by Sandra Elsa
"No. I believe you can make it rain, but can you use ocean water to make it happen?" If what he said about the outside world was true…
"I've never tried, but father certainly seems to think I can."
"And will you?"
"I don't know. I don't want to do it for him. But I always thought it could benefit the population in general if we had room to expand."
My pizza sat cold in front of me. The melted cheese on his manicotti had stiffened into a solid sheet. I glanced at my cell phone. One o'clock. From my phone I turned my attention to his handheld, which hadn't trilled and we were a half hour past when he had said he expected delivery of his funds. Damn it. Why did he have to intrigue me? I'd never had a full-fledged mage catch my attention in a good way before. The potential surrounding him was limitless.
Chapter 12
Harrison watched me and chewed his lip.
I shook my head. "Did you assume you could convince me to help you by threatening me with your knowledge of what I am? Or did you assume I'd give a shit about what you can do and the possibilities you hold for the future?"
"No. I believe you'd kill me if I said anything about the first. And the second is all ifs and possibilities"
"You seem nice enough, but I can't afford the hazard of riding your coattails without considerable compensation."
"I don't know what happened. Mom said it would be here. I don't dare use my phone. I noticed a public booth three blocks down--"
"What's the number?"
"I'm sure Dad's keeping track of any calls she receives."
"He came to me. Just give me the number."
I punched in the eight digit number starting with 07 for the district. That was a first on my phone. "Name?" I asked as the phone buzzed.
"Nan."
When it was answered, I asked, "Is Nan there?"
"This is she. Whom am I speaking to?" As if my name and number weren't displayed on her screen.
Then again I couldn't be sure she was who she claimed either. "My name is Francesca Leone, I'm a private investigator. Your son's father has contacted me in an attempt to hire my services to locate Harrison."
"My son doesn't wish to be found, Miss Leone."
"I'm aware of that, Ma'am. I've been looking into his case before I decide whether or not to take it on."
"As if Jordan gives you a choice."
"Nan, believe me when I tell you, I have a choice. I've also been contacted by a young man who thought he could afford my services but seems to be having some difficulty coming up with the funds. His case is much more interesting to me, but I don't do charity work. If he can't come up with the money, I'll have to consider the other option."
Fifteen seconds passed in complete silence. I pulled the phone away from my ear to make sure I hadn't lost the connection. Just as I did, she said, "It may be my son's father will have no need of your services, Miss Leone. He's following up on a report of an amnesia victim with red eyes in the hospital."
"I'm aware of the man in the hospital. Not as much an amnesiac as he may be acting, but not your son. I believe his name is Jerry."
"Oh...Poor Annabel, she had hoped he'd gotten free."
"He's far better found than the other option. A couple more days and he would have been dead. Is there anything you can tell me about your son so we can make sure that doesn't happen to him?"
"Could you call me back in five minutes, Miss Leone? I was just getting changed to go out running. Give me a couple of minutes to get dressed."
I already liked her. "Of course. Then you'll tell me what you can about your son? His likes and dislikes anything that might be helpful?"
"I will."
Thirty seconds later Harrison's handheld trilled. He punched in a code and flipped it around for me to see the trail the money had taken to arrive as a personal wireless transfer to his chip. It was actually an impressive number of transfers and amounts for an amateur attempting to cover the final destination. I took his cred chip and inserted it into my own handheld and transferred the fourteen thousand into my account. I closed my eyes and reached out to tweak the spell that kept track of fund transfers. Just enough that the trail would be confused not obliterated. Every transfer made today would take considerable sorting out if anybody bothered to check them.
"I don't believe I sat here and watched you do that."
I grinned at him and batted my lashes. "Do what?"
"You're more than I thought, and I was already impressed."
I laughed. "You're easy to impress. Hell you were impressed with my hot bod."
"Well, yeah, I'm male. You must get that a lot."
"More than I care for. Has it been five minutes?"
"Three."
I picked up a slice of pizza and started eating. He dug at his manicotti before stretching his hand across the table and grabbing a slice of pizza. He paused with it in the air. "Do you mind?"
"Go ahead. I'm pretty much done. Normally I'd take it along and have it for supper, but I have a date this evening."
"Who's the lucky guy?" He started eating the pizza, a frown on his face.
"You walked past him last night."
"The sergeant?"
"Wally. Although it occurs to me, I don't really know his first name. Wallin is the name on his badge."
His brows knit together. "How long have you been going out with him? How can you not know his first name?"
"I've known him for years. But we've never dated before.” And if I had my druthers there'd be a couple other friends with us at Big John's.
"Guess that would explain why he was on the couch last night."
I punched redial on my phone. Nan picked up before the first ring ended. "Miss Leone?"
"Yes, Ma'am. I'm sorry, but it appears I may not be able to assist your son's father. The other client I mentioned seems to have come up with the funds."
"Well he's a lucky man. I did some checking. You seem to be a resourceful young woman." Yeah I would probably get along with her.
"I try, Ma'am."
"Did you still need information on my son?"
I glanced across the table at Harrison. "Sure. If I can make some suggestions to his father, perhaps he won't have my license pulled for refusing him."
