming?” I ask, not bothering to hide my sharpness with Finn.
That was not how I wanted them to meet.
And now, I’m overviewing the files, and I certainly didn’t make these errors.
I let out a weary sigh. Couldn’t Finn wait a few damn days for me to sort this out? It’s not exactly a top priority. Angel mentioned his crush wasn’t keen on going to the festival with him, but I’m not going to let him take his heartache out on Marina.
“Probably,” he huffs. “If you recall, I did offer an apology.”
“Barely,” I say, flipping through the books until I find the columns that are off. “You know how much this means to me, Finn—how much she means to me.”
“Long distance from the mortal realm doesn’t seem like it’s going to be easy,” he remarks. “You have talked about that sort of thing, right? Does she live by a body of water that’s enchanted, or will you have to find ways to commute?”
My busy hands freeze on the desk.
I hadn’t really thought about that.
I’ve been in this happy little bubble where Marina and I are together, but we’re essentially on vacation together. She has a life back home, a band that’s aching to have her join them, and I have my responsibilities here.
It’s not as if I couldn’t find ways to hide in the mortal realm. Conversely, I’d happily offer to make my home ours, but I can’t rush her, not when things are already moving so fast. All we can do is enjoy the moment and see where everything leads.
Heaving a deep breath, I turn my attention back to the numbers—the wrongness of them. The accounting error is unclear but annoying nonetheless.
Someone lost a box of crystal-infused appliances, for all I know they’re somewhere at the bottom of the springs or in a cluttered backroom.
From what I can tell, the goods were supposed to be shipped to a villa in the dragonfly court.
I smirk, thinking of Marina. The Dragonfly court must have a mortal somewhere in their midst, or a faerie royal who, like Magnus, has grown interested in the tech the humans have built.
Too bad most of our supply is from when Grampy was frequenting the other realm.
Outdated—not that the faeries realize it.
This part of our business is all perfectly by the book but not expressly advertised. Folks who want human-centric tech know to come to us. The imports make up much less of our gross profits than charters nowadays but it’s still important.
The error takes ages to find. I’m glad Marina has Angel to keep her company at least. But the guilt in being wrapped up in this builds until I find a line written in the wrong column on the wrong month. I sigh, tapping my claw on the page.
“Seriously?” I ask. Finn and I rewrite the column. Stretching my arms over my head, I splay my hands, letting the webbing go taut.
“Well, as fun as this has been, I ought to get back to my date,” I say, striding down the hallway until I reach a very quiet, very empty lobby.
Huh.
They might have gone for a walk or a swim. Only when I glance out the windows, I don’t see Marina anywhere.
Where could she have gone?
“Gil, we’ve got a problem,” Finn shouts, charging toward me with his mouth hanging open.
I huff. I’ve had enough work-related problems for the afternoon. “I’m clocked out,” I say, scanning the water.
“One of the boats is missing,” he says. “And let me guess, so is Angel, and your new girl?”
“Angel can’t drive!”
“And despite our very valid attempts, she hasn’t seemed to realize that,” Finn says dryly.
The keys…
I left the keys in Marina’s hands, and Angel must have sweet-talked her into going along with whatever plan she had.
That being said, why wouldn’t she tell me she was going out? It’s not that she needs permission, but there are very few ways to contact each other here.
I can’t stand the thought of her wandering around, a world away from her home.
“I have an idea where to find them,” Finn says with a groan. “If we’re lucky, we can get there before she meets the rest of the family.”