by Gina LaManna
Chapter 19
Matthew and Chief Newton were waiting for me when I arrived at the precinct. I’d requested a meeting with the two of them, crossing my fingers that Marcus wasn’t around to witness our little pow wow.
Without wasting a breath, I launched directly into a briefing. I covered everything from the attempted kidnapping at Dust to the discovery of Lisa’s daughter and left out only the tiny detail of Marcus’s attempt at blackmail.
“I think Lisa has been kidnapped,” I said in conclusion. “Her daughter saw her leave with another person after being told to hide in the bushes.”
Chief Newton frowned and rested his chin against his hand.
“I know there’s a chance something else is going on here, sir,” I added, “but I don’t think it pays to wait before declaring her missing. It’s not exactly protocol, but we have extenuating circumstances.”
Chief Newton surveyed me carefully. “Very well. Lisa will be declared missing, and we’ll assume—until further evidence—that her disappearance is linked to Linsey Luca’s and the other missing or murdered elves. King, this one falls on you. Do you need additional personnel to handle the load?”
“No, sir,” Matthew said. “We’ve got plenty. I have a staff meeting to get to, and I’ll assign duties from there. DeMarco, let’s go. Can’t be late to my own meeting.”
“Sir, with all due respect—” I turned and leveled my eyes on Matthew. “I’d like to request permission to skip the meeting. I think it’s of utmost importance for me to get to Lisa’s place and begin searching for any clue as to her whereabouts. If she knew someone was coming, she might have left something behind.”
“You’d need a warrant,” the chief barked.
“I was getting to that,” I said, turning to him. “Sir, do you think we can get one expedited?”
The chief surveyed me through eyes deeply set into a scarred, ugly face, and gave a slow nod. “Fine. King, get out of here. Give DeMarco a break on the meeting.”
“Sir, she’s missed—”
“Chief’s orders,” Newton said. “DeMarco, hang around. I want to talk to you while we secure that warrant.”
“Yes, sir.”
I didn’t dare look at Matthew, but I felt his eyes pinning me to the wall as he turned and left the room. I waited impatiently as the chief gestured for me to stay still while he made a call on his Comm. By the time he signed off, he was nodding.
“Warrant will be here in a few minutes,” he said. “In the meantime, I want to hear how you’re doing.”
“I’m fine.”
“Are you enjoying your time since returning to the precinct?”
“Yes, sir. I’m very grateful for the opportunity.”
“Mm-hmm,” he said, obviously unconvinced. “Everyone treating you alright?”
“Yes, sir,” I said as Marcus flicked into my mind, and I wondered if he’d said anything, or if Matthew had. “Seamless transition.”
“I highly doubt that, Detective, but I admire your loyalty,” he said. “How is it to be back and working with King?”
“Captain King is the best in the business. I greatly admire his work, and it’s—”
“Yeah, yeah,” Chief Newton said. “When’d you turn into a suck up?”
“I’m not sucking up, sir.”
“Sure, but there’s more, and I want to hear it. How is it working with King?”
“Fine, sir.” I paused, felt his eyes searching me, and knew I hadn’t passed his test. I groaned. “Fine. Working with Captain King is going very well, but there are awkward moments that feel like hell. Then again, working with my brother isn’t always a cake walk, either.”
“Right.”
“And I think Marcus Prey is a douchebag,” I said, and then hesitated. “I think that’s all, sir.”
Chief Newton barked with laughter. “That’s better.”
I gave a hefty sigh. “With all due respect, it’s no wonder you made it to chief. Your instincts are...”
“Extraordinary?”
“I was going to say obnoxious, but yes, that would work as well.”
“What else am I missing?”
“There’s one tiny little issue at the casino,” I admitted. “I went to the Goblin Grid last night to look into it. A friend of mine believes there to be some sort of black magic at work in a private high stakes room.”
“The Cavern?”
“You’ve heard of it?”
