… Then again, had there actually been a crime committed? Sure, Carson Black had threatened me, and sure, Josh was missing, but—
To hell with it. When in doubt, call the authorities. That’s what every goody two shoes knows.
I made it through the door that led to both the female and male stalls.
I walked into the female stalls. There were only two bathrooms, and they were both empty.
I leaned against the closed door, hoping it would give me a warning if someone tried to push in. And then I did it – I called the cops. Or at least, I called the Justice Department, told them who I was, and explained the situation. I didn’t need to repeat my name – they, like the rest of this town, had obviously heard of me.
When I explained the situation, they told me to stay put and that they would send uniformed officers immediately.
… And that was that.
Apparently being a goody two shoes worked out, after all.
With a sigh, I ended the call, shoved my phone into my pocket, and walked out of the door. I expected I would just have to endure the rest of this VIP function until the cops came to get me. That, or Josh appeared and he gave me one hell of an ear bashing.
But as soon as I walked through the door, it was to see a certain Max C. Knights standing there with his hands in his pockets. He looked directly at me.
Several things happened. My heart skipped a beat, but then it made up for it by pounding in fear. Was Max in on this? What if he was so complicated that he’d kidnapped Josh? What if—
“I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation through the door. You need to come with me.” He turned over his shoulder, indicating the door back into the VIP room.
I didn’t move a muscle. I stayed exactly where I was, one hand hovering near the pocket that carried my phone. “If you overheard the conversation, then you know that the police are on their way,” I said in a stilted voice. I was trying to hide my fear, but there was no way I could do it.
Max looked at me, a confused expression crumpling his handsome features. “There’s no need to be scared of me. Believe you me, I hold you no ill.”
I didn’t know anyone who spoke like Max. Then again, I didn’t know anyone like Max full stop.
His stuffy way of speaking didn’t make him seem aloof. Quite the contrary, it made him seem all the more real, somehow. I didn’t understand why. But I did understand one thing – being here in his presence, and especially being alone – I couldn’t deny the tether that seemed to connect us. I sighed again. “I need to stay still. They said uniformed officers would be on their way.”
“Josh may not have that much time.”
I shivered. “What have you—”
“Nothing.” He took his hands out of his pockets and brought them up in a surrendering motion. “I don’t know who exactly you think I am, but I’m not a criminal, Miss Samson. And you need to come with me.”
“I’m under a protection order—” I began, voice rising high.
He shot me a very specific look. “I know. And that’s why you need to come with me. So stay close by my side and act as if nothing’s wrong.”
“Why should I—”
He rounded on me, coming a step closer, his polished shoes echoing out as they slapped on the marble floor. “While I’m not a danger to you, there are people at this party who are. Especially if they found out that your protector isn’t with you right now. This city is a complicated place.”
“Everyone keeps telling me that,” I said through clenched teeth. “But I’m still not going anywhere until you explain what’s going on.”
Max tilted his head back and sighed. “Exactly what has Josh been telling you about me? There’s no reason for you to be that suspicious.”
I hid my expression. “Josh hasn’t said anything about you. The magazines say plenty. And now I know you’re a finder, I’m not nearly as impressed by your ability to pick good ventures. The law may have nothing to say about you finding good deals,” I brought my fingers up and made star fingers, “but it’s still barely legal.”
Max blinked back his surprise. It was the move of somebody who was good at dealing with insults but was nonetheless put off. “I assure you it’s not barely legal. It is legal. And if that’s the only reason you’re not going to trust me now, then I’ll put your mind at ease. I haven’t built my empire based solely on my skills. A lot of it comes down to simple hard work. I research those who I invest in first. Yes, occasionally I use my magic, but not nearly as often as you obviously think. I don’t need to rely on my skills to appreciate that a badly managed startup with no business plan will likely fail. I could go into a full discussion with you over this right now, but it really isn’t the time. Your partner is on the line.”
I shivered. “We don’t know that…” I trailed off.
Max looked at me seriously. “What do you feel?” he asked directly, all his disdain at the fact I’d insulted him completely gone.
I frowned. “What does it matter—”
“Josh is many things, but he’s not a finder, and I imagine he’s useless at helping you,” Max smiled briefly, “find your powers. We may not be the same types of finder, but we are still technically the same classification of witch. So from one witch to another, what do you feel?” He brought up a hand and patted it on his chest using a softly clenched fist.
I frowned. I went to fob him off, but at the last moment, I answered honestly, “Terrified. I feel like I’m standing on a cliff and someone is about to push me off. I feel like Carson Black has done something to Josh. I feel like he set me up. Like he wants me to go find Josh. Like I’m running out of time. I feel like, at the end of the day, this all has to do with what Howard Rush was informing the Justice Department about.” I surprised myself with my honesty, but once my words were out, I couldn’t pull them back.
Max snorted softly. “So you think that Howard’s an informant, then?”
I frowned suddenly. “How do you know?”
“Because Howard Rush came to me first.”
