Jenks landed on my shoulder. You cant get a court order that fast, he whispered, and sweat broke out on me. Yeah, I knew it would take a day, if I could get one at all, but I couldnt just let Denon walk out of here with the body.
Denons jaw was gritted. Pressure marks dont mean shit.
Jenks flew from me to hover over Vanessa. How about needle marks? he said.
Where? I blurted, crossing the room to look. I dont see them.
The small pixy was smug. Cause theyre small. Pixy-size needles. Like fiber-optics. You can see the welt on the torn skin. Whoever drugged her tried to cover it up by tearing her arm as if it was a suicide. But theyre there. Youll need a microscope to see them.
A grim smile twitched Glenns lips, and together we turned to Denon. The word of a pixy didnt mean squat in court, but knowingly destroying evidence did. The vampire looked ticked. Good. Id hate to think I was the only one having a bad morning.
Get her arm looked at, he said brusquely, muscles hard with tension. I want the report before the ink dries.
Oh, God, I thought, rolling my eyes. Could he have picked a more trite analogy?
Glenn shoved the drawer closed, locking it before handing the key to Iceman. Jenks was hovering beside me, and I said nothing, smiling because I knew we were right and Denon was wrong, and the I.S. was going to come out looking like idiots.
But Denon chuckled, surprising me. You keep pissing people off, Morgan, and before long the only people who will want to hire you are those homeless bridge trolls and miscreants dealing in black magic. Its your fault she died. No one elses.
The blood drained from my face, and Jenks snapped his wings aggressively. Not only did Denon know she had been murdered and was trying to cover it up, but he was blaming me for it. You son of a bitch, Jenks seethed, and I moved my fingers to tell him to stay out of it. I couldnt catch a pixy, but maybe a ticked vampire could.
Giving me a beautiful smile, Denon turned, as confident and power-hungry as when he had come in. Jenks was a blur of wings and anger. Dont listen to him, Rachel. This wasnt your fault. It couldnt have been.
I looked at the covered corpse. Please, God. Let it have nothing to do with me. Yeah, I know, I said, hoping he was right. There was no way. My only connection to her was that fish, and that had been settled. She had been Mr. Rays secretary, not responsible for it at all. And besides, the fish hadnt been Mr. Rays to begin with.
Glenn put a comforting hand on my shoulder, and we walked slowly to the double doors to allow Denon time to leave. The reception room held only Iceman and a fading conversation filtering in from the hall. I waited while Glenn exchanged a few words with the orderly, promising to come back for the paperwork after escorting me home. Vanessas body wouldnt be released now until murder had been ruled out, but I wasnt finding any satisfaction in it. The I.S. was going to be really ticked if I blew one of their cover-ups. Goody, goody.
Tugging my bag back up my shoulder, I waved to the edgy Iceman and headed out with Glenn. Jenks was silent. Glenn had my coffee in one hand, my elbow in the other. My thoughts were on Vanessa while he guided me unseeing through the upper levels of the building and back into the sun. I didnt say a word all the way home, and the conversation between Jenks and Glenn lagged. In their silence I thought I heard agreement that I might have been responsible in some way for the womans death. But I couldnt. I just couldnt have been.
I didnt look up from the dash until I felt the soothing shade of my street. Jenks muttered something and slipped out the open window before Glenn brought the car to a stop. I glanced up then, finding the hazy morning slipping into the time of day I was usually just waking.
Thanks for coming out with me, Glenn said, and I turned to him, surprised at the honest relief in his eyes. Officer Denon gives me the creeps, he added, and I managed a smile.
Hes a pushover, I said, gathering my bag onto my lap.
Glenn pulled his eyebrows up. If you say so. At least Vanessas body wont be destroyed. And now Ill have access to any record I want until human involvement is ruled out. I think I can take it from here.
I huffed. Then why did you have me come out, Mr. F.I.B. Agent?
He grinned to show his teeth. Jenks found the needle marks, and you distracted Denon and got him to back down. A court order? he said, chuckling. I shrugged, and Glenn added, Hes afraid of you, you know.
Me? I dont think so. I fumbled for the door handle. Crap, I was tired. Im still sending you a bill, I said, checking the time on the dashs clock.
Uh, Rachel, Glenn said before I got out, Ive another reason I came over.
My motion to leave hesitated, and, looking unhappy, he reached under the seat and handed me a thick folder held closed with a rubber band.
What is it? I questioned, and he gestured at me to open it. Setting it atop my lap, I rolled the rubber band off and leafed through the file. It was mostly photocopied newspaper clippings and reports from the F.I.B. and I.S. concerning theft crimes spanning the entire North American continent and a few overseas in the UK and Germany: rare books, magical artifacts, jewelry with historical significanceI felt myself go cold despite the July heat as I realized that this was Nicks file.
Call me if he contacts you, Glenn said, his voice with a curious tightness to it. He didnt like asking me, but he was.
I swallowed, unable to look at him. He went off the Mackinac Bridge, I said, feeling unreal. You think he survived that? I knew he had. He had called me when he realized hed swiped the fake Were artifact from me and I had the real one.
