by Gina LaManna
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” He dug in his pocket, pulled out some coins, and slid them onto the counter. “If it makes you uncomfortable, I can take the pizza elsewhere, or I can grab a SandWitch before I head home.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.” I swiped the coins from the counter and put them back in his hand. “You’re not buying your own pizza after you just fed me an amazing meal.”
Willa was busy chopping behind the counter, but if her eyebrows inched any higher, they’d be lost on top of her head.
“Come over here.” I grabbed Grey’s sleeve and tried to pull him, but he didn’t budge. Eventually, I went and sat down in a corner booth until he joined me. “What do you think you’re doing?”
Grey shrugged. “I’m starving.”
“Right.”
He laughed, sat back in the chair. “What do you want me to say? I have a feeling you wouldn’t like it if I said I wanted to spend more time with you.”
My back went rigid at his confession. “You wanted to—”
“I was having a great afternoon,” he said easily. “But changing in and out of my other form requires loads of energy. I’m starving, Detective, I just need some calories before I hit the road again—I swear. You can forget the lecture about us being just friends because I get it.”
The lecture—though I wouldn’t call it a lecture—had been on the tip of my tongue. I was a bit embarrassed to realize that he’d sensed it. “It wasn’t a lecture.”
He rolled his eyes to the ceiling. “Grey, I really like you,” he mimicked gently, “but I don’t want you to get the wrong idea. Look—I get it, okay? Trust me on this.”
My jaw dropped open.
“Can we move on now?” he asked with that amused grin playing over his features. “I’m not trying to start anything. I’m hungry and I enjoy your company. It’s that simple.”
“Nothing’s ever that simple.”
“I am.” Grey leaned further forward until our heads were bowed together over the table. “I’m not a liar, Detective. If I tell you something, I mean it.”
“Will you please call me Dani?”
He gave a light laugh. “Do we have ourselves a deal, Dani?”
“Erhm—”
“Detective,” Willa interrupted, sliding a piping hot pizza onto the table. “Can I speak with you a moment in private?”
I gave a longing glance at the pizza, suddenly hungrier than I expected. “Sure,” I said mournfully. I stood and followed Willa into the kitchen. I waited as she flipped her hair and paced back and forth, working up the courage to say what she wanted to say.
“What was that?” she finally burst. “What is that?”
“What are you talking about?”
“You and Grey! Are you interested in him? I thought—what about Matthew?”
I gave another huge sigh. “It’s nothing like that. I had a rough interview this morning on a case, and then I saw someone in the marketplace that really spooked me. Grey happened to run into me, and I guess I needed to talk to someone. He’s a good listener. A good friend. That’s all, Willa.”
“You could’ve talked to me.” Willa sounded hurt. “I know I’m not all supernaturally badass, but I’m your friend.”
“I was on my way to talk to you when he intercepted me,” I said quickly. “I promise. We grabbed a bite to eat. That’s it.”
“Well, I think you’re plain silly if you think Grey won’t want more at some point,” Willa said with a raised eyebrow. “What will you tell him then?”
“He won’t. I made my expectations clear from the start.”
“The heart wants what it wants, Dani,” she said. “Once he starts to heal from his loss and move on, he’s going to see you differently. I’m just looking out for you, hon. You’re going to have to make a choice at some point, and I want you to be prepared.”
“A choice?”
“Matthew’s not going anywhere.” Willa gave me a sympathetic look. “I’m just saying, you’ll have some thinking to do. It won’t be easy.”
“I don’t want to have to decide anything!” I stopped abruptly. “I mean, I want both of them in my life as friends. I love Matthew, and I always will. Grey has been there for me when I needed him too, on more than one occasion. Maybe I can just stay single for life and have two great male best friends.”
“Yep, that sounds healthy.”
“Willa—”
“I spoke my piece, now you can get back to mucking up your own love life. I’ll just leave it on this note: If you don’t choose one, you might lose both. I’d advise you to do some thinking about what you really want.”
