“Is Michael a witch?” I said.
Drew shook his head. “Not that I know of. Anything’s possible though.” He shot me an encouraging smile “Go on. Miranda sent you to Erin. What did Erin have to say?”
“That she’d seen the necklace and that Michael didn’t like that she’d seen it. The day she peeked at what Michael had in his pocket was the last time she saw him. She tried calling him, but his number had been disconnected.”
My pho was growing cold. I squeezed a lime over the soup and took another spoonful. I looked back up at Drew. “Are you going to give me the girlfriend list so I can visit them myself?”
“Sure. But none of them had anything useful to say. None of them have seen or heard from Michael since he took the necklace. But your information that Erin actually saw the pearls and Michael didn’t like that is interesting. I’m not sure what it means, if anything, other than he was careless.”
I stirred some noodles around with my chopsticks. “I think it means Michael was running scared. He took the pearls to Erin’s in hope of hiding out there. He knew Calypso knew he’d stolen her necklace and she’d sent her agents after him. He knew he couldn’t go home. He knew Lady was unlikely to protect him or he would have banged on the door and tried to get inside her house.”
Drew regarded me thoughtfully. “All of which means what?”
“I’m not sure,” I said. “It could mean he’s left the area. If it was me and the goddess of the sea was on my tail, I’d get far inland. If I thought Lady Califia wasn’t happy with something I’d done, I might leave the state.” I paused, thinking. “He’s screwed up big time and he knows it.”
“He could come and beg for forgiveness,” Drew said.
I nodded, but said, “I don’t think so. He doesn’t seem the type from what I know of him. He’s probably mystified as to how he got himself into this situation. I get the feeling that he’s used to things working out in his favor.”
“Where do you think he is?” Drew said. “And does he still have the pearls?”
“Those are the big questions,” I said. “I don’t have the answers, but I will.”
Drew grinned. “Not if I get them first.”
I shrugged. I could see he liked competition; it spurred him on. Me? I just wanted to do the job I was hired for. And beat the others to it.
“So,” he said, “do you want to go with me to visit the last girlfriend?”
8
We took Drew’s car to Girlfriend Number Five’s house. I wasn’t a fan of not taking two cars, but it made sense to only take one. Drew pulled to the curb a few houses down from #5’s address, turned off the engine, and cursed under his breath.
“Something wrong?” I said, because sometimes you have to say obvious things to get people to share their thoughts.
“You see those guys over there?” Drew glanced toward two tall, very good-looking men talking as they crossed the street a few houses from where we’d parked.
“Yeah,” I said.
“Remember I told you there was a partnered pair on the trail of the necklace? That’s them. People call them Friday and Saturday because they’re always next to each other. Do you know them?”
I watched the pair walk toward a car. One of the men had his keys out and was beeping the door open. I was memorizing both men’s features.
“Heard of them, but don’t know them.”
Drew nodded. “I trained Finn for the job; he’s Friday. Stefan—Saturday—is psychic. A useful trick in our business.”
I’d already figured out that Drew was probably gay. The wistfulness look that crossed his face made me think Friday had been more than a trainee.
He pushed his door open but looked over his shoulder at me. “You don’t seem to know many people.”
I pushed my door open as well since it seemed pretty obvious we were going to go talk to Friday and Saturday. “As I said, I work alone.”
I wasn’t opposed to temporary partnerships though. I’d teamed up with others in the past and probably would again. Permanent partners, though, weren’t my thing.
Drew was out of the car and striding across the street calling in a friendly voice, “Hey. Finn. Wait up.” I climbed out and followed him, catching up as he hit the sidewalk on the other side of the road.
The couple had stopped and turned at the call and waited for us.
The two men bro-hugged stiffly and briefly when we reached them. Andrew gave Saturday a tight smile and a nod of greeting. Both men had given me the once-over and evidently approved since Saturday stuck out his hand and said, “Hi. I’m Stefan and this is Finn.”
“Shay Greene,” I said, taking his hand and giving back the same firmness of grip he’d given me.
