The Hex Files: Wicked State of Mind

by Gina LaManna

  Even more peculiar were the glowing hands of the dealer. Nobody else seemed to notice a thing, but it was stunning to me, so clearly obvious that something magical had transpired before our eyes. Her bangle reflected light so brightly I winced as I stared at it. If these were Residuals, they were unlike anything I’d ever seen before.

  Usually, Residuals were nothing more than a kaleidoscope of dust-sized flecks of light flickering in the absence of a spell. This was a full-on beam of light, yellow and bright, radiating from the dealer’s hands.

  I cleared my throat.

  “Are you alright, sweetheart?” Grey asked, shifting backward to loop his arm casually around my waist. He drew me to his side. “The loss was nothing. We’ll get it right back. Look—the advantage is ours this round.”

  I shook my head ever so slightly. “Don’t do it.”

  “Don’t do what?” Grey leaned toward me, ever so slightly. His eyes contained meaning.

  “Whatever you’re doing,” I said in a low hiss. “Don’t bet—or something. It’s not a good round for you.”

  “Silence at the table.” The dealer spoke in a manicured tone, but her meaning was clear. It was a threat. “There are rules in The Cavern.”

  I nodded and took a step back. “Sorry, I’m just superstitious.”

  The dealer’s hands glowed again. “Please refrain from offering advice when you’re standing at the table.”

  “I’ll humor the lady,” Grey said, turning back to the dealer. “We’ll withdraw our bet this round.”

  The game continued with an audible groan as cards flipped over and dice were rolled. Eventually, the dealer stopped and gave Grey a demure smile. “Shame you withdrew, isn’t it?”

  Grey’s lips went into a thin line. “Shame.”

  “Would’ve won big,” a man guffawed and elbowed Grey. “Shouldn’t’ve listened to the ol’ ball and chain, eh?”

  I put my hand on Grey’s shoulder. “I’m sorry.”

  “It’s quite alright,” Grey murmured back. “We’ve plenty more where that came from.”

  Grey pushed a few more jewels across the table, and I felt a wash of guilt hit me hard. My miscalculation had cost Grey serious cash.

  The game continued for another few minutes and Grey seemed to hit his stride again. “Final round,” Grey said, smiling. “I’m going to hold here.”

  I waited, watching as Grey pulled in his pile of coins. Suddenly, the woman’s hands glowed with Residuals all over again—the bright light signaling serious magic was at work. The dealer hesitated, closed her eyes.

  “Very well,” she said in a clipped tone. “Anyone else?”

  “Grey—no,” I said. “Put it all in.”

  “But—”

  “Do it,” I hissed. “Please.”

  “All in,” Grey said, pushing his pile of gemstones toward the center of the table just before the dealer released the dice onto the table.

  The dealer’s eyes flashed black for a second in pure anger and frustration.

  I held my breath as the dice spun and came to a stop, knowing that if I’d blown this—if my instincts were wrong—I’d cost Grey more money than I could ever repay in ten lifetimes.

  The room froze as everyone stared at the table before us. Then a resounding cheer erupted from the rear. One man in particular led the charge. His face was red, as if he’d had too much champagne, and his name was Philip if memory served correctly.

  “That’s gotta be a record win!” Philip waddled forward and clapped Grey on the shoulder. “Typical. Pulling out a win at the last second. You’re going to want to hold onto that one.” Philip winked at me. “I’d call her one heck of a good luck charm.”

  “I’d agree,” Grey said. “But that makes it a night for the two of us. We’ll be headed home to celebrate.”

  “How very fortunate,” the dealer said crisply. “The odds of hitting on that combination were five hundred to one. Interesting choice to go all in.”

  “Well, we like to live dangerously,” I said sweetly. “Time to go, don’t you think?”

  “Righto, mate,” Philip said offering another blustering handshake to Grey. “You’ve got a lot of celebrating to do tonight.”

  Grey’s hand slipped down the side of my dress and rested just above my hip. “Exactly my thoughts, Phil. Have a good one, all.”

