Grim Offerings (Aisling Grimlock Book 2)

by Amanda M. Lee

  “This is Detective Andrea Black,” I said. “She’s … with Griffin.”

  “She’s my new partner,” Griffin corrected.

  “How new?”

  “Today is her first day,” Griffin said. He wagged his finger in my face. “And don’t go there. You’re the one in trouble today.”

  “She can’t be a police officer,” Redmond said, smiling. “She’s too lovely to be a police officer.”

  Andrea’s face flushed, a mixture of embarrassment and pleasure riding high on her sculpted cheekbones.

  Griffin scowled. “You people are unbelievable.”

  “Mr. Grimlock, can you tell me why you were meeting your sister here?”

  Redmond’s smile remained in place. “She gets lost a lot,” he said. “She has a negative sense of direction. She couldn’t find her way out of a paper bag.”

  “That’s exactly what she said,” Andrea said.

  “Go figure,” Griffin said.

  “What’s your glitch?” Redmond asked, fixing Griffin with a dark look.

  “I’m pretty sure it’s your sister.”

  “You should thank your lucky stars she deigns to date you,” Redmond shot back.

  “Yes, that’s just what I was thinking.”

  “My sister is a catch.”

  “I didn’t say she wasn’t,” Griffin said. “I’m just considering whether I want to throw her back.” I stilled, his words hitting home. His face softened when he saw the change in my demeanor. “I’m just joking,” he said.

  “You shouldn’t joke about things like that,” Andrea said. “It’s not nice.”

  “It’s definitely not,” Redmond agreed. “See, your new partner has beauty and brains.”

  “You were supposed to be shopping with Jerry,” Griffin grumbled.

  “I’m supposed to meet him in an hour.”

  “She had a date with another man?” Andrea was confused.

  “Jerry is her roommate.”

  “And that doesn’t bother you?”

  “No,” Griffin said. “Jerry is in a relationship with … .”

  “Our brother,” Redmond supplied.

  “Oh,” Andrea said. “That’s very progressive.”

  “And annoying,” I interjected.

  “Okay, we need to get back on track,” Griffin said. “This whole thing is giving me a headache.”

  “Welcome to my world,” Redmond said. “Aisling could be a walking advertisement for aspirin.”

  “Hey!”

  “Detective Taylor is right,” Andrea said. “I just have a few more questions. Witnesses have already reported that you didn’t start down the alleyway until you heard the screams, so you’re not a suspect.”

  “Thankfully,” Griffin muttered.

  I ignored him. “He was already on the ground when I got there. There was another girl … .” I searched the crowd and pointed when I caught sight of her. “I asked her to call 911, and I just kind of … sat with him.”

  “Was he conscious?”

  “Yes.”

  “What did you do?”

  I stared down at my hands a moment. After the crime scene team collected forensic evidence I’d been allowed to wipe them off. There were still streaks of dried blood, though. “I tried to stop the bleeding. I knew it was too late, but … I didn’t know what else to do.”

  “You did the right thing,” Andrea said, her tone gentle. “Did he say anything?”

  “I asked his name,” I replied. “He said it was Grant Spencer.”

  “Did he say who attacked him?”

  “No,” I lied. “He seemed confused. He … just kind of died.”

  Redmond reached over and pulled me close. “That must have been horrible.”

  “It was.”

  Griffin studied us both for a moment, but remained silent.

  “Well, I think that’s all we need,” Andrea said. “I’m sure if I have further questions Detective Taylor has your number.”

  “I do,” Griffin said. “I’m just going to walk Aisling to her car. I’ll be back in a minute.”

  “I’ll stay and talk to Detective Black,” Redmond said.

  “Oh, no you won’t,” Griffin said, grabbing Redmond’s elbow. “You two have a lunch to get to.”

  Redmond scowled, but he let Griffin lead us across the street. Once we were out of earshot, Griffin unleashed a string of curses that would have made my father proud on a poor golf day. “What really happened?”

  “Just what I said.”

  “Was he on your list?”

  I shook my head.

