“Hey Mom. Yeah, I’m okay. I’m sorry Markus freaked you out. No, no really, I’m fine. I’m on assignment right now. Nothing I can talk about though. I’m sorry but I can’t talk for long. I wanted to say I’m fine and I’ll be home as soon as I can. Tell Dad I love him. I love you too.”
She hit the end call button and over her shoulder she handed the phone back to Jackson. He grabbed it, gathered a small amount of energy and released it into the sensitive electronic. Smoke and the scent of burnt plastic drifted from the now useless cell. He tossed it on the table. Later, he’d throw it out with the garbage.
Twisting around to face him, Julia demanded, “What’s going on? If you’re keeping me hostage then I want to know why. Why did you summon that demon?”
Hearing the accusation in her voice bothered him. They tolerated no traitors within the Enforcer rank and with good reason. Trust was vital to the foundation of their society. With him apparently setting a demon loose on the populace, he became a traitor. He stood for everything the Enforcers despised.
The past year, he worked at clearing his name, figuring out who made him the pawn and received more questions instead of answers. He’d gone over the information countless times with the handful of people he trusted. All of them slammed into the same brick wall.
A fresh set of eyes, Julia was untainted by long hours of pouring over the same material. As an Enforcer, her training included critical thinking. And if she truly was Markus’ partner then she had above average intelligence. Markus didn’t suffer fools.
Of course, if she was bait for a trap set by Markus, she might not listen with an open mind. Perhaps she already judged him as guilty. The rest of the Enforcers certainly had. If he could convince her, maybe clearing his name was possible.
Squaring his shoulders, he decided to trust. “Everyone says this, but I was framed. I didn’t do it. The past two years, I’ve been working on a demon slavery ring. No one believes they’re slaves. Instead it’s thought they’re summoned on a needed basis and then dismissed. However too many demons are summoned and there aren’t that many known names."
Julia's gaze never wavered; keen interest had her wholly focused on him. For a brief moment he wondered if her intense concentration carried over to the bedroom.
Damn it, focus.
"I’m not sure how familiar you are with the process, but in order to fully bind a demon to you, even for a short period of time, you need their true name. It’s not something most demons like to give out. While some do, it’s a small handful. I have a theory. They have tattoos that allow their “owners” to control them. The demons stay on our plane of existence constantly and don’t go back to their own plane. They’re made into slaves. No one deserves that.”
Like all of the races, the demons had their good and bad citizens. Unfortunately, it appeared mainly the cruel ones visited Earth, their names written down and passed amongst the summoners. Usually, a summoner controlled the demon, ordering them to complete whatever task the mage wanted done. In some instances, demons slipped their lease and caused mayhem. That’s when Mage Enforcers like Jackson and his partner Victor intervened.
“There’s a lot of evidence against you.” She muttered, obviously not wanting to anger him. “I’ve seen the video.”
“Well, that’s how a frame job works.” Jackson replied, scratching a non-existent itch on the back of his neck. “I was on patrol the night they claimed I summoned this demon. I’d gotten separated from my partner, Victor, and was on a wild goose chase. Next thing I know, I’m wanted for unleashing a demon and causing several murders.”
“Do you have any proof it wasn’t you?” Julia moved to the edge of the bed, her legs dangling off the side. She appeared genuinely interested in his answer.
Jackson shook his head then ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. “That’s what I’ve spent the last year looking for. I’m getting close. I'm sure of it. That’s why they’ve put Markus on my trail a few months back. Everyone knows when he wants to catch someone, he’s relentless.”
He laughed, mirthless and short.
“The older mages, though, keep forgetting about modern technology. They rely too heavily on magic and forget humans have come a long way since the days of squatting around a fire. I took pictures with my cell phone. I’ve recorded conversations. And I sent out several backup copies to different computers at different locations. Some friends have instructions to send the information out if they imprison or kill me. I haven’t figured out who's behind all this, but I’ve got several leads. I got careless though and that’s why they framed me.”
