“He’s having a daddy-daughter-night thing with Alison. They’re out playing mini-golf, actually.” Shay smiled.
When she’d met James, he had been so closed off. The only living things he had given a damn about were his priest, the kids in the orphanage, and his first dog, and the Harriken had killed his pet. It had been like he was a bounty hunting machine, barely existing, and his one reason to care about getting up each day had been taken from him.
While Shay would have liked to have claimed credit for awakening the man within, in truth, Alison’s love had opened the door. Shay had just stepped through it later.
I’m pretty sure I fell hard for him before he did for me, but I have him now, and we both have a lot of reasons to get up in the morning.
“Mini-golf? That’s surprisingly non-lethal and non-dangerous sounding.” Maria furrowed her brow. “It’s not like explosive mini-golf or something like that?”
“Nope. Just standard-issue putt-putt mini-golf. Alison’s actually halfway decent at it.”
Maria nodded. “She doing that magic pulse trick? You know, like she does when she runs the obstacle course?”
“Yeah, same basic idea. She wouldn’t be able to pull it off at long range for normal golf, but mini-golf is just close enough that it works. We’ve gone a few times this summer.”
“I’m less surprised by a blind girl going mini-golfing than I am by James Brownstone doing it.” Maria’s face scrunched in concentration, and she laughed. “I can see him threatening an obstacle blocking him.”
Shay laughed hard and hit the table. A few people looked her way with frowns.
“He totally does!” she replied. “The last time we all went together, he was all like, ‘I will fucking end you if you block this shot, you asshole windmill.’”
Maria chuckled. “What happened after that?”
“He got a hole in one.”
“Of course, he did.”
Shay nodded. “Anyway, I actually suggested James take her. She loves it when they do cutesy shit together, but she’s not always forceful enough, and she doesn’t make it clear what she wants. She thinks she’s training him to be more thoughtful, but even if she can see into his soul, I think she overestimates how quickly he can pick up emotional cues.” She sighed. “But it’s not like he’s not thoughtful. If anything, he can be too thoughtful.”
“Too thoughtful?” Maria raised her eyebrows in question.
“Yes. Because he’s clueless about women or girls in a lot of ways, he ends up focusing on the wrong stuff. I made him sweat with the proposal, but the truth is, the best strategy when you’re dealing with him is to just be straightforward. Once he has a clearly defined target, he knows how to handle it.” Shay shrugged. “And he handles it well.”
“And is that what you did? Just told him to take Alison out to mini-golf because she’d like it?”
Shay grinned. “Well, I’ve found that I can often get James to do certain shit on his own in the future if I frame it a certain way.”
“And how did you frame it this time?”
“I gave him a big line about how it’ll help her judge distances better in case she ever needs to throw a grenade.”
Maria laughed. “I think he forgets she’s a teenage girl at times.”
“No, he never forgets that. Just ask him about her boyfriend sometime.” Shay held up a finger. “The problem is that he doesn’t really distinguish between what a grown bounty hunter male should do versus a teenage girl. To be fair, though, neither do I. I was doing nasty stuff when I was her age, so it only seems natural for us to train her.”
“You’re the weirdest family I’ve ever known, but somehow you make perfect sense together.”
“Yeah. We do.” Shay set her drink down and shrugged. “I’m also not sure which of them misses the other more when she’s off at school. That girl’s lucky.”
“Um, aren’t you lucky, too?” Maria eyed Shay. “You’re marrying him.” She gestured to the jade ring.
“Yeah, but…that’s different.” Shay sighed and shook her head. “I’ve told you about my shitty childhood. Hell, I just alluded to it. We both know what that led to. I’m not gonna apologize for my earlier life, but I’m not gonna pretend I’m all that proud of it either.”
Maria’s face tightened and she gave a shallow nod.
