I just needed to get into bed with a man and get it out of my system.
And he was the ideal candidate.
But my standards weren’t so low.
At least not yet.
Nothing about getting into bed with Aaron Fine would be uncomplicated. He was trouble, with a capital T.
I could control myself – and I damn well would even if it killed me.
“I’m not scared of anything, least of all you.”
The waiter came to pour the wine. I didn’t bother to taste and motioned for him to fill the glass. The waiter winced. Guess I failed some standards of sophistication. Not that I cared. Impressing Aaron Fine and his cohorts wasn’t on my list of things to do.
Picking up his glass, Aaron took a sip of his wine. If he could play it cool, so could I. I did the same. The wine was cool and fruity. It trickled down my throat, soothing my nerves. “You’re an interesting woman. I’ve never quite met one like you.”
“I’m nothing special. There must not be many mages in the social circle you frequent?”
Oh yes, I’d done some sleuthing. Aaron Fine was a rich and upstanding citizen of the state. Magazines and newspapers loved him, especially when he was seen with socialites.
“None actually. I work alone, and I don’t like covens.”
“We’re not a coven.”
“You’re a family.” Astounded that he could understand our dynamics so unerringly, I could only gaze at him. The warmth in his eyes lulled me. Surely, he couldn’t be as dangerous as I thought. Unpredictable, yes. But he wouldn’t hurt me. “I could see that when I met Augusta. When I carried you inside the farm house, she was ready to kill me as she thought I hurt you.”
“Augusta…is family, yes.”
“And so are others?”
I nodded. “Yes. Without a doubt.”
“I admire your loyalty.”
“You don’t have a family?”
“I do, of course.”
I was surprised. Aaron Fine appeared to be a lone wolf. I couldn’t imagine him in a warm and loving setting. “And mage friends?”
“I don’t make friends. Over the years, I’ve learnt that they disappoint, distract, and generally annoy me for one reason or another.”
Hmm. No surprises there. I wish I could say that it put me off him, but not really. Sure, I did think of the commune as my home and the people who lived in it as my family, but I also preferred to work alone on most occasions. It saved time and didn’t bring any unnecessary complications.
He was so like me.
And yet so unlike me; he didn’t respect human lives.
It was a major difference in the way we viewed the people around us.
And I didn’t know why I was thinking along these lines; I was so not interested in the man.
Oh yeah.
Then what the hell was I doing here?
“I need to know what your intentions are with regards to our commune?” I blurted out.
Might as well get it over with.
Would he tell me the truth?
“My intentions?”
“You’re after something,” I said. “Come on. Don’t even try to deny it. You filed a case against us, and then you tried to implicate Colonel Sanders in a case. It certainly wasn’t done to get my attention as you said before, so you might as well spill the beans.”
“Hmm. Are you ready to order?”
I stood. “There is no point talking any further if you aren’t going to be honest with me.”
“Oh please, sit.” He raised a hand. When I didn’t budge, he sighed, stood, and grabbed my hand. “Fine. I’ll tell you some truth.”
“Some?”
“Sit, please.” I was too curious to walk out now. The man sure knew how to press my buttons. After sitting, I looked at him expectantly. “So yes, I’d a motive to file the case. I want your land.”
“Why?”
“For development, of course. Your farmhouse is in a great location. It’s situated between two hills. The land is flat. If I build something there, it’s going to draw in a great traffic.”
“A mall?”
“With a cinema, restaurants, perhaps even a park for children.”
Yes, our place was ideal for such a development project. “It’s our home.”
“I get that now.” He signaled the waiter. “It was an effort to harass you out of the property. Nothing more than strategic tactics, but once I met you…I figured my energy was better spent elsewhere.”
Meaning me.
I didn’t like that.
Not one bit.
Having his great, unbridled energy focused on me was so not a good idea.
“I’ll have the salmon,” I ordered as the waiter hovered.
“Same here,” he said.
“Copycat,” I muttered as the waiter walked away.
As he flashed a grin at me, I actually felt my heart drop a couple of inches down in my chest. Every nerve in my body throbbed with suppressed need. “It’s because I trust your choice.”
Did he?
I didn’t think so. The man was trying to flatter me, and much to my annoyance he was damn well succeeding too. I didn’t want to fall into his trap but I was fast sliding down the slippery slope.
Not a good sign.
Taking out my phone, I checked for messages. Nothing. Mark was sitting in his car outside Smith Kline’s house, probably on a wild goose chase if everyone else was to be believed. But I’d a hunch. Soon, I would relieve him. We would take turns. It would go easier if Bryan was with us, but he was off looking at the lady hypnotist.
As I placed the phone back in my bag, my gaze met Aaron’s. “We’re not going to give the land.”
His smile nearly melted my heart. “Yes, I have judged that for myself.”
“So you’d be better off focusing on another project.”
Picking up the glass, he took another sip of his wine. His long, tan throat was exposed and I felt an immense urge to kiss his skin. If I could run my fingers over it, would it feel warm? Hot?
