The Frozen Witch Book One

by Odette C. Bell

  Chapter 12

  I was expecting us to pile into one of those old blue sedans with a cop light on top – like you see in the movies. We didn’t. Instead, we exited out of a door in the side of the building. A door that promptly disappeared as it closed behind us.

  I paled as shock shot through my stomach. “What the hell?” My voice arced high. “That door—”

  “Yeah, it disappeared,” Cassidy said in a casual tone. “If you point that out to everybody on the street, you’ll break Regulation 1 B, landing you several more months of service. So I suggest you keep your big mouth shut and follow us.”

  Cassidy still looked insulted. Her cheeks were red, her bubbly gaze hard.

  I got the sudden urge to apologize to her. But just as soon as that urge formed in my mind, I shook my head. She was an arsonist. She’d admitted to burning down several houses. I couldn’t even begin to imagine the shock and hardship she’d put people through for nothing more than a thrill. As for Alice? Who knew how many crimes she’d ignored? And if she hadn’t ignored them, who knew how many crimes she could have prevented by dragging in the mobsters of this city?

  So I hardened my expression as I followed them.

  Though both of them had their jackets hooked over their arms, as the sun was out, I quickly shrugged into mine. Because I could feel it again. The cold. It was marching up my back, spreading down my arms, and lodging in my chest until it felt like a snow storm was brewing in my sternum.

  Cassidy softened her expression. “How are you cold? It’s a nice sunny day. You coming down with something?” she asked suspiciously.

  “I just get cold sometimes. I have trouble keeping warm,” I muttered quietly.

  Though reason told me that Cassidy still hated my guts because I thought she was dirty criminal scum, reason failed. Cassidy unhooked her jacket from her arm and offered it to me. “I’m not using it. Take this.”

  Shocked, I accepted it.

  Instantly Alice snorted. “What, don’t think we’re capable of kindness? Fancy you’re the only nice person here?”

  Though my jaw naturally stiffened at her attack, I didn’t bite back. “Look, I’m sorry about what I said before,” I lied.

  Alice snorted again as she picked up on the lie instantly. “Bullshit. You think you’re with scum. If you didn’t need our help on this, you wouldn’t be talking to us.”

  While Cassidy appeared to be softening toward me, I knew full well it would take Alice a couple of centuries to thaw.

  “What did that middle manager mean when he said we had to be back by usual time and follow usual procedure?” I asked, wisely deciding to change the topic.

  Cassidy’s face exploded into a grin. “Middle manager? That’s the perfect name for him. Seriously, though,” she quickly frowned and made a pained face, “I wouldn’t say that to his face. Ben can be a little tetchy at times.”

  Alice grunted. She was striding a few good meters ahead but was clearly keeping an ear on the conversation. “That’s putting it lightly, Cass. If Ben heard that, he would throw you out the window,” she growled at me.

  “It was just a stopgap. I did know his name. Ben, ha? What’s he in for?” My curiosity got the better of me.

  “Embezzlement,” both Cassidy and Alice said through a laugh.

  “Embezzlement? Figures,” I commented.

  Immediately, Alice stiffened and turned hard on her foot. “Hard at work judging us all again, Miss Perfect? Forgotten you’re in here for a heinous crime too?”

  “Give it a rest, Alice,” Cassidy said in a strangely firm tone that didn’t match her boisterous smile.

  She’d clearly already forgiven me. Heck, she’d admitted she had a talent for hanging out with the wrong people. Obviously, she was under the mistaken impression that I had forgiven her, evidenced by the fact she turned and offered me a cute smile. “Lilly here has already apologized, and that’s good enough for me. Plus, Alice, should I really remind you how long it took you to fit in?”

  Alice stiffened.

  Cassidy returned her attention to me. “We’re all a bit like this when we first join. Especially those of us who come from law enforcement,” she said pointedly. “It takes a while to realize we’re in the same boat.”

  I judiciously chose not to comment. We weren’t in the same boat. I knew full well that I hadn’t inadvertently killed my grandmother. Or at least… that’s what I was telling myself. If I had to guess, Vali had indentured me for a completely different reason. And that reason? Those blue symbols that would dance over my skin whenever I took my bangles off. Frowning, my gaze ticked down to my wrists.

  Cassidy leaned in and patted me hard on the back. “So, there’s something I’ve been dying to ask – what the heck happened between you and Vali out in the corridor? Why did he come to see you?”

  Alice stopped charging ahead and turned, clearly interested in my answer.

  I swallowed. “He was just checking up on me. Doesn’t he do that for everyone else?”

  Alice made a face, and Cassidy shook her head like a confused cat. “Hell no. I saw Vali precisely once when he showed up at the prison, offering me another chance. Sure, I see him around the office, but he’s never latched a manly hand on my shoulder and pulled me into the corridor. What did you two talk about?”

  I bit my lip.

  This was more evidence, wasn’t it? More evidence that Vali wanted me for some specific purpose. Suddenly, I remembered the so-called function I’d be attending with him tonight, and my gut began to curdle with nerves.

  Alice instantly frowned. Once a detective, always a detective, apparently. “What are you holding back?”

  “Nothing, he just wants me to go to some function tonight. Speaking of which, how long will this take? I mean, when middle manager – sorry, Ben – when he said we should be back at standard time, what time is that? I have to be ready by eight.”

  I stopped speaking abruptly.

  I stopped speaking, because both Cassidy and Alice were staring at me in shock.

  Cassidy shook her head, looking like a confused cat unsure of which dangling object to chase.

  She planted a hand on her chest. “Sorry? Vali invited you to a function tonight?”

  I paled, realizing I’d probably shared too much. Reaching a hand up and patting my hair awkwardly, I shrugged. “Yeah. Why? Is that unusual?”

  Both women were shooting me the kind of look that told me that yeah, it was unusual. It was downright fricking rare, in fact.

  “That’s what Megan is for. She usually accompanies him on the big jobs.”

  It was my turn to shake my head like a confused cat. “Sorry, big jobs? What do you mean? He didn’t tell me what this was about—”

  “What kind of magic do you practice, anyhow?” Alice questioned as she crossed her arms.

  Now a bolt of fear slammed into my gut. I shifted uneasily back and cleared my throat. “Um, I’m not really sure yet,” I lied. “The last few days have been pretty intense – I haven’t had a chance to figure anything out yet.” That, at least, wasn’t a lie. The last few days had been more than intense. It was a surprise I hadn’t broken my neck from whiplash.

  “You aren’t joking with us, are you? Vali actually did invite you to one of the big jobs tonight, didn’t he?” Cassidy looked so amazed, I could tell this was the most exciting news she’d heard for weeks.

  Me? I just felt progressively more ill as I looked at the calculating looking Alice’s gaze. “So this is unusual, right? He doesn’t usually ask rookies to come with him on big jobs, as you put it?”

  Both Cassidy and Alice shook their heads.

  “He only takes strong witches with him, the ones he can trust,” Alice explained, tone guarded as she continued to assess me with a narrow-eyed look.