“And I didn’t even have any magic,” Shay continued. “Imagine if Alison had gone through all that shit without James. If she’d even survived the Harriken, her powers might have awakened in a vicious way.” Shay stared into her glass. “She might have found out she had a talent for killing and enjoyed it, but instead, she found James, and she’s happy. She’s got friends like a normal teenager, even if they are all magical, and she goes to a magic school. All thanks to James.”
Maria frowned. “Hey, don’t discount your part in this. You’ve known her basically as long as James, and you helped deal with the Harriken, too. I know you’ve been trying to resist it, but that girl sees you as her new mother.”
“Yeah, but it’s because of him that we have any connection.” Shay shook her head. “Don’t tell him I told you this, because again, he doesn’t need a big head, but I’m not sure I’d be this…normal if it wasn’t for him. I’d probably be barely better than I was when I first left my old job.”
“I don’t believe that.” Maria crossed her arms. “You’d left your old job before you met him. You already knew it was a dead-end.”
“And I was just marking time until I could retire away from people. I didn’t give a shit about anyone or anything.” Shay shook her head. “I just didn’t want to die in my kitchen, murdered by my own friends.”
A drunk man stumbled into Shay, knocking her hand and spilling some of her drink.
Shay frowned and glared at him. A couple of years back she might have broken his arm for that, but she didn’t want to make any trouble for James or violate the neutrality of the Black Sun. Messing with Tyler didn’t bother her all that much, but these days messing with Tyler effectively meant making Maria’s life harder, too.
But does it count as a neutrality thing if some asshole bumped into me?
“Hey, you’re hot,” the man slurred. He grinned at Maria. “You, too. Lot of hot chicks in here, but I like ‘em athletic, and you both look athletic.”
The back of Shay’s neck tingled. She realized the reason. The entire bar had gone silent. It was as if they expected her to take the man down.
He’s an idiot, but he hasn’t done anything worth getting the shit kicked out of him yet.
Shay pointed to her drink. “Can you watch where you’re going?”
“Come on, baby. Don’t be that way.” The man’s gaze flicked between the two women for a second, and he grimaced. “Shit.” He put his hands out. “Fuck. I didn’t realize who I was talking to. Sorry. I’ve had a lot to drink. I’ll go pay for a new drink.” He rushed toward the bar.
Chatter resumed around them.
Maria sighed in relief. “I was enjoying my drink. Tyler always gets so pissy when there’s an incident. He whines about it for days, and when I point out he could just run a regular bar without so many criminals visiting, he complains about business opportunities.”
Shay shrugged. “I didn’t invite you here to watch me kick some drunk’s ass. I invited you here to ask a favor. I’ve been dancing around it, but I might as well get to it.”
“A favor? What?” Maria frowned. “I don’t do tomb raids. Fuck all those bats and spiders and crocodiles and crap.” She shuddered.
“I don’t need you for a tomb raid.” Shay snickered. “I need a maid of honor.”
Maria stared at Shay. “Not that I’m not flattered, but what about some of your other friends? You’ve known them a lot longer than me. Like Kayla or Bella?”
“I’ve known them longer, but they haven’t really known me longer.”
“I’m not following you.”
“They’re my friends, and I hang out with them, but as far as they’re
all concerned, I’m nothing but a feisty archaeologist who has had a series of rich boyfriends, continuing with James.” Shay shrugged. “And as much as I’ve calmed down in the few years, it’s not like any of them will ever be ready to know the truth about my past or even the tomb raiding. It’s just not safe for them, even though I’m sure they’d all find it interesting.”
“You not inviting them to the wedding? I don’t want to cause any drama.”
Shay shook her head. “No, I’m inviting them. They’ll be bridesmaids. I already asked them, and they’re all really happy about it. It’s just, knowing you have my back and I don’t have to lie to you will make this shit go down easier once I get it all figured out. You’re the first female friend I’ve had, Maria, who I can be completely honest with and who isn’t a professional killer—and a couple of those female killer friends tried to kill me.”