  “Actually, I think I’ll use the restroom before we head out,” I said, thinking I wouldn’t mind a little peek into the inner workings of this place. “I’ll be back in just a moment.”

  Grey gave me a startled look, but I slipped out from under his grasp before he could politely argue. I disappeared toward the door from where we’d entered, then I turned and took the path in the other direction.

  Something was up in The Cavern. Something magical, something dangerous, something dark. And it wasn’t a simple, illegal black magic purchase from The Void—it was something big and unruly and new. At least, new to me, and I’d been seeing Residuals since before I could remember.

  I’d seen a lot of Residuals at homicide scenes, on Illegals cases, and everything in between, and I’d never seen anything like the beams of light erupting from the dealers’ arms. What sort of magic were they harboring here in The Cavern? And was it only to work in a bigger profit margin, or could it be something worse?

  Greed would be incentive enough, I thought, remembering the stack of Grey’s precious gems. I had the sneaking suspicion that without my nudge in the right direction, he’d have lost everything. It was almost as if the dealer had known the outcome before it happened—but that was impossible. Mind Readers were rare, and their magic carried a specific sort of Residuals. She wasn’t a mind reader, which had me stumped.

  “—don’t know how she knew,” said the dealer. “She’s nothing but some sort of an escort. I don’t even think she understood the rules.”

  I came to a stop outside a small office. I assumed it was just off The Cavern. The dealer was speaking with one of her colleagues.

  “She’s not anything of the sort,” a second voice said. “I checked the logs. I’ve never seen her before, but we’ve got to get a name.”

  “Do you think Grey knows who she is?” the dealer asked. “Or do you think she’s got him fooled?”

  I glanced down as I tripped on the hem of my dress. Yanking impatiently at the fabric, I hiked it up and moved forward to hear better. I was greeted with a cool, metal touch to the base of my neck.

  “Not so fast,” a soft, scratchy voice whispered. “You’re coming with me, doll.”

  I raised my hands slowly, surprised to find the orc guard—the one who’d nearly accosted me outside—giving an ugly smile as he pressed something larger, more powerful, than a Stunner against my skin.

  “I wouldn’t move if I were you,” he said. “My weapon doesn’t have the option to dial down.”

  “I’m just looking for the restroom.”

  “Reina thinks otherwise. Move it.”

  “I don’t know why she’d think that,” I said, struggling to remain haughty, grouchy, and not blow my cover. “I’m here on a stupid date.”

  “Sure you are. Move your pretty little feet.”

  I felt my own Stunner brush between my thighs, comforted by the metal while simultaneously realizing that I couldn’t get to it without alerting the orc to my true identity. Not to mention the fact that my office-issued device would be no match for the blaster the orc had likely purchased through The Void.

  I forced my breathing to steady as I shuffled down the hallway, giving a reluctant flip of my hair and a hearty harrumph to show my disdain. Meanwhile, my heart raced, and I wondered when Grey would discover I was actually missing and not, as he probably suspected, poking around on my own terms.

  While I doubted the orc would kill me, there was still some hesitation on my part. It all hinged on how big of a secret the casino was hiding. If the scandal was big enough, there was a very real chance whoever was in charge wouldn’t mind getting rid of me to bury a potential loo
se end.

  Which left me with two options. I could either go along with the orc and stick to my cover story, or I could fight him off and disappear, giving away my true identity. They might not know my name now, but they would soon enough. My face wasn’t exactly low-profile after all I’d gone through with Matthew in the public eye. A few searches, and it would be easy enough to connect the dots.

  That left me with only one true option: To get out of here while I still could—alive.

  I carefully calculated out my steps. There were only a few feet to go before I reached the office where Reina—presumably the dealer—was chatting with her counterpart. If I didn’t want to be discovered, I had to move quickly and quietly—and keep the orc from announcing our presence.

  I let my left heel fall silently against the floor, planting my foot so there was a bend in my leg and setting myself up for my next move. With a muffled hiss of concentrated breath, I raised my leg and angled my foot so that as I swung around, I clocked the orc squarely on the side of his head.

