Hadrian looked toward Ashlyn.  "This isn't a good sign, Ash."
	The girl shook her head.  "You don't have to tell me twice.  If she breathes a word of this, we're dead."  She sat back and picked at her food.  "I almost wish Kyle was here."
	Hadrian shivered.  He knew that they couldn't keep on relying on her like they were.  It was getting harder and harder for him to contact her...he found himself using the cards almost all the time now.  He missed the days when they'd shared dreams -- happy dreams, not bad ones, like his dreams had been lately.  "We can't keep relying on her, Ash.  We're on our own."  He closed his mouth then.  They shouldn't have been talking about her in the first place.  Every word uttered about Kyle Anne Monroe put them in deeper danger...and Kyle as well.
#
	It had begun to rain when Thatcher and Kyle stepped outside into the city streets.  "I still wish you would let me put you under some sort of protection."
	Kyle shook her head.  "If you did that, it'd be that much easier for them to find me.  We both know how these people operate, Detective -- they've got people everywhere.  The only way I can avoid them is if I stay mostly off-the-record...or get that commission you've been promising."
	He shook his head grimly.  "Still working on that one.  It's coming, but I'm not sure how long it'll be before it actually comes across my desk.  Here's hoping it's soon."
	She nodded.  "Let's hope."
#
	The Dean's office was decorated in a very Spartan fashion, with wooden furniture and an almost spotless desk with straight lines and hard angles.  Laren slipped in without saying anything.