“My point is, this belonged to Jane Porter, a barmaid murdered in an alley six months ago.”
Argus flinched. It was subtle, but it gave him away. He steepled his fingers under his chin.
“Exactly what are you accusing me of, witch?”
“Nothing yet. But I want to know why Jane owed you money, and why you’re interested in Ironhazel. Unless you’d rather I hand this paper over to the royal authorities? They might jump to conclusions and think you have a motive for murder. That could be bad for business.”
Argus plucked the piece of paper from under my fingers and held it over the candle flame, high enough that it wouldn’t burn.
“Too slow.” His gaze flicked to Vivian. He hesitated before schooling his features, then lowered the paper into the flame. It caught fire and blackened to ash.
Dipping into my pocket, I pulled out another square with the same seal and Jane’s handwritten name. Vivian tossed up her hands and pulled a copy from her pocket as well, waving it in the air.
Argus bared his teeth in a harsh smile. “Nice trick, witch.”
“We can go all night. You’ll probably find a copy or two in your henchman’s pockets, possibly a few in the pockets of people we passed on our way here. Who knows, I like to leave breadcrumbs. But will you find the real one?” I turned to Vivian, and she shook her head. “Yeah, probably not. Let’s skip to the part where you cooperate and tell me what I want to know. We’re busy ladies, so get to the point.”
Argus stood and refilled his glass. He sipped the bourbon slowly, accompanied by the snap and crack of the fire in the hearth. Finally, he rubbed a hand over his brow and walked toward a shelving unit, from which he retrieved a ledger and returned to his seat.
“Just because I’m answering your questions doesn’t mean we’re becoming friendly. You still owe me every bloody coin of your agreement.”
I nodded, excitement humming through my body. My spell had worked! We had the upper hand for now.
Argus opened the ledger and found the section on Jane. “You’re right, Jane did owe me money, but she was also working for me to pay off her debts.”
“She worked for you? I thought she served drinks at the Laughing Raven.”
“Who do you think owns the Laughing Raven?” He turned to Vivian and winked. “I own quite a few establishments.”
She rolled her eyes. “Will murderers never cease?”
“I’m a businessman, love. Take note.” He leaned back in his chair. “Jane was ambitious. She wanted more out of life than slinging ale. She fell on hard times, and I offered her a solution. Men talk when they’re drunk, especially to beautiful women.”
Vivian grunted, making Argus’s smile widen.
“I don’t make the rules, and Jane didn’t mind. She spied on them and reported back. She was good at her job, maybe too good. I was having a problem with someone who thought they could sell illegal substances in my territory and not pay for the right. I wanted a name, and Jane went after it. She ended up dead in an alley for her trouble.”
“So, the person selling in your territory was Ironhazel?”
“I didn’t know that at the time. Jane was killed before she gave me a name, and then, after her death, the seller vanished. Jane’s room was trashed. Her things were taken and burned before I got there. All I found was a charred note with the letters I-R-O-N-H written on it. I didn’t know what it meant, wasn’t even sure it was related to her murder, until one of my men reported back about your visit to Flamelock Den. I had a talk with your friend Charlie, and he revealed what he told you.”
“Then it’s possible Ironhazel was the one who killed Jane?” I asked.
“That’s what I want to find out. It may surprise you, but I don’t like it when bad things happen to my people. Someone has to pay for Jane’s death. The authorities don’t care about a barmaid murdered in an alley, but I do.”
“That’s not true. It’s important to me too.” I paused, debating whether to ask my next question. “Is there any way Jane might’ve crossed paths with Prince Marcus?”
Argus chuckled. “In this part of town? No way. She was seen with a young man before her death, but it wasn’t the prince, I can promise you that.”
“Who was the young man?” Vivian asked.
Argus shrugged. “Not sure. Maybe family or a friend. They appeared fairly close, but she didn’t mention him to me, and no one claimed her body after she was found. I paid for her burial expenses through an anonymous donation.”