I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. It’d been a long time since I thought about myself at all—I normally tried to do exactly the opposite. “I don’t know what I want.”
“Look, I know you hate all forms of self-reflection, but it’s necessary.”
“I prefer to shove my feelings into a trunk and lock it.”
“And set it on fire and bury it in the ocean.” Willa grinned. “I know. Good thing I’m here, full of advice whenever you want to talk.”
I grinned at her. “Thanks, Willa—I know you are. You’re my best friend.”
At that, she tittered and clapped her hands, giving a little jump of glee. “I was hoping you’d say that! Took you bloody long enough!”
I laughed and accepted her overzealous hug. “Thanks for your advice.”
“One more thing—what spooked you so badly that you had to run off with Grey for an afternoon?”
“I ran into someone from my past,” I said. “It brought up some old issues.”
“Does it have to do with your awful ex?” Willa didn’t know all the details, but she knew enough. “Isn’t he...”
“He’s dead,” I confirmed. “It wasn’t him—it was his mother. She looked—well, she looked horrible. She was all shriveled in on herself and sad. Withered, as if she’d lost any hope that’d been keeping her going. I just knew I had a part in that. I’d...well, because of me, her son is dead.”
“Listen, Dani, please,” Willa said, her voice taking on a soft, soothing hum. “I don’t know everything that happened that night. Your ex sounded like an awful, awful guy, and I imagine you had to turn him in.”
“Something like that.”
“You reacted like a cop when you saw his true colors. Now, you’re mourning him like a girlfriend. You can’t do that, Detective. You can’t feel guilty over his actions because you thought he loved you. You have to allow yourself to move on like you would with any of your other cases and put it behind you.”
“But—”
“If you want my real opinion, you don’t belong here,” Willa said with a smile. “You belong out there, saving the world from evil. It’s what you were born to do. Hell, you already have a badge in your back pocket! Leave the pizza to people like me. Don’t let past ghosts ruin your present.”
I was stumbling for a response when Jack burst into the kitchen, clearly oblivious to the private nature of our conversation. His face was red, and the neckline on his T-shirt was damp from sweat. “What are you two gossiping about? I’m getting killed out there—it’s the early dinner hour. A little help?”
Jack popped back out as quickly as he’d popped in, leaving the room in a touchy silence. “Thank you,” I said finally. “I appreciate your advice.”
Willa shrugged. “Just think about what I said.”
“Fine,” I said, and then frowned. “Wait a second, didn’t I hire someone else to be here? Why is Jack alone out there?”
“Oh, right! Jimmy. He had to go,” Willa said, her face pinched. “We got a Comm around the lunch hour that his grandmother passed away. I figured you wouldn’t mind if I sent him home—he felt really bad about leaving.”
“Of course. I’m so sorry for him—I’ll have to send a card.”
“We already did,” Willa said with a tight grin. “And flowers, and a few chocolates. I hope you don’t mind—I used some
cash from the drawer.”
I clapped Willa on the shoulder. “Thank you. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
She gave a pleased bob of her head, then scurried behind the counter to help Jack while she shooed me off to finish my conversation with Grey.
“Sorry about that,” I said, sliding into the booth. “Unfortunately—or fortunately, I suppose—the place is getting busy, and we had one of our staff duck out early today. I’m going to head behind the counter and help.”
“I figured.” Grey pushed the pizza box toward me. There was exactly one tiny little slice left in it. “Saved you a piece.”
“Gee whiz, thanks for that. I’ll tell you what—you finish that one, and I’ll grab a hot slice later that doesn’t have wolf bitemarks in the sides.”
He gave a low chuckle but didn’t argue. Swiping the piece into his huge hand, he polished it off in two bites. “That was delicious. Thanks for the pizza. I guess I should be going now.”
“Thanks again for everything,” I said. “I mean it. You were a great friend today.”
“Friend.” He stood, gave me a knowing look. “Don’t patronize me. I know where we stand.”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it like that.”
