Agents, Agreements and Aggravations: In Her Paranormal Majesty’s Secret Service™ Book Three

by Anderle, Michael

  Jennie saw Baxter, as though she was seeing him for the first time.

  Baxter waved his hand in front of her face. “Jennie? Jennie, are you okay? What did you see?”

  The truth was that she wasn’t quite sure of what she saw. What she did know was that this whole thing went much deeper than they had originally anticipated.

  Richmond, Virginia, USA

  Tanya watched Jiao roaming around the massive house like a ghost. Her pale skin was almost translucent, her beauty iridescent. Her dark hair was neatly groomed and fell over her slight shoulders.

  “She creeps me out,” Sandra whispered to Tanya, looking up at her from her side. Connected to Tanya, they were both spectral and, as far as they were aware, invisible.

  Tanya laughed internally. It was the first time Sandra had stopped chasing the Roomba in days, and that was only because the thing needed charging. She was glad to have Sandra, Lupe, and the three conduits with her, but that didn’t stop her discomfort at being left with a complete stranger.

  “What is she doing?” Sandra asked.

  Jiao was kneeling in the center of the kitchen. She smoothed down the front of her red kimono, then bowed low and placed her hands on the floor. When she was finished, she stood up and rooted through the cupboards. She pulled out a saucepan, then began boiling some water.

  Intrigued, Tanya made herself known by asking Sandra to disconnect from her and taking a stand beside the cupboards. She folded her arms. Outside the manor, a group of children screamed as the poltergeists did their work in chasing them away.

  “What are you making?” Tanya asked.

  Jiao gave a small shrug. “I’m still working that out. This kitchen is huge, but it’s not stocked to feed many people.” She took a packet of dried ramen from one of the cupboards and placed the contents into the boiling pan. “Where I came from, our kitchen stock offered an abundance of flavors. Food spilled out when you opened the doors, and each meal was a discovery for the senses.”

  Tanya opened a few of the cupboards and felt a slight wave of shame. “Yeah, we really need to think about getting some proper food in. I’ll be honest, I’m not complaining about a week’s worth of pizza, but it’s high time my body got some nutrients.”

  Jiao turned silent once more as she busied herself with finding anything she could make a meal with. She seemed unabashed by Tanya’s presence and continued focusing on her own thing, soon producing three plates full of something that, despite the lack of ingredients, smelled absolutely delicious.

  Tanya laughed. “You’ve got a large stomach.”

  Jiao slid the plate toward Tanya. “The second one is for you. Come, sit. In my culture, it’s an honor to share food with guests.”

  Tanya took a seat, and Sandra sat beside her. “In the US, it’s compulsory to eat everything yourself. Did you know we have one of the highest obesity rates in the world?”

  “I did,” Jiao replied. “Because I too am from the United States.”

  Tanya blushed, realizing the snap judgment she had made. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean…”

  Jiao shook her head, expertly wielding a set of chopsticks as she extracted noodles from the plate. “Not at all. My family is from mainland China, but I was born and raised in New York City. The differences in culture are huge, but I’m thankful for the opportunity to experience both sides of the coin and learn the customs of each country.”

  Jiao popped the bite on her chopsticks into her mouth and quietly chewed. Everything she did seemed dainty and quaint. Tanya found herself envying how some people seemed to be born with a quiet grace that you just couldn’t emulate.

  “Can I ask you a question?” Tanya asked as her stomach grew full. “Well, two questions, really.”

  “Of course,” Jiao replied.

  Tanya nodded to the counter. “Who’s that plate for?”

  Jiao didn’t even raise her eyes toward Sandra. “Your friend.”

  “You’re a conduit?” Tanya asked, surprised.

  Jiao considered this. “I suppose so. If that’s the word you have for it. I don’t believe I’m able to perceive specters to the level of your friend, Jennie, but I am certainly able to detect their relative shape. Your friend must be hungry, no?”

  Tanya requested that Sandra latch onto her, and a moment later she was spectral again. Sandra seemed unfazed by Jiao’s revelation and was happy to sit quietly and bear witness to the conversation.

