by A. Blythe
“Rose,” I said. “You look like a million bucks.”
The older mage smiled. “The heater’s fired up. Get in, dear.”
I shook my head. “Not today. I have things to do. I can’t worry about being knocked unconscious.”
“Please get in, Miss Winters. I promise no one is rendering you unconscious today. No one in this car anyway.”
I continued walking, despite the cold, and the car crept alongside me at a glacial pace. Horns began sounding off behind us.
“You’re causing a scene, Miss Winters,” Rose said. “If you get in, I can speed up and make these drivers happy.”
“I’m not the one causing a scene,” I said, lengthening my stride. What I wouldn’t give to be able to bend the light right now.
The rear window rolled down. “Get in the goddam car, Alyse, or you’ll be banned from every pizzeria in the city for all of eternity.”
Rocco. I should have known.
“Well, I can’t risk that, can I?” I said, and stopped walking. “My taste buds would never forgive me.” The back door popped open and I slid in beside Rocco.
He looked like he hadn’t slept in weeks. His shirt was crumpled and dark shadows gave his eyes a haunted quality.
“Rose, aren’t you looking after him?” I chastised her. “He looks unwell.”
“How can I be well?” he asked. “The light of my freakin’ life has been extinguished.”
Glad to see he wasn’t taking the breakup too hard.
“Don’t be hyperbolic. There are lots of fish to swim with at the bottom of the sea,” I said.
I could see Rose’s brow crease in the rearview mirror. “That’s not the saying, dear.”
“You’re mixing your metaphors,” Rocco agreed. “According to you, there are lots of dead bodies for me to join, so I may as well throw myself off the bridge now.”
“I don’t think that’s what I said…”
He clasped my hand and pressed it to his tear-stained cheek. “Alyse, how can I win her back? What did I do wrong?”
I tried to extract my hand without offending him. I had ninety-nine problems but a disgruntled mobster wasn’t going to be one of them.
“You didn’t do anything wrong, Rocco. She likes you, but she doesn’t want a serious relationship. Farah’s never been involved with one male for any length of time, not for as long as I’ve known her.”
“But we’re perfect for each other,” he said. “Doesn’t she see that?”
I wasn’t sure I saw that, but I didn’t want to upset him further. “I don’t know that there’s any such thing as perfect for each other.”
Rocco’s mouth dropped open. “Is that how you really feel?”
“Not much of a romantic, are you?” Rose interjected from the driver’s seat. “How does Captain Reed feel about that?”
Did everyone in the city know my personal business?
“I actually don’t want to make this about me,” I said. A welcome change. “Can we stick to Rocco’s broken heart?”
“Is she seeing anyone else?” he asked, and my heart seized. If he didn’t know about Luciano yet, I had no intention of delivering the disappointing news.
“Rocco, do yourself a favor and move on. Join Tinder or MobsterMatch or whatever dating site makes sense for you.”
“She blocked my number,” he complained. “I can’t even send her a text.”
“I warned you that would happen,” Rose said. “You can’t send a girl fifty texts demanding a reconciliation and not expect her to block you.”
Farah hadn’t mentioned that. She was being kind and he didn’t even realize it.
“Farah is not the one for you,” I told him plainly. “If she were, you’d be together. There are no obstacles to a successful future together.”
“What if she’s like you?” Rocco asked.
I bristled. “What do you mean?”
He waved a hand in my direction. “Emotionally bankrupt or however she describes you.”
Emotionally bankrupt? I let the insult wash over me. “Farah doesn’t suffer from my issues. She knows her own mind and her heart. She’s always been very open with her feelings.” A little too open, it seemed.
“Tell her I miss her, ‘kay?” he begged. “If she gives me another chance, I’ll make it worth her while. I promise.”
I sympathized with him. I really did. I was on his end of heartbreak once and it was brutal. I vowed to never let something like that happen to me again.