“Sure you did.”
“I’m sorry,” I said again.
“Don’t be. Trust me—I know where we stand. If I get sick of it, I’ll let you know.” He grinned. “I’ll always be honest with you, Dani. I promise.”
“Are you sick of me yet?”
“Not even close.”
As we stepped outside the pizzeria, we slipped into that comfortable mode again. The one where we chatted without effort and felt completely in sync.
“Did you know Lucia Livingston?”
Grey turned to me. “I assume she’s the one you’re looking for?”
“She’s a Reserve—took my spot.”
“I know of her,” Grey said. “I didn’t know her well.”
“You haven’t seen her?”
“Not for a few weeks. I met her once—she’s got blonde hair, attractive, about this tall? Bit of an attitude?” He gestured to a short height, and I nodded. “She came in asking questions at the Howler a couple months ago when I was visiting Lorraine.”
We both flinched at her name. Grey did a better job of moving forward than I did.
“I don’t remember who she was looking into, but I can ask around if that might help,” he said. “Anything else I can do for you?”
“That’s plenty, thank you.”
“I have contacts in The Depth and on The Isle,” Grey said. “Brothers. If they’ve heard anything, I’ll let you know.”
With that, he was gone.
My Comm buzzed with an incoming message from the vampire in my life, which sent my pulse racing once more. At times, I still reeled from the loss of our relationship. When I missed him, it came with an ache that tore my stomach in two.
“Yes?” I said, organizing my voice into a clipped, professional tone. “This is Dani.”
“Detective,” Matthew’s velvety voice rolled over the line. “I’m sorry to bother you, but I need you at the morgue. If you’re willing.”
“I’ll be there,” I said, and snapped off the Comm.
I slipped back inside the pizzeria and explained the situation to Jack and Willa while simultaneously promising to hire more help. At least until I turned my badge back in—once and for all.
I made it to the morgue in record time, flying on fumes of frustrated self-reflection. Could I turn my badge in for good, or was I one step away from letting the chief sign me on full time? What did Grey really want from our friendship? And where did Matthew and I stand? Willa had really gotten to me with all of her psychology mumbo jumbo. I pushed it away as I strode into the morgue and straight to the front desk.
“Ursula,” I said, greeting the odd monster who worked as Sienna’s receptionist. “I think Sienna’s expecting me.”
“Take the badge, go on back.” She handed me an ID sticker enchanted with a Wandering Warden—a nifty little spell that would prevent me from going into restricted areas. “The vamp’s already there.”
“You mean Captain King,” I said dryly.
“Whatever.”
It irritated me to no end that even people within law enforcement merely saw Matthew as a vampire, and not the best detective the precinct had ever seen. For now, I let it drop and brushed past Ursula’s desk.
I found Sienna and Matthew waiting for me just outside the door to the lab where Sienna normally worked. She had on her customary badass outfit with torn black jeans and a highlighter pink shirt that used the wrong letter to spell witch. She had on a ballcap that hung low over her eyes, and she leaned her painfully thin form against the wall with a sullen expression on her face.
“What’s wrong?” I forgot my customary greeting at the sight of her face. “Captain?”
As I turned to Matthew, I found a second pair of eyes staring grimly at me. A bolt of fury darted across Matthew’s face, and for a moment, I thought it related to the case. Then, he spoke and proved me wrong.
“How’s Grey?” Matthew wrinkled his nose. “You smell awful.”
“What’s wrong? Why did you call me?” I asked, ignoring his comment.
“I’m pissed,” Sienna said, straightening and pulling the ball cap lower over her face. “Someone got into my lab.”
“I don’t understand,” I said.
“Neither do we,” she said. “All I know is that two bodies are missing. I had two bodies here—in my morgue—perfectly dead. Now, they’re gone, and I don’t freaking like when my bodies go missing. I’m going to strangle the person who did this so quickly they’ll be another body...and I’ll make theirs disappear.”
