3. Lea
3
LEA
T he room was quiet.
The weight of everyone's disappointment was enough to crush me.
I’d already been working for Jax for two weeks now, and had failed to come across any damning evidence against him. At this rate, I was more likely to be found out before I could dig up anything useful.
“And you said you’ve searched all the levels of the facility?” Rowan asked, turning around with a long stick in her hand. “Emma?”
I was too distracted trying to figure out what the stick was for to answer her right away.
“Lea!” she shouted, and I shot upright in my chair.
“Yes! I told you already. That building is squeaky clean. Maybe we’re looking in the wrong place. Is Jax even dumb enough to be doing illegal activity in his own company building?” As I posed the question, another thought came to mind. “Unless…”
Without further explanation, I got to my feet and made my way over to the board where Rowan had pinned a large blueprint of the Ransom building.
“Are you sure this is one hundred percent correct—no errors or changes made since?” When my gaze dragged back to her, Rowan seemed offended by the very question.
“I'm sure,” she said flatly, her features twisted into something I could only describe as haughty distaste. “I'm nothing if not thorough, I’ll have you know.”
I pumped my palms out in apology. “Damn, I’m sorry. I just had to ask.”
I turned back to the blueprint and analyzed it more closely. “I’ve looked everywhere, but if we are going by this blueprint, it looks like there's a whole section underneath the building that has no access point… Not any that I've seen anyway.”
“So, you think there's literally an underground operation going on there?” Rowan crossed her arms and leaned into the blueprint as well, rubbing her chin with her thumb and pointer finger as she studied it more closely. “Hmm…” Then her contemplative eyes flickered to me.
“That would explain why I haven't found anything yet. Whatever they have going on down there, they're certainly keeping it well hidden.” I shrugged, but the determined look on my face told her that this was a seriously good lead.
“You’ve got a point, we’ll need to look into this.” She let out a sigh of relief before rubbing her forehead. “I hate to say it, but I was beginning to lose hope.”
“No one wants to see Jaricn and Diesel Ransom pay for their crimes more than me. I'm not going to give up on this, and neither should you.”
She raised her eyebrows at me, stifling a laugh. “You’re something else, you know that? Even after everything you’ve endured, you refuse to give up, no matter what. I really admire that about you.”
Rowan’s honey-colored eyes stood stark against her dark skin, regarding me in a teasing manner, but her words were genuine.
I knew it was silly of me, considering she was only doing her job, but it felt like we had become good friends—which was nice since my “friend pool" wasn’t exactly overflowing presently.
All my thoughts dissipated, and my mind scrambled as my shoulder began to burn. I hissed, reaching my hand over to press against the marking.
“It’s burning again?” The sudden spike of concern in her eyes and voice told me there was a part of her that cared about me as well.
“Yeah, it's been happening more often lately, too.” I scrunched my face, taking a deep breath in an attempt to push through the pain.
“I wonder why that is? I've seen plenty of these pacts between werewolves before, but none so severe. It's almost like you're allergic to it or something.”
Other than it flaring up almost every day, which I could easily handle, the worst part about this marking was that it constantly reminded me of the damning fact that I was forever tied to the man who had ruined my entire life without batting as much as an eye. The only saving grace was that it also tied me to Zane.
Although I hadn't seen him in years, I would never forget the kindness he’d always shown me and my family. He’d even fought to get me out of prison the last time I saw him, even if it had been to no avail, he’d at least tried his hardest to make things right.
That aside, I had started to realize that, more often than not, the marking seemed to burn whenever my thoughts wandered back to Jax and how he’d betrayed me. The other times I would even find myself wondering whether it was maybe coming from his end as well, for those flare ups would always have an aftertaste of remorse to it…
Good. I hope the legion of demons his sins must have summoned will torment him until his last dying breath!
I looked back up at Rowan, determined not to let her see an ounce of pain on my face.
“I'm sorry, I wish there was a way to break the pact without having all three of you standing together in one place. I've looked into everything we have. Akil and I both have been looking. There’s just—” Rowan held out her hands, palms up, and shrugged as if to show how helpless she was. Then her hands curled into determined fists right after. “We’ll keep looking for a way, Lea.”
