“Oh, gee, Ricky, that is so cool. But I have nothing to wear, and I need to think about getting a babysitter,” Emma said, jumping up and down.
“Zach, you cannot be serious. Is this really necessary?” I asked, not wanting to break Emma’s heart and tell her that maybe it would be safer if she stayed home tonight.
“Yes, my intel informed me that Nameless might have the letters with him tonight. Your Prince Charming sent someone to my boss. He wants results and he thinks that I’m not doing enough to catch Nameless,” Zach said, shaking his head, like he couldn’t believe that Arthur dared to question his abilities.
“All right … fine. I get it. I have to wear a bloody dress then?”
“It appears that way, Flower, but we both know you will rock whatever you wear,” he added, saying the other part of the sentence in a hushed tone of voice. Ricky heard him anyway, and he cleared his throat, reminding me that my heart was still fragile. Zach and I hadn’t spoken since I left him on the platform, and his presence was already causing an emotional turmoil inside my chest. I needed to make a decision. “I’ll pick you ladies up at eight.”
Emma giggled again like a schoolgirl, and I sat down at my desk, thinking that maybe tonight was the final opportunity to nail down Ronan’s son for good. Deep down I wasn’t quite sure if he would show. Zach said his goodbyes and left shortly after. Emma went back to work when Ricky’s new client needed to be registered. I was slightly relieved when the detective was out of my sight for now.
“I assume that you didn’t get information about Gjöll last night?” Ricky asked, wondering if I went overboard with tequila again. God, I really had a problem; now even my business partner thought that I wasn’t capable enough to complete a simple task.
“Actually, after I lost over three grand in hard cash, one of the demons must have taken pity on me, because he shared with me the way I could get to Gjöll,” I told him. If Nameless was planning to highjack the royal party, then he was most likely not hiding out in the underworld. This just didn’t make much sense.
“Great. I don’t get it, so why are you so down?” he asked, sitting on the edge of my desk.
“I had too much to drink, ended up losing control when some moron demons tried to molest me on the street on my way back,” I explained. “I got tricked by Alexis. She knew I would be at the market last night. On top of that, I was also forced to use my power and attracted the attention of two Watchers. They started chasing me, so I had to run most of the night. I shouldn’t have worn new trainers, now my feet are covered with painful blisters.”
Ricky rubbed his jaw, already alert. I could only hope that no one had recognised me from the streets.
“Alexis is a problem, Maxine.”
“I’m aware of it, and I’m planning to do something about it. Just give me some time,” I explained, regretting every bit of drink that passed through my lips last night. Deep down I really had no idea how to deal with Alexis, but Ricky needed to be assured that everything was under control.
I wanted to discuss with him details about my mother, but a moment later, Emma interrupted us again. She started telling me all about the dress that she wanted me to try on before the party, so I decided that the conversation about Alexis needed to wait. I popped some pills in my mouth, hoping to silence my headache. It sounded like Emma knew what she was talking about, and I had absolutely no experience in planning a night out. In the end, we agreed to meet at her house. After my last official date with Zach, I needed someone who could help me choose a dress that was appropriate for tonight.
I had a headache all day, while studying the map of London and analysing the information that Frederick had given me last night. The entrance to Gjöll seemed tricky, and I had to use my abilities to gain access in the first place. Watchers were always looking to catch mongrels who didn’t obey the rules, so I had to make sure that everything went to plan.
My phone rang when I decided to head home later on in the afternoon. It was a restricted number and past experience taught me that it was better to ignore these calls. However, after almost ten missed calls, I gave up and answered it.
“Hello.”
“Flower, I have a proposition for you,” said a voice that sent chills down my spine. Of course it was Arthur. It appeared that he had already forgotten about our last conversation. He was still openly pursuing me. “Party tonight. I’m taking you as my date.”
I automatically regretted answering the damn phone. Arthur was slowly turning into a stalker. He knew where I lived, and now he also had my number.