I shuddered, getting the sense that at some underlying level, Sienna meant the threat exactly as she said it.
“So tell me, Reserve,” Sienna drawled, watching me carefully. “What do you see in those Residuals of yours? How did someone steal the dead?”
Chapter 6
Matthew regretted the crack he’d made about Grey instantly. With a furious shudder, he swallowed back a more biting remark about the wolf easing into his territory, knowing it would only serve to piss off the detective.
After all, the name of the game here was Danielle DeMarco: she was the prize, and Grey had no business being in the same arena as him. The only problem? This wasn’t a game, and Dani wasn’t something to be won—so why did Matthew feel like he was losing her?
As Dani leaned against the wall and listened to the necromancer give her little speech about bodies disappearing, Matthew focused in on Dani with laser sharp senses. He detected wolf—all over her clothes. That was a lot of Grey to deal with, he thought, wondering how his smell had permeated every inch of her attire.
Then there were the subtle notes of fields and dirt, of pollen found on flowers that bloomed so deep into The Depth that Dani couldn’t possibly have gone there herself. Had the bastard picked her a damn bouquet?
“Where were you?” Matthew growled, reaching out a hand to stop Dani from entering Sienna’s lab as the necromancer disappeared inside, leaving him alone with the detective. “You smell awful.”
“Gee whiz, thanks. You’ve already said that. At least my cologne’s not purple.”
Matthew raised an eyebrow. “Is it?”
Dani made an adorable startled sound, took a step back and surveyed him. A grin crept over her face. “You changed up your Spell Splash.”
“I couldn’t have purple Residuals. What color am I now?”
She gave a sweet little smile. “That’s for me to know and you to find out.”
“Danielle!”
“That’s detective to you, Captain,” she grinned brighter. “Come on, let’s go find out where these bodies are hiding.”
Matthew noticed that she didn’t specifically answer any of his questions about Grey or her whereabouts. It was late in the afternoon and Matthew hadn’t registered Dani a
nywhere on his radar all day, which had him wondering if she’d spent all that time with the wolf. Why? For what purpose? It was none of his business where Dani had gone, but still. It mattered.
“Will you stop with the canoodling and get over here?” Sienna yanked open an empty drawer. “Detective, what do you have for Residuals?”
The playful smirk wiped off Dani’s face in an instant. She took careful steps toward the recently vacated drawer, studying every inch of space around it. Her eyes squinted, and Matthew caught the slightest tinge of violet as her focus leapt toward a new level.
The violet in her eyes was his favorite thing about her—the streak of passion, of determination. It came out in times of deep concentration or wild abandon—and rarely in between. This evening there was just a hint of it, but it was enough to get Matthew’s pulse pounding.
“How many bodies are gone?” Dani asked, running her fingers along the edges. “When did they go missing?”
“There have been three bodies in my lab over the last three weeks for which I haven’t been able to determine a cause of death,” Sienna said. “It appears to me that these folks just...stopped living. They were otherwise healthy. Two of them were over the age of fifty, but again—that’s not a death sentence.”
“You had three bodies,” Dani said, deep in thought. “Can I get a list of their names?”
Sienna had anticipated the question and handed over a sheet of paper. Then she extended another, waving it slightly to indicate its importance. “I also figured you would want a list of everyone who’s been to the morgue this month, so have at it. Ursula pulled the sign-in list.”
Dani’s eyes skimmed over the sheet of paper. “This is basically a list of every homicide and narcotics detective on the force.” Her eyebrows furrowed in concentration. “That’s not very helpful.”
“You’ll see there are three names I’ve highlighted.” Sienna looked smug. “I knew you’d say that, Detective.”
From a distance, Matthew couldn’t tell if the women were friendly and competitive, or just competitive. There was mutual respect between them, he could see that—Sienna lost a hint of her snark when talking to the detective, and Dani didn’t waste the necromancer’s time. Matthew stood back and let the women work in their own groove, studying them both, soaking in the information as it came his way.