Doomed Cases Series Box Set

by Joanna Mazurkiewicz

  “Right, Robin, I’ll take care of her,” Zach said staring at the guy with a smashed nose, not me. Robin, the uniformed officer was going to argue, but the human started swearing again. More people started gathering around us and I hated that Zach was now involved in my pathetic rescue mission. “Come on, Flower, time for you to disappear.”

  He nodded to me to move, and I guess I had no other choice. I didn’t want to stay on the street and explain why I got myself tangled in yet another mess.

  Zach’s presence calmed me down. Paul was reminding me that I needed to be careful. Yeah, he was broadcasting his thoughts loud and clear.

  “Let’s take you home, shall we?” Zach said when we got to his car. I put my seat belt on, feeling tired and still pretty much zoomed out with tequila. At least I hadn’t lost any money tonight, that was a step forward, with a lot more steps backwards.

  “I can’t go home. There are paps all over my car park. They most likely haven’t left yet,” I said, rubbing my face. Okay, Zach was only trying to help after I nearly slashed his throat earlier on in the palace. I felt that my life was getting out of control again.

  He ran his hands over the steering wheel and exhaled.

  “In that case, you will sleep in mine, and before you say anything, we are not going to have sex,” he said, sounding completely serious. Then we were driving, getting out of Brixton, while I was trying to forget that I put myself at risk yet again. The streets were still busy, horns were going off, but Zach turned to the left, leading us through narrow back streets.

  “Okay.”

  That was it. I couldn’t come up with anything else. Tequila clouded my head and I felt so stupid, so damn silly that things didn’t work out between me and him two months ago. Neither of us said anything for a good half hour. Zach was calm and reserved, thinking about our case for a change. The air suddenly stuck in my throat, as I tried to force the turmoil and my vulnerability away from me. At the traffic light when the car stopped, Zach turned around to look at me.

  “I really wanted us to give it a go, Max, but you ran. Why?”

  I closed my eyes, knowing that there was no escape now. I had to come clean, explain myself. My heart was thumping loudly in my chest.

  “I’m a freak. I mean, look at me, I can’t even take care of myself,” I said, getting tired of pretending that I could fight my internal battles on my own. Zach had his own issues, but we could have made this work. He smoothed his chin, his eyes wary, deep.

  “You should just let me in, at least give it a try. We didn’t have to jump into a relationship; we could have taken things slowly.”

  The pain started spreading. I didn’t know why his words hurt me. I felt inadequate deep inside, scarred, trying to figure out if there was a way to change the past. I couldn’t offer him much. He would have to teach me how to function as a human.

  “I got scared, all right? All of a sudden I was petrified to have someone there for me, someone that wanted to take care of me,” I shouted, not even knowing why I was raising my voice. That weak, other Maxine was talking then.

  Zach’s eyes darkened and he pulled over to the side of the road. I should have kept my mouth shut.

  “Because of the prince? He fucked you up so badly that now you can’t put your full trust in another man?” he asked gently in a tone of voice that I completely didn’t recognise. I stared at my hands, chewing on my bottom lip, and thinking that I couldn’t cry in front of him.

  “Yes, we loved each other. I have never talked to anyone about this, but what we had was special. It was truly like a fairytale,” I said, struggling to keep my voice even. Once the first tear rolled down my cheek I couldn’t stop myself. I was a damaged woman that was too scared to cry in front of a man.

  “Now you have a chance to get back together with him. He obviously caused such havoc. He wants you back, Flower.”

  “No, it’s over. This could never work. I’m moving forward and not jumping back to that old life. Arthur is going to be the future king and I’m no one,” I said, wiping the tears away. “I do like you, Zach, and I was ready then, but my life always spins out of control. I was afraid I’d screw it up.”

  He reached out and lifted my chin, his eyes filled with heat. He used his thumb to wipe the tears away, and my soul sparked back to life. It was okay to show him that vulnerable part of me hidden somewhere underneath.

