Chapter Eleven
~Elliot Baker Part I~
Rowanne’s Bookstore was a small store that was falling apart, one brick at a time. Old books were showcased in one massive window, and the other was boarded up. I stayed sitting on the bench across the street, waiting for the owner to get back from her weekly lunch meeting with an old friend of hers. At least that was what she told people. We’d learned her old friend was a business partner and the two of them had gotten into stealing magical antiques and then selling them for a nice price.
If Rowanne was swimming in money, she was definitely not the business brain behind the operation because her storefront scared more people away than it attracted. Then again, as the only bookstore in the city with the best references for anything magical, they’d still come to her if they needed to.
After another ten minutes of waiting, I spotted the woman. Her red hair burned in the summer sun and her dress was in layers of clashing colors of red, green, and purple. She had big bottle cap glasses, and the deep wrinkles reflected her age of over three hundred. As a magic-user she was dangerous, but many people overlooked her because she was an old woman with a hunched back and knobby joints.
She shuffled to the building, flipped the closed sign, and disappeared inside. After waiting a moment, I went in. All I needed to do was find how she got the goods into her clients’ hands. I could do that.
“Hello, dear,” she said from behind the counter, her oversized purse sitting on the counter.
“Good afternoon,” I replied in a soft voice, trying to stay unassuming.
“Anything I can help with?”
I shook my head. “No ma’am. I’m just looking for a present for a good friend of mine. She’s a magic user and always looking for more reference books.”
“Oh, wonderful. Please, look around and give me a shout if you need any assistance. As you can see, this is most definitely the perfect place to take a look. We have books dating from before Chaos. There aren’t much left from before the war.”
“Thank you,” I said, then flashed her my biggest smile and began looking at the books. The store was small, with rows of shelves over packed with books of all sizes. The aisles were narrow, and I was afraid I was going to knock over a bookcase and most likely cause a domino effect, taking out the entire building.
I pulled out some books, flipped through them, and put them back. I couldn’t understand half the books I looked at since they were written in a different language, or they held diagrams and figures that I couldn’t follow. Everything magic went over my head. What I knew about magic I could tick off on one hand with fingers to spare.
A bell rang, and I moved further into the building toward the back, hoping whoever came in distracted Rowanne. I was at the end of the aisle and saw a stack of books. Bending down, I took a closer look at them. Looking at books on the shelf wasn’t going to help me find out how the clients got the goods. From what we were able to figure out, the man she met got the merchandise and was the one to set up the sales with their clients. Then they came here to get the artifacts. The man was already being followed, and we were even able to trace him to some of the clients they worked with.
“What are you doing here?”
The voice caught me by surprise, and I almost stumbled forward into the stack of books. Something wrapped around me and stilled me before I turned this place into a disaster zone. I turned my head to see Dr. Laila Porter a couple feet away, her hand out as if to grab me. As she raised her hand, I was lifted up until I could get my feet back underneath me. Once I was okay, she let go and the feeling of something being wrapped around me disappeared.
“Laila, what are you doing here?” I asked and my eyes flickered to the front of the building where I could hear Rowanne humming to herself.
“You know me?” she asked.
Shit. I gave her a shaky smile. “How could I not? You’re a legend at our company.”
“Uh huh.”
“How do you know me?” I asked.
“Elliot Baker. I’ve seen you around.” She glanced around the shop. “I’m just surprised. This doesn’t seem like your normal shopping spot. Why are you here?”
“Looking for a book.”
“Hmm. Same.” Her eyes flickered to the front and then back to me, realization dawning on her. “I see. Can I help?”
“Uh, you don’t need to do anything.”
She shrugged. “I’m going to go have a chat with her. She loves talking about her grandbabies.” With that, she turned on her heels and disappeared around the bookshelf. A moment later, I could hear Rowanne chatting away happily. I carefully went toward the front and peeked around the shelf to see Laila bent over the counter, arms crossed on the glass as she grinned and talked with the old woman. She looked comfortable doing it, and she even had me fooled. She looked completely fascinated by whatever Rowanne was going on about.