  There were two things about that statement I didn’t like. The first was strong witches. I was just beginning to come to terms with the fact that I had truly powerful magic, yet I still had absolutely no idea where exactly I
fit in in the grand scheme of things. Was I somewhere down the bottom in terms of raw ability, or somewhere on top? And what did that even mean?

  “I can’t believe this,” Cassidy said, clapping her hands as if this was the best thing that had happened to her in years. “A bunch of the other detectives have been working here for decades, and they’ve yet to catch Vali’s eye. You? You do it from the get-go. He must have a pretty good reason for focusing on you. So what can you do?” she asked with clear glee.

  Alice cleared her throat in an unmistakable growl. “Whatever it is, it’s not really any of our business at the moment. I shouldn’t have to remind you two, but we have a job to get to.”

  Still pale from this new confusing news, I forced myself to nod.

  Cassidy frowned. “Fine, fine. But you have to tell us what happens tonight.” She actually reached forward and hooked an arm through mine as if we were the best of friends. “And if I were you, I’d avoid Megan. As soon as she finds out Vali’s got another witch, she ain’t gonna be pleased.” Cassidy proceeded to whistle with some pleasure.

  I paled all the more, feeling like I wanted to crawl home and jump into bed to hide under the covers.

  I did not get that opportunity.

  After another block, we arrived on a familiar street.

  Instantly, I frowned. Because instantly my gaze darted over to the two-story brick building on the opposite side of the street.

  The headquarters of Larry’s catering company, to be precise.

  Larry! I’d almost completely forgotten about him. Now his interactions with Vali slammed back into the center of my head.

  It was Larry who’d delivered that box, Larry who’d brought the odious Vali into my life. I’d heard when Vali had threatened Larry – Vali had told Larry to clear out of town and never come back, or face the consequences.

  But right now I watched as Larry darted out from the store, a briefcase held so tightly under his arm it looked like he was about to wrench his shoulder from its socket.

  I shrugged back, hiding behind Alice’s tall, strong form as Larry checked the street before jumping into his Porsche.

  “Why are you hiding behind me?” Alice snapped.

  “I know that guy. He’s my ex-boss.”

  “Shit, he’s also our target. Stay there. Cassidy, call a taxi.”

  I knew from experience how quickly Larry drove. When Larry was in his Porsche, road rules didn’t matter – only his foot on the accelerator did. “We’re not going to have time,” I counseled as he shot out of sight. Calling a taxi anywhere in this town was like calling for a miracle. Maybe they’d come, maybe they wouldn’t. But you would have to prepare to wait at least two hours.

  Somehow, Cassidy called one instantly. I’d checked along the street moments before, and there hadn’t been a taxi in sight. Yet as soon as she jammed her thumb out, one appeared, coming to a screeching halt beside us.

  “God,” I managed as I jolted back in shock. That shock slammed even harder through my chest when I realized there was no driver in the taxi.

  “Come on,” Alice snapped as she shoved me in the small of my back and pushed me into the back seat.

  She got in the driver’s side, slammed the door, and pulled out from the curb with all the speed and grace of a bullet.

  I had exactly no time to do my seatbelt up, and I was thrown to the side. Cassidy hooked an arm under my shoulder and kept me steady, leaning around and buckling me up. “Trust me, Alice drives like crazy.”

  I trusted Cassidy, because Alice drove worse than crazy. She drove bat-shit insane.

  “Hold on, where the hell did this taxi come from? And why didn’t it have a driver?”

  Cassidy patted my shoulder tenderly. “Magic. Now, what do you mean you knew that guy? Middle Manager Ben is usually super careful not to put us on cases with people we’re familiar with.”

  I gulped, shoulders being shoved into the seat with such force it was almost as if the taxi was about to reach the speed of sound. “He owns a catering company. I waitress for him. He’s my boss. I mean my ex-boss.”

  Alice swore. “Ben is obviously distracted. Cassidy is right – you shouldn’t be put on a case where you know the perp.”

  “Perp?” My voice shook. “What exactly has he done?”

  “We don’t get to know that,” Cassidy assured me as she settled down and did up her own seatbelt. Despite the fact Alice had been driving like a stampeding bull, Cassidy had managed to keep her balance fine. It was either magic, or she had a pelvic floor of steel. “We don’t get to know what crimes they commit. We just drag them in. Vali gets to decide how they’re punished.”

  I made a face.

  Somehow Alice saw it – she glanced up at the rearview mirror just at the right moment. “I suggest you stop. Trust me, kid. I had exactly the same suspicions when I started here. But those suspicions will get you nowhere. Plus, Vali knows what he’s doing.”

  “He knows what he’s doing, ha? How can you be so sure? He’s judge, jury, and executioner. If we don’t get to know why we’re running down some criminal, how can you be sure they’re a criminal at all?”

  “Because we’ve seen personally what these scumbags can do. Yes, I don’t know every minute detail of what these perps are up to – but from some of the assholes I’ve dragged in and the injuries they’ve given me, I feel pretty happy in concluding they’re not nice guys.”

  I wasn’t ready to drop this. The indignation at the injustice of what was happening to me began to swell in my gut. I strained against my seatbelt as if it somehow embodied everything that was wrong with this situation. “Maybe that’s the case – but maybe those perps were just scared. And how are we sure Vali gets it right every time if he doesn't share the evidence with you?”

  “Because he’s a god,” Cassidy said. It was an extremely innocent statement, especially coming from a convicted felon. And yet, because of its innocence and sheer simplicity, it struck a chord with me. An uncomfortable one.

  “Don’t you worry, I raged against Vali when he dragged me in, too. But it didn’t take me long to realize I’m on the right side now,” Alice finished weakly, despite the fact her voice had started out punching from her throat with all the force of a storm.

  Though I was humbled by her admission, she still hadn’t convinced me. Nothing could convince me. Deep down, I knew Vali hadn’t indentured me because he thought I’d inadvertently killed my grandmother. Nope. It was because of the symbols on my hands. And though I suddenly burnt with the desire to point that out, something held me back. The flickering look I’d seen in his gaze when he’d told me that he was keeping me from the truth for my own good.

  I suddenly brought up my hands and ran a finger slowly along one of my bangles.

  It brought Cassidy’s attention to them. “Holy crap, where did you get those?” Obviously having zero personal space, she lurched forward, clutched my hand, and stared at my bangle.

  “I…” I quickly trailed off. Vali had given me these bangles with the explicit order never to take them off. And considering I wasn’t allowed to tell anyone about my true magic, what exactly was I meant to say now?

  “Drop it,” Alice suddenly snarled from the front seat. “This is all very interesting, but our perp is getting away. Get back to the part about how you know this guy – got any ideas where he’s heading next?”

  Seriously, I was gonna get whiplash from this situation. If things didn’t start calming down, I’d probably throw up.

  I settled back further into the seat and remembered that Larry was the one in that Porsche, breaking every traffic rule as he sped through town.

