by Ella M. Lee
“Oh, please, no,” I said. “I’m mortal. I don’t want to get involved if you’re picking a fight with another clan.”
I was genuinely nervous. Getting caught in conflicts between clans as a mortal was a terrible idea and usually resulted in pain or death or regret of some kind. I didn’t want to be anywhere near Nicolas’s operations, at least not until I was clanned again.
“I’m not picking a fight with another clan,” he parroted teasingly. “I’m merely observing. I’m aiming for no engagement. Do you doubt my ability to take care of you?”
“No,” I said, “but don’t you have a dozen loyal group members who would be willing to have brunch with you, all far more competent than me?”
“Yes,” he said, “but I said I want you. It won’t be so terrible. We’re going outside, the restaurant is delightful, and I won’t let anything terrible happen to you. Stop stalling and go change clothes.”
“You can’t order women to go on dates with you,” I said, putting my hands on my hips.
He smiled. “I believe I just did.”
“Is there any way I can get out of this?” I asked.
“Is the prospect of going out with me really so awful?” he said, exasperated. “I didn’t think your rejection would be quite so vehement. I haven’t been on a date in years. Indulge me.”
I rolled my eyes and sighed, heading to the bathroom. Of course—harsh, intimidating Nicolas didn’t date. I reminded myself again that only people within his group knew how nice he was. I wouldn’t want to go on a date with the frightening commander who had stared me down in my cell, either.
The nice Nicolas, though, the one who teased me and made wontons with me and embraced me carefully last night? He would be a catch for anyone who could find and keep that part of him.
When I reemerged, he surveyed my draped, plum-colored tank top and dark jeans without commentary. I hadn’t had a lot of options, and I was a little jealous that he looked so well put together in stylish jeans and a gray linen shirt. Nicolas always looked well put together. Even his messy hair had the elegance of having been arranged in the mirror for several minutes, painstakingly subjected to his nitpicking.
He reached a hand toward me, and I took it without complaint. I reminded myself that I had one goal: get myself clanned to Water. I still had to be well behaved and impressive for that to happen. I still had to listen to him and obey.
And if obeying Nicolas meant going on a date with him? Well, it wasn’t like I had anything better to do today.
Chapter 25
Nicolas owned a beautiful sports car. Of course he did. Why wouldn’t he? I pressed myself into the smooth, dark leather of my seat and watched out the tinted windows as the city whipped by me.
“Would you mind telling me what we’re doing this morning?” I asked. “If we’re on an operation, shouldn’t I be properly briefed? Aren’t we… aren’t we a team today?”
He smiled brilliantly. “A team, yes. You’re absolutely right.” His tone shifted into calm professionalism. “The first of our two subjects is female, brown haired, blue eyed, approximately one hundred and seventy centimeters tall, with a distinctive birthmark on her right cheek. The second of our two subjects is male, reddish-brown hair, brown eyed, approximately one hundred and eighty centimeters tall. Water’s security team identified them as Flame, but you claim they are wrong, so we are going with the assumption that they are Meteor. We happen to know where they will be because our team heard them talking about their plans for this morning.”
“Are either of them commanders?”
“No,” he said. “Neither exhibit the signs of command. They aren’t doing much to hide their magic.”
“What is the goal of this outing?”
“Water has no former Flame members,” Nicolas said, “and although we have—to my knowledge—two former Meteor members, neither is available on this sort of notice for me to use. So I’m going to use you and your experience with both of those clans to help identify their background. Any other information we can get from observing them such as names or associates or plans will be welcome. That’s why I’m going: the mind-reading.”
“What’s our story?” I asked. “Newlyweds? First date? Successful billionaire and his attractive mistress?”
He flashed me a brilliant smile. “I’m in Hong Kong on business. You’re my girlfriend. We’re staying at a hotel nearby and out enjoying weekend brunch. We’re from New York City.”
I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, because you sound like a New Yorker.”
“And we’re obviously madly in love,” he said, giving me a mischievous look.
“You just can’t resist making my life hard,” I said.
“I’m about to make it harder,” he said. “There are a few rules for this operation. First, do not say my name or your own. Second, do not reveal any association with Water Clan or magic at all. Third, keep our conversation topics as neutral as possible. Finally, do we need to have a conversation about being outside? Can I rely on you to stick to our new agreements and not attempt any sort of escape?”
I gave him an annoyed look. “I won’t betray our deal. What would I do, anyhow? Cry ‘help, help, this really handsome rich guy is holding me captive in his penthouse!’ and pray someone believes me?”
I expected him to laugh or engage in some witty repartee. Instead he merely said, “I love that you think I’m handsome. I might keep you simply because you say nice things about me.”
I shook my head, disbelieving. “You don’t need anyone for that. You know exactly how gorgeous you are. It’s unattractively desperate to retain a woman just for compliments.”
“But I receive so few,” he complained, “and I like hearing them.”
I glanced at his pleading expression, trying to think of some appropriately sarcastic way to humble him. The words were on the tip of my tongue when he distracted me by pulling into the posh entrance of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel.