  “I think she’s okay,” Tanya answered at last. “Specters aren’t really able to digest food.”

  “The gesture can mean more than the matter,” Jiao replied sagely.

  A small smirk found its way onto Tanya’s lips. This woman was fascinating. “My other question. How did you end up entangled in service to the Dragon? When last I encountered him, I didn’t see you there, and it seemed as though he had died. What’s your story?”

  Jiao finished her meal, eating every last morsel. She took her time answering, so much so that at one point, Tanya wondered if she needed to repeat herself.

  Finally, she answered. “It’s a long, complicated story, but it’s no doubt one that you will have heard before. I do not wish to detail it right now, as I’m simply glad to be free from his clutches. I am eternally grateful to you and your friends for your hospitality and will do everything in my power to aid you as best I can. No amount of service will be a just repayment for my freedom.”

  Tanya cocked her head empathetically. “Is everything in your life about service?”

  “What do you mean?” Jiao asked, taking the final plate and placing it before Sandra. Although the girl was a specter, even Tanya could see her mouth was watering.

  “We’re all free here,” Tanya explained. “We work under one umbrella, but we’re all living in the land of the free. You don’t owe us anything. If you’re here, you’re here of your own free will. You don’t need to serve us, but you can always help us.”

  Jiao looked confused.

  “What I’m saying,” Tanya continued, “Is that if you’re going to remain here with us, you need to loosen up! The Dragon clearly found something valuable in you, so I’m sure you can assist us in our work. As a matter of fact… Yeah, you can accompany us to our meeting this afternoon. We’ve made contact with the group calling themselves the Paranormanimals—a most ridiculous name if I’ve ever heard one—and we’re going to ask them a few questions. What do you say?”

  Jiao considered this a moment, then gave a gentle nod. “Okay. Sounds fun.”

  Sandra tugged Tanya’s sleeve and nodded toward Jiao.

  “Oh, yeah,” Tanya added. “If we’re going to initiate you into this gang of ours, you’re going to have to switch your wardrobe. You know you’re still sporting the emblem of the Dragon, right?”

  Jiao’s pale cheeks colored red. “I have nothing else to wear.”

  Sandra beamed. “Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Tanya’s wardrobe is ridiculously overstocked.”

  Tanya shot Sandra with a stern look.

  “What? Your wardrobe is packed.” She turned her attention back to Jiao. “Honestly, you’ll be fine. I bet you’d look killer in a nice pair of slacks and a loose sweater.”

  Tanya laughed, not quite believing this sudden explosion from Sandra. “Since when did you become a hard-core fashionista?”

  Sandra stuck out her tongue.

  Chapter Twenty

  Washington DC, USA

  When Daggro brought everyone back together into a private meeting room, all eyes were on Jennie.

  Jennie’s voice was level, but her heart rate was elevated. “The Dragon is up to something, and it’s not going to be pretty. He’s ingrained himself with a number of figureheads of local criminal organizations, and he’s working to get them all banded together.”

  Daggro narrowed her eyes. “How do you know this? You got all of this from sniffing the spot where he sat?”

  “I saw it,” Jennie explained, choosing not to elaborate on her methods. Over the years, she had
learned that the more she tried to explain, the more questions were asked. “Their faces came to me, one by one. A roundtable of some of the most influential criminal heads in the city. We have to shut this down.”

  “Who are we talking about here?” one of the other agents asked. “Do you have names?”

  “No,” Jennie replied. “I have a location. Beneath the Rockefeller Center. There’s a chamber there. That’s all I know.”

  She sat back and waited for the admonishment, for the barrage of accusations that she didn’t know what she was talking about, and how could the SIA—an agency based solely on intelligence and data—trust the words coming from her mouth?

  She was surprised to find that no one said a thing. Daggro frowned and shook her head. “We’ll assemble you a team, Rogue. I want you out there with our men and women hunting this bastard down. And believe me when I say that if you’ve got a card up your sleeve, or you do anything to betray us, it won’t be me you’ll have to deal with. This will go all the way to the top.”