Have they really been worried about me that much?
“It's okay… It's actually a pretty effective reminder that I have a job to do. And when it's all said and done, that is what’s most important right now, isn’t it?” I forced a reassuring smile onto my face, which seemed to wipe away some of the tension in her shoulders.
“Right! But in the meantime, we should look into trying to cover it up. If Jax or anybody else who knows about the marking sees it, they're going to know it's you immediately.”
I’d been worried about that exact same thing. “I’ve come up with a solution for that… I think it's time for some—cosmetic commitment.”
Rowan's face twisted with confusion, and I couldn't help but giggle.
Lea would never get a tattoo, but Uremma is different.
“Know any good ink specialists in the city who aren’t likely to blab?”
L ater that same day, I went into the city in search of my discrete artist.
The tall white buildings surrounded me on either side as I made my way through alley after alley until I came across what appeared to be a tattoo parlor.
A Snarifim man was standing outside with a smoke stick protruding from his mouth. His long, scaly arms were decorated with black and white tattoos going all the way up to his neck. Although he looked rough, his clothing was made of very fine material.
His snake eyes flashed to me before he turned his head.
He raised his fingers to his mouth, plucking out the smoke stick between two fingers. “Hey there, are you looking for something?”
The way he smiled and tilted his head made me question him immediately. There wasn't a genuine emotion in his eyes.
I could tell, as he looked at me, that all he saw was money.
That wasn't the type of person I could trust with covering up my marking.
All it would take was the proper bribe amount, and he would sing like a canary.
“No, thank you.” I raised my hand and shook it from side to side as I sunk into my shoulders.
“Then stop gawkin’ and keep walkin’!” he shouted, pointing me in the direction opposite of his shop.
My face twisted, disgusted by how quickly his personality changed the moment he realized he wasn’t about to get anything from me.
At least I know my intuition still works.
I continued on through the city until the buildings began to change from beautiful pure white stone to older gray stone, and then the stone gave way to wood. I had clearly wandered into one of the city's less affluent areas, and found myself more at home than I had felt in many years.
Since no merchants were about, trying to sell their wares, it was quieter around these parts. They wouldn’t exactly get top money for their efforts around here, so likely stuck to the “nicer” sections closer to city central.
Instead, children were playing in the streets while the elderly were sitting at tables playing cards and laughing.
There was a peace here that I hadn't found anywhere else in the city before.
A flood of joy came over me.
An unfamiliar place that feels like home… There must be a word for that.
Just then, a splatter of blue powder hurtled onto my robe and the side of the building I was walking by.
My heightened senses were triggered, and I turned to the culprit with a low growl in my chest. My nails peeled away from my skin as claws formed.
That was until I saw who had thrown it.
Before me stood a young girl. Her blonde hair was wound up into tight curls, and her big brown eyes blinked at me tearfully.
My eyes scanned her up and down, getting caught on the satchel at her side. It was open. Was that where she’d pulled the powder from? I just stood before her, too stunned to move.
“Uh-oh.” She clenched her teeth together and turned as an older woman came running up behind her.
“Darby!” The older woman, likely the girl’s mother, grabbed a hold of the child and pulled her into her skirt. “I’m so sorry, miss! I told her she shouldn’t be playing with those powders out in the open like this.”
Darby was shaking at this point.
Why does she look so frightened?
“We don’t have money to replace your robes, but I know a wonderful cleaner.”
Confused by both their resigned and fearful gazes, looking at me as if they thought I was going to hit them or something, it took me a few seconds to realize that they were expecting me to punish them over this.
Oh, right. I probably look like a noble to them with these clothes on.
I wasn’t sure how to respond. I wanted to comfort them, but my social skills were a little more than rusty. So, I did the only thing that felt right.
A chuckle passed through my lips as I looked down at my robes. “I think it’s a rather astonishing shade of blue don’t you think?”
