“I was professional,” Tameka insisted.
“You called her a bitch,” Yenay reminded her.
Tameka shrugged. “I had to be firm. Besides, she’s a casting agent. She’s used to people calling her a bitch.” She paused before adding, “But she is a bitch. A great big bitch. She hosts great Christmas parties. But she’s still a bitch.”
Yenay smiled, and Tameka started thinking about what she’d discussed with Asha yesterday. Could she be a private detective? Would it keep her mind busy, or was it all tailing cheating husbands? Still, even then it could be a chance for her to use her abilities. She could set honey traps and use spy equipment. It could be exciting.
“What are you thinking about?” Yenay asked.
They could hear incessant noise emanating from the apartment below them. It was the troll children. They seemed to create a constant barrage of shrieking and crashing. It was irritating. Both Tameka and Yenay had been too hesitant to ask Vincent to keep them under control. They’d been through a lot.
I still want to give them a piece of my mind though. Noisy little shits.
“Are you thinking about Red and his abs of steel?” Yenay asked.
Tameka blushed a little. “How do you know Red has abs of steel?”
“I saw him at the gym the other day and I ogled him as he took his shirt off and wiped sweat off his chest with a towel. He was sad.”
Tameka wished she were that towel. “That’s because he knows I know he killed my parents,” she said, coming back down to Earth.
Yenay sighed. “You know as well as I do he didn’t kill your parents.”
“I’m not going into this again.”
“If you truly thought he could be capable of such a vile thing then you would have never let the dragons put you off investigating the red dragon.”
She ignored her and stamped her foot on the floorboards to make the trolls shut up. They carried on with their cavalcade of noise. Tameka was about to find a broom and start hitting the floor with it when the front door opened and Red waltzed in.
“What the hell are you doing here?” Tameka demanded. “And why do you have a beard now?”
The beard makes you look ten times hotter you murdering, sexy bastard.
He dropped a huge pile of files on the floor at her feet. Photos and bits of paper slipped out. She saw what appeared to be a picture of Jan.
“What are these for?” she asked.
Red stared at her intently for a moment before saying, “I’ve been investigating something. Tameka, the suicides haven’t just been taking place in Blue City. They’ve been happening all over the world.”
22
Tameka shook her head. “People kill themselves. It’s sad, but it happens.”
He sat down in her comfy chair and ran his hands through his hair. He looked a little haggard, like he hadn’t slept or eaten in a while. He smelled a bit too. For some reason she’d imagined that dragons didn’t have body odor problems like normal humans.
“You look well,” he stated.
She crossed her arms. “You look like shit.”
“I haven’t been sleeping.”
“Forget the catching up and just go.”
He grinned and grabbed one of the files. Inside it was a map of the world with several places on it market with a cross. He spread the map out on the floor and kneeled down by it, smoothing down the crumpled edges.
“You see these crosses?” he asked her.
“Yes,” she answered. “They’re very pretty.”
“These cities have a higher concentration than normal of suicides,” he said, pointing first to Blue City and then to London. She still didn’t get it. “At first I thought the same as you, that it was just life, that maybe people killed themselves more in major urban cities. Then I looked closer. All these cities have three things in common; they’re major centers of paranormal cultures. They’re cities where Galina Trade has been known to operate out of. They’re cities where trolls live.”
Yenay pointed to a small region in China. “That’s my village.”
Tameka looked closer at the map. At the side was a list of the major cities of the world and their suicide rates. He was right. The cities with the crosses had significantly higher rates.
“Don’t trolls live anywhere they want?” Tameka asked.
“They prefer to be near other trolls,” Yenay explained. “Vincent is an exception. She’s not like others of her kind. Another reason why trolls avoid California is the smog. They’re smart enough not to live here if they don’t have to.”
It was impossible there was a conspiracy this vast. Someone had to have noticed by now, some type of government body like the CIA or any foreign country’s equivalent. How had some detective from Blue City figured this all out?
He’s not just a detective, though, is he? He’s a dragon.
“It brings us back to our original question,” said Tameka, avoiding eye contact with Red. “Why does Galina want all these people killed?”
“I don’t know,” Red admitted. “It just seems so random.”
“We’ve found a pattern,” Yenay reminded him. She looked at them both. “We just need to know why the pattern exists, which then proves the people she’s had killed are related.”
“Who said you were involved?” said Red. “I came to see Tameka.”
Yenay sulked. “How rude.”
Tameka couldn’t keep her eyes off the map and the figures Red had quoted. If this was accurate then someone was using trolls, or other magical means, to kill thousands of people. It made her feel actual dread in the pit of her stomach.
“What do you want me to do with this information?” she asked him point blank.
He hesitated. “I thought you needed to know.”
“Why?”
“You started this case. We started this case. I thought you’d want to see it through to the end, despite our differences.”
“I’ve gotten over it.”
She started folding the map back up, ignoring Red’s incredulous look. She wasn’t interested in this case any more. She’d moved on.
“What are you doing?” he asked.