Initially calm, the conversation agitated him and he paced the room. “They wanted me out of the way and what better way of doing so than to pin this whole damn thing on me? No one wants to trust me and many are trying to say my evidence’s manufactured, that I faked it all to hide my guilt. That’s not true, damn it!”
He slammed his fist against his thigh.
Thinking back to those accusations, the distrust and outright anger of his peers left him furious and aggravated. He couldn’t believe how swiftly they turned on him, vipers attacking a perceived threat. They dismissed his evidence, and made him into the villain. He had spent his whole life training as an Enforcer, looked up to them and worked his ass off to track down rogue demons to send them back. Instead of trusting him and looking into his research, they hunted him. The bitterness burned like ash in his mouth.
“I want to see this evidence you have. Do you have copies here?”
He'd come this far trusting her. He figured he had nothing else to lose. Striding into the small kitchenette, he opened the cupboard and shoved some boxes of food out of the way. He grabbed the USB key hidden in the back. A few quick strides had him at his discarded duffle bag. Rummaging through it, he found his notebook computer.
A powerhouse notebook, it effortlessly replaced a desktop system. Pulling out the power cord, he carried both of them to the nightstand near the bed. He brought it out of hibernate and waited for it to load into the operating system.
“I’m sorry. Some of this will be disturbing.” He brought up crime scene photos to show her the anomalies. When a mage banished a demon, they disappeared and reformed on their home world, intact and unharmed. Demons don't have bodies, just manifestations while on Earth. In rare cases, if a demon was killed, not banished, it left behind a corpse. What occurred to its essence, unknown.
This crime scene held the body of a murdered demon.
He pointed to the left upper arm, markings tattooed into its flesh. Basic lines crossing each other making two separate characters. The black lines were tricky to make out against the grey skin, but noticeable once he became aware of their existence. He’d kept a catalogue of all the demons with these tattoos, some of whom worked for high level officials in the Coterie. An unusual amount of them stayed with the Werewolves (Logan and Aaron) and Arch-Demon (Oonis) Coterie leaders. He hadn't yet figure out the pattern as to which demon had which tattoo.
“I’ve run across these tattoos on several rogue demons I sent back. Now, there are two sets of tattoos, like the one on this demon and another one almost identical with a different line right here.” He pointed at the top line that slanted up to the right. “The other tattoo has it slanted down to the right. I have no idea the difference between the two, but it’s important. I haven’t yet photographed the other one since I’ve only encountered them when sending back the rogues. They weren’t kind enough to stay for a photo shoot.
“Also, notice, no defensive wounds. Its heart removed, but no indication the demon fought back or tried to escape. All the slashes on its body are even and surgical looking. Demons are powerful beings, even the lowly ones. It'd take immense power to do this. Or bind it to a ritual, which again, uses a lot of power to force a demon into taking part.”
“I don’t mean to sound cavalier, but this doesn’t tell me anything about your innocence.” Julia interrupted, her eyes riveted to the screen.
“Just explaining some background on what I was working on, why this all started happening. There were a few attempts on my life. I thought nothing of it. I’ve made quite a few enemies which happen in our line of work. Then I received this voice message.”
Moving the mouse to an audio file on the USB key, he double-clicked to play it. A distorted, scratchy voice came out of the speakers.
“Stop looking into the slavery ring or next time your shielding won’t save from the poison.”
He’d almost fallen to a poisoned needle embedded in his apartment’s doorknob. As with most mages, he kept his shielding up continuously, on guard against any possible attacks.
Jackson continued, “No one knew about that. I didn’t tell anyone in the Enforcers and made no report about it. That’s when I figured something else was going on. So, of course, I started digging deeper.”
He played a few more audio files, wiretaps of high-profile people, discussing their slaves.