"Harrison's a terrible flirt, but he's good at heart. He likes tri-D's so you might suggest Jordan check out any theaters near where Harrison was spotted. He loves the water. Rarely ever strays far from the source. Reads a lot. Really enjoys mysteries. I don't know if you can track downloads, his favorite authors are George Goodin and Clay Mandilla. His hobbies include sailing and bio-genetics, he's always been interested in regenerating some of the large animals lost to our world, I don't know if there are groups of people he might seek out with similar interests. I'm not sure what else I can tell you."
"That's plenty. Thank you for your time." I tried to keep judgment out of my voice. Did she present him like that to every woman? Thirty-three years old and looking like a movie star; the man should be married, not having his mother make him sound like the catch of the week. I'd seen him with a woman. If he preferred men it hadn't been evident in his performance. My cheeks burned as I recalled the thoughts that had flitted through my mind as I watched him. A lifetime of photographing people in compromising positions, he was the first I’d ever wished I could be the cheating wife instead of the investigator about to bust her.
"Take care, Miss Leone. Good luck with your meeting with Jordan this afternoon, and best wishes for your client." That last was the only thing she said that would give somebody listening to the conversation any idea she knew her son was my client. Apparently thirty years imprisoned, and registration as a mage, couldn't take the District Eleven out of the girl.
"Yes Ma'am, thank you. Have a good day." I folded the phone closed and slid it in a pocket before looking over at Harrison. "What did you tell her?"
"About?"
"Me. She sounded like she was reciting a video from an e-dating service."
Pi
nk brushed across his cheeks. "Maybe I mentioned how beautiful you are."
"And that didn't give her second thoughts about coming up with the money."
He frowned, whether at my sarcasm or my failure to return a compliment, I didn't know. "I didn't gush on endlessly. I also mentioned how skilled you seemed to be and that at least some of the watch thought you were good at your job. And I might have given you credit for saving my life. If you had turned me out last night, I'm not sure what I'd have done."
"Did you have plans for where you intend to sleep tonight?"
"I can get a room."
If he was running a game on me he was damn good at it, but some of his answers were contradictory. "You could have gotten a room last night. Do you already have money transferred to your chip?"
"Enough to get by for a couple days." He recognized his error the moment he said it. "I wasn't thinking last night. I didn't want to go someplace that might demand to see my ident. And I didn't want to lose track of you." Not as stupid as a lifetime in Seven should have left him.
"Stay at my place. Couch should be empty tonight." It made more sense to keep him close.
"I don't know about reversing places with a member of the watch."
"I'm going to dinner with him. That doesn't mean I plan to invite him up to my bed."
"You sure I'm trustworthy?" A violet eye winked suggestively.
I laughed, although I didn't put much humor in it. "I'm sure I can break you if you're not."
He sobered, cheeks blanching. "Fair enough. And I'll accept. Thank you. Should I go back there now?"
"No. And don't go to a theater, or the source in any district. If you decide to read a book, don't download anything new. Or don't download your regular authors. Don't decide you need to change back into fancy clothes to impress some woman...besides, I think you look better this way. Even the cuts add character now that you've cleaned them up." I bit my tongue. What had possessed me to say that? Then continued as though it'd been a perfectly natural thing to slide my opinion of his appearance into my comments. "Just don't do anything you used to do. If you're serious about staying free, you need to make some major changes in your life." I finished my slice of pizza and glass of water, wondering if he could actually survive without his finery.
"I'm game."
"I sure as hell hope so. Beyond all else, do not use your magic."
"Yes, Ma'am." He stretched his hand towards mine as I rested it on the table. One glance stopped him from touching me. With a confused look, he withdrew, folding his hands together in front of himself. "What will you tell my father?"
"Haven't seen hide nor hair of you. Though everything's fluid. Depends what he knows and what he asks."
"You can't lie to him. He knows when he's being lied to."
I grinned at him. "And how would he know that?"
"It's one of his talents."
I called for the check and a box. "I've fooled more than one mechanical polygraph." I upped the sarcasm. "And magic works so well against me."
"He'll know if you grind his magic to dust."
"Did you? Did you feel it die?" If he had, it wouldn't have taken him so long to figure out what I was. No matter how tired he'd been.
"No. But I'm not him."
"Being a null is a lot like breathing. It just happens. Absorbs anything sent against me. It can't be seen or felt, as long as I don't spend too much time in his company, he won't notice." I hoped.
"Never having actually met one of the fabled null before, I'll have to accept that you know best. When should I return to your apartment?"
I wished I had his confidence in me. "After dark. If I'm not there, let yourself in. Wear disguises they were watching my office this morning."
"A key would make getting in easier since I'm not supposed to use my magic."
"Good thought. We'll get you a copy at Hermly's while we get your ident kit." I let him pay for lunch. "You can take the leftovers. I'm assuming you know how to work a flash heater."
He frowned. Maybe I was finally getting to him. God knows I tried. "Believe it or not, I even lived in my own house and managed to feed myself. I can cook too."
