Forgotten Destiny 4

by Odette C. Bell

  I made my quiet and careful way over to him.

  He took one look at my expression and frowned. “What did you find out?” he asked simply.

  I looked up at him.

  He would know that this case was similar to the one where his sister was murdered, wouldn’t he?

  I started to tune into his emotions, even though he hated that.

  Sure enough, though his expression and demeanor were relatively unaffected, inside he was a trembling mess.

  “What have you found out?” he asked once more.

  “That this case is similar to the one where your sister died,” I whispered.

  There was so much hubbub going on that I was sure nobody heard us. Nonetheless, I kept a constant scan of people’s emotions to ensure no one was eavesdropping.

  Josh pressed his lips together. Maybe he went to shake his head, but he stopped. “How did you find out?”

  “I overheard two warlocks talking about it in the bathroom.”

  Josh took a hard breath. “I guess there’s no point in hiding it. Yeah – it’s eerily similar to the case where my sister was murdered.” Though his expression was controlled, his emotions were as turgid as a hurricane. Grief and fear mixed in his chest like a bomb.

  I didn’t know what I looked like, but my expression must have revealed my tension, because Josh shook his head hard.

  “Beth, I know what you’re thinking, and you have to drop it.”

  “I don’t get it, Josh. A few weeks ago you wanted me to track down your sister’s murderer,” I whispered, again not letting my voice carry. “What changed?”

  “You.”

  I receded, taken aback. “Josh, what are you talking about?” I demanded. I couldn’t drop this again; everything was spiraling out of control, and the less I knew, the more trouble I was in.

  Josh didn’t look happy. He shoved his hands into the pockets of his jacket and turned his head up to stare at the ceiling. “You don’t want to do this here—”

  “Where else are we going to do it? I don’t know if you’ve noticed—”

  “But this city is going to Hell in a handbasket? Yeah, I noticed that. The two elementals sure reinforced that when they tried to kill me and take all the diners with them.” Josh found a patch of dirt on his jacket and brushed it off before he looked at me seriously. “We’re still not going to do this here,” he said as he let his voice drop. He cast his gaze around the dining room as the police continued to deal with the aftermath of the attack.

  I took another step toward him. “Josh, who knows when we’ll get another chance? I feel like we’re running out of time.”

  “We’ll get another chance when we get home. Just wait until this is over, Beth.”

  “Who says we’re going to get a chance to get home?”

  There must have been something about my voice, because Josh looked at me sharply. “What are you sensing?”

  “That you’re right – this city is going to Hell in a handbasket, and we’re not going to get a chance for another breather. So, for the love of god, just tell me.”

  Josh put his face in his hands and stared at me through a gap in his fingers. “Jason told me not to.”

  “Excuse me?”

  “Jason… he told me to drop the investigation into my sister.”

  “What—”

  Josh looked right at me. “He told me you can’t look into this.”

  “When did he do this?”

  “Does it matter? It was after the incident with Jeopardy.”

  “But – why? Why the hell does he care if I look into this?”

  Josh looked at me, right at me. “He cares about you, Beth. That’s the point.”

  I got stuck on shaking my head. “I don’t—”

  “Care? Yeah, well it doesn’t really matter. Because he’s a sorcerer, and he gets to lay down the law.” Josh looked away from me sharply.

  All the anger I’d been feeling for him over the past several hours washed away as I took a deep breath. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”

  Josh let out a low chuckle. “You don’t have to be sorry, Beth – because you’re right, you didn’t know. And that’s the point. You weren’t meant to. Now you do, I guess I’ll have to deal with Jason.”

  “Leave him to me,” I growled.

  Josh arched an eyebrow. “That sure is a scary voice, Beth, but you’ve got no chance against Jason. He’s Internal Affairs,” Josh said bitterly. “He’s also got every right to protect you for the prophecy. The world is at stake.”

  My back straightened. “Excuse me? He’s got every right to protect me for the prophecy?”

  Josh’s shoulders dropped. “That sounded bad.”