It was a bombshell. My shoulders dropped. “What? Why would he come to you first?”
“Because he hoped that I’d be able to keep him safe. I handed him to the Justice Department. If you don’t believe me, you can call them. I’m here, so if you put me on the line, I’m sure they will confirm what I’m saying.”
I could just believe Max at face value, but I had a phone, and I intended to use it. I did exactly as he said. When I mentioned to the same woman I’d been talking to previously that I was with Max, she didn’t scream at me to run the hell away. She asked me to put him on. They exchanged a few brief words wherein Max confirmed I was under his protection, and then he gave the phone back to me.
My contact at the Justice Department confirmed everything he was saying and told me to stay by his side until the police arrived.
Suffice to say, by the time I hung up and put my phone back in my pocket, I no longer stared at Max defiantly.
I was confused instead. Josh had told me over and over again to be careful of Max.
But now here was the Justice Department telling me to trust him.
“You don’t need to look so surprised,” Max said with a quiet chuckle. “Just because you don’t agree with the ethics of the way I make money, doesn’t mean I don’t know when to do the right thing,” he emphasized those words.
I swallowed. “Fine. Where do you want to take me, exactly?”
“Out of this party. Sooner rather than later. I imagine Carson will be on his way.”
I stiffened visibly. “Why?”
“Because I imagine you are right, and he’s interested in your skills. He’s going to push you to find Josh, and then,” Max didn’t finish his sentence and instead grabbed his chin hard.
I couldn’t stiffen anymore – I already felt as if every single muscle was as tight as a spring. I let out a measured breath. “What do we do about Josh? I… I still feel like he’s running out of time. Will the police be abl
e to find him? Josh warned me that Carson Black has friends in high places.”
Max looked away, then back to me. “He does have friends in high places. And I imagine that unless we can get some credible incriminating evidence, he will walk away from this scot-free.”
“But he threatened me—”
“This is a complicated world. But for now, let’s go before he arrives.” Max held a hand out to me.
I didn’t accept it, but at least I accepted his offer to help. Because now I had no one else.
But the question of whether I had Max or whether he had me would be one I would soon find the answer to.
Chapter 14
We walked into the VIP room. And there was Carson Black.
Max had pushed out of the bathroom in front of me, and I was several steps behind, making it look as if we weren’t together.
Which was obviously precisely what Carson thought as his lips ticked swiftly up and he took a step toward me.
Max? Took a step in front of me. “Carson? Long time no see. What exactly are you here for?”
“Max… Maximus,” Carson corrected himself smoothly. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m one of the elites of Madison City. I would assume it was clear. And how about you? I wouldn’t have thought this function required your… particular skill set.”
I got the impression that men like Max weren’t meant to draw attention to men like Carson’s line of work.
Carson pressed his tongue against his closed lips and managed a small smile. “I’m here to play, Max. How about you?” Carson slid his gaze off Max and onto me.
Which is precisely what Max did too. He looked at me directly. “I’m catching up with an acquaintance. Now, please excuse us. We have something more important to do.”
Carson’s expression stiffened. “… I see.”
“I’m sure you do,” Max said as he walked passed.
I scurried along after Max, even though I’d already pointed out that I wasn’t the kind of woman who liked to play the damsel. I just wanted to get the hell away from Carson right now.
All eyes were on Max and me as we walked out of the room.
I glanced over at Helena, and she had the oddest expression on her face. I expected her to walk over and ask why I was leaving. She didn’t. Nobody questioned us. I felt a lot like the school dropout who’d just been accepted by the coolest gang in town. As long as I stayed by Max’s side, nobody would trouble me.
We made it out of the VIP lounge and then to the hallway beyond.
As soon as both the bouncers saw Max, they actually half bowed as if he was a king.
I didn’t say a word, and neither did Max. Rather than head back to the foyer and take our chances with the crowds, he took me through a door that led to the back halls of the stadium.
He stopped abruptly.
I lingered behind him. “Are we going to wait here? I thought you were going to take me someplace safe?”
Max ticked his head to the side.
I opened my mouth. I paused. I got the sudden distinct impression that he was using his powers. He wasn’t charging with magic, and neither was he making a specific movement of his fingers in the air like Josh did when he was casting a spell.
But that tethered connection between Max and me confirmed what he was doing.
“… You’ve just found something, haven’t you?”
It took a few seconds for Max to react. He turned toward me. “You picked that up? No one else knows when I’m using my powers. Then again, I guess it’s been a long time since I’ve met a fellow finder. Yes – I was using my powers,” he confirmed directly.
“What have you found?”
“An opportunity,” he said carefully.
“For what?”
“I think you’re right,” he said out of the blue.
“About what?”
“That Josh may be… standing on a precipice. Possibly literally.”
Genuine alarm spiked through me. It was the kind of alarm you would feel for a close friend if they were in danger – not just an idiotic bounty hunter. But I couldn’t deny my sensations as I took a rushed step toward Max.