“You don’t need another chance, Rocco,” I said, as kindly as I could. “You didn’t let her down. She just isn’t who you want her to be.”
I looked in the rearview mirror. “I’ll get out here, Rose.”
She pulled over the car and I opened the door. “You’re a nice man, Rocco and I’m sorry. I truly am.”
I hurried to the door of Tops and Bottoms before they could stop me. I hoped he didn’t try to follow me inside and cause a scene. The attempted robbery was enough excitement for one week.
I waited until I got to the door to turn around. Thankfully, the Lincoln Town Car was gone.
As soon as I made it safely inside the store, I dragged Farah into the armory to tell her about Katrien.
“Is she still upstairs sleeping?” I asked.
“No, she left for groceries about an hour ago.”
I wondered what she was really up to. Casting a spell on more unsuspecting humans?
“What could she be looking for?” Farah asked.
“I don’t know. Something she needs to take down Aladdin?”
“I thought that something was you.”
The supernatural alarm sounded and we both froze in place.
“Can we ask Pinky to change the sound?” Farah asked. “It freaks me out.”
“Check the security camera.”
She hopped behind the counter and glanced at the screen. “Holy Balls of Essential Fire. Does Reed have a brother in town?”
Reed was here? Ugh, my unpleasant visit to his house was still fresh in my mind. “He has a younger brother called Greer who works for PAN.”
Farah smiled. “Well, judging by the way he’s eyeing my mannequins, Greer is a breast man.”
“I’ll make a note of it.”
There was only one reason for Greer to show up here. He had news for me—news that had to be delivered in person.
As I headed for the armory doorway, Farah grabbed me by the arm. “You can’t go out there.”
“Why not? I need to face Reed sooner or later.”
She stood in front of me and licked her thumb before swiping it across my eyebrows. “Yes, but face him with your best face. You look like a hot mess. You can’t go out there without running a brush through your rat’s nest.” She summoned one and handed it to me. “I may not be able to summon weapons of mass destruction, but I can save you from a bad hair day.”
I quickly attacked my hair with the brush. “I’m not trying to look good for him, remember?”
“I know, but his brother looks just as delicious. You don’t want to embarrass yourself.”
She shoved me forward and we left the armory, emerging from the dressing area.
“Alyse, you’re here,” Reed said, unsmiling. So he was still upset with me. No surprise there. “I’d like you to meet my younger brother, Greer.”
Greer Reed stepped forward and it was like looking at another version of Captain Heavenly, only a shade darker and a smidge shorter.
“Wow, my brother didn’t tell me how beautiful you are,” Greer said, shaking my hand. “He made it sound like you were trapped in some horrible body you were desperate to get out of.”
Reed folded his arms in a defensive gesture. “Alyse doesn’t want to be stuck in a human body, period. It’s irrelevant what it looks like. She wants to be her true self.”
I nodded toward Reed. “What he said.”
Farah made a noise at the back of her throat.
“This is my friend, Farah,” I said.
&
nbsp; She squeezed in front of me to shake his hand. “I can’t imagine what your house was like when you two were younger. Did girls just hang around outside, hoping to catch a glimpse?”
Greer winked. “I was happy to give the girls whatever they wanted. A glimpse was the least I could do. Grayson was the one with his nose in a book.”
“And yet you became the analyst and he works in the field,” I said. “Funny how life works out sometimes.”
Reed didn’t seem to enjoy the personal revelations. “Okay, Greer. That’s quite enough small talk. Why don’t we discuss the reason you’ve come all the way from D.C.?”
Greer grinned at me. “Grayson told me you received the card.”
“Yes, thank you.”
“And it was helpful?”
“That remains to be seen, but I doubt you came all the way here to solicit feedback. If that’s the case, I can just give you five stars on Amazon and be done with it.”
Greer glanced at his brother. “She’s perceptive. You didn’t tell me she was perceptive.”