Drew broke into all the polite introductions. “You’ve been to see Tabby Fontaine,” making it a statement not a question. “You mind sharing what she had to say?”
“Nothing worth the time it took,” Finn said. “Tabby doesn’t know anything more than anyone else seems to about where Michael Rawlings might be.”
“Isn’t tabby a kind of cat?” I said, to lighten the mood and get Friday and Saturday on our side a bit.
Finn chortled under his breath. “It’s short for Tabitha, though her hair is yellow and brown striped. Maybe she’s a cat shifter.”
I laughed a little too. At least this Finn guy had a sense of humor. Drew, so far, hadn’t shown he was anything but work, which was fine with me.
Drew moved his attention to Stefan, he of the psychic abilities. “Is Tabby a shifter? Or a magical of any sort?”
Stefan shook his head. “I don’t think so. Other than Lady Califia, Michael Rawlings seemed to like his women completely human and vanilla-plain.”
I stowed that bit of information away. Michael Rawlings saw the goddess of California as a prize worth winning but spent his time with ordin women—the unmagical. He likely thought highly of himself and picked ordin women to reinforce his self-perception. The type who set his sights high, feeling that was what he deserved, but enjoyed dabbling in ‘the lower depths’ with women he could feel superior to.
Not only did I not like Michael Rawlings’ father, I didn’t like Michael Rawlings in the least. Which would make getting the necklace back and bringing him down all the sweeter.
We all shook hands again, and the couple turned and got into a white Prius, to head off wherever they were going next.
Where was I going next? The sister had sent me to the girlfriend, which led to more girlfriends. Drew had visited all the girlfriends except Erin. I’d talked to her. Friday and Saturday evidently had visited all the other girlfriends as well and seemingly gotten nothing from them. Dead ends all around.
“That’s it for the day,” Drew said. “I don’t know about you, but I feel like I’ve chased all over for nothing. I’ve talked to more women this week than I have in a month and I’m not one step closer to knowing where Michael Rawlings or the necklace is.”
He sighed heavily. “Come on. I’ll take you back to your car.”
Drew waited in the parking lot until I’d climbed into my car and started the engine. He gave me a cheerful good-bye wave and pulled out toward the street. I sat in my car a moment, watching him leave and thinking about what I’d learned today, which wasn’t much. I’d have no good news to deliver to Lady once I got back to the house on the hill. I did want to ask about the bonus though. I’d insist it be added to my agreement.
I put the car into gear and headed toward the street. I made it almost halfway there when the engine sputtered and died. My first thought was I’d messed up somehow when I’d filled the tank but a glance at the gauge told me the gas tank was full. I scowled, pulled on the emergency brake, and got out to take a look under the hood. Maybe a wire or hose had come loose. Not that I knew much about cars, but looking at the engine seemed like the thing to do. If that failed, I had a card for Roadside Assistance in my wallet and I wasn’t afraid to use it.
I’d pulled up the hood and secured it
in the up position with the pole that lay inside the engine compartment when a strong gust of wind hit me, shoving me forward. My belly hit the bottom of the engine compartment opening. It hurt.
I rubbed my belly and turned to look around. There were trees along one edge of the parking lot. Trees whose leaves and limbs weren’t in motion from the strong gust that had blown by only moments ago. And someone was making that happen.
Another gust hit me, pushing my back against the engine compartment this time. I summoned up air for myself, swirling a cocoon around me to stave off anything coming from the outside.
“I know you’re there,” I said, my voice no louder than if I spoke to someone standing next to me. “Step up and show yourself.”
A swirl of leaves raced across the parking lot toward me. An older couple came out of the pho place. The swirl of leaves angled around them as nimbly as a dancer. The couple gave the leaves a glance but didn’t seem to find the sudden swirl out of the ordinary. They continued past me and got into an old white minivan.
