by Linsey Hall
Cade’s voice snapped into action mode. “We’re going to Hedy, our resident witch and inventor. She’ll help.”
“Why do you care, if you abducted us?” I demanded.
“Normally we don’t abduct. We discuss,” Cade said. “But those were extenuating circumstances. I know a runner when I see one. And if you got on that vehicle of yours, you’d be in your element. Nearly impossible to catch.”
Fair enough. After facing down Ricketts’s men, we’d been primed to run or fight to the death, no question.
We’d never have expected help.
Which was what these people were promising.
I was skeptical.
But we needed to consider it, since we were fresh out of options. We were chock-full of poison with no home, no money, no car, and currently no magic.
Thinking on my feet and trusting my instincts had saved us countless times in Death Valley. Right now, there was only one reasonable thing to do.
Oh, hell. We had to trust these people. “We’ll see your healer.”
And if she couldn’t help, my magic should be recouped enough soon that we’d blast our way out of this place somehow and start fresh.
He nodded, pleased, yet still somehow managing to look dangerous and grim. I shivered, not wanting to be attracted to him but failing miserably.
He turned and strode toward a squat tower that was set near the entrance gate. Ana and I hurried to follow, Caro at my side. The two Djinn followed behind. Their concern made me uncomfortable.
Sure, we smelled of sweet, rotten fish, so something was clearly up. But they didn’t know us.
Why would they care about us?
Cade led us to a large tower sitting relatively close to the gate. I followed him inside. Caro, Ali, and Haris waited outside.
The room within was large and round, empty except for several chairs. The lack of windows would have made it dark, but there were glowing glass spheres floating near the ceiling, shedding a golden light on the space. Near the wall, a metal spiral staircase led up to another floor.
“Why does this remind me of a dungeon?” I asked.
“It’s not.” The voice sounded from above. Feminine, but deep. Footsteps thudded, then a person appeared on the spiral staircase. She was in her late twenties, with silver hair tipped in lavender and wearing a flowing black dress. “This is where I work on new magic. Magic that cannot be allowed to escape through any pesky windows.”
I let my senses detect the magical signatures that filled the place. Almost everything was pleasant, indicating that she didn’t dabble in dark magic.
“Who are you?” I asked.
She reached the ground floor and approached, her black dress fluttering. “Hedy. The more important question is—are you who I think you are?”
I shared a glance with Ana before replying. “No idea.”
She stopped in front of me, clearly absorbing my magical signature. “You are.” She turned to smile at Cade. “Good job. Though you brought them in less than stellar condition.”
He inclined his head. “They were like that when I found them.”
“It’s poison,” I said. “Can you tell us how bad it is and if you have an antidote?”
She frowned, her nose wrinkling as she sniffed. “Oh no.”
I swallowed hard. “Your bedside manner could do with some work.”
“I’ll buy you a beer later to make up for it.”
Who were these people that were so nice and welcoming after they abducted us?
She pulled some scissors out of her pocket. “I’m going to take a sample of your shirt that has the poison on it.”
I pointed to my side, and she snipped off a square, then took it to the table against the wall and laid it on a piece of slate. She dashed a few drops of different potions onto the fabric, which sizzled and smoked.
“Shit.” She turned to us, a frown creasing her brow. “Lithica poison. You have two weeks before you turn to stone if you don’t get the antidote.”
As I’d feared. But two weeks was even less time than I’d expected. “Do you have it?”
“No. Only one person has it.” She gestured to the fabric. “It’s his invention.”
Cade’s eyes snapped to Hedy. “Ricketts?”
“You know him?” I demanded.
“We’ve been hunting him for years. Were the people who were attacking you his men? They seemed familiar.”
“Yes.” I gave him a considering glance. If he didn’t like Ricketts…
The enemy of my enemy is my friend, and all that business.
Maybe.
“What do you know about him?” I demanded.
“Let’s discuss that in a moment.” His gaze turned to Hedy. “Will you finish?”
“Finish what?” Ana asked.
Hedy pulled a silver stone from her dress pocket and held it up toward us.
I raised my hands and stepped back, skin prickling with wariness.
“Don’t worry,” Hedy said. “This is just going to check you for any latent magic or spells that might be a threat to the compound. A little invention of mine.”
“Invention?”
“Yes. I’m a jack of all trades. Like that fellow in the James Bond movies.”
“Q?”
“Exactly.”
She hovered the silver stone over my chest. It glowed bright and she frowned. “There’s something here.”
“A concealment charm?” I asked.
“Yes.”
Weird. I’d have expected Ricketts to let the charm fade since he was pissed enough to send his goons after us. I shared a worried glance with Ana.
“There’s something else as well,” Hedy said. “But I can’t tell what it is. A spell that’s been there a while. I’m going to take a sample to figure it out.”
I didn’t like the idea of her taking a sample of anything, but I really didn’t like the idea of an unknown spell clinging to me.
Hedy drew a little empty vial and a wand from her pocket.
I nearly vibrated as I stood still, waiting for her to take the sample. Please don’t involve cutting anything off of me.
