Hellfire (Nightfire Academy #4)

Chapter 6 - Talon

CHAPTER 6 - TALON

I couldn’t nail him for being Nelle’s accomplice with just this. Ledger records and security camera footage of Kymbal taking items from the Hadrian storages were substantial evidence to mount a case that he dabbled in the dark arts. Not enough for a conviction. Legal counsel representing the weasel might argue my evidence conjecture if I couldn’t produce video of him smuggling in the snakes or eroding the Academy’s protective sigils. I didn’t want to risk my career by speculating.

Pissed, I thumped my fist on my desk in The Eye. Back to the fucking drawing board. I leaned back in my chair and scrubbed my tired, sore eyes. Hell could freeze over before I let that weasel destroy my best friends’ careers and cut my princess’ short before it even began.

Computer screens flickered with images from the camera systems. Footage from the campus and grounds, and CCTV data our systems hacked into to keep an eye on town. Back-up for the gargoyles placed at strategic locations on buildings to scout for danger. You never know when you needed verification to take to the Council to justify certain missions.

I glanced at my empty coffee mug. Even that ran dry, just like all my leads. There had to be something I was missing to connect Nelle and Kymbal. I checked my watch. 1:22PM. A bell would toll soon, signaling the end of lunch break, and students would scurry into class.

Dammit. I missed meeting up with Cole, Blaze, and Luna for lunch.

I fished out my phone and dialed her number. She picked up after a few rings.

“You missed lunch, Frog Prince,” she greeted me with a flirty tone that said she wasn’t mad with me.

I adored how laid back she was. Sascha would have roasted my balls for standing her up.

“I’m sorry, Princess. I promise I’ll make it up to you.”

“What’s your excuse?”

None of the Tollens knew about my side investigation. Dave’s keyboard clacked as his fingers danced across them in a blur.

“One second.” I climbed from my seat and went into the conference room, shutting the door behind me for privacy. “To answer your question, secret agent business.”

“Everything okay?” I loved that my girl worried about me.

“Fine, Princess. I’m just tired.” I drew in a long breath. “I was busy with some leads and forgot about our lunch. Can I reschedule for tomorrow?”

“I might be busy with two other boyfriends,” she sassed me in a playful tone, and I enjoyed the break from this headache. “One very handsome mage mechanic in a hoodie, and an irresistible teacher with gorgeous eyes.”

Cole went, “Ohhhh,” in the background.

“They sound like my twins.” I played along.

“Nope.” I loved our little games.

“In that case, I’ll crash the party,” I gave it right back to her, and she giggled, the jumble of clues in my mind lightening at the sound.

“You can make it up to me at dinner.” I valued that my princess didn’t hold it against me when I couldn’t make some dates with her. In this line of work, where I might have to drop something at a moment’s notice, I appreciated her support.

“I’ll add in a back massage to get in your good graces,” I added.

“You’re already forgiven,” she purred, the vibration going right to my dick.

“Love you, Princess. See you tonight.”

“Bye, handsome.” The phone went dead, and thank God for that, because my dick begged me to run down to the cafeteria to give her a kiss before she went to her next class.

I tapped my phone in my palm and stared at the hooded figure in the Gildron cloak. Filled with a renewed determination to chase this asshole, I searched my contacts and dialed another number.

“To what do I owe the pleasure, Stoney?” Gable crooned like a damn rockstar seducing my ears, and fuck me, my dick twitched.

We kissed a lot at his party, and my cock wanted him to kiss me there. I hadn’t been with a guy before, but if my princess didn’t mind, I’d be up for exploring some man-on-man action.

“Got some time, Scales?” I used the nickname I came up with at Camus’ castle to even the score. “I want to swing by.”

I never gave anything away on the phone when telecommunications companies could be hacked. We had a private, untraceable system, but the same couldn’t be said on his end. I decided to rectify that and assign him a Guild phone.

