by Elin Peer
“Hmm.” Willow picked up a thin tablet and went over the menu. “I don’t know, Raven, you’ve changed after you joined the police. You used to be funny but now you’re more serious.”
That hit me hard in my chest. “I’m still funny.”
“Not as funny as you used to be before the academy.”
Mila pulled up her sleeves and gave me a small smile. “Careful that you don’t turn into a new Leo.”
“Why, what’s wrong with Leo?” Willow pointed to the menu tablet. “Ooh, that looks delicious.”
“Raven thinks Leo is too serious.”
Willow looked from Mila to me before tilting her head. “Huh… I don’t know. I’ve seen him joke around plenty of times with Solo and Zasquash.”
Mila agreed, “Exactly. That’s what I said. And he has a beautiful smile.”
I gave a small snort. “I wouldn’t know, he never smiles around me.”
When a bot approached us to ask what we wanted, Mila asked for a few more minutes to decide.
“It’s just that Leo is my boss and he’s… well, bossing me around. Sometimes he says things that are chauvinistic in nature, and I have a problem with misogyny.”
Mila fiddled with her earlobe. “I know, Raven, but we talked about it before. The Nmen haven’t relied on women for centuries. They aren’t used to expecting great things from us females.”
“Of course, they have relied on women. Who do you think gave them their young ones?” I tried reading the menu card while being part of the conversation.
“I know, but the resentment they’ve been holding on to about being isolated up here has made them negative toward strong women.”
Willow objected, “That’s not true. I’m a strong woman and Solo never had a problem with that. Who wants to share a salad and some brussels sprouts or maybe the red beets with pears?”
I nodded. “Sure, how about we just order a bit of all their side servings and share it? They have good bread here and a really nice selection of olives.”
We called over the bot and got our order going before returning to the subject of the Nmen.
“Leo just drives me crazy with his views on women. I’m tired of men seeing us as fragile and inferior to them.”
“He said that?” Willow lowered her brow. “That’s so strange because Leo was amazing during the tour with all us performers from the Motherlands. He was furious when we were attacked, and I have no doubt that he would give his life to save any woman.”
I leaned back in my chair. “Yes. But he wouldn’t let her work in a position equal to him, that’s for sure. All the men are misogynistic. I even see it with my dad at times.”
“You’ve got to stop using that word, Raven. It means that he would have to hate women. And Boulder definitely doesn’t hate women.”
“Okay, so maybe there are levels of it, but misogyny also means to hold a prejudice against women, and you can’t say that the men here don’t hold strong prejudices against us.”
Willow rested both forearms on the table. “They do but it’s a matter of conditioning and ignorance. For centuries they have been taught that women can’t do what men can, but that just leaves it to us to prove them wrong.”
I threw my hands up. “Which is what I’m doing but it’s hard when I’m surrounded by bigots and chauvinists.”
The bar-bot brought drinks for us and we cheered.
Raising her glass, Willow whispered, “Let’s just enjoy that we are here together and ignore the five guys across the room who are staring in our direction.”
“They are just curious.” Mila turned around and smiled at the group of men.
I spoke without moving my lips. “Don’t do that, Mila. You’ll only encourage them.”
“I’m just being friendly.”
“I know, but your friendliness might make them come over here, and then we’ll have the guards storming in asking them to back off. I just want to enjoy a quiet meal with my good friends.”
Willow backed me up. “Yeah, Mila, less smiling and more updating, please.”
“Okay, but what do you want to know?”
Willow’s index finger was circling the rim of her glass. “How are things with Jonah?”
“You mean in the council?”
“Yes.”
“Well, he’s working hard to get some of his ideas through, but it’s hard with him being the only male on the Motherland council. He did have one victory last week, though.”
“What victory?”
“There’s a blended family who live up here in the Northlands and the father has never been allowed to go on vacation to the Motherlands with his family.”
“Why not?”
“He could never get a visa because he had a criminal past. But the wife has been advocating for it for years and with Jonah’s help he finally had his first visa approved.”
I lowered my brow. “What kind of criminal was he? I hope they didn’t allow some psycho into the Motherlands.”
Mila picked up her glass. “According to my mom he got in a bar fight once and killed a man, but that was way back in the late twenties. He served his time and hasn’t been violent since, except for the time when he and my dad were in a drunken fight.” Mila placed her index finger on her forearm. “My dad still has a scar right here from that fight.”
Blowing a lock of my curly black hair out of my eyes, I stared at Mila. “Wait a minute, are we talking about that man your mom helped catch after the earthquake?” My fingers were snapping in the air as I was trying to recall his name. “Laura told me about him. What was his name again, Demon, or Devil or something?”
“Surely not.” Willow raised a hand to her chest. “I mean the Nmen have strange names, but I can’t imagine it would be legal to name a child that.”
Mila shrugged. “I don’t remember his name either, but my mom told me how he got through the wall during the big earthquake and that his wife, Julia, hid him. Apparently, she had a major thing for Nmen.”
“Yes, Laura told me that story too. He was sent back to Northlands and Julia was forbidden to come and be with him.”