“Arthur, how hard is it for you to understand the word no?”
He laughed—of course, he thought this was funny. We were playing a game of cat and mouse, but this was my fault for letting him into my bed a couple of days ago.
“I’ll be picking you up, be ready around eight,” he insisted. All right, I had a feeling he was talking about the same party that I was going to attend anyway.
“I have an invitation for some jewellery party tonight from Zach, and I’m taking my co-worker, Emma, with us, so I’m afraid I have to decline, Your Highness,” I said, closing my eyes for a second, so I could erase the image of him on top of me. Yep, this was still happening.
There was silence on the other side of the phone for a good few moments. Maybe he finally started to understand that this wasn’t going to work.
“The detective. He is taking you to Bridskirt Manor?” Arthur asked in disbelief.
“Yeah, it’s a work thing,” I said, and automatically wanted to bite my tongue. Arthur was a competitive guy, and he wanted to beat Zach. I had a really bad feeling about this. Maybe I should get on the phone to Zach and cancel.
“Fine, go with that arsehole, but I’m not pulling away. I love you, so he can piss off,” Arthur said, then hung up the phone.
I chewed on my bottom lip, thinking that I should have made up some other lie. Arthur didn’t need to know that I was going out with Zach. I left the office at five and then went home. I picked up whatever elixirs I had left, knowing that my stash was running on empty again, and headed over to Emma’s to try on the dress she’d mentioned.
She opened the door nearly screaming my head off, asking me about all the officials who were going to be at the party. Her daughter seemed excited, too. It looked like Emma had told her about the visit from the prince. I really needed to start appreciating more that I had met most of the royals. It was a big deal to humans.
“So I have red, navy, and gold dresses for you. I know that you’re much smaller than me, but I wore these dresses before I got pregnant with Suzi.” Emma was saying after she dragged me upstairs and handed me a glass of white wine.
Alcohol, great. I wasn’t really sure if that was appropriate, but I took it. Some time after that, she asked me to try everything on, and it turned out, that I looked good in red. Emma was talking the whole time, complementing me on my legs, boobs that I didn’t have, and my hair. She matched accessories with my outfit and I was extremely grateful. After that, her daughter arrived from downstairs and it looked like she approved, too. When I checked myself in the mirror several moments later, I had to admit, I looked hot.
Emma had sorted herself much quicker than me. She chose a lemon-coloured long silky dress paired with a black clutch and heels. I couldn’t say anything bad. She looked astonishingly refreshing and pretty. Somehow this short bonding time kind of put me in a good mood. I felt like I finally had a friend, a girlfriend who I could ask about fashion advice. My head couldn’t deal with the emotional aspect of this new relationship, but maybe there was hope for me. I wasn’t going to die alone after all.
By seven, Suzi was running around the house and shouting that there was someone waiting for us outside. The babysitter was there when we were leaving. She looked like a teenager, but I didn’t dare say a word.
“Ready, oh my, I’m so excited I could burst,” Emma said, looking flustered. “Come on, let’s go, the detective is waiting.”
I nodded, finished the glass of wine in one go, and headed toward the door. I had a feeling that we would have a very eventful evening tonight. The earlier phone call from Arthur worried me, but I told myself that I could do this, that I was strong enough to push him away. In theory that was easy, but in practise, this had proven a real challenge.
Chapter 21
“The heavens, that their beauty not be lessened, have cast them out, nor will deep Hell receive them —
even the wicked cannot glory in them.”
― Dante Alighieri, Inferno
Zach was staring at me intensely when I walked toward him, his burning gaze followed down my face, and then lower, causing havoc inside my whole body. I didn’t have to read him to know that he was planning to take me to his bed tonight, as soon as he locked Nameless up in a police cell. I wished that I could share his optimism. Nameless was a half demon; he could easily use illegal spells to escape, and he wasn’t working alone, either. On top of that, I doubted he would have been lured by expensive jewellery. This whole operation seemed tricky, but I had to stay open-minded. Zach had his own sources, and Nameless had proven on a number of occasions that he liked stealing from humans.
