by Maher Tegan
I reached out and took his hand and gave it a quick squeeze. "You manage things as best you can on your end, and I'll take care of the rest. If you can buy me some time with the Council, that would be amazing."
"Have you been able to get in touch with Ari?" Tempest asked. Ari, or Arariel, was the angel of water and was one of the most human nonhumans I'd ever met. He also truly cared about what went on at the resort and with all the people on it, guests and staff alike.
Blake shook his head as he stepped closer to me to avoid colliding with a pair of faerie kids rushing toward the front doors in their bathing suits. "No, I've been trying his cell, I've emailed him, and I even tried to hit him up on Facebook. Of course, all those only work if he's actually on Earth, so if he's in Celestial City, he won't get anything until he gets back down here. We have a founders' meeting in a couple days, but I don't think we have that long."
I agreed with him. I also knew that when he finally did get here, he was gonna be pissed when he found out what the Council had pulled. He was protective of the Enchanted Coast and had made it clear that we existed under our own laws. That was necessary considering we dealt with large gatherings of different species of people every day.
Each pack, clan, coven, pride, and the million other names for groups and families all had their own rules and laws. There was no way we could enforce all of them separately, so we had our own resort rules and laws for small crimes, and people signed waivers when they signed into the resort. The exception to that was for murder, and our policy there was to find who did it and turn that person over to the presiding authority of the victim. That was standard in the magical world, and it had worked for us so far.
Ari prided himself on our rules and policies and wasn't going to take kindly to the Council stepping in. Our governing agency was intimidating to a lot of witches, but Ari was an angel. He had zero cares and could smite people and do all sorts of other awesome, terrifying angel-y stuff, and to be honest, in this situation, I'd bring a bowl of popcorn and watch him do it.
"You keep tryin' to get a hold of him, then. We could really use the backup, but I don't think we can count on it. I'm gonna go talk to Sandra Keller. Got any idea where I can find her?"
"Check the spa. Last time I spoke with her she was having quite the fit of vapors." He rolled his eyes when he said that, which led me to believe he wasn't buying her story any more than he was choking down the whole witness situation. I started to ask him about it, but before I could, a squat, middle-aged man in a pinstriped four-piece suit complete with a pocket-watch chain hustled toward us.
"I've been looking all over the place for you, Blake," he said, his skinny handlebar mustache twitching.
I had to bite the inside of my lip to keep from snickering because he was only about twenty pounds and a top hat away from looking exactly like Snidely Whiplash.
Blake squished his face together in a manner that I think was supposed to be a smile but looked more like he was constipated. "I've been in my office, Lester. If you wanted to find me, that's where you had to look. You could've messaged me as well. What can I do for you?"
Lester's beady gaze flickered to me. I swear, it was like somebody looked up the definition of evil cartoon antagonist when they created him.
"We’re ready to transport the prisoner. We checked the standard rooms that you use to hold people, but they’re occupied by guests."
Blake gave him a tight smile. "Yes, Lester, they are. This is a resort, and we’re right in the middle of busy season. Had you bothered to check with me, I would've told you that we have him under house arrest in one of our empty one-bedroom employee cottages."
Blake shot a frantic look at me when Lester glanced toward the elevators at a Bigfoot family goofing off and laughing. From the look on his face, he had an allergy to fun.
"Don't you think you're being a little hasty?" I asked him. "The murder just happened yesterday. That hardly seems like enough time to conduct a thorough investigation."
Lester didn't seem to care for my opinion. Rather than respond, he stared down his long, skinny nose at me. "And you are?"
Before I could answer, Blake introduced me. "This is Destiny Maganti. She's a bartender and co-manager at our tiki bar. She was just checking in with me to let me know she was leaving for her vacation."
So that's how he wanted to play it. I was heading out of town. Nothin’ to see here.
