by Karen Lynch
I opened the door and entered the bedroom – but came up short at the sight of the nearly-naked male walking from the bathroom. Lukas’s hair was wet, and droplets of water clung to his broad chest and chiseled abs. The white towel hanging precariously low on his hips looked one slip away from falling to the floor.
“Gah!” I whirled to face away from him. “I’m so sorry. I had no idea you were here.”
“You were so engrossed in your book that I didn’t want to interrupt you,” he said casually, but I detected amusement in his voice.
Something landed on the hardwood floor, and my stomach pitched wildly when I realized it was the towel. I feared my face would catch on fire from the heat building in my cheeks.
I heard a drawer opening. “Kerr said you have been making good use of the garden. I’m glad you’re enjoying it.”
“Um, thanks. It’s great.” I stared at the open door, but my stupid legs refused to move.
“I hope you are finding the sleeping accommodations more to your liking this time,” Lukas said in a teasing tone.
My lips twitched as I thought back to my first time here when I’d said his shirt had smelled funny. “Yes, but I did bring my own clothes to sleep in.”
He chuckled so softly I almost missed it. I heard the closet door open and the whisper of fabric, and I tried to focus on anything but thoughts of all that naked glistening skin. It didn’t work.
“I’ll go so you can dress,” I said in a rush.
“Didn’t you come up here for something?” he asked before I could make my escape.
“Not this,” I almost said. I licked at the beads of moisture on my upper lip. “My…phone.”
He moved so quietly I almost jumped out of my skin when he came up behind me. He stood close enough for me to feel the heat of his body without touching it and to smell his intoxicating male scent.
One of his hands appeared in front of me holding my phone, and I swallowed when I saw his bare arm. I stared at it for several seconds until I remembered I was supposed to take the phone from him. My breath hitched when his fingers grazed mine, and I almost dropped the phone.
“Thanks,” I said in a husky voice that didn’t sound like it belonged to me.
“You’re welcome.” He withdrew his hand but didn’t move away. “Anything else I can do for you, Jesse?”
“I’m good.”
I fled the room as fast as I could, with Lukas’s soft laughter following me.
Chapter 15
I waved to Gorn as I passed him in the lobby of our building and started up the stairs to my apartment. I’d just returned from my first job since the kelpie incident a week ago, and it felt good to be back to work.
Today, I’d caught my second peri, and it had been a breeze compared to the other jobs I had done. When I’d turned over my capture, I told Levi I wanted more Twos. To my surprise, he’d agreed.
The murmur of male voices above me slowed my steps and put all my senses on alert. I hugged the wall and peeked around the corner to see who or what was waiting for me.
Two men in dark suits stood outside my apartment door talking in low voices. One of them held a small device in his hand. I couldn’t get a good look at it, but he appeared to be scanning my door with it.
I didn’t need to see their faces to figure out they were from the Agency. All male agents had a similar build and the same signature look to make them more recognizable to the public. It was when an agent didn’t wear their normal attire that you really needed to worry.
Why were agents at my home? I hadn’t heard a peep from the Agency since my unpleasant visit with Agent Curry almost two weeks ago. Were they here with news about my parents? My stomach twisted at the possible reasons why they would visit me in person.
“Can I help you?” I asked, making my presence known. It wasn’t smart to sneak up on armed agents.
The two men turned in unison to face me, and my heart sank even more when I saw one of them was Agent Curry. He didn’t look happy to see me either.
The other agent gave me a businesslike smile. “Jesse James?”
“Yes.”
He held out a hand. “I’m Agent Ryan. I believe you’ve met Agent Curry.
I took his hand. “Are you here about my parents? Did you find something?”
“We’re here to search your apartment,” Curry said tersely. “Please, unlock the door.”
I clenched my keys in my fist. “What are you searching for?”
Curry’s eyes hardened even more. “We don’t share details of ongoing investigations with civilians.”
“Then I’d like to see the search warrant, please.” Even the Agency needed probable cause to search a private residence.
“We don’t require a search warrant for a special crimes investigation,” Agent Curry informed me.
I didn’t need to see the frown his partner shot him to know that statement was BS. If Agent Curry was counting on my ignorance of the law, he was out of luck. One of my senior year electives had been Fae Law Enforcement, and I didn’t have a four-point grade average for nothing.
“You need a warrant signed by your regional head and a district court judge to enter the home of a bounty hunter without consent,” I told him, ninety-nine-point-nine percent certain I was right. A small nod from Agent Ryan confirmed it.
Agent Curry’s lips formed a thin line. “A warrant isn’t necessary if the homeowner grants us permission to enter the premises.”
“I won’t do that unless you can tell me exactly what you’re looking for and how it will help my parents.”
He glared at me. “Are you refusing to cooperate with an ongoing investigation? Do you have something to hide, Miss James?”
“Are you implying I’m under investigation?” I demanded.
Agent Ryan spoke for the first time since introducing himself. “No.”
“But your parents are,” Agent Curry said. “And if you impede our investigation in any way, I’ll see you arrested for obstruction.”