  “So, why did he die?”

  “I have no idea,” I said.

  “Whatever happened, it screwed up the list,” Redmond said. “Spencer wasn’t supposed to die, and the guy who was supposed to die here is still alive. We don’t know what’s going on. We have to talk with Dad.”

  “He’s going to kill me.”

  “He is,” Redmond agreed. “He says he gave you very specific instructions.”

  “Well, I guess I’m going to remain his least favorite child for the foreseeable future.”

  Redmond smirked. “He still spoils you rotten. You’ll survive.”

  “Am I to assume you’ll be at Grimlock Manor this evening?” Griffin asked, his face unreadable.

  “I don’t see how I have much of a choice,” I said.

  “Okay,” Griffin said, glancing over his shoulder to take in the scene again. “I’ll find you there later.” He gave me a quick kiss, despite the eye daggers Redmond was silently shooting him. “Keep her out of trouble,” Griffin ordered.

  “Oh, yeah, task me with the impossible,” Redmond muttered.

  “I’m not joking,” Griffin said. “I’d like her in one piece. Dating her if she’s dead is going to be a problem.”

  “You could just not date her at all,” Redmond suggested.

  Griffin gave me a quick hug. “That’s not going to happen either,” he said. “You need to get over it.”

  I watched him stride back over to Andrea, a small smile playing at the corner of my lips.

  “Oh, you’re so mushy,” Redmond said. “It’s gross.”

  I pinched his arm. “You’re gross.”

  “No, you’re gross.”

  “You’re the grossest.”

  Redmond slung his arm across my shoulders. “We need to get out of here,” he said. “Whatever happened today was a total cluster of crap. We have to figure out what is going on, and how we can fix it.”

  “I just want to know why it keeps happening to me.”

  “I think it’s karma,” Redmond said.

  “What?”

  “It’s because you’re so gross.”

  “You’re gross.”

  “You’re both gross,” Griffin snapped. He was watching us from across the road, and he didn’t look pleased. “Don’t you two have somewhere to be?”

  I saluted. “Yes, sir.”

  Griffin fought the urge to smile, and lost. “Go home, please.”

  “You’ve got it, Detective Dinglefritz,” Redmond said.

  Griffin’s smile evaporated. “You people drive me crazy. You really do.”

  Seven

  “I can’t believe you’re blaming this on me!”

  My father was so angry his eyes practically glowed. He sat at his office desk, with my brothers scattered amongst the leather couches in the middle of the room, and he hadn’t stopped lambasting me since I walked into the house.

  Grimlock Manor isn’t really a house. It’s more a small castle on Grosse Pointe’s Lakeshore Drive. Even in a neighborhood teeming with big houses, Grimlock Manor stands out. It’s ostentatious, but beautiful.

  My father employs a full-time staff, and all of my brothers have remained under his roof. Of course, that might have something to do with the fact that he high-fives them when they expound on their sexual exploits. He loves to hear about them. On the flip side, he tried to lock me in my room for an entire month when I was eighteen when he
caught me making out with a boy in a car. There’s a real double standard in the Grimlock house, and it was on full display tonight.

  “What were you thinking?”

  “I was thinking that my client was running late,” I said. “I figured he was the one dying in the alley. In case you forgot, I did manage to collect a soul.”

  “One that wasn’t on the list,” Dad pointed out.

  “Technically it was on the list,” Cillian said, winking at me supportively. “It was just a late addition.”

  “Yeah, Dad, if you really think about it, Aisling was being overly diligent,” Braden offered. “She was a superstar today.”

  All of my brothers have the same features: strong jaw lines, striking eyes and sly grins. While Redmond and Braden opt to keep their hair at a medium length, Aidan crops his shorter, but Cillian’s is longer and flows around his shoulders. Even with the differences in hair length, they’re an impressive sight when gathered together. Since they appeared to be trying to take up my cause, I was doubly impressed with them this evening.

  My father didn’t feel the same way. “Stop making excuses for her.”

  “I’m not making an excuse,” Braden said. “What did you expect her to do?”