“Show time, lamb,” he said.
I got out of the car and stood off to the side as Nicolas had a short conversation with the valet. Once the car was being driven off, Nicolas took a tiny black bag out of his pocket and shook it open into his palm.
It contained a ring, thick and dark. He slipped it onto his right middle finger, and suddenly all of his magic winked out like a snuffed candle in my vision.
I jumped. “Christ,” I said. “What is that?”
He took my hands in his. It’s called a block-sync, he said in my mind. It disrupts my magical signal so that I can appear mortal. Don’t worry, my magic is still usable.
You’re sure they won’t be able to see through that? I asked. You can’t fool Meteor with glamour magic. It doesn’t work on them. Their magic is practically made of glamour.
This isn’t a glamour, he said. Trust me, it’s been tested.
I frowned but didn’t say anything else. I could have begged to stay out of this, but I had agreed to help him and had signed up to trust him.
Take a deep breath, he said silently. He squeezed my hands in his. I know it’s hard, but relax and smile. Get through this for me.
I’m fine, I thought to him, and I did smile. Are we getting along now?
He tilted his head at me, his expression radiant, his voice low and smooth in my mind. Did we ever not?
I found I couldn’t come up with an answer as he pulled me down the street alongside him.
“This place is awesome, babe,” I said, surveying the spread of food before us.
Nicolas and I were seated at a little French bistro, the likes of which I never would have imagined existed in Hong Kong. We’d been served coffee, juice, croissants, omelets, and fruit. One sip of the perfectly squeezed blood orange juice and I was in love.
“Thank the concierge,” he said. “I asked her to find a place you would love.”
I smiled, amused. Nicolas had crisped up his lazy drawl, and I could almost believe he sounded like an American of some kind. He was currently in his outdoor per
sona—all easy smiles and amiable serenity, with a side of sweet indulgence right now as he pretended to love me.
He looked a lot like, well, a lot like his overexcited girlfriend had dragged him out of bed on the weekend to make the most of an impromptu vacation.
“Look at this croissant! It’s perfect,” I said, holding up the impeccable pastry. “Simply beautiful.”
“Not quite as beautiful as you,” he said, shrugging slightly.
I laughed. With casualness I had never had around him before, I touched the smooth skin of his forearm.
Stop teasing, I chided.
That was not teasing, he told me silently.
I shook my head. No one in my life had said things like that to me. I hadn’t had a boyfriend or even a passing love interest since the early days of joining Flame. Nicolas’s attention, genuine or not, was completely foreign to me, but I couldn’t say I didn’t enjoy it.
Nicolas took a sip of coffee and studied me fondly, then casually cast his eyes around the restaurant. I took a bite of my omelet and looked to my right.
Two tables down from us were our targets, sitting across from one another, picking at pastries and looking anxious. The restaurant was empty right now aside from their table and ours, so no one was between them and us, and there were no loud noises to obscure our conversations or theirs.
I focused on them for only a couple of seconds before letting my eyes travel back to Nicolas, but I reviewed what I had seen in my mind.
There was no question that both of them were fighters. Their posture and leg positions told me they were comfortable with those types of movements. The man was heavily muscled under his T-shirt, shorter than Nicolas but denser. The woman was armed. I could see the faintest outline of a knife sheath showing through her shirt.
They were both tense, only talking intermittently—in Russian.
Nicolas’s hand was resting on the table. I took it in mine.
Definitely Meteor, I thought.
Yes, I see that, he responded. You were right.
Meteor magic was strange and interesting. Emotion heightened its effect. Most strong Meteor magicians were what they called “bonded”—in a relationship with another Meteor. Meteor magic had all the standard clan tricks—shielding, warding, manipulation of certain kinds of metal as their raw element—but its main use was to manipulate emotions and the human body.
I’ve seen a lot of bonded Meteor pairs, I thought. Those two aren’t bonded. I’m going to say they are both pretty weak, although the guy looks like he could crush my skull with his fingers.
Meteor rarely fucked with other magical clans. Other magics were usually stronger than Meteor, so they stayed away. Mortals were a much easier target for their amusement. More than a few well-known cults were rooted in Meteor, as well as scams, multilevel marketing businesses, and half of the dark web. Meteor magicians were often violent and unhinged and could create that in others, especially those with weak mental defenses. They could basically get whatever they wanted out of people whose minds they were capable of affecting.
Meteor could also do better blood magic—magic that could heighten and impact the bonds between people—than any other clan. Blood magic in Meteor was frightening. If a powerful Meteor could get close enough to you to wound you and mix their magic directly with your blood, they could even control your actions or decisions. Domination, it was called, which was why no one ever wanted a Meteor to lay a hand on them.
It was incredibly weird that any of their members would show up in a city owned by Water when Nicolas had made it clear that Water didn’t tolerate their presence. Most magicians from Water were probably stronger than these two in raw ability.
Are they Russian speakers? Are they thinking in Russian too? I thought to him.
He leaned across the table toward me. A mix of English and Russian. Nothing interesting yet. Neither of them are thinking about themselves or their goals, and I need them to.