Moving further back into store, I grazed the books until one caught my attention. The binding wasn’t right. It had the old weathered look like the other books around it. The pages were even sewn together the same way, but the method for sewing it had a more modern look to it. I pulled the book out and raised an eyebrow when I realized it was lighter than it should have been. A book this thick should have weighed around five pounds.
Laila’s laugh trickled through the store as I turned the book to look at the title. Even the cover was newer, less worn than it should have been. I wasn’t sure how Rowanne organized her shelves, but this book felt out of place compared to the others. It was like the surrounding books were from the same time period and then there was this one tucked away between them as an attempt to blend in.
I opened the book and couldn’t help but to smile. Bingo.
The inside of the book was hollow, not carved out, but more like a fake book had been created. Inside was a small satin bag. I grabbed the bag and pulled open the leather cord. A greenish blue gem almost the size of my fist sat inside and the little bit of light from the store reflected inside the gem, making it seem like it was glowing in the dark.
Something about it attracted me. I reached in to pull it out and a hand wrapped around my wrist. I froze as something cold went deep into my skin, and then into my bones. Instincts told me it came from the stone. I stilled, conflicted over touching the stone. Meeting Laila’s wide green eyes, I knew my expression reflected hers.
“Don’t take that out,” she whispered and then grabbed the bag from me, pulling on the cord to close it. I blinked and my heart pounded hard in my chest. I took in a gasping breath, not even realizing I had stopped breathing.
“What?” I licked my lips, still not quite understanding what was going on.
Laila didn’t say anything as she put the bag back into the book and onto the shelf. She grabbed my hand and yanked me further down the aisle.
“Have you found what you’re looking for?” Rowanne asked with a kind smile.
“You didn’t tell me he was here to surprise me,” Laila said and turned to the old woman.
The woman blinked and then a sly smile curled up. “Oh, so you’re the good friend he mentioned. If I’d known it was you, I’d have known exactly what books to suggest.”
Laila laughed and shook her head. “No way. He wouldn’t be able to afford them. Now that the surprise is over, I’m just going to get him out of here before he decides to buy one of those silly tourist books you’ve got tucked away in here. We both know I don’t need one of those.” She wrapped her arm around my left one and gave it a squeeze as she pulled me toward the exit.
“Will you be back, Laila dear?”
“Of course, don’t think I don’t know what you’re hiding from me. I will get my hands on Rusolf’s Codex. I’ve been trying to hunt down a copy for years now.”
“Make me an offer I can’t resist and it’ll be yours.”
“Come on, hun, I’m hungry,” Laila said and pulled me out.
“Young man, stop by anytime and I’ll point you in the right direct
ion, now that I know you’re Laila’s man. I never met one of her men before.”
Laila laughed. “You act like I have a line of them following me around.”
“You should,” the old woman said. “Now go, I have a business to run.”
Once we were outside, Laila led me down the street and away from the bookstore.
“What was that?” I rasped, still feeling like something had a hold on me.
“I’m not sure. I felt it as soon as you opened that bag, and I figured if you were in the store, it wasn’t for shopping. If you pulled it out, I’m sure she would have known.”
“Why did you feel it when I opened the bag, but she didn’t?” I asked, still trying to pull my thoughts together.
“I’m extremely sensitive. The bag has a strong spell on it to contain the magic. Once you pulled it out, that store would have been flooded.” She stopped and turned to me. “That gem, whatever it is, isn’t something you should be messing with.”
He nodded. “You’re right. I’ll report it to Lombardi, and he’ll take care of the rest.”
“You got what you wanted.”
I nodded. “Yes. I definitely got what I wanted.” I narrowed my eyes. “How close are you to Rowanne?” I asked.