“You use a wand?” I asked. I’d never seen one before. Contrary to popular human myth, witches didn’t use wands. Nor did any other variety of supernatural.
“For this, yes. It’s another of my inventions.” She then poked me in the chest with her wand.
“Hey! Ouch.”
“Relax.” She muttered a few words in a language I didn’t understand.
Something tugged at my chest. The wand’s tip glowed as she moved it away from me, then stuck it in the bottle. It glowed within the glass. She corked it and stuck it in her pocket, then did the same to Ana.
Then she went to the desk and picked up two little black bottles and handed them to us. “Lithica poison is painful. It’ll be a steady ache that flares occasionally. You’ll be turning to stone from the inside out. Take this when the pain becomes too much. Not sooner. It will keep you functioning until you can get the antidote.”
Ana and I took the potions, glancing worriedly at each other.
“Thank you.” I smiled at her, then turned to Cade and Ana. “Now let’s start talking about Ricketts.”
I wanted to get a feel for these people ASAP, because if they couldn’t help us, we needed to get going on our own.
“We’ll go up to the castle and meet with the others,” Cade said. “It’s the best place to hear our offer.”
I looked at Ana, who nodded immediately. And that was the crux of it. We didn’t have a lot of options. Any options, really. Even if Cade weren’t forcing us to hear his offer, we were poisoned, broke, and the devil was on our tail.
“Fine. We’ll go there.” I scowled, already wondering if I’d signed up for trouble.
Chapter Three
We followed Cade and Hedy out of the tower and up the slope of the mountain toward the massive castle. As we walked, the clouds parted to reveal a warm yellow sun. It was nothing like Death
Valley, where the arrival of the sun meant sweating and eventual death if you weren’t on your guard.
No, this was warm and lovely. Even the damp grass beneath my feet was nice. The crisp breeze cooled my cheeks. I’d bet this place would be intense in the winter, but in August, it was pretty sweet.
Despite the lovely weather and beautiful surroundings, power and wealth radiated from this place.
They had all the resources we lacked.
I gave Cade a sidelong glance, taking in his powerful stride and confident gaze. This was a guy for whom the world stopped.
Well, I wasn’t going to be one of the stoppers. “So, what exactly are you?”
He glanced at me. “Errand boy.”
“Sure.” I’d believe that when Ana let me have the last slice of pizza. But since he clearly wasn’t going to cooperate, I shifted tactics. “When was this place built? And what the hell is it?”
“It was built nearly a thousand years ago, though there have been renovations.” His green eyes met mine. “And you’ll learn the rest very shortly.”
“You’d better be taking us to the queen or something,” I said. “Only royalty would be worth all this trouble.”
“Is this Balmoral?” Ana frowned skeptically. “Somehow, I’m doubtful. The landscaping is lacking.”
“Too hodgepodge.” I stifled a laugh. We might be poisoned and slowly turning into stone, but we were clearly going to handle it how we knew best—suppress the worry with jokes.
That whole ‘laugh instead of crying’ thing? Yeah, that’d gotten us through some hard times. Now, it was second nature.
Cade grinned. “I doubt you’ll be unimpressed.”
We neared the massive castle that was built of huge blocks of gray stone. Sparkling mullioned glass shone in the windows. A large courtyard paved in great slabs of granite led up to the huge front doors.
Cade led us across the stone courtyard. The massive wooden door swung open as we neared. Magic sparked in the air.
Neat.
Inside, the foyer was huge, with a sweeping, double-sided staircase leading up to a second level. Other doors led off the main entrance room, along with a couple more staircases. A great chandelier shed glittering light over the rough stone walls and floor. Huge paintings hung on the walls, but I didn’t take the time to study them.
It was so big and so fantastical that it was hard to get a real handle on it.
A few people climbed the stairs to the second floor, their arms full of heavy books. Others bustled through the main hall, all of them possessing unique magical signatures. Clashing sounds and smells indicated that their magic was all very different.
Everyone turned to stare at us. Some looked mistrusting, others just curious.
“Fancy.” I whistled, just to show them I didn’t care.
“Practical.” Cade turned down the hall to the right. “This way.”
I looked at Ana, whose eyes were as round as the full moon.
“This is nuts,” she whispered.
“Seconded.” We’d never been in a place this nice before. Most of our early life, after running from our original home, had been spent at our homestead cabin in Alaska or Death Valley Junction.
I was having a serious country mouse moment but suppressed it. From here on out, we had to be alert and tough.
As we neared a door at the end of the hallway, varying magical signatures swelled on the air. The smell of old paper, the feeling of a steel sword hilt in my hand, the scent of a wet field. My steps faltered.
“Who’s in there?” I demanded.
“We don’t go into rooms full of powerful supernaturals that we don’t know,” Ana said.
“Scared?” Cade asked.
I glared at him. “Smart. We don’t like ambushes.”
He nodded. “Fair enough. There are four other members of the Undercover Protectorate in the room. Each runs a division of our operations. Their magic is strong because everyone here is strong. But we mean you no harm. We want to make you an offer.”
Undercover Protectorate. Why was that name familiar? I focused on the signatures, picking up four. He wasn’t lying. I glanced at Ana, who nodded.
