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"Thanks," I said "I’ a khaki-colored Seattle Mariners baseball cap, which I thought was an odd choice with a black leather duster Heck, ed Or maybe that was hip in Seattle "Daisy"

"Hi, Lee" I slid into the seat opposite hi on the tablet, o blank "Is it?"

"Sure"

Beneath the shadow of his baseball cap’s bri in bruised-looking hollows Hence the nicknarown one of those narrow beards that looked like a strip of Velcro glued to his chin and there were steel hoops in his earlobes Okay, that was new and unexpected "What do you want?"

"I need to create a database--" I began

A look of disgust crossed his face "Oh, for God’s sake! A database? Do you knohat I get paid for consulting on a project? This isn’t high school, Daisy I’ to teach you how to use Excel just because you prothe eldritch population in Peain?"

I repeated myself

"Why?"

The waitress caht for a fill and ordered a Danish "Because it will help me do my job," I said in an even tone once she was out of earshot "Did you hear about the orgy out at Rainbow’s End?" Lee gave a brief nod "Turns out it was set off by a satyr in rut"

"Satyrs go into rut?" He sounded bemused

"Yeah" I blew on my coffee "Every twelve years And if I’d had a database to keep track of this one, I could have prevented the orgy"

Lee studied me "So it’s true?"

I took a tentative sip of rimaced "What?"

"I heard a rumor that you were supposed to be some sort of diplomatic liaison to Little Niflheim," he said "But I didn’t believe it"

I looked around for the waitress, hoping to catch her eye and ask for a glass of ice water "Why not?"

"With your teed a lot in the last six years, you’re the least diploet suspended for threatening to cut Stacey Brooks’s hair off in her sleep?"

"No," I said "That was Jen Cassopolis I got suspended because the pipes in the girls’ locker room burst when I lost my temper because Stacey Brooks calledwhore Anyway, yes and no I’ent of Hel, and it’s my job to serve as the liaison between her rule of order and the mundane authorities No one ever said I had to be diplomatic about it, just effective"

"So you’ve actually been there?" Lee asked "To Little Niflheim? You’ve actually met her?"

"Yes"

He took a deep breath "Tell me about this database"

Between bites of my Danish, I filled hi the correct tery, but I wanted to be able to sort and search the data by different criteria: proper naressions, favors And I wanted it synced with a calendar that would keep track of things like the fullcycles

Lee listened impassively "Okay," he said when I’d finished "That’s doable It et?"