“Maureen seemed too high maintenance to live in a house in a mud hole, but sure, let’s give it a shot. I’ll go with you. I can ID her,” Dani said.

Bael put his hands on her shoulders and turned her away from the door. “You’re not going with me.”

“What? Why?”

“Because I need to follow procedure and I can’t do that if I’m busy trying to keep you from whippin’ her ass,” Bael said. “Once she’s in custody, you can ID her here.”

“I wouldn’t—okay, yeah, that’s fair,” Dani said.

Bael’s tone gentled, and his arm curved around her, nudging her toward Zed. “You’re going to stay right here and rest because Jillian says that using the force takes a lot out of you and you’re going to need every bit of your strength over the next few days to get things back in order.”

“I don’t think I employed the phrase, ‘use the force,’” said Jillian.

“If Dani had said the words, ‘use the force’ when she was explaining her gift, I probably would have understood it a lot faster,” said Zed.

Dani sighed.

“We’ll be back,” Jillian told them. “You stay here. Zed, keep her safe.”

As the door clicked behind them, Zed wrapped his arms around Dani and pulled her close. She was shaking. Dani never shook. She was always so resolute and steady in what she did, that it made him afraid for her. And yet, at the same time, a low-simmering anger was churning through his gut. She hadn’t lied to him, but she’d put herself in danger through her stiff-necked pride and doubt. He had the urge to take her over his knee or lock her away in his cave, but he was sure either instinct would earn him one of those light balls up his ass.

“I feel so stupid,” she sighed into Zed’s chest. “I just let her hang around while I worked because I assumed she had a place there. Because she had a lot of authority in her voice. This isn’t like me. I don’t let people push me around. Why did I let her get away with it?”

“You’re new to working on this scale,” Zed answered. “The League was asking a lot of you. It’s natural not to want to make waves when you have a lot at stake. And on that note, we need to talk.”

Dani scrubbed a hand over her face. “Nothing good ever followed those words.”

“Well, you have it coming, so get ready. What the hell has been going on inside your head? Why wouldn’t you mention some creepy older lady following you around town when you’ve been attacked? What do you need money for so badly that you’re willing to put yourself in danger—more danger than usual?”