“Call if anything else comes up?” Elijah asked. The sheriff took it and nodded, but Sawyer saw a hint of something in the sheriff’s eyes that bothered her. His stance was defensive, and he looked a bit… upset. “We’ll be out of your hair, then.”
“Y’all have a good day.” Sheriff Stevenson called out as Sawyer left the building.
“You, too,” Vincent replied quietly.
Once outside, Sawyer leaned on one of the black Explorers. It was fucking hot. The truck, the sun, the air, Sawyer. Everything was just so goddamn hot. September in the middle of Texas was a terrible place for an all-black uniform. It had to be over ninety degrees and sweltering.
“What now?” She asked, frowning at them.
“In the car,” Elijah whispered. “Now.” She continued to frown as he opened a door for her. She slid in and stayed quiet until they were all leaving together.
“What now?” she asked again.
“He’s a Magi with mind reading.” Elijah bit out, hitting the gas to get to their motel. “And that ring on his right hand? He might think I don’t know what it means but I’ve seen it before. I just don’t remember where. The letters were Alpha and Omega.”
“I’m glad I’m not the only one who noticed it.” Sawyer mumbled about the ring and the sheriff’s identity. “Mind reading, though? He’s super weak. Can he even use it? From my knowledge, mind reading requires a fairly deep Source.”
“It’s why he shook my hand, and he only got in for a second. It was probably all he felt comfortable with, both against another Magi and to prevent his own burnout.” Elijah groaned. “Vincent?”
“That’s why he knew we are looking to investigate the bodies before we said anything.” Vincent shrugged. “Or that could be a good guess. What were you thinking about?”
“The ring,” Elijah told him. “Who knows what he got? In the end, don’t let the good old sheriff touch you unless you’re prepared for it.”
“Yeah, pretty stupid to touch a Magi skin to skin before you learn their abilities,” Sawyer snorted. “Why did you?”
“Because a good handshake in this part of the world is the sign of good manners and can make or break a first impression.” Elijah chuckled. “Not like you know anything about manners.”
“I do, too,” Sawyer huffed. “And don’t pretend you have any, Sugar.”
“Now, little lady.” Elijah sounded wounded for a moment. “Don’t hurt my feelings.”
“Tell me what’s next,” Sawyer pressed, toeing Vincent’s seat enough to shake him up.
“We’ll talk at the motel,” Vincent told her with no emotion. “Don’t kick my seat.”
“I didn’t. I touched it to get your attention.” Sawyer chuckled, shaking her head. It was easier to mess with him now. It didn’t feel like a dead boy was between them, haunting them anymore. They could be normal fucking people if they wanted to be. At least to Sawyer, even though she was battling the edge of possession she felt over him now. “Still think this case will be easy?”
“Yes, though if no other bodies show up,” Vincent paused, shrugging, “…we’re done. Maybe they were just heart attacks.”
“Maybe,” Elijah offered and also gave a shrug. “But when two Magi pass away in an area like this, it gets investigated, just to make sure. Hell, even just one, which was why we were notified when the first body showed up.”
“You guys almost make it sound like the IMPO and the WMC actually care,” Sawyer whispered with a touch of bitter sadness. Sawyer didn’t trust either organization as far as she could throw them. She’d heard the rumors of corruption. There wasn’t a Magi on the planet who didn’t know that some vein of corruption ran through their ranks.
“And here’s Sawyer, the criminal, back out to play.” Elijah laughed. “Is there anything you really trust in the world?”
She thought about it.
“No, but I’m always excited for new experiences.” Sawyer laughed. It was a joke. She did trust a few things. A few people. Charlie had been one of them, and she still loved the old man dearly, but he also had sold her out. She knew better than to trust Liam to follow directions. He was probably back in New York getting himself into trouble trying to do what she did. Especially now that he was mad at her.
The team? Sawyer thought she might. If she didn’t, she was going to try.
Back at the motel, they all filed into Vincent and Elijah’s room, to the right of her room. Quinn had his own room, so the wolves got a bed. It was next to hers, on the left. On the other side of Quinn, Jasper and Zander had a room with each other.
