by Krysta Scott
His eyes narrowed. “What do you know about the Guild?”
“I know you wear the ring.” His fingers fiddled with the very object of their discussion. “I’ve been told you are dangerous. Wasn’t sure I believed that until now. But you walk in here demanding I kowtow to you. Expecting it as if it is your due. Is this type of thing something I can expect from you in the future?”
“I’m not the enemy.”
“You could have fooled me.”
The jangle of the phone filtered into her awareness. She made no move to pick it up, keeping her attention pinned on Garrett. He stopped. Took on the appearance of a statute. A slow easy smile crept across his well-groomed features. “Answer your phone.”
Before he exited her office, he added, “Pleasant dreams, Ms. Angelus.”
Nikki watched Garrett leave with mixed emotions. On the one hand, she respected his desire to zealously represent his client. She even understood his need to blindly pursue their objectives. She wasn’t the least bit shocked he behaved a little too entitled, as if there were no other side to his case but his own theory. He acted in step with the person she met yesterday, the type of attorney who would bully his adversaries into submitting to his objectives. Sam was easy prey to a person like Garrett Nightshade. It wasn’t the first time she had to stop an aggressive attorney from taking advantage of a weaker one.
What bothered her most was how easily Garrett thought she would bend to his will. That was insulting. She had expected more from him. More to the point, she had wanted him to expect more from her too. Disappointment seared her bruised ego. She sighed. He thought as little of her as he did Sam. She wasn’t worthy of his respect or admiration. Once again, she was the flawed sibling who had the audacity to survive when the perfect one had perished. She bit her lip at the realization she had allowed Garrett to get to her. Maybe that was why she hadn’t been as firm as she should have been when things got so heated she could barely breathe.
Nothing excused his rude actions. More troubling was why she had let him get away with his intrusiveness. Her hand flew to her neck. Her skin still tingled from his touch. The reaction to him was so unexpected it clogged her ability to process her feelings. What did he want from her? More importantly what did she want from him? She tossed his pen onto the desk unable to deny the attraction. It was that stupid dream.
If she hadn’t woken with every nerve ending screaming for his caress, she would’ve kept him from getting close enough to diminish her ability to reason. If she was honest, she was pleased to see him this morning and his nearness felt natural. Most likely the remnants of her dream. But that didn’t explain his question or why he seemed to talk in riddles. He thought someone was protecting her because she wouldn’t agree to dismiss the case? That was the strangest statement of all. She was pulled from her musings by another blaring ring of the phone. With trembling hands, she lifted the receiver.
“Hello?”
“What do you think of the package?” a raspy voice said.
“Excuse me?”
A low chuckle. “The amulet I gave you?”
A cold chill swept through her. “Who is this?”
“The one who can give you the answers you seek.”
Her nerves were stripped bare. How much ambiguity was she supposed to endure? It seemed the universe had deemed it fit to deliver every bizarre situation to her personally this week. She had had enough. “Look, I don’t have time for games. If there is something I need to know, this would be the time to tell me. Let’s start with your name.”
“My name is William Songe. We need to meet.”
Disappointment plummeted to her darkest core as tears rose unbidden. The necklace had come from this stranger. Not her mom. In a brief moment, the last tie to her mother vanished. She wasn’t about to take this venture down the rabbit hole, even though the origins of the amulet plagued her and the man on the other end of the line promised to answer her questions. She could simply hang up, but found herself unable to let go that simply. Surely, there was more information to be had.
“Why did you give me the necklace?” The brisk words echoed her need to swing at the man who had sullied her mom’s memory.
“Because it is your legacy. I repeat, we need to meet.” His voice took on a soft pleading tone. “The corner diner.”
“What time?” Was she really considering his offer? “Wait. No way. I don’t even know you.”
“I am not a stranger to you, Nikki.”