“I’ve done nothing illegal, and I’m pretty sure you know that,” I said calmly because getting angry would only play into his hands. He was looking for a reason to put me in handcuffs. “If you come back with a search warrant, I’ll cooperate in any way I can.”
Agent Curry started to say something, but his partner cut him off. “Thank you for your time, Miss James.”
I stood back to let them pass, but Agent Curry wasn’t going to leave without getting in the last word. He got in my face as close as he could without touching me. “Your parents are dirty, and I’m going to prove it. You’ll be seeing me.”
I waited until they were out of sight to unlock the door with trembling hands. Once inside, I sagged against the door as my mind raced. I wasn’t easily intimidated, but having two agents show up at your door demanding entry was enough to freak anyone out. Especially when one of them was set on proving your parents were guilty of a crime they didn’t commit.
Finch whistled, drawing my attention to him standing on the back of the couch. What’s wrong, he signed.
I pushed away from the door and smiled at him. “Just Agency business. Nothing for you to worry about.”
I went to the kitchen to start dinner, just for something to keep my hands busy while I figured out what to do about Agent Curry. He wasn’t going to give up. If he managed to get the proper search warrant, he’d be back and he’d tear this place apart looking for evidence to prove he was right. He wouldn’t find anything, but he could confiscate our computers and files for an indefinite time, and where would that leave me? I’d back up the drives tonight, but I’d have to buy a new computer if ours were taken. One more thing to worry about.
My phone rang as I was taking a foil-wrapped potato from the oven. I tensed, my first thought that it was the Agency calling. I let out the breath I was holding when I saw Violet’s name on the screen.
“How was the first day back to work?” she asked when I answered.
I leaned against the counter.
“It was great until I came home and found two agents wanting to search the place without a warrant.”
“What?” she shrieked.
Someone spoke in the background, and Violet repeated what I’d said. A few seconds later, a new voice came on the line.
“Tell me what happened,” said Mrs. Lee in her courtroom voice that immediately made me feel better. I relayed my conversation with the two agents, as well as my visit to the Agency two weeks ago.
“I’ll contact Ben Stewart and see what I can find out,” she said when I finished. “He’s the head of the Agency’s special crimes division for New York.”
“What should I do if the agents come back?”
“If they return with the proper search warrant, you have to allow them entry. Call me if that happens, and I’ll get there as soon as I can. If I’m in court, one of my associates will come.”
“Okay.” I wasn’t happy about the prospect of letting Agent Curry into the apartment, but it took a weight off to know I wasn’t alone in this.
“You have enough to worry about, Jesse,” she said in her mom voice. “Let me handle this.”
My eyes misted. “Thanks, Mrs. Lee.”
“Anytime, dear.”
She handed the phone back to Violet, and we chatted until my meal was ready. I hung up with a promise to come over for dinner in a few days.
Finch whistled as I was cutting up some fruit for him. “Dinner’s almost ready,” I called.
He whistled again, louder this time, and I stuck my head out of the kitchen to see what he wanted. He pointed at the TV, which was showing the evening news, and on the screen were photos of two men I instantly recognized. They were the men who had broken in here and attacked me.
I ran over to turn up the volume in time to hear the news anchor say that the bodies of Charles Dixon and Kevin Dunn were found in an apartment in the Bronx, along with the body of a male elf. Drugs found at the scene had authorities believing this was a goren deal gone wrong.
I stared at the TV after the anchor moved to the next story. Those men were dead. I didn’t know how to feel about that. I wanted them to pay for what they’d done, but with jail time, not their lives.
Could the dead elf be the goren dealer we were looking for? And was this related to the two agents paying me a visit today? The timing was too close to be a coincidence.
I went back to the kitchen and picked up my phone. Scrolling through my contacts, I found Lukas’s number and dialed it for the first time.
After that embarrassing scene in his bedroom, I’d gone out of my way to avoid Lukas for the rest of my stay. The amused looks he’d shot me the few times we were in the same room told me he had enjoyed my discomfort. It hadn’t helped that I was sleeping in his bed. Every time I looked at the door to the bathroom, I grew flushed when I remembered seeing him standing there in that towel.
“Jesse, I was expecting a call from you,” Lukas said when he answered.
“Did Faolin kill those two men?” I blurted.
Lukas was silent for a beat. “No. And he’s already working to figure out who got to them under our surveillance.” An edge in his voice told me he wasn’t happy about it, and I could only imagine how pissed off Faolin was.
“Do you think the elf who was killed with them was the goren dealer?” I held my breath, praying he’d say no. The dealer was the last link to my parents and the only reason Lukas had offered to help me find them.
“It looks that way.”
My heart was a stone in my chest as I waited for him to tell me I was on my own again. I wouldn’t stop looking for my parents, but it would be a lot harder without him.
As if he could read my mind, he said, “This doesn’t change anything. Our search doesn’t end with the goren dealer.”
“Okay.” I took a breath. “What happens now?”
“Now we hunt down whoever killed those men while you stay out of trouble.”
I was about to make a retort when he said, “Unless you want to be my guest again. I did enjoy your last visit.”
