by Erin Johnson
I turned my head and roughly brushed my hair out of my face with my upper arm. I glared right back at Neo. “Why didn’t you take us down a safe route that wasn’t about to be flooded with sewage?” I narrowed my eyes. “Oh right. It was a shortcut.”
He huffed and pulled his wand from his pocket, then used it to dry himself off. Green magic flared from the end and steam rose from the shoulders of his leather jacket. Victor, still skipping about, did the same.
I stayed sitting, as did Sacha. He slowly pulled his wand from the inside pocket of his coat.
“Hey, Sacha?”
The brutish man looked up at me from under his thick brow bones.
“Thank you.” I nodded. “For saving me from going into the chute… whatever that is.”
His eyes shifted to his left and the round opening. “See for yourself.”
My hip ached as I pushed myself to standing. Rivulets of sewer water dripped down my cheek as I dragged myself through the sludge over to the other side of the tunnel and stood beside the opening. Sacha handed me his lit torch and I held it out into the darkness.
A hundred feet below, the orange light glinted off the water at the bottom of the chute. Jagged pieces of metal protruded from the surface, and metal handholds rose up the side of the round tunnel, all the way to right below my feet.
The stone sides of the hole were stained and striated with the different water levels. At the moment, it seemed pretty empty. My stomach lurched—it would’ve been a long drop that would absolutely have left me dead.
Feeling slightly nauseous, I kept my eyes on the jagged metal below. “Hey, Sacha?”
He grunted.
“Have I mentioned, thank you?”
He let out a low, slow chuckle.
WE REGATHERED, and I asked Sacha to spell me dry and clean, giving my exhaustion from passing out earlier as an excuse for not using my own magic. We continued down the tunnel and soon took a right turn.
We had to duck under a fallen piece of stone archway and entered a strange, though dry, room. It was already lit with torches spaced out on the wall. Someone, or someones, had painted murals. One wall featured a window that looked out onto a grassy field, another a painted bookshelf and armchair.
Blankets and sheets sat in a dozen neatly folded stacks against the wall, and cast-iron pots and pans occupied a sooty corner painted with kitchen cabinets. I frowned as Neo, Viktor, and Sacha moved past me.
“Do—do people live here?”
Viktor giggled up ahead and grinned at me, his gold teeth gleaming. “Course! Whole city under here.”
I eyed a wall painted with framed photographs and shivered. It was odd, people living underground like this, but clearly longing for a proper home. Again I thought of my flat and realized I had it better than I’d known.
As we continued on, it became clear that we’d entered the inhabited parts of the underground. I smelled roasting meat and something tomatoey, heard voices and laughter and even some music being played on an old-fashioned phonograph.
We passed a large opening, and I hung back as I caught my first glimpse of underground citizens. They sat on crumbling stone benches, hunched over a crumbling stone table. Candles of all shapes and colors burned on the table, the light glinting off silver flagons, chipped ceramic mugs, and tin cups.
Strings of colored lights hung haphazardly overhead. The tiny space buzzed with conversation and laughter as a man in an apron bustled about pouring drinks out of several bottles that magically hovered around his head.
I frowned. A bar? They had bars down here? Viktor had said there was a whole city underground—I guess that would include businesses.
“Come on.”
I jumped as Neo appeared at my shoulder.
“Ludolf’s waiting.”
My stomach sunk. Oh, right. I’d nearly forgotten.
He raised a thick brow. “You don’t want to keep him waiting.”
“Maybe I do.” I flashed my eyes at him.
His throat bobbed and he leveled me a grim look. “Trust me, Jolene—you don’t.”
Yeesh. I heaved out a sigh and followed on behind him and the other two. This was not my night.
The underground citizens became more dense, the tunnel broadening and flowing with people headed in both directions—a main thoroughfare I guessed. The people for the most part looked like anyone I’d see above ground. Men and women, children and elderly folks, dressed in current fashions as well as some odder, handmade-looking outfits. But animals, shifters in their other form I guessed, moved among them, too. A zebra trotted by, while a parrot winged overhead. You didn’t see that everyday above ground.