  Jennie rolled her eyes. “The only reason I’m getting involved now is to stop this going all the way to the top and to protect your arses.”

  The agents exchanged looks that Daggro clearly did not appreciate.

  Jennie rose to her feet and clapped her hands. “Well, no time like the present, eh? There’s a maniacal spectral drug lord on the warpath, and he’s about to magnify his inner circle. We best get to it.” She reached the door, then turned and added, “Oh, and just so you know, I’m choosing my team. If you want me to help you, we do this my way.” She pulled out her phone and tapped the screen. A moment later, Daggro’s cell lit up. “That’s my list of requests. If you have any questions, let me know. In the meantime, I’m going to round up the troops.”

  Daggro seethed but nodded silent acquiescence. Even she wasn’t dumb enough to argue in this situation.

  Rhone waved smugly as he left.

  * * *

  To give her due credit, Daggro left Jennie well enough alone as she collected her team together.

  Not that she didn’t have spies, of course. Jennie clocked the familiar faces trailing them around as they navigated the halls and tracked down the agents she required to get things done. Her team was already assembled in her head; it was just a case of finding them all and hoping that many weren’t out on a mission.

  “Put out a call to the conduits,” Jennie instructed, tossing her phone to Rhone. “We’ll need their skills, plus we can return your car and bulk up our transport for the return journey.”

  Rhone looked uneasily over his shoulder. “Return to here?”

  Jennie smirked and lowered her voice. “Return to Richmond, dude. Come on, keep up with me. This is just a trial mission for our new recruits.” She glanced at the agent at the end of the corridor, nonchalantly tapping his iPad and waved. “Yoohoo!”

  The agent frowned and disappeared around the corner, only to reappear a few moments later.

  Their first point of call was the one that Jennie was most excited about. She found Ruby in the shooting range, honing her accuracy with the SIA’s standard-issue weapons.

  “Getting good,” Jennie admired, unfazed by the bursts from the Glock.

  Ruby removed her headphones and a look of surprise washed over her features. “Jennie! Well, if you aren’t a sight for sore eyes.”

  Ruby ran over and hugged Jennie. She returned the affection awkwardly, patting Ruby’s shoulder. “How goes the training?”

  Ruby’s smile slipped. “Boring. Ever since the showdown in Virginia I figured I’d proven I can handle myself. I was out there with real agents, doing real work instead of just being locked inside this oversized kindergarten. But since we got back, they don’t want to know. Apparently, it was a risk putting an under-aged agent in the field, and I’m to spend the next year of my life under the SIA’s tutelage.”

  She sighed. “I never thought I’d be cut out for this. But I held my own out there, Jennie—you saw! I’m wasted here. I come down to the shooting range twice a day just to kill time. I’m the only agent in this damn place who isn’t old enough to drink liquor, and they treat me like a kid.”

  Jennie examined the target at the end of the range. Bullet holes riddled the middle of the forehead, with only a couple straying an inch or two from the others.

  “You’re quite the dead shot,” Jennie approved. “How about we put your skills to greater use? How’s your hand-to-hand combat?”

  Ruby told them that it was improving. That on a couple of occasions, she had managed to wrestle and take down an agent larger than her in the dojo.

  Jennie turned to Baxter and Rhone and exchanged a look. They shrugged as if to say, “Your decision, boss.” Jennie extended a hand and declared, “Welcome to the team.”

  Ruby’s eyes lit up as she lunged for another hug with Jennie.

  The next few agents were more difficult to track down, and at first, Jennie thought that she may have missed the boat on them both. Agent Jack Hansen and Agent Clive Bannon had been the whole reason Jennie had come across the SIA, and she was more than keen to bring them into the fold. With their reputations now preceding them, however, she was almost certain that they would be out somewhere in the field.

  After the fourth circuit of the facility, Baxter placed a hand on Jennie’s shoulder. “I think we’re going to have to leave them a note or something. If what you’ve said is true, time is short and we need to head out.”

  Jennie raised her eyebrows. “If what I’ve said is true?”