  “She should have called me.”

  “Yeah, because that would have gone over well,” Redmond said. “I’m sure you wouldn’t have yelled at her or anything.”

  “I don’t yell,” Dad snapped.

  “You always yell,” Cillian said.

  “Well … that’s neither here nor there,” Dad sputtered. “She ran into an alleyway, and she could have been hurt.”

  “She wasn’t, though,” Redmond pointed out.

  “There was a wraith there,” Dad said. “What would have happened if she had run into the wraith?”

  “She didn’t, though,” Redmond said, sighing. “She did what any of us would have done. She knew I was on the way. You can’t treat her differently because … .”

  Dad furrowed his brow. “Because of what?”

  “Because I’m a girl,” I finished.

  Dad sighed. “I’m not treating her differently because she’s a girl. She’s a trainee.”

  “Oh, whatever,” I scoffed.

  “You’re on thin ice, young lady.”

  “Oh, good, I didn’t miss the verbal sparring portion of the evening’s entertainment.” Griffin let himself into the office and headed straight for me. He gave me a quick kiss and hug, and then settled in one of the wingback chairs across from my father’s desk. “How much longer are you going to yell at her?”

  “Did you just enter my office without knocking?” Dad was flabbergasted. No one did that. Not even his children.

  “I heard the yelling from the hallway,” Griffin said, nonplussed. “The maid seemed too nervous to knock. I didn’t want you to lose your train of thought.”

  “See, he was being considerate.” I was understandably nervous.

  “You’re trying to distract me,” Dad said, shifting his attention back to me. “I want to know what you were thinking when you followed the sound of a scream down a dark alley?”

  “It wasn’t dark.”

  “Don’t make me ground you,” Dad warned.

  “I don’t live here.”

  “That won’t stop me from grounding you.”

  Redmond snickered. “He’s always wanted to use that dungeon in the basement.”

  Griffin’s eyes lit up with interest. “You have a dungeon here?”

  “Yeah, we were all threatened with it when we were kids,” Cillian said.

  “Can we forget about the dungeon?” Dad snapped. “Well, not you Aisling. You might have to spend the night in there.”

  “She’s got a date tonight,” Griffin said. “You can’t put her in the dungeon.”

  I was impressed with his bravado. “I do?”

  “You do,” Griffin said. “We’re having dinner with my sister.”

  I faltered.

  “Oh, look at her,” Braden said, grinning. “She’s trying to decide whether she’d rather be locked in the dungeon.”

  “Well, that’s not an option,” Griffin said. “If I have to eat meals with you people, she’s got to eat meals with Maya. I wanted to put it off for a night, but this is the only night Maya has open for the next few days.”

  “Is Maya hot?” Cillian asked.

  “She is,” Aidan supplied.

  “You all keep your filthy paws off her,” Griffin warned. “She’s not your type.”

  “How do you know we have a type?” Redmond asked. “And, besides, we let you put your filthy paws on our sister.”

  “You let me?”

  “We tolerate it.”

  “Everyone stop talking about filthy paws in conjunction with my daughter,” Dad ordered.

  “Yeah,” Cillian teased. “Make sure you wash your hands before you paw our sister.”

  “Do you think that’s funny?” Dad asked.

  “Yes.”

  “You’re the one who is going to be in the dungeon tonight.”

  Cillian rolled his eyes. “Whatever. Can we get back to business? Aisling apparently has a date, and the rest of us are going to that new sports bar on Woodward. We have to pick up Jerry at seven.”

  “You’re taking Jerry to a sports bar?” That wouldn’t end well.

  “He’ll be fine,” Aidan said.

  “After the tenth time he’s referred to all the butt slaps as foreplay you’re going to rethink that statement,” I promised.

  “Can we please spend five minutes talking about our problem?” Dad exploded. “I don’t want to hear another word about dates … or bars … or butt slapping.”

  “Well, there goes my weekend,” Redmond quipped.

  “You’re going in the dungeon, too,” Dad said.

  “Well, as enlightening as this conversation has been, I have to agree with Mr. Grimlock,” Griffin said.