  I didn’t have any love lost for Larry. Larry was my boss – a means to money. But I hadn’t been lying when I’d said so many times that deep under his scaly exterior was a good heart.

  “I…” I began to say that I didn’t know where Larry would be going. I stopped.

  He would be heading to one of his shady contacts in the underworld. Larry was pr
ecisely not the kind of guy to give up. Sure, Vali the god of revenge may have told him to pack up and leave town, but it wouldn’t be that easy for Larry – he owed too many people too much.

  “Fess up. This guy is a good driver, and we’re losing him,” Alice snapped.

  “Head to 32 Fifth Street. There’s a pawnshop,” I began.

  “Barney’s World,” Alice suddenly growled. “I know it well. Strong link to the Chaplain Family. What’s this Larry character into?” she mumbled under her breath as she swung a hard right. Though Larry had been heading out of sight, Alice suddenly turned down a completely different street, obviously intending to head him off.

  I felt sick – felt sick for 1 trillion reasons.

  “You better not be wrong about this. Middle Manager Ben will not be happy if we lose him. Nor will Vali be too pleased when you fail your first job. He’ll add a few more weeks to your sentence.”

  “Ha, you just called Ben middle manager,” Cassidy pointed out as she chuckled into her hand.

  “It fits. I’m just not stupid enough to say it to his face,” Alice growled.

  Alice continued to drive like a rally car driver, the taxi achieving speeds impossible for a standard sedan. I held onto the door with white knuckles, my other hand wrapped tightly around my seatbelt. While the car may have been shooting around like a jet plane, my thoughts were zooming faster.

  Larry didn’t deserve to die. He just didn’t. He deserved an opportunity for that kernel of goodness lodged deep in his soul to grow. But Vali wasn’t going to give him that opportunity. When ValI realized that Larry hadn’t skipped town….

  I suddenly did something stupid. I opened my mouth, and wincing, I lied, “No. I changed my mind. I doubt Larry is heading to Barney’s World. He’s probably going…” I trailed off as I thought quickly, figuring out some random location on the opposite side of town.

  I didn’t get that opportunity.

  “There he is,” Alice said, ignoring me as she cut back into traffic, joining a main road right behind Larry.

  Because Larry was heading to Barney’s World.

  “Shit,” I said under my breath, palms becoming sweaty as I locked them harder over the seatbelt.

  “It’s okay.” Cassidy suddenly leaned out, rested a hand on my shoulder, and patted it tenderly. “You don’t have to track him down. Just leave this one to us. Alice is right – Middle Manager Ben should never have put you on a case where you have to go after a friend.”

  I tried to control my expression. I couldn’t. All that muddled confusion, all that fear, and all that twisting guilt – they played over my face with all the clarity of a neon sign.

  Several minutes later, we came to a screeching stop outside Barney’s World.

  I’d only been to Barney’s shop several times, and even then under protest. For some reason, Larry had trusted me. Out of all the schmucks working for him, as he put it, I was the least likely to tattle. Once or twice, he’d used me to make deliveries to Barney’s. Though I’d always strenuously tried to get out of it, a couple of times I’d caved. I’d always taken the subway, stuck to the laneways, and never walked in front of a cop car.

  I frowned at that memory as I realized what it meant. I’d been fencing stolen goods, hadn’t I? A part of me had known that at the time, but I’d pushed it back. It had been an inconvenient truth. I’d needed to keep Larry onside – he was a good employer, and the rent was always going up, wasn’t it?

  In my head, I was a good girl. A good, misunderstood girl. But do good girls really knowingly fence stolen goods for their bosses?

  It was a question I couldn’t answer.

  Slowly, carefully, quietly, Alice undid her seatbelt. Locking a hand on the back of the passenger seat, she turned and faced us. “The file says Larry doesn’t have any magic. But my gut is telling me he’ll know people who do. If he really is connected to Chaplain, then there is every possibility that we’re going to face a pissed off, charged warlock in there. Cass, you’re with me. Lilly,” Alice paused. “Just stay in the car. If Larry comes out, beep the horn. And if we don’t come out in the next half hour,” she reached into her pocket, grabbed a phone, and threw it at me, “you call Middle Manager Ben and tell him to get a proper team down here, got it?”

  No. I absolutely did not have it. I had no training, no clue, and I couldn’t drive.

  Alice didn’t give me the opportunity to point out any of that. She smoothed down her jacket, checked something on her wrist, then nodded at Cassidy. The two of them got out of the car and walked calmly onto the pavement.

  I twisted around in my seat, pressing a sweaty hand against my window as I stared at them.

  Barney’s shop was dilapidated. The three-story, run down, tarnished, brown-brick block looked like it should be earmarked for destruction. It had a chipped red sign that read Barney’s World of Goods painted over the doorway. I always chuckled at that – World of Goods? Barney had been in business for well over 50 years, and he hadn’t been able to come up with a business title any less shady than World of Goods? Why didn’t he just call himself Stolen Objects Going Cheap?

  Both Alice and Cassidy got out of the car. Alice, at the lead, turned, checked on Cassidy once, then pushed into the store. The shop bell above the door let out a quick tinkle then the door closed.

  Though Barney’s shop had windows, they were covered in bars and tinted. I couldn’t see inside.

  My heart began to hammer in my chest, my stomach growling with nerves. “This is impossible. It can’t be happening. Seriously, this has got to be some kind of bad dream,” I began.

  I stopped.

  Pretending this was a dream wasn’t going to change anything.

  But what exactly could I do?

  I cradled the phone Alice had given me. It kind of looked like an ordinary smartphone, but when I turned it over, I saw a blue symbol blazing on the back. I didn’t need to run a finger over it and feel the charge of magic to realize it wasn’t normal.

  I kept swinging my gaze methodically from the phone to the front door of Barney’s.

  Not many genuine customers ever used the front door of Barney’s. I’d overheard Larry telling that to one of his suspicious friends before.

  The front door was for those confused members of the public who weren’t put off by the shady sign, even shadier name, and shadier still location. The people desperate enough to buy a watch with someone else’s name carved into it because they couldn’t afford any better.

  Nope. Barney’s “Genuine customers,” as Larry put it, always used the back door. The back door, however, wasn’t actually located at the back of the store.

  Running alongside Barney’s on the left was an old warehouse. It was technically a packing company. But I had to use the word technically with a caveat, there. Barney owned a controlling share in the business, and when he’d bought it a couple of years back, he’d knocked down a door right into his back room.

  Alice and Cassidy wouldn’t know about the door. Larry would.

  “Oh no.” I locked both sweaty hands on the window, letting Alice’s phone drop into my lap with a thump. “I have to do something.”

  But what?

  I still hadn’t figured out my loyalties yet. Right? Everything was too new, too frigging unbelievable. I did know one thing, though – the side door to Smith Packing Services suddenly opened, and a pale-faced Larry suddenly walked out.

