Just how many people currently wanted my aunt dead?
I asked you to wait in the study, Lia said as one of the men at her back closed the office door and lowered blinds to cover the frosted glass, effectively isolating us from the rest of the house. I blinked at him, and my pulse tripped a little faster. Were they closing the blinds for a private conversation, or so they could shoot me without witnesses?
Did that kind of thing really happen?
Yeah. Im not very patient.
Julias brows rose. Well, you certainly sound like my brother. From the liquor cart to the right of her huge dark wood desk, she poured an inch of amber liquid into a glass, then sipped from it while she examined me from across the room. Without offering me any.
Finally Lia set her glass on the desk blotter, but before she could speak the office door opened behind me and another man in black stuck his head into the room. Sorry to interrupt, Ms. Tower, he said without even a glance at me. But theyre ready. Just waiting on your authorization.
Do it, Lia said. And let me know the moment its done. The man nodded once, then backed into the hall and pulled the door shut.
I wondered what order shed just given, and whose life it would ruin. Just because the Tower syndicate knew nothing about me didnt mean I knew nothing about it. I hadnt been able to find many day-to-day specifics online, but the overtones of greed, violence and corruption came through loud and clear, even in vague articles citing anonymous sources, who may or may not have disappeared shortly after they were interviewed.
My birth family was dangerous and evidently unburdened by scruples. Id come to the right place.
My aunt focused on me again, as if shed never been interrupted. What do you want?
Couldnt I just have come to meet the rest of my family?
Of course you could have. Still standing behind her desk, she stared straight into my eyes without a hint of doubt. But you didnt.
Thats when I realized I was being tested. My mother was right; Lia Tower never did anything without a reason. Lying to a Readersomeone who could scent dishonesty in the air, the way the rest of us might smell meat on the grillwasnt going to get me anywhere.
No. I need a favor.
Of course you do. Her slow smile made my skin crawl. Lets sit and chat. She gestured toward a chair in front of the desk and when I sat, she sat behind the desk, clearly establishing our rolesmy aunt and I would begin our relationship on opposing sides.
First of all, who are you? she said, and I realized that our chat would actually be an interrogation.
Im Sera Tower. Your niece.
When she glanced at the open laptop on her desk, I wondered if shed spent the past half hour researching me. Or maybe she had some faster, Skill-based method of finding information.
Lia waved one hand, dismissing my reply. Your full name.
Right. Like I was going to give her that kind of power over me. My mother had been unSkilled, but well-informed, and shed taught me well. With my full name, Julia could have me tracked. Or bound against my will. At least, she could try.
I shrugged and tried on a lighthearted smile. Ill tell you mine, if you tell me yours.
Her forehead wrinkled in a frown. Fine. Your full first name, at least. What is Sera short for?
Serenity.
Lias brows rose in surprise. Id guessed Seraphine. And Cecily actually gave you my brothers surname?
My chest ached at the memory of my mother, and at Julias acknowledgment that theyd once known each other. The truth was that theyd been friends back in high school, before Lias brother had come between them. My mother hadnt gone into detail beyond that, but Id gathered that the end of their friendship was neither swift nor painless. At least, not for my mom.
If Juliad suffered from the loss, I saw no sign of it twenty-three years after the fact. However, I could see one small truth behind her eyes, but only because my mother had warned me of it. Lia had said my mothers name on purpose, hoping to draw more information out of me than shed actually asked for. More than I should be willing to give.
She wanted to know how much my mother had told me about her. About Jake. About the family and their business.
But I was desperate, not stupid.
Yes, I said, holding her gaze. Its not on my birth certificate or anything, but Im officially a Tower.
What many peoplemostly the unSkilleddidnt know was that it doesnt matter whats written on some stupid form a new mother fills out, while shes still high on painkillers. Its what she names the baby in her heart and head that counts. And for some reason, the day I was born my mother was thinking of me as Jake Towers daughter.
