by Skye Knizley
“How did I miss those?” Pocock asked.
“Don’t worry about it. Get photos and have someone sketch them, then see if you can do a rubbing. The blood might still be wet enough,” Raven said.
Pocock nodded. “Yes ma’am. There are some other techniques I can try, too, I’ll get on it before we move the body.”
Levac pulled out his notebook. “I’ll sketch them too, maybe Marie or MacLeod can help identify the symbols.”
“Thanks, Rupe, you’re a better artist than I am.”
Raven turned her attention from the strange runes back to the woman’s shoes. They were pricey and looked new. There were no creases in the leather from extended wear or toe imprints in the sole and the manufacturer’s stamp was still visible in the arch.
She donned a pair of gloves and picked up the left shoe. To her sensitive nose it still smelled of new leather. But there was something else, the scent of new leather was mixed with the strange odor she’d detected before. She turned the shoe over and took a closer look at the sole. It was scuffed, though only lightly, and there were traces of something white in the scuffs.
She put the shoe in an evidence bag and checked its mate, which was oddly free of the white residue. She signed both evidence bags and set them aside.
“Harvey, check the sole of the left shoe, I need whatever is stuck in the sole processed. She stepped in something before she died, I want to know what,” Raven said.
Pocock was on his phone. He nodded and Raven could tell he was speaking with a sketch artist, telling him to come down right away. He ended the call and looked back at Raven.
“I’ll get on it. If you need a rush I can send it to Aspen’s lab.”
Raven looked back at the victim and the raw, weeping flesh where her face should have been. “Do it. Send a courier and have it and anything else weird sent to her lab. She isn’t backed up like you are.”
Pocock sucked on his teeth. “This whole damn thing is weird−”
“You know what I mean!” Raven snapped.
Pocock stepped back. “Yeah, I know. I’m on it, Ray.”
Raven turned away and almost walked into Levac, who waved his notebook. “I have the symbols. Some of them look familiar, but I can’t place them.”
“I’ll run them by Marie and see if she can come up with anything,” Raven said.
Levac tore the page from his book and offered it to her. “What are you thinking?”
Raven slipped the piece of paper into her pocket. “She wasn’t killed here, I’d bet my badge on it. Did you find anything in the receipts?”
Levac shrugged. “A couple taxi slips, but nothing anywhere near here. The GPS locations are Old Town and the hotel. I also found receipts for the Night Shift and Club Purgatory.”
Raven rolled her eyes. “Why does everyone who comes to Chicago go to Old Town? We have museums, a beautiful lake, some of the tallest buildings in the world, but no. Everyone goes to Old Town to see the damn monsters. Did she go anywhere else?”
Levac consulted his notebook. “The Green Mill, The Donut Vault and Tarsi’s. It looks like she has a taste for good food and booze.”
Raven cocked her head. “Does anything about that strike you as odd?”
Levac’s brows knit and he looked at the notes. “Now you mention it, yes. It was our Donut Vault, we had a case at the Green Mill and Tarsi’s is your favorite Italian place.”
“And she was staying at Elysium where we found Hellsey on our first case ever,” Raven added.
“That’s one hell of a coincidence.”
Raven turned toward her car. “You know I don’t believe in coincidences. Are you coming?”
Levac gestured at the FBI sedan. “What about my car?”
Raven shrugged. “We’ll get it later or you can send Styles for it.”
Levac slapped his notepad in his hand and grinned. “You mean I get to ride in the Shelby again? I’m all giddy!”
“Keep it up and you’re walking,” Raven said.
She slid behind the wheel and waited for him to join her. She’d never admit it, but it did feel good to be home and back on the job with Levac at her side.
He dropped into the passenger seat and Raven started the engine. The door was barely closed when she pulled away from the curb in a roar of V8 power and a squeal of tires.
