by TR Cameron
The smile she gave him in response as she rose from the chair was as sweet and syrupy as she could make it. She injected the same into her tone. “Always good to see you, Agent Andrews. Have a lovely day.”
Chapter Sixteen
Grentham rushed through the halls of the palace, almost late for the Council meeting. It wasn’t often that his shorter-than-human-average stride frustrated him, but in this place, at this juncture, he wished he could use magic to speed himself up. However, it would look bad, and image was everything at the moment. That he was late because he’d been cleaning up the details from the attacks that morning rendered the whole situation far more acceptable, though. He and his partner owned a stash of diamonds now, and all the criminal organizations in town that had profited from the event owed him one for it. He’d made sure to emphasize the personal nature of that obligation because having other people owe him favors was one of his very favorite things.
He entered the chamber as everyone was settling into their chairs and strode to the last open seat between the Kilomea, Bartrak, and the Drow, Elnyier. The faces around the table were drawn with worry, and he mimicked them, quickly quashing his amusement at their discomfort. Lord Maldren, the kemana’s titular leader, announced in a somber tone, “Several dead. Countless injured. Millions upon millions in jewels stolen. This is a dark day for Kemana MountHaven, and Ely.”
Rosalind Caruthers, the witch, snarled, “I thought bringing in this out-of-town security company was supposed to solve this problem. Wasn’t that what you said, Maldren?” Her omission of his title was a testament to her annoyance, and on a normal day might have been sufficient instigation for a reprimand.
Before the Mist Elf could respond to the insult, Grentham interjected, “I told you they wouldn’t be any better than what we already had here. I’m not sure which one of you is behind this, but whoever it is seems very well organized.”
An uproar sounded in response, and Lord Maldren banged the table until silence fell. “Grentham, baseless accusations will not help. There is nothing to suggest anyone here had anything to do with today’s events.”
Andrielle Chentashe, the Atlanteans’ representative, replied, “Maybe the human, Sloane, is to blame. He wants to build a casino here and has been repeatedly frustrated in his attempts to do so. Perhaps disrupting our businesses benefits his case somehow.”
Challen, the gnome healer, shook his head. “I don’t see it.”
Bartrak grunted, “He could benefit by wearing us down or by dividing us. Causing us to turn on one another. Sowing chaos below as has been done above.”
He swiveled to stare at Grentham, who shrugged in response. “I’m only throwing out ideas. Maybe the casinos that were attacked have something significant in common?”
Rayar shook his head. “Two Mist Elf casinos, the Ebon Dragon owned by the witches and wizards, and one each owned by the Wood Elves and the Atlanteans. I can think of nothing in particular that connects them except all belong to magicals.”
The table was quiet as everyone considered the list. When the silence stretched for half a minute, Grentham offered, “Listen, we made the choice to put on a display of easily transportable and incredibly valuable items. That would’ve been a beacon to every criminal in a hundred miles. Hell, I’m surprised more of them didn’t show up.”
Lord Maldren replied, “In any case, one unknown that has long vexed us is Gabriel Sloane’s petition to build a casino in our city. I’ve worked with the local governments, both in Ely and in the county beyond, and they’ve agreed to rezone the areas outside the Strip. No casinos will be permitted beyond the existing boundaries.”
Clapping and congratulations broke the momentary stunned silence. Grentham's blood chilled at the potential fallout of that decision for Magic City in general and he and his partner in particular. The Mist Elf continued, “The government officials will send a message to Sloane telling him there’s no room on the Strip for any more casinos and that his petition is denied.”
Grentham cleared his throat. That’ll go over well. “Look, we started with a bunch of security companies in town, then we added more guards after the first attacks, then we looked outside for additional protection, and none of it worked. I have a proposition, the same one I’ve been making to deaf ears for some time. My company is ready to expand. If we can get solid commitments from more casinos, we can hire more people. Specifically, we can hire more magicals, enough to meet anyone’s security needs. We’ll bring them to town if we need to like the Underground has been doing. It’s time to quit throwing things at the wall to see if anything will stick. We need to look to our own by depending on our own.”
The familiar argument deflected the group from consideration of Sloane, and their conversation fell back along normal pathways. The dwarf spent the rest of the meeting imagining how his boss might respond to the city’s decision to refuse him. Not well. Not well at all.
Two hours later, Grentham was in the passenger seat of Jared’s SUV on the way to Reno. He put as much optimism as he could into his voice. “I think a few more contracts should come out of the Council meeting. They’re scared, which means at least part of this plan is going well.”
Jared shook his head. He’d looked almost frightened since Grentham told him what had transpired at the meeting. “The boss will go supernova when he hears they’ve shut him out. We have to do something to protect ourselves before that message hits.”
Grentham nodded. “Agreed. I think we have a few days before they tell him, based on my conversation with Maldren after the others left. But we’ll have to move fast. What did you have in mind?”
His partner shook his head again. It was a convulsive motion as if doing so caused him pain. “That’s the thing. I don’t have any ideas. This is big. Huge. Monumental. It could upset all his plans, at least the ones we know about, which would have notably bad implications for our continued usefulness, not to mention survival.”
