All thought that he was here to threaten me had completely vanished after he’d told me everything about Josh and Max.
I brought up a hand and waved it quickly. “It’s okay. I’m just trying. I’m new at this. I’m still learning. Give me time. Tell me… tell me exactly what we’re up against.”
There was a long pause. “You mean the Cruze Gang?”
I nodded.
Frank brought up a sweat-caked hand and clenched it on his jaw. When he let it drop, his top lip and chin glistened. “They control all D 20 in Madison City. As well as a lot of the contraband magical weapons that come in. I don’t know who’s at the top. I’ve always suspected, but I’ve got nothing for certain. I only ever dealt with my district commander. A William Rankin.” As Frank said those words, his expression hardened.
That would be the Bill from the video, ha?
“How did you meet William?”
“Work.”
I tilted my head to the side. “You’re a bouncer, aren’t you?”
He blinked. “How did you figure that out?”
Damn, I shouldn’t have revealed that. Then again, what the heck did it matter?
“I saw you at the gala this morning.”
Frank didn’t look suspicious at that admission. He shrugged. “I am a bouncer. And yeah, that’s where I met Will. That’s where I met a lot of the other guys, too.”
“… You mean most of the guys in the Cruze Gang work for Peter Mercure?”
Obviously I couldn’t keep my suspicion out of my voice, because Bill picked up on it easily. “If you’re about to question whether Peter is at the head of this gang, I doubt it. He’s way too smart to get caught up in shit like this. Plus, he doesn’t need to control the supply of D 20 – he’s pretty much got this city in his hands anyway.”
“What does that mean?”
“I don’t mean to rush you, love, but I’ve got exactly 20 minutes until Debbie gets out of school. If you can’t find a place for us to go….” He looked down at his hands. He was the very picture of a defeated man.
I took a breath and returned my attention to the book. Why had I promised that I could do this? I didn’t need to search for that answer. It was my heart. You see, it kept going out for Frank as he sat there, staring at his hands, looking as if he had nowhere to turn and no one to rely on.
It made me momentarily forget about the letter of the law as I decided to help him instead.
I kept flicking through the Atlas, back and forth, back and forth until I realized I kept concentrating on a particular chapter.
I frowned. There was just a spark of something inside me, wasn’t there?
Frank looked as if he was about to jump up and go.
I held a hand out. “I think I need to know more about the Cruze Gang. I think I need to know exactly what we’re up against before I can find you a place that will keep you safe from them.”
My excited tone was enough to keep Frank in the room. “I don’t know how much more to tell you. They’re sprawled, and there are a lot of members of the gang. We don’t just operate out of Madison, either. I think whoever’s at the top, they’re out of the city. As for the guys who make up the gang – we’re all ex-army, to a T. All warlocks, too. And most of us,” he clenched his teeth, “were roped into joining.”
“What do you mean?”
“That I wasn’t approached until my wife died. She was wealthy, and we lived in a pretty nice house. With her money, we never had to worry about cash. When she died, her asshole lawyer of a brother took everything. Managed to fake a prenup, forged my signature, and made it seem as if Marianne – my wife – had left everything to him.”
“Did you go to the police?”
Frank looked at me steadily. “That asshole of a brother works for the DA.”
I blinked in surprise. I wanted to doubt what he was saying, but one thing I couldn’t doubt was his ardent tone. He firmly believed what he was telling me.
So I blinked again and breathed. “Are you telling me that you weren’t approached by the Cruze Gang until you lost all your belongings?”
“I’m telling you exactly that. It’s like they had details of my financial situation or something. They knew I was desperate, and the next thing, I received a phone call in the middle of the night.”
“Your wife’s death notice would have been in the paper, and presumably they could’ve checked what had happened to the will in the courts.” I tried to be the voice of reason.
“They rang the day the court case was decided. Before it hit the papers. Somebody knew. Someone had been keeping track of it, and that same someone gave me an offer I couldn’t refuse,” Frank said, his voice suddenly becoming weak as he stared at his hands again.
I swallowed. This was horrible. There were meant to be basic protections for men like Frank, and yet those protections obviously weren’t working.
“I don’t mean to rush you,” he began.
“Sorry,” I said breathlessly as I continued to search back and forth through the atlas. Though it seemed that I wasn’t getting anywhere, I was, because I was now flicking back and forth between precisely 3 pages.
Maybe Frank could see this, because he now sat on the edge of his chair, watching me intently.
I took a deep breath. I knew the location that would keep Frank and Debbie safe was here, within my hands, but I couldn’t narrow it down any further.
“If you want to know how dangerous the Cruze Gang are,” Frank said quickly, volunteering more information without having to be asked, “then the answer is as dangerous as you can imagine. It’s not just that they’re made up of ex-army – it’s that the guys in control have every member of the gang over the chopping block. They didn’t just give me money when I joined – enough for me to buy a house and be sure Debbie would get a good education. They clipped my wings.”
I blinked quickly. “Sorry, I don’t know what that means.”
“You really are new to this business of bounty hunting, ha? Clipping a witch’s wings means outfitting them with a specialized magical bio tracker. You go through this ritual – they take you and shove you into a fire pit.”
