by Jaye Wells
He lifted his glass in a toast. “Hung didn’t kill Krystal LeMay.”
I slammed the glass on the coffee table in his sunken living room. “How do you know?”
He swirled his drink and took a lingering sip before answering. “No motive.”
I pursed my lips and pinned him with my best cop glare. “You stick to running the city and let us worry about motives, all right? Where is he?”
“I’m not his keeper, Kate. He was in town to meet about moving his company here. I offered him a place to stay while he was in town. I assume he left because he had business to tend to on the West Coast.”
“He left town?” My raised voice echoed in the cavernous penthouse.
“He vacated the apartment. I don’t know if he left town or not.”
“What’s his guard still doing here, then?” I demanded.
He quirked a brow. “Mike works for me. And I believe his family came over from the Philippines.”
“Sure.”
He tilted his head. “Do you think every Asian in Babylon is Chinese or just that all Asians are Fangshi?”
I shifted uncomfortably. Obviously, I didn’t like the idea of being called on biases, but it was also likely Volos was using this to throw me off. “I just assume anyone who associates with you is crooked. How about that?”
Before he could retort, I pulled out my phone and called Dixon. “Hey, I need you to contact the airport and see if Alexander Hung was on a flight headed somewhere on the West Coast today.”
“Gee, Kate, I’m sort of up to my eyeballs in hand-job videos here.”
“Then ask McGinty to do it.” I punched the button to end the call. When I looked up, I realized Morales still hadn’t moved from his spot by the windows. His untouched drink rested in his right hand. “Hey!”
He turned slowly. “What?”
I threw up my hands. “Murder investigation? Remember?”
He shrugged. “The guy’s not here.” He drained his drink in two long gulps. He walked across the room and handed the glass back to Volos. “Thanks, man.” Then he turned and walked to the door. “I’ll be in the car.”
I watched him go with my mouth hanging open. I suddenly felt like I’d entered the Twilight Zone, only instead of a gremlin on the airplane wings, I was witnessing my partner losing his damned mind. “Well, that’s just great,” I muttered.
“Trouble in paradise?” Volos said, smirking over the rim of his glass.
“Will you shut up?”
He looked pleased with himself but was smart enough not to say anything else on the matter.
“I was telling the truth, you know. Hung’s innocent.”
I shot him an ironic glare.
“Of this crime,” he amended.
“Why do you know so much about it?”
He watched me for a moment, as if weighing his options. My patience was thin, so I raised my brows and shot him an any-day-now look. Finally, he sighed. “When did Krystal die?”
“We don’t have the final report yet, but I’m guessing it happened last night.”
He ran a finger along the glass’s rim. “I was with Hung and one of his associates until one a.m.”
“Which associate?”
“A woman.”
“Cut the shit, John. Was it the chick with the horn?”
He paused. “You know her?”
“I just watched her butcher a duck,” I said, “and cut off her own thumb.”
He scowled. “Stay away from her.”
“You know, you have a really bad habit of believing you have a say in my decisions. We interviewed her as part of an official murder investigation.”
“And I’m telling you, she and Hung both have alibis for last night.”
I didn’t mention to him that whoever killed Krystal wasn’t there last night when she died. They could have sent that package over at any time. But he didn’t have the right to know every detail of my cases. “You willing to testify to that effect in court?”
He laughed softly and emptied his glass. “Don’t be ridiculous.”
“I thought so,” I said. “I don’t know what you have going with the Chinese, but you saying you were with them doesn’t exactly exonerate anyone. For all I know, all three of you killed her.”
He scoffed. “Why in the hell would I want to kill the girl?”
“Because she was running the Votaries.”
The look he slanted at me could have frozen water. “Don’t insult me. You don’t believe that.”
“What I believe is that you have gotten yourself in yet another dirty deal and it’s blowing up in your face.”
“The only deal I’m involved in is trying to stimulate this city’s economy by bringing in new businesses—legit ones.”