“Time to run?” They’d discussed at various times since agreeing to work for Gabriel “The Nightmare” Sloane that they might have to vanish on a moment’s notice. Grentham had two escape routes and several hidden stashes of cash ready to go and was sure his partner had the same.
“No, or at least I hope not. We built up a good thing in Ely. We have to find a way not to lose it.”
Grentham shrugged. “When you come up with one, let me know. In the meantime, we should make sure our exit plans are ready. Also, in the meantime, I promised to hire more magicals, so we need to be seen making good on that commitment.”
Jared coughed, then adjusted the air conditioning, which had likely been set on “Freezing,” judging by the temperature inside the vehicle. “That could be more challenging than you think. We had to bring in enough people for these not-wildly-successful field missions for the boss that it might’ve damaged our reputation. We need to put another cutout between us and anyone we hire for future operations against the casinos.”
Grentham nodded, thinking of his lieutenants who more or less ran the day-to-day of the pawnshop ring for him. “I have a guy or two. I can make that happen.”
They passed the rest of the drive discussing strategies for increasing their company’s personnel and had a solid plan for finding and wooing more people by the time they arrived. They entered the hotel, and a pair of the boss’s drones stepped into place beside them as escorts. Jared had related the details of his previous visit, so they expected their minders’ presence and the mirrored elevator that carried them up to the top floor. The apartment was as gorgeous as his partner had described, although he didn’t get to see the fancy living room.
Instead, their escort brought them into a game room, where the boss and his wife were shooting pool. The space was full of wood panels, exposed beams, and the like, probably to make it resemble a bar. The big man was dressed the same as always, and the woman wore a dress that seemed more like something you’d wear to a club than something you’d lounge around in at home. At a glance from thei
r superior, Jared said, “The action was a success, Mr. Sloane. We didn’t get the crown, but we got almost everything else.”
The other man missed a shot and let out a mild curse, then gestured for his wife to take her turn. He muttered absently, “Anderson will give you instructions on where to deposit my share of the proceeds.” He and his wife each took a few more shots before he deigned to speak to them again. “So, one of my contacts tells me that a mutual friend of ours who was unfortunately detained by the authorities is going to be moved in a couple of days. Police escort, multi-truck convoy, the whole nine yards.”
Grentham asked, “Do you want him killed?” He was already picturing how he might get explosives onto the cars or roads or infiltrate the police garage to plant them ahead of time. He had people who were excellent at such things. Worst case, I’ll put a couple of my boys on a bridge and fireball the hell out of the entire convoy.
Sloane looked up with a grin from where he was bent over to take his next shot. “Oh no, something much more fun. You two are going to rescue him.”
Chapter Seventeen
Ruby said, “It had to be Aces. They had to be involved.” She paced back and forth along one side of her bedroom at her parents’ house with her hands clenched into useless fists.
Morrigan, sitting next to Idryll on the bed, replied, “It seems like a good bet.”
With a sound that was at least half purr, probably because Morrigan was idly running her fingers through the shapeshifter’s hair, Idryll observed, “We should just kill them.”
Ruby laughed darkly. “Well, there’s no question that would solve the problem if they’re the ones behind it. Even so, it might be a little extreme.”
Idryll complained, “Too many rules here. Hunter. Prey. Call it done.”
She shook her head. “I’ve been through the venamisha. I know you’re not that superficial. Quit pretending to impress Morrigan.”
Her sister responded, “Why can’t you simply tell the sheriff about them? Seems like that would be the easiest thing to do.”
Ruby sat on the edge of the bed and twisted to face the pair. “If we do that, they’ll know for sure that someone’s onto them when she shows up at their door. Worse, I’m not completely confident that the company, or the dwarf’s side gig, doesn’t have informants in the sheriff’s office. Or, if not that, a tap on their communication or something. It’s what I would do if I were a criminal mastermind.”
Idryll snorted softly. “You have a long way to go before you’re any kind of mastermind. It requires having a mind. It’s right there in the word.”
“Shut it.” She tried to turn her smile at the jibe into a frown but failed. “Anyway, I guess the answer is that I want to have totally solid evidence, preferably catching one of them in the act. Or at least maybe recordings of them doing bad stuff.”
Morrigan nodded. “I can see that. What about breaking in and planting listening devices? Margrave would have something that would work, right? Or you could whip them up yourself.”
Ruby stretched, popping her back. “If I had a week, I could probably make enough to get the job done. That would still involve getting in there, and one has to think they’ve bolstered their defenses. If not because of Idryll and me, then because of the fighting between the companies.”
“That could have been coincidence.”
Both Ruby and Idryll replied, “Not,” at the same moment.
Morrigan countered, “It could. You can’t know for sure.”
It was a classic argument from her sister, claiming that if you couldn’t be positive, anything was possible. Ruby ignored the bait. “In any case, I agree it sounds like a good idea to get more information, but breaking and entering probably isn’t the answer. Maybe Demetrius can hack them or something. I think I’ll go find out.”