Between his thoughts about having me on top of him, Zach kept wondering if he’d brought in enough people to the party. Men were odd creatures. Even at twenty-six years old, I still couldn’t tell if he was more interested in shagging me or being in a relationship with me.
Zach opened the door for me and Emma. He chose a black tuxedo for tonight. Emma whispered to me when we were walking down, that he looked really handsome and yummy, whatever that meant. She was right: Zach was very good looking and, as soon as our eyes locked, a strange kind of heat pooled deep in my body. My hormones were letting me know that tonight, I could head home with a man, a human man who didn’t necessarily have to be royal.
“You look gorgeous, Maxine, so stunning that I don’t think I can control myself around you this evening,” Zach said almost in a whisper when he opened the passenger door for me. Emma was already inside, blabbing about her expectations for this evening. I had on very high and uncomfortable heels that my bestie had picked up for me.
Deep down I was a nervous. Zach was obviously convinced that I was over the prince and he had a chance to make me his tonight. Earlier on, I had promised myself that I would stay away from the bar. This whole operation was important and I didn’t want to screw up anything again. Thomas was risking a lot by showing up in the manor filled with police. This evening, he could easily slip my letter to Arthur somehow and that made me feel nauseous all of a sudden. My thoughts drifted off to my father and that stranger from outside my flat who asked me to look into the death of my mother. Then my thoughts drifted away to Alexis. That bitch was really getting on my nerves, because now I had to divide my focus and deal with her, too. After her visit in the monastery, she’d no doubt gained a lot of interesting information about my past, about my dead human mother.
“Hey, Flower, are you still with us?”
Zach’s voice brought me back to the car. Everything seemed complicated again. I had to fight to protect my secret, but at what cost? Alexis had turned into my enemy, and she was determined to prove her theory. Maybe this wasn’t worth it, maybe I should have told Arthur the truth.
I pushed away these thoughts and looked back at Zach. Thinking about fluff wasn’t going to help, so I needed to get it together.
“I’m fine, I have a lot on my mind,” I explained. I didn’t even realise that we reached the manor. Emma was most likely keeping Zach entertained for the whole journey while I was lost in my own busy head. We were somewhere on the outskirts of London. There were other people walking inside. The large residence was beaming with colourful lights set up outside. Butlers were directing people to the showrooms in the manor. My stomach was in knots when I recognised a few royal guards. Arthur wouldn’t dare cause a scene in from of his family. He wouldn’t be that stupid, but he had proven to me on a number of occasions that he didn’t care about the opinion of other people. He wasn’t even afraid to upset his grandmother, the Queen.
“Oh, lord, this is really beautiful. Do you think we will have a chance to meet any royals this evening?” Emma asked, shaking with excitement.
“Probably, it’s their party. Just watch the space. I’m sure Prince Arthur will show up,” I said, already aware of his presence. Emma squeaked even louder. For her, this whole thing was a novelty. She was a single mother, and she had probably never met anyone famous before.
“Max, what’s wrong? You’ve been distracted from the moment you got into the car,” Zach said, pulling me to the side, while Emma continued on her own toward the manor. I bit my lip, wondering if there was any point warning him about Arthur. We weren’t even together, but I wasn’t planning to tell him that a couple of days ago, I slept with my royal ex whilst drunk.
“Nothing, I’m just nervous. Arthur is going to be here, and he has already warned me that he would be difficult.”
Zach dragged his hand through his hair, not taking his dark eyes off me.
“I can handle your Prince Charming, Flower.” He chuckled. I grabbed his elbow, wondering if he realised that any incident with the prince would harm his blooming career.
“Well, it’s not as simple as that,” I said. “What about your missing sister?”