Lester tilted his head and narrowed his eyes at me. "Maganti, huh? I've heard of you. Stay out of my investigation. "
I cocked my hips and raise my brow at him, stopping short of crossing my arms.
"Funny, you've heard of me, but I have no idea who you are. Care to enlighten me?"
Blake shot me a look that would've fried the hair off a skunk, but he should've known better than to believe I would respond any differently to being high hatted.
"I'm Lester Graff," he said, drawing himself up as if that should mean something to me. “And don’t think I haven’t heard about your shenanigans. I mean it. Stay out of my way, or else. I don’t need your amateur sleuthing messing up my investigation.”
Tempest dug her claws into me in warning, and I held my tongue. Mostly. “Ah. Yeah, your investigation. I wouldn’t want to stop you from pursuing every lead.”
His face puckered in irritation. Obviously, he was a big fish in a little pond who expected all the little people to just fall at his feet. That told me he was probably with the Council. In my experience most of them felt that way. With that in mind, I gave him my best version of a professional smile and nodded.
"Well, it was very nice to meet you, Lester. I have a vacation to get to, so if you'll excuse me, I want to get right on that." Tempest jumped down, leaned into my leg, and bumped me toward the door.
I glanced toward Blake, then appraised Lester. I had a general idea of what Blake wanted me to do, but I wanted to make sure. I could only think of one reason why he would've been so detailed when he told Lester where he was keeping the prisoner—he wanted me to bust him out. That was a pretty bold move, though, so I wanted to make sure I had it right.
Fortunately, Tempest and I had a mental connection, and so did she and Blake. I couldn't speak directly to him, but she could.
Ask him if he means for us to do what I think he means for us to do. I thought to her.
She glanced up at me and blinked her green eyes once. I'm pretty sure that's what he meant, but you're right. We better make sure.
A second later, Blake looked at me and gave me an almost imperceptible nod. That was all I needed.
"Alrighty, then, Lester," I said giving him my brightest smile and brushing my hands off. "You enjoy your railroading thingy, and boiling puppies in tar or whatever it is you’re doing after that, and I'm off to enjoy a tour of Europe's castles."
He glared at me. "The work I do for the Council is very important, and I don't appreciate you mocking me. I go above and beyond so you can live the beach lifestyle and go globetrotting without a care in the world."
Wow. Delusions of grandeur, much? I resisted the urge to mock him again. Considering I was about to bust out his murder suspect prisoner, I figured it’d probably be best to fly under the radar. "I'm sure you're right,” I said with nary a crossed eye or head wobble. “It was a pleasure to meet you."
Before he responded in a way that would make it impossible for me to remain nice, I turned on my heel and hustled toward the front door. As soon as I was outside, I leaned against Margo and huffed out a breath. Tempest jumped to the pedestal and then back up to my shoulder.
Sand drifted down on my head as Margo looked down at me. "I see you met Lester. Quite the self-important chap, isn't he?"
Tempest huffed a little breath out through her nose, then hopped onto Margo’s pedestal and onto my shoulders. "If that man was any fuller of himself, that three-dollar suit would've busted at the seams."
Margo laughed, but then turned serious. "Did you discover anything that will help Jackson?"
I s
hook my head. "Not yet, but I did talk to Blake. He thinks enough money changed hands to hustle the investigation along. He doesn't like it, and neither do I, so we decided the best thing to do was for him to play along on the inside while I worked it from the outside."
"There's only one problem with that, though," Tempest said.
Margo pressed her lips together for a second. "Yes, and that's a very big problem. Members of the Council want Lester to take him now, don't they?"
I nodded.
Worry etched her stone features. "What are you going to do? You can't let them take him, Destiny. They’ll put him to death. I saw this sort of thing happen so many times in history. It doesn't matter if you're guilty, it just matters who has enough money to convict you. You can't let that happen to him. "
I laid my hand on her paw. "Don't worry, I'm not going to let them take him anywhere, at least not until I know for myself that he's guilty."
