by Nova Archer
Tala's twin moans of pleasure echoed in his ears.
Opening his eyes, he watched as she came. Throwing her head back, she squeezed her eyes shut and opened her mouth, ragged breaths coming hard and fast. She was lost in her orgasm and he loved watching every moment of it.
Finally, she opened her eyes and grinned. "Oh, my."
He chuckled. "You could say that again."
"Oh, my." She laughed.
Tossing his shirt aside, Jace leaned forward toward the computer. He wished like hell that he could kiss her. He'd never felt a pair of lips as soft as Tala's. She was everything he ever wanted in a woman and more. Strong, passionate, caring, and driven. And the most enchanting creature he'd ever seen. He was falling head over heels in love with her. He couldn't deny it any longer.
"Come to Necropolis," he blurted out.
Her smile faltered a little. "What?"
"You can get on the force here, no problem. They're looking for good cops."
"You want me to move to Necropolis?" She ran a shaky hand over her hair.
"Yes," he said now desperately eager for her to listen. "You have nothing there for you, Tala. And everything here waiting for you."
"I can't just leave."
"Why not?"
She shook her head. "It's not possible, Jace.
"Yes, it is. You're just scared. It's understandable. But I'm here for you. I can help you with the transition."
She shook her head again. "No. I can't."
"Won't you mean."
"Doesn't matter." She sighed, and then began to re-button her blouse. "I'm sorry. You're asking me for too much."
"Tala."
Without another word, she disconnected the video feed. Her face disappeared from his screen.
"Don't go," he said, too late.
With an angry sigh, Jace pounded his fist into the sofa. Damn it! He wouldn't let her push him away. He was too stubborn to go anywhere. He was like an animal that got a taste for blood. One taste was not enough. He was planning on a lifetime, whether she liked it or not.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
Jace streamed through the security videotape again. Rubbing a hand over his face to chase fatigue, he rewound to a few hours before the victim entered the elevator. There had to be something he was missing. The girl came home at around eleven, and ended up tortured and murdered a few hours later. How did the perp get to her? Maybe he had already been in her apartment. If so, he had taken the stairs to get there and to leave. Because Jace couldn't find the bastard on the security tape. Unless what he was looking for wasn't registering.
Caine tapped on the door to the analysis room as he leaned against it. "Any luck?"
Jace shook his head. "I've been through it four times. Back and forth. Forth and back. Nothing."
"If there's something to find, I trust you'll find it."
Jace appreciated Caine's faith in his abilities. And he knew the chief had risked a lot by calling him back to the lab. If the baron found him, shit was going to hit the fan all over again. He was really too worn out to go through that once more. His heart wouldn't really be into the butt-kicking he'd have to give the baron. No, his heart was somewhere else entirely right now.
"Have you gone through the rest of the evidence Eve was able to download?"
Caine nodded. "Yeah. Went through it all. We know he uses the drugs, maybe even the promise of sex, to lure the victims. So despite the double chromosomes, I'm betting we're still looking for a male. The key is knowing where our perp is finding his marks."
"Darryl was definitely part of the where."
"I agree. It's too bad he's just a shimmer in the wind now."
"You might have something there." Jace frowned and swiveled back around to stare at the video on his computer screen. Shimmer. There was something about it that made his pulse jump. Maybe the thing he was missing was the thing he couldn't see.
Caine came into the room and stood behind his chair. "You thought of something."
"No, you did."
"I did?"
"Yup." Jace forwarded the security feed to the time when the girl entered the elevator. Once the doors opened and she walked inside, he froze the image and stared at it.
"What are you looking for?" Caine asked.
"A shimmer." Jace traced a finger on the screen near the woman's side. "You see this." He pointed to a blurred spot. "I thought it was just a flaw in the video feed, but now I'm not too sure." Adrenaline started to surge through Jace. He was onto something. He could feel it. "And you see how she's standing? Kind of slumped over, like a puppet with slack strings."
"Yeah, I see that. Doesn't look natural."
"I think she's drugged and is being held up by someone else." Jace leaned back in his chair and ran a hand through his hair.
"An invisibility spell?"
"Yeah. We're looking for someone who definitely knows his magic."
Caine took out his cell phone and punched in a number. "Wake up. We need you down in the analysis room." He flipped the phone closed and slid it back into his pants pocket.
"This case is getting worse by the minute. We likely have a perp that can change gender at will, has claws and knows spells that only tier-one witches have mastered."
Jace nodded. "It's beginning to look that way."
Lyra bounded into the room, her hair falling out of her ponytail. "What? I was having a really great dream, you know."
"Can you determine magic from a picture?" Caine asked.
"Yeah. Probably. I can see magic as well as feel it."
"How about from a video feed?" Jace said, and then pushed back his chair to make room for Lyra.
She sat, shuffled forward and stared at the computer screen.
Anticipation thrummed over Jace's skin as he watched Lyra rewind the video and watch it play through. He sensed that he was right. They were dealing with something that outreached their usual scope. Maybe they had finally encountered a crime they couldn't solve.