Sawyer sat on the edge of a bed and waited patiently.
“We should find the places where the bodies were found,” Vincent finally announced to them. “I don’t know what we’re looking for though. Any trace of magic, anything out of the ordinary.”
“Going to be hard, since we don’t know where the two Magi dead,” Jasper added quietly. “But, if they died in their homes or on their own property, then it shouldn’t be hard to identify which magic signature is whose.”
“Good point, Jasper,” Vincent said, nodding toward Jasper. “We’re in a bad spot without the bodies.”
“We are.” Elijah groaned. “And I’m not sure how to feel about the sheriff. He didn’t give me a good vibe.”
“Me either, but he could have just been defensive because we’re treading onto his turf,” Sawyer muttered.
“He’s not supposed to be a sheriff.” Jasper sighed. “Magi can’t hold non-Magi political office, and we’re banned from entering their law enforcement or militaries. This is punishable by the WMC, who doesn’t want us driven by our local feelings and loyalties.”
“Magi first, foremost, and always,” Zander reminded them all. It was the unofficial motto of their kind. Forget the rest of the shit and remember that being Magi makes you outnumbered, powerful, and the need to be careful was paramount. One should keep Magi business with other Magi. One shouldn’t dabble into non-Magi affairs because that only bred disaster.
Sawyer followed it sometimes. Other times, and more often, she completely disregarded the belief.
“Does Dallas know about him? The IMPO agents and office?” Sawyer asked, frowning.
“Probably not,” Elijah said and chuckled darkly, shaking his head. “But they’re about to. Poor sods are going to need to come in after us and handle him. He’s not our priority, but we need to report it. He’s not the first we’ve found and won’t be the last. Some just can’t follow the rules, and he’s a weak enough Magi where he wouldn’t climb in our world.”
“But every Magi has an advantage over a non-Magi.” Sawyer sighed. “Yeah.”
“I’ll call it in,” Jasper said with a stiff diplomacy.
“Let’s decide who’s checking out which property.” Vincent groaned. “Greg Lake, age fifty lived on a farm alone near Moran. Quinn, Zander, and Sawyer. You three can go handle that one. Jasper, Elijah, and I will look over the one here ten minutes outside of Albany. I think we should get this done sooner rather than later.”
“Are you sure we should send those three together?” Jasper asked, frowning. “Sawyer’s new to this, Zander barely follows the rules, and Quinn doesn’t at all.”
“I know,” Vincent responded. “That’s why I’m sending them.”
“What?” Sawyer narrowed her eyes on Vincent and he gave her a sly smirk.
“I want you three to put the fear of God into them if someone gives you trouble that far out. As a message, as a warning, whatever you want to call it,” Vincent chuckled. Sawyer raised an eyebrow as Elijah laughed.
“Perfect,” Elijah said with a great deal of admiration. “I’m suddenly in love with you, Vincent.”
“Please don’t be,” Vincent groaned. “Let’s get moving.”
“I’m taking Shade and Scout,” Quinn announced, leaving the room first.
As everyone got moving, Sawyer moved closer to Zander. They had barely spoken since that moment on the porch, and she was still a
bit pissed at him. And his attitude on the plane? That could fuck right off.
“Ready to go?” she asked carefully, and he turned to her, and she watched a flash of anger pass through his eyes. His cheeks got a bit red and so did his ears.
‘Yeah’ was all he said before walking off to get to their Explorer. She fumed for a moment. They were on a case. She never let personal feelings affect her work before, and she wasn’t going to let it happen now that she was working with them.
She followed him, and saw Quinn loading up Shade and Scout. She climbed in as Zander started it up. They sat in silence for a long time before Sawyer groaned.
“Not here, Zander,” she told him. “Be mad at home. Be mad on the plane. Do not be mad at me here, while we’re doing this.”
“Fine,” Zander growled. “You’re right. This isn’t the time or place for it.”
“Then cut the fucking attitude,” she snapped. “This pissy shit. We haven’t had a chance to talk, and it’s got to fucking wait now.”