  “Yeah, it sounded awful,” I let my emotion shake through my tone on the word awful. “It sounded like the only reason people care about me is that I’m useful.”

  Josh looked at me, and he sighed. “I’m sorry. Beth… I’m sorry.”

  There it was – a real apology. My emotion-sensing magic confirmed that as I felt a tingle shoot down my back. I sighed. “Okay. Thanks. But what now? I’m serious, Josh.” I started to answer my own question. “We… we need to look into the murder of your sister.” My demeanor changed entirely. “I’m… I’m sorry to mention this again. But—”

  “You’re a finder, and you think… it’s finally time to find the truth. I get that.”

  I looked at him. “Josh,” I said quietly, “it is. It’s not just my powers telling me this – it’s plain old reason. This case… it’s connected to your sister’s murder. I’m sorry I had to say that. I’m sorry I had to bring this up at all. But—”

  “You’re not lying,” he said, voice fragile. “I get that, Beth. And I—” He ground his eyes closed, tilted his head up, and appeared to settle himself. “Agree.”

  “… You do?”

  Slowly he shifted his head back down, and he nodded. “Yeah. I may not be a finder. But I’m sick of people warning me off this case,” he said, his voice descending into a growl.

  “Who—” I began. I stopped myself.

  Josh ticked his head to the side. “What? Why did you trail off?”

  “You’ll tell me if you need to,” I said confidently.

  Josh angled his head to the side as a small smile spread across his lips. “Was that you actually being discreet and careful, Bethany Samson?”

  I looked at him and nodded. “That was me trusting you. I know you’re not keeping these things from me to be malicious. And I know… you’ll share in time. So let’s go, Mr. McIntosh. Let’s solve this case.” I deliberately didn’t refer to it as his sister’s murder again. I needed to keep Josh rational, or at least pull him back from the majority of his fear and anguish and self-hate. And if getting him to rely on his powers as a bounty hunter was how I was gonna do that, then that was what I would do.

  Josh nodded.

  Together, we strode out of the dining room, the police finally letting us leave. I crushed more dirt and shattered window glass underfoot as I walked toward the door, and it reminded me of one thing – my life wasn’t done breaking yet.

  Hell no, it was only just getting started.

  Chapter 6

  Josh wrapped his hands around the steering wheel, turned to me, and let his jaw drop. “Why the hell didn’t you mention this before?”

  I stiffened. “There wasn’t a chance—”

  “This is directly related to the police’s investigation, Beth. By withholding it – you’re obstructing justice,” he said, his cheeks pale.

  “I… I know that.”

  “Do you? Do you know what will happen if you’re found to be obstructing justice, Beth? There’s only so much I can protect you against.”

  “My opportunity magic told me not to tell the police, okay?”

  He looked at me seriously. He shook his head. “No, that’s not okay. I don’t care what your opportunity magic tells you, Beth – we still have to operate within the law.”

  I locked my hands in m
y lap. I half closed my eyes. I’d waited until we got back to the car to tell Josh about the spell I’d found in the ladies stalls.

  I hadn’t expected him to react like this. Or maybe I had expected him to react like this. Because maybe this was exactly how any ordinary person should react.

  I squeezed my eyes closed as I once more remembered my insight into Max. Once upon a time, I’d thought he was bad. Now I understood him – because now I understood what it was to be an opportunity finder. I pressed a hand into a fist and patted it on my chest, then I finally opened my eyes. “Look, Josh – something huge is happening here. And I’m not entirely unjustified for not trusting the police. All the shit I’ve been hearing about them and Internal Affairs—”

  Josh looked at me sharply. “There’s a difference between being suspicious and doing this. Beth,” he looked at me seriously, “if anybody finds out that you knew about that symbol and you didn’t tell the police, you’ll… you’ll be taken off me,” he said as he closed his eyes.

  “But I won’t be put in prison, will I Josh? I’m too useful for that,” I said quietly.