I grinned. "Trying to say, ease up?" We headed for the front door and he held his tongue as we wove through the other patrons of the restaurant.
Once outside, he said, "It'd be nice. There's a lot I don't know about living outside Seven, but I'm not a helpless babe."
"Good to know. Doesn't mean I'll stop treating you like one. Anybody who hangs out with me needs a good sense of humor. I've been told I'm not always easy to take. But get one thing straight; I don't care if you like me. I've spent thirty years hating mages. Even if you're the opposite of everything I expect, you're going to have to prove yourself, every step of the way." We got in my car and I drove toward District Seventeen's source.
"Do you hate yourself?"
"Nope. I'm the smartest, sexiest, private investigator to ever get a license."
His head bobbed agreement. "No matter how I might concur with that statement, you also happen to be a mage."
"I happen to have a few talents that can help me out in a pinch." I said dismissively. "I don't go around treating other people like they're second class citizens and declaring I'm Francesca the Great, bow down at my feet."
"You treat mages like second class citizens." Clearly I annoyed him. Good.
"Somebody has to. You all think enough of yourselves, what does it matter what one peon in District Eight might think of the high-and-mighty. Your father seemed to think I was hilarious as I cussed out mages, not knowing he was sitting right there."
"You did that?" He nearly laughed.
"Yep. And now I get to meet with him." For all the brash reassurance I offered him, fear tickled the pit of my stomach. "Me. Lowly, private investigator to the masses, meets the dictator of the once-free districts. You had better be worth the risk. And fourteen thousand dollars doesn't even begin to cover the cost of exposing myself to someone with the power to make my life hell."
"Don't do it then."
"Like backing out is an option."
"No...I guess it's not. But if he uses a lot of magic against you, tell him you've seen me. Better that than having him check you out too closely." Damn his noble sacrifice. I did plan on telling the president I’d seen Harrison, not that I'd accepted him as a client. I really hadn't scripted the meeting in my head; there were too many variables in play. My brilliant idea for a meeting place should remove most of his advantage.
"You're a client. I knew the risks before I accepted you. I would hardly turn you in now. No matter what I might think of you personally, I would never have anything but the client's best interests at heart."
"If he takes you away, I'm screwed. It's not like you'll know where I am at that immediate moment in time. Tell him what you must to make it believable without giving yourself away."
I pulled into Hermly's and parked before turning to examine him. "Keep it up. Maybe you'll make me reevaluate mages. I can't believe you came up with something that selfless."
"We can't be having you think good thoughts about me.” He grinned. “Like I said, if you get taken, I'm screwed."
I smiled back and got out of the car. He walked up and wrapped his arm around my waist. I looked down at the arm, then up at the grin on his face.
"You started this," he said.
"As cover in a busy restaurant."
"I know, but damn you feel good."
"It will attract a lot of attention if I have to remove your arm."
"Then don't."
I twisted sideways and slid away from him. "That's what I expect of a mage."
He stopped dead in his tracks. "I'm sorry. I see your point."
"I am in charge. Try not to forget that. You need to snap a leash on your libido or you won't last long at all."
"Mea culpa. Guess it's hard to believe you find my touch offensive."
"No woman ever turn you down before?"
"Well..." h
e started walking. We were nearly in the door when he said, "No. No woman ever turned me down before. Or even made me work for what I wanted. You're saying that's because of who I am?"
"Who you are. What you are. I don't know the minds of Seveners enough to be certain that's why you never had a hard time getting a woman in bed. But I'd bet you'd have been rejected more than once out here in the real world. No matter how good looking you are."
The grin widened. "At least I haven't lost that."
"Other people count. At the restaurant, we weren't noticed. Here I know Hermly. He's a good friend, and he knows Wally. If I start dating Wally regularly, what would Herm think about you with your arm around me?"
"If he really knows you that well, he'd figure it was a cover."
I shook my head, but smiled up at him. "You're fast on your feet."
"It would seem I need to be." He held the door open.
"Frankie!" The heavyset balding man came out from behind the counter and hugged me. "It's been a long time, girl."
"How ya doin', Herm?"
"I'm good."
"And Carla?"
"Fantastic. Joshua just left for Thirteen. Mum cried for about two minutes over her empty nest, then started redecorating and taking classes on photography." He waved to the newly decorated walls. An eleven by seventeen photo of Joshua hung behind the register. The other photo’s all played with lighting and zoom on items from the store.
"That's great. Maybe I'll see if she can give me any pointers. I'm always taking pictures in my line of work."
"She'd be glad to help you out, you know that. So what about you?" He glanced over at Harrison. "You seeing anybody right now?"
I followed him to the back corner of the store. "It would seem maybe I am. Wally asked me to dinner tonight."
Herm chuckled. "Finally got up the courage did he?"
"Did everybody but me know he was interested?"
"Pretty much, Frankie. You're the only one he didn't have the nerve to pine to. So what brings you in today?"
"I need a key made without record, and I need an ident kit for my client."
Harrison felt the need to put his two cents in. "I've been getting in and out of the various districts without problem, I don't need the ident."