  Baxter laughed. “You know what I mean.”

  Just then a group of agents rounded the corner, clearly returning from a stint in the field. Jennie examined the half-dozen agents, who, due to their uniforms and SI glasses, were easily all interchangeable with each other. As they passed, she stepped aside.

  It was only when they were a few feet away that one of the agents removed his glasses and broke free from the rest. “Jennie? Is that you?”

  Jack waved the others on and told Jennie about the mission they had just returned from. It seemed that since the media had decided to allude to some kind of paranormal investigation after the incident with the Queen—although where they had received that information, Jennie had no idea—paranormal groups were growing restless in the neighboring states and doing everything they believed possible to raise spirits and summon the occult.

  Jack explained, “Most of the groups have been unsuccessful, but we’ve detected a few academics who have gotten involved and actually have access to ancient scriptures that have risen a few poltergeists and, in one case, a decrepit specter who had chosen to lie inside his body in the grave and wither over time. Man, was that guy ugly. Anyway, things are getting crazy out there. Who knew there were so many spectral issues happening in the everyday world around us?”

  Jennie gave an understanding nod. “Welcome to my world.”

  When Jack asked what Jennie and the others were doing back, Jennie explained the situation with the Dragon.

  “The Dragon is back?” Jack frowned. “Damn. That’s big.” He beamed and offered a hand. “I’m in.”

  Baxter laughed. “We haven’t even asked yet.”

  “Come on,” Jack replied. “I know you guys. Whatever it is, I want in. Color me interested.”

  Jennie asked where they might find Clive.

  Jack shrugged. “That I can’t tell you. We’ve been sort of scattered across the SIA since the Virginian showdown. Not sure if it’s one of Daggro’s latest schemes to dispel the infamous group associated with you—obviously that worked.” He laughed. “I’ve not seen him for days.”

  “Damn,” Jennie muttered. “We’ll have to go on without him, potentially recruit him retrospectively. It’s a shame. I could’ve used his talents.”

  Their final stop was a place that no one had been expecting. Even the agents Daggro had tailing them looked confused as they entered the SIA’s scholarly quarters. Jennie had never had any use for this room but found that stepping insi
de took her back half a century. The intoxicating scent of old books overwhelmed her senses as she looked upon the walls that were lined from end to end with shelves stocked with ancient texts.

  “Man, Tanya would love this. Did she ever visit here?” Jennie asked.

  Baxter chewed the inside of his cheek. “Not sure. It would be a shame if she didn’t. Remember her collection back in NYC?”

  Jennie did, as though it were yesterday. Back then, things had been simpler.

  The memory of Worthington sitting on Tanya’s couch came to mind and Jennie shuddered.

  Rhone scratched his chin. The whole way over to the library, Jack had been questioning him about his state of dress. Rhone had avoided the questions, clearly not over his state of dismissal, but like an excitable puppy, Jack would not let it go.

  Rhone used the library as an excuse to divert Jack’s attention. “What are we doing here, anyway? Are you reading up about NYC’s mobsters? Or maybe there’s a spell somewhere that’ll help you kill the Dragon?”

  Jennie shook her head, a sly smile appearing on her lips. She pointed toward a darkened corner where a woman was sitting by the light of a lamp, lost in reading a large book.

  Jennie took a seat behind Julia and watched her for a few moments. The woman showed no sign of noticing her. Jennie leaned over her shoulder and read some of the page. “Necromancers have notoriously been portrayed as evil over the realms of history, with a distinction being made between users of magic to align them with a particular faction. Those who brace their magic for good have embraced the name of ‘wizard,’ while those who have been shunned for the intention behind their magic being tarnished with the ‘necromancer’ title…Interesting.”

  Julia’s ears pricked up as she was broken from her reverie. She looked over her shoulder and found Jennie beaming at her. “Hey, pal.”

  Julia looked between the book and Jennie, suddenly defensive. “It’s not what you think. Honestly, I know how this could look, but I was curious as to what the core differences are between the two. I’m not looking at dark magic again. I promise, Jennie. It was a one-time thing—”