Free 13 Secrets by Michelle Harrison

any updates, you can leave.”
    Hurried good-byes were exchanged, then Crooks and Fix left the barn.
    “The second case tonight is trickier,” Tino continued. “Suki met with a second-sighted boy who believes his mother has been switched for a changeling.”
    Fabian prodded Rowan in the back. “His
mother
? I thought only children were taken!”
    “Quiet,” said Tino coldly, before Rowan could answer. “I’m talking. Now, as we know, adult changelings are far less common than children and babies. And because we’re dealing with an adult fairy, things are more complex and often a lot more dangerous. That’s why we can’t afford to get this wrong. We only get one chance, because if we mess it up, we could endanger this boy and the rest of his family. The boy noticed a change in his mother’s behavior a few weeks ago but put it down to the fact that she’d beenill. But things have been getting stranger, and the woman has been acting increasingly out of character.” He nodded to Suki.
    “The time I had with him was brief, but I’ve organized another meeting with him to get more information,” she said. “From what he’s told me already it sounds genuine, and the boy’s guardian—a goblin, from the description—hasn’t been seen since the changeling came into the household. I didn’t say it to the boy, but chances are, the guardian is dead.”
    “Has he done the iron test?” Peg asked.
    “Touching a person with something iron,” Rowan murmured to Tanya. “If they’re fey, it’ll burn, and they won’t be able to hide their reaction.”
    “No,” said Suki. “I didn’t tell him to do anything like that. If she is a changeling and she knows he’s on to her it could accelerate the situation. We need to be sure and we need to know what she wants. I’ve told him to keep monitoring her behavior and to act as normally as he can.”
    “How old is the boy?” Samson asked.
    “Eleven,” Suki answered. “But it’s not just the boy who could be at risk. There’s his father, who seems oblivious, and the boy’s two-year-old sister.”
    “How are they at risk?” Tanya blurted out, forgetting herself. She cringed as Tino stared at her, but to her surprise, Suki responded.
    “We don’t know that they are yet. But in cases of adult changelings, they’ve usually developed a fixationwith someone in the family. If the changeling is a grieving mother, they can latch on to a child bearing some resemblance to the one they’ve lost, disposing of the real mother to get to it. Sometimes it’s an obsession with the person they’re impersonating; if they’re talented in some way, or beautiful. Until we know more we can’t decide how to act.” She sighed, her sharp features softening. “And this boy is scared. He’s frightened out of his mind, which makes me think he’s sure about what he’s seen. We need to find out more from him, although if he’s right, this is going to be tough.”
    “That’s where you come in,” said Tino, turning his gaze on Rowan. “And with that coat…”
    “Me? Wait a minute, I’ve just told you, I’m not—”
    “Hear me out,” said Tino. “I know what you’ve said, but listen. I still think, no matter what you say, that this is something you have an instinct for. Even after James—this is what you do. Now, if you’ll take this one last job, and you still want out afterward, then I’ll let you go without question.”
    “And if I don’t take it?”
    “Then you’ll never know if it’s what you really want,” Tino answered softly. “And any ties you have with us are gone for good.”
    “That’s sort of the point,” said Rowan sarcastically, but her voice trembled at the same time.
    “There’s still time to think about it before you make your decision,” Tino coaxed. “Like I said, Suki’s arranged another meeting with the boy tomorrow. If you want to, you can be there.”
    Rowan closed her eyes. “There’s a baby involved?”
    Tanya’s head shot