They went the rest of the ride in silence and passed through Moran, keeping their eyes open. It was dead little town. She counted maybe three people walking around at that particular moment.
Greg Lake’s residence was five minutes south of town and they pulled up slowly, keeping their eyes peeled for anything out of the ordinary.
Too bad they had no idea what ordinary was.
“I’ll send out Shade and Scout to get an idea of what scents are around,” Quinn told them, carefully neutral through it all. She raised an eyebrow at him as Shade and Scout took off.
“We don’t know where the body was found,” Zander reminded them. “Since the sheriff didn’t bother to keep notes on fucking anything.”
“I can find it,” Quinn said quietly, and Sawyer watched him shift. He was bigger than Shade in his tan and grey wolf form. She considered touching him for just a second, just to see how soft he was. She rarely saw him this close in his wolf form.
“Lead the way.” Zander sighed. Sawyer followed with Zander as Quinn sniffed around. They put all the personal drama away for a moment and focused. The property didn’t seem to have much going on: a run-down, old home with peeling, light blue paint, and a small rotting porch. There was a gravel driveway and a few trails towards other areas of the property, but nothing major.
She wasn’t really mad at Zander, thinking about it as they just wandered. She didn’t like his attitude and anger, but she understood his hurt. He had probably convinced himself, if she judged his behavior before and after the Vincent incident, that he was her future man. And she had gone and slept with a completely different guy. An accident and a mistake that she sorely wanted to repeat.
And she didn’t want to think about how good Zander looked in the afternoon sun. His fiery red hair, those freckles, the tint of red on his cheeks. Her attraction to him made her angrier. She was angry that he was hurt because of something she did, and she still wanted to jump his bone. When he was just rowdy, passionate Zander, he was wonderful. His smile brightened the world, and he could bring a woman to her knees with a flash of those white, perfect teeth.
Too bad she also wanted to knock him on his ass half the time.
“Here,” Quinn called out. She looked away from Zander and towards Quinn. She had missed him shift back. He was pointing to a spot next to the house near the central cooling unit. “He died here. And there’s too many other scents warring with each other for me to get anything clear. Death is obvious but telling you how many people that have been here is another thing. Maybe five, maybe a dozen. I don’t know.”
“I’m going to head inside. He might have been on medications for high cholesterol or something,” Zander continued. “Quinn, go out with the boys and see if you three find something unusual on the property. Sawyer, come help me?”
“Yeah,” she said simply, following him in as Quinn took off in wolf form again.
The house was relatively clean, except for a few weeks’ worth of dust covering everything. They went to the kitchen first and began pulling open cabinets. It was a tiny kitchen and more than once, she had to squeeze around Zander, who wouldn’t give her the space.
“There’s nothing here,” he finally whispered. “Fuck. Let’s check bathrooms.”
“Alright,” she said, sighing. She followed him towards the back of the house. She stopped at a bedroom, though, and went in. There were a few places she wanted to check out. She found nothing on or in the desk, same for the bedside table. The dresser didn’t reveal much either. “Damn.”
“Yeah.” Zander sighed, walking in after she was done. “There’s nothing here. Nothing to say he was unhealthy and susceptible to a heart attack.”
“That’s it?” She motioned around. “This is all a dead end?”
“Yeah,” Zander mumbled. “Yeah, it is. And I don’t like that.”
“Me either,” Sawyer agreed. She looked to him and waited for him to tell her what was next. He instead changed the topic on her.
“How was he?” Zander asked softly, eyeing her, then looking away. She groaned.
“Don’t ask questions you don’t want answered, Zander Wade,” she said, swallowing the lump in her throat. Fantastic. Vincent had been fantastic.
“Do you even know why I’m mad?” he pressed, looking at her. He looked wounded, angry, and a touch afraid. Sawyer narrowed her eyes on him.
“Because I slept with another guy,” Sawyer answered, and Zander bared his teeth at her in anything but a smile.
“No,” he growled.