I wasn’t too fucking proud to admit I needed his help. Instincts in the back of my head told me the infiltrator had an accomplice. Spreading Fae dust to make the gargoyles fall asleep while simultaneously charming the cameras to go dead was a feat no person achieved alone. I just needed proof that the “ old coot so full of himself” whom Nelle mentioned was the man on my radar.

“The Guild comes crawling for my help.” Gable just loved to rub it in.

“You’ve helped Luna multiple times,” I reminded him.

“Yeah, but she’s a princess.”

I laughed and smoothed a hand over my face. “I’m not handsome enough for a favor?”

“Handsome in a stoney way.” The guy needed to get over his grudge with the Guild rejecting his offer of assistance.

“Would you like a kiss and hug as thanks?” I threw back.

“Get down here soon, Stoney.” The line went dead, and I chuckled, pocketing my phone.

I changed into casual clothes to prevent anyone identifying me and drove down to Gable’s store, needing to feel the wheel in my palms, the air flushing through the crack in the window, the sound of the pavement under the tires. Long drives helped me think, except this was only a short one at fifteen minutes. Still, it got me out of the Academy for a while, and I sure as hell needed a break. I parked the car and scanned my surroundings before advancing to his door, shunting the door open.

Gable waited for me, leaning on his counter with a cocky grin. “You know, you’re more handsome in the daylight, Stoney.” Fuck. Typical smartass answer from him.

“Wings and horns don’t do it for you, Scales?” I shot back, enjoying our wisecracks.

Loyalty, humor, and his willingness to help out a friend showed me he fit in well with our crew. Blaze took longer to warm him, but mine and Cole’s icy attitude melted when we saw how Gable devoted himself to Luna and our mutual cause.

“Ask me again when I touch your horns and get you off.” The smartass crossed to the door, flicked the closed sign and bolted the deadlock and chain.

“You can touch my horns if I can touch your dick.” I put it out there.

“You’re on, Stoney.” Grinning, he led me out back to his loft, filling up his kettle for one of his infamous teas.

Shaggy rugs hid the concrete floor in his living room. Retro pendant lights dangled from long chains. His guitar rested against an overflowing bookshelf stacked with magick textbooks, Rolling Stone magazines, and his infamous collection of card games. A mish-mash of paintings decorated his brick walls, rock gods like David Bowie in his Ziggy Stardust days and Jim Morrison on the wall closest to his leather couch, and stars and planets on the next wall. A set of three photographs of the town center of Bathurst hung in his loungeroom. A door at the far end of the loft-style layout led out to a small courtyard out the back. The place smelled of the herbs from his wiccan shop out front and whatever stew he had in the slow cooker.

Headphones swallowed most of his sister, Mary’s, head as she reclined on the sofa, listening to something, a blanket wrapped over her.

“Tea or coffee?” He dragged out two mugs and set them on the outdated mica kitchen counter with backsplash tiles colored by years of smoke and kitchen build-up.

“Coffee.” My fingers drummed on the counter.

“How is your sister doing?” I asked.

“Some days are hard. She’s slowly adjusting.” He scooped coffee grains into a moka pot, added water, and set it on the stove. “It took me a good six months to accustom myself to the outside world. But I had experience conducting missions for Camus. She’s never seen the outside world.”

“What kind of missions?” I took one of the seats at the counter, interested to know his history.

“Assassinations, bribery, threats. You name it.” A dark cloud banked behind his gaze. “My naga came in handy for extracting information.”

I felt like an asshole for never getting to know the guy or his story and not giving him a chance. Nobody wanted to be used as a weapon against their will. I trained at the Academy for ten years, aware that my skills leaned to the Tollen class of the Guild. Plenty of time to accept my future as a soldier.

“I’m sorry you went through that.” I rubbed my nape. “And I’m sorry for being an asshole to you.”

Luna’s kindness to me despite my hostile welcome to the Academy taught me the importance of looking beyond a person’s affiliation to understand their true worth and character.