He blinked. “We already agreed I’m extraordinary.”
“Right, sir,” I said. “Well, there hasn’t been an official report yet, nor is there any proof.”
“But you sense something’s not on the up and up.”
“You could say that,” I said, “and I might have used company resources to test for black magic.”
“Felix.”
“Yes, but it’s not his fault.”
“What’d you have to bribe him with?”
“It wasn’t a bribe, sir. It was a threat.” I cleared my throat. “A high heel in an inappropriate place, sir.”
The chief shook his head again as something on his desk beeped, and a sheet of paper appeared in his tray. “Your warrant. Detective, do you think the casino has anything to do with the disappearing elves?”
“Absolutely not, sir. It’s a totally separate...” I hesitated, struck by something the chief had said. Struck by the similarities in Residuals between Lisa and Reina. “Actually, sir, I’m not sure.”
“I expect an official report if something turns up.”
“Of course,” I said. “Though my source will remain anonymous.”
“Sure.” The chief gave me an amused, almost bewildered look.
“Is something wrong?”
“It’s not very anonymous when you smell like wolf from three towns over,” the chief said. “Is that why King’s underpants are in a twist this morning?”
My mouth turned into a warped sort of grin. “Um, no clue, sir. I am not privy to the state of Captain King’s underpants.”
“Excellent answer, Detective.” The captain handed over the warrant. “Let’s keep things that way, understood?”
MY FACE REMAINED FLUSHED until I reached Lisa’s apartment in the Golden District. She lived near the city center, but in an out of the way, demure sort of building. The rich exquisiteness of it was limited to gold trim over the doorways and around the windows, while the rest of the building was created from generous curves in a chalky white stone.
Along with the warrant, I’d gotten permission to use a Lock Lifter on the outer door, which I did while simultaneously calling inside to announce my presence. “This is Detective DeMarco with the Sixth Precinct, and I am entering the residence,” I said again, to no response.
I let myself into the small, neat space, and listened carefully. The house felt empty, but I cleared it quickly, keeping my Stunner close until I confirmed I was alone in Lisa’s home.
I then began to study the way Lisa and her daughter lived. They had a homey, cozy little space that felt utterly out of place in the Golden District. Books and stuffed animals lined what I assumed to be Tink’s room at the rear of the house, while a neat bed with a single dresser and end table completed the master bedroom. The kitchen opened into a living room, and while the house didn’t feel cramped, the whole thing was smaller than my apartment.
I got the impression that Lisa had been moved to the Golden District because of her special powers, but that she wasn’t strong enough to warrant a larger, more opulent home along Gilded Row.
Luckily for me, most everything was neatly in its place. It looked as if Lisa had tidied up either before or after she’d gone to Dust—a backpack was laid out by the door, food neatly stocked in the fridge, a pen and pad of paper rested in the center of the counter.
I leaned closer, noting an indentation on the pad of paper. I pulled the garbage can open, but it was clean—Lisa must have tossed everything last night, which meant no leftover notes.
I picked up the pad
of paper again and studied it, tracing my finger over the lines there. For a moment, I flashed back to the notebook in my apartment—my finger tracing over the letters of the words from The Hex Files as they glowed, heated, and turned golden. I jolted back to the present and found myself running over three letters that spelled a familiar name.
“Jim,” I gasped, and then I squinted more closely at the note underneath. It was a time—10:30.
The puzzle pieces clicked into place with a new theory. Lisa had been waiting for her carriage driver last night—Jim, the same man who had driven Linsey Luca to her last gala had driven Lisa to her near-inevitable kidnapping. Then, he’d ended up dead.
Had he been an innocent carriage driver who’d been in multiple wrong places at multiple wrong times, or had he been involved somehow? While it was difficult to imagine the old, grandfatherly driver involved in an evil scheme of such large proportions, it was equally difficult to imagine he had merely been unlucky multiple times in one week.