  Josh frowned hard, his cheeks paling even further. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  I shifted forward, straining against my seatbelt, my gaze widening. “That something terrifying is happening here, Josh. I wasn’t lying before,” my lips parted hard around each word. “I recognized the emotional signature of that heat elemental back there. He was definitely the same guy we tracked down and captured yesterday. But now he’s back with a different face. How the hell is that possible?”

  Though I could tell all Josh wanted to do was discount my theory, at the same time, he was obviously having trouble ignoring my passion. He latched a hand over his mouth, then let his sweaty fingers drop as he glanced at the road. He was driving, and it was only his considerable warlock skills that allowed him to negotiate the thick traffic while at the same time having a hell of an argument with me. “… You know what I told you before?”

  “When?”

  “During the case with Frank. Remember… what happened with Jeremy Rodriguez?”

  I straightened. Though I’d told Josh about Jeremy – and the fact I knew for certain that he’d disappeared for 15 minutes before heading to remand, neither of us had put it into the report. And the reason we hadn’t put it into the report was that Josh had told me to leave it out. He’d promised me no one would believe it.

  Now he was mentioning it again.

  “Josh?” My voice shook.

  “The same thing could’ve happened.” He swallowed.

  “But that elemental wasn’t a criminal like Jeremy. That heat elemental had been suspected of murder. You’re not telling me that someone like Peter could pull the strings of the Justice Department and get that heat elemental out, right? Plus, we would have been told, right?”

  Josh’s back stiffened. “Not necessarily. It depends on how high up the chain of command it went.”

  I shook my head. There was strength behind it. “I’m not entirely sure who the two warlocks were who came into the bathroom – but I’m pretty sure they were from the Warlock Division.”

  “What’s your point?”

  “That they’re both higher up than you and I are. If Peter or one of the other kingpins had negotiated for the release of the heat elemental, they would know. The way that female officer was talking… it was like she thought warlocks were being taken right out from underneath the police’s noses. It was like she suspected a much bigger conspiracy was going on. Now, can you really sit there and scream at me for not sharing evidence with the police when they’re under that much suspicion?”

  Josh looked at me. I’m not sure if it was a patient look or angry – or somewhere in between. “Firstly, Beth – I’m not screaming at you. And secondly… it just makes this hard, okay? I… I guess I understand why you didn’t share this with the police. But at the same time, we have to be careful.”

  “… Wait, there’s something else going on here, isn’t there? What?” I demanded.

  Josh shook his head. “You’re doing it again,” he said under his breath. “Finding out things you shouldn’t. But fine,” he turned to me as we paused at a set of lights, “something else is going on. I have… been questioned,” he said with a sniff.

  “About what?”

  “You.”

  “What do you mean?” I became cold.

  “It hasn’t escaped the Justice Department’s attention that I have… potentially failed to protect my PO on several occasions now. If it weren’t for mitigating circumstances, we might’ve lost you.”

  I stared at Josh in dumbfounded shock. “You mean they’re thinking of taking me off you?”

  “Don’t look like that, Bethany – you almost look disappointed. I remember when I first took you back to Max’s house – you told me point-blank that you’d find a way to work for someone else. Well maybe you’ll get your wish. Especially if they find out that you’ve been keeping information from the police. I doubt they’ll use it against you. You were right about that – you’re too valuable to put in prison. They’ll just use it against me.”

  I sat there and stared at Josh with a half-open mouth. I shook my head. “This isn’t fair.”

  Josh snorted softly. “Of course it isn’t fair. This city isn’t fair. And as someone with the Zero Prophecy hanging over your head,” he added quietly, “I wouldn’t think this was the least fair thing in your life.”

  I didn’t know if he’d mentioned the Zero Prophecy by chance or on purpose, but it quieted me.

  I sat further back in my seat, finally releasing my grip on my seatbelt. I kind of slumped as if someone had taken all the life out of me. “What do we do now? Should we go back to the police, and should I reveal what I saw? I mean, it’s not too late, is it? I can just say that, with one thing and another, I plain forgot. They’d believe that, wouldn’t they?”