I have an idea, I thought, if you’re willing to take a bit of a risk.
He smiled at me. What are you thinking, lamb?
I’m going to ask the woman for directions and see if I can get her to talk to me a little, I thought. I took a bite of food, trying to act as normal as possible.
Okay, he said. Careful.
Ask me what I want to do today, I told him.
“What else would you like to do today, darling?” Nicolas asked me.
“Mmm,” I said, turning my head slightly so my words would carry better to our targets. “I want to take your black card and do some shopping!”
My words were a tease, but Nicolas seemed like the type who owned an American Express black card. He had probably used it to pay for Daniel.
He laughed and gave me a roguish smile. “Anything for you.”
I made to reach into my back pocket and then stopped and sighed.
“One sec,” I said brightly to Nicolas.
I slid myself down the bench toward the couple, past the single empty table between us, until I was only a foot from the woman. They both stared at me, wary and affronted. I offered them an innocent smile.
“Hi,” I said. “English?”
“Yes?” the woman said frostily, with the slightest hint of an accent.
I could tell by her body language she desperately wanted me gone, but she was debating how exactly to get rid of me.
“Awesome!” I said. “I love your earrings. Did you get them here in Hong Kong?”
They were gold Chanel earrings in the iconic entwined double “C” shape, set with tiny rubies and diamonds.
She touched a hand to her ear absently. “No. Long time ago. Far away.”
“Oh well,” I said. “I would still like to go to Chanel. We left our phones at our hotel. Would you mind looking up the nearest Chanel for me?”
I gave her another of my best smiles, leaning in, putting out as much Midwestern United States friendliness as I could manage. She slowly picked her phone off the table. The background was plain black. The time, strangely, was six hours earlier than the current hour. I watched intently as she opened up a map application and typed “Chanel.” She showed me the results. I pretended to study them for a moment.
“Oh, not far,” I said. I didn’t actually know if that was true, but my impression was that nothing was very far in Hong Kong.
“Thank you so much!” I said. “You know, I am just so rude. I’m Eliza. You are?”
I held out my hand. She took it for half a second. “Nice to meet you,” she said. She didn’t offer her name.
“Nice to meet you too.” I turned to the man. “Eliza,” I said, offering him my hand as well.
He did not take my hand, nor did he say anything. I smiled at him regardless.
“Are you here on vacation?” I asked.
“Not vacation,” the woman said.
I frowned sympathetically. “Work. That sucks. He’s here for work too.” I pointed at Nicolas. “I’m just lucky I got to tag along for this trip.”
The woman looked faintly alarmed that our conversation was still going. “Have a… good Chanel day,” she said awkwardly.
“Chanel Day! I like that,” I said, laughing. “Good luck with your work. Thank you again.”
I offered them both one last smile and then slid back along the bench.
“Chanel Day,” I said to Nicolas, amused. “Can today be Chanel Day?”
“Of course, love,” he said.
He took my hand in his, meeting my eyes. Good job, he told me. Alexander and Yulia. They are here to meet someone today, and soon, although their minds didn’t offer much more detail than that. They are suspicious of us now, though. They don’t know we are magicians, but they think something is definitely off.
He and I were silent for a minute longer, eating our food, monitoring Yulia and Alexander.
You know, I thought to him, I think their meeting must be nearby. There’s no other reason for them to linger over their empty plates.
You’re probabl
y correct, he said silently. What would you say to a little further surveillance?
It’s your call, I said.
He smiled and pulled his hand from mine. As he did, he accidentally bumped my mostly empty glass and tipped it over, spilling juice on my hand.
“I’m sorry,” he said, startled, righting the glass quickly.
I searched his eyes for some hint of a plan, but his clumsiness seemed like a genuine accident. I wiped at my hand with a napkin, but it was very sticky. I grimaced.
“I’m going to…” I pointed down a long hallway that I assumed led toward the bathroom.
The hallway was dim and romantically decorated with paintings of tango dancers. I pushed open the door at the end to reveal a single-person bathroom. I was about to close it behind me when a hand appeared, stopping me. I started back as Yulia slipped through the door and slammed it shut behind her, locking it.
I opened my mouth, but she drew her knife on me. “Who the fuck are you?” she asked, her eyes angry.
She pressed a hand to the door behind her and threw a shield over it. The magic glinted sharply and brightly in my eyesight.
“What?” I asked. I tried my best to look scared. “I don’t know what you want, but I’m sorry. I don’t have any money or anything…”
Nicolas, I thought, I could really use you!
I had no idea if he was in range to hear my thoughts. I might have to deal with this alone, at least for now. Carefully, I slid my right foot back a few inches, cementing my balance.
“Why are you here?” Yulia asked. “Why did you talk to us? Who sent you to us?”
“What? Really, I have no idea who you are…” I said.
I quickly called up scared tears, holding my hands in front of me. Slowly, I edged myself away from her, looking around. She was blocking the door, both physically and with her shield. The sink and toilet were to my left. To my right was a tall cabinet with a large mirror beside it. The window behind me had bars over it; I had seen them when I had first come through the door.