“I don’t know a William Songe.” Like it or not, her well-structured life had morphed into burning questions. No matter how much she thought she knew, she couldn’t depend on one fact in her life. Everything had dissolved into gray vapors of uncertainty.
“Six-thirty, and I will explain everything.”
“I don’t think so.”
As she hung up the phone, she wondered if Mr. Songe knew as much as he claimed. She pulled the velvet case from her purse and opened it. Vivid green jewels winked at her, keeping the buried secret of its past from her. Whatever was happening, this tiny emblem played a significant part. She had to find out more about it. Now she had a name to begin her search. She sat in front of her computer and typed the name William Songe into the data base.
****
Garrett flipped open his phone and dialed.
“Hello.”
“We have a problem.”
“What kind of problem?” His mother’s cranky voice indicated her day had gone about as well as his. And this imposition was not welcome. If he could have avoided this phone call, he would have. The next best thing was to get right to the point and keep the conversation to a minimum.
“I dream casted Nikki Angelus last night, but it didn’t take.”
“What do you mean didn’t take?” His mother drew the words out as if trying to decipher the meaning of each one before she uttered them. From past experience, a sure sign that his mother hadn’t anticipated this outcome. None of them had. An outsider resilient to the discreet ministrations of the guild? It was unheard of.
“I mean I altered her decision on the Hanover case. She should have acquiesced to the suggestion that the case be dismissed. Yet her mind remained unchanged, and she challenged the solution.” Uttering the words aloud increased his concern.
There was a long pause on the other end as his mother considered the information. “She’s protected? But that doesn’t make sense.”
“There isn’t another explanation. I’ve checked. She’s not one of us. So why would a member of the Guild protect her?” Garrett leaned against the wall just outside Nikki’s office. Through the glass walls that encased the entrance, he had a view of the receptionist answering the phones. She looked up from her work and scowled at him as if he were an uninvited guest at an invitation-only party. He had to admit that lurking around after his business was finished was a bit creepy, but it eased the growing tension in his gut to stay put until he sorted this puzzle out.
His mother’s curt voice cut into his musing. “The Hanover matter has already been addressed by the guild. They unanimously voted to handle the family crisis internally. I know of no Guild member who would openly oppose the wishes of the council.” There was an accusing edge to her tone. She blamed him for this mess. “All known dissidents are accounted for, and there has been no unusual activity on that end.”
“Which means there is someone out there unaccounted for. Someone who has a stake in the outcome of my case, and you don’t know who this person is.” Satisfaction consumed Garrett when he heard the hiss at the other end of the line. It wasn’t often he was able to shift the axis of his mother’s innately ordered world.
“No need to sound so smug,” she said with a level of amusement that set his teeth on edge. “Once you head the guild, these problems will fall on you.”
“I’m not going to head the Guild. I’ve told you that before.”
“You can’t run from fate. You’re next in line, and that’s final.” His mother sounded so sure of her
self. Mocking him. Daring him to prove her wrong. But Garrett had long since formed a plan to remain on the outskirts of the Guild. He wasn’t going to let guild business consume him like it had his parents. As a child, he’d watched them give every last inch of themselves to the Guild until they had nothing left. For him. For anyone. That would not be him. It would never be him.
“Mother, I suggest we stay on task.”
“Spoken like a true leader.”
“Cut the crap.” The sacrifice his parents paid on the altar of the Guild’s welfare stopped here. “How do you suggest I handle this problem?”
“Investigate her, find out who she knows.”
“On it.” He snapped the phone shut.
Chapter Six
Garrett sat across the table from Parker in the small rectangular cubicle provided by the jail for client interviews. The cinderblock walls and stale air always gave him the impression that he was in a shallow grave. He reminded himself to breathe. Soon, he would be out of this room taking in fresh air. Parker wouldn’t be so lucky. His parents refused to post bail, ensuring the lowlife would be in county jail until his trial.
“So, you’re the highbrow attorney the Guild sent?” Parker said. “’bout time you showed.”