She had a bite to eat and portaled into the bedroom of the house she shared with her roommates. It might cause a problem later, explaining how she got there when no one saw her come in, but she didn’t want to run into anyone at the moment, either. There would be questions about the events at Spirits, and she wasn’t up to lying about it. She made her way quietly to Demetrius’s door and knocked softly. A couple of moments later he opened it, looking rumpled in a t-shirt and shorts that were likely his sleep clothes, to judge by the equally rumpled bed. She gave him a quick peck on the cheek and a hug, then sat in his computer chair. “How skilled are you at hacking into places you shouldn’t be?”
He laughed. “Damn lousy, before I’ve had my first cup of coffee. After that, pretty good, depending on the complexity of the defenses. I couldn’t break into Google or Apple or anything if that’s what you’re looking for. Well, not without a lot of money and months of prep time.”
She shook her head. “Aces Security.”
“They have something to do with what happened earlier?”
As far as he knew, she and her sister had spent the event in the casino’s security center. Despite her desire to tell him the whole truth right then, she reminded herself that knowing would put him at risk. Hopefully, he’d understand when she finally did reveal her secrets. If not, I guess that’s the cost of doing what I think is best. “I don’t know for sure. Everyone was masked. They weren’t just people off the streets, though. They were good at what they did, probably ex-military, and that suggests contacts among the security companies.”
He nodded. “Well, move your ass out of my chair, and I’ll see what I can manage while you procure me a cup of coffee.”
She laughed and obeyed. “Deal. But don’t get used to the idea that I’m your caffeine dealer.” No one interrupted her trek to the first floor, but her luck ran out when she discovered Shiannor in the kitchen. The memory of his doppelgänger’s accusations during the venamisha made her instantly uneasy. She mumbled, “Hey, Shia.”
He nodded over crossed arms, one hand holding a mug that proclaimed Mondays to be the work of the devil. “Big doings on the Strip this morning.”
She walked to the coffee maker and filled it. “Yeah, I watched from the security room. It wasn’t pretty.”
Without turning to look, she knew he was staring at her. She felt it. He said, “I heard people in costumes showed up again.”
“Yeah, I saw them. One of them was definitely a magical. I think the person with the bow might’ve been as well. The third had some kind of claw weapon.”
“Men, women?”
Ruby shrugged and looked at him with half an eye while she poured water into the machine. “The one with the claws was wearing something formfitting enough that woman seems a good guess. The other two, no idea.”
He shook his head. “Trouble swirls around you, Ruby.”
She hit the brew button then turned to face him, crossing her arms. “Yeah, Daphne more or less said the same thing. Are you on the team that wants me to move out?”
He laughed. “No, I’m on the team that’s glad you’re going to put some defenses around the place. I don’t scare easy, and if anyone was stupid enough to break in while I was here, I’m pretty sure they’d find more trouble than they bargained for.”
Ruby forced a smile. “I think Liam would say the same. Demetrius, though, would probably lock himself in his room.”
“You and Demetrius should have weapons.”
She blinked, surprised. “What?”
“Get a gun and learn how to use it. Same with him. Being able to defend yourself is important. I know Demetrius could cast spells if he wanted, but it might be good for him to have both options.”
She nodded slowly. It wasn’t terrible advice. “I’ll think about it and mention it to him.”
The elf inclined his head in acknowledgment. “Do.” He left the room, and she poured coffee for herself and Demetrius. That was weird. Really weird.
She took the coffee upstairs to find the computer wizard growling and muttering curses at his screens. “Not going as well as one might hope?” He gestured at the displays as if that would tell her something. Ruby rolled her
eyes. “I don’t read code, Tree.” She’d started calling him that a day before, and the nickname seemed to amuse him.
He replied, “Their defenses are way too strong. It looks like they even have an infomancer watching over the place in real-time. I couldn’t get past the edges without risking whoever it was noticing.”
She sighed. “Okay, how about digging into the owners’ stuff? You can access their phones or laptops or something, right?”
He shrugged. “I can try, anyway.” His attention went back to the screens, and his hands returned to the keyboards, except for occasional pauses to take a sip of coffee. Ruby made herself comfortable on his bed. He finished his mug in record time, so she handed over her half-full cup for him to finish as well. When it was empty, he sighed in disgust. “Locked down. All of it, locked down.”
She groaned. “Nothing at all?”
He gave a short laugh. “I managed to hack into his dating profile. So, you know, go me.”
She pushed herself off the comfortable mattress and peered over his shoulder. “Show me.”
The screens populated with pictures of women and copies of chats. They spent the next ten minutes perusing them and making snarky comments about his tastes. Then she spotted something. “He’s supposed to have a date tonight.”
Demetrius frowned. “Yeah, so?”
“Can you get into there and pretend to be him? And her?”
“It’ll take a little time to crack into her side of the app, but sure.”
The plan was already coming together in her mind. She was certain Idryll and Morrigan would both tell her it was stupid, but she could feel it was the right thing to do. “I want you to make sure he thinks they’re still meeting tonight, and I want you to make sure she thinks he’s postponed. Any conversation between them, intercept it or fake it or whatever it takes so they believe it.”