House of Blood and Beasts

13. Possible Leads

The artwork above is not mine.

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    Ruhn let his hands dangle between his knees while he waited for the boy to speak. Beside him, Sarai sat unnaturally still. He assumed it was because she didn't want to frighten the boy. "What's your name?" Sarai asked.

    "August." The boy stared at his shackled hands, not meeting either of their gazes. "I...I can't tell you very much. They didn't really let me know anything unless it had something to do with my assignments."

    "Just start at the beginning and tell us what you can," Sarai urged.

    August's eyes lifted and took in the one way glass window behind them. "Are those Angels watching us?"

    Ruhn angled himself between the boy and the window. "Don't worry about the Angels. They aren't going to bother us."

    August's throat bobbed. "You're the Fae Prince, aren't you? I've seen you on broadcasts." He tilted his head, locks of blond hair dusting his brow. "I like your tattoos."

    "Thank you, but you were going to tell us about your employer?"

    "Oh, right." August pursed his lips, then began. "I didn't mean to get mixed up in all of this. I just wanted to make some extra money to help out my mother. Liam saw me and said he needed someone fast and well acquainted with the Meadows to deliver messages."

    "At first, I was just taking messages to different businesses. Then it switched to individual people. One day, Liam told me I had to take a message to the Boss. He never did give me a name. Just an address. It was the warehouse where you found us. I met with the Boss a few times, taking messages back and forth between him and Liam."

    "What did the Boss look like?" Sarai asked.

    "I never saw his face. He wore a mask, but I knew he was Human."

    "Did he wear a suit like Liam and the others?"

    August shook his head. "He wore a plain black shirt and matching pants. He seemed more like a bodyguard than a Boss to me." Ruhn frowned at that. "He was the one who gave us the crate, but we were given strict orders not to open it. It had to go straight to the buyers with no interference."

    "Do you know what was in the crate?" Sarai asked. August shook his head once more.

    "You said he looked more like a bodyguard than a Boss," Ruhn said. "If he wasn't the Boss, do you have any idea who he might've been working for?"

    "Someone outside of the Meadows. No one inside is rich or powerful enough to hire bodyguards for themselves. All of the guys working on the deal with Liam came off the streets, just like me."

    Sarai rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Whenever you went to the warehouse, did you notice any of the security cameras were missing?"

    "There were never cameras around when I was there," August answered. "I thought they might've been removed before the Boss and I began meeting."

    "How long ago would you say that was?"

    "A month or so?"

    Sarai glanced at Ruhn, a suspicious gleam in her eyes. "Thank you for your cooperation, August. We'll do what we can to help you and your family."

    An Angel entered the room and removed the shackles from August's wrists. Tears welled up in the boy's eyes and dripped down his cheeks as he was escorted away. Ruhn and Sarai left the room as soon as the door hissed open. They found Isaiah and Naomi where they'd left them, although the third Angel was gone.