My eyes flashed up at Darby and winked. She smacked her little blue-stained hands over her mouth and giggled.
“In fact, I think this robe looks much better now than it did ever before.”
“Are you—sure it’s alright?” The mother’s breath was as uneven as her words, still clinging to her child protectively.
“No harm done. It’s just clothing after all. It doesn’t matter.”
She breathed out a sigh of relief, hunching over with a weak smile. “Goodness, you aren’t from around here I take it.”
A cold, nervous feeling dribbled over my skin. My eyes began to widen before I reminded myself to keep calm.
I laughed again, this time sounding less genuine than before. “Why would you say that?”
“Because people around here aren't very kind. Many people who live in the city value money over all else. We've seen many people disappear for much smaller transgressions than this one.” She frowned, looking down at her daughter as Darby looked up at her.
“Well, you don't have to worry about me. I'm not going to make anyone disappear.”
That's a lie. If given the option, I'll make Jax disappear to the dark cells of Ryklira to live through what I was forced to do there. And Diesel? Well, I’d like to see him disappear as well…permanently.
“You have no idea what a relief it is to hear that. I'm glad to see that some people in this city still have some sense of humanity.” The look of clarity on her face was unmistakable. She looked refreshed. “We better get going.”
Then I remembered my true purpose in coming this way. “Oh, just one moment. I was wondering if perhaps you could help me with something.”
“Of course, whatever you need.” She tilted her head, lending an ear to me and letting me know that she was listening.
“I'm looking for a tattoo artist, preferably someone who practices discretion. Can you point me in the right direction of someone like that?” I watched her confusion as she tried to figure out my reasoning behind needing such a person, but she decided to do me the courtesy of not pushing for more information.
“You're in luck. There’s a woman of many talents who lives right here in this part of the city. Just keep heading down the street until you hit the pier that runs beside the Red River. On the right, you'll find the Sulking Selkie . She's normally there around this time. Just ask for Dai.”
I had become familiar with the city since living there, but the outer city was still a mystery to me. For instance, I had no idea there was a fishing town right outside of Theskin.
“Thank you,” I smiled and turned to continue down the road.
“No, ma’am. Thank you .” She bowed her head and forced Darby to bow to me as well. “And if you ever need help again, my name is Selvana.”
“Selvana, got it. I’m Le—” Oh, hells! I almost gave myself away! “Uremma.”
“Lovely to meet you.” Her smile widened as she straightened from her bow.
I began making my way, following her directions all the way down to the pier.
“Woah.” I breathed in the cool, crisp air as the scenery before me took my breath away.
The river was a deep blue, and thrashed violently, glistening against the Solare. There were boats too, lined up along the dock.
I wasn't used to seeing anything like this. The nearest fishing village from Dask was miles away—much farther than I’d been willing to travel while growing up there.
I wish I could spend all my time sitting at the pier instead of working in that facility with that bastard.
Just the mere thought of him always ruined my whole mood.
I looked away from the beautiful sight, remembering why I was here in the first place. I tilted my head right, seeing that there were a few buildings overlooking the pier.
The building at the very end, however, was rowdy and drew all of my attention.
Oh… The Sulking Selkie is a tavern!
I would be lying if I said I wasn't intimidated. I had never experienced a “drinking hole” for myself before, but from what I’d heard about such places, only tough people tended to frequent it. I felt woefully unprepared.
What are you so afraid of? You spent the last seventeen years of your life in prison. Nothing is tougher than that.
I gave myself a pep talk in my head as I stood before the Sulking Selkie with my stomach in knots and my feet planted firmly to the ground.
Well, I can't stand out here forever… It’s okay. You got this.
A deep breath filled my lungs as I took the first step toward the tavern. Then another step followed the next until I found myself standing just at the entrance.
There! That wasn't so bad, was it?
I congratulated myself. That was until almost everyone in the establishment stopped what they were doing to turn and look at me.
If I had the ability to shrivel up and die, I would have done that right on the spot, but I made sure to keep my head held high as I walked up to the bar.