  “Didn’t you say you took a photo of that symbol?” Josh asked.

  I nodded.

  He appeared to think. He shook his head. “We’re not going to tell them.”

  “But you said—”

  Josh took a steadying breath. He swiped his tongue over his teeth, and he shook his head once more. “I’m going to trust you on this one, Beth. Despite the fact this might be the wrong thing to do – and you might be taken off me – I’m still… going to trust you. We’re not going to tell the police.”

  “You think they’re just as dodgy as I do, don’t you?” I read between the lines.

  Josh took a moment, then nodded. “They’ve been dodgy for years. Or at least parts of them have been. But—” he finished abruptly.

  I felt the emotion shifting within him, and I knew for a fact he was thinking about his sister.

  I straightened. “I wasn’t kidding back there, Josh. I’m gonna do everything I can to help you find your sister’s murderer.”

  “I’d be going against Jason,” he said softly. “And if I keep going against everyone in authority, I’m gonna lose.”

  My mind whirled. “Jason told you not to let me investigate your sister’s murder directly, right?”

  “Do I really need to repeat that?”

  “Those were the exact words he used, right?”

  Josh obviously realized I was onto something, and he frowned at me. “What are you thinking?”

  “That we don’t investigate your sister’s murder – we investigate Olivia. The cases are connected. They have to be. I don’t… know how or why yet, but they must be. My opportunity magic sent me to that restaurant. It sent me to that symbol, too. And in solving this case, maybe we’ll accidentally find your sister’s murderer. Jason won’t be able to complain about that.”

  Josh shot me the kind of look that told me Jason could complain about anything. But he didn’t tell me that we weren’t going to do this. He winced. “Okay, Bethany Samson. We’ll go through with your plan. That being said, we still have no clue where Olivia is. Nor do we know why she became a
n Internal Affairs informant, and nor do we know what her affiliation with that restaurant was. In other words, we’re fresh out of real evidence.”

  “We still have that symbol, though.” I shoved a hand into my pocket, brought out my phone, and made it dance from side to side. “Why don’t we just figure out what it’s a symbol for? And, I don’t know, maybe you can do some kind of forensic warlock spell thing on the image to try to figure out what the spell was?” I tried.

  This elicited a full-bellied snort from Josh. “Forensic warlock spell thingy? What have I taught you, Bethany? You sound like a preschooler who’s just found out magic exists, and not like the sidekick of one of the most powerful warlocks in Madison City.” Josh must be calming down now to not only insult me, but to refer to himself as powerful once more. His confidence in his own abilities seemed to swing back and forth with his mood. Now he sat straighter, and he looked at me defiantly.

  I shrugged and rolled my eyes. “There’s still plenty I don’t know. Point is – there’ll be something you can do, right?”

  Josh shrugged. “Maybe. But show me the symbol first. I haven’t even seen it.”

  “We’re driving. It’s illegal to look at your mobile.”

  Josh shot me a look.

  I shook my head. “It’s still illegal, Josh. Even if you’re a warlock.”

  “This coming from the woman who obstructed justice only about an hour ago. You know which crime comes with a heftier sentence?”

  “One’s a misdemeanor and the other’s a crime,” I pointed out.

  Josh snorted. “Did you really just reinforce my point for me?”

  “Just pull over,” I said.

  Josh rolled his eyes. He pulled over, and I handed him my phone.

  As soon as he locked eyes on the symbol, I felt him tense up.

  I opened my eyes wide and leaned toward him. “What is it? I can sense your emotions have changed.”

  Though the symbol was obviously important to him, at the admission I was sensing his emotions, he turned slowly to me and arched an eyebrow. “You do know how invasive that is, right? That’s pretty much like reading someone’s mind.”

  I shifted back, suitably remonstrated. Then I looked excitedly at the phone once more, albeit under a wincing, crumpled-eyed look. “… You do recognize the symbol, though, right?”