“Why?”
“With his criminal past, the council deemed him dangerous and they saw her as mentally unstable for wanting to put herself in danger. He was a convicted murderer after all.”
Willow moved in her seat. “Then what happened?”
I let Mila tell the story. “Julia arranged protests and had people sign petitions. The council sent her to reflect on it, but every time she came out, she went back to fight for her right to go to the Northlands. I guess that in the end they got tired of dealing with her and gave in.”
“Devlin. His name was Devlin,” I bellowed out as I finally remembered.
Mila smiled. “Yes, that’s right. And anyway, he and Julia have three kids together and live here in the Northlands. I haven’t met them, but I was happy that Jonah spoke for them and helped them get a visa so Devlin could finally meet Julia’s family and go on vacation with his wife and children.”
I placed my crossed arms on the table. “That’s kind of sweet and a little crazy too. Don’t you think, Willow?”
She looked thoughtful. “The heart wants what the heart wants. Sometimes you just can’t fight it no matter how hard you try.”
Leo’s face popped into my mind when Willow spoke of love, and the annoyance and resistance against him coming to mind made me physically shake my shoulders and arms.
“Are you cold?” Mila asked.
“Me? No, why?”
“You just shivered like you were cold.”
“No, no, I just had goosebumps from what Willow said. It sounds awful to fall in love against your will. What if you fall in love with someone who is the complete opposite of what you want? I don’t like that idea. I read somewhere that the tingly little feeling you get when you like someone? That's your common sense leaving your body.”
“I didn’t like it either.” Willow still had that serious expression on her face. “I’ve
told you how I was so blinded by my anger that I said some horrible things to Solo.” Willow looked down, her nail scraping along the edge of the table. “I still feel awful for telling him that I wished he was dead.”
Mila rested her hand on top of Willow’s and gave her a look of sympathy while I shrugged.
“You were hurting at the time. Remember how you used to hate him?”
“That doesn’t make it better. I’m ashamed of it.” Willow was looking into my eyes.
“I get that, but I remember wondering if you had lost your mind when you got back together with Solo. I didn’t understand how you could go from hating with such intensity to loving him again.”
“I understood.” Mila blinked her big blue eyes. “I always figured that your anger with him was just a shield to protect you from the greatest love of your life.”
“Then why didn’t you tell me that?”
Mila drew in a sigh. “I tried, but you didn’t want to hear it. Solo’s name was practically taboo around you and Hunter. But either way, Willow, your love story should give hope to all of us. If I’m paired up with someone whom I don’t love, I’ll remind myself that you went from hating Solo to loving him.”
“That’s not the same at all. Solo was my first love. Mila, I wish you wouldn’t do that tournament. You can’t gamble with your future like that.”
Mila had a soft smile on her pretty face. “It’ll be fine. I get along with most people and a promise is a promise.”
“The food is taking a long time, isn’t it?” Willow turned in her seat and looked toward the kitchen. “Nora was sleeping when I left, and I told Erika that I would be back by two. She usually takes a three-hour nap this time of day, but I’d hate for her to wake up before I get back.”
“Then we’ll just have to eat fast.” Mila straightened up in her chair. “I’m sure Erika can handle it, though; with all the grandchildren Khan and my dad have given her, she’s amazing with babies.”
When the service-bot brought us our food a little later, we dug in and tasted from the many plates. Mila asked me, “So how is the investigation going?”
I tightened my lips and bulged my eyes, signaling that it was a secret, but Willow saw it and frowned.
“What investigation.”
Before I could come up with a white lie, Mila had already revealed more.
“Raven is investigating a murder mystery.”
“Yeah, an old one that was never solved, but I’ve told Mila that it’s a secret so we really shouldn’t talk about it.”
Willow lit up. “Who’s your suspect?”
I pursed my lips and skewed my mouth from side to side, tempted to talk about something that I was passionate about. “I think Marcus Aurelius might have ordered the assassination of a man.”
Willow looked from me to Mila and back again. “Is that your mystery? Marcus had many people killed. Everybody knows that. The man was a psychopath and a cruel tyrant.”
“True, but I’m investigating a specific murder that I think he ordered.”
Willow gave me a small smile. “Are you going to tell me who this prominent and important victim was?”
“I’d rather wait until I have solved the case.”
“All right.” Willow raised her glass to us. “At least let’s give cheers to the fact that they’re finally letting you do some real police work.”
Mila clinked her glass with Willow’s and when I hesitated, Willow frowned.
“What’s wrong?”
“Actually, they didn’t assign this case to me. It’s more like a hobby case that I’m doing in my spare time. Would you mind not mentioning it to Solo?”
“Oh, I see.” Willow scratched her shoulder. “Sure, I can keep a secret.”
I clinked my glass with them and we drank.
“So how is it going with the case?” Mila asked again and reached for the plate with olives.
“Slow. I’m running into a lot of dead ends. That’s the problem with old unsolved murder cases, I suppose. Not only is the victim dead, but so are many of the people who knew the person.” I sighed and popped an olive into my mouth. “If any of you know a psychic who can speak to the dead, let me know.”