“I’m here now. Let’s not waste time, shall we?” Any flicker of guilt Garrett had about not seeing Parker sooner paled against Parker’s entitled attitude. Time to let the weasel know Garrett was in charge. “So, tell me what happened that night.”
“I beat the shit out of my wife, that’s what.” Parker laughed. The cruel mocking sound echoed off the walls. Now that was different. Most clients didn’t admit what they did. Let alone state it so bluntly. Parker’s statement bordered on gleeful. Almost proud. He also made no effort to make eye contact with Garrett. Instead he pulled at the skin of his arm as if that was the most important use of his time. Like he was beyond human caring. An insanity defense was more probable than Garrett first surmised.
“So I’ve heard.” Garrett kept his voice low hoping Parker would follow his lead to take this interview seriously. “Do you want to let me in on what set you off?”
Parker’s head snapped up. The maniacal glint in his eyes was alarming. He slammed his hands palm down on either side of Garrett’s note pad. “She’s a fucking whore. What other reason do I need?”
Parker went back to pulling hairs from his arm, in a bizarre grooming ritual. Was he trying to alleviate his anxiety? More likely he had lost touch with reality. Perhaps he was experiencing a form of shock. Regardless, he wouldn’t be much use to Garrett in this condition. Garrett hoped he could get enough information out of his client to create a sufficient defense for his case. Mental instability was at the top of the list.
“How often does your wife frustrate you like this?”
“All the time.” Parker’s flat effect clashed with his obsession with his arm. He made faces as he pulled at the hairs but not like he was in pain. The depth of focus on his task, squinting, biting his lip, methodically examining each hair was like a scientist handling a highly combustible fluid. It wasn’t only the fixation with his appendage that was disturbing, but the lack of concern he appeared to have about his incarceration.
“Were you drinking alcohol or had you taken any drugs?” Garrett hoped the answer was yes. If he had been under the influence then a case could be made for diminished capacity, and that could at least eliminate the intent portion of the aggravated assault and battery charge.
“Nope don’t drink or do drugs.” After stripping one area completely bare, Parker turned his arm over to the underside. Deep red gashes spelling out his daughter’s name were carved in his flesh.
“What happened to your arm?”
Parker lifted his head and regarded Garret in a calculated fashion. Goosebumps prickled over Garrett’s scalp to the nape lifting the hair at his neck. The fiend was more aware of his situation than he’d been letting on. An unpleasant glint flashed in his eyes before his expression went blank again. Garrett gripped the edge of the table and wondered what this guy was up to.
“None of your fucking business.”
Garrett narrowed his eyes on the bastard. “As long as you’re in here, everything about you is my fucking business right down to how often your diapers were changed as a child.” Garrett crossed his arms. His pose remained casual but every alarm sparked and jumped through his veins. Parker didn’t move with the exception of an almost imperceptible quiver of his upper lip. Then his shoulders slumped.
“You wouldn’t understand.”
“Try me.”
“It isn’t right, you know. What they did.”
Now they were getting somewhere. “What did they do?”
“Do you know what it’s like when they strip you of everything you are?”
“No, but I’m not sure what this has to do with you and your wife.” It was difficult to generate any sympathy for the man. Sure, he’d had some tough breaks but that didn’t excuse the egregious actions toward his spouse. Parker wouldn’t be the first criminal who attempted to use childhood events to explain away untenable behavior. From time to time, Garrett used these events to mitigate a client’s circumstances. Except, he wouldn’t use any Guild business to defend Parker. Matters of the Guild weren’t common knowledge. Besides, this guy was a trip. Garrett hadn’t been told what Parker’s particular problem was as a child. However, his behavior today indicated his parents had made the right decision to isolate his mind.
“It’s awful. I can’t know people the way you can.” He examined the end of his finger nail. “But you’re lucky aren’t you?”
“This isn’t about me.”