The wind died the moment the older couple was tucked into their car. The leaves fell to the ground. A stocky man in his forties, a few inches taller than me, and wearing loose black trousers and a black button-up shirt stood in front of me. His dark hair was cut military short. His black eyes gleamed with what I took as malice.
“I am Saylor,” the man said in a voice that could easily have been announcing an upcoming action-adventure movie. “God of the sea and sky.
He put his hands on his hips and glared at me.
“You,” he said, leaning forward, “will cease looking for the Mermaid’s Lament stolen from Calypso.”
“Mermaid’s Lament?”
“The string of aubergine pearls stolen by the thief, Michael Rawlings.”
Erin had said pearls were sometimes called ‘mermaid’s tears. ’ Evidently Calypso’s necklace had so many tears it was a full-on lament. The necklace having its own name probably meant the pearls had special properties to warrant that name.
I shook my head slightly and said, “Why should I not try to recover the sea goddess’s necklace?”
The self-proclaimed god looked thrown for a moment. I guessed he hadn’t expected my question.
“Because I command it,” he said. “And if you do not, you will suffer greatly.”
I couldn’t help myself. I laughed—from nerves more than humor.
A great blast of wind buffeted me, overcoming the cocoon I’d built but had let whither since the god had appeared. I was knocked back a couple of steps, but caught myself.
I summoned up air and sent an even stronger blast back at him. He stumbled, but didn’t fall. When he’d steadied himself, he grinned.
“Like to fight, do you?” he said, and sent a wave of wind toward me.
My protective cocoon was back up at full strength. His blast hit my air and parted, swirling to either side. I summoned up fire, rolled it into air, and flung the flaming mass toward him.
He ducked. The fireball sailed over his head and landed on a patch of asphalt where, fortunately, no car was parked. The asphalt hissed and liquefied. We couldn’t go on like this. There were people in the pho place who could come out at any moment, and any second a new car could drive into the lot. Some innocent bystander could get hurt.
I held up my hands. “No more. You win.”
His disbelief was clear on his face. “Just like that? I don’t believe you.”
“This is a public place. We keep fighting here and someone besides you could be injured. Tell me one good reason why I shouldn’t try to recover the necklace and I’ll drive straight up to my boss and quit this job.”
He blinked. I could practically see the slow turn of the gears in his brain as he adjusted to this new reality.
“Because I tell you to,” he said.
I shook my head. “Not even close to good.”
He drew in a deep breath and let it out. “Because Lady Califia is lying to you. She has no intention of returning the necklace. The pearls have magical powers. No matter who possesses them, if they put the necklace around someone’s throat and pronounce a few innocent sounding words, that person will be forever enslaved. I, and you, cannot allow her to have that sort of power. She will only abuse it. Starting, perhaps, with you.”
I watched his face, trying to judge how much of what he said was true and how much utter bullshit. If only I were psychic like my new acquaintance, Saturday. How much easier things must be when you can delve into your opponent’s mind. I had to go on my gut and what I sensed. My sense said there was more going on here than I’d been led to believe. My gut said there was a smidge of truth in his claim, but not much more than a smidge.
“That’s a damn good reason,” I said, mollifying him. “I’ll drop my search.”
He nodded. “Excellent. And now I will say good-bye.”
The leaves that had lain quite on the ground whirled up again into a small tornado and zipped away.
I stood a moment longer considering what he’d said. Were the pearls magic in the way he claimed? Would Lady abuse that power? Miranda seemed to think Lady wasn’t to be trusted. Was Miranda giving me fair warning or just throwing out words to make me distrust my boss? I had nothing but gut sense and feelings to go on to any of those questions. And right now my gut was as confused and unsure as my brain was.
I got in my car and turned the key. It started right up.
9
Lady’s face clouded as she listened to my story of being confronted by the god of the sea and sky. She huffed an annoyed breath when I finished.
We sat on her veranda. To the west, the sky was the brilliant yellow and red of sundown. It would be dark soon. When I woke in the morning, there would be only three days left before Calypso would send ocean water flooding over the land.