A band fixed around my chest and squeezed. Crap. Thats what Newt was looking for. Shit, shit, shitthis was why Vanessa was murdered? The I.S. knew Id possessed the focus once, but they and everyone else thought it had gone over the bridge with Nick Sparagmos. Did someone know that it had survived and was now killing Weres to find out who had it? Oh, God. David.
I want this one, Rachel, Glenn said, jerking me back to reality. I know its Nick.
I felt like I was wrapped in cotton, and I knew my eyes were too wide when I turned to him. I guessed he was a thief. I didnt know until he left. I didnt want to believe it, I said.
Soft pity was in his eyes. I know you didnt.
My pulse leapt, and I took a fast breath. Glenn touched my shoulder, probably thinking it was the shock of finding out for sure that Nick was a thief that had my hands shaking, not that I knew what Newt wanted and why Vanessa had been murdered. Damn it, shed been drugged and then murdered because she hadnt known anything about it. Telling Glenn wouldnt do any good. This was an Inderland concern, and he would only get himself killed. I had to call David. Take it back before Newt tracked it to him. He couldnt fight a demon.
Like I can?
I reached for the door latch, my mind whirling. Thanks for the ride, Glenn, I said, my manners on autopilot.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, he said, putting a dark hand on my arm. Are you going to be okay?
I forced myself to meet his eyes. Yeah, Ill be fine, I lied. This threw me, is all.
His hand slipped away, and I slid the folder onto the seat between us and got out to stand unsteadily on the sidewalk. My eyes went to the house where Ceri lived. She was probably asleep, but as soon as she woke up, I was going to talk to her.
Rachel
Maybe she knew a way to destroy the focus.
Rachel?
Sighing, I leaned to look back into the car. Glenn was extending the folder to me, shoulder muscles bunched from the weight of it. Keep it, he said, and when I moved to protest, he added, Theyre copies. You should know what hes donein any case.
Hesitating, I took them, feeling its heavy bulk pulling me down into the sidewalk. Thanks, I said, not caring. I shut the door and headed for the church.
Rachel! he called, and I jerked to a stop and turned. The visitor tags? he prompted.
Oh, yeah. I came back and set the file on the roof of the car while I removed the tags and handed them to him through the window.
Promise me you wont drive until you finish your drivers ed, he said in parting.
Sure thing, I muttered, walking away. It was out again. The world knew the focus hadnt been lost, and as soon as someone realized I still had it, I was going to be in seriously deep shit.
The hot morning had turned to rain by the time Id gotten up again, and it felt odd rising so close to sunset. Id gone to bed in a bad mood, and I awoke with the same, having been startled into consciousness by Skimmer ringing the front bell at about four in the afternoon. Im sure Ivy had answered it as fast as she could, but going back to sleep was too much an effort. Besides, Ceri was coming over tonight, and she wasnt going to find me in my underwear again.
My arm ached as I stood at the sink in my shorts and camisole and polished the copper teakettle; Ceris silent disgust at my kettle this morning had galvanized me into cleaning it. She was going to help me sketch out another calling circle. Maybe in chalk this time, so it wasnt as gross. I was starting to look forward to Miniass visit. He might destroy the focus in exchange for my finding Newt for him, and after watching Ceri bargain with Al, I wanted her help with Minias. That woman was more devious with her turns of phrase than Trent.
I had called David before falling asleep, and after a heated discussion that had emptied the church of every last pixy, he flatly told me that if the murderer hadnt tracked the focus to him by now, whoever it was probably wouldnt, and moving it out of his freezer would only draw attention to it. I wasnt convinced, but if he wouldnt bring it to me, Id have to go get it. Meaning Id be bringing it home on the bus or the back of Ivys cycle. Neither of which was a good idea.
Blowing a red curl out of the way, I rinsed the kettle, dried it, and set it on the back burner. It wasnt gleaming, but it was better. The cloying scent of polish was thick in the close air, and since the rain had stopped, I shoved the window open with two gritty fingers.
Cool damp drifted in, and I looked out onto the dark, soggy garden as I washed my hands. A frown settled as I saw my nails, the polish ruined and green in the cuticles. Crap. I just did them, too.
Sighing, I set the dish towel aside and turned to the pantry. I was starved, and if I didnt eat something before Ceri got here, Id look like a pig when I ate the entire bag of cookies intended for the occasion. I stood in the walk-in pantry, staring at the cans of fruit, bottles of ketchup, and cake mixes in the tidy rows into which Ivy organized our groceries. Shed probably label them if I let her. I reached for the elbow macaroni and an envelope of powdered saucequick, fast, full of carbs. Just what the witch doctor ordered.
From the sanctuary came a thump and a light laugh, reminding me I wasnt alone. Ivy had galvanized her old high-school roommate, Skimmer, into moving the living-room furniture to the sanctuary, partly to make room for Three Guys and a Toolbox to put the paneling up, partly to put space between Skimmer and me. Though Skimmer was frustratingly nice, she was Piscarys lawyeras if being a living vampire wasnt scary enoughand I wasnt keen on being nice back to her.