  “You’re beautiful and you deserve someone that can give you everything. Now I understand, and if you let me in, I could smooth your sorrows and seal that frisky little heart of yours back together again. The choice is yours.”

  Chapter 8

  “...but nature scants that light in all it makes, working in much the manner of a painter who knows the true art, but whose brush hand shakes.” ― Dante Alighieri

  There was a buzzing in my ears. Zach’s genuine words were slowly turning my stone cold heart into a healthy muscle that beat loudly in my chest. I couldn’t give him an answer, but I understood what he was saying. He wanted to be there for me. I had only ever experienced something like that with Ricky, and now another man was reaching out, telling me that it was okay to feel vulnerable once in a while.

  When we reached Zach’s house and I waited downstairs while he sorted his spare room for me, I knew that he meant what he said in the car. I had to start appreciating that he had a huge heart, and he was willing to help me, even after I blew him off. He made me a strong cup of tea and stayed with me until I fell asleep.

  That night, I closed my eyes, aware that I had a man beside me, the man that was willing to take me as I was—damaged and lost in a world that I couldn’t fit in. Maybe I made a mistake not trusting him before. The conflict from the past didn’t matter. I was the problem and he showed me the solution. Now it was my decision, my choice that I had to make in order to move forward. My demonic soul was torn between the world on the outside and the one down below.

  The morning came and I woke up with a start, nearly falling on the floor. I didn’t recognise the space around me, and my heart beat frantically in my chest. I was dreaming that Alexis threw me down to the pits, and I was falling through darkness.

  The sheets were clean and smelled of lavender and some other flowery scent. Last night seemed kind of blurry, but the memories quickly came back and suddenly I remembered what happened. I pushed the covers away, ignoring the headache and the achy muscles. My knuckles were bruised and I had to remind myself that next time I should stay away from human business that didn’t concern me. The arsehole boyfriend wasn’t worth the hassle. Shaking my head, I started putting my clothes back on, knowing that it was a new day and I had to get on with finding Nameless.

  Zach was most likely downstairs or he had left for work in the early hours of the morning. The clock on the wall was showing me that it was just after eleven o’clock in the morning. There were a couple of missed calls from Ricky on my phone. He most likely had heard about the statement that Arthur had released to the press last night. Today wasn’t going to be easy; today I had to get back to work after acting like an emotional wreck last night.

  I brushed my hair with my hands, washed my face and took a deep breath, then headed downstairs to face reality and Zach. After countless nights, he probably accepted that I had many flaws.

  “Morning, sunshine, how are we feeling this morning or should I say afternoon?”

  Zach’s voice startled me and I jumped, nearly dropping my phone. He was standing in the kitchen, clean-shaven, dressed in a white shirt. Gorgeous, yeah, he looked really good in white. I asked myself, why the hell I didn’t jump his bones earlier on when I had a chance. He would definitely brighten my miserable future.

  “I’m good, hangover but nothing that I can’t handle,” I replied, looking around. Nothing much had changed in Zach’s house. I still remembered that painfully steamy encounter in the corner of his room.

  “Late breakfast is on the menu today. How would you like your eggs to be cooked?” he asked, with a wink. It looked like
Zach was back to being his playful self after all. Maybe it was better that I opened up to him in the car, that I cried a little. He knew now that deep down I wasn’t made of steel.

  “Scrambled, please.”

  I went into his kitchen and sat down on the chair. The breakfast followed, then strong coffee. It was still early for me, but the food fuelled my body with boosting energy. We had a long day ahead and I needed to get moving on tracking down Nameless Thief.

  We both ate in silence. Zach was staring at me the entire time, and his never-ending curiosity began shifting into a vibrant lust. Of course, how could I have forgotten about it?

  “Tell me about Nameless Thief, how he operates and where we can find him?” I asked, when I was done with my food.

  “I have been trying to catch that snake for years, but he always got away. He robbed The British Museum a few years back. We don’t have any photos in the files. He had been careful and none of his associates is willing to talk,” Zach explained, finishing his coffee. He was very tidy for a man and his kitchen was clean.