CHAPTER TWO
300 North Wabash, Chicago, IL
The Elysium Hotel had been constructed with an eye toward Greek mythology and the architecture of ancient Greece. The entrance was flanked by white and gold marble pillars and statues of Achelois and Aphrodite holding cups that held fresh flowers. The theme continued through the doors into a spacious lobby that, during the day, was bathed in sunlight from the wide windows that looked out on the city and faux windows containing high definition screens that showed fluffy white clouds and the distant pillars of Olympus.
Placed throughout the lobby were leather chairs far less comfortable than they looked, fireplaces made of marble and semi-private desks where guests could utilize the free wifi and coffee shared during the day.
Raven thought it was the tackiest display of wealth she’d ever seen. The only people who stayed there were business travelers on the company’s dime and people who thought having money meant looking like they had money.
She stopped at the reception desk, another techno-disaster covered in fake marble, and placed Domino Carmichael’s key and her badge on the counter. “Good evening, could you tell me what room this goes to, please?”
The white-gloved clerk arched an eyebrow and picked up the badge. “Detective Storm, I see you’re still bothering guests without a warrant. What is this about?”
Raven looked at him. Same annoying mustache, same slicked hair…he’d been on duty back when Strohm was trying to take back the city.
“It’s Agent Storm, now. The key belonged to a murder victim, we’d like to see her room and bill, if you please,” she said.
Levac joined her and offered the clerk an encouraging smile. “We’d appreciate any help you can give us, sir.”
“My apologies, but I was demoted for letting you in last time without a warrant. Do you have one?” the clerk asked.
Raven rolled her eyes. “I don’t need a warrant unless there is someone other than the victim attached to the room. She’s dead, someone already infringed on her rights, give me the damn room number!”
“Please, can you help us out, sir?” Levac added.
The clerk swallowed, Raven saw his Adam’s apple go up and down. He then picked up the key and ran it through a machine below the desk.
“My apologies, Agents, it will just be a moment… ah here we have it. Ms. Carmichael, she has a suite on the fortieth floor.”
He handed the key back. “Is there anything else I can do?”
Raven picked up the key and tapped it on the desk. “Thank you, yes. Can we get a printout of the charges?”
“Of course, Agent Storm, when you provide a warrant,” the clerk said.
Levac cocked his head. “Why is that?”
The clerk’s smile returned. “The room is being paid for by a third party. I can allow you into the room, you have lawful possession of a key and the argument would be moot. But I need not share additional information, I already jeopardized my position and I will not do so again.”
Raven looked at him. This time, really looked. There was something about him she couldn’t place. Then she felt it.
“Whose familiar are you?” Raven asked.
The clerk flinched. “I beg your pardon?”
Raven leaned forward and let her power show in her eyes. “It was a simple question, who’s treating you like their very own burger van?”
The clerk stepped back and held up his hands. “No one! I have no idea what you’re talking about!”
Raven glared at him. �
�I can smell it on you, taste it when you breathe. You have instructions not to share information with me, who gave them?”
The clerk still didn’t respond. Raven leaned forward and let her full power show. “Maybe you don’t know how stupid you’re being. My name is Ravenel Tempeste of the House Tempeste, does that ring any bells?”
The clerk’s face paled and his mouth fell open. When he found his voice it was barely a whisper, “Fürstin Ravenel, I had no idea it was you, I’d heard you’d left town−”
“It was temporary. I’m back and now I’m annoyed. Who is your Master?”
The clerk lowered his hands. “I am the blood-property of Lady Wallgrave.”
Raven blinked. “Who the hell is that?”
The clerk shrugged. “That I cannot answer, Mi ‘lady. I would ask that you speak with her, but she is out of town at this time.”
“And she told you not to share information with the authorities?” Levac asked.
The clerk spread his hands. “Not as such, Agent Levac. This is her hotel, all of the staff have strict instructions regarding the privacy of guests. She prides herself on offering confidential accommodations to anyone who needs them.”