“You can take your stuff and you can leave,” she ordered, picking up Red’s files. She plonked them in his arms. “You can leave now.”
“Galina Trade is up to something that’s global in scale.”
“Then get the dragons to sort it out. They’re good at that.”
He stormed out, leaving the front door wide open. Tameka shut it and locked it, just in case he tried wandering back in again.
The cheek of it, just walking in here and giving me all these facts!
She groaned. “As if I’d work with him ever again.”
“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Yenay shouted. “Are you insane?”
Tameka stared at her friend in shock. “It’s none of my business any more.”
“Stop lying to yourself. I saw your face when Red started explaining about what he’d found out about Galina. You were fascinated, hopeful. You want to be back in the thick of it again. Why do you think you quit acting again after such a short time?”
“You think you can read my mind but you can’t.”
Tameka stormed away into the bathroom and locked the door behind her. She couldn’t face Red or Yenay’s opinions. She had enough on her plate with trying to sort out how she was going to continue seeing her sister. It was getting too cold at the abandoned marina now. What would they do in the height of winter?
Yenay knocked on the door.
“What’s up?” her friend called.
“I’m having a shit,” said Tameka. “Go away.”
“Would you rather go to more acting auditions, or would you rather hunt down the last kraken?”
“I’d rather have a shit in peace.”
“Tameka!”
She unlocked the door and confronted her friend. She wasn’t sure what to do. Of course she was intrigued by Red’s news! How could she not be? He’d
finally started to make some sense over Galina’s plans. But how she could she work with him? Maybe he killed her parents, maybe he didn’t. The fact was she’d tried to kill him, and she didn’t think she could ever look him in the eye again after that.
“I don’t know what to believe,” Tameka admitted. “My head tells me that Red could have killed my parents, but my heart says I’m talking out of my ass and Red wouldn’t do something so evil. What am I supposed to do?”
“I think it’s obvious,” said Yenay.
She thought about it for a second and smiled. “You know what? You’re right. The only way I’ll ever find out the truth is if I work with Red and try to pry the truth from him. I’ll spy on him, just like he spied on me.”
“That wasn’t what I had in mind, but this’ll do.”
“And I’ll be able to put down that evil squid Galina. It’s a win-win.”
Red found Vincent loading the dishwasher in his apartment. The troll was clumsy with it, often dropping dishes onto the floor. The place smelled of oatmeal cookies and troll sweat. The television was on, displaying some type of talk show where women were arguing about how terrible men were.
“Need any help with that?” Red offered, placing his files on the couch.
Vincent shook her head. “I can manage.” She shut the dishwasher door and turned it on. She smiled. “Dishwashers are so difficult.”
She noticed the files that Red had brought and asked to look through them. They spent the next half an hour looking at each individual case. Vincent even looked over the map, pointing out places of interest or troll settlements she’d once visited.
“Trolls are doing the same as I did, killing people,” said Vincent, morose. “It saddens me to see my species used like this.”
“It might not be trolls all the time,” Red explained, trying to stop his friend from getting too distraught. “I’d bet anything other species were involved, probably witches.”
“All those humans, dead…”
Red put his hand on Vincent’s arm, hoping to console her. They’d been in regular contact over the last few months. He knew how much Vincent had struggled with the guilt over her part in the murders. She wanted to help Red find Galina and bring her to justice, figuring it was the only way to repent.
“I thought you’d find something bad, but this is far worse than I imagined,” Vincent admitted. “What can we do about it? I’m sure the deaths are still ongoing, even now.”
“I actually think they’re becoming more frequent,” said Red.
“So how do we stop it?”
“We find Galina and we gut the bitch,” said Tameka.
They looked up to find Tameka standing in the doorway. She had her winter coat on and was just tucking a gun into her holster. She looked formidable.
Red smiled. “Welcome back.”
23
When Red and Tameka compared reports (his search for Galina, and her search for the red dragon) they came up with one irrefutable fact – they had no idea where the last kraken was hiding. She might not even be in Blue City any more.
“What if we look for her and she’s not here?” Tameka had asked.
“Then we search the whole world,” Red had answered.
Tameka wouldn’t mind that. She’d always been meaning to travel but just never got around to it. Searching for Galina might be just the kick she needed to broaden her horizons.
The two of them were starting their search at Redbeet market. It was located underground near the anthropology museum and catered exclusively for criminals and, on the odd occasion, paranormal beings. Both Red and Tameka had been here before while on different cases. It was a hive of information – if you had the right price.
Tameka grimaced. “Why does it always smell like boiled cabbage in here?”
The huge wooden doors of the market creaked closed behind them. The stalls and caravans, kiosks and stores, stretched so far ahead of them they couldn’t see where it ended. Blue City had a lot of criminals.
“Where to first?” Tameka asked.
Red pointed towards a stall that was selling knock-off handbags. “When I was first investigating Galina I got some information from Tina.”
“You never went back, even when you knew Galina was a kraken?”