Damn the man to hell and back.
I wanted to go home and take a cold shower. “Let me be the judge of that,” he replied finally as he set the glass down.
What?
It took me a moment to track back to where we were in the conversation. My eyes narrowed. Why was he bothering so much about me?
The waiter appeared with the first course. The smoked duck breast, sitting on a bed of pearl couscous and cilantro looked delicious. Digging in my fork, I took a bite. My mouth watered as flavors burst over my tongue. “My compliments to the chef,” I said to the waiter.
“It is good,” said Aaron.
After the waiter left, I devoted some attention to my food. It wasn’t often that I dined in such style. While I didn’t have to cook in the farmhouse, the duty more often than not fell on Jasper, Augusta, and Mark because they enjoyed the process. Their food was adequate and filling, but it was nowhere close to this level of perfection.
“This place should do well.”
“Everything I do turns out well.”
“Rich and modest? Are there any more hidden qualities I have yet to discover about you?” Deliberately, I kept my voice low and throaty.
“Why don’t you give me a chance to show you everything I have to offer?”
The man had the habit of twisting everything I said. Shaking my head, I concentrated on my food. I’d pretty much walked into that one. The guy sure as hell didn’t waste any opportunity to flirt with me. Sure, I was single, reasonably attractive, and intelligent. Men liked me, at least the ones who weren’t intimidated. But still no man ever gave me so much attention, and certainly no one aroused such kind of an intense, lustful desire deep within me.
Not that I was seriously considering Aaron in that light.
I simply couldn’t.
He was…just too much.
If I ever dated him, I would soon become a bundle of frayed nerves as I tried to decipher his every move.
“So what’s going on with your case?”
“Nothing.” I tried to keep the glum out of my voice but failed to do so. It wasn’t often that we were thwarted by a clever con, but it was even more frustrating to be bested by a murderer. Ever since Bryan left for Chicago, we illegally tailed Smith but didn’t find anything to show for it. Either he was clean or he was aware that we were on to him, and hence he wasn’t doing anything.
He was the one.
I knew it.
But I needed him to do something to give us enough evidence to nail him.
“That must be annoying the hell out of you.” I shrugged and stuffed my mouth with food so I didn’t have to answer him. Yes, it was irritating me but there was no need to admit it. “You don’t like to lose.”
“It’s not about winning or losing. It’s about doing what’s right.”
“Ah. Such strong emotions.” He studied me for a while. “I know about your family’s murders.”
The pang in my heart was so sharp that I nearly gasped. Of course, he knew. There was little that the man didn’t know. It annoyed me that he delved into my private life but then I didn’t expect anything less. It was clear that he was taking an interest in us, in our farmhouse, and in particular in me.
“It was a long time ago.”
“And yet you’re driven by the need to find justice for those who are denied.” He paused. “Like your family.”
Sure, maybe I was motivated by what happened to my family, but it didn’t have any bearing on anything – and I didn’t know why he was bringing it up.
“We will find the killer,” I said.
Which killer?
The serial killer?
Or the one who killed my family?
The questions hung between us, unsaid, unanswered. But neither of us spoke. The waiter came to pour more wine in our glasses. I took a deep swallow, my throat suddenly dry. It wasn’t a good idea to hang out with Aaron Fine. He seemed to have not only a keen eye on me, but also appeared to be able to see deep into my soul.
He made me feel uncomfortable.
“Do you need any help from me?” he asked. “I could do something to find this killer.”
He was bound to have connections. It would be stupid to turn down his help, but I was reluctant. His motives perplexed me. It couldn’t just be that he was interested in me. There was something else going on that I couldn’t understand and he wasn’t willing to divulge.
“What do you have in mind?”
“I could put my ear to the ground to see if there are any ripples. A person who is killing people with magic must have some help. How else could he have committed two murders?”
We already checked those angles. Still, I nodded. Maybe his sources were different and he could dig up something that we missed. I wasn’t about to let ego come into the way of solving this case. If he got us something that we could sink our teeth into, I would be happy to give him credit.
“Thanks. Any help that you can give us would be welcome.”
“I am surprised that you didn’t choke while saying that.”
Suppressing the laugh into a cough, I managed to keep a straight face. He had an insight in my mind. “It’s tough to accept help but in cases like this, we can use everything.”
“I’ll see what I can dig up.”
It was hard to imagine that I could have a normal conversation with a man like him, but the rest of the meal passed easily as we conversed over ordinary topics like the upcoming elections. He was democratic and so was I. It was also easy to chat about the White Council. The Council had its good points, but they were also terribly bureaucratic and at times overly anal about small matters. We discussed the upcoming mage conference in Seattle. It was more of a social event, meant to bring people closer and allowing them to get in touch with each other.
It was also a great dating opportunity.
After all, mages didn’t generally mingle with non-magic people. It became too problematic to hide their true identity and then of course, there was the added issue when kids came along and started to display magical abilities.
“My father wasn’t a mage,” he admitted. “But my parents fell in love and…they are still married.”