“Hung is a rumored hitman and Yü Nü is believed to be the head of the Fangshi worldwide. Plus, she’s scary as hell.”
“Luckily, rumors aren’t admissible in court, Detective. And neither are your personal feelings about Yü Nü—or me.”
“Whatever. I’m going now.”
I was almost at the door before he spoke again, softly this time. “I can pull the plug on this.”
Turning to face him, I said, “You wouldn’t dare.”
“Want to try me, Katie?”
“You’re the one talking about too much to lose.” I crossed my arms. “You interfere in my case and I’ll be forced to do some digging into business dealings, Mr. Mayor—among other things.”
“You’re not the only one who has dirt. Only a matter of time until Morales goes down now that the Fangshi are in town.”
I walked up to him and took his drink. After I drained it, I let out an ahh. I licked my lips slowly, and his eyes flared. “If I were you, I’d be more worried about the BPD getting wind of a murder weapon in the Pantera Souza case.” I shoved the glass into his chest, forcing him to reach up to grab it. “Never ask your enemy to get rid of evidence that implicates you in murder, asshole.”
As I walked away, he breathed, “I’ll be damned.”
I smiled but didn’t look back. Inside I was experiencing the dual emotions of elation and panic. The excitement was due to having the upper hand for once. The panic was the result of showing my cards. Now that he knew I had the gun that killed Pantera Souza with his prints all over it, I’d have a target on my back. I just had to make sure he never found out where I’d hidden it. As long as he had to worry about who I’d shown it to, I’d be safe.
Morales was downstairs in the lobby, where he and the guard were trying real hard to pretend they were ignoring each other. I walked past him and went out into the night air. The cool breeze off the river lifted my hair off my neck.
“Took you long enough,” he snapped behind me.
I stopped and turned. Instead of responding, I watched him. Gave him the opportunity to take it back or apologize. He declined by not meeting my eyes. “All right,” I said, “What’s your problem?”
He tried to stonewall me. His jaw went hard and a hand shoved into his jeans pocket, like he was thinking about starting a fight.
I held up a hand. “Whatever story you’re telling yourself right now? It’s bullshit. I stayed behind because I knew if I pressed a little more, Volos would give up something useful. And I was right.”
His brow quirked. He didn’t ask the question, though.
“He said he was with Yü Nü and Hung last night.”
“So? They could have sent the tea at any point.”
“Yes, but I didn’t tell Volos how Krystal died. He seemed to assume she was shot or something. That tells me he wasn’t privy to the plans, but it does place him in cahoots with both Yü Nü and Hung.”
“Christ.” He ran a hand through his hair. “But Hung’s MIA, so we can’t pull him in.”
I placed a hand on his shoulder, forcing him to look at me. “You need to get your shit together.”
He pulled back. “I’m fine.”
“No,” I said, “you’re not fucking fine. Yü Nü
rattled you. I get it. But you need to keep your head in the game if we don’t want everything to blow up in our faces.”
He sucked a deep breath in through his nose, held it for a couple of beats, and blew it out like he was exorcising some demons. “Sorry. You’re right.”
I winked at him and threw his own words back at him. “’Course I am, Cupcake.”
He nudged me with his shoulder. “So, what’s our next move?”
“There’s someone we haven’t talked to who’s up to his knees in this bullshit.”
“Don’t say it.” The words were gruff, but the sparkle returned to his eyes.
“I think it’s time we paid a visit to Uncle Abe.”
Chapter Twenty
Getting to Crowley Penitentiary for Arcane Criminals wasn’t supposed to be easy. The only way to get to Crook’s Point Island was via ferry. The prison itself sat atop a cliff like a gothic fortress overlooking the iron sand beaches and dark waters below.
The day we went, the lake churned in advance of a massive spring storm. The gunmetal gray sky pressed down on top of us, and waves knocked the boat around like a kid’s toy in a washing machine. We were about halfway across the lake when the sky opened up, forcing us into the pilothouse. Rain fell in sheets that obscured the view.
