by K. N. Banet
“He’s in my city,” I reminded my friend. “He wants to play? We’ll play.”
I walked out. I didn’t intend to follow Sinclair, but I needed to get home so I could start hacking into Mygi’s system. I needed to know what he knew if I had any chance of beating him to the prize. If this Raphael Alvarez knew anything important to my personal case, I couldn’t let that fucking vampire make him disappear.
4
Chapter Four
Once I was home, I locked myself into my secure secondary office and booted up my rarely used work computer. It was a beast of a machine that could crack damn near anything, and I hoped it was up to the task of helping me get into Mygi’s private servers. I was half decent at breaking into email and bank accounts when I needed to fish for information about a bounty.
Sinclair was right in a lot of ways. I was suited to the role of an Investigator. The Tribunal had two divisions, Investigators and Executioners. One division was both a cop and a lawyer, building a case and bringing a supernatural to trial. The Tribunal was the judge and jury. And then there was my job, the Executioner. It was an open secret that I was good enough for both divisions, but it was against Tribunal policy to allow someone to be both. What I did in my free time was my business, but any case I tried to build was usually handed over to tasked Investigators to finish. I was normally fine with that unless it was personal.
“All right, Mygi. Let’s see what you’re hiding,” I said to the screen as several programs began to boot up.
It didn’t matter what type of security they had, I had an answer to it. I tried to stay on top of technology, and being my age it was easy to keep up. Everyone had some fatal flaw in their system; it was just a matter of finding it. My system was far from secure—that’s why I kept it off when I wasn’t using it. I used a variety of techniques to keep someone from getting into my data. I also kept my personal data off this computer and didn’t hook up any of my household security measures to it.
I began typing, considering ways I could find a weakness. Normally those were emails, and I had some very good places to start. Since I knew they were in touch with Sinclair, I decided to start there. As something loaded, I grabbed an empty USB stick and popped it in. I needed a place to dump any data I got in a place I could find later.
Sinclair’s email was well known, his normal business contact. I figured he had more hidden email accounts, but anyone starting initial contact would only have the public one. I hissed at Sinclair’s two factor identification and decided I would hack into the email provider directly. With a few more clicks, I was in Sinclair’s email through the host company. If he ever found out I could do that, he would delete the email address, so I didn’t leave any evidence as I went through his things. I didn’t read unopened mail or leave him a snarky note, no matter how tempting the idea was.
I found his Mygi contact and quickly copied and saved the email into the USB’s folder before disconnecting from the internet. I hoped that would keep whatever security features the email provider had from finding me via my IP address, even though I used a VPN to cover it up. I was done with Sinclair’s email in less than a minute.
Cassius would be impressed. He’s better at this. Maybe I should give him a call and let him know what I’m getting myself into before I get in further.
I went to make a drink, watching the time, thinking about the idea of contacting Cassius as my coffee brewed. It was nearly ten at night, and I knew he would be awake, working on something. Or maybe he would be with the woman I’d heard about. It didn’t matter.
I can’t tell him. He would take it off my hands and foam at the mouth that I was getting into this again. I would be lucky if he didn’t tell our bosses.
Coffee done, I poured myself a mug and went back to the computer. The hunt was too good to pass up. I sat down and reconnected the computer to the internet, waiting to see if I had any security concerns. When none arrived in the twenty minutes it took to drink my coffee, I got started.
I checked the email that contacted Sinclair and grumbled at the lack of useful information. It was the standard request for a meeting, dated three days ago. I knew I could search that person’s name to find more. A Miss Amanda Ziegler. She was probably going to be fired soon, thanks to me, but I didn’t let it bother me. I couldn’t find a way into her email, though. I tried several different websites to Mygi and its subsidiaries but couldn’t find an opening.
Frowning, I began to realize if I wanted the same information that Sinclair had, I was going to need to take it from Sinclair.
“Great. I guess this is where I have to decide if I want to jump off the deep end,” I mumbled, looking over the monitor at The Board. “Do I really think this is related, or am I just fishing?”
Does it matter?
I started my search, finding out where Sinclair was staying during his trip to Phoenix. He once owned a property in the city, but after tangling with me twice, he sold it off and stayed in Las Vegas and left me alone.
He was a vampire, which meant he would be up all night, but he had to have somewhere to go once the sun came up. Instincts would force him to sleep. He wasn’t old enough to stay awake while the sun was high. That worked in my favor—as long as he didn’t already have Raphael and was leaving the city with him, which was unlikely. He’d been at The Jackalope not long after dark, which meant he had just arrived in Phoenix, probably using a body bag while he slept to get transported into the city. He obviously had at least two people he trusted with his life, and they were in the city with him.
When nothing came from my search, I gritted my teeth. I was going to have to do this the hard way.
“Time to go hunting,” I said, grabbing my leather jacket off the back of my chair. Pulling it on as I walked out of my office, I considered the places I could find Sinclair at this time of night and figured I needed to give Carter a call. He picked up after the second ring.
“Kaliya. I didn’t think I would hear from you so quickly,” he answered, not even giving me a chance to say hello. “Yes, I know he’s in town. No, I don’t know why.”
