Free Moon Sworn by Keri Arthur Page B

She sat up and swung her legs around. She was naked, but as uncaring as a wolf. Which was unusual for someone who smelled human, but I guess in her line of business, you’d lose your modesty early. “I earn fifty bucks for twenty minutes in this dump. Pay me that, and my lips are sealed.”
    I heard nothing but truth in her words and her mind. So I reached into my pocket, retrieved my wallet, and pulled out fifty bucks. But I flipped the note away as she reached for it. “I want honest answers. And I can tell truth from lies.”
    “Deal. Though I may not know what you want.”
    “Fair enough.” I let her have the cash. “What can you tell me about apartment 404?”
    She raised a well-plucked eyebrow. “Only that it’s off limits for us ladies.”
    “But that hasn’t stopped you from being curious, has it?”
    She smiled. “No.” She paused to take a drag on her cigarette. “There’s two men who head up there regularly. One is a werewolf, the other is a shifter of some kind. A bird, I think, from his scent.”
    “Can you give me descriptions?”
    She shrugged. “They’re men. Leaner and fitter than the bozos I service, but still men. The wolf has brown hair and brown eyes, the other is a blondie with green eyes.”
    “And how do they walk?”
    She smiled. “Like men you wouldn’t want to tangle with. Are you a cop?”
    “Guardian.”
    “Meaning things just might get interesting around here.”
    “That depends on what, exactly, is in that room.”
    “Well, I can tell you they walk upstairs with nothing and come back down with notes. And a phone rings up there a lot.”
    “You’ve never heard voices up there, or seen anyone else enter the room?”
    “Nope. And the rest of the rooms are storage, from what I’ve heard.”
    “What about security?”
    “Camera on the stairs going up. Probably an electronic lock, too, because I’ve heard the beeps. Other than that, I can’t say.”
    I was betting the camera was an infrared. Given all the technology on the roof, it would be pretty pointless putting anything else in.
    “Who watches the camera? The guard in the hall?”
    “I doubt it. Frankie is asleep more often than not.”
    I raised an eyebrow, amusement playing around my lips. “So he’s a visual deterrent more than a physical one?”
    “Basically. Although I wouldn’t want to get him annoyed—he’s got muscles on his muscles.”
    Which didn’t mean a thing if you didn’t know how to use them. “There’s no other security anywhere?”
    “Not that I’ve seen, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t.”
    “What about backup systems?”
    “Other than Frankie, I don’t think there are any.” She shrugged. “The power grid is pretty stable here, so I don’t suppose they think it’s necessary.”
    And that at least gave us a way in. “What about the owner?”
    “T.J.? He only comes here once a week to pay wages. Vonnie handles the day-to-day stuff.”
    “She got a last name?”
    “None of us have last names,” she drawled. “Not unless you pay more.”
    Not a chance when we could search through the business registrars. “Do you know if the windows upstairs are locked?”
    She shook her head. “But half the catches in this dump don’t work, so I wouldn’t be surprised if the same applies upstairs.” She contemplated me for a minute, then added, “The windows are too heavy for your bird form, and the sill would be a hell of a balancing act for your human one.”
    “That’s never stopped me before.”
    “Heard that about you lot.” She glanced at her watch. “I’m expected downstairs in ten minutes for my next customer. Unless you’ve got any more questions, I need to get cleaned up.”
    I rose. “What time do those men usually come to check the upstairs room?”
    “They’re due this afternoon. They usually get here about two.” She smiled. “For another fifty bucks, I’ll leave the window and the door open in case you need it.”
    “You’re a shark in disguise,”