  “Call him Cormack,” Cillian suggested, his eyes twinkling.

  “Or Dad,” Braden interjected.

  “Call me Mr. Grimlock,” Dad barked. “What did you find out about this Grant Spencer?”

  Griffin slid a look in my direction. “Well, he wasn’t a good guy. He’s a got a record longer than my arm, and it includes pandering, drug dealing and attempted murder.”

  I swallowed hard. “Are you saying I risked everything to comfort a jerk?”

  “I’m sorry,” Griffin said, grabbing my hand. “There’s no way you could’ve known.”

  “There’s one way,” Aidan said. He was paging through a file on his iPad. “It says here that Morgan Reid was supposed to be murdered by Grant Spencer.”

  The room fell quiet.

  “Well, that explains a few things,” Redmond said. “Reid was saved because a wraith happened across his murderer in the alley and killed him. What are the odds of that?”

  Griffin shifted. “Wraith? You didn’t mention seeing a wraith.”

  “I didn’t see it,” I said. “That’s what Grant described to me before he died.”

  “You said he didn’t say anything other than his name,” Griffin pointed out.

  “How was I supposed to give a description of a wraith in front of your new partner?”

  “She’s hot, by the way,” Redmond said. “Is she single?”

  “She’d better be a lesbian,” I grumbled.

  Griffin rolled his eyes, but snagged me around the waist and pulled me down on his lap as he considered the most recent development. “I thought you said all the wraiths left the area?”

  Dad’s eyes were focused on Griffin and the way he was holding me. It was as if his eyes could not look elsewhere.

  “I guess we were wrong,” Aidan said. “This is the first time we’ve heard of any wraith activity since Genevieve died.”

  “We shouldn’t jump to conclusions,” Cillian said. “Wraiths have always existed. Just because we have a rogue one now, that doesn’t mean it’s tied to Genevieve Toth. It could be a coincidence.�
�

  “He’s right,” Braden said. “Genevieve and the wraiths managed to hide in Detroit for so long because of all the abandoned buildings. That’s still a legitimate reason for wraiths to be drawn to the area.”

  “I don’t like it,” Redmond said. “It seems too coincidental that a wraith showed up at another one of Aisling’s assignments.”

  “He has a point,” Aidan said.

  “You were supposed to be there,” Dad said, his eyes stuck on Griffin’s hand as it massaged my hip.

  “So now this is my fault?” Aidan challenged.

  “It’s nobody’s fault,” Redmond said. “It happened. We couldn’t have foreseen it. Now we have to move on with the new information we have. We can’t keep going in circles. Did the autopsy on Grant Spencer give you any leads?”

  Griffin shook his head. “He was stabbed twice. The first wound was fatal, but someone clearly wanted to make sure he didn’t survive.”

  “Have you found anything out about him besides his record?”

  “No,” Griffin said. “Technically, Andrea is the lead on this one.”

  “And she’s a lesbian, right?” I prodded.

  Griffin kissed the side of my face. “Yes.”

  “Oh, really? I’m totally bummed,” Redmond said.

  “Good.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “He’s lying. She’s not a lesbian. He’s just saying that so you don’t hit on her and I don’t get jealous. By the way, I am not a jealous person.”

  All four of my brothers snorted in unison.

  “I’m not,” I said, crossing my arms over my chest. “I am a very even-tempered and trusting person.”

  “You thought he was sleeping with his sister yesterday,” Cillian said.

  “I didn’t know she was his sister,” I shot back. “There’s a difference.”

  Braden grinned. “You’re jealous. Admit it.”

  “Bite me.”

  “You bite me.”

  “All of you can go and … bite yourselves,” Dad said, his face grim. “Except you two.” His eyes were still fixed on Griffin’s hand. “There will be no biting where you two are concerned.”

  “Ha, ha,” Aidan sang.

  I flipped him off discreetly.

  “I saw that, young lady,” Dad said. “Seriously, what are you doing with your hand?”

  Griffin’s face was blank. “What?”