  In a snap, I came to a decision. Or at least my body did. I found myself leaning between the seats of the taxi, ramming a hand on the horn. I beeped twice. The noise must have been sudden and unexpected, because Larry jumped and tried to peer into the taxi.

  I stared back at him, mouth agape. But when he didn’t look surprised at seeing little old me, all pale-cheeked and blotchy eyed in the back of the cab, he shrugged and moved on.

  … He couldn’t see me, right? It wasn’t such a stupid thing to assume. After all, this taxi had driven itself up onto the curb before Alice had got in.

  �
��Come on, guys. He’s getting away,” I said to no one in particular as I leaned forward and tooted the horn once more.

  I had no idea what it would look like to Larry. Maybe the taxi was empty – maybe I’d been enchanted to look like a pissed-off cab driver hustling for a ride.

  I cast my now terrified gaze back to the front of Barney’s store. No sign of either Alice or Cassidy. I still didn’t know whether I could forgive them for what they’d done. That didn’t stop me from snapping up Alice’s phone. As soon as I unlocked the screen, I swore. There were plenty of icons, but I didn’t recognize a single one of them, and everything was written in a language I couldn’t understand. “God,” I screamed again, “come on!”

  I started randomly pressing buttons, but when that didn’t call in the cavalry, I realized I had to act.

  Stowing the phone in my pocket, curling a hand into a fist, I got out of the taxi.

  Larry was a second from wrenching the door open to his Porsche and leaving.

  Though I knew full well I wasn’t meant to intervene, I couldn’t stop myself.

  “Larry?” I asked.

  He twisted, every muscle so tight he could have twanged. He reached for something in his jacket pocket. Then he saw me, and his features slackened. “Kid? What are you doing here?” He swung his gaze accusingly to Barney’s World.

  “Heading over to a friend on East side. I just saw you,” I stuttered. “You all right? I barely saw you last night.”

  “You barely saw me? What happened to you? You walked off the job,” Larry began, then he stopped. Larry, once he got started, never stop complaining. You could chuck a chain around his throat, gag him, and shut him in jail, but he would still find some way of shouting at you.

  Now his cheeks slackened. “Doesn’t matter. I’ll see you around, kid.”

  I took a nervous step toward him, reaching a hand out, still unsure of what I was meant to do. “Where are you heading? You look kind of…. Is everything okay?” I stumbled over my words.

  “Beat it, kid. I don’t have time for this.”

  I quickly jerked my head back to Barney’s World, noting Alice and Cassidy still hadn’t appeared.

  As my gut clenched, I took another step forward. “What’s going on? You look like you’re in a hurry? Larry… you in some kind of trouble?”

  I wasn’t being subtle. Because I was never subtle. Seriously, though, when it came to not blowing my cover, I was doing a stupidly awful job. But I couldn’t help myself. Larry just looked so desperate.

  “It’s nothing, kid. Now get out of here.”

  I didn’t get the chance to get out of here.

  At that exact moment, the door to Barney’s World opened. My heart lifted as I turned to it. I may have only just met Alice and Cassidy, but that didn’t mean I wished them any ill.

  The only problem was, it wasn’t them.

  My heart sank.

  I saw two burly men in suits walk from the shop, the door swinging behind them. I swore one of them had singe marks playing up the side of his chest.

  Larry balked, jerking backward. “Get out of here, Lilly,” he snapped as he piled into the front seat of his Porsche.

  I just stood there, frozen on the spot, staring back at Barney’s shop. “What the hell did you do to them?” I spat.

  At first, both men seemed content to ignore me, but at that comment, one shifted toward me. “Work for Vali, then?”

  “Get out of here, kid,” Larry screamed once more, gunning the engine.

  He did not, however, get a chance to slam his foot on the gas pedal. One of the burly men ran forward and simply placed a hand on the top of the car. Sure, it was one of those speedy, lightweight Porsches, but it was still a freaking car. And yet as the man weighed his hand down onto the top, the tires started to skid as if the handbrake were still on.

  Larry began to swear wildly, tugging at the wheel as he tried to pull the car from the man’s grip.

  We were starting to draw a crowd of people craning their heads out of their shops to stare at the ruckus.

  It didn’t last. Before one of the guys could round on me, he reached a hand into his pocket, drew out his phone, and touched something on the screen. A flickering blue field burst out from the phone and shot up into the sky, covering us all for a 10-meter radius.

  At the same moment, an image of the two men walking away calmly and Larry pulling out from the curb played down the street. I’d never seen anything like it.

  I had a single second to stare at it in total shock, the blue magic of the flickering force field playing over my wide eyes.

  Then the guy snapped toward me. He reached for my neck, pinning me against a lamp post as he swung at me with his fist.

  I didn’t have the chance to duck.

  The fist connected, slamming into my nose and cheek with such force, my head smacked into the metal lamp post with a rattling twang.

  Instantly, pain exploded up my face, sunk hard into my jaw, and rattled through my teeth. Blood burst from my nose, spilling down my top.

  The guy swung at me again, and though all I could see were stars exploding over my vision, I had the presence of mind to duck at the last moment. His fist connected with the metal lamp post, and the thing rattled.

  He swore in pain, wrenching his fist back and clutching his now bleeding knuckles.

  It gave me the opportunity to drop to my knees and lash out. It was an uncoordinated, desperate move, but I got lucky. I got him on the side of the knee as he turned to check on his friend.

  It was just enough to unbalance him. I finished off the rest with another kick right to the top of his knee.

  He pitched backward. But rather than fall in an uncoordinated mess on the pavement, he shifted to the side, rolled, and threw himself at me like a pro wrestler.

  This time I couldn’t duck. I felt two impossibly strong arms wrap around my middle as I was tackled to the pavement.

  “Let her go, you assholes,” I heard Larry bellow from the car.

  The guy did not let me go. Instead, pinning me to the pavement, he reached two large hands over and wrapped them around my throat. I felt more than his strength press against my neck – I felt a numbing, cold pulse of power.

  My head started to spin; blood continued to flow from my broken nose.

  “I said let go of her,” Larry screamed.

  I heard a gunshot.

  I froze, terrified.

  It wasn’t Larry who was shot.

  The guy with two strong hands wrapped around my throat suddenly jolted. Blood didn’t begin to blossom over his white shirt – instead, magical symbols did.

  With wide-open, bulging eyes, he jerked his head down and stared at his chest just as I did the same.

  Perfectly circular magical bursts of light were spreading across his torso, blue and bright green.

  Suddenly, his grip on my throat slackened. I jerked back, shoving into him, and he fell limply to the side, his eyes still as wide open as two open hands.

  I heard the other guy scream as he locked a hand over the car and shoved against it. The move shouldn’t have done anything, were not this guy clearly a mountain in disguise. The car lurched several meters to the side, spilling out into traffic. It pushed beyond the flickering, blue, magical force field that was keeping our fight hidden from the rest of the street. Immediately, the flickering force field grew in response. If I had any hope that the people beyond would see us and call for help, it was immediately dashed.

  But maybe we didn’t need it.