"There's definitely a spell here." She pointed to the same spot that Jace had. "This shimmer is definitely a sign of spell casting. It looks red to me." She moved her finger around the victim's body. "It's all around her. It's some kind of cloaking spell. I've heard of them, but don't know anyone that can do one."
She leaned back in the chair and glanced at the ceiling. Shaking her head, she sighed. "Okay, okay. I'll tell them." She stood and glanced at Jace and Caine. "Gran says she can do one. But I personally have never seen it done."
Jace sat once more in the chair and looked at the screen. "If we fiddled with the video, do you think we can see past the shimmer?"
"I don't know. Might be worth a shot," Lyra responded.
"We can try different image intensifiers and see what we get. Normally the image intensifiers are used through lens and tubes but I've been working on a way to use the same technology to enhance video and photos by using infrared and night vision." Glancing over his shoulder, Jace motioned to Caine. "Turn off the lights."
Caine did and then shut the door. Except for the light flickering from the computer screen, they were shrouded in darkness. Jace zoomed in on the glimmer spot, enlarging it on the screen. Using a few key strokes, he was able to project the image through a different lens just like if he was using a camera with infrared capabilities.
Now they were looking at a different picture. An image that only projected heat signatures. And he could actually discern a form beside the victim in the elevator.
"That's amazing," Caine said as he leaned over Jace's shoulder. "That's definitely a body."
"Can you zoom out, Jace?" Lyra asked.
"Do you see something?" Jace asked her as he pulled back on the video image.
"Stop." She pointed to the screen. "What does that look like to you?"
Squinting, Jace peered at the image. He tilted his head until his eyes got a bead on the picture. It looked like a dark circle and something in the middle of it. Was that part of the perp's body? Or maybe what he was weari
ng.
"He's got a logo on his shirt," Jace blurted out.
"Looks like the moon to me," Lyra said.
Something clicked in Jace's mind. "Would you say that looks like a wolf howling to the moon?"
Lyra nodded. "Yeah, could be."
"Tala told me that the kid that attacked her said something about a wolf and a moon, and lots of music the night he got his mysterious mark. Maybe he saw this guy's t-shirt."
"Wait a minute," Caine remarked then rushed out of the room. A minute later he was back with a crime scene photo. It was a picture of one of the second victim's apartment. He held the photo beside the computer screen. "I'd say that's the same image."
In the photo was a blown up picture of a pack of matches. On it was a wolf howling inside a giant moon. Underneath that were the words Howl at the Moon, Piano Bar, San Antonio.
"I'd say we finally have a lead," Caine announced.
"Looks like it." Jace turned on his chair to look at Caine. "But how do we follow it?"
The chief smiled. "I'll think of something." His cell phone took that moment to ring. Sliding it out from his pocket he answered. "Valorian."
After a few head nods and arched brows, Caine flipped the phone closed and sighed. "But in the meantime it looks like you and I have other matters to attend to, Jace."
"Like what?"
"We have been summoned to Mistress Jannali's office."
"What do you think she wants?"
Caine smiled but it didn't make Jace feel any better.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
The mistress' outer office was as finely decorated as any royal castle. Not that Jace would really know what that would look like.
He stood along one wall and studied a painting hanging above him. The signature said Monet and he had no doubt it was authentic. From what he knew of Mistress Jannali, she didn't do copies. She had once been royalty in the Egyptian courts...the ancient Egyptian courts.
She was one of the wealthiest Otherworlders, and most likely one of the richest people in the United States. Everything she owned reeked of old money. Her offices were no different. Except Jace smelled something else wafting through the room...arrogance.
This was the first time he'd been summoned to her office. And he certainly hoped it would be the last. The place gave him nervous. It felt like a mausoleum to the past.
Swiveling around to look at Caine, who lounged seemingly comfortably on the red leather chaise, Jace frowned. "How long is she going to make us wait?"
"As long as she wants."
"We've been here an hour already."
"I know Jace, but you are aware that vampires, especially vampires as powerful as Lady Ankara, play by different rules."
"Yeah, yeah," Jace said then plopped down next to Caine on the sofa. "I know all about archaic vampolitics."
"Then you know to shut up and be patient."
"How can you be so calm?"
"I have to be to get us out of whatever we're certainly going to get into."
The doors to the inner office opened and a tall spindly man stepped out. "The mistress will see you now."
Caine then Jace went through the open archway and the man closed the doors behind them. A shiver rushed over Jace's spine when the click of the doors echoed around him. It felt so final. Like a lid closing on a coffin.
The office was huge but crammed with furniture and art. In an instant, Jace felt claustrophobic. He nearly bumped into Caine as he gawked at the sweeping, elegantly painted ceiling.
"Lady Ankara it is a pleasure to see you again." Caine bowed his head.
Jace did the same but didn't speak. Because they were operating under vampire politics, he would only speak when spoken to by the hostess. He thought their traditions and customs were stupid, but then again, there were certain protocols to follow when addressing the alpha of his pack. Protocols, he was sure others would find just as inane and ridiculous. So he kept his mouth shut, even though he seriously wanted to speak his mind about the case, the baron and other things he'd been noticing lately.
Mistress Jannali stepped out from a shadow in the room and into the light, returned Caine's bow and smiled. "It has been too long, Caine. You are surely missed at the club."