The tavern itself was huge inside, and consisted mostly of wood. It was filled with about sixty fishermen and other people who looked equally weathered and rough.
I could feel their eyes burning into the back of me as I leaned over the counter to get the bartender's attention. “Excuse me.”
I commanded his attention with my stern words, and he turned his head, looking surprised at me for a moment. I thought that was strange considering I didn't recognize the man.
He gave me a slight smile and made his way over. He looked at me so intensely that it made me nervous.
My heart began to pound in my chest and the only thing I could do to relieve it was focus on the way he wiped down the glasses.
“What are the odds?” The smile stretched wider across his face. His voice sounded incredibly familiar, yet I couldn't pinpoint why.
“Do I know you?” I raised my eyes to his, giving him a look relaying my confusion. That was when I recognized his warm brown eyes. “Oh! Emory Blake, was it?”
He looked at me so warmly, the way an old friend would. “You remembered.”
“It's difficult to forget someone who once accosted you at a party.” I leaned my head to the side, scrunching my nose sarcastically up at him.
This drew a laugh from him. “Fair enough. I am still sorry about that, you know, but I'll make it up to you now. Whatever you want, it's on the house.”
“I'm not here to drink. I'm looking for someone.” I remained focused and determined, even as I watched his expression deflate.
“That's unfortunate.” He pouted a bit as his eyes lowered to my lips, focusing on them for a moment before snapping back up to my eyes.
“Not like that!” I blurted out. “I'm looking for someone named Dai.”
His eyes reverted back to playfulness. “That I can help you with.” He pressed his elbows into the counter, leaning closer to me and pointing his finger across the tavern. “The tall woman with the pink hair and all the tattoos standing next to that table… That’s the person you're looking for.”
My eyes followed the invisible line his finger made until it locked on Dai. She stuck out like a sore thumb, which made me hesitate for an instant, for sticking out is the opposite of what I was aiming for with this.
I looked back at Emory and gave him a grateful nod. “I guess I'll see you around.”
“I hope so.” His voice deepened, and his eye contact was unrelenting. It was as if he was trying to tell me something.
I furrowed my brows in confusion as I left the bar to make my way over to Dai. She noticed me walking in her direction after only a few steps.
She squinted her eyes at me before turning entirely to face me with her arms crossed and her feet spread apart in a power stance. “Can I help you with something?”
I raised my fist to my mouth and cleared my throat. “Are you open for business today? You come highly recommended.”
She scoffed as her eyes looked me up and down. “I think you're lost. Why would someone like you want a tattoo from the likes of me? There are plenty of artists in the city that would be more than happy to take your coin.”
I hated that she saw me as different from her. The truth was, we were the same. I didn't belong with those people in the city. “I don't want them. I want you. Whatever you're charging, I'll pay double.”
Her ears perked up, and she set down her drink on the table. “Now you're speaking my language. Come with me.”
She motioned for me to follow her.
I didn't realize how tall she was until she walked past me. She had to have been easily over eight feet. Every one of her footfalls caused a reverberation through the weak floorboards beneath my soles. She was magnificent.
I followed her to the back of the tavern behind the curtain. There was a little room with a padded mat in the middle of the floor.
“Take a seat,” she demanded as she went into another room.
I stared down at the padded mat, absentmindedly listening to the clanking and jostling of metals and glass in the background.
No wonder I didn't see her shop. Technically, there isn't one!
As the giant woman walked back into the room, I quickly sat down on the padded mat. I had made it just as she entered the room.
“So what's with the sudden desire for one of my expert tattoos? Bored of the stuck-up, rich life?” Her humorless chuckle rumbled within her chest as she moved around little glass bottles of ink.
“Yes, actually.”
Her expression changed completely in response.
“You seem surprised.” I kept my voice monotone, raising a delicate eyebrow at her.
“I never thought I'd see the day… Did you grow up around here?” There was something about her deep voice that soothed me.
The entire time I'd been back, no one—other than Rowan, of course—had shown any interest in getting to know me on a more personal level. It was a good thing I supposed, but also maybe somewhat disappointing.