“Do you know where he’s staying?” I asked, hoping he might have an idea.
“Not with the Nest or in any of our hotels. Our Mistress hates him with a burning passion. He makes the rest of us vampires look bad. You probably don’t need me to say it, but none of the legit werewolves, fae, or anyone else would hide him either. Everyone in this city knows who and what he is and that you two have history.”
“At least the city knows whose side to be on,” I commented lightly. “Look, if you hear anything, let me know. Oh, and try to find the names of anyone working for him while he’s in Phoenix.”
“Kaliya, what are you doing?”
“Digging where I’m not supposed to.”
“You’ve only been back for a day. You can’t be serious—”
“Just let me know if you learn anything and give me a call or text back,” I said quickly, cutting him off. “Have a good evening!” I hung up on him. I didn’t need to be told to let it go or relax. Paden made the mistake of giving me a scent, and I intended to track it until I figured out what it was and how it might connect to The Board. Considering Sinclair was also a hunter on the job only raised the stakes.
There’s no turning back for me now.
To pass the time, hoping Carter worked on my requests as soon as he could, I went back to trying to break into Mygi’s shit. They had damn good firewalls on the backend of their websites. They had no logins available to the public and considering their public pages were only a cover, I knew I had to find a better deep web version of their site if I wanted any chance to get into them.
Every supernatural knew tech wasn’t secure. They all had the best that could be done, but any practiced supernatural tried to stay on top of the game. I personally wasn’t on top of the game, not like the way real Investigators or professional hackers were. Mygi’s systems were top-of-the-line. Only the best could break in, and I was wary of making too
many attempts and getting exposed for my activities.
I’m stuck.
I hated it. It was like a worm of an idea in the back of my mind, wriggling and annoying me as I stared at the monitor, wondering if there was any way I could get the information I needed. There were options— all of them even more illegal than what I was already doing—like breaking into Mygi’s headquarters, which were located in Georgia in the middle of nowhere. That wasn’t convenient, and Sinclair would definitely have the human before I even tried that.
Frustrated, I turned off the computer and left my office to refill my coffee. There was also the option of stalking Sinclair around the city.
That…might actually work. I know Phoenix much better than he does, and if he leads me straight to this human, I can get the drop on him, take custody of this guy, and find out what I need.
Too bad it’s illegal for me to turn him in. Ten million is good money.
I drummed my fingers on the counter while I sipped coffee with my other hand. That was a very, very good idea. Risky, but not impossible. I would have to be careful, which meant I needed to prepare for the task. Hopefully Sinclair wasn’t getting Raphael tonight, because I needed to prepare and find a place to start.
My phone buzzed, and I looked down to see who it was. Paden or Carter were the obvious choices.
Carter: He just came to Midnight Reverie. Thought you should know.
I grinned.
Kaliya: I guess tonight is going to be a good one for you. I’ll be there, asap. Keep an eye on him.
My phone dinged several times as I rushed to get ready. Grabbing my bag, I threw in whatever weapons I figured I may need. It took me close to an hour and a half to get into Downtown Phoenix on a good day. Saturday night while everyone was running around to party? I checked the time and hissed. It was already eleven. I could speed and maybe get there by midnight, but I had to go fast.
Did I remember to get the fae to refresh the Look Away charm on my work car?
I couldn’t remember, but I was going to test it anyway.
When I hopped into my work car, a black BMW M6, I was ready for anything. It had taken less than fifteen minutes for me to get ready, even picking out an outfit that would help me blend in. I knew my roads well enough that I didn’t care about the high speeds or staying in my lanes. Once I was on Interstate 10, I put the gas pedal to the floor and let the car skyrocket to over one hundred and thirty. If I made good time, I could be there right around midnight.
I flew through Phoenix and proved the Look Away charm still worked as I passed by several police officers patrolling the streets. I knew where Midnight Reverie was, the blood club run by the vampires. They attracted lots of young people to go clubbing, then took advantage of what too much alcohol and drugs could do to an early twenty something. They kept a witch and a fae on the payroll, in case any memory tampering had to be done, even though vampires were generally good at keeping their secret. They weren’t one of the ‘out’ supernatural species and probably never could be, considering their diet.
I parked in a back alley a block away from the club, making sure there were no warnings against it. Pulling out my phone, I saw Carter had messaged me a couple more times while I was driving.
Carter: Kaliya, you can’t come get into a fight with him.
Carter: He’s talking to my Mistress, but I can’t hear about what.
Carter: It seems like he just wants to enjoy a night at the club. He has a couple of people with him, but I haven’t heard their names. Why am I doing this for you again?
I chuckled and replied, typing fast. Carter was a young vampire, thirty, turned only a decade ago. I had been there, and he had looked up to me early on. I was the one who set him up with the nest in Phoenix. He was a good kid and I enjoyed his antics, but I was glad I put him with the nest. He always proved useful when I got into something and needed eyes on the city’s vamps.
Kaliya: Are either of his people guys? If so, ask one of them to dance. Maybe something will slip.