  The car may have just lurched several meters to the side, but Larry managed to hold onto the door as he leaned right out of the driver’s side window. With nerves of steel and a hand steadier than a surgeon, he aimed right at the remaining mobster before the guy could throw himself at Larry.

  Larry fired, right between the guy’s eyes. A ball of magic spread over the man’s face, smaller circles blossoming out down his chest and over his back. He jerked back, momentarily rigid like a sheet of steel
until he became limp and fell to the pavement. Just before I could fear he was dead, his lips stiffly cracked open, “You’ll pay for this. Prick, you’ll pay.”

  “Maybe,” Larry said, voice shaky but arm still perfectly steady as he got out of the car, walked around, and pointed the gun right at the guy’s head, “but not today.” With that, he fired several more rounds right into the man’s forehead.

  I screamed, jolting back, scrabbling on my hands and knees until my back slammed into the lamp post. My nose was still bleeding, practically gushing as it covered my shirt and jacket.

  I jolted in terror as Larry fired off two more rounds into the man who’d attacked me.

  “It’s okay, kid. It’s okay.” Larry pocketed the gun into the back of his pants, but not before giving the rest of the street a wary look. “Get in the car, Lilly. I’ll explain everything. Just get off this godforsaken street.”

  I could barely move. But when Larry leaned down and locked a hand over my elbow, I jolted in fear. “No, my friends are back in Barney’s store—”

  Larry’s brow crumpled. Crumpled so hard his beady eyes became nothing more than two little pinpricks of black suspicion. But that suspicion softened as I took another rattling, gurgling gasp, fighting against the blood pouring down my face.

  Though it wouldn’t help, Larry reached into his pocket, grabbed a tissue, and chucked it at me. “You look awful. And you don’t need to worry about your friends – they aren’t there.”

  “Sorry?” I managed as he pulled me to my feet.

  “Barney sent them someplace else. Westside, if I’m any judge. It’ll take a full half-hour to get back here.”

  “Sorry?” I stuttered. My gaze lurched down and settled on the man who’d attacked me. The man Larry had shot with some kind of magical gun.

  Maybe he could guess what I was thinking, because a grim smile pressed across his thin lips. “I wouldn’t have picked you for a witch, Lilly. Then again, there was always something different about you. You could put up with me, for one.” He snorted as he helped me to my feet.

  “Larry, what the hell is going on?”

  “You tell me? When you didn’t come back last night and I saw you leaving with Vali,” his voice dropped down low, real low, “I figured you’d gotten yourself into your own trouble. But Vali contracted you, ha? Recruited you to his personal bully force? Good for you, kid. Me? I have to make my own way. Now get in the car. There’ll be more of those warlock pricks coming after us.”

  “Warlocks?!” No matter what I did, I couldn’t keep my voice steady. I’d just been punched in the face, after all.

  “Some of Chaplain’s men. Trust me, it will take way too long to explain. And we don’t have time. So get in the car.”

  “But my friends—”

  “I’ve already told you, they’ll be safe on Westside. Barney has countermeasures in place for magicians he doesn’t like. Walk into his door unannounced and uninvited, and you’ll find yourself walking out some other place else entirely. Last I checked, it was the male stalls on Station Six in the subway,” he chuckled.

  “What’s going on?” I whimpered. I did not, however, stop Barney from shoving me into his car.

  As soon as he got into the driver’s side, he screeched out from the pavement, flooring it.

  The car swung out so violently, I fell against the window.

  “Buckle up, kid. This will be a long one.”

  “Where… where are we going?”

  “Someplace safe.” The way he said it, specifically the shake to his voice, told me he wasn’t convinced.

  Slowly, slowly my nerve was returning to me. I clutched my seatbelt with both hands. “Larry, what have you done? What’s going on? And who were those men back there?”

  “Trust me, kid, this story is way too long and boring.” He suddenly snorted. “Okay, it’s not boring. It involves mobsters, money, and magic. But just sit back, deal with your nose, and for god’s sake, don’t swallow too much blood – I really don’t want you throwing up over my leather seats.”

  I didn’t have the heart to tell Larry that the small tissue he’d given me wouldn’t exactly be enough to stem the flow. I was 100% certain that my nose was broken, and as I blustered and gurgled through a breath, I winced against the pain burning through my face. The pain, however, wasn’t enough to pull me away from the situation. I shifted forward in my seat. “Larry, where are we going?”

  “I told you, someplace safe. Someplace neither Chaplain nor Vali will be able to find us.” His voice bottomed out and dipped low on the word Vali.

  It brought me back to the situation, reminded me what had just happened. “How… how do you know about him? And how do you know I’m a witch?”

  “I figured it out. You were traveling with those two other witches, and I really doubt the two magical locks on your wrists are just there for decoration, right? Vali gave them to you, didn’t he?”

  I didn’t answer. I just felt sick, confused, and totally freaking conflicted. On the one hand, I wanted nothing more than to follow Larry. Sure, I wasn’t entirely certain I could trust the man, but he had to be better than Vali, right?

  … Right?

  I still had absolutely no idea what kind of trouble Larry was in. But I was starting to realize one thing for sure – Vali had eyes everywhere. He was a freaking god, after all.

  He’d shown me some latitude to date, but if I tried to hightail it out of town with Larry, where would that leave me?

  I started to feel cold. Seriously cold. As cold as I had last night when I’d inadvertently used my power to freeze that basement.

  “Just sit back and relax, kid. I’ve got this.”

  Sit back and relax? Ha? That sounded nice.

  But I couldn’t do it.

  Fighting against my anxiety, I shifted forward once more. “Larry, you sure? You sure running is the best thing to do?” I surprised myself as those words sprang from my mouth.

  I didn’t trust Vali. I hated him. And yet this was still the smartest thing to do, right?

  Larry waited a long time before answering with a splutter. “Sure it is. We’ve got no other option.”

  “Larry, didn’t Vali give you an option last night?”

  I watched his shoulders jerk, shove hard into the headrest of his seat. He glared at me through his rear vision mirror. “So you heard that?”

  I nodded, blood still trickling down my cheek. I made no attempt whatsoever to wipe it off. “I heard everything. And he only gave you one option: sell everything and leave town. But it ain’t that easy, is it, Larry?” I added quietly, gently.

  “No, kid – it ain’t that easy,” he agreed in a defeated tone. “I’ve burnt too many bridges to be able to leave. I’ve got nowhere to go, and the kind of goons who are after me aren’t the kind to let you sell up and leave.”

  I sat there in somber, sick silence as the situation hit me all at once.

  “Larry, you have to…” I trailed off.

  I had no idea what to say next.

  “Get out of here. It’s the only way.”

  “… Then what?”

  He didn’t reply.

  “Then what, Larry? Can you really hide from Chaplain’s men for long?” The question punched out of my throat.

  I watched Larry in the rearview mirror. He stiffened. “I’ll find a way.”

  “Larry, you won’t. If he has warlocks working for him, don’t you think he’ll be able to track you down wherever you go? There’s only…” I trailed off sharply.