“Getting sentimental, Stoney?” Gable tossed a teabag in his mug.

I opened my arms wide. “You want that kiss and hug?”

His rich laugh echoed throughout his loft. He put that topic to bed by placing six chocolate chip cookies on a plate and slid it across to me. The market cookies were soft with a buttery center and crispy outside, just the way I liked them.

“Good thing it’s daytime. I’m fresh out of rocks.” He winked.

“Smartass.” I reached over the counter to hit him again, and he laughed and bounced back.

He wasn’t so bad once you got past the cocky layer of his armor. A guy trying to make his way in the world when all he knew was violence and darkness. One of the boys. No different from the way Cole, Blaze, and I used to tease each other growing up.

Luna was right about him—he had a past. We all did, and it was a matter of how he dealt with it. In his case, he fought evil with everything he had, and for that, I admired him for not becoming a nutcase, pulling himself out of a dark place, and setting up his own business.

“You sure know how to butter me up,” I teased, in an even better mood.

Gable’s lopsided grin came out to play, and he dragged the plate away, and I tugged it back. I’d get to business after one of these delicious prizes, finishing two with my coffee. I deserved a little downtime when things had been non-stop for the last five months.

He poured himself a tea and prepared me a coffee, sliding it across to me. “You didn’t suspect poison. I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship.” Chocolate chip cookie crunched as he bit into it.

“You’re all right.” I messed up his perfect rock star hair.

“You’re not bad yourself, Stoney.” He dipped his cookie in his tea, and we smiled.

All signs of playfulness diminished as he got to business, crossing his arms over his chest. “What can I do for you?”

Right. Business. So much for downtime. I had to get back to my investigation, and he had to get back to his shop and earn a living.

“The Academy’s infiltrator mentioned she had an accomplice.” I broke the second cookie in half, studying the gooey center. “I can’t find anything to justify his expulsion besides missing inventory. Black candles, scales of a chameleon, spider’s leg, newt eye, and mug wart.”

His brows kicked up. “Invisibility spells are heavy-duty magick.”

“Fae dust was used to put the gargoyles to sleep. Only Gildrons have access to high-level ingredients.” Sharing Guild secrets could get me fired, but we were past the point of being enemies and well into being allies. Giving him vague scraps wouldn’t solve my problem.

Gable finished his cookie and took another. “I can’t help you with your inventory problem, but I might know someone who can help with the camera footage.”

“The cameras went dead.” I lifted the cup, blew on the hot drink, and dared a sip. I liked it piping hot.

“My guy might be able to bring it back to life.” He slid out his phone, reaching out to one of his contacts.

“Calling in that favor?” the man on the other end asked, his voice rich and dark.

“Absolutely. I’ve got a good one for you to solve. Tell you when you get here.” I liked that Gable kept the details vague.

“I can’t resist a good mystery.” The guy on the other end hung up.

“Who’s this friend?” I snuck another cookie and bit off half of it.

Gable set his phone aside. “He’s one of us.”

The soldier in me demanded to know what side Gable’s contact played on. “Magical one of us? Shifter one of us? Ex-snake one of us?”

“Relax your handsome head.” Gable clapped the side of my arm. “He’s the first two and a bit more.”

“More?” I shoved the soppy cookie in my mouth.

“You’ll find out.” His promise tested me to trust him again.

I pressed both hands over my heart. “Aww. You called in a favor for me?”

Gable thumped me with the back of his hand. “Why not? We’re pseudo-friends. Practically family.”

At first, I hated his sense of humor. Now, I cracked out a laugh, appreciating it. “I’m touched you wasted it on me.” I slid out the encrypted Guild phone I brought him. “Got this for you. Use this when you call us from now on. I programmed all our numbers on it.”

“Awww.” He shaped his forefingers and thumbs into the shape of a love heart. “I’m one of you guys now!”

Yeah, he absolutely was.

I lifted my mug in toast. “To Team Rogue!”