With nothing left to do, Morales and I sat on the benches and tried not to knock each other over as waves crashed into the boat.
“Nice day for sailing, huh?” he said.
Nausea made me woozy, and I imagined my skin had to be about as green as Sweet Ray’s after a bender. But Morales looked like he was enjoying himself. After the tension from the night before, it was nice to see him more relaxed. However, I wasn’t fool enough to think it would last. Not only did we still not have any idea where Hung was, we were also about to be in a room with my uncle, who was really good at destroying a person’s chill.
“Why don’t you make yourself useful and distract me?” I said, hoping to keep the good mood going as long as possible.
He raised an eyebrow.
I swatted his arm. “Talk, I mean.”
“Oh,” he said, “all right. How about we talk about the fact Aphrodite’s wedding is tomorrow.”
“All right, I approve of that topic.” I sat up straighter. “What are the chances it’s going to be a clusterfuck?”
“Pretty high, I’d say.”
“When I mentioned it to Baba, she said that on one of her daytime talk shows, a woman married herself because she thought all guys were jerks.”
“Why didn’t she just marry another woman?”
“I asked the same thing,” I said. “According to Baba, the lady didn’t want to, and I quote, ‘chomp bush.’”
He snorted. “Were those the lady’s words or Baba’s?”
“Baba’s.”
“Naturally. Although, honestly, don’t knock it until you’ve tried it.”
I couldn’t take a stance on that one, so I let it sail by. “In alchemy, the sacred marriage is the holy union of the sun and the moon. It’s a symbolic deal that represents the communion of female and masculine aspect to create the Lesser Stone.”
“Well, that certainly applies literally in this case, since Aphrodite is marrying her male and female sides to each other.”
“Yes, it’ll be a big deal for the covens. Aphrodite is already pretty revered for being a sacred hermaphrodite. Once they’re married, though, they’ll ascend to a higher state of respect. Like a guru or whatever.”
“Can you imagine how insufferable they’ll be then?”
“No shit. Although, I have to question how enlightened a glorified pimp can actually become.”
“Especially one that still has a thriving poison garden,” he added. “Any idea what the ceremony will be like?”
I shook my head. “The invitation said it’ll be at the old Orpheum Theater, so it’s bound to be quite a to do.”
“I don’t know the Orpheum.”
“Used to be a big deal when the town was booming. Real ornate and all that. But after the steel mills closed, no one wanted to go see the opera. It sat abandoned for years, but you-know-who arranged for some company to buy it last year. They’ve been renovating it to use for concerts and events.”
“You-know-who?” he prompted.
“The mayor.”
“Ah.” He plucked at the edge of his sleeve. “So, you never told me what else he said last night besides trying to give an alibi to Hung and Yü Nü.”
I looked out the window to the stormy lake. “He made some vague threats about pulling us off the case if we hassled them.”
“Good.”
Shocked, I pulled my gaze from the window. “How do you figure?”
“Let him try to explain obstructing our case in court. We really should sit down and write up all these instances for use down the road. It’s only a matter of time until he’s going down.”
“Good idea.” I swallowed and looked down at my hands. I’d had a few months to tell Morales about the gun. On the night I’d taken it, things had been really crazy and Morales didn’t see me make the decision not to toss it in the lake. I’d had plenty of opportunity to tell him about it since, but I held back. I told myself it was because I knew once he found out, he’d be angling to make a case against Volos ASAP. I felt it was too soon, since Volos had dirt on us, too. We had to wait until we had something huge to use, and then the gun could be just another nail in the coffin.
But now I realized there was another reason I hadn’t told my partner. Hell, I’d barely admitted it to myself. As much as I hated John Volos, I knew he was better than whatever would replace him. As shady as he could be, he’d done a lot for Adepts in Babylon. If we took him down now, it would confirm for a lot of old-school Mundanes what they’d already suspected—all Adepts are criminals.