  “What? Only one way? You want me to hand myself in to Vali?” He snorted, the rattling sound echoing through the small confines of the car.

  My stomach gave a kick. That’s not what I’d been about to say… right?

  No, it was.

  Because arrogant asshole or not, somehow, deep down, I trusted Vali.

  I pressed forward as far as my seatbelt would allow, and I reached a hand over and touched it lightly on Larry’s shoulder. “Yeah, Larry, you should
hand yourself in. Trust me – and trust him. It’ll be infinitely better than dying at the hands of this Chaplain and his warlocks.”

  I felt Larry stiffen under my grip, and I was sure he was about to shove me off.

  He hesitated.

  I was almost certain that when I’d been given this case, they hadn’t intended me to get the perp – a.k.a. Larry – to hand himself in. But that was the only way out of this now.

  I took another settling breath. “It’ll be okay.”

  “You sure about that? You heard Vali threaten me – if I don’t follow his orders, he’ll have me killed.”

  I winced but also shook my head. “Chaplain will do worse. Plus, I’ll vouch for you. I’ll use whatever authority I have,” I promised. Which was a hell of a promise – as I had no authority whatsoever. But I was becoming more and more certain that this was the only way to go.

  This Chaplain guy had warlocks. Larry would be dead by the end of the day. If I went with him, I’d be dead too.

  “Larry, you were always the kind of guy to sniff out the best opportunities. And this is the only opportunity we have left. If life hands you lemons?” I asked, quoting his favorite saying.

  “You take a gun to life’s head and demand more.” He snorted.

  I let out a soft laugh, never taking my hand off his shoulder.

  I watched Larry tilt his head to the side and stare at the magical gun sitting on the passenger seat. He’d shoved it there after he’d got in.

  It was almost as if I could see the cogs moving in his brain as he desperately tried to come to a decision.

  I didn’t push him, just kept my hand on his shoulder.

  Eventually, he deflated. Then he took a left onto the freeway. Not the one that headed out of town – the one that headed downtown.

  I let out a relieved sigh of my own, sitting back. “It’s the right thing to do.”

  He snorted. “It ain’t right, kid. There’s nothing right about this situation. Vali is gonna….” He shook his head, clenching his teeth. “But you’re right, whatever he does to me, it’s gonna be a darn sight better than what those Chaplain men will do. Plus, I can’t drag you into this,” he added under his breath.

  See? There it was – the grain of goodness buried deep within Larry’s soul. I hadn’t been wrong after all.

  I had no means to contact Vali and the rest of my team to let them know I was on my way. I’d accidentally left Alice’s phone in the back of the taxi.

  So I hoped like hell Vali hadn’t sent out his men to snuff me out for escaping his clutches.

  Just as I hoped that Chaplain’s men weren’t on our tail.

  We made it. Larry pulled up on the opposite side of the street, double parking.

  “Isn’t this a loading zone?” I asked as I got out of the car.

  Larry chuckled darkly. “There’s time for one last crime, ain’t there?” He shrugged. Then he took his jacket off and chucked it at me. “You might want to cover your face so we don’t draw a crowd. You look like you’ve been head-butting a brick wall,” he said with his usual total lack of sympathy.

  I chuckled, grabbing his jacket and trying to hide underneath it without looking like a complete fool.

  For a lingering moment, Larry paused, the door open as he glanced across at his magical gun.

  I stiffened.

  Larry came to another decision, closed the door, locked it, and nodded across the street. “Come on. You’re the one who convinced me to come – so you need to hurry up so you can claim all the glory.”

  I offered him a commiserating smile. “I don’t want glory, Larry. I only want what’s best for you.”

  He sniffed as he jaywalked, waving me forward when I wasn’t ballsy enough to dart out in front of a truck. “Your heart is not cut out for this world, kid. You’re too nice.”

  “This world?” I said, voice muffled as it filtered through the thick, cologne-soaked layers of Larry’s baseball jacket. “How do you know about the magical world, anyway?”

  “I’ve been in the game long enough – heard the stories. Plus, it runs in the family.”

  With that, we made it across the other side of the street. I headed toward the front doors.

  Larry grabbed my arm and pulled me to the side. “Word of advice, Vali will hand you your ass if you walk through the front door looking like that. He keeps his magic and his business separate.”

  I didn’t protest as Larry led me around back. There was a green, lawn-covered section down one of the sides of the building, several park benches and even a few tasteful water features dotted around. Larry marched right up between them, heading for an apparently inconspicuous section of wall. As he looked over one shoulder then the next, he reached out a hand, took a steeling breath, and knocked on the wall.

  “Ah, Larry, what are you doing?”

  A second later, I got my answer. A door formed.

  It opened and out stepped two apparently normal security guards. Normal until you saw the shining symbols on the backs of their hands.

  Both of them reached for their guns when they saw Larry.

  I bustled forward. “No, he’s handing himself in. He’s handing himself in,” I said again in a clear voice.

  Both of them darted their direct gazes to Larry. Larry slowly brought his hands up and spread them wide. “She’s right. I’ve got no weapons, boys. And apparently no sense,” he added under his breath. “Now find Vali. The kid’s right – time to hand myself in.”

  I watched the security guards exchange a calculating look, but when Larry didn’t attack them, they waved us inside.

  Even though we’d entered by the side of the building, somehow we ended up in the middle. Right outside of Vali’s office, in fact.

  I took a step forward, head snapping from side-to-side as I tried to orient myself.

  One of the guards appeared to steel himself and shifted forward to knock on the door.

  It opened, and Megan appeared in one of her perfect pant suits.

  Immediately, her gaze darted toward Larry.

  Before she could say anything or bring up her hand and cast a spell on him, I ducked forward. “He’s handing himself in.”

  Megan sliced her gaze back to Larry. “Handing yourself in?”

  Larry nodded low. “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Very well. Take him to a holding cell,” she began.

  “Who’s at the door?” I heard a familiar voice rumble from inside the room.

  “Never mind. Just a low-level perp,” Megan said as she shot Larry a judgmental look.

  I heard Vali shift toward the door. Instantly, my stomach knotted with nerves.

  Nerves that wrapped tighter and tighter around my gut the closer and closer he got.

  He came into view. He looked from Larry straight to me. Then, pointedly, he frowned at the baseball jacket I still had pressed over my face.

  I’d kinda forgotten about it.

  “What are you doing here?” he asked me.

  “Oh. I was… I was on a job. Larry was the… target,” I said uncomfortably, trying to think of a kinder word, but incapable of finding one. “I… I convinced him to hand himself in.”

  “I see,” Vali said in an uncharacteristic, quiet tone. Once more, he looked from me to Larry then back to me.

  “She’s right. She convinced me to hand myself in. She was under the impression that you would look favorably on that,” Larry added in a strong and yet strangled voice.

  “I see,” Vali noted once more, tone unreadable, expression blank.

  “Take him to a holding cell,” Megan repeated. “Vali doesn’t have time to deal with this right now.”