Carter: Are you fucking serious?
Kaliya: Do I joke?
Carter: They’re both dudes. The fae, though…he’s cute. Are you going to come inside?
Kaliya: Are you crazy? Of course I’m not going to go inside, especially if Sinclair is around. He’ll know something is up. He doesn’t know you, though. I don’t think he’s dug that far into my personal life. He and I keep it professional for the most part.
Carter: ‘Professional’ meaning you want to kill each other for strictly business reasons.
Kaliya: Pretty much.
I shoved my phone into my pocket and leaned against the driver’s side of my car. My laptop was in my bag, and I was hoping for one of two things—the names of Sinclair’s friends or the place they were staying. Carter liked sex and flirting, so I had no doubt if he could get one of them to dance, he could get them talking.
My phone didn’t buzz in my pocket for nearly an hour. I stood there, guarding my car, waiting for word, and resisted the urge to leave and find out if Carter had gotten into trouble. Hopefully, he was really hitting it off with the fae guy, not getting hit by the fae guy. With Sinclair’s type of crowd, either was a possibility.
He’s a big boy. Carter wouldn’t go into a dark alley with a stranger…
Right?
Pulling my phone out of my pocket an hour and a half into my waiting, I started texting him when my phone buzzed in my hand.
Carter: Cutie’s name is Tom Lennon, not very fae, but I’m guessing it’s a human name to blend in. You know how the fae are. Out but not out and all that.
Kaliya: Thank you. Be safe.
I should have said it earlier, but I said it now, hoping my vampire didn’t run off in the middle of the night with a fae he barely knew and worked for the bad guy. I knew what Carter meant. The humans knew fae existed, but fae still didn’t live openly. They continued to keep disguises and kept their business to themselves. No fae was technically ‘out,’ even though the species was. It was kind of the werewolves’ faults. A fae died after they went into the open, and they just confirmed fae were real before the fae had much of a say in the matter.
Carter: So, Tom told me I should go by this address any night this week to hook up. It’s booked under his name. The witch’s name is Jeremy. They’re all talking a lot of shit about you.
Kaliya: Please don’t actually go fuck him. He works for Sinclair of all people.
Carter: They’re picking up a guy named Raphael soon, probably tomorrow night. They came to town a day early to enjoy Phoenix since they don’t get to often.
My blood ran cold. Sinclair was moving a lot faster than I thought. How much information did Mygi give him that they didn’t release to the public? Why go public with the bounty at all when they wouldn’t give up what was needed to catch a single human?
Kaliya: Did he say where?
Carter: No. Now I got to go quiet. He mentioned me being on my phone so much and not paying attention to him. Kaliya when you get the chance tell me what the fuck is going on. I’ll tell you when they head out.
How about I don’t and say I did?
I looked up the address and found the large home where they were staying. A private residence, of course, in Scottsdale, a nicer area of the Phoenix metro area. As long as they stayed at Midnight Reverie, I could get away with this.
Sinclair can talk all the shit he wants. I’m going to win this one.
5
Chapter Five
I pulled over two blocks away from Sinclair’s address. He needed to watch what his people said because it had been comically easy to find. Then again, I didn’t think he cared if people knew where he was. He had an ego the size of California, and there was no doubt his people did as well, thanks to him. They were probably used to ruling over everyone and being unafraid.
There was also a chance they had two places in Phoenix for their mission. I knew how criminals worked. Get a public address, somewhere safe that would throw everyone off their
trail. A secondary address would be used for all the illegal things they planned. I just hoped this address had something I could use. If they were planning on picking up Raphael tomorrow night, I had less than twenty-four hours to get the information they received from Mygi and find him myself. It was already nearing two in the morning, and I would be lucky if Sinclair and his friends stayed out close to dawn.
I do love a time crunch.
I found their house and stood down the quiet street from it, wondering what sort of camera security they might have. Deciding I wasn’t willing to take the chance getting caught going in, I left the sidewalk and ducked between two houses once I was certain they had no security cameras watching the area. I pulled gloves on preemptively—I knew better than to leave fingerprints. I flattened my hair out as best I could and made sure no strands would come loose. I wouldn’t be able to do this later.
Then I shifted. The shift took everything I was wearing with it, not leaving a pile of clothing or any of my weapons. Magic was cool like that. I slithered in the grass, lifting my head to look around. In snake form, I was an eight-foot-long unclassifiable mix of a pit viper and a cobra. It was the standard naga snake form, though the colors were unique per individual. I was mostly a black cobra with a pit viper’s triangular head, red-orange eyes, and an orange to red underbelly. When I first shifted into the form, my mother had told me I looked beautiful and deadly. I had been a foot long and seven years old, thinking I wasn’t pretty because my colors were boring.
It took a few decades, but there came a point when I agreed with her. I was beautiful and deadly, and I was only getting bigger.
Slipping through holes in the fences to get to the yard, I lifted, looking around to check for predators or humans before continuing. At this point, there was no way I could contact Carter or vice versa if anything came up. I had to get in and out quickly.
