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"That’s my chief," I told him "He’s cool He’ll make sure this doesn’t become…" I trailed off as both doors opened, and the chief and Mayor Fussell exited the car

"Oh, hell no" I strode forward "With all due respect to both of you, Chief Turnhaer at the ave me a pained look "Detective Gillian--"

"No," I stated as firmly as I could I planted myself in my driveway between them and my house "He’s not law enforcement He has zero jurisdiction or authorization to enter ive consent for hi the proceedings with thinly veiled amusement "If he sets foot anywhere inside s, I intend to press charges for trespassing"

The deputy grinned, spat a strearavel "Works for me"

The mayor narrowed his eyes, then turned to the chief "Robert, are you going to put up with this?"

Chief Turnham looked from me to the ht"

Mayor Fussell’s face flushed red as he rounded on the deputy "This woman is suspected of serialin the search for evidence?"

The deputy spat another stream of tobacco juice then hiked his belt up "With all due respect, yer mayorness, you ain’t a cop," he drawled in his thick country accent, "and Louisiana Revised Statute title fourteen section sixty-two point three says that if she says yer ass can’t go in there and you do, then I can arrest yer ass" He folded his arap-toothed smile at the mayor

Mayor Fussell’s face went cold, and he turned and stalked back to the car without another word The chief sighed heavily "Gillian, I respect that you have the right to ban him froaze "I wouldn’t have done it if it wasn’t, sir" And why the hell is Mayor Fussell so keen to get inside ainst my car, crossed my arms over my chest Ryan came beside me and crossed his arlower, though I needed to work on that

I saw that Jill and Votevha had retreated to the back of the house and were sitting on a bench, observing with a careful disinterest There was no way to knohere Eilahn had gone, but I knew she’d stay out of sight I continued to give the ave ret as he followed the rest in, a ca about his neck Usually so on search warrants to photograph and record the scene

"I hope Jill doesn’t get in trouble for being here," I murmured, suddenly worried

"Relax," Ryan replied softly "She’ll be fine"

I wasn’t convinced The e Maybe he wouldn’t even realize she was a Beaulac PD euy"

Ryan griif I say, I wish I could have seen that?"

"You’re a ed my arms around me as I listened to footsteps in my house I’d conducted any number of search warrants in my years in law enforcenore the looks on the people’s faces as we violated their privacy and rus It was horrible and intrusive, but I could try to take solace in the fact that I’d doneor solving a cri bullshit This was so with e to shoot a death glare at the mayor "Is it just me," Iinto lance "You think he could be the summoner?"

I cast a sideways look at Peter Fussell "Fuck, I don’t know, but he sure is acting weird I mean, I know he hates me, but what if all this is just because he wants a look at ri his hand pretty heavily And hoould he know about it anyway?"

"He could have learned of it froht "I’ve used it to suine that word has spread a bit" I jammed my hands into my pockets and hunched haround et the demon you just summoned to check him out?" Ryan asked

"That would be ideal," I replied, "I’ll need to renegotiate terlanced atti look I explained, "The lower-level demons can only stay a couple of hours Not like reyza who can stay er" In fact I really needed to dismiss the nyssor soon, but I couldn’t do that until all the searchers had left Crap I didn’t want to draw attention to the de to check on him Instead I pulled my phone out and thu?

A few seconds later the reply came: he says he’s tired Yep, I’d have to find another way to check out the mayor

It was nearly twenty eant and Tracy