“And no,” she wagged a finger at him. “I’m deadly serious. You can’t charm your way out of this one!”
He schooled the humor out of his expression. “So you do think my smile is charming?”
Fed up with his seeming inability to answer her questions, a low growl issued from her throat. “Explain, Quinn, and while you’re at it, make some unequivocal statements about how you’re not out to kill me.”
He took a step forward and reached out his hand towards her arm as if to comfort her. Becka shied away, and he gave her space.
“I am not here to kill you. I am here to protect you.”
Becka tried to imagine how those words could be twisted to mean something else, but came up empty.
“Perhaps, despite your earlier claims, you can lie and it doesn’t diminish your ability to hear the truth.”
“If that’s what you think, then there’s nothing I can say to convince you.”
“Then explain what I overheard.”
“Those calls are a part of my case.”
Becka wanted to believe him. Even more, she wanted to think she was an able judge of character and she wasn’t attracted to a killer. “Do better than that, Quinn. Part of your case...how?”
“As a detective, there are roles I play. It’s all a part of the job.”
“So, who were you talking to on the phone? Elowen?”
He cut his chin to the left. “No.”
“A suspect?”
He hesitated. “A person of interest. One who is obsessively interested in meeting you.”
Chills ran down her spine. “Who are they?”
“I do not know yet.”
His severe expression quelled her sarcastic response. How could he not know who he was dealing with?
“You must know something about them. What house are they with?”
“They are fae, but their house is a mystery.”
“Okay, why don’t you explain from the beginning? How did you come into contact with this mysterious person?”
He hesitated, but then she watched his resolve crumble. “I will explain, but only because I hope it will help keep you safer.”
“We agreed to work together to find Tesse’s killer.”
“Yes, I know, but it is hard for me to trust anyone. In my line of work, most of the people I deal with are hiding something. Or hiding a LOT of somethings. Even my coworkers. My boss.”
“Have I lied to you?”
The honesty in his confusion surprised her. “No. I mean, you smuggled in the forbidden hot sauce, which I could cite you for. But you have yet to lie to me or anyone else.”
Becka suppressed a smile. “You’re just itching to give me a ticket for my illicit hot sauce?”
“Enforcing the laws is an element of my job I find most satisfactory. Despite your reckless sauce imbibing, I have come to trust you.”
They shared a rare moment of connection, where their posturing faded and Becka felt she was talking to Quinn. Not Enforcer Quinn. Not charmer Quinn. And not the working the crowd for information Quinn.
Despite his history and his vocation, his disarming demeanor and direct answers to her questions eased her anxieties. She believed him, and in him, at least for now.
“Tell me about this mysterious person who wants to meet me. Or is it abduct me?”
Quinn ran a hand down his face. “A few months ago, I found a phone in my jacket. I held onto it for days, curious what it could mean, before a text message came through. It was a time and date. When the phone rang, I was ready. I had a recording device, a transcriber, even a tracer.”
“You do have a lot of toys.”
“Yeah, since we are an inter-species task force, we get access to all of the tech from all three. Anyway, the call comes. The speaker has a masculine voice, but it’s masked. Altered. I am unable to get any sort of read off of them via the phone connection.”
“Is that typical? Do you need to be in person for your gift to work?”
“In the flesh is much stronger, but usually I can still pick up a general leaning from the voice. Not so with this one.”
“That must have been unnerving. What do you think they want?”
He shook his head. “They offer trades. Always trades. Something they want for something I want.”
“How do they know what you want?”
“That is a question which has haunted me.” He stared off into the gardens, his attention seemingly drawn into another time and space. “I assume they have had access to my employee files. Perhaps also connections in House Oak.”
“Are they blackmailing you?” Becka asked, not wanting to pry, but needing to understand how far he’d been pushed. Perhaps how far he’d, in turn, bent to this others will.
Her question appeared to startle him out of his reverie and back into the present moment. When his gaze met hers, he was again clear eyed and focused. “No, no threats. Rather...incentives.”
“Could be worse.”
“Yes, I suppose it could have been worse. Mostly they offered me clues to solve cold cases. Or provided a line on evidence to pin down an unethical coworker and catch them in the act.”
“It sounds like they barter in secrets. They must be well connected to have access to all of that information. Or be a part of a larger network?”
“That’s what I am trying to figure out.”
“Did you tell Chief Elowen or your coworkers about this caller?”
“No. Some of the information I am angling for would incriminate my boss.”
The pieces snapped together like magnets in her brain. “Information they’ll provide if you bring me to them?”
“That is the offer.”
Becka took a deep breath, trying to release the anxiety constricting her chest and solar plexus. Instead of settling her mind, his confessions had built up her anxiety breath by breath throughout their discussion. “You don’t strike me as the power-hungry type.”
“Oh, I am not after my boss’s job.”
“Then what’s the motivation?”
“I think the person who wants to meet you may be responsible for your sister’s murder.”
Chapter 19
His revelation hit her square in the gut. “You’re planning to hand me over to a murderer?”
He held up his hands. “No. I intend to draw them out. Find out who they are. Who they are connected to. I will keep you safe.”