“Derrick said Jane didn’t have any family.”
“We all come from somewhere. Maybe Jane had a reason for staying away from hers. I know I do.” Argus swirled the bourbon in his glass, his eyes darkening.
A loud crash erupted through the tavern, and footsteps raced down the hall. One of Argus’s men pounded on the door.
“Boss, get out now! There’s a raid. We’ll hold them off.”
I pushed out of my chair, sending Vivian a panicked look. She scrambled to her feet, and we watched Argus stuff a handful of papers into a bag and pull open his desk drawer. He rifled through its contents, placing more items into the bag, then slung it over his shoulder. He was deadly calm even as shouts from the authorities grew louder. They’d breached the first door.
Terror seized me. If we were caught, we’d be hauled off to prison. But it wasn’t the dark, rat-infested cells that made my legs buckle—it was knowing Derrick would find me there before I could tell him the truth.
“What do we do?” I hissed, searching for something to block the door. “Quick, help me with the cabinet.”
Argus scowled. “Don’t touch my bourbon, witch.” He slid a panel in the wall, revealing a dark passage, and waved us forward. “Come on, let’s go.”
Vivian reacted first, rushing to his side. He looped an arm around her waist.
“That’s right, love. Watch your step.”
She shook off his arm and dove into the passage.
Argus laughed. “She’ll come around. Witch, don’t forget to close the panel.”
I started to follow but remembered the ledger with Jane’s information sitting on his desk. I had to take it with me. A boot slammed into the office door, and I rounded the desk, snatching the ledger, then ran for the passage just as the door splintered open. I shrieked, covering my face from flying debris.
“You, there. Stop!” a man shouted.
It was too late. I slid the panel back into place. At least they wouldn’t arrest Vivian.
Numbness washed over me as the authorities streamed into the office. They shouted for me to raise my hands, then one of them ripped my arms behind my back and strung a pair of iron cuffs around my wrists. An officer picked up the ledger I’d gone back for, but I lost sight of him, pushed from behind by a rough set of hands. They loaded us into a wagon enclosed by bars, and I spotted Thug Number One and Two sitting in the back. They inclined their heads when they saw me and shoved the man next to them to make room. The carriage rolled forward, and we were herded away, into the night.
***
I waited in the holding cell for an hour, then two. What was taking so long? Everyone else had been transported further into the prison already. Fear rooted me to my chair. Part of me wanted the holding cell door to remain closed, to keep me locked away from the consequences of my actions. I squeezed my eyes shut, fighting against the panic.
Going to see Argus was the right thing to do. I clung to that thought, desperate for it to soothe my frayed nerves. Derrick would understand when I explained why I went there. He’d listen. He always listened, even when I made his life difficult.
Footsteps thudded down the hall and came to a stop behind the cell door. My breath stalled in the back of my throat as the knob turned and the hinges whined. Derrick stood in the threshold, his fingers clamped around a thick folder. I couldn’t breathe at the look in his eyes. It was a dark, thundercloud of a look that sucked all air from the room. I’d witnessed disappointment numerous times, but this was something
else. Devastation.
His gaze pinned me to the seat. I was drowning in it, choking on the raw anguish. I sucked in an aching breath.
“I’m sorry. I—”
“Save it.” Derrick strode toward the table, and the folder landed with a smack against the hard surface. The fear inside my heart expanded, turning my insides to ice. He wasn’t going to listen. He stood, chest rising and falling with uneven breaths, his eyes drinking me in. For a fleeting second, they were filled with a mixture of relief and longing so powerful it made my stomach clench.
Then, it disappeared.
“Miss Daniels.” My name cracked like a whip. “Start by explaining how long you’ve been working for a known criminal, and finish by giving me a single reason why I shouldn’t throw you in the hole with the rest of his men.”
Chapter 24
It was hard to speak around the throb in my throat. I closed my eyes to shut out his accusing stare, but I could still see it burning behind my eyelids.
“I know this looks bad.”
“Answer the question. How long have you been working for Argus Ward?”