Her eye narrowed. “Business only. She has books I need and like for research purposes. There aren’t exactly a lot of stores like hers around. I stop by every few weeks to look at her new merchandise. We chat, but other than that, we aren’t anything to each other.”
“Okay.”
“Yeah? Not going to arrest me, bring me in, torture answers out of me?” There was a little bite to her voice.
“I believe you, Laila. You’re right, she owns a one-of-a-kind store. I’m sure most of the magic community knows about her store. I’m sorry. I’m just…” I ran a hand through my hair. I didn’t know what I was thinking. Seeing Laila in the store threw me off. From what I knew, Ami was on watch, keeping track of her.
“Elliot?”
“Nothing. Nothing. Thanks for the cover, by the way.”
She smirked. “Yeah, I think she was about to go over and show off the books she keeps there for the tourists, people who only want to dabble. All those books are bull, but I can’t blame her. I wouldn’t want some of those books in amateur hands. The last thing we need is some human trying to do a summoning spell and releasing something ugly into the city.”
Laila glanced around the area for a moment. “Will I need to find a new place to go shopping?”
“Yes.”
She sighed. “That’s unfortunate.”
“I’m sorry.”
She bumped into me playfully. “No, you’re not. Now go back and do your report thing.”
“Where are you going?”
“Ami is meeting me for a late lunch.”
“Ami Collura?”
“Yes.”
“She’s a good witch.”
She laughed. “She definitely is. Bad influence though. She’s fun.” Laila’s expression softened as she talked about Ami. I patted her shoulder, and she froze.
“What was that for?” she asked as she stepped away.
“I’m glad you’re doing well at BMS. If people aren’t careful, they can easily be knocked down a peg or two working there.”
“Is that how you’re feeling? Knocked down?”
“I think I do okay,” I answered truthfully. Some days were hard as a human. The supernaturals thought nothing about us, which made my job easier, but at the same time complicated it. If people ever decided I should be a target, I wouldn’t stand a chance.
“Well, bye, Elliot. Don’t get caught by old women. They’re scary.”
I chuckled. “Bye, Laila. Don’t let Ami drag you into trouble. She’s good at finding it.”
“Who said it’ll be her doing the dragging?” Laila asked playfully, before waving and walking away. She crossed the street and disappeared around a corner.
Letting out a small sigh, I pulled out my phone and called Livvie to cancel our plans tonight. That conversation went about as well as I expected, which wasn’t well at all. Seemed liked lately we were always fighting. Once that conversation was over, I called Lombardi to report in on Rowanne and everything that happened. A long day was ahead of us now. We needed to shut her down fast as we captured her partner and some of their clients. And there was no way I wanted that gem to get into a stranger’s hands. It had to be dangerous.
Chapter Twelve
~Elliot Baker Part II~
Two months ago, I had blown off Livvie to deal with Rowanne, and it had only gone downhill from then. The woman was right. My job was more important than her. I couldn’t give her all the attention she wanted.
I picked up the shot of clear liquid and slammed it back, taking dark pleasure in the burn that chased the liquor as it made its way down my throat. Barely holding back a grimace, I put the shot glass back on the counter and motioned for the bartender to give me another one. She acknowledged me with a nod while she finished her current order.
The liquor did its job and numbed the pain in my chest just enough so I could think. All the emotions I had surrounding Livvie hadn’t given me enough room to think clearly and yesterday didn’t seem to help. My head still hurt, remembering what it felt like to feel her shampoo bottle as it nailed me in the forehead. I just wished it hurt more than it did to watch her pack up all her things and storm out of the apartment with a stream of swearing.
The second shot I took went down easier, which wasn’t a blessing at all. I wanted to feel the burn, to remind myself that I was still living and breathing. That I was still human. I snorted.
Human, huh? The reason. Livvie was a witch, I was a human. I wasn’t good enough. In her eyes and in half the supernatural community’s eyes, I was nothing, a nobody. Just a puny human with no good attributes. I wasn’t an Alpha, a Dominant. I was susceptible to sickness, no strengths. In their eyes I was full of weaknesses.