  The orc grunted as I hit him aside the head, coupled with an ugly riipp as my dress tore. But thanks to the high slit in the leg, there was a lot more flexibility than I’d imagined, and I gave a grateful word of thanks to Grey’s taste in fashion.

  “Not bad,” I murmured as I leapt for the orc and struggled to help his weight gently to the floor. He was knocked out cold which made it easy to relieve him of the supersized blaster he carried.

  Holding the orc’s weapon against my waist, I crept toward the room where Reina should be waiting. I swept an uneasy glance around the hall, praying nobody had heard the slight thump as my foot had cracked into the orc’s skull.

  Maybe I’d gotten lucky, I thought, when the hall remained silent. Then again, luck didn’t tend to run in the DeMarco family—a theory that turned out to be true the moment I sensed Reina’s presence behind me. I whirled around and came face to face with the dealer, her long, dark hair and eerie silver lashes sweeping across her pale skin. “Where’d you come from?”

  “Going somewhere?” Reina’s heels clicked the floor as she stepped toward me. She gave a demure smile, knowing she had me cornered.

  As I shuffled backward, I caught a glimpse a dark panel in the wall behind her that was probably a door. I’d missed it in the darkness and scuffle with the orc.

  Reina stepped gingerly over the orc’s body and raised a hand, her long nails tipped with starlight, and ran one finger over her lips. “I expected better of Grey.”

  “Now, let’s not talk about me behind my back.” Grey’s voice sounded from behind Reina as the dark panel swung open again. “What’s the matter here?”

  “Get out of here, Grey,” I muttered. “This doesn’t concern you.”

  Grey’s eyes sized up the situation: Reina standing between the two of us. Me holding an orc’s blaster at my hip. Reina’s furrowed brows and the disgust on her face.

  “Oh, dear,” he murmured, and then pinched his forehead.

  “He doesn’t know anything,” I told Reina. “I used the wolf to get inside The Cavern.”

  Reina’s eyes flicked over her shoulder, unconvinced. While she appeared to be determining fact from fiction, I knew I had to act. It was the only way to convince her completely.

  I mouthed an apology to Grey while Reina’s gaze was focused on him. Then I raised the blaster and aimed for Grey, struggling not to wince as my finger landed on the trigger.

  “I said, this doesn’t concern you.” It took everything in me to hold my voice steady and make it sound convincing. “Leave us.”

  Grey’s eyes widened as he watched me pull the trigger. He could have easily jumped out of the way and disarmed me before I breathed, but he didn’t. The sheer fact that he let himself get hit, jolted by the orc gun, told me he understood the plan. He bent forward and gave a convincing groan of pain.

  “So Little Red Riding Hood tricked the big bad wolf?” Reina’s gaze flickered with surprise. “You’re not going anywhere, Ms. Red.”

  “I beg to differ.” I met Reina’s gaze. “And I’ll be taking a little souvenir with me.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  I muttered a Summoning Spell as her eyes landed warily on me, and when I held the orange ball of light in my hand, I tossed it at Reina’s wrist before she could react. I hit my intended target—the bangle she wore—and it sailed toward me. For some reason, I sensed it was the root of all her powers.

  Reina shrieked in surprise, reaching for her bracelet, but it was too late. The second my hand circled the cold metal bangle, I shouted for a Smoke Cloak spell and was instantly shrouded in thick black smoke that clung to me like a heavy perfume.

  “Go,” I muttered to Grey.

  Moving myself strategically between Reina and Grey, I blocked her vision of both of us. She shot a black inky cloud of poison after us, but thankfully, she missed her target due to the growing cloud of smoke. Sorcerer, I thought grimly, as Grey and I hurtled toward the exit.

  We exited through the same door in which we’d entered. The trail of smoke drifted away slowly as we turned and bolted from the casino, hurrying to get lost in the cluttered side streets of the Goblin Grid.

  I ducked into the first dive bar I could find. Grey followed shortly after me, limping to a stop as he glanced behind us and checked for a tail. I ran a quick Anti-Tracker that came with the badge, which would help confuse my scent and signals from any guards Reina had sent chasing after us.

