Chapter 15
Griselda
“Now that the coppers are gone let’s get down to business.” Seth leaned back in his seat.
I was surprised that the EA had sent him when there were so many other enforcers they could send.
Seth was Prax’s friend. He was also a wizard, though he wasn’t the annoying, stuffy kind, like many old-school wizards. I’d met him a few times at the Howling Wolf, a bar Prax and his friends liked to frequent. This was the first time I’d seen him in anything other than his usual historically inspired or punk goth clothing.
“You look…different.” I eyed the uniform, trying not to show my amusement.
I was glad I’d been able to pull on a long black robe to make myself more presentable. It wasn’t nearly as comfortable as my plush bat wing one, especially in winter, but it looked like a dress in a pinch. I’d also used a bit of magic to make my hair look less like a rat’s nest and hide the pillow marks on my face.
He grinned. “Liam does like me in a uniform.”
“What’s he going to say if he finds out you’ve been flirting with Officer Cooley? I didn’t know you swung that way, wizard.”
“I swing any way I want to, witch. But Liam knows. I’ve caught him looking more than once.”
Marcus was looking more and more irritated. So, I placed a calming hand on his forearm. “Seth is Prax’s friend,” I explained.
“I see you glaring at me, minotaur. Don’t worry, I’m not interested in your witch.”
Was that why Marcus was acting so strange? Was he jealous? No way!
“Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way,” Seth continued, “onto more important things. The first of which is that I’ve noticed your magical ward is exceptionally strong. Is there a reason for that?”
I didn’t say anything.
“Let me be more clear. Have you already been attacked magically lately?”
I sighed, realizing I wouldn’t be able to hide something like that from him. Next to him, I was a magic novice. He might not look it, but Seth was scary powerful. “You might as well know. Yes, someone was messing with my wards. I’m a hundred percent sure it was Arcane as well.”
And I hadn’t told the cops because I didn’t want them to bring in the EA. Well, the joke was on me. I guess I should be glad it was Seth and not someone else.
“Anything else I should know about?” Seth looked directly at Marcus.
We were both silent. Seth was Prax’s friend, but he also worked for Desmon, the dragon of Darlington, and I doubted Marcus would want his secret known.
“What if I promise that everything you tell me from now on is off the record and not a part of the investigation?” Seth waved his hand, and he was no longer in a uniform. He had a black button-up shirt, left unbuttoned over a ripped black tank top. His piercings, which had been hidden before with magic, were back. A studded belt held his pants low on his hips, and his boots were spiked, too.
Marcus looked taken aback by the sudden change.
“Seth has that reaction with most people,” I said. “When he doesn’t look like a punk, he looks like a dead poet.”
“I’m going to stop beating around the bushes. The real reason I’m here is because Desmon sent me. There is a certain dragon sniffing around Darlington, looking for a lost minotaur. Desmon has known about you since you arrived.”
Marcus’s body language changed, but Seth kept speaking.
“He hasn’t ratted you out and doesn’t plan to. He’s quite enjoying watching this other dragon’s frustration, but he can’t actually help you. It’s against the rules, so consider this advanced warning that your dragon is near.”
So Desmon already knew. Things just got interesting.
After a long moment, Marcus replied. “Your advanced warning comes too late. Elise has already found me.”
“Your whore mother?”
“Seth!” I exclaimed.
But if it bothered Marcus, it didn’t show. “He’s right, though. Her loyalty and body can be bought for a price. That was all I ever was, a job.”
“Elise is just a pawn. If the dragon knew you were here, you’d already be gone,” Seth said.
“You don’t think she told the dragon?” I asked, noticing that Seth also did not have a name for this dragon.
“She could have, or she could be waiting for more solid proof, which is more likely. She fucked up once already by losing sight of her charge. If she sent him to the wrong minotaur by accident, it would be her funeral. But then again, maybe she’s already told him, but he’s waiting to make his move because of Arcane Development.”
“What do you mean?” I asked. “Why would a dragon care about them? Aren’t they above mundane shit like that?”
“Yes and no. Arcane Development is… different. They are a wizard coven masquerading as a company. And they usually don’t go after a piece of land unless they believe it’s special.”
I looked around my home. “So you think this place is hiding some unknown magic?”
Seth shrugged. “Hell if I know. I’m under the impression that sometimes it’s a false lead, so they build and make a profit. Developing the land funds their other projects. It could be nothing. They are less my concern compared to the dragon.”
He leveled a look at Marcus. “Gigi is hiding you from something powerful, something dangerous. She’s putting her neck out for you. Gigi is a friend. You can’t expect me to stand idly by while you put my friend in danger.”
“I offered to help,” I said. “He’s not putting me in danger.”
“Just because it was your idea doesn’t mean you’re not in danger. Desmon has his hands tied. This extends to me and anyone who works for him. We can’t help. It would give away the fact that Desmon had known about you this whole time and hid you knowingly. Officially, I came with the EA.” He waved his hand, and he was back in his uniform.
“I understand,” Marcus said solemnly.
“Good. Then my job here is done. And while I can’t help you with the dragon, I can help you with Arcane. You two get some sleep. I’ll get those windows boarded up.”
“You don’t have to do that,” Marcus said. “We can—”
“It’s literally just a wiggle of my fingers. You can call someone to clean it up for good in the morning.”
For a wizard like Seth, it really was just a wiggle of his fingers. If only I had seemingly limitless magic like that.
I showed Seth out the door, and when I returned, I found Marcus with his face in his hands.
“We never expected help from Desmon to begin with. No big loss,” I said. “And plus, if Elise hasn’t told the dragon yet, I can still fuck with her memory.”
“You can?”
“Yeah.” I went to my bookshelf and picked up a large tome from the bottom shelf. “I don’t do it often, and I’m out of practice. But I can study up.” I opened the book to the right chapter and placed it on the dining room table.
“Not tonight you don’t, Kitten. You heard the wizard. We need sleep. We’re useless if we’re exhausted.”
“I’ll do it tomorrow. But can you stay?” I reached for his arm. “I don’t want to be alone right now.”
That was the truth, though I also didn’t want Marcus to be alone either. Not after Seth’s spiel about him putting me in danger. I didn’t want him to think he needed to do this alone, because he didn’t. We were a team now, had been since I stepped into his gym and saw him there staring at me like he’d seen a ghost.
His gaze softened. “I’ll stay. But if this becomes a habit, you’re going to need a bigger bed.”
I grinned. “I can make that happen.”
I let him gather me into his arms and usher me into the bedroom. As he helped me out of my robe, his bulky frame almost knocked over the wire mannequin where I displayed all my favorite silk scarves and crystal brooches, reminding me just how full my home was already with all my treasures. There really wasn’t room for a bigger bed.
But that was a problem for another day because the moment my head hit the pillow and Marcus nestled me neatly into the curve of his body, sleep came to claim me, and I fell asleep to the strong and rhythmic sound of his heart.