I gasped.
“The fire doesn’t burn you – it just marks you. Every goddamn skin cell. All with a unique bio-magical tracker that will alert them if you try to leave the city. They’ll also be able to use it to follow you.”
It was like something clicked in my head.
I found my hands stopping as I opened a page. My thumb slipped down until it stopped on a street.
I jerked my head down.
“What have you got?” Frank jumped to his feet.
“I… something in Strickland Street. Sorry, this atlas isn’t detailed enough to give me buildings.”
Frank paused. Then he tipped his head back and chuckled lightly. “Shit, you really are a finder, aren’t you? God, that’s genius.”
“It is? What are you talking about?”
“The old chemical refinery. It used to produce the components for warlock weapons.”
I still wasn’t following, and that was clearly painted on my face, because Frank smiled kindly. “The place has technically been cleaned, but it’s still so full of magical residue that it’s pretty much become a black hole.”
“A black hole?”
“Not only is it dangerous to practice magic within – or at least to practice warlock attack spells – but most of the spells won’t work, either. And considering my tracking spell,” he brought up a hand and thumped it against his chest, the sound ringing through the room, “is made up of bio magical markers, it will be useless in there. The Cruze Gang could pump all the magic they have into isolating my tracking symbol, and it wouldn’t work. You’re a genius,” he repeated.
“I think to classify as a genius you actually have to be aware of what you’re doing. But I’m glad I’ve been able to help. How… how are you going to be able to pick up your kid and make it there without being followed?”
“You
leave that up to me. During my days in the Army, I was one of their best. I haven’t forgotten that training.”
I nodded. Then I stood as I realized Frank was about to leave. Worse? I’d just given a criminal a safe house.
I wasn’t about to go back on my offer for help, though. “Before you leave, I need to know more about the drop-off tomorrow. Where is it meant to be?”
“We don’t know that. We never know.”
“But where were you meant to go at the allotted time?”
“To one of the holding centers where we usually keep the drugs. When we arrive, we will be given new orders. We don’t even know how the drugs are going to be shipped in this time – by water or air. Hell, the Cruze Gang are getting so desperate to ship in more D 20, one day I imagine they’ll just build tunnels.”
Something in me twitched at that. The same sensation that told me I was just about to find something.
But my opportunity to find that thing had ended, because Frank had run out of time. He pivoted on his foot. He made it to the door, opened it, and turned. “Thank you from the bottom of my heart,” he said, and he meant it.
I nodded. “It’s okay. I hope you’re safe. But you can’t exactly stay in hiding forever.”
“I know. But it’s a start. I’ll think about tomorrow when tomorrow comes.”
With another heartfelt thank you, Frank left.
I’d been right about him. He hadn’t come here to kidnap me. He’d just been a man in trouble and in need of help.
I’d helped him, despite the fact it was illegal. And yet, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I’d done the right thing.
I turned around and headed for the kitchen. Yawning, I brought my arms back and stretched them.
Then I walked into the kitchen.
And I stopped. Because there was a man sitting there pushing the photos around the desk as he snacked on a packet of biscuits.
As soon as he saw me, he smiled.
And I screamed.
Chapter 5
What happened next happened quickly. The guy threw himself up and was upon me like a flash. I felt his fist sink into my stomach.
The air was instantly knocked from my lungs, and I was thrown backward. I fell against the wall – against the exact spot where I’d shaken my wet hair only a few hours ago.
Stars exploded through my vision as the guy pounced on top of me again. He brought a hand up and locked it tightly around my throat. Then he leaned in. “Nice to meet you, finder. I’ve got some friends who sure would like to make your acquaintance. Now come with me. I watched him bring his fist back. I swear it glinted like a sword under the powerful kitchen lights.
I winced and closed my eyes, expecting the worst. Then I heard a grunt from behind me. Just before the guy could knock me out, somebody launched into him, wrapped their arms around his middle, and hauled him off me.
I watched Frank bring a charged fist up and slam it into my attacker’s jaw.
But it wasn’t my attacker anymore.
That same sense I got when I’d chased Jeremy through the sewers was back.
“No, he’s behind you,” I shrieked.
I didn’t think I’d warned Frank in time, but Frank was quick. Much quicker than I expected.
Just at the last moment when I saw another identical attacker appear behind Frank, he shoved back hard, rolled, and punched his feet out. The move was hard enough and charged with enough magic that his electrified feet caught the attacker on his shins, sending the man plowing back.
Frank rolled, latched a hand onto the guy’s ankle, and sent a huge blast of magic crackling into the man’s skin.
The guy shrieked.
Before he could split himself off and cast another illusion spell, Frank connected his massive hand across the guy’s jaw.
… And it was over.
I stood there, shaking as I pressed my back into the wall. My stomach felt as if I’d been hit by a semitrailer, and there was now an unconscious illusionist on my floor.
Frank slowly got to his feet. He pushed the illusionist once with his boot, did something with his hand, then cast a containment spell. Only when it had burst into life around the comatose illusionist did Frank turn to me. He looked at me seriously and quickly. “Are you okay? Did that bastard get you?”