The table creaked with his weight. I opened my eyes to find him braced on his fists, his face an iron mask.
“I don’t work for Argus Ward. You’re making a mistake.”
“Am I?” His lips curled in a sneer. “Then explain why, when I questioned his men, they claimed you’ve been feeding him information about Ironhazel.”
“They’re wrong. I’m not feeding him infor—”
“Damn it, Tessa!” He slammed a fist on the table. “I trusted you. Do you have any idea the type of man Argus is? The kind of danger you’ve put yourself in?” He tore open the folder and spread out its pages.
A series of rugged faces stared back, all of them associates of Argus. Derrick stabbed the top image with his finger. It was the mountain of a man Vivian and I had approached on the street.
“Do you think this is a game? Assault, theft, attempted murder. This criminal is sitting in a cell after tonight’s raid. He isn’t fit to speak your name, and yet he knows things about you that I don’t.” A pained expression tightened his features. Derrick exhaled and dropped his chin to his chest. “Tell me, why?”
“I’m trying. Let me explain.” I stood and paced the floor, struggling to find the right words. They all sounded inadequate in the face of his anger. “I don’t work for Argus. I owe him money. Lots of money.” Self-loathing pulsed through my body, a feeling so familiar it felt like coming home. “Are you happy now? I screwed up. I always screw up, don’t I? The magic shop was failing, and Argus was a temporary solution that spiraled out of control. I needed to pay him back. I’m sure you of all people know what happens when payments are missed. I was desperate. Ella had been murdered, and then you walked into my shop and charged me with fines! What was I supposed to do? I was sinking. I had to make impossible choices.”
Derrick moved around the table and stalked me across the room. I backed up, wary of the severity in his eyes. If I thought my explanation would soothe his ire, I was sorely mistaken. He’d been pushed too far. I wasn’t certain he was capable of hearing my side of the story.
“All this time, and you never told me about your shop. Why? Let me guess, Argus wanted information about the murder, didn’t he? And you were already in his back pocket.”
“No! I mean, yes, he did approach me at Ella’s memorial dinner, but that was the first time. I didn’t know he had an interest in the case, I swear it. I never planned on helping him.”
“It doesn’t matter! A known criminal asked questions about my case, and you kept it a secret because you knew I’d discover your connection to him. You talk about choices? Were you kidnapped and forced to visit Argus tonight, or did you choose to go?”
“I decided.” My shoulders bumped the stone wall, preventing me from further retreat.
Derrick took advantage, trapping me in a cage of arms, each one an iron beam on either side of my body. “You chose to hide your involvement with Argus and your knowledge of the men who’ve been following you. I asked you point-blank if you knew those men, and you lied.”
“Because you wouldn’t understand.”
“You never gave me a chance!”
“A chance?” Adrenaline pounded my ears. I shoved at the immovable wall of his chest. “Why should I? You charged into my magic shop on day one determined to tear me down. You were like everyone else, judgmental to the core. You kicked me out of your office when I told you about Ella. I had to fight tooth and nail to get you to listen, and when you finally started to look at me like I mattered, how was I supposed to tell you what I’d done? You would have thrown me off the case.”
The muscles in his shoulders bunched as he pushed off the wall and turned his back to me. A wrenching silence followed.
“That would have ruined all your plans, wouldn’t it?”
“My plans?” Dread coiled in my stomach. I felt out of depth, unable to follow his train of thought. Were things so murky between us?
“Why are you here, Tessa?”
“I…I don’t understand what you mean.”
“Why did you approach me and offer to help with the case?”
“Because I wanted to help Ella.”
“No.” He turned and wrapped his hand around my wrist, tugging me closer. “The truth.”
“It is the truth!” I tilted my head back, confusion knotting my brow. “She visited me as a ghost, and I wanted to make things right.”
“So, you offered your services out of the goodness of your heart? How noble.”
My jaw clenched. I realized what he was getting at. One final nail in my coffin. Might as well hand him the hammer.