Willow grinned while Mila gave it some thought.
“Hmm, I once heard about a woman who claimed she could feel the presence of dead people, but it was Pearl who told me about her, and I think they met when Pearl was in a place of reflection. I’m not sure how stable that woman was.”
Giving a small laugh, I kept digging my fork around my salad. “You should know that I wasn’t serious, Mila.”
She shrugged. “I’m just trying to help, but I guess you’ll have to make do with the things the dead ones left behind. Did you go through the box with Marcus’s name on it?”
“What box?”
“The one in the basement.”
I had been lifting my fork to my mouth, but my hand stopped in mid-air as I stared at Mila. “You never told me about a box with his name on it.”
Her head tilted to one side. “Yes, I did.”
“No. When?”
“Huh. I’m sorry about that. It was right next to the broken piano and the weird-looking clock.” Mila began touching her wristband. “I took a picture because I thought your mom might like it, Raven. You know, with Christina being an archeologist and all.”
The three of us leaned in to study the picture Mila showed us.
“How tall is that thing?” Willow asked.
“Taller than any of us and look at those weird lines and dots. It’s like a secret code of sorts.”
The round shape with the many symmetrical lines had me confused and Willow complained, “Are you sure it’s a clock, Mila? Why doesn’t it just say what time it is? Is this some kind of math thing? I’m horrible at math.”
I leaned closer. “No, I think Mila is right. My mom has something similar in her office but hers has numbers on it. I think twelve is on top and then it goes this way with one, two, three, and so on.”
“Okay, but then what? How do you know what time it is,” Willow asked.
“I don’t know. My mom tried to teach me, but it’s super complicated and all I remember is that the fat arrow shows hours and the long slim one shows minutes, or maybe it was the other way around. Either way, I gave up because you would have to be as passionate about artifacts as Christina to appreciate it. It’s not like the rest of us will ever need it.”
Mila lowered her wrist and it made the picture disappear. “No. Thank god that we modern people have real watches that actually show the time. Sometimes I think that people back in the days were either incredibly stupid for making things so complicated, or insanely smart for understanding how complicated things work.”
It was a quick dinner since Willow was eager to get back to her baby daughter, and I was impatient to see what I might find in the box with Marcus’ things that Mila had spoken about. As soon as we got back to the Gray Manor, I almost ran down to the basement and because of Mila’s instructions that the box was close to the antique clock and the broken piano, it didn’t take me long to find it.
It didn’t surprise me that the box was sealed. With the storage room being overwhelming and a little creepy with no one else around, I dropped the idea of searching for a pair of scissors or some kind of tool that could help me break the box open. Instead, I half carried, and half dragged the heavy box to my room like a giddy squirrel carrying the biggest pine cone back to its house. Despite my eagerness and excitement, I was careful not to get caught and peeked around each corner to make sure no one would see me.
Unlocking my door, I pushed it open with my butt and lifted one end of the heavy box. The room had carpet down, so hopefully no one downstairs would hear me dragging the box over the floor.
My focus was entirely on the box as I backed into the room and maybe that’s why it didn’t occur to me that the lights were already on. With a satisfied sigh, I decided that the box could stay next to my bed while I searched for something
to open it with. My hands were tingling from the heavy lifting but all of that ceased to matter when I straightened up and felt the strong presence of someone behind me.
CHAPTER 16
Answers
Leo
“What do you have there?”
Raven turned fast and looked like she was ready to fight.
I stayed by the window, still leaning against the frame. “Told you. You’re not the only one who is curious.”
Raven looked pissed and stepped forward. “You have no right to be here. This is a break-in.”
“You’re right. But aren’t you Motlanders the ones preaching the Golden Rule? How does it go again?” I pretended to be thinking. “Only do to others as you want them to do to you.”
Raven stepped in front of the box as if I would forget that it existed.
“Since you broke into my place, I figured that I could break into your place too.”
Raven shot a sideways glance at all the pictures, articles, and notes spread out on her bed. “Are you going to report me for insubordination?”
I shrugged. “That’s such a fancy word.”
“We both know you asked me not to pursue the case.”
“Yes. But you did it anyway.”
Raven met my eyes. “What choice did I have? You won’t let me get close to any real police work.”
“Not true.” I changed position, folding my arms and taking a wide stance. “I brought you with me to a domestic violence case.” Throwing a nod to the research on the bed, I continued. “How about you walk me through what you’ve found out so far?”
“Why?”
The last thing Raven had told me when we had our little showdown in the hallway two hours ago was “Show me that you aren’t a misogynist. Show me that you’ll respect my skills and give me an equal chance to prove myself, and then maybe…”
I had come back because I couldn’t stay away. What I’d found in her room hadn’t come as a surprise. I should have known she was too feisty and stubborn to give up on the case, but I was disappointed. Part of me had hoped that I would only find a bed and that she had spoken the truth when she talked about her attraction to me being the only reason that she wouldn’t let me in. Clearly it had been a lie.