“What was the first thing you did when you discovered your power?”
He winced. “I raised my hand and lit the stove. My father nearly fainted. It wasn’t good.”
“Mixing of genes usually results in dilution of power,” I told him. “But in a minority of cases, the mages born from one mage and one non-mage parent have power beyond ordinary.”
“That was me,” he boasted with a grin. “And my brother got it too. My mom is an earth mage, but I got fire and he got metal. But he has chosen to stay away from it.”
“What does he do?”
“He runs a high profile investigation agency. I think his affinity with metal helps him with computers, but he doesn’t display it all that much. Most of his work is done by his team through old fashioned means.”
“I’ve got people on my team who are good with computers,” I said. “If you’ve the right knowledge, you can do anything with them.”
The waiter came out, carrying our main dishes. The Salmon must be delicious. I couldn’t wait to taste it. If I couldn’t have the man, I would take his food.
“Yeah, and…”
Whatever he was about to say was forgotten as there was a loud boom and the door to the restaurant burst open. I barely had time to notice that he was a fraction of a second faster than me before he collided into me and we both rolled on the ground. We were behind another table when the assassins leapt into the room and the place we occupied barely moments ago was hit by a potent magical spell. The table and chairs vaporized.
I mean, literally vaporized. There was nothing there except empty space and a dark burn mark on the marble floor.
If we were there, we would have died instantly. The magical shields would have frizzled away such was the potency of the spell they threw at us.
I didn’t have time to reflect on how much it must have cost. The assassins meant business. They missed last time but they had no intention of doing so this time, and it didn’t matter whom they took down. The razor sharp blades of air I conjured blasted into one of the assassins even as Aaron’s fiery loops of ropes collided into another. Their protective shields were strong. We hit them hard and good, but they absorbed the spells.
Aaron’s face was calm, serene even.
The glitter in his eyes was the only indication as to how engaged he was. Every move was precise, calculated. I was glad to have him on my side as we were bombarded with spells and knives soaked in magic. My shield frayed at the edges. It wouldn’t last long.
The battle was brutal.
None of us were in the mood to take prisoners.
The knives they hurled at me fell on the ground as my shield took the burnt of the force. It was a good thing I had upgraded my protection before I came to meet Aaron. It was mostly because I didn’t trust him – a fact I felt bad about since he was getting the same treatment as me right now – but I didn’t have time to ponder as to why they tried to kill him along with me.
Maybe just because he was there, he was now collateral damage.
Or perhaps because he tried to save me.
The assassins moved in blurs of motion; they were fast and furious and well trained in the art of fighting. The woman I’d hurt last time wielded a baton. It must have a taken an expert healing mage to put her back into action so soon. Clearly, they were resourceful and determined.
The masks hid the faces, but I could identify them a little bit by the way they moved. The woman was mad at me, probably because I took her down easily enough last time. Her baton whipped into the air, barely missing my face by inches as she advanced on me, furious and fearless. Their magical shields took a beating as I threw icy daggers at her. I bombarded her with hard, brittle rocks, crystalized out of thin air. My hands moved fast and with purpose.
&nbs
p; It was either them or us.
Assassins never gave up. If they lost today, they would come back another day – but at least we would live for now.
“Get out,” Aaron hissed as we stood back to back in order to cover all three people who were intent on killing us. “Now.”
Eyeing the door, I made rapid calculation even as I struggled to keep away the murderers. Damn these people; they were good. My fingers nearly burned as magic streamed out of me at a rapid speed. The woman wielding the baton stood right opposite me, her movements precise and efficient. Clearly, she anticipated that we might make a break for the door. If we did so, they would come out after us, but they would likely not attack.
Assassins also never broke the treaty with the White Council.
It was an old treaty that allowed the creed to continue taking contracts but as long as they didn’t make a public spectacle about magic, they were free from any direct punishment from the Council. That’s why they couldn’t use magic last time. But this time they were free to do as they damned well pleased.
Politics existed in all spheres of life.
“Go now,” he ordered again.
If he thought I was going to leave him and run, he didn’t know me at all.
Fire burned on the wall, its flames red and blue. I stayed my best to stay away from them because I’d seen the destruction this red, hot magic could create. The assassins also did so. Aaron brought his hands down with fury and fire rained down on the two people who battled him. I could hear the hiss and creaks as their shield splintered in places, and yet they didn’t back away. They had known about him and were cushioned in enough shields to make this last a long time.
Damn these persistent idiots.
I’d had enough; it was time to end this.
The scream that ripped out of my throat startled them all; time was suspended as the echo of my voice reverberated in the perfect stillness of the room. Even Aaron was frozen in place. The knives and forks rose up from the tables and from the floor where they were scattered in the battle, swirled in the air, and came together with a loud clash. The gleaming cutlery spun with ferocity as it formed into a three-foot long, sharp, jagged spear. With a final push of my hand, I launched it forward.
01 Serial Killer (FBI Paranormal Casefiles) Page 12