“Nearly there!” Viktor giggled and skipped ahead, people edging out of his way.
Neo jerked his head to the right, and I followed him down a dark corridor lit by red glowing orbs spaced in even intervals. Men and women in armor stood guard along the walls and watched us pass.
Some held their wands, others held swords or jagged knives. Some wore metal breastplates like medieval knights, while some men were shirtless and covered in scars or outfitted in leather braces. A real DIY vibe.
They scowled at us as we moved past. The hubbub of the busy tunnel faded away, the only sound our footsteps and an echoing drip.
A woman bared her teeth at me, and I pressed my lips tight together in response. Friendly bunch. Something told me we were getting closer to the head shifter himself.
My heart thundered but I stood straighter and threw my shoulders back. I’d made it this long without owing the mob boss a favor or being summoned to the underground, and I’d managed it by not showing fear—by not letting what I was define what my life would be. I wasn’t about to start caving on that now.
We stopped in front of a set of arched double doors. Four guards blocked the way, three men and a woman. The young lady cracked her neck and stepped forward. “Your business?”
Neo thumbed over his shoulder toward me. “We’re escorting a summons.”
She glanced my way, her expression flat. “Name?”
I opened my mouth to speak, but to my annoyance Neo answered for me. “Jolene Hartgrave.”
I rolled my eyes. “I can speak for myself.”
He glanced over at me. “You can, but maybe you shouldn’t.”
The woman nodded and stepped aside. “You’re expected.”
The guards pulled the massive doors open for us (I thought opening both was a little dramatic), and I followed Neo, Sacha, and Viktor inside. With all the buildup, I’d been expecting a cavernous hall with a gilded throne. The actual space was almost a letdown.
We stepped into a moderately sized room with a dark wooden desk in the center. A bookshelf took up most of the left wall, while a huge bank vault door spanned the right. Candelabras lit the dim space, lending it an intimate, cavelike feel. I jumped when the doors shut behind us with a thunk.
“Come in.”
16
OWE YOU ONE
The hairs rose on the back of my neck at Ludolf Caterwaul’s raspy voice. I lifted my eyes to the tall, skeletal man behind the desk. He held impossibly still, his thin shoulders hunched and rounded under his crisply tailored suit.
Neo jerked his head toward the mob boss, and I narrowed my eyes, but stepped forward a few paces to the center of the room. Candlelight glinted off Ludolf’s pale eyes ringed with yellow. He watched me, unblinking.
“Jolene Hartgrave. It’s been a time.”
I widened my stance and raised my brows. “Yep.”
Behind me, Neo grunted, a little noise of disbelief. I didn’t bother turning around. These derps may have gotten themselves indebted to Ludolf, but I wasn’t… yet.
My heart fluttered in my chest as Ludolf continued to stare at me, large bodyguards looming in the shadows at the edges of the dark room. I wanted to squirm under that gaze, but I made myself hold my ground and hid my trembling hands behind my crossed arms.
Ludolf cocked his head slightly. His thinning, long hair, wh
ich he combed back over the top of his head, bobbed. He eyed me down the length of his pointed nose. “I hear you have a special talent the police are using you for?”
My blood froze. Cutting right through the waves, then?
He lifted a long-fingered hand from below the desk and tapped a sharp, talon-like nail against his temple. “I hear you can read animal minds?”
Tap. Tap. Tap.
I struggled to breathe, my chest suddenly tight. Play it cool, Jolene.
I sniffed out a little laugh and tried for a disbelieving tone. “Where’d you hear that?”
A smile played at the corner of Ludolf’s thin mouth. “On the front cover of The Conch.”
My stomach sank. Duh. Stupid Will was right—of course! I bit the inside of my lip, hard, until I tasted blood. I should’ve never agreed to help Peter in the first place. I shouldn’t have put myself out there. I could still be living my perfectly normal existence—miserable, but safe.
I let out a shaky sigh as Ludolf continued to wait for my response, unblinking. Whatever… what’s done is done. I squared my shoulders. There was no taking it back now. I just had to do what I could to minimize the damage.