“She was a Shadow Elite agent,” Reed said. “It’s a given that she’s perceptive.”
Farah decided it was her turn to step in shit. “So did your brother tell you anything about Alyse? Did he tell you they have a thing?”
Reed and I groaned in stereo. Why did she go there? Reed was already pissed at me about Melania. I didn’t need to embarrass him in front of his younger brother.
Greer seemed delighted by this news. “You have the hots for a djinni?” He elbowed his brother in the ribs. “And a badass supernatural agent, no less?”
“Former agent,” I corrected him, displaying my cuffs.
He threw his head back and laughed. “Oh, man. This is awesome. Have you told mom?”
My eyes widened. “Mom?” On some level, I was aware that Reed had a mother; it just never occurred to me that she’d still be alive and kicking.
“No.” Reed’s cheek twitched, a sure sign he wasn’t happy with the direction of this conversation. “Unlike you, I don’t share every second of my life with our mother. It’s called boundaries. You should try them sometime.”
Greer beamed at me. “Our mother would flip her lid if she knew her golden child was cavorting with a djinni.”
“I think we both know who her golden child is,” Reed said, without a trace of humor. A glimpse into the Reed family dynamics. Interesting.
“Your mother cavorts with angels, but demons are a no-no?” Farah queried.
Greer shrugged. “She’s old-fashioned that way.”
Forget old-fashioned—the woman had to be plain old. “How is she still alive?”
“Our father made certain arrangements…” Greer began.
“Can we get back to business, please?” Reed interrupted. This line of conversation was clearly off limits.
“Is there somewhere private we can talk?” Greer asked, his smile fading. “Just the two of us?”
“The three of us,” Reed insisted.
Greer looked at his brother. “What are you worried about, big brother? That I’m going to make a move on your demon girl while discussing agency secrets?”
“I’m not his girl,” I said. I didn’t mean to say it with such ferocity, but with all of the talk lately about females as property—something to own and possess—the words escaped my mouth before I could stop them.
Greer slapped his older brother on the back. “Don’t take it to heart, Gray. I’m sure Melania would still have you. Too bad you’re not a fan of dimples.” He shrugged at us. “He thinks they look like bullet wounds to the face.”
At the mention of Melania, my eyes met Reed’s. Did she have a romantic interest in Reed? Had they ever dated? That would explain her biased opinion of me and his reaction to my accusation.
“That’s enough, Greer,” he said through gritted teeth.
“Melania seems very nice,” I said, in an effort to save face. It was bullshit as far as I was concerned, but if Reed and Thompson liked her, I was willing to give her the benefit of the doubt. After all, Reed could read minds as easily as she could manipulate them. If he didn’t like what he saw in there, he wouldn’t embrace her as a friend. I probably should have considered that before I accused her of criminal activity.
“I came all the way from D.C.,” Greer complained. “Any chance my conversation can come first?”
“You stay here,” I told Reed.
I surveyed the store. I couldn’t take Greer into the armory or to the apartment where Katrien could return at any moment from hatching another scheme, so we walked outside.
“There’s a quiet alley this way,” I said, and he fell into step beside me. Even his long strides reminded me of Reed. It was strange.
“So you and my brother, huh?” he asked, once we were safely on the sidewalk.
“It’s complicated,” I replied. He didn’t need to know the details. Reed obviously didn’t make a habit of confiding in him.
“Why do girls always say that?” Greer wondered. “It shouldn’t be complicated. You either dig each other or you don’t.”
I stopped walking and studied him. “You don’t sound like any analyst I ever met. Are you sure you’re not an undercover field agent?”
He laughed. “I take that as a compliment, especially coming from someone of your stature.”
My stature? The compliments were flowing freely from Reed the Younger.
“Seriously, are you really an analyst?”
He held up a hand. “Naphil’s honor. I do tend to be the coolest guy in the room at office parties.”
I could imagine. “So why didn’t you follow your brother’s footsteps and join the Protectorate?”