“And you were planning on using me as bait from the start, or did that turn of events develop after we’d met?”
He swallowed like Becka did after trying Aunt Lydia’s favorite fruited cake recipe and trying her darnedest not to gag, while also pretending she didn’t hate every bite.
“I was on the task force working your sister’s murder. When I got the call from my mystery contact, I volunteered to escort you to House Rowan with the understanding that I would bring you to them afterwards.”
What he’d explained fit with what she’d overheard on his calls, but his blunt explanation hadn’t set her mind at ease at all.
He cleared his throat. “My hope is that, knowing what we are up against, you can work with me to find out who they are, and then, hopefully, get some clues leading to your sister’s killer as well.”
Becka let out a long whistle. “I appreciate you coming clean. Sharing your big plans. And the risks you’ve been willing to take to find my sister’s killer.”
“But?”
“I want to run away from all of this, the testers, the mystery caller, and House Rowan, doubly so after all you revealed.”
Her gaze drifted to the walls below the balcony. Guards stood posted on the ground floor, eyes studiously trained on her presence. There’d be no midnight escapes via the convenient balcony for her.
Quinn noticed her attention shift and followed her gaze with his own. “You are not so surreptitiously inspecting the manor walls. Careful, you might give those guards the idea you are plotting a future escape attempt.”
“I’ll have you know I’ve s
caled the wall to this parapet more times than I can remember. I’d bet I could even do it with my eyes closed.”
“I would wager the guards still remember your athletic leanings,” he replied.
Becka sighed. “I bet they do.”
“I doubt Maura would take an escape attempt well, under the circumstances.”
“You’re assuming I’d be caught in the act.”
Becka stared off into the distance. The wind swayed the pines, conifer, and aspen, inviting her to escape deep into their hidden paths.
“Are you planning to run?”
She sighed. “No, I have too many people after me, and too much hanging over my head. I mean, I bet I could outwit Maura and the testers. But then there’s the guards. And it sounds like this mystery person knows things, has connections, and won’t give up either. Plus there’s this potential curse.” Becka slumped against the railing, feeling trapped like an exhibit in a museum. “You may not be the only one this person is manipulating.”
“I doubt it, but there’s no way to know.”
“Do you think there’s a way out of dealing with the tester?”
“I do not understand what you have against the testers? They are harmless.”
“Mostly harmless. I’ve been examined by a tester three times. Each examination was more uncomfortable and invasive than the last. It’s like having my skin scraped with a pad of steel wool.”
He winced. “Are you not concerned with what they might find?” His guarded expression spoke volumes.
Did he know something or was he wondering if she’d been keeping some magic hidden from him?
Becka groaned. “I don’t know what they’ll find, as the prior testers found nothing. But what if I’ve been cursed or jinxed or hexed?”
“One assumes House Rowan would work to remedy the issue.”
“Hopefully the cure is an easy and fast one, because I’m out of here yesterday.”
“That assumes a jinx is to blame… You are getting a bit ahead of yourself. Regardless, if you do not get this quirk diagnosed, you or others could be hurt.”
Becka shot him a withering look, but he was right.
Becka went back inside and slumped down onto the bed, curling herself around a pile of pillows she’d stacked earlier in the day. She grabbed her journal from the nightstand and cracked it open. Quinn seemed to understand she needed a few moments of solitude and sat on the divan across from the bed.
She sketched up the glyphs from Tesse’s neck, just like she’d done for Quinn, but these were for her reference. There was something familiar with them, but she couldn’t quite place it. They’d been such a chalky-gray, she wondered what the ink had been made of. She wished she’d touched them, but out of respect for Tesse, hadn’t quite been able to bring herself to do it. Most likely, she’d seen them somewhere in her studies years ago. She’d need to review her past journals when she got back home to see if anything popped out.
Becka turned the page and drew a graph of everyone she’d spoken with, both House Rowan, other fae, or even shifter, and how they were all interconnected. Pondering the connections, she wondered why Alain had been chosen as Tesse’s future husband? He was a member of House Hawthorne, aka the House of Thorns, home of the Fire Guild. She drew a picture of the Unbreakable, the phoenix, which had been gifted to Rowan by Hawthorne, next to Alain’s name. The coincidence tugged at her mind, but she couldn’t see a deeper connection. Perhaps this history was the reason Maura had arranged to bring a Fire elementalist into the fold?
Quinn paced the length of the room, staring out the windows as she wrote.
She wrote down: “Quinn - The mysterious Enforcer.”
They’d known each other for only three days, and yet she’d come to relish the feel of his calming, stable presence. His undercover work gave her pause, but she respected he was willing to take on a high risk. She ticked off a list of what she knew about him. Dedicated Enforcer. House Oak. A killer smile. Clever. Only lied by omission. Shoulders she wouldn’t mind nibbling on.
Whew! That was a train of thought she didn’t mind entertaining. Her gaze drifted over him, past the pages of her journal. Quinn was a bit too charming for her practical, down to earth mindset, but she couldn’t deny feeling a tiny thrill of excitement every time his burnished gaze cast her way.