Rowan, Akil, and I had spent weeks coming up with an airtight backstory for me, only for no one to ever bother to ask me about it. It was probably why a tingle of excitement sparked through me for a second.
“No, I didn't. I'm new to Anterra. I was able to move here due to my skills as a Potionist.” I smiled at her. I hardly knew this woman, and yet I felt closer to her than most people I had met.
“Impressive. I guess that means my tricks aren't going to impress you.” She snickered as she drew the ink out of the bottle with just her fingers.
I watched in silent awe as the black liquid levitated in the air above her hand, a bluish-purple aura glowing around it.
She tipped out another ink bottle, and it joined the ink forming in the air. “What were we looking for today?”
“Oh!” I looked around nervously. “I guess I didn’t get that far in my head yet. I just wanted to cover this up.”
I pulled down the sleeve of my robe, revealing the marking burned into my shoulder.
Her eyes narrowed at the marking, staring at it for far longer than what I was comfortable with. Did she recognize it? There was no way. Then she spoke, putting me at ease.
“Why would you want to cover up a beautiful thing like that? A strong werewolf pact is rare, you know? This one seems to have transcended much time.”
“I don't care. It's bad enough that I have to feel it there, I don't want to look at it.”
She stopped pushing the moment she saw the look on my face. “Alright. I'm no one to judge anyone's past. Let's get this thing covered up then… All you have to do is imagine it, picture it in your mind, and I'll create it.”
I relaxed my thoughts, trying to imagine how I wanted the tattoo to look.
The first thing I thought of was the herbs my parents used to hang in the window. A static sort of sensation began forming around where my marking was, but my focus on what she was doing broke as I fell deeper into my imagination.
I could practically smell the herbs drying on the window sill. I could hear Mema shuffling around in the kitchen. Somewhere in the distance, I could hear a baby crying.
Jason…
A burning pressure built behind my eyelids, but I forced the tears back. My whole body ached as I felt myself coming undone. I’d buried these emotions so deep inside me, focusing only on my hatred to get me through, but now they were threatening to burst out?—
A stinging pain began biting into my shoulder where my marking was. It wasn't a feeling I had ever felt there before.
I felt like I was being stabbed with a thousand tiny needles. Of course, this was nothing compared to the torture I had endured while at Ryklira. I opened my eyes and looked over to Dai.
Her eyes were glowing with a vibrant azure blue. Her nails were extended to fine points as they dug into my skin.
The ink flowed around her like a stream that didn't have to adhere to gravity.
“There!” she exclaimed, guiding all the ink back into their glass bottles.
I turned to her with a somber look. “But I didn't say anything.”
How could she have possibly known?
“You didn't have to say anything. I could see what you were imagining. Then I created something that paid homage to that.” She gave me a friendly smile, but there was something that was still intimidating about it.
A nervousness came over me and I had to swallow the lump in my throat before I spoke. “What do you mean? You could see inside my head?”
Her smile softened solemnly before she nodded.
That means that she saw Dask. She saw where I came from, and she could blab if she wanted to.
“You don't have to worry about me. I'm not in the business of betraying my clients for a quick coin. What you're doing here is your own business… But for what it's worth, I'm sorry for your losses. I can't imagine what you've been through.” She looked down at her nails as they rescinded back into her body.
“Thank you. What do I owe you?” I reached for my coin purse, but she held up her hands.
“Don't worry about it. I wouldn't feel right taking your money.” She gathered up her supplies and carried them over into the other room.
I took that time to bring myself to my feet.
She came back with a mirror in hand and held it up to my shoulder. “What do you think?”
I glanced into the reflected image, only able to view it for a few moments before my eyes welled up with tears. I tried to blink away my blurry vision, but it was useless.
From what I had seen of the tattoo, there was a wreath of herbs surrounding the marking. The herbs then swirled in on each other, filling in everything in the middle and completely covering the marking. “It's perfect.”
“Glad you like it. Now, if you don't mind me going back to my evening of drinking.” Her demeanor quickly changed, reverting back to her strong, nonchalant attitude. Before