His frown deepened, and I felt his stinging pain. He was obviously still thinking about her. I felt guilty that I didn’t stay with him that day on the platform, that I didn’t comfort him.
“She’s still alive, and once this case is over, I’ll go back down to the tunnels and look for her,” Zach said, and I sensed that he didn’t like talking about it.
“Hey, you guys, come on; we can’t be late,” Emma shouted after us. Zach didn’t say anything else, and I didn’t press on the subject. A moment later we joined her. Zach showed the invitations to the butler and we were through.
“A few of my guys are already inside. The guards are aware of this operation. Everything should go smoothly,” Zach said as we walked through to the large banquet room filled with glamorous people, great décor, and a few reporters who were snapping pictures on the other side. When I still worked for the royal family, I always remained in the shadows, never engaged in any official events. Tonight I was out of my comfort zone, being in the crowd, and knowing that people could easily recognise me. This was unnerving.
“So what is the plan?” I asked, feeling tense and on edge. There were too many familiar faces around, people staring at me. I even saw a glimpse of George laughing somewhere close, which meant that his brother was already inside.
“There is no plan. Just keep your eyes open to anything suspicious,” Zach muttered, running his fingers over my naked back. He was distracting me, and my body reacted every time his finger connected with my skin.
“Madame Brodeur, may I have a word?”
Rodriguez showed up right in front of me. Of course, Lucifer had his people everywhere.
Zach narrowed his eyes but didn’t say anything when I walked away from him. This was going to be awkward, because I had been working with Zach, trying to find a man who wanted to ruin the royal family, behind Rodriguez’s back.
“Arthur has informed me that someone is in possession of sensitive letters that used to belong to his mother,” Rodriquez said, sounding pissed off. Okay, he most likely didn’t like that he wasn’t informed about this earlier on. He was also aware that Watchers were keeping a close eye on me.
“Yes, a demonic thief apparently had stolen them from his own father who used to work for the royal family. Detective Zachary Quinton believes that there is going to be movement here tonight, that the thief is planning to make an appearance,” I explained, not sure if I was supposed to talk to him about this case. Arthur didn’t want anyone else to know, even Rodriguez. The old demon must have pressured him to reveal why I was suddenly brought in to the palace. He must have figured out that there was something going on.
; Rodriguez was moving his hand over his shiny beard, trying to break through my wards again. Nosy old git.
“Miss Brodeur, may I remind you that you’re obligated to answer to me and any—”
“Mr Rodriguez, I’m fully aware of the protocol, but the prince himself asked me to keep this information to myself. We are working hard to retrieve these letters. I’m not able to discuss any other details,” I stated, bloody angry that Arthur had put me in this position. He should have told Rodriguez everything in the very beginning. That’s why I hated Hell’s business. Lucifer wanted to control everyone and everything. His rules were slowly beginning to piss me off.
“Maxine, there you are. I have been wondering when you were going to show up.” A vibrant voice caught me by surprise. Arthur approached before I had a chance to disappear.
“Your Highness,” I muttered, aware that Rodriguez wasn’t done with me yet. On top of that, I’d disobeyed him.
“Bill, I’m going to kidnap Miss Brodeur for a moment if you don’t mind,” the prince said, wrapping his warm, human fingers around my arm. Rodriguez smoothed his demonic beard, and his eyes told me that soon enough, we were going to have a long and very interesting conversation.
“No. Your Highness, I don’t mind at all,” Rodriguez replied, turned around and walked away, stinging me with his energy.
“Come on, Flower, let’s find a more private spot.” Arthur nudged me and then proceeded to drag me through the entire room. People were staring, and his aunt was somewhere on the other side of the room, next to Natalie. Where the hell was Zach all of a sudden? I needed him to tell Arthur that there was something going on upstairs.
We passed through the main corridor and headed toward the room filled with different pieces of jewellery.
Doomed Cases Box Set: The Complete Collection Books 1- 4 & Prequel Page 42