"Then what are you going to do?"
"Simple," Tempest said, wrapping her tail around my neck. "We're gonna go bust him out, then once he’s somewhere safe, we’re gonna prove he didn't do it. Blake’s keepin’ Lester occupied and buyin’ us enough time to do it."
"Do you want me to chomp him the next time he goes past here?" she asked, her expression hopeful.
I grinned. "What I want you to do and what you should do are two totally different things in this situation. You can help by keeping an eye out for anybody who has anything other than the sand, sun, and margaritas on the brain. If you learn anything before I talk to you again, let Blake know, or catch Bob or Dimitri. They'll be able to get a hold of me."
"Will do, Destiny. And good luck. Jackson's a good guy."
Since it was well-known that resort security measures prevented anybody from being able to teleport, I was sure Blake hadn’t revealed my exception to Lester. We only had one one-bedroom employee cottage open right then, and it was on the far end of the resort. I didn't have time to walk there, so I hustled down the path toward the tiki until I was out of sight of the resort and Lester's prying eyes, then snapped my fingers and headed off to commit my first ever jailbreak.
Chapter 8
All the resort’s one-bedroom cottages were identical, so I knew exactly how the one they were holding Jackson in was laid out. I decided that I’d just go straight for the gold rather than trying to do any kind of recon outside first, but I wasn't completely dumb about it. I shot for the coat closet in the living room. I figured that was the best place to sound things out without worrying about catching anybody naked or getting busted if there were guards inside.
I got us in there with no problem, then stood inside the dark, enclosed space and listened for a second. Somebody was shuffling around out there, and the TV was on. I twisted the doorknob, then eased the door open a couple of inches, hoping the hinges didn't squeak like mine did.
All of the cottages came furnished, and sure enough, we had the right place. Jackson flopped down on the sofa and started flipping through channels. I pushed my magic out to see if there was anybody else in the cottage, and all I detected were two people outside the front door and two outside the back. I eased the door open a little further and poked my head out.
"Hey," I whisper-shouted. "Jackson?"
The poor guy bolted off the couch and spun toward me his hands raised.
"Who are you?" Magic radiated from him.
I pushed the rest of the way out of the closet and held my hands out, trying to show him that I meant no harm. I’d only met him a couple times, and I didn’t want him to blow me up, turn me into an armchair, or just strike me dead where I stood before he recognized me. "Destiny Maganti, from the tiki bar. I'm friends with Amber and Dax, remember? I'm here to help."
His violet eyes flashed, and his face twisted in disgust, but he put his hands down. "And how exactly do you mean to do that? There are guards at the front and rear, so it's not like we can just walk out of this place."
I grinned at him. "I guess it's a lucky thing I'm special, then. I'm gonna bust you out, and they won't even know you’re gone."
His gaze shot toward the front door. "Maybe you didn't hear me when I said there are guards at both doors."
I was willing to overlook the snark in his voice. After all, the guy was locked up for murder, and if Margo and my friends were to be believed, he was innocent. I could hardly blame him for having an attitude.
Tempest, on the other hand, wasn't willing to be so generous. "And maybe you didn't hear her when she said she was special. Do you want our help or not?"
Somebody pounded on the door from outside. "Who are you talkin’ to in there?" a deep voice rumbled as the doorknob jiggled.
Shoot. I should've put a muffling spell on the door, but I hadn't thought to do that. I shoved my hand toward Jackson. "Do you trust me, or not? I think we’re out of time, and no offense, but it doesn’t look like you have a lot of options."
He glanced at the door, then at my hand. "I guess I don't have a choice."
As soon as his palm hit mine, I wrapped my fingers around his and got us the heck out of Dodge.
Chapter 9
I teleported us to one of the secluded beaches that only employees knew about, and his gaze shot straight to the water. To his credit, he didn't try to bolt even though he could've probably shifted as he did and been gone for good. He was a merman. No way could I have caught him once he hit the water.