Either way, I needed to pay a visit to the carriage company and find out who had scheduled Jim for a fare last night.
Chapter 20
I arrived at Castle Caravans after sending a quick Comm to Matthew. He was just finishing up the staff meeting for the morning, and I could hear the bristle in his voice. He wasn’t happy with me, and while I didn’t blame him, I didn’t have time for personal problems.
As I made my way to the carriage company, I found myself wondering why Lisa had needed a carriage at all. She could easily have walked to the club from her house, so there was no need for expensive transportation. The only logical solutions I could think up were that she had either worn very high heels (unlikely, since she’d been wearing regular shoes in the alley) or she’d been concerned with her safety due to the lateness of the hour.
I settled on the latter as I marched up to the front desk and faced a bored-looking elf. She was pretty, older than me by a few years, but preserved by a special elfin sheen. When she smiled, however, it was forced.
“Hello,” she said. “Welcome to Castle Caravans. Can I order you a ride somewhere?”
“Not exactly,” I said, reaching into my pocket and withdrawing my badge. It was still a novelty not to have my things tucked in obnoxious places, and I reveled in feeling the Stunner at my hip instead of tucked inside a dress. “I’m Detective DeMarco, and I have a few questions for you. Hopefully we can make this quick.”
“I hope so,” the elf behind the desk said. “My name’s Marcia. I handle all press, police, and other inquiries.”
“Thanks, Marcia. Do you also handle bookings?”
“Depending on the night,” she said. “What do you need?”
“I’m going to need all the records for your driver Jim Geronimo,” I said. “He apparently had a fare last night—”
“No, he didn’t,” Marcia said. “Jim quit yesterday.”
“But—”
“We only have one Jim here, lady,” she said. “He’s the old grandpa with the potbelly, yeah?”
“That would be him,” I said grimly, realizing she hadn’t heard the news of his death yet. “Was he scheduled for an appointment before he quit?”
“No. His hours were dropping,” Marcia said. “I mean, frankly, he was holding out for retirement. He had less than half a year. You couldn’t pay me to guess why he quit when he was so close to receiving his full pension.”
“Had he worked here a long time?”
“Yes,” she said. “His whole career. He loved his job—loved talking to the people, loved being part of special days for his customers. I mean, most people don’t call carriages for no reason—there’s usually an event, good food, fancy clothes. He loved being part of it all.”
“Did he have any...” I hesitated. “Any angry customers?”
“No. Everyone loved Jim.” Marcia shrugged, then glanced at her nails. “It’s the same reason I’m baffled as to why he quit. He was at a point in his career where he could pick and choose his hours, his customers, his locations. He didn’t even have to go far.”
“Did he request the recent drop in number of hours?”
“Actually...” Marcia rested a pencil against her chin. “I think he did. I think his son was on him to cut back. Jim’s getting up there in age, but it’s not as if he was ill or anything. Unless...” Her eyes flashed wide open. “Is he ill? Poor, Jim.”
“Actually, he’s not well. I’m sorry to break the news to you, Marcia, but Jim passed away last night.”
“He died?”
“Yes.”
She looked truly shocked. “From what?”
“I can’t say exactly.”
“Was it a heart attack?” She shook her head. “No, you’re a police officer. You wouldn’t be here for a heart attack. Would you?”
I shook my head. “Unfortunately, no. We’re investigating his cause of death, but we think foul play might have been involved.”
“But who would want Jim dead?”
“That’s what I’m here to find out.”
“Well...” Marcia blinked, visibly upset, but not distraught. “Poor guy. I guess I’ll get you those records then. Is there anything in particular I should be highlighting?”
I gave her the dates when all our elf victims had been seen at Dust. Last night, the night of Linsey’s gala, and the night of Maybelline and Lillie and Cynthia’s girls’ night. “Any hits on those nights? Either way, I’ll need copies of Jim’s full log from the past three months.”