“That explains a lot,” Raven said. “They certainly don’t stay here for the décor. How many vampires are here?”
Levac coughed and gave Raven a meaningful look. She glanced over her shoulder and saw an elderly couple not far away. A very human couple. Raven smiled at them and turned back to the clerk.
“Good talk. My partner and I are going to check out the room, we’ll be back for that printout.”
She put her badge back around her neck, smiled at the couple and crossed the elevators with Levac close behind.
Inside, the elevator shared the same tasteless faux marble and gold theme as the lobby, along with a screen that showed the gates of Olympus as if they were right outside.
“What do you think?” Levac asked. “Is this Lady Wallgrave involved?”
Raven shook her head. “This wasn’t a vamp kill, the vic had too much blood in her veins. Still, I’ll have to look into her, I’m not aware of anyone having authority to open a sanctuary outside Old Town. If someone is operating under the radar, Mother needs to know.”
Levac leaned against the wall. “You think she doesn’t know? Your mom is pretty on the ball, Ray, and this place has been in operation for a few years now.”
“I’m not sure, I know that the clerk wasn’t a familiar last time we talked, so this could be a new development.”
The doors opened with a chime that made Raven’s teeth itch. She stepped into the white and gold-painted hallway and strode toward Carmichael’s room. She knocked first, in case there was anyone sharing the room, then slipped the key in the slot. The magnetic lock clicked and she pushed through into a plush suite that cost a thousand bucks a day if it cost a dollar. The entryway opened into a spacious area with a desk, wet bar and walk-out porch that gave a spectacular view of the city.
Beyond the small office was the bedroom and bath along with a small sitting room. The bed was neatly made and the bathroom had been cleaned and was organized by someone who alphabetized everything, left to right. Toiletries, feminine care and cosmetics were all laid out on the wide counter atop a towel in a way that, for some reason, made Raven’s skin crawl.
“How does a defense attorney afford all this?” Levac asked from beside the bed.
Raven glanced at him and saw that he was holding a pair of red-soled shoes that cost as much as the room did.
“I haven’t a clue, Rupe. What did her file say?”
Levac pulled his notebook back out and leafed through the pages. “Not much, really. She graduated from Arizona State, both undergrad and law degree, she passed the bar about four years ago and went to work as a public defender. She has a clean record with only a handful of traffic tickets, nothing out of place at all.”
Raven shook her head. “Yet she’s spending a thousand dollars a day in a vampire-owned hotel. It doesn’t add up.”
Levac raised an envelope he’d found in the nightstand next to a Gideon-provided Bible. “This might.”
The envelope was black velveteen with a red interior. There was no address on the outside, but inside was a slip of expensive paper that Levac unfolded and held up.
“Congratulations, you are the winner of an all-expenses paid trip to Chicago’s biggest Halloween party and alternate reality game. Your flight leaves in six hours, tickets are enclosed. You will be met at the airport and, upon arrival will be in-game for the next five days,” he read. “Good luck.”
“What the hell is an alternate reality game?” Raven asked.
Levac shrugged. “They are sort of like role-playing games, interactive games that take place in the real world, but use a false narrative and facts.”
Raven was blank. “Why?”
Levac laughed. “Because games are fun? Life isn’t just about catching the bad guys, Ray. You played games as a kid, right?”
Raven made a face. “Some. I played a little Tunnels and Tolls or whatever, Monopoly, that kind of stuff, nothing that included a thousand dollar hotel room.” She waved her hands at everything around them. “Do most of these games include all-expenses paid?”
Levac shook his head and put the invitation in an evidence bag. “No. They might involve some cosplay and scavenger hunts, but I’ve never heard of anything like this.”