  I shifted around, intending to follow.

  “I do not, however, see why you are hiding behind a crumpled baseball jacket,” Vali added, even though Megan was trying to usher him back into his office.

  Vali reached his arms up and crossed them, staring at me pointedly.

  “Oh.” I dropped the jacket, wincing when I realized
how much blood was covering it. Larry wouldn’t be pleased – he loved that jacket. I swiveled my head down and glanced at my shirt – it was now completely red.

  I would look like a total wreck.

  Vali became rigid. Just for a second – a flickering, darting second – I swore I saw him: Franklin Saunders. His brow crumpled in shocked compassion. Then, almost immediately, it stiffened as he turned his anger on Larry. “What did you do to her?” he growled.

  Larry put his hands up.

  “He didn’t do anything,” I said as I darted forward, ready to bodily protect Larry if I had to. “There were two warlocks after him. One of them pinned me against a lamplight and punched me.” I winced at the memory. “Larry saved me. Then I convinced him to hand himself in. Look, I know I’m probably stepping out of line, but I promised him I’d do everything to get him a second chance. He handed himself in,” I emphasized, “that has to be worth something, right?”

  “You don’t get to tell Vali what to do,” Megan interrupted.

  I ignored her and looked entreatingly at Vali. This morning, all I’d wanted to do was slap him. But right now I appreciated he was the only person who could keep Larry safe.

  I was a lot of things, but I wasn’t about to let my ego get in the way of saving a friend.

  “Look, I can vouch for him. He’s a good man—” I started.

  “It’s all right, kid – you’ve done enough,” Larry said softly.

  I ignored him. “Please, you have to help him out. I don’t know what you want, but just help him. If you need to punish someone,” I hesitated for the briefest moment, “Then punish me. Just—”

  “Lilly, it’s all right. I can fight my own battles,” Larry said louder now, putting a careful hand on my elbow and pulling me back. “And you don’t have to sacrifice yourself for me.”

  I stared at Vali, waiting for him to do the right thing. Because I needed him to do the right thing. I’d convinced Larry to give up his freedom on the chance Vali could help him.

  More than that, I needed not to be wrong. When I’d begged Larry to come here, I’d come to a decision about Vali. I’d convinced myself that somewhere underneath that hardened exterior was the seed of a good man. Maybe it was buried deep – buried even deeper than Larry’s seed of hope. But it had to be there.

  My nose started to drip again, and I could feel a few drops of blood trickle down my cheek and neck.

  Vali watched them, gaze shifting slowly as each droplet traced down my throat.

  There was total silence as he stared at me, before finally he took a breath that pushed his large chest against his shirt. “Very well. Contract him,” he said to Megan.

  Megan blinked hard. “Sorry?”

  “Contract Larry Benjamin McGregor,” Vali said slowly in a clear, direct voice that could not be mistaken.

  Though I could tell Megan really wanted to fight this, she would also clearly never talk back to Vali. Instead, with a prim sniff, she turned to the guards. “Make the preparations. I’ll be there in a moment.”

  I sighed, releasing all the tension that had pushed me this far. As soon as I did, I winced as the pain flowed back in.

  Christ, my nose hurt. It quite rightly felt like I’d head butted a brick wall.

  I put a hand up and poked at my cheeks. Big mistake. They were so sensitive, the lightest touch felt like a hammer blow.

  “Come with me, Lily-white,” Vali said as he turned hard on his foot and ushered me into his office.

  Megan darted in behind him before I could move. “Sir, you’re too busy for this. You need to prepare for tonight.”

  “I am,” Vali said in a quiet, patient tone.

  I stood outside his office, unsure whether to follow him in.

  Larry nodded my way as the guards took up position either side of him and began to hustle him down the corridor. “Thanks, kid. I guess I’ll be seeing you around.” He waved at me and then walked away.

  He might be saying thanks now, but when he realized what being indentured to Vali meant, I’m sure he would take the next opportunity to shout until he went purple in the face.

  “Lily-white,” Vali said, loud voice carrying out into the corridor.

  I made a stupidly pathetic whimpering sound then followed.

  Megan crossed her arms and turned to me.

  As always, I found myself momentarily overcome by his office. It was the feel of the place. I felt like it reminded me of something… some long lost memory….

  Paying no attention whatsoever, I forgot about the fact I was still gushing blood, and made no attempt to stop a few droplets from running down my arm and splashing onto the seriously expensive rug.

  Megan’s eyes widened in indignation. “What are you doing?” she hissed. “This rug is worth more than you’ll ever be—”

  “Megan, that’s enough. And the blood will wash out. Now, kindly go and oversee the signing of Larry McGregor.”

  “Sir,” Megan turned to him, a few strands loosening from her bun and waving around her shoulders, “you don’t have time. The job tonight is too important. We have to take Hank Chaplain down.” Her voice changed, became tight with real emotion. An emotion other than indignation, that was.

  So far Megan had been nothing but a bitch to me. Now? Now I took an unsteady breath as I saw how strained her expression became as she stared at Vali.

  “I know the importance of this case, Megan,” Vali said with a patient tone. “Just as I know you are too close to it.”

  Megan froze. I watched her chest stiffen against her tight blouse.

  Like I said, I didn’t exactly like the woman – but right now my heart went out to her.

  “What are you saying?” she managed after a considerable pause.

  “That I won’t be requiring your services tonight. I know you are eager to see Hank brought to justice. And trust me when I say he will be.” Vali’s voice became dark. I even fancied that clouds suddenly massed along the horizon and darkened the sun momentarily.

  “What?” Megan’s voice cracked with emotion.

  “You’re too close,” Vali repeated, slower. “You need to sit this one out. As I said, rest assured that Hank will be brought to justice.”

  “But you need me, sir,” Megan said, her words strangely garbled.

  “I will manage without you. This case is too important, and your wounds are too fresh.” His voice dipped low into a gentle whisper once more.

  “No. I want to be there,” Megan clenched her teeth, “I want to personally make that bastard pay for what he did to my sister. She would still be here if it weren’t for him.”

  “This is not about revenge,” Vali, the god of revenge, noted. It would have been a rich, hypocritical statement coming from him, were it not for his soft, gentle, careful tone.

  I suddenly got the distinct impression that I shouldn’t be listening to this conversation. It was private. Sure, I hated both of the people involved – but they still deserved their dignity.

  I began to back away toward the door.

  “Lily-white, stop,” Vali said.

  I stopped.

  “This involves you,” he said simply.

  “What?” Megan hissed.

  “Lily-white will be accompanying me this evening. Ensure she understands what is required of her,” Vali said calmly, shifting forward and resting his hands on the edge of his desk.

  “What?” Megan spat wildly.

  I felt sick. “I don’t…” I trailed off, not knowing what I should say.

  “Lily-white will be accompanying me. Megan, I know this is hard for you, but I still require your assistance. Once more, I can only assure you that Hank Chaplain will be brought to justice.”