Dropping the saucepan on the stove, I dug around under the counter until I remembered that Jenkss kids were using the big pot as a fort in the garden. Bothered, I filled my largest spell pot with water and set it on the stove. Mixing food prep and spell prep wasnt a good idea, but I didnt use this one for spells anymorenow that it had a dent the size of Ivys head in it.
The wooden spoon rattled against the pan as my hand trembled, the thrill of adrenaline zinging through me at the memory of her teeth sliding cleanly into me, fear and pleasure mixing in an unreal sensation, filling me with the rush of ecstasy.
As if the memory had called her, Ivys lanky silhouette appeared in the hallway. Dressed in tight jeans and a shirt cut high to show her belly-button ring, she went to the fridge for a bottled water. Her motions to open it slowed as she scented the air, realizing Id been thinking about her, or at least about something that would get my rush flowing and my pulse up. Pupils swelling, she eyed me from across the kitchen. That perfume isnt working anymore, she said.
I hid my smile, thinking I should just stop wearing it, but pushing her into biting me again was a bad idea. Its an old one, I said. I didnt have anything else in the bathroom.
Much to my surprise, she shook her head and chuckled. She was in a good mood, and I wondered what she and Skimmer had been doing in there besides rearranging the furniture. Not my business, I thought, turning back to my sauce.
Ivy was silent as she took another swig, leaning against the counter with her ankles crossed. I felt her eyes rove the kitchen, landing on the kettle shining dully on a back burner. Is Ceri coming over? she asked.
Nodding, I looked into the damp garden, shadowed into an early dusk from the clouds. Shes going to help me with my calling glyph. I glanced at her, my spoon still circling. Clockwise, clockwisenever widdershins. Whats your schedule tonight?
Im out and wont be back until almost sunup. Ive got a run. In a motion of powerful grace, she used one hand to ease herself up to sit on the counter.
You going to take Jenks? I asked, wanting him here with me, but my scaredy-cat fears came in second after a real job.
No. Ivy ran her fingers up through the downward spikes of her shorter hair in a show of nervousness, telling me she was doing something for Piscary, not her bank account. She was the master vampires scion, and that came firstwhen it didnt involve me. Do you think that ugly statue is what that demon was after?
The focus? Running a finger over the spoon, I licked it and set it in the sink. What else could it be? Ceri says if Newt knew that David had it, she would have shown up at his apartment, not here, but Im going to bring it back anyway. Someone in Cincy knows its surfaced again. My gaze went distant, and a nasty feeling of betrayal settled into my belly. Besides Ivy, Jenks, and Kisten, the only person who knew I still had the focus was Nick. I couldnt believe he would have betrayed me like that, but he had sold information about me to Big Al before. And now he was pissed at me.
The water was boiling, and I shook in enough macaroni for three. Leaning, Ivy dragged the open box of pasta to her. What did Glenn want? she asked, crunching through a dry piece.
Breaking apart the clumps of macaroni, I turned the flame down. My opinion of a Were murder. It was Mr. Rays secretary. Whoever did it tried to make it look like a suicide.
Defined eyebrows high, Ivys gaze went to the calendar pinned to the wall beside her computer. A week from the full moon? No way was it a suicide, and the I.S. knows it.
I nodded. I dont think they expected the FIB to take an interest. She had pressure marks from restraints and needle marks. Denon was covering it up.
Ivys reach into the box for another piece of pasta hesitated. You think it has something to do with the focus?
Why not? I said, exasperated. Damn it. Id only had the ugly statue for two months, and already word was out that it hadnt been lost going over the Mackinac Bridge. Tucking a strand of hair out of the way, I stirred my pasta and tried to remember if Id gone to see or even called David in all that time. Apart from the night I gave it to him, I didnt think I had. He was my alpha, but it wasnt like we were married or anything. Crap, this wasnt safe. I needed to get it back from him, like today.
I can ask around if you want, Ivy said, swinging her boots up onto the counter to sit cross-legged with the box of pasta.
My thoughts jerked back to her. Absolutely not, I said. The less I dig, the safer Ill be. Besides, well never get paid for it if you do find something.
She laughed, and my mood eased. Ivy didnt laugh often, and I loved the sound of it.
Is that why youre thinking about Nick? she asked, shocking me. You never make pasta in Alfredo sauce unless you are.
My mouth dropped open in protest, then snapped shut. Crap. Shes right. Mmmm, I said, peeved as I stirred the pasta. Glenn gave me his file today. Its four inches thick.
Really? she drawled, and I frowned. She hadnt liked Nick from day one.
Yes, really. I hesitated, watching the steam rise. Hes been at this a while.
Im sorry.
I forced my face into a bland expression. She hated Nick, but she was genuinely sorry he had cracked my heart. Im over it. And I was. Except for the part about feeling used. Hed been selling information to Al about me for favors before we broke up. Ass.
NINs Only went soft, and I wasnt surprised when Skimmer came into the kitchen, probably wanting to know what we were up to. I felt more than saw Ivys posture shift to a more closed mien when Skimmers jeans-clad dancers body breezed in.