“That’s a weird distinction, but I’ll take it.” Maria lifted her bottle. “I’ve been to tons of weddings, but I’ve never been a maid of honor before. I’m kind of like you. Lots of guy friends, especially cops in AET, not as many women friends.” She took a sip. “If you need help with anything, just let me know, and I’ll do my best.” Her eyes shifted to the side and a sly grin appeared. “You know, all this wedding talk has got a certain bartender-slash-information broker nervous. Very nervous.”
Shay looked over her shoulder at Tyler. The man was busy preparing a drink and didn’t even notice her.
“Really?” she asked.
“Yeah. Every once in a while, he’ll idly ask me something about you and Brownstone and if I think you’re going into this too quickly. It’s obvious he wants me to answer yes.”
“Too quickly?” Shay rolled her eyes. “We’re not teenagers who just started going steady after prom.”
“I know, I know.” Maria waved a hand. “It’s all just a cover for his own insecurities. He’s worried I’m going to start sniffing around for a ring. Now he sees every interaction between us under the shadow of the ring.” She pointed at Shay’s engagement ring. “Every once in a while, I mess with him a little. I start hinting at it, and then I’ll reveal I was talking about something else entirely.”
“And how do you really feel?” Shay raised an inquisitive eyebrow. “You pretty much live with him now.”
“I like him. Do I love him?” Maria shrugged. “Hell if I know. I think we both need to spend more time adjusting to our new lives.”
“So you’re not hoping for a ring from Tyler?”
Maria offered an evil grin. “Not yet. It’s too damned entertaining watching him squirm. I hope it takes him a while before he works up the courage, but I’m not going to say I can’t see a future between us.” She sighed. “Fortunately, he’s not that interested in kids. It’s not like it’s come up a lot, but I did idly mention something to him once about how I sacrificed motherhood to be a cop, and that I was too old now.” She stopped and stared at Shay. “Have you discussed that with Brownstone?”
“Kids?” Shay shrugged. “We already have a kid. Alison.”
“Yeah, but maybe he wants a new one?”
“Trust me, any kid not named Alison is the last thing on his mind.”
You don’t get it, Maria. He’s not even human. Whispy might have rearranged him a little, but he’s an alien who just looks human.
Huh. Maybe that’s why he’s never even brought it up. Oh, well. We both have Alison to keep us busy.
Shay turned again to look at Tyler. This time he noticed her and frowned, his eyes darting back and forth as if he suspected the women were plotting against him.
“The dominoes will really start to fall once James and I fully pull the trigger,” she mentioned.
“Have you thought about a date yet?” Maria asked.
“Yeah, but I haven’t come close to deciding. I know I want it to be in the summer so Alison’s not at school. I’m leaning toward next summer. A year isn’t too long, and it should give us plenty of time to get all this shit figured out.”
“And Brownstone doesn’t have any crazy ideas for the wedding?” Maria nodded toward the big-screen tv on the wall. “He’s not planning to do some sort of big battle royal or something, is he?”
“No, he just wants a bunch of barbeque served at the wedding. He doesn’t mind if we serve other food, though.”
Maria laughed. “That’s not so bad. Depending on who you invite, they might prefer barbeque over some sort of fancy chicken or fish.”
“Maybe. His only other requirements are that his priest does the ceremony and that it not be conducted on Oriceran.”
Maria lifted her bottle to her lips but paused. “Not on Oriceran? Did you want to have your wedding on Oriceran?” She took a drink.
“No.” Shay shook her head. “The idea just came up when we were discussing things. Honestly, I have no fucking idea what I want, and now I feel kind of bad for what I put James through with the proposal.”
“Maybe instant karma is a real thing.”
Shay smirked. “Karma for a tough proposal but not for my first career?”
“Didn’t you mostly take out pieces of shit anyway?”
Shay thought that over for a few seconds before nodding. “You have a point.” She polished off the rest of her martini and took a deep breath. “I have a lot of thinking to do. I’m not even sure who I’m going to invite. I probably should figure out that first.”
“Probably. Unless you want to do a spite wedding.”
“’Spite wedding?’”