I scoffed, though even to my ears it was a weak front. “Eh.” I waved a hand. “It’s just a scam I’m running on them.”
Ludolf’s face split into a sympathetic grin. He splayed those long-nailed hands and glanced around the room, at his bodyguards and Neo and his goons behind me. His eyes landed back on me, the fire of the candles reflected in them. “Don’t lie to me, Jolene.”
Ice flooded my stomach at his tone.
He softened it immediately. “You’re in the company of fellow shifters, after all. You don’t have to.” He chuckled, a deep, grating sound.
His shifts, from deadly to gentle, threatening to friendly—they’d always made me feel off-balance, left me reeling. I was sure I wasn’t the only one, that it was a deliberate tactic. I struggled to find my center again, but my heart raced in my chest. I held still, not quite trusting myself to speak.
“Come now. Clearly, the police believe in your abilities or they wouldn’t keep hiring you.” Ludolf leaned forward, nostrils flared. “Do share your gifts with me.”
Oh, sea snakes. I could tell I wasn’t going to get out of this easily, but still, I had to try. I scoffed. “No one can read animal minds.”
Ludolf leaned back in his high-backed wooden chair and pouted at me, his eyes narrowed as if deep in thought. Faint voices echoed from the long hall behind me, and the candles gently guttered. Every now and then Viktor breathed out a weak giggle, but otherwise the silence dragged on as Ludolf studied me. I hoped he couldn’t see the trembling of my hands in the dim light.
Finally, he spoke, his tone flat, all business. “Where were you earlier this evening?”
I gulped, my throat tight. My first thought was none of your business. But the time for sass had (unfortunately) passed. “Oh… uh… out.” Maybe I could wear him down with vagueness.
“Someone told me they saw you at, of all places, the policeman’s ball?” He flashed his pale eyes at me.
Oh yeah… that. I felt like I weighed a thousand pounds as I struggled to stand there before him and keep my shoulders back.
He looked down, drumming his sharp nails on the gleaming wood desktop. “Who was that officer who was your date?”
I felt like I’d been dropped into a pond of ice water. I hastened to minimize the relationship. I waved my hands. “Oh, it’s not like that.”
“Officer Peter Flint, I believe?”
Snakes. I was a sand-headed idiot to think Ludolf wouldn’t be five steps ahead of me. I bit the inside of my cheek until my eyes watered. Of course he already knew about Peter—he had eyes and ears everywhere. Oh shell—just take me out with the tide.
“He patrols the night market district, correct?” Ludolf’s brow furrowed in concern. “Such a dangerous area.” He clicked his tongue.
His tone dripped with threats, and I ground my teeth together. My tremors now came from a mix of fear and anger. I hated hearing Peter’s name on his thin lips.
“You clearly care about him.”
“What? Me?” The words lurched out of me. “Care about a cop? No way.” My teeth chattered with nerves. I’d interrogated serial murderers as a lawyer, gone toe to toe with corrupt titans of industry and been unfazed. But this man had me rattled.
Ludolf’s eyes bored into mine. “It’d be a terrible tragedy if something happened to poor Peter while on duty.” He shrugged his bony shoulders and splayed his long, thin hands. “But it happens. As you know, the Darkmoon District is a violent place.”
Chills shuddered through me, and all my bravado dropped away. I could have handled it if he’d threatened me, but not Peter.
Violent anger surged through me, and tears stung my eyes. Once again, I was brought to feeling like a little orphaned shifter—angry over what was, but powerless to change it.
I clenched my hands into trembling fists at my sides. This was why you didn’t care about things—they were just used against you. But I couldn’t risk him hurting Peter.
I spoke through teeth gritted so hard together they ached. “I suppose I’m sometimes able to speak to animals.”
Ludolf raised his dark, thin brows. “You suppose?” He glanced around the room, as if surprised. “Well, now, this is a skill I could have some use for.” He jerked his pointed chin at someone behind me and I spun to look.
A door, hidden among the dark wood paneling, swung open, and a giant henchman in a black suit shoved a small, trembling man before him. He held the cowering guy by the collar of his shirt, and in the other, palmed a large grey rat.