“They were so sure they were above the law they weren’t even discreet.” He said with disgust. “Unfortunately, these are illegal wiretaps. I had to pull a few strings, beg some favours and had them put into place. I just wanted to know who I could put pressure on. Instead, it blew up in my face and I’ve been running since. Nothing here proves I didn’t summon that demon, but it shows someone wanted me out of the way.”
“Honestly, I'm not sure what I believe right now. I’ll help in whatever way I can. But for now, another heal on my ankle would be great. And maybe get rid of these scratches.” Her smile hesitant, but her voice calm and sure. Her fingers fluttered against the vivid angry scratches on her face, torn by the Fay branches.
Amazed and a little suspicious she seemed willing to give him a chance, he wondered at her angle. There wasn’t much in these files that pointed to his innocence. Was she hoping to blindside him, lull him into a false sense of security? Her sweet innocent smile could easily hide treachery and he’d be a fool to forget her partner, Markus. He was ruthless, cunning and willing to break rules to win. She would’ve learned many of his tricks. Making a note to keep a close eye on her, he decided to extend some trust towards her.
While Jackson had other evidence that would help make his case, he figured it would be better to save it for tomorrow. It was getting late and he needed to gather what little energy he had left to attempt another healing.
Chapter Four
JULIA GAVE A wide yawn, astonished at how tired she was. Hadn’t she spent most of the day unconscious? The trip through Fay shortened her day, giving her less waking hours than normal. Then again, her day also started obscenely early with Markus banging on her door at 3 A.M. Wow, had that been just a few hours ago?
Sitting on the bed, she spread her hands out on the hideous blanket. Honestly, who chose this? An eyesore, thin and threadbare in a few spots, it would’ve made a great addition to a bonfire. With the hot summer night, the blanket wasn’t a necessity for which she was grateful.
Realizing she was ignoring the lumbering dragon in the room, she turned her mind to the one pitiful bed in the small area. The uncomfortable and lumpy bed currently cushioning her butt.
No way. Sharing with Jackson, not an option.
She’d put up with only so much. While she wanted the prestige of capturing the elusive, and damn sexy, fugitive, some lines stayed uncrossed. Finding out if he groped in his sleep was one of them.
A solution presented itself in the way of a couch. Sitting along the wall next to the bathroom door, it didn’t seem at all comfortable. However, neither was the bed. As she hobbled over to the couch with a pillow and the ugly blanket, Jackson came out of the bathroom.
“What are you doing? You shouldn’t be on your foot. You’ll set back the healing by walking on it.” He tried to take the pillow and blanket from her, but she hugged it tighter to her chest. “I can make my own bed on the couch.”
“No, I’ll sleep on the couch. No sense in you being there. You’re taller than me and it’ll be uncomfortable. Take the bed. Minus this pillow and blanket, of course.” She preferred being closer to the main door.
If her lucked changed she could escape while he slept. So far, the universe conspired against her, putting her in this bizarre situation. Barring a few horrible experiences, her life had bumped along uneventful, blissfully boring considering her job as an Enforcer.
Contacting Markus would be easy once she was out of this shielded room. She’d tested a mind-speak spell while Jackson was in the bathroom and it bounced back to her.
“Look, I’m the one that kidnapped you, so I should suffer on the couch. Take the bed, rest and let your ankle mend.”
Since he looked ready to argue the rest of the night about it, she took the straightforward route. A few feet closer to the main door wouldn’t make much of a difference, she decided. Giving him a fake, sickly sweet smile, she capitulated, taking him by surprise.
“Yeah? No more arguments? Well, okay then.” He appeared lost, like he didn’t know what to do now. It would seem kidnapping women wasn’t an everyday occurrence. Well they had that in common at least. This was her first time as a kidnap victim.
“I’m heading to bed. I’m tired and I’m ready for this day to be over.” She said as she continued to hobble over to the couch. Fluffing up the thin pillow, she dropped it on the couch along with the blanket.
“I hope this will be comfortable for you, but I doubt it. You’re too tall for it.” She added, feeling malicious and spiteful.