“No,” Parker’s lips curved in a sad smile. “I’m just trying to inform you how fucked up Guild business is.”
Guild business. Every sense went on alert, but Garrett forced a benign tone. “What does that have to do with why you’re in here?”
“I thought you wanted to know about my arm.” His expression turned hostile and he sneered with contempt. “I can’t reach my daughter. Your precious Guild made sure of that. She’s out there all alone with no one to reassure her. All because of the Guild.”
“No, Parker, your daughter is all alone because of what you did. I am trying to help you with your criminal charge. So far, I have nothing. No defense. What do you want me to do?”
Parker laughed and Garrett expected him to go back to his weird grooming but his hands remained neatly folded in front of him. There was no evil glint in his eyes or any sense that he was verging on a nervous breakdown but his words stopped Garrett short. “I don’t need your help. I have a plan of my own.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s only a matter of time before I’m out of here.”
“The only way you’re getting out of here is with the court’s permission and you need me for that.”
“Have it your way.” He shrugged. “But I think I can bank on that guardian whatever.”
“Nikki Angelus? What makes you think she can or will help you?” For a second, Garrett thought Parker was reverting back to apathy but that wasn’t it. He detected a spark of self-assurance in his expression. The kind that promised certainty in what he had to say. There was no waver. No suggestion that he was promoting a lie.
“Because I know who she is.”
A chill of premonition coursed down his spine. “And who is that exactly?”
Parker smirked. “If you don’t know, I’m not saying, but I recognized her right away. Are you in for a surprise.”
****
Garrett inched up the cracked cement steps. A precarious structure that leaned a little to the left just like the rickety house attached to it. Peeling paint flaked off the sides of the humble abode exposing rotting gray wood. At first, Garrett thought his investigator had gotten it wrong. This couldn’t be the address of Nikki’s father. Anyone involved with the Guild would live in far better circumstances. Then again, maybe Garrett was the one who’d gotten it wrong and Nik
ki wasn’t a Guild member. There was no one protecting her. He’d just let his imagination run away with him. Except she’d evaded the mind push and refused to settle the Hanover matter. He could think of no other reason she had the power to that. And then there was Parker’s cryptic remark.
An uncomfortable feeling gnawed at his insides since he’d left Nikki’s office this morning. His discomfort spiked to overload after he’d met with Parker. Garrett was certain someone was protecting Nikki. The thought left him feeling weak and filled with the compelling need to find out how far his investigator had gotten regarding his inquiry into Nikki’s past.
A quick phone call to his investigator led him here. To a house with a screen door hanging loosely from hinges too far rusted to be of any useful purpose. The mailbox no longer hung in the usual place but leaned carelessly against the wall on the porch. Nothing about this situation was right. He was missing something huge. The only way to fill in the gaps was to ask. Garrett rapped on the door with a renewed sense of purpose. Several minutes passed. He was about to knock again when the door opened a sliver. One glittering brown eye met his gaze.
“Can I help you?” The raspy voice was accompanied by the sour stench of stale whiskey. Garrett grimaced resisting the urge to wave his hand in front of his face.
“Mr. Angelus?”
The man nodded and the door opened wider. He was clad in a T-shirt and pants two large for his slight frame. Garrett crossed his arm exposing his Guild ring. Mr. Angelus’ gaze drifted toward the insignia then snapped back up. “I was warned someone like you might show up one day.”
“Is that right?” So Mr. Angelus knew the Guild insignia. Garrett was right, the Angelus family was involved in Guild business. It was time to find out just how much. “I have some questions for you.”
“Figures.” Mr. Angelus glared at him like a man who’d like nothing better than to rip Garrett’s throat out. “But I’ve got nothing to say. You’re not welcome here.”
Mr. Angelus shoved the door with more strength than Garrett thought possible. But it wasn’t good enough, Garrett held up his hand stopping the door before it shut. “You don’t want to do that. I’m here on official business.”