Why would she do that? Lia looked privately puzzled for a second, then she directed her confusion toward me.
My guess is because Im a Tower.
And youre willing to submit to a blood test?
Hell, no. She could do more damage with my blood than she could with my full name. But Ill take the cheek-swab DNA test. From a disinterested third party.
Her brows rose again. Its adorable that you think theres any such thing.
I wasnt sure how to respond to that.
Lia folded her arms on her desk. Needless to say, I wont be doing anything for you until I have proof of our alleged genetic connection. She set her drink on her desk blotter again, then leaned back in her chair, arms now crossed over her chest. But for the sake of expediency, what is this favor you want?
I glanced at each of the guards, one of whom stood behind Lia and to her left, while the other was posted at the closed door behind me. Their short sleeves covered their upper arms, hiding their binding marks so that I couldnt tell whether or not they were Skilled, and if so, what those Skills were. But they obviously had ears and mouths. Will you ask the gentlemen to step outside?
Lia shook her head slowly. I cant do that. What if youre an assassin sent here to kill me?
Why would an assassin walk through the front door?
That would be a very good question for the man who killed my brother, she said. He did that very thing.
Right. But he wasnt an assassin, at least, not according to the newspapers. The official story was that Jake Tower and several of his men had been killed by an angry, mentally unstable employee, whod also died in the tragic shooting.
Why would I want to assassinate you? I asked, but she only watched me, waiting for me to draw my own conclusions. I dont want to hurt anyone here. I just need a favor. A private favor. Cant you hear the truth in my words?
Something fierce flickered behind her eyes, and I realized the game had changed. Id changed it, by admitting I knew her Skill.
Out, she said, and at first I thought she was kicking me out of the office, or maybe off the property. But then her bodyguards silently filed into the foyer, and I realized the order wasnt aimed at me.
When the door closed behind them she studied me again through narrowed eyes. What is your Skill, Serenity Tower? She said my name with a special emphasis, as if it was the punch line of some joke I would never understand.
I dont have one. Id been saying that for so long I almost believed it myself, and it didnt occur to me until the words were already hanging in the air between us that a Reader would be able to hear the truth, even in such a tiny lie.
I dont have one. Id been saying that for so long I almost believed it myself, and it didnt occur to me until the words were already hanging in the air between us that a Reader would be able to hear the truth, even in such a tiny lie.
Her brows rose again, and she seemed to be tasting my words on the air, and for a moment I couldnt breathe, certain shed caught me in a fib Id been living for so long it felt like a part of me.
But my lie was practically true, which must have made it taste true, because when she met my gaze again, hers was much less guarded. She was no longer threatened by me. Youre a long way from home for a little girl with no Skill.
And youre hiding out in your home behind your Skill, I shot back, bolstered by my small, secret victory. I enjoyed the anger that settled into the thin lines of her forehead. What was she hiding from?
Im not hiding. Im in mourning, she insisted, but I didnt have to be a Reader to see that there wasnt a single note of truth in those words. So, why I should do this favor for you?
I hesitated, momentarily stumped. Id expected a yes or a no, but I hadnt expected a why. Out of respect for your dead brother?
Julias frown deepened. I fail to see the connection between his death and your brazen, opportunistic grasp at a branch of the family tree youve never even acknowledged before.
Right. Like my acknowledgment of their blood in my veins would have been welcomed in the house Jake Tower had shared with his wife and two legitimate children.
Take two. Because were family, and I need your help.
And what will you do for me in return?
If I have to pay for it, it isnt a favor, I pointed out, and that time she laughed out loud, looking genuinely amused for the first time since wed met. You should help me because were family. Doesnt that mean anything to you?
Julia sipped from her glass, looking at me in some odd combination of pity and delight. The big city is going to swallow you whole, country mouse.
I wouldnt be around long enough for that. Are you going to help me or not?