“She sent Saylor after you, did she? Calypso thinks she’s so cleaver with names. Saylor’s father was a Navy sailor and their child is the demigod of sea and wind, so Saylor with a y instead of an i.” Lady paced across the room and back. “But why? What does Calypso gain if Saylor injures you?” She turned to me. “Was he trying to injure you or merely frighten you?”
“Both, I’d say.”
Lady’s lips pressed together. “Humph. Why would Calypso want you injured? Saylor would never think to attack you. He would have come only by her orders, unless he’s gone rogue.”
Her voice dropped low, as if her next remarks were meant only for herself. “The god of sea and sky, my ass. He’s a demigod at best. I wonder if his mother knows he’s running around presenting himself as a god? Calypso would not be pleased by that, not one bit.”
She refocused on me. “Do you know the sea goddess? Have you crossed her somehow?”
I shook my head.
“Well,” Lady said, “there’s certainly a reason behind it all. It’s late. Perhaps we should sleep on it and revisit the question in the morning. I’ll call the other hunters and ask if any of them were confronted. If yes, then we know something we didn’t know before. If not, then we know something different, and I will at least be able to warn the others to be on their guards.”
I took the moment to ask some of the questions I wanted answers to.
“How many hunters are searching for the necklace? Besides me.”
Lady had turned away and was reaching for her phone. She turned back. Her eyes narrowed as she appraised me.
“How do you know there are other hunters, besides my just having mentioned it?”
“Drew Miller told me. Plus, I ran into Friday and Saturday at one of the places I’d gone to ask questions.”
Lady made a scoffing sound. “Drew can never keep his mouth shut. I don’t know why I continue to employ him.”
“So how many? How much competition do I have?”
“There are five, four if you consider Finn and Stefan as one, since they’re a pair.”
That matched what Drew had said.
“Drew told me something else. He said he’d bee
n promised a bonus if he brought in the necklace.”
“And you want to know why no bonus was offered to you. Because you are new. I only offer a bonus to hunters who have proven their worth in the past.”
“That’s a bit unfair,” I said. “If I bring in the prize, I should get the full reward. Your other searchers have been at it longer and found nothing concrete. It makes sense for you to incentivize me to the same extent as the others. It doesn’t make sense, now that I know about the bonus, to deny it and yet expect me to work at the top of my game.”
“Consider this an internship,” Lady said. “Do well and more jobs, plus bonuses, will come your way.”
I shook my head. “I don’t work that way.”
Lady pressed her lips together a moment, thinking, I assumed, before she answered. “Perhaps you have a point. Go to bed now. I’ll think it over and give you my decision in the morning.”
She rang a bell that sat on the little outdoor table. Mr. Beefy, the butler or whatever he was, appeared. Drew had told me his name, but it was gone from my memory.
“Show Shayna to her room, please.”
I picked up the J.C. Penny and CVS shopping bags that contained what were currently all my worldly goods and followed Mr. Beefy down the hallway.
The room Lady had given me was huge with a spectacular view of the ocean over the hilltops. Again, I wouldn’t see the surf crashing on the shore or hear it from this distance, but now, at night with the curtains open, I marveled at the lights embracing the curve of Santa Monica Bay, what the real estate people called The Queen’s Necklace. The way the room and windows faced, I’d be able to see a sliver of the lights even from the bed. I cracked the windows opened and heard crickets slowly chirping in the spring night. The scent of something sweet and night blooming trickled in on the slight breeze.
The bed was king-sized, with a fluffy blue comforter, and ensconced in a four-poster frame. The wood was something dark, dense, and tightly grained. Beyond that, I wasn’t a big expert on wood types even though wood was friendly to me. There was a dresser in the same wood, a small writing desk with a comfortable chair upholstered in black leather, and a huge walk-in closet. I looked at the two shopping bags that held my belongings and laughed. Even if I had every piece of clothing and all the shoes and purses I owned here with me, they wouldn’t begin to fill a quarter of that closet.
The Mermaid's Lament Page 6