“Yes.” Maria nodded. “It’s something a cousin of mine did. She had a wedding and invited several people she liked and a lot she hated, and then purposely sat them at shit tables in the back during the reception right next to the speakers and that sort of thing.”
Shay scoffed. “I tend to kill the people I hate.”
“That’s another way to handle it.”
Chapter Eight
It’s a great day to be alive, Lyle thought. A very great day to be alive.
He whistled as the glass doors slid open, and he stepped into the office building. He waved at the security guard. “How are we doing today? Great weather, am I right?”
“Great weather, sir,” the man responded, his voice a near monotone and his eyes glassy. “Excellent weather, sir.”
“I’m really loving the weather here. I should have moved to LA years ago.” Lyle clapped once. “No wonder this place got so popular.” He snapped his fingers. “Wait, you remembered to eat and sleep this time, right?” He shook his head. “You won’t do me any good if you don’t eat and sleep. You’re my main man. My favorite security guard.”
The man gave a quick nod. “Yes, sir. I did. Thank you for asking.”
Lyle patted him on the shoulder. “Thanks. Let me know if anything comes up. I’m heading back to my office to…I don’t know, plan some more. Make sure you keep anyone out unless they’re delivering something.”
“Of course, sir.” The security guard turned back toward the front door.
Lyle walked past the empty front desk. At some point, he’d need to get a secretary, but he was still unsure if his puppets could perform very complicated tasks. As his experiments with the guard the last few days had proven, it was far too easy for a puppet to take his commands too literally.
It wouldn’t be any fun to have an army of servants he needed to instruct about everything. A god needed proper worshippers, not puppets who didn’t care about what they were doing.
Maybe I just need to hire a few people. If they work for me for a while and see how impressive I am, they’ll start worshipping me, and other people will, too.
Lyle stepped into the hallway and headed toward his new office. It’d probably be temporary, as he imagined someone would eventually look into why the insurance adjusters in the office had all disappeared and stopped paying their bills, but the few deliveries so far had been easy enough to handle.
Doesn’t everyone hate insurance companies anyway? Won’t that slow things
down? Maybe I should take over a lawyer’s office next.
Lyle opened the door and moved to the chair behind the massive mahogany desk. He sat down and folded his hands in front of him. Thanks to Sarkazian’s funds transfer, Lyle now had millions of dollars to play around with. As long as he was careful, he could use that to legitimately buy his own building and hire staff he didn’t have to personally control, but there was one small problem.
The man frowned and brought up a web browser. He had the smarts and ambition, but he didn’t have a decent plan. Wasting his power on something petty would be pointless. No, if he wanted to be a god, he needed to start doing things worthy of a god, or at least someone powerful.
Is this what they call a failure of imagination?
Conquering the underworld seemed like one possibility, but that’d place him in contact with not just common gangsters but dangerous magical beings who might anticipate his abilities and be more resistant. Simple, easy fraud through mind-control seemed a profitable if boring bet.
Lyle decided he needed a few billion dollars. After a few billion dollars, buying influence would be trivial.
If I end up the richest man in the world, everyone will treat me as a god. Then I can hire whoever I want, and people won’t even question it. This is the perfect plan. I can’t see how it could possibly go wrong.
The only thing Lyle was sure of was he needed to collect a few additional puppets immediately. As disappointing as his lack of current worshippers was, managing staff was still something he didn’t know how to do well. But in the short-term, he needed to ensure he was protected.
A close encounter with a car the previous night had made it clear that he had to see a threat coming to deal with it. While the incident had revolved around a potential car accident, the next time it might be a PDA agent. A few bodyguards would help with that.
Now the age-old question: quantity or quality? Better double-check to see if anyone’s looking for me. Don’t want to go out and get knocked out by some lucky cop, but a few extras might be helpful to keep cops off my ass when the time comes.
Shadow Of The Ring: An Urban Fantasy Action Adventure (The Unbelievable Mr. Brownstone Book 16) Page 7