“Then fucking tell me,” Sawyer snapped. “Because I can’t read your mind, Zander. God damn, I would like to be able to, but I honestly can’t. Mind reading just wasn’t an ability I was blessed with.”
“If you can’t figure it out…” Zander huffed and stormed out of the room. Sawyer was left speechless. What the actual fuck? She wanted to shake him. Strangle him. Stab him. Three S’s that would solve all her problems.
She followed him out, stomping. She had woken up yesterday after a great lay, and the amount of anger and regret she was having over it was driving her mad. She was missing something. Something was eating at Zander that wasn’t Vincent, but she didn’t know what. She didn’t want to screw up on this case trying to figure it out right now. It looked like she needed to take this moment, though, to say something. She could only offer Zander what she had, because she wasn’t in the mood for more fighting.
“Zander,” she called out, as she sped up to catch him before he got to the Explorer. “Zander, listen to me.”
“Yes, Sawyer?” Zander turned back towards her and she saw the pain in his eyes.
“I’m sorry.” She sighed. “Alright? For whatever I did. You have been, and probably always will be, my best friend, even if that’s a bit complicated, currently. We fight and bicker but, in the end, we always have each other, and I don’t think that should change.” She took a breath as Zander stepped closer to her. “I don’t know, Zander. What I do know is you’re upset with me, and I’m sorry for it. I don’t like that I did-”
“Would you do it again?” Zander asked softly.
“Upset you? I would try not to,” Sawyer answered honestly. “But first you need to tell me what’s gotten you so hung up if it’s not Vincent.”
“Later,” he mumbled with that cranky edge. Then he softened, and she saw guilt come over his face. She wondered what Zander could possibly feel guilty for. “Just… later. I need to talk to someone about it first.”
“Fine,” Sawyer huffed at him, crossing her arms. “You know, I like communication. I wish you would… communicate.”
“I’m sorry I’m not perfect.” Zander grumbled. “Thank you for the apology, though.”
“Not a problem,” Sawyer replied, leaning against the Explorer.
They waited until dusk for Quinn to get back. Zander called one of the other guys at a certain point to let them know there was nothing on the property.
They were stuck. Two dead and no idea whether it
was malicious or natural causes.
Sawyer didn’t like it. She was finding that she didn’t like a lot of things about Texas.
14
Zander
I’m such an ass, Zander thought to himself as he watched Sawyer jump out of the Explorer. He didn’t know how to tell her what he was feeling until he grew the balls to have a totally different conversation.
With Vincent. Probably Elijah… and maybe Quinn.
He rolled his cellphone over in his hand as he thought about that. He could probably sneak in Vincent at some point. He owed his CO and friend an apology. Elijah had told him later what all happened between Vin and Sawyer, and goddamn, it was sad. Which added a layer of Zander feeling shitty about feeling shitty. Then he had lashed out at Elijah on the plane…
Zander was all fucked in the head.
“Come on,” Jasper groaned, tapping on his window. “Get out and come inside. We’re hunkering down for the night. A couple of us are going to need to drive to Abilene for something to eat for everyone.
“We can go,” Zander mumbled. Then he saw the opportunity. “Actually… ask Vincent to come with us. We can leave Elijah, Quinn and Sawyer. Plus, we’ll need the extra hands.”
“Alright,” Jasper sighed, walking away.
It took fifteen minutes, but Zander saw Jasper and a very reluctant Vincent walk out. As they loaded in, Jasper in the front and Vincent in the back, Zander thought about how he would approach the subject.
They began the drive and Zander finally decided he would out with it.
“I wanted to talk to you since we’re in a bit of a thing. First, I’m sorry,” Zander sighed. “I shouldn’t have flown off the handle. I knew you’ve been into her and she’s… well, she’s probably got a lot going on in her head. She always does.”
“Apology accepted,” Vincent said with a professional bite that made Zander wince. He’d tried to attack his CO, and then Jasper went and said something none of them would ever truly think. They knew Vincent wasn’t his brother, but it was said anyway.
The Redemption Saga Box Set Page 49