  “But she’s new. A rookie. There’s no way she can accompany you on a job like this,” Megan spat.

  “There is every way. Now, please, just do as I say.”

  Without another word, Megan walked out. I couldn’t look at her.

  But as soon as the door slammed closed behi
nd her, I realized one pertinent fact: I was alone with Vali. Again.

  It took me a long time to gather the courage to shift my head back and look at him.

  “You’ve had an eventful day,” he said evenly. I wanted to say his voice was sarcastic. Problem was, his tone was completely neutral.

  “What? You’re not going to take the opportunity to scold me for promising Larry you’d cut him a deal?” I asked, even though it was stupid. The longer I stood here, the woozier I became. And the woozier I became, the more I remembered how much I hated Vali.

  He didn’t react. With his hands still pressed against the desk and a neutral expression on his face, he nodded toward the chair that sat opposite his desk.

  I stared at it warily. “Can we just get this over with? How much trouble am I in?”

  “You are in no trouble. But as I have already told you, I expect you to be presentable for the function this evening. Right now,” he brought a hand up and flicked it toward my completely blood-soaked top, “you are not presentable.”

  Sure. I wasn’t presentable. I was also in a heck of a lot of pain, and that was a trifle more important.

  Though the last thing I wanted to do was take a seat, I didn’t have the brainpower to fight him.

  I fumbled over, swearing as I felt another trickle escape down my hand and splash onto the carpet.

  “Leave it,” he instructed in a clear tone. Then he pushed up and stood.

  Immediately my heart began to race. For more reasons than one. As he stood, his appreciable form became outlined by the sun streaming through the windows beyond. Somewhere along the line, between me becoming a magically indentured slave, I’d forgotten how damn attractive Vali was. Or was it Vali? Because as he took a step toward me, he softened measurably. Ostensibly it was the same man, the same suit, the same expression. But underneath that? Beyond it? I felt something shift.

  I stared at him warily as he stopped half a meter in front of me. Then, without preamble, he held out his hand.

  The move seemed pregnant with some import. But it wasn’t like we were meeting for the first time. So why offer me his hand?

  I frowned, staring at it. “Ah, what do you want me to do with that?” I asked after an uncomfortable pause.

  “Take it,” he said, voice soft. I was now more certain than ever that Vali had made the switch to Franklin Saunders.

  Vali I could deal with. If I was defensive enough, I tended to get through my awkward conversations with him. As I tilted my head further back and stared up at Franklin Saunders, my heart began to thump in my chest. “Why?”

  “Because, Lily-white, you’re injured. Your injuries were not your own fault. They were incurred while helping another. You don’t deserve them,” he said with some measure of authority.

  I wasn’t an idiot. I could recognize that this interaction was important somehow. Problem was, I had absolutely no idea what was going on. I stared at him. And when I didn’t reach forward and accept his outstretched hand, his shoulders crumpled. “I’ll take your injuries,” he explained. Well, he tried to explain. If you asked me, that statement was no explanation whatsoever.

  I just frowned all the harder. “What? You’ll take my injuries?”

  “As I said, you don’t deserve them.” His voice dropped with kindness once more, and I saw his searching gaze dart over my face.

  I really had no idea how bad I looked. I could bet I looked like hell, though.

  When I didn’t lean forward and grab his hand, his shoulders deflated even further. “It’s okay, Lilly,” he said, for the first time not saying my name like it was a color. “Take the hand. It won’t hurt you. Though you don’t remember it, we did the same thing last night.”

  Though I should have stopped and asked the million questions echoing through my brain, instead I reached forward. No, my body reached forward. That dancing cold in my chest – it seemed to know what to do. And it accepted Franklin Saunders’ outstretched hand.

  His fingers were… inviting. So very inviting. I’d never felt anything like it. Accepting his hand was like accepting an invitation to heaven. All my pain just drifted away. All the frustration. The anger. The confusion. None of it mattered anymore.

  I let out a sigh as I fell back in the chair. The sigh, it didn’t last. It didn’t last, because I felt my injuries heal themselves. I watched a bruise spread over Franklin’s face. Blood began to trickle down his nose as if it had just been broken.

  I jolted back, trying to break his grip, but he was stronger than me.

  “Don’t interrupt the process,” he warned.

  “What happened to your face? What happened to your face? You’re bleeding,” I insisted.

  “I am accepting your injuries because you do not deserve them,” he said as if that was enough to explain what the hell was going on here.

  Though I kept trying to pull away from him, he wouldn’t let me. A minute later, he dropped my hand, stood back, tilted his head to the side, and appeared to check my face.

  When he was satisfied, he walked around his desk, sat down, opened a drawer, pulled out a tissue, and began to dab at his nose.

  I sat there, pressed right up against the back of my chair, shaking.

  A man had just accepted my injuries like they were somehow a gift. And not just any man. Vali.

  It didn’t take long for him to stem the flow of blood. In fact, it was almost instantaneous. I doubted the tissue he was using to dab at his nose had magical properties. No, Franklin’s god side would be kicking in.

  With a few quick wipes, he cleaned up the blood, and the bruise that had blossomed up his cheeks, over his nose, and along his forehead disappeared too.

  He sat back and considered me. “Are you still in pain?”

  I didn’t answer. Still pressed against the back of my chair, I stared at him in horror. “Why did you do that?” I couldn’t control my tone, and it sounded accusatory.

  He frowned. “I didn’t do you any harm.”

  “No, you just accepted an injury that wasn’t yours. Why would you…” I couldn’t even finish the sentence.

  He considered me quietly for several seconds. “Out there in the corridor, you offered to accept punishment on behalf of Larry McGregor. Did you do so in earnest?”

  My back straightened, my stomach kicking as I realized this could all be a trap.

  “Did you do that in earnest?” he questioned in a clearer tone when I didn’t immediately answer.

  “Yeah, I did it in earnest. If you have to punish someone, punish me. Larry’s had a hard life, but underneath, he’s a good guy. You may not be able to see that, but I can.”

  Vali paused then nodded. “Just as you offered to take responsibility for Larry’s crimes, I took responsibility for your injuries.”

  I shook my head, calming down enough that I pried myself off the back of the chair. “This isn’t similar. You literally… absorbed my injuries. How did you even do that?”

  He stared at me evenly. “I am a god.”

  As far as answers went, it was a pretty good one. But it didn’t answer the underlying question. The one I couldn’t push out.

  It wasn’t how he’d done it; it was why a guy like him would even bother? Vali was a god of revenge, and why would a god of revenge take it upon himself to absorb your injuries? It didn’t fit.

  I didn’t get the chance to question him – he cleared his throat and gestured at the door. “Remember, tonight at eight,” he said as he leaned over his desk and went back to work.

  It was obviously my cue to leave.

  Staring at him for a lingering moment, I shifted around and headed through the door.

  Could… could I be wrong about Vali? Could there be more to the god than met the eye?

  Sure, he was a prick. But there was something else there. A mystery I was suddenly determined to unpick.