I placed a hand on my stomach. My fingers were sweaty and shaking. “He punched me in the gut. But… I’ll be fine. Thank you. Thank you,” I spluttered, emotion breaking through my tone. Tears threatened to fill my eyes.
Frank shifted around, grabbed a glass off the drying rack, and quickly poured me some water. He forced it into my hand, then he helped me over to one of the seats.
He didn’t even bother to glance at the open files laid out on my table. He only had eyes for me. “Just breathe. The water will help, too. Do you think you’ve broken a rib?”
Before I could point out that I had no way to know if I’d broken a rib, as being assaulted by ex-army personnel was kind of new to me, he nodded. “Press a hand along your rib cage. If it hurts like hell and feels like you’ve swallowed fire, then you’ve probably broken a rib.”
I did as he said. It was sore, all right, but the pain was starting to abate. I shook my head. “I think my ribs are fine. The rest of me, however,” I began, but I trailed off. I stared back at the comatose illusionist. “How the hell did he get in here?”
Frank turned.
He tried the window behind the sink. It was unlocked. I’d left it unlocked after I cooked my omelet.
I closed my eyes and placed a hand on them. God, I was an idiot.
“It’s okay. You didn’t do anything wrong. He was the asshole who attacked you. Now, who do you want me to call? Josh?”
I let my hand drop. “He’s out on a case.”
“It doesn’t matter. His house was invaded. Plus,” Frank turned his head down and stared at the illusionist, “I imagine Bruce here is going to be worth a lot to him.”
I stared at Frank. “Bruce?”
“Bruce Arlington. A member of the Cruze Gang,” he added darkly. “He’s one of the city’s current top bounties.”
I frowned. Then I realized Frank was right. The name did ring a bell.
And now Bruce was only several meters beside me after having whispered in my ear that he had friends who wanted to meet me.
I shivered.
“He would have been here for me,” Frank said in a reassuring tone.
I shook my head. “He was here for me.”
“Why would he want you?”
“Because I can find anything. Or at least virtually anything.”
Frank opened his mouth. He closed it as realization struck him.
“You need to get somewhere safe. I don’t even know your name,” he suddenly added.
“Beth Sampson.”
“Well, Beth, you have to get somewhere safe. And you need to call Josh. I don’t care what kind of mission he’s on, he has to get back here now. I’d tell you to head down to the police station, but,” Frank stopped abruptly.
Despite the fact I felt – quite rightly – as if I’d just been punched in the gut, I still had enough curiosity in me to look up sharply at that statement. “But what?”
Frank planted a sweaty hand on his mouth. He looked at me seriously, and his look was obviously meant to gauge how much I could believe. “There are at least five plants from the Cruze Gang in the warlock division. And that’s just the warlock division.”
I stared at him. I was cold all over.
I sat there, my mind reeling.
“Come on, I have to call someone,” Frank said honestly.
I brought my hand up, pressed it against my head, then let it drop. “You can try Josh – but I doubt he’ll answer,” I said. I had no reason to believe that Josh wouldn’t answer. All I knew about his so-called mission tonight was that it was with Max – and he’d only let that slip after I’d questioned him. And yet I couldn’t deny my certainty that he wouldn’t answer. Wherever he was, he
’d either be too busy, or out of range.
I gave Frank my phone and he tried to call Josh, but lo and behold, I was right, and Josh didn’t answer. Frank tried again several times, but there was nothing.
He’d already walked over and locked the window, checking the latch several times.
Now he stood in the middle of the kitchen, his hands on his hips as he surveyed the place. “First things first, do you know if there are any other windows open?”
I shrugged. “Not in the rooms I’m allowed to go into.”
He frowned, then shook his head. “I guess Josh wouldn’t be an easy person to live with. I suppose you know what kind of magical enchantments he uses on the rooms?”
I shrugged.
Frank sighed. “I’m assuming he uses what he was taught in the Army, and if that’s the case, it would mean that even if the window is open in a room that isn’t stable, unless Josh opens the door, it’ll simply open into empty space.”
I frowned as I looked at Frank. Unlike Josh who never explained anything to me other than to point out I was an idiot for not knowing in the first place, Frank had a really easy- to-listen-to tone, and didn’t appear to think I was an idiot. “What’s that?” I asked.
“A bit of a complicated concept for now. Essentially when you spell a house to have rooms moving around, there’s got to be a base place those rooms come from and go to. Think of it kind of like a dumping ground for the house’s particles when they’re not in use.”
I blinked, making it obvious I was way too frazzled to follow this increasingly complex explanation.
Frank shrugged. “Basically, when the magical rooms aren’t in use – or aren’t opened with Josh’s hand – they don’t exist. They’re little more than atoms.”
I nodded and smiled. “So even if a window is technically,” I made air quotes, “open in one of those rooms, no one will be able to get through.”
He clicked his fingers at me and grinned. “Bingo. So you don’t have to worry about those rooms. And you said the rooms you go into are fine?”
I nodded strongly.
Frank latched a hand on his face. “Well at least that’s something.
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