Assuming she could trust him. Becka was going out on an emotional limb extending him the faith others had cautioned her against. But her heart believed his genuine nature, even if her head wasn’t altogether sure why.
“I’m exhausted.” She placed the journal on the nightstand, thoughts still swirling around her mind, competing for mental airspace. Becka flopped down on the bed, staring at the painted clouds covering the ceiling of her room. She hadn’t even bothered to change into her unicorn pj’s yet.
Quinn, who had been staring out the windows, walked over to her bed and sat down on the edge near her. “Does journaling help settle your thoughts?”
She sat up and crossed her legs, relieved to resume their normal banter. Just being near him steadied her. It was as if he was a piece that just fit in the puzzle of her life.
“It’s a process,” she replied.
“I know today was unexpectedly challenging, as tomorrow is also likely to be. Is there anything I can do?”
Becka shook her head, a few stray locks swaying in front of her face, freed from the hair tie while she’d lounged against the pillows. “I’d ask you to sneak me out of here, but I suppose that can wait until after this curse or whatever is settled. Like an hour after it’s settled.” She laughed, and hip lip curled in that way she found so fetching. “I miss my home in the city so much.”
“Do you think you’ll take Oriani back with you when all of this is over?”
Becka pursed her lips, considering the question. “I suppose I will.”
Quinn reached forward and tucked the chunk of freed hair behind her ear, and her breath hitched in her throat. His gaze traveled between her eyes and her lips and then back again, their burnished gold shimmering in the dim light of the room.
“I haven’t noticed anyone else being affectionate to him. I doubt the Duchess would mind,” he replied.
Perhaps it was the stress of the day, or her anxiety about tomorrow’s testing, but right now Becka desperately needed a distraction. On an impulse, and before she could overthink things and talk herself out of it, Becka moved forward and up onto her knees, bringing herself nose to nose with Quinn, her lips hovering near his. She breathed deep, his musky scent strangely satisfying.
He arched a brow, a combination of surprise and interest dancing in his eyes. “I get the impression you have a plan,” he said, raising a hand up and tracing the outline of her earlobe to the tip, touching each of her earrings in turn, the contact sending electric thrills across her skin. “But I would caution you, your door is unlocked and there are guards stationed right outside.”
She pulled back a little. Was this his way of gently rebuffing her advances? “If you think it’s a bad idea…”
Quinn’s hand gripped the back of her neck and pulled her into the kiss she hadn’t been sure of. His intensity matched her own, and she pressed herself against him, climbing into his lap and entwining herself around him. His lips were demanding and insistent, and she reveled in the heat of his skin against her own. The cropped hair at the base of his skull tickled her fingertips, and she confirmed that his shoulders were indeed as muscular as she’d intuited under his linen shirts.
After a few moments of bliss, they caught their breath. His gaze reassessed her, while Becka considered nibbling her way down his neck.
“I never said it was a bad idea,” he replied. “But it is curious you picked now to test the waters between us.”
“I wasn’t sure if you were interested?” she asked, her fingers continuing to trace the lines along his shoulders.
He chuckled, running fingers down her back. “You could have asked, but I do appreciate your hands-on approach.”
Becka ran her fingers down his shirt, unbuttoning the top button, eager to bring his shoulders into view. “Speaking of hands-on.”
He laid a hand across hers, stalling her movement. “Do you trust me?”
She frowned. “Uh, yeah.”
“Despite the calls you’ve overheard? I wouldn’t blame you if you doubted my loyalty.”
“I believe your explanations for the calls,” she replied. “You haven’t given me other reasons to doubt you. My gut says you’re safe.”
Becka leaned back in, breathing in his scent, aiming again for the buttons of his shirt.
He cleared his throat, his hands on her thighs. “As much as I would like to press forward, there is wisdom in waiting for a time with a locked door.”
Becka frowned, the heat in her body and mind not interested in his reasonableness. “I suppose there will be plenty of time after the testing tomorrow,” she said, sighing in defeat.
Quinn ran a finger down her jawline. “Thank you for declaring your intentions.”
At his formal language, Becka moved out of his lap, breaking contact. “You know I’m an outcast. ‘Declaring intentions’ doesn’t have the same meaning for me as it would be for some guilded girl.”
“As you say,” he replied, eyes alit with both humor and desire. “Still, thank you for being direct with your interest.”
Becka shrugged, unsure of the breadth of her interest, but she supposed it didn’t matter. She’d be back home in the city in a few days.
She scooted over on the bed to give him room. “Would you lay down next to me while I sleep?”
He frowned. “I can assure you you’re safe. I’m a light sleeper and your guards will rush in if they hear anything suspicious.”
“If you were right here I would feel more,” she replied, searching for the right word, “secure, I think.”
He nodded, and moved up the bed beside her. Becka took his arm and curled up next to him, unsure if she could even sleep next to someone else. But, she did feel safer having Quinn lying next to her.
When sleep finally did find her, Becka drifted in and out between painful images of past tests and dreams of Quinn’s lips tracing down her neck.
Twinned Shadow (The Shadow Series Book 1) Page 13