She was not what Jace had been expecting. He had heard of her beguiling beauty but was not prepared for the reality of it. She nearly took his breath from his lungs.
She was tall, regal, with a long, lean form, draped seductively in an ocean-blue gown that swept the floor. Her skin was the color of cinnamon and looked just as delectable. The tips of her long flowing black hair flirted at her slim waist. But it was her eyes that commanded attention. They were an unusual shade: Lavender.
She turned those lavender eyes on him and he could feel the power thrumming through her. It was nearly overwhelming and he had to divert his gaze.
Glancing back at Caine. "How is your...woman?" She smiled. "I'm sorry I couldn't have attended your wedding. I had pressing matters to attend to overseas in Nouveau-Monde. I'm sure it was a lovely ceremony, though."
Caine inclined his head. "It was. Thank you."
"Did you get my gift? The lifetime membership to the club?"
Jace heard Caine grit his teeth.
"Yes. It was very thoughtful. Although I'm not sure Eve would be comfortable there."
"Doesn't she play racquetball?"
Caine shook his head. "I'm afraid not."
"Oh, that's too bad." Ankara remarked smiling. "I was looking forward to playing with her. Oh well, please give my regards to her then."
"I will."
"Please sit." She swept her arm toward four high backed chairs arranged around a small circular table. A platter with a teapot and two cups sat waiting.
Jace followed Caine and sat in the chair beside him. Ankara took the chair opposite Caine on the other side of the table. She leaned over and poured the tea. She handed Caine a cup and saucer.
"Thank you," he said.
Ankara handed Jace his drink. He took it and nodded his thanks. He hated tea, but would have to drink it to be polite. He didn't want to offend her. Not yet, anyway.
Sitting back in her chair, she crossed her legs and picked up a silver cigarette case. She took one out and lit it with a match, letting the smoke slowly curl out from between her lips. The smell of sulfur floated to Jace's nose.
"Laal has informed me of the troubles your team had in San Antonio."
Caine set his tea down on the table. "Yes, I believe that my background was leaked to that reporter."
Ankara's eyes narrowed. "Are you accusing someone?
"Not yet," he responded. "But I will soon enough."
The temperature in the room dropped a few degrees. Jace looked at Caine. The chief's jaw was twitching and Jace could smell the fury rising from him like smoke from a fire.
Jace turned his gaze onto Ankara. She was looking at Caine, studying him, as if considering him a little more seriously than before.
Then her gaze shifted onto him. Flinching, Jace nearly dropped his cup of tea.
That brought a smile to Ankara's lips. "And you, Jace Jericho, how do you explain your actions in San Antonio?"
"I'm not sure I follow you, Lady Ankara."
"Oh, I'm sure you understand exactly what I'm asking." She titled her head, a ghost of a smile still on her lips. "Getting involved with a member of the San Antonio police force, losing a suspect, leaving a crime scene together to go elsewhere.do I need to go on?"
Leaning forward, Jace set his drink on the table. His hands were beginning to shake. "Officer Channing and I are not involved."
"I understand that she's about to be suspended from duty pending drug charges. Maybe she knew who the suspect was because he's her dealer. Maybe she's your leak. She would've known about all of you before she was assigned to the team."
Jace exploded from his chair. "Tala is not involved with Darryl Rockland. She's a good cop."
"Laal was right about your temper," Ankara sniffed. "You are
far too emotional to be a crime scene investigator."
"Sit down, Jace," Caine ordered.
Although vibrating with rage, Jace sat as instructed. He desperately wanted to launch across the table at Mistress Jannali, but knew she was so powerful that ending his life would take but a minute. And he had a feeling that she wouldn't hesitate. He didn't think she shared Caine's ethics and morals when it came to bloodletting and killing.
She didn't become Mistress of the city because of her popularity with the people.
"The baron is the emotional one in this case, mistress. He is constantly hovering around my team, instigating conflicts, and taking every little thing much too personally."
Ankara watched Caine silently, her eyes narrowed, her lips pressed tightly together. Then she smiled. "You're right Caine. Laal is overly sensitive. Sometimes he's like child, I'm afraid to admit." She nodded. "I will overlook the past transgressions of you and your team. The lycan can keep his job."
Caine stood and said, "Thank you, Lady Ankara."
Jace followed suit but didn't thank the vampire. He didn't think he could form the words. She disturbed him on more levels than he could even describe.
After a quick bow, Caine made his way toward the door. Jace was right on his heels, eager to be out of the office and away from the mistress.
"Oh, and Caine," she said.
The chief stopped and glanced over his shoulder at her.
"Keep him on a short leash." She pointed at Jace. "And please don't contact Captain Morales in San Antonio or anyone in his lab. From now on, I will be the only one that deals with the humans."
Jace took a step forward, but Caine's hand on his arm stopped him from going any further. He could feel the vampire's power pulsing through Caine's palm.
"Of course, mistress." Caine bowed his head again. "Thank you for seeing us."
Keeping his hand on Jace, Caine moved toward the double doors. They swung open and Caine and Jace walked out together. Once through, they shut on their own accord, as if blown by a phantom wind.