Instead, he turned to me. "What now?"
I bit my lip, thinking. He wasn't safe anywhere on the resort. There were all sorts of magical tracking security measures, and if we stood around for more than just a couple minutes, he was sure to be found. By now, the guard had probably already entered the cottage, so we probably only had two or three minutes tops before they sounded the alarm. Even if Blake was able to fumble around for a minute or two to buy us some time, he was way too good at his job for them to believe he couldn't find anyone anywhere on the property immediately.
"Call for Amber and Dax," Tempest said, clapping her paws to add some haste.
He didn't hesitate, but rather closed his eyes in a way that I recognized. He was calling them with his mind. It didn't even take thirty seconds before the water churned and two large fish tails, one a sparkling turquoise and one a deep, glittering burgundy, splashed several yards offshore. Rather than take the time to have them shift and dress, I rolled up my capris and waded out, motioning for Jackson to follow me. Tempest wrapped her tail around my neck, getting a grip so that she wouldn't fall in the water.
Amber's gaze flashed from me to Jackson and back again. "Destiny! What's going on? Based on where we’re at, I have a feeling you're not here to tell us you cleared his name, and he's free to go."
I shook my head. "I'm sorry, but I'm not. Something stinks with the Council, and they’re rushing forward to pin it on Jackson. Oddly enough, there was a big inflow of cash donated to the resort right before the witness turned up, and I need a minute to figure it all out. The Council wanted to take him today, like right now, so I figured it might be wise to get him off the property while I figure out what's going on. Blake’s holding them off as long as he can, but unless I miss my guess, we don't have more than another minute or two. I'm willing to turn him over into your custody as long as you promise to bring him back if I need you to."
Jackson touched my arm. "Wait, are you for real? You're just gonna let me go?" The disbelief on his features worried me a little bit.
"No, she's not just gonna let you go," Amber said glowering at him. "She's releasing you into our custody until she can figure it out. I know you're a big dope, but I'm pretty sure there's nothing wrong with your hearing."
Dax nodded at me, his expression serious. He dove under the water and popped back up a couple seconds later holding a conch shell. He wiggled his fingers above it, and little flecks of gold and blue magic sprinkled down over it. "Take this," he said holding it out to me. "If you need us, just blow into it. We'll hear you, and we'll be there within seconds.
No matter what we’re doing, we'll answer you."
I looked down at the conch shell, which was smaller than the palm of my hand. "Do I need to be near the water?"
Amber shook her head as they turned to dive into the water. "Nope. Just blow into it, and we can come to wherever you're at."
I gave myself a mental forehead slap when I realized that in my haste to get Jackson off the resort, I hadn’t even questioned him. I stepped forward a little farther into the surf and cringed when a wave lapped against the bottoms of my capris. Another mark in the “always wear shorts at the beach” column.
"Wait, Before you go, I need you to tell me everything you can about what you were doing yesterday morning. Were you at the casino? Or anywhere else where we might have you on camera?" They wouldn’t be able to dispute security footage, assuming they hadn’t tampered with that, too. I had faith in Blake that he hadn’t let that happen and in Lester’s arrogance that he’d overlooked the details.
Jackson shook his head. "I wasn't anywhere in the main resort. I had some stuff to do, so aside from playing a quick game of volleyball on the beach at around eight with a bunch of werewolves early yesterday morning, I was underwater. The only reason I came back yesterday afternoon was because I was craving a cheeseburger. I figured I'd stop in for a quick bite and a drink before I headed out to take my nieces to see the baby turtles. They're all hatching right now in an area not far from the house, and the kids love to go look at them. I’d just sat down at the tiki and ordered lunch when security snagged me."
I rubbed the back of my neck, thinking. He’d been playing volleyball before I’d gotten to the tiki, so I couldn’t vouch for him. "Were these werewolves by chance college-age? Probably wicked hung over and using dude every other sentence?"