  “We have to track him down. He cannot release these letters,” I said, thinking about people that could help with this case. Nameless was a half demon; that’s why Zach couldn’t catch him. I had resources and necessary magic, the advantage. “The entire monarchy could be at stake.”

  “We have the same goal, Flower, and we did manage to solve the last case. We will find him.”

  “Good, because I don’t want to waste time. We have to work out a plan and get on with it straight away,” I told him, wondering if I had enough potions in my closet to protect myself and Zach.

  A mad gleam flickered in his eyes.

  “What did the prince want from you yesterday when he asked you to stay?” Zach asked the question, shifting the tension between us. I looked down at my empty coffee, wrapping my fingers around the cup.

  “He wants to rekindle whatever we had, regardless of what I think,” I replied, not sure if talking to Zach about me and Arthur was a good idea. After yesterday he knew that deep inside I was an insecure little girl, desiring someone who could never be truly mine.

  Zach smiled and ran his finger over my bare arm. Goose pimples broke out everywhere, and my energy soared.

  “I have to give it to the guy—he has balls, calling off the wedding, but he won’t win with me here. Come on, let’s move it. We have things to do,” Zach said, giving me his look that sent shivers down my spine. Our story was pretty much open ended.

  “Where are we going?” I asked, thinking that I needed to get to the office and have a chat with Ricky. Emma was still waiting to hear about the truth and I promised that this was going to be today.

  “Underground. That’s where most thieves operate,” Zach said, glancing at the clock in the kitchen. “But first I need to pop into the station.”

  “Well, in that case, I think we should meet up in a few hours, because I need to be in the office. I have a meeting with Ricky,” I told him, hoping that everything would go according to plan, at least today.

  I shouldn’t have been drinking tequila last night. The magic had completely messed up my head. I kept wondering if I should have shared the truth with Arthur, but at the same time I wasn’t prepared to risk his life for the sake of my own happiness. He was a royal, after all, and needed to be protected. The rules of the demonic world were strict. Maybe most of them didn’t apply to me, but when it came to royal business, the faction wouldn’t care if half of my soul was demonic or not.

  “All right, whatever, Max, but I bet you Nameless Thief is hiding in the underground. I’ve been chasing after him for as long as I can remember. I got to know his connections. Meet me at Angel Station around two o’clock. That should give us enough time to sort out our affairs.”

  I nodded, thinking that it was kind of odd that we were a team again. My powers were dangerous and Zach was sensitive, so I had to be careful with using my abilities in front of him this time around. He gave me a lift to the city and then I took the tube back to Brixton.

  “Remember, Flower, I still want you, and whatever Arthur does, I’ll beat him to it,” Zach assured me before I jumped out of the car. His words made me feel better for some reason.

  I walked to the office with my stomach in knots. Since Emma started working with us things changed and I actually wanted to show up on time. Ricky was in a better mood and finally, after years, all the cases were in order. Who knew how Emma would react when I revealed that I was half demon and Ricky was born in hell? I somehow convinced the head of Berith faction that she was ready, so now I just needed to convince myself.

  The city was busy. The upcoming bank holiday weekend got everyone on the street. Emma was already in full mode when I got upstairs, working and talking to Ricky about her daughter’s school project. She was in a very good mood, cataloging some evidence from one of the crimes scenes.

  “Hey, Max, how are you? Isn’t this a bit early for you?” she asked, laughing. Ricky was on his feet the second he heard my voice. The case and the prince, yeah, we needed to talk. He had an expensive blue shirt on and a new haircut. Unlike me, Ricky had style and he enjoyed the life of luxury.

  “Detective Quinton gave me a ride here,” I said, not wanting to hide anything from those two.

  Emma started clapping and squeaking like a bird and I rolled my eyes.

  “That’s exciting. So you’re going to date him then?” she asked, after she was calm enough to speak.

  “I don’t do dating. We’re working together again,” I muttered and went to Ricky’s room, hoping that he wouldn’t dwell on what happened to me last night.

  “That son of a bitch put you in a difficult spot, Max,” my business partner said. “I went over to your place last night. The parking lot was filled with reporters.”