“Nothing out of the ordinary,” she said. “He had one fare per night scheduled as usual.”
“One fare per night? Including the night of Linsey’s gala?”
“Yes,” she said. “We don’t like to overload our carriages if possible. We never run late, and we value quality service over quantity. Our prices are high because we’re the most reliable carriage company in the Golden District.”
“I understand, but I recall Jim saying he had two fares that night.” I reached over, tapped my finger against her report. “Are you sure he only had one client?”
Marcia double-checked. “I’m sure, Detective. It wasn’t a busy night. Unless he helped out his son,” she said, almost under her breath. “His son had a fare that night, too.”
“His son?” I asked, feeling my spine get tingly.
“Jim’s son,” Marcia said. “He started working for the company—oh, a year ago?”
“What’s his name?” I asked. “I think I’d like a copy of his records, as well.”
“Of course. You don’t think—oh, God. Drew probably hasn’t heard about his father’s... er, last night...”
“I’ll take care of it,” I said. “The team is probably still notifying next of kin. I’d appreciate you keeping this quiet out of respect for Jim and his family.”
“Yes, of course,” Marcia said. “How sad. Well, here are the files you asked for.”
“Thank you,” I said, scanning them over, making quick work of all the basic red tape. The entry from last night, however, gave me pause. “Excuse me,” I said, resting the paper back on the counter. “It says the carriage appointment last night was in Jim’s name, but it was made late afternoon—in person.”
“That doesn’t make sense,” Marcia said, squinting at the paper. “I wouldn’t have let that slip past—Jim quitting was big news around here. I wouldn’t have made an appointment for him.”
“But someone did,” I said. “And if it wasn’t you, then who was it?”
“It might have been...” she hesitated. “I take a lunch break every day and close up the office. I suppose someone could have jotted it down while I was away from the desk.”
“But who? And—” I raised a finger. “How could he have used one of the company carriages if he’d already quit?”
“He didn’t,” she said. “Jim’s carriage went away for servicing yesterday. It always goes through a standard check once someone retires, quits, or otherwise moves on from the company.”
“Can you tell me�
��did Jim’s son have a fare last night?” I asked. “And where did he go?”
“He did have a fare,” she said, running her finger down until she found a stopping point. “But he was due back by ten p.m.”
“Was he back by ten p.m.?”
Marcia shrugged. “There’s no way to tell, really. We have someone come around first thing in the morning at five a.m. All I can tell you is that the carriage was back for servicing this morning, otherwise it would have been reported missing.”
“Thanks for your time, Marcia,” I said. “One last question. Where can I find Jim’s son?”
JIM’S SON COULD BE found in his tiny little apartment just on the edge of the Goblin Grid and the Golden District. I was just studying the outside, wondering if I should ask forgiveness or permission from Matthew, when the question became null and void.
“There you are,” Matthew said, approaching silently from behind. “You’d know if you attended our meeting this morning that I had someone scheduled to notify Jim’s next in kin.”
“He doesn’t know yet?” I asked.
Matthew shook his head. “It took us a while to formally identify the body. We, of course, wanted to be sure.”
“Of course,” I said dully. “Well, I suppose I can wait if you want.”
“I assigned the task to myself, thinking you might have some questions to ask while we were here.”
“Ah. Sorry I missed the meeting.”
“Marcus was quite concerned at your absence,” Matthew said, his eyes lingering on me. “Anything I should know about?”
I harrumphed. “No. Can we keep moving? I’ve got questions to ask Jim’s son. It turns out he works at the carriage company too, and there were some funny things going on with Jim’s booking. Plus, he quit yesterday, but I have the remnants of a note from Lisa’s apartment with his name and a time jotted down. I’m thinking he was running some off-the-books fares. Maybe in cahoots with his son.”
My change of subject diverted Matthew’s attention for long enough that I was able to climb the stairs and knock on the door. He had no choice but to let the subject drop as a man appeared behind the screen and studied us.