I frowned and turned back to face Ludolf.
The head shifter gestured toward the frightened man. “Mr. Medes here claims he has no idea where my missing gold has gone.”
I held my palms up. “Look, I could try—try—to speak to an animal. No guarantees, mind you, it’s kinda on the fritz.” I gulped, trying to hedge my abilities. “But I definitely can’t read people’s minds.”
A slight grin played at the corner of Ludolf’s mouth. “How generous of you to volunteer your gift to my service.”
I glared at him. Well, that was a generous way of interpreting what I’d said.
“No, I simply ask that you question this rat here, who happens to live in Mr. Medes’s abode.”
I turned slowly around. The man let out a little whimper, and his legs gave out. But the beefy man holding him by the collar kept him from sinking to the floor. The rat’s whiskers twitched as it sniffed the air and it squeaked.
Do I smell cheese? I think there’s cheese nearby.
I cast an uneasy glance at Mr. Medes, who’d basically turned into a puddle. I rolled my shoulder and took a shaky breath before turning to the rat. Neo, Viktor, and Sacha watched me closely, and I could practically feel Ludolf’s eyes boring into my back.
I’d always found ways around people overhearing me speak to animals. It felt uncomfortable, like I was standing in front of all these people in my underwear, to speak rat out in the open.
I steeled myself and let out a series of squeaks and chirps. Hey, rat.
It whipped its head in my direction and chirped. You speak rat? How about that!
I kept my eyes straight ahead as Viktor whooped. “She can! She can speak wit da rats!”
I gulped, my throat tight. Guess my secret was out in the open now. I spoke again. Listen… this man here, you live in his house, right?
The rat squeaked. Yessiree!
I nodded. Have you, uh—seen him hiding gold anywhere?
It tilted its head, pink nose twitching. Gold?
I bit my lip. Ur… round, yellow metal coins?
Oh! The rat crawled forward on the goon’s huge hand. Yeah, he’s been shoving bags of that stuff into some of my holes in the wall and under the floorboards.
I pressed my eyes shut tight. If I passed this on to Ludolf, I’d seal Mr. Medes’s fate
. But if I lied for him (and knowing Ludolf, he probably already knew where the gold was hidden and this was just an elaborate test) the shifter boss would come after me, or worse, Peter.
With my stomach twisted like a whirlpool, I thanked the rat, then turned to face Ludolf, careful to avert my eyes from the cowering Mr. Medes.
“The gold’s hidden in rat holes in the walls and floor.” My voice was flat. I felt like throwing up… or taking a shower because my skin was crawling… or both.
Ludolf’s eyes lit up, and he laced his long fingers together. “Delightful news!” His lip curled back as he turned to face Mr. Medes in a quick jerk. “Turns out we’ve found the gold, Mr. Medes!”
The man let out a cry.
I didn’t turn around.
“Take him away. I’ll deal with him later.”
I hung my head, my eyes down, and trembled with a mix of fear and anger. I hadn’t lied. Mr. Medes, whoever he was, had double-crossed Ludolf—that was his own mistake. But still… I felt bad.
Who knew why he’d done it? Maybe he had a sick kid or was just sick himself of Ludolf taking a cut of his hard-earned money. I hated that I’d helped Ludolf Caterwaul.
I shook my head. This was how it happened. This was how Ludolf sucked you in to his grasp. I’d always been so proud of my independence and, even if just in my head, had judged those who’d indebted themselves to the head shifter. I sighed. I understood now, how easy it was.
If I’d remained free of Ludolf’s grasp for this long, it wasn’t because I was so much smarter or tougher or more self-made—it was because he’d allowed me a longer leash. And the time had come to rein me in.
Mr. Medes let out a strangled cry that was suddenly cut off as the door clicked shut. I shuddered.
Ludolf’s gaze swung back to me, his eyes reflecting the firelight, features alight with a devilish glee.
“My oh my, what a gift you have, Jolene.” His mouth split into a grin, his teeth small and slightly pointed. “I suppose I owe you one.”
17
HELP?
Knock Knock Knock!
I peeled my blurry, burning eyes open. What time was it?