“Fine. You win. I needed the reward money to pay back Argus. What’s wrong with that? Everyone doesn’t fit into your precise little boxes, Detective. You said my past didn’t define me, and yet you’ve made up your mind about my character, and it’s clear you don’t believe me.”
“Believe you?” His head dipped, voice scraping against my ear. “You’ve lied to me from the beginning. Did you think I wouldn’t figure out that you used me for information? Maybe you didn’t intend to feed it to Argus, but you had other motives.” He lifted my chin with his fingers and held me there, our stares dueling. “What I can’t understand is why that wasn’t enough for you.”
My heart pounded beneath his unflinching stare. “What wasn’t enough?”
Something snapped behind his eyes. Like watching a dam break loose, the restrained longing he’d held in swept over me, dragging me under.
“This.” Derrick angled his head and captured my lips in a punishing kiss.
I swayed backward at the force, but he banded his arm around my waist and lifted me up to sit on the table, then rocked forward, his mouth slanting over mine. Heat fired low in my belly. I locked my ankles around his waist and slid my palms up his chest, feeling the smooth fabric of his shirt and warm skin beneath. My fingers dug into his shoulder blades, drawing him closer.
Turmoil emanated from his body, and I absorbed it, let it sizzle through me like one of my spells gone horribly wrong. His kiss was an act of aggression that quickly turned desperate, both of us fighting without words, trying to explain, asking why.
He made a noise deep in his throat and cradled my head in his hands. The ruthlessness burned away. Our kiss gentled. There was something about the way his anger melted that made me want to sob. It was easy to battle against his fury—I had enough of my own at the impossible situation my life had become, and I could erect a hundred walls, fight fire with fire—but the ease with which he robbed me of that ability made my head spin.
I wanted more. All of him. This was different. It felt diametric, reverent. Derrick grazed his thumbs over my cheeks, breath shaky as his mouth pressed against the curve of my jaw. His tenderness didn’t belong in this holding cell where only misery had come before it. My eyes squeezed shut. There had to be a way to make him understand.
“Derrick, w
ait…”
Emotion thickened his voice. “Was this part of your plan to get information from me? Collect the reward at all costs even if you had to seduce the coldhearted detective? Maybe you had the Gazette follow us that day by the apothecary?”
“No! I—”
“You know what this case means to me, what it’s done to my life. I lie awake at night terrified I’ll lose someone else, that I can’t trust my instincts. Tessa,” he said my name like a plea, and I choked back a sob, “did you have to make me want you?” The pads of his fingers skimmed my neck, and his mouth hovered near my ear. “Make me need you? Make me fall in—?” He stopped, his throat working as air expanded in his lungs.
“How can you ask that?” I cupped his face, horror compressing my heart. “I would never hurt you that way. You might not trust me where Argus is concerned, but trust that. Meeting you changed everything.”
“You’re right. Everything has changed.” The mask returned, his features impassive, wall firmly back in place. His near-admission echoed in my ears as he removed my hands and backed away.
I remained seated, numb. How had things become so twisted?
Derrick reached for his jacket lying over the back of the chair and withdrew a leather satchel from its pocket. It landed with a heavy thunk against the table.
“What’s that?”
“Money. Enough to pay off your debt.”
Ice spread through my limbs, and I slid off the table. This wasn’t right. The bag mocked me. I hadn’t earned the money. This was another example of someone swooping in to clean up my mistakes.
I hated it.
“But we haven’t caught the killer. The reward is unclaimed.”
“It’s not the official reward, it’s my money.” His tone was flat, as if he’d offered me a crust of bread and not a fortune.
My voice shook as a ball of anger wedged against my vocal cords. “I don’t want it.”
“I don’t care. Tessa, it’s over.” His mouth pressed into a firm line. “I told you what would happen if you lied to me. I meant it. You’re off the case. Take the money and be done with it.”
Spellbound After Midnight (Ever Dark, Ever Deadly Book 1) Page 21