She turned and made her way slowly back to the bed. Jackson stood in the middle of the room, looking forlorn. Perhaps next time he’ll think twice before abducting a woman. She suppressed the giggle tickling the back of her throat and ended up coughing instead. A few moments later, she was back under control, as long as she didn’t glance his way.
She had to admit though, he did save her life and so far behaved like a gentleman towards her. He’d made no inappropriate remarks or tried to put the move on her, even while healing her ankle. He’d touched her long enough to cast the spell and that was it.
A small, treacherous part of her sighed in disappointment. She wanted to explore the feelings he caused in her, toss him on the bed and have her wicked way with him. However, she still wasn’t sure about his innocence and she would never forgive herself if he was guilty. At least she felt more relaxed in his presence knowing he wasn’t going to kill her.
She dutifully kept her head turned as she heard Jackson grasp the hem of his shirt. The urge to watch him undress for bed was strong but she squashed it. Sure, it’d been a while since her last lover, but she wasn’t a sex starved pervert.
Right?
The silence from her internal voice did nothing to reassure her.
The rustle of clothes followed by the unzipping of his duffle bag told her he was changing into something else. Firmly, she told herself it didn’t matter if he slept in his boxers or not. Wait, was he wearing boxers or was he a briefs kind of guy? Maybe he preferred commando? Catching her lower lip between her teeth, she focused on the pain and pushed all thoughts of his underwear, or lack thereof, from her mind.
Julia opted to stay clothed. Nothing else to change into, she decided sleeping naked wasn’t a smart choice.
They both settled down for the night, neither of them content. The mattress was thin and sagging and each time Julia moved, it would squeak and groan. Her discomfort was nothing compared to the tossing, turning and muttering of curses coming from Jackson. Burying her face into the pillow, she had a hard time controlling her laughter. Served him right for arguing with her even if it was in her best interest. He should’ve realized the couch was too short for him, but fine enough for her. She fell asleep amused and in a surprisingly good mood all things considered.
She forgot to make any plans for escape while he slept.
JACKSON WOKE UP tired, groggy and so damn sore. It had been impossible to fall into a deep sleep on the couch. Either his feet hung over or his head was too high on the arm. A crick in
his neck taunted him. Should’ve taken the blasted bed. He massaged the aching muscle then cheated as he gathered a tiny amount of energy. The healing spell warmed his skin, pouring the soothing balm into him.
Standing up, he stretched, hands clasped above his head. Each muscle extended, luxuriating in the full body move. A moan drifted to his ears. He dropped his arms and shrugged, not realizing he’d made noise. The stretch felt damn good though.
A quick shake of his limbs and he was ready to start his early morning workout. He faithfully followed the routine instilled in him during his Academy days. As both an Enforcer and a fugitive, complacency would cause him harm.
His loose sweats allowed for free movement and he hadn’t bothered with a shirt. Normally, he slept naked but figured Julia wouldn’t appreciate his lack of sleepwear.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Julia join him and shifted over to give her room. She caught up with him, her body graceful in motion. The mixture of yoga and tai-chi helped stretch out the kinks and he nearly groaned in pleasure. No matter where he was, he made time to enjoy the meditative benefits from this workout.
He fluidly moved into Warrior One Pose and almost stumbled. Julia had followed his lead causing her tee-shirt to ride up as she lifted her arms. The uninterrupted view of her flat stomach distracted him. Without missing a beat, she flowed into Warrior Two. Her slightly baggy, low rider jeans hugged her ass as she completed the lunge.
Concentration shot, only through sheer habit did he finished the routine. He tried to tell himself it was due to being celibate for the better part of three years. He wasn’t buying it. Distraction by a woman just didn't happen to him and not because of a bit of flesh showing. Hell, it was summer. Women walked around in a lot less than what Julia was wearing and he didn’t get hot and bothered looking at them.
Magic Resistant Page 5