We were alone in this hallway, and there were no windows back into the rooms beyond or the stadium outside. The walls were concrete and they were more than thick enough that the roar of the fans was little more than a muttering from beyond.
So there was nothing to distract from what Max said next. “I think we have an opportunity to find Josh.”
“And if we don’t take that opportunity? I thought we were going to wait for the police—”
“I think we have an opportunity to find Josh before it’s too late,” Max expanded. He looked at me directly. I swore that even if the stadium crumbled down around us, he wouldn’t yank his gaze off me.
The blood drained from my cheeks and lips, probably making me look as if I’d just kissed ice. “Oh my God.”
“You’re not going to question me?” Max asked abruptly.
“… No.” I shook my head. “I think you’re telling the truth. No….”
“You feel I’m telling the truth,” he took the words right out of my mouth.
I looked at him. He looked at me. And I swear that chain linking us together became all the tighter.
I took a breath, not knowing what I was about to say. But I didn’t get the chance to say it. Max ticked his head to the side. “That opportunity is rapidly closing. You need to find him,” he said flatly.
I blinked. “I don’t—”
“Before you say you don’t know how to find anyone, you clearly do. Follow your emotions. Your feelings.” He brought that same hand up, wrapped it into that same soft fist, and tapped his chest twice. “Finder magic is some of the most unusual out there. It is also the hardest to learn. We don’t get to rely on channeling force like everyone else does. Instead, we must follow our sensations and trust what they teach us. Now follow yours. Unlike Howard, you have met Josh directly. And I imagine the last several days of enjoying his particular brand of company has left a solid Mark in your mind. Focus on Josh. On your first experience. On the way he sounds. On the way he acts. Draw up a perfect image of him in your mind. And then follow.”
I let my gaze linger on Max. Then I did it. I closed my eyes and withdrew within.
Did I trust Max yet? I didn’t know anymore. Josh’s warning was ringing in my mind at the same time as what I’d learned from the Justice Department. I doubted Max had his own personal plant at the Justice Department. Which left only one other possibility – he hadn’t lied, and he’d handed Howard Rush over to them. Making him a good guy, right? Or at least it further complicated an already exceedingly complex man.
The point was, when I was close to him, I couldn’t help but trust him. Because I couldn’t help but follow what he was suggesting.
Josh McIntosh…. It wasn’t hard to draw up the memory of when we’d first met – I was still sore over the way he’d treated me. Nor was it hard to draw up the sound of his voice. It was just as annoying and infuriatingly enduring as a mosquito buzzing around your head all night.
But I didn’t focus on how much Josh irritated me. I focused on him – his essence. The next thing I knew, I took a step forward, then another. I still had my eyes closed. Apparently that didn’t matter. There was various paraphernalia lining this hallway, but I didn’t walk into it.
The only thing I was aware of was the image of Josh in my mind and the dull sound of Max’s footfall as he followed me several steps behind.
I didn’t know the back halls of the stadium. Hell, before today, I’d never been here. None of that mattered. We navigated through the various interconnecting hallways and doors. Whenever we came to a door that was locked, Max would show his less than reputable skills, and unpick it using a paperclip he’d found in his pocket.
It didn’t take long until we wound our way through the back of one of the massive stands. Max never rushed me. Nor did he ever second-guess where we were go
ing. Unlike Josh, it seemed Max had absolutely no question of my abilities.
“We’re close,” I suddenly said. “He’s… he’s just through that door.” My eyes were still closed, but I pointed confidently in front of me, knowing there was a door there.
I could feel Max pressed close beside me. “Unless I’m very much mistaken, that’s where they keep the grounds equipment.”
“Okay,” I said as I opened my eyes and reached forward.
Before I could grab the handle, Max latched a hand on my wrist.
“What are you doing?” I demanded.
“I need to remind you of something very important. Both you and I are only witches not warlocks.”
I stared at him. God, he was right. It wasn’t to say that we weren’t powerful. Obviously I had considerable magical skills if I had, in fact, found Josh without knowing where he was to begin with. And obviously – considering he was the most powerful man in the city, if not the country – Max had skills too.
The point was, our power was nothing compared to warlocks.
“What do we do? Do you… still sense that opportunity?”
“Indeed I do. But the window for it is closing. Whatever happens, follow my lead. There is every possibility that whoever Carson has got guarding Josh, they don’t know who you are. They will recognize me, though.” With that, Max closed a hand around mine and made me open the door. Tingles erupted up my flesh and darted into my elbow.
Then the door swung open.
And I found Josh.
Chapter 15
I didn’t celebrate the fact that this was the second time I’d used my powers to find somebody other than a testing officer.
No.
I crammed a hand over my mouth to stop myself from screaming.
Josh was balancing on a tiny box over a pit. The pit wasn’t a feature of the grounds room. It was magical. It was this dancing black void of flames.
I’d never seen a pit like this – heck, I’d never seen anything like it full stop – but just one look was enough to tell me that if Josh touched any of those black flames, he was a goner.
Forgotten Destiny Book One Page 13