“Two more of what he has,” a low female voice said beside me. I blinked past the tears burning my eyes to see who was interrupting my pity party of one. This was a solo party, and I didn’t want anyone else here. There was only room for one pitiful person.
“I know you,” I mumbled.
The beautiful woman gave me a small smile, her green eyes taking me in slowly.
“We’ve met. I guess it doesn’t hurt to reintroduce myself,” she said and held out her hand. “Dr. Laila Porter.”
Shit. Not who I was expecting to see at a bar in the middle of the week.
“Elliot,” I said and shook her hand. “Human.”
Her smile slipped away into a frown. She probably saw me as another disappointment. They all did. I wasn’t worth anyone’s time, not the way I was.
A small part of me knew I was spiraling out of control right now and being an idiot, but I was human. I’d just write it up to human emotions. It was after all. I wasn’t a machine, I wasn’t cold, I empathized better than anyone else. It was what made me so damn good at my job. But it also felt like a curse.
“Why do you do that?” she asked.
I turned back to the doctor. “Do what?”
“That. Introduce yourself as a human? Why?”
“Isn’t that what matters these days? Human, shifter, vampire, fae, dragon, so on and so forth.”
“No,” she answered. She grabbed my chair and turned me to face her. I blinked at the sudden movement. The room decided to keep spinning even though I was now still. “It doesn’t matter at all.”
“It did to her.” I tapped my finger on the table and it made a soft clinking noise as the ring hit the table top. When I met Laila’s eyes, she was staring at the ring with a thoughtful expression, her lips partially pursed.
“She said no.”
I snorted. “Didn’t even get a chance to ask,” I said darkly, thinking about Livvie again and the shit she spewed at me, calling me a nobody.
“How long have you worked at BMS?”
“Three years.”<
br />
“Did you know sixty percent of the hires quit after the first year? And then ten percent the next year? Only about thirty percent stay at BMS for as long as you do. You aren’t nobody.”
“I’m human.”
“So?” she asked. “You still made something of yourself. You aren’t nobody. From what I’ve seen and learned, Big Boss wouldn’t let you stay if you didn’t have what it took to stay.”
She leaned close enough so I could take in her scent. She smelled warm. Was that even possible? If I had a good nose like half the population, I would have been able to say exactly what she smelled like, but to my human nose, she was warmth.
“The woman who didn’t even give you a chance to ask is an idiot.” Her eyes went down to the ring and for a moment I swore sadness slipped in before it disappeared. I wanted to question that look, but I wasn’t sure if I was just making it up, and I didn’t want to pry into her life. Laila continued, “She’s blinded by all the supernaturals around here, that she can’t see that being human is just as special. She’s the idiot, not you. Now, I suggest you stop sulking and have some fun. Find a fun woman tonight and bed her. Start that process to moving forward with your life.”
I chuckled. “I doubt you came here tonight to give me relationship advice.”
That had her laughing and I smiled, some of the darkness that clouded me dispersing. “Oh, no. I’m the last person you want giving relationship advice. I know nothing about that stuff.” She waved her hand, dismissing the notion. Before I could stop myself I reached up and grabbed her hand. She froze and looked at me with curiosity.
I cleared my throat. “For someone who knows nothing, you gave good advice. I’m sure you’re better at it than you think.”
The smile she gave me wasn’t one of happiness like I expected. It was full of sadness and twisted my heart deep. I remembered what her file said. There wasn’t much in there but what was hit too close to home. Foster homes. Too many to count. And now with her look, I knew the truth. She didn’t understand relationships because she didn’t have any in her life to pull experience from.
What was that even like? I couldn’t imagine it. I was all about relationships. That was why I bought a damn ring in the first place. I squeezed her hand and let go. She crossed her arms and leaned against the counter.
Magical Attraction: Page 8