  “It’s a long story. I was in the Broken Shoe, then ended up at Zach’s, and before you ask, no, nothing happened,” I said, not wanting to tell Ricky that I was still considering hooking up with Zach. “Now can we call Emma in here and tell her what’s going on? We’ve waited long enough and Watchers might be over to see how she is adjusting.”

  “What happened in the palace yesterday and where is Ronan?”

  “Don’t know. He vanished after Arthur kept me in Rodriguez’s office for a bit longer,” I mumbled, pushing myself not to think about the future ahead. “He’s wants to date me, Rick, going behind his family and all that palaver.”

  Ricky dragged his hand through his hair and exhaled sharply. We both knew that Arthur was stubborn and ready for anything.

  “I’ll help you as much as possible, but if worse comes to worst, you might have to use your abilities to keep him away. We can’t afford to lose focus,” Ricky told me and I had to agree with him. He was worried for me, worried about my future. This man that I treated like a brother was never selfish and he often looked out for me more than he looked out for himself.

  “Yeah, about that. I need to call Emma here, right now. I need to go out soon. Zach has a lead for Nameless Thief.”

  Ricky nodded, got up, and a moment later Emma, Ricky and I were squeezed into his small room. Tension rolled through the space. At times humans were mentally stronger than demons, but equally as vulnerable.

  “So, guys, what’s going on? You aren’t going to fire me, right? Because it looks like this conversation is going to be serious,” Emma said, laughing nervously. I smoothed my palms over my trousers, gathering the courage to start talking.

  “There is something important that we want to tell you, something about the two of us,” Ricky said, beating me to it. “It might sound unbelievable, but we want you to listen very carefully.”

  Emma had nothing to say to that, but I could see deep down that she was thinking we were going to fire her. I felt like I had to say something. I reached out and touched her hand.

  “You remember the night we met in the alley, when you were attacked?” I asked, ready to return her real memories.

  “Of course. You saved m
e from those men that tried to rob me.”

  I nodded. “Yes, but these men weren’t real humans. You see, they were demons, convicted demons from hell that wanted your lust. I only did what was necessary, prevented you from being exposed to the other world that exists.”

  I didn’t want to say any more. My energy pulsated as streams of power flew from me to Emma. After a moment of silence her smile disappeared and she was staring at me completely startled, most likely ready to scream and run. Yeah, this wasn’t exactly going as planned.

  Chapter 9

  “Avarice, envy, pride, The fatal sparks, have set the hearts of all On Fire.” –Dante Alighieri, The Divine Comedy

  Emma blinked a few times, then opened her mouth but didn’t say anything. The uncomfortable silence stretched for ages and I started to think that maybe she wasn’t ready to handle what the world had in store for her. I concentrated on her thoughts, and she seemed very confused. I didn’t know what to make of it. Ricky was born in hell, so he was slightly less receptive to a human’s way of living.

  “Demons?” Emma repeated, narrowing her eyes at me. “I remember it now—they were doing strange, unexplained things, and then you showed up. The light … they were struck with the lightning bolt.”

  She seemed nervous, her voice uneven. Ricky shifted on the chair and my pulse was speeding away. We both needed to take it easy, because we were freaking her out and that wasn’t supposed to happen.

  “There are some things that you might not understand, and we are here to explain everything,” I began. This wasn’t supposed to be difficult, but I had never told a human about hell or heaven. She needed to understand that not all demons on earth or in hell were evil. They had jobs down below like any ordinary humans, but with much better opportunities on earth they wanted to live amongst humans. Emma didn’t interrupt; she listened carefully when I went over our demonic faction system, and the fact that humans weren’t supposed to be aware of everything that was going on between hell and this earth. Humans were protected. Lucifer had worked out a plan with the archangels upstairs centuries ago. Maybe for anyone with a closed mind this story was unbelievable and overall too complicated, but Emma had already experienced certain things, and I was hoping that she would understand. I told her that demons and mongrels had certain magical abilities.