Morales bumped my shoulder. “I wonder if he’ll be at the wedding,” he said, unaware of my woolgathering. “Can you imagine? The mayor attending the self-wedding of a hermaphrodite who runs a brothel.”
“Actually,” I said, “it’s not that farfetched. The Adept community will see this as a big deal. Dirty magic or no, a sacred hermaphrodite is revered by all Adepts, regardless of whether they’re trained in the alchemical traditions or not. If he didn’t go, it would be noticed.”
“But the Mundane community will notice if he does go, and not in a good way.” Morales shrugged. “Regardless, I hope we’re at different tables at the reception. That guy seriously ruins my appetite.”
The boat’s motor downshifted, saving me from responding. I looked up to see the cliffs that held the prison looming. The driving rain softened the edges but intensified the feeling of gloom that hung over the place.
The boat bumped into the dock, shifting my weight into him. His hands came up to steady me. For a minute, I allowed my weight to settle against him.
“You okay?” he asked into my hair.
I nodded. “Yeah,” I lied. Visiting my uncle always felt like entering psychological warfare.
“Good.” He gently eased away and rose, holding out a hand to help me up. “Because it’s showtime.”
* * *
Half an hour later, we cleared the security gauntlet and were shown to the interview room. Since Abe had a restraining order against me, I was required to stay a certain number of feet away from him. This meant Morales would be taking lead on the conversation, and I’d be stuck behind a two-way mirror, watching. There was an intercom in the room I was in, so I could ask questions, but it put me at a disadvantage, which was exactly what my uncle wanted.
Even though I hated the necessity of being stuck behind glass, I was kind of relieved Morales had to take the lead on this. Facing down Uncle Able always took every one of my wits. Abraxas Prospero hadn’t stayed on top of the dirty-magic food chain in Babylon as long as he had by being an idiot.
The interview room door opened, and two guards led in the prisoner. He wore an orange jumpsuit and a pair of white canvas sneakers with manacles
clamped around his ankles. His hands were cuffed too, and attached to a length of chain looped around his waist. His white hair had thinned out a little more since the last time I’d seen him, and his bald spot had grown a little larger. But his eyes were still as bright and dangerously cunning as they’d ever been.
“Special Agent Morales,” he said, “this is a pleasant surprise.”
“I wish I could say the same, Abe.”
My uncle didn’t react to the barb. “And shall I assume that my prodigal niece is ensconced behind the mirror.” He faced the mirror, almost exactly where I was standing. “Hello, Katie Girl. It’s a shame you can’t join us.” The words dripped with cheerful scorn.
I pressed the intercom button. “Remove the restraining order and I can.”
“And risk you losing your temper again and attacking me?” He laughed. “We’re all safer this way.”
Morales held out a hand. “Please sit.”
“Actually, we have another party joining us.”
Morales glanced at the mirror. I shrugged even though he couldn’t see me. “Who is it?” I asked over the intercom.
“An old friend,” he said. “But while we wait, why don’t you tell me how Danny’s doing? He’s what—a sophomore now?”
“Yeah, we’re not having that conversation.”
As if I hadn’t spoken, he continued, “I do hope you’re seeing to his magical education.”
It was one thing for Baba or Pen to butt in and tell me what to do about Danny’s schooling. But Uncle Abe was a whole other level of nope.
So, I decided to fuck with him. “Actually, Danny’s decided to live life as a Mundane. He’s even been training himself to write with his right hand.”
A thunderstorm crossed Abe’s face. “Over my dead body. That boy has too much inherent talent to squander on a Mundane existence.”
“He said he couldn’t stomach doing magic because it reminds him too much of our family’s shameful past.”
Morales’s grin was all teeth as leaned back in his chair, enjoying the sparring match.
“That’s your brainwashing talking, Katherine,” Abe said through clenched teeth.