“We’ll go in, but make it quick,” I said. “We obviously don’t have a lot of time. And if you make one move against us, I’ll blow you apart.”
He grinned, sexy as hell and clearly liking my threat.
Weirdo.
I followed him into the room, Ana at my side and Hedy behind us. It was a nicely decorated little library, with a round table in the middle. Four people sat around it. Two men and two women.
One woman caught my eye. Her piercing blue eyes were set off by her dark skin and braids. They sparkled like stars, and were nearly impossible to look away from. There was magic in her eyes, no question. Her scrutiny made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. Man, if she interrogated me, I’d have a hard time not giving up the info she wanted.
The other woman was slender and pale, with magic that smelled of calming lavender. One man was ancient, with stooped shoulders and magic that smelled like the forest, while the other was as bulky as a football player.
Cade lurked toward the back of the room, standing with his arms crossed like a bouncer on duty. His magical power filled the room, making me seriously aware of him.
Hedy stepped forward and gestured to the small crowd. “Bree and Ana, we are the Undercover Protectorate, and these are the heads of the individual divisions of our operation. There’s the Demon Trackers Unit, Interspecies Mediation, Research and Development, and the Paranormal Investigative Team.”
The Paranormal Investigative Team? The PITs? Oof.
Each person nodded at us.
“The five of us are equal here,” Hedy said. “But I will speak because you know me best.” She pointed to the chairs. “Please, take a seat.”
I sat. “I’m going to need you to cut straight to the chase. Because Ana and I don’t have a lot of time.” We needed to start hunting Ricketts immediately if we wanted a cure in time. I was hoping they could help us, but I wasn’t counting on it.
“Bold,” Star-eyes said.
“My middle name.” I grinned, which was really more of a teeth-baring.
“The Undercover Protectorate was created hundreds of years ago to protect the magical world from threats, both supernatural and human,” Hedy said.
Protect from threats.
Suddenly the pieces slammed together in my head. That’s where I’d heard their name before. My gaze flashed to Ana, who had paled.
Our mother had spoken of these people. When we’d been running from the ones who’d attacked our home when we were children, aiming to kidnap me and my sisters, our mother had fled with us, saying that she was trying to take us here.
To the secret, fabled organization that protected those in need. That investigated the crimes no one else would. The government certainly wasn’t a safe bet for Unknowns like us. But we’d never found the Protectorate, ending up in remote Alaska instead. Our mother had been convinced they’d help us.
I’d always thought that if my mother couldn’t find them, then they didn’t want to be found.
“Why us?” I asked. Did they know that we were Unknowns? They shouldn’t. We’d kept it secret so no one could use that against us. Our mother, a powerful seer, had made it clear that hiding our true selves was vital to our survival.
“We hire only the strongest, rarest supernaturals in the world,” Hedy said. “It’s one of the reasons we’re so secretive. The Order of the Magica doesn’t like it when another organization possesses so much power. Whereas they would persecute some of our members, we welcome them.”
I nodded, understanding all too well. The government of magic users was committed to keeping magic secret from humans. In their eyes, that meant keeping a handle on the most powerful supernaturals—sometimes by force.
“When we heard of two women willing to fight their way across Death Valley, we became interested,” Hedy said. “The strength
and skill it took to do that is the kind of thing we want here. We’d like you to join our operation. Train at the academy and then work for one of our divisions.”
So they didn’t know exactly what we were. Or, they weren’t saying.
“We don’t want to work for you,” Ana said. “We work for ourselves.”
“Right now, you won’t work for anyone if you don’t find a cure for the Lithica poisoning,” Hedy said.
Burn.
She turned to the other members of the organization and explained our situation. Frowns spread through the group.
“That is a problem.” Star-eyes looked at us. “I’m Jude. I run the Paranormal Investigative Team. Ricketts, the man who poisoned you, has been on our radar for a long time. But we’ve never been able to catch him. He’s too cunning, and his clients are too frightened to speak up. He must really want you if he hit you with the Lithica poison. He only uses that to draw the most powerful to him.”
Why did he want us though? To pay our debts? Smelled fishy to me. “So you want to catch him, and you also want us to work for you.”
“Yes, though your connection to Ricketts is more of a coincidence,” Jude said. “We want you to work for us because you’ve proven your skill and determination in Death Valley. Ricketts is a bonus.”
I nodded, my mind racing. We could use this. We had to use this.
Because right now, we were shit out of luck. Poisoned, with no money, no house, no buggy—so no way to get anywhere or make a living.
I shared a glance with Ana, able to see the wheels turning in her head. We didn’t want to work for these people—we didn’t know them. But we could use them.
I hiked my thumb toward Cade. “The big guy back there said you could help us catch Ricketts. But how? I already know how to find him. What can you do for us?”
I was being a hard ass, but I was also fighting for Ana. Being sweet hadn’t gotten me far in life, but being tough? Yeah, that had worked.
“Did the mage who hit you with the poison bomb deliver the address for the antidote?” Jude asked.
“I killed him before he had the chance.” I still cringed at the flub. “It happened before I even realized I’d been hit by the potion bomb.”