  “What can I get you?” The barkeep had an ugly drop of drool hang from his lip as Grey and I sunk deeper into the bar and away from prying eyes at the doorway. “Nobody hides in here for free.”

  “Four shots of Spell Syrup,” I said, “and you never saw us.”

  The barkeep nodded his ugly head and turned around to fix the drinks. I turned away from the bar just as Grey’s hands landed on either side of me and boxed me against the counter. He gripped the wood so hard it dented.

  “Well,” he said softly. “I’d say that went well.”

  I couldn’t quite meet his gaze. “Sorry I shot you.”

  “You couldn’t have used the Stunner you’ve got tucked in that dress, huh? You just had to use the orc blaster?”

  “I couldn’t exactly access the Stunner.” I felt my ears as they grew hot. “It was in a difficult-to-reach place, and not to mention, it would have given me away.”

  “And attacking everyone in The Cavern didn’t give you away?”

  “It wasn’t everyone,” I said, “and I didn’t mean for it to happen. I was trying to find the bathroom, and one thing led to another.”

  Grey let out a short bark of laughter. “I see.”

  “You’re standing very close to me,” I pointed out. “Do you mind taking a step back?”

  Grey didn’t move for a long second, his eyes roving over mine, his lips an inch from my mouth. When he let out a sigh, I could smell his breath—sharp, minty, expensive, like the rest of his attire.

  As he eased away from me, I couldn’t help but think that I was probably the only woman in the borough who’d tell Grey to back off. Most women I knew would be happy to be sidled up next to the charming, handsome, and extraordinarily rich mystery man.

  Indeed, the gazes of several female bar patrons turned to rake him from top to bottom as he stepped back, his eyes never once breaking contact with mine.

  “I think I’ve blown your cover with The Cavern,” I said to Grey. “I’m sorry.”

  “We might be okay,” Grey said, wincing as he touched his leg. “Your little shooting act might have worked, though we did leave together. Regardless, I expect The Cavern will be extra cautious with security detail—if they continue to meet at that location at all. There may be talk of launching a new room elsewhere. What did you see in there that sent you flying off the handle?”

  “My handle was firmly attached. I was just poking around when she started it,” I said, unconvincingly. “Anyway, Reina had Residuals unlike any I’ve ever seen before comi
ng out from this.” I dipped my hand into my pocket and pulled out the bangle from her wrist. “Usually when I see Residuals, they look like bits of colorful dust floating around, sort of like ripped up streamers thrown to the wind. But this was different. It was like a ray of light, a beam of it, and I think it had something to do with the bangle. I’m going to have a friend analyze it.”

  “Does this friend work for the Sixth Precinct?”

  “He does,” I said evenly. “But I’ll ask him off the record.”

  “You and I both know that nothing is ever completely off the record.”

  “We can trust him,” I said, “and we’ll need to. Otherwise, I can’t tell you what sort of magic she was using. It’s completely new to me. So, either the magic itself is new, or it’s been purchased illegally from The Void, and I haven’t run into it yet. That would mean we’re dealing with very expensive magic.”

  “Expenses are not an issue when it comes to that crowd,” Grey said. “I take it you understand the level of wealth that passes through The Cavern on any given night?”

  “It’s hard to miss.” I stared pointedly at Grey’s pockets. “Speaking of, are you walking around with handfuls of precious gems everywhere you go, or was tonight a special occasion?”

  Grey smiled thinly. “Nobody is touching my jewels. At least, not without my permission.”

  My face colored. “I’m glad to hear it.”

  “Come on, let’s get a drink somewhere else. Somewhere...” Grey’s eyes scanned the floor. “Clean. I want to hear more about the Residuals.”

  “Well, now that sounds like a date, so I’m going to pass.”

  “Are you taken?”

  “I’m annoyed,” I said. “And busy. Who the hell is Reina, anyway?”

  “I’ve never seen her before,” Grey said. “Usually the dealer is a woman named—”

  Before Grey could continue, my Comm beeped, and I raised my wrist in explanation. “I’ve got to take this.”