“That’s not possible.” Vause lifted a pen and then discarded it. “Your involvement with the warg has been called into question. Your defense of him, of his actions, even now, is too impassioned to believe you’re ambivalent toward him. Even if I could defend you against those accusations, you were close to Harlow. You can’t be circumspect.” She softened her voice. “Given your past history, it was foolish of me to recruit you for this case.”

Bitterness coiled in my chest. “You’re taking Charybdis from me.”

“Go home. Rest. You’ve been granted two weeks of leave time. Paid, of course.” She stood and smoothed imagined wrinkles from her skirt. “I will forward any updates on your friend that I receive.”

Two weeks. The pronouncement hit me with the force of a backhand. Paid or not, being shut out hurt. Aunt Dot would be thrilled about the forced vacation, but the idea of sitting at home that long made my skin itch. Foolish or not, Vause had recruited me to unmask Charybdis, and after witnessing his carnage, I had no intentions of leaving his capture up to the conclave. Maybe I would take Graeson up on his offer of cooperation after all.

Vause waited until my hand was on the doorknob and my back was to her before extending an olive branch. “A few months ago a death goddess, the Morrigan, attempted to escape Faerie and take up residence in the mortal realm.”

A zing shot down my spine. The Morrigan. That was the name Thierry had danced around in Wink. I had summoned the goddess once, back when I was still a marshal. The Morrigan had access to the mortal realm. Why press to make residence here permanent when she had the best of both worlds? I hesitated, waiting to see if Vause enlightened me.

“Some believe she encouraged the cutting of the tethers connecting this realm with the fae realm in order to prevent extradition.” Vause turned introspective. “You might ask yourself what a death goddess fears enough to jump realms and burn the bridges after her. You might also ask yourself who offered her the match.”

“The boy’s death in Wink wasn’t related to Charybdis.” I slowly faced Vause. “You knew that before you sent me to Texas, didn’t you?” I leaned back against the door. “You wanted me to know about the portal.” Another thought occurred to me. “You wanted me to meet Thierry.”

“The kraken had to be dealt with sooner or later.” A speck of a smile teased her lips. “I chose sooner.”

“Why not tell me that outright? I could have flown out and grabbed a cup of coffee with her without all the pretense.” I squeezed the knob until it squeaked. “A good man might not be dead—his wife incarcerated and his children parentless—if I hadn’t intervened.”