I scowled as my cheeks grew warm because I knew exactly what he was referring to. Arrogant faerie.
His laugh was low and sexy. “Talk to you soon, Jesse.”
* * *
I clutched the small bouquet of flowers in my gloved hand as I wound through headstones, searching for a small white one. Even though I came to the cemetery once a year with Mom and Dad, I had trouble remembering the exact location of Caleb’s grave. This place looked and felt a lot different without them.
A shiver went through me that had nothing to do with the cold, and I picked up my pace. The cemetery didn’t usually creep me out, but today it made me think too much of death.
I hadn’t wanted to come here today. But every year Mom brought flowers to Caleb’s grave on his birthday, so I couldn’t not come. When she got home, I wanted her to know that no matter what, my brother wouldn’t be forgotten.
An angel atop a white marble headstone caught my eye, and I hurried toward it. I crouched beside the tiny grave and placed the flowers in the small vase at the base of the headstone.
“Happy birthday, Caleb.”
I never knew what to feel when I visited his grave. How do you grieve someone you’d never known? The sadness that filled me when I looked at his headstone was for the life I could have had if Caleb had lived. Was that selfish? My life had been a happy one, but I often wondered how it would have been if my brother hadn’t died. What would he have been like? Would he and I be close? Would he be away at college now or following in our parents’ footsteps? I had so many questions I’d never know the answers to.
“I wish you were here. I could really use my older brother right now.” The words on the headstone blurred. “What if I can’t find them, Caleb? I’m so afraid we’ll never be a family again.”
My voice broke. Saying those words aloud for the first time threatened to open a floodgate of emotions. Part of me wanted to curl up on the ground and cry until there were no more tears. But I couldn’t do that. It would weaken me, and I had to stay strong for our family.
I cleared my throat and blinked away the moisture in my eyes. “Wherever Mom and Dad are, I know they wish they could be here with you today.”
Standing, I laid a hand on the top of the headstone. “Bye, Caleb.”
I tugged my wool cap down over my ears and headed back to the Jeep. A few other people stood near graves, but other than that, the place had a desolate air to it.
Beside a large tree, a female elf stood huddled inside a long coat, holding the hand of a little elf child. They looked out of place here, and I wondered if they were waiting on someone. Faeries didn’t bury their dead, at least not in this world.
My gaze met hers, and for a moment, it looked like she was going to say something to me. But then she abruptly walked off with her child in tow.
“Miss James,” called a male voice as I reached the Jeep.
I turned to see a man in a long dark coat striding toward me, and I clenched my teeth when I recognized Agent Curry. His partner was nowhere in sight.
“Are you following me?” I demanded.
He stopped a few feet from me, anger radiating from him. “You might have used your connections to get the Agency to back off, but you won’t get rid of me so easily.”
“What are you talking about? I don’t have any connections like that.” As soon as the words were out, I thought about Violet’s mother. Mrs. Lee was a big attorney, but she didn’t have that kind of clout with the Agency. Did she?
Agent Curry crossed his arms. “Your lawyer just happened to have a meeting with my department head this morning, and an hour later, I was told to focus my efforts elsewhere.”
Wow. Mrs. Lee had said she would make a call for me. I hadn’t expected her to actually pay a visit to the Agency. Of course, it would be no use trying to tell him that. Nothing I did or said would sway his opinion of me.
“We have two dead men and a dead elf in the morgue, and it looks li
ke the elf is the goren dealer you claimed your parents were hunting. What do you know about that?”
I put my hands on my hips. “My parents were hunting a goren dealer. And why would I know anything about some bodies in the morgue?”
“It’s very coincidental that the very dealer they were supposedly hunting was just murdered,” he said pointedly.
“Agent Curry, maybe if you were as dedicated to finding my parents as you are to condemning them, you’d actually get somewhere on this investigation.” My heart pounded as anger burned through me. At this point, I didn’t know if he carried some personal grudge against my parents or if he really believed what he was saying. Either way, he was harassing me, and the more he did that, the less time he spent looking for them.
If looks could kill, his would have made me a corpse. “Are you trying to tell me how to do my job now?”
I opened the door to the Jeep. “No. I’m asking you to please find my parents. Then you can interrogate them all you want.”
“For someone who only cares about finding her parents, you seem to be in a hurry to leave.”
“You’re not the only one with a job to do.” I got in but didn’t close the door. “You’re welcome to follow me, but I’m sure you have better things to do than watching me deal with a problem troll.”
He didn’t say anything, and I took that as my signal to leave. “Have a nice day,” I said before I shut the door and drove away.
* * *
“Ouch!” I winced as I dabbed antiseptic ointment onto a shallow four-inch cut on my thigh, thankful that trolls were terrible fighters.
The job had been to bring in a troll who was threatening residents of a seniors’ apartment building and demanding money from them. I was able to get him in the shackles, but he hadn’t gone down without a fight.
I should have checked him for weapons, a mistake I wouldn’t make again. He’d pulled a knife on me and managed to slice my leg before I disarmed him. It wasn’t more than a deep scratch, but holy crap, it stung.