Assuming your DNA test comes back as you say it will? Yes. Were going to help each other. Tell me what you want, so I can determine what this favor is worth, Serenity Tower. She set her glass on the desk blotter, then gave me a humorless little smile. That sounds like the name of a building. A sweet, pretty little building where flowers grow in the front yard. So what is it you want from me, Serenity?
I want you to kill someone.
The slight narrowing of her eyes was the only sign that shed heard me, and after that, she only watched me, waiting for more. Making me uncomfortable with every second of the silence that stretched between us, until I had to speak, or risk losing my mind.
It doesnt have to be you personally. I was just prattling by then, but I couldnt help it. Id never ordered a hit before, and suddenly I wondered if I was doing it all wrong. Was I supposed to use some kind of special code to avoid incriminating us both? Too late now I just need you to coordinate. And pay. No sense hedging about that part. If Id had the money, I might have tried another contractor. One who didnt share my DNA.
Julia didnt even blink. If shed ever been flustered in her entire life, I couldnt tell. And what makes you think I would be able to help you with something like that?
My pulse whooshed in my ears, but I was in too deep to turn back now. So I sucked in another breath, then forged ahead, full steam.
I know who you are. Who you really are. Which is why Id never been closer than eight hours from the Tower estate in my life. Until now. I know what kind of people you employ, and I know how you keep them loyal. They were bound in service, their oaths sealed in blood-laced tattoos that would not fade until the day the bindings expired. If they expired. And youre not surprised that I know, because everyone knows. Your business comes from word of mouth. It has to come from word of mouth, because well its not like you can advertise.
Is that so? Julia was a statue. A living, breathing statue, her expression frozen in an almost convincing mask of disinterest.
My temper flared. Help me or dont help me. Either way, stop wasting my time.
Julia exhaled slowly and this time when she met my gaze, hers was stripped of all pretense. You get that impatient streak from your father, she said, and I almost sagged with relief. I assume the prospective target is the human-refuse pile who slaughtered your mother and the rest of your surrogate family?
I blinked at her in surprise. How did you
Her gaze flicked toward the laptop open on the desk between us, then returned to me. Sera, theres nothing about you that I dont know or cant find out.
Good. I shrugged, refusing to be intimidated. I may not have grown up in a Skilled cartel family, but Id faced scarier things than a woman with high-speed internet and cold eyes. Then you shouldnt have any trouble figuring out who that human-refuse pile is. I have a description, and the police may have some of his DNA from the crime scene. Easily the most difficult sentence Id ever had to say aloud. But thats all I know.
A short moment of silence followed, but I sensed that was less respect for my slain family than an opportunity for Lia to gather her thoughts.
First of all, Im very sorry for your loss. Yet she sounded distinctly disinterested. However, it sounds like what you really want is more complicated than simple closure on a family tragedy. Youre asking me to identify this killer, track him down and deal with him in some permanent manner. Right?
I couldnt help noticing that she hadnt once said anything incriminating. Which made me wonder if we were being recorded. Or if she thought we were being recorded.
Yeah, I guess. Some painful permanent manner. No sense in playing coy when Id already said what I wanted, in front of whatever cameras may have been recording.
Well, those complications raise the price.
I dont have any money. Not enough to pay what she was likely to charge, anyway. What little life insurance thered been had barely paid for the funerals. Three of them.
I would never charge my own niece for such a service, Lia said, and I couldnt tell whether or not the irony was intentional. However, I do require something from you in return.
And that would be I shifted in my chair. It took every bit of willpower I possessed to keep from promising her whatever she wanted, right then and there. The price didnt matter. I just wanted the bastard dead, my familys deaths avenged with blood and pain, so that I could mourn them, then start to let them go. So I could gather the shattered remains of my life and try to piece them back together.
So that they would be avenged.
But the price did matter, the voice in my head insisted, sounding just like my mother. Shell demand service, that voice insisted. Shell make you sign on the line, and youll work for her forever to pay off this debt. His life for yours, Sera. Its not worth it.