“I did go back, but she was less than forthcoming.”
Tameka wondered why he just didn’t torture the woman.
“Will she speak to me?” Tameka asked, trying to make out Tina over all the wonderful, beautiful handbags.
Red grinned. “She might. She loves tall black women.”
“Everyone loves tall black women.”
Tameka grinned and strolled purposefully up to Tina’s stall. She looked at some of the handbags on display, noting the precise craftsmanship. If they were fakes she couldn’t tell. They were immaculate.
“They’re magical,” Red whispered in her ear. “They only last for a few months, but it’s worth it just to have what is essentially the real thing.”
“Buy me a bag,” she stated.
“Since when were you into handbags? You shove your lose change into your pockets.”
Tameka ignored him as she took in who she assumed was Tina, admiring her from across the stall. Tina was certainly a stunner, six-foot tall with tanned skin, long blonde hair, and wearing overalls that showed off her cleavage. This witch was hot.
I might enjoy flirting with this one. It’s been a while since I hopped a ride on the Sapphic express.
Tameka gave Tina her most dazzling smile. “You do great work. It must require a perfect mind to create magical duplicates with such exquisite detail.”
“I like the finer things in life,” said Tina. She had a sultry, rough voice. “What can I get you, sexy?”
“I’m looking for someone.”
Tina appeared instantly suspicious. “I’m not the missing persons’ bureau. Go somewhere else.” She noticed Red, idling by, trying his best not to look as if he was interested in their conversation. “And why is Detective Tightcheeks with you?”
Tameka sighed. Red knew how to spoil a good seduction.
“Taylor Wright is the reason I’m here, and the reason why I talked to you the last time,” Red explained, putting his arm around Tameka. She involuntarily shifted a little. “Galina Trade had this woman’s wife murdered.”
Am I Taylor Wright?
Tameka nodded, forcing out the tears. In the blink of an eye a new persona started to take her over. Taylor Wright.
“Cindy and I met while we were in elementary school,” Tameka explained, weeping now, but trying to look alluring while doing it. She played with the top button on her blouse, revealing a little of her own cleavage. “And then when Cindy won all that money on the World Lotto we got married.”
Tina’s eyes widened at this. “You won the World Lotto?”
Gotcha!
“We had almost a billion dollars, but it didn’t matter to us,” said Tameka. She had a Vancouver accent. “We had love and an insatiable appetite for scissoring.” Tameka put her hand to her mouth in horror. “I’m so sorry! I hope you don’t mind me being a little naughty.”
“I like a woman who knows what she wants,” said Tina, obviously undressing Tameka with her eyes. “You must have been through a lot.”
“I have. Too much. I just want to find Galina and ask her why she had my darling wife killed. I’d be grateful to anybody who could offer me information.” Tameka glanced at Tina and said, “I’d do practically anything.”
Tina seemed torn for a brief time before she sighed and dipped out of sight behind the stall. For a second Tameka and Red thought she’d made a run for it, but she appeared moments later with what appeared to be a leather Prada handbag.
“There’s your bag,” said Tina, shoving the item into Tameka’s hands. She whispered, “My number’s in there. Call me.”
Tameka winked at her and said, “I’ll call you when the nights get cold.”
Red pulled her away. They kept walking un
til they came to a small café that seemed be doing a roaring trade in dodo burgers. Tameka hated dodo. It was tough and gamey, though her mother always went on and on about how wonderful it was.
They sat down at a table and ordered two Cokes. When their drinks came Tameka gave a sigh of relief. She was proud of herself. Taylor was an amazing persona and she’d played Tina with perfection.
And it felt so good too! God I missed this.
She took a sip of her Coke. “That was a rush.”
“Acting not doing it for you?” he asked.
She eyed him over her glass. “Have you been spying on me? You know I get homicidal when you do that.”
“It’s not spying if I read the press release your agent releases to the media.”
Tameka had forgotten about that. Her agent had assumed there’d be some interest in the media that Tameka Hamilton, former child-star, was returning to the acting profession. It turned out nobody gave a shit. She was a has-been.
“It’s not gone well,” she admitted, hating to be so vulnerable in front of him. “The roles have dried up and, truth be told, my heart wasn’t in it.”
“That’s because you don’t belong in that world,” he told her. “This is where you belong.”
“Among the scum and the black-market witches?”
“Exactly.”
She hid her grin and drank the last of her Coke. It wasn’t until she’d finished drinking it that she remembered the Prada bag. She plopped it on the table and examined it. Now that she had it under the lights of the café she could discern a small haze surrounding the item, almost like a heat haze.
“I can tell it’s magical,” she admitted.
Red nodded. “You’ve been around magical beings too long. You’re starting to see things that are supposed to remain hidden.”
“A normal human wouldn’t be able to see a magical haze around the bag?”
“Not really, no. That’s the whole point.”
She opened the clasp and dug around inside. She pulled out a note. On one side was written Tina’s number. On the other was a single sentence.
Sirens and Scales Page 336