Raven’s sarcastic reply was interrupted by a crash from outside followed by the sound of the room’s door opening and footsteps receding down the hallway. Raven bolted for the door, pistol in hand. The closet, a small space between the desk and main door, stood open. The courtesy clothing hangers, the type so specialized they didn’t work anywhere but hotels, lay in a jumble on the floor along with a few thousand dollars’ worth of clothing. Raven stepped over the mess and ran into the hallway. Her sensitive ears picked up the sound of footsteps in the stairwell and she followed, yelling “call for backup!” over her shoulder.
She crashed through the door at the end of the hallway and stopped, her weapon pointed ahead of her. It was a typical set of hotel fire stairs made of metal and painted safety white with orange stripes for visibility in low light conditions. Raven moved toward the stairs going down then realized the footsteps were above her. She vaulted the railing with one hand and pounded up the stairs in pursuit. She climbed three flights before the footsteps echoed below. Somehow the suspect had gotten behind her, either by squirming between the rails or some eldritch means. Raven turned and leapt down the stairs two at a time, her anger rising.
You’re going to pay for making me run.
Two floors down, she caught sight of the perp. It was a young Hispanic man wearing a black leather jacket. He crashed through the fire door and pounded away with Raven close behind.
“Halt! Police!” she yelled.
The figure didn’t slow, he just kept running, to disappear around the next corner. Raven swore and ran after him, her vampire glowing in her eyes. She rounded the corner and spotted the man in the jacket not too far ahead. He’d scooped up a fire extinguisher and was holding it in front of him. At first, Raven thought he was going to use it as a weapon and she readied herself to block and return fire, but instead he threw it at the window at the end of the hall. The window exploded outward and he followed, seemingly unafraid of the drop on the other side.
Raven followed, her mind racing. What kind of preternatural could survive a four hundred foot fall?
She reached the end and stopped. The change in pressure was causing the drapes to flap in the wind and she could hear the distant sounds of the city. She looked out and spotted the perp on the next roof, only twenty feet down. He picked himself up and gave Raven a jaunty wave before walking toward an access door. Raven growled and launched herself after him, for once not even feeling her gut-wrenching fear of heights. She made a thr
ee point landing on the roof just outside the door and followed.
Ahead, the perp was whistling and taking his time, unaware Raven was behind him. By the time he realized, she was right behind him. He looked over his shoulder in surprise and Raven slammed him bodily into the wall.
“You’re under arrest,” she snarled.
“Hey! Not so rough, lady!” He moaned. “I didn’t do nothin’!”
Raven recognized the voice and spun the man around so she could see his face. “Paco?”
Paco’s face creased in a smile. “’Sup Vamp-chick? Man, am I glad it’s you, know what I’m sayin’? I thought it was the cops.”
Raven let him go and stepped back. “This is way outside your turf, what the hell were you doing in Domino Carmichael’s room?”
Paco ran a hand through his sweaty hair and retrieved a cigarette from behind his ear. He lit it with a snap of his fingers as he talked. “Check it out, yo. That Carmichael chick? She got me off a profiling rap in Arizona a few years back. Some fat-ass cop decided I was an illegal and planted drugs in my ride. You know I don’t do that shit.”
“Paco, you just made me run and jump out a forty story window, get to the damn point!” Raven snapped.
Paco straightened his jacket and exhaled a cloud of smoke. “Right, right, sorry Chica. Okay, so she called me a few weeks ago and said she would be in town. You know the Love Machine and the hotties, we hit it off back in the A-Z, I thought she wanted more lovin,’ yeah?”
“But that wasn’t why she called you.”
Paco took a drag of his cigarette and exhaled through his nose. “Nah, she didn’t want the Love Machine. Dom was here for some kind of game, yo. She wanted to talk about it, see what I knew ‘bout the game and show her around Chi-Town. Only when I showed up to meet her at Club Purgatory, she was with some dude and wasn’t interested in talking. I put her in rearview and hit the street.”
Raven frowned and leaned against the wall. “So why did I just find you in her room? What are you doing here?”
“Look Chica, I don’t want to get anyone in trouble…”