Greer’s eyes widened. “Have you seen the size of my brother’s feet? Trust me, it was better to forge my own path. My mother made no bones about the fact that she wanted one of us in PAN.”
“And yet he chose the Protectorate.” I never pegged Reed as a rebel.
“Mom still hasn’t forgiven him.”
“And he wants to date me.” A djinni. Someone his mother was sure to disapprove of. I was beginning to see a pattern. An unexpected pattern, but a pattern nonetheless. Suddenly, Captain Reed was infinitely more interesting.
“Here’s the question,” Greer said. We ducked into the alley and stood behind a dumpster for privacy. “Why don’t you want to date him? I don’t think I’ve ever met a female in my long life who wasn’t interested in my brother.”
“It’s not really any of your business.” I left it at that. I’d just met Greer and I wasn’t about to divulge information to him that I hadn’t yet shared with his brother. It seemed—wrong. Just because I didn’t plan to date Reed didn’t mean I wasn’t loyal to him.
“Message received,” Greer said. He leaned against the brick exterior of the building. “Your handler, Jamie Fenton.”
“Still dead, I assume.” I winced inwardly as the words shot out of my mouth. I didn’t think I’d ever accept Jamie’s death, no matter how real it was.
Greer nodded. “I got a look at his file.” My mouth opened and he raised a hand. “I’m not telling you how. I have Shadow Elite contacts just like you have PAN contacts. Or had, anyway.”
There was no reason to push the issue. “Anything noteworthy?”
“Not a thing. He lived a simple life.”
I wasn’t surprised. Jamie was a good man and the agency covered its tracks well. It was the cornerstone of its business model.
“A real shame.” Greer bowed his head respectfully. “Seems like he was a decent guy.”
“He was.” And I didn’t appreciate him until it was too late. I didn’t deserve him as my handler.
“If it’s any consolation, I don’t think the agency had anything to do with his death.”
I was pretty sure I misheard him. “Wait—what?”
“I got access to the investigation notes, too,” Greer said. “It was far too messy for an inside job. The Elite could’ve done it cleanly. Seamlessly. Thi
s was a complete hatchet job.”
My stomach turned. A hatchet job? “Was anything taken?”
Greer shook his head. “Nope. His place was a wreck, but the investigators couldn’t point to anything missing.”
I hugged myself. “Could it have been someone trying to find me? One of my enemies who discovered he was my handler?”
Greer squeezed my arm. “I’m not going to lie. It’s a possibility.”
And Reed thought I was egotistical for thinking I was the center of the criminal universe. I had my reasons, though, and, right now, they seemed entirely valid.
“Jamie never would have rolled over. He would’ve endured anything…”
“If he was tortured, then evidence of it was erased somehow,” Greer said. “The team didn’t find anything definitive.”
Gods bless Jamie. He was my hero. “Thank you for coming all this way to tell me, Greer. I appreciate it.”
“I couldn’t risk putting it in any form of communication that could be picked up by agency satellites. If nothing else, it would lead whomever was intercepting the message straight to your doorstep.”
My stay in Philadelphia was becoming riskier every day. I was going to bring hell on earth to all my friends here if I didn’t manage to get the cuffs off soon. I had to do better than I currently was.
“Besides,” he added. “It was a good excuse to drop in on my big brother. We tend to go far too long without seeing each other. It isn’t right. He’s my family.”
I glanced toward the street that led back to Tops and Bottoms and sighed.
All things considered, he was mine too.
“Melania has cracked a nut,” I announced, clicking off my phone.
Farah glanced up from her Sudoku. “She managed to recover someone’s memory?”
“Not the whole memory,” I said, “but Henshaw’s going to work with Reed to draw a picture of the suspect.”
Katrien’s ears perked up from her spot on the floor where she was performing a supported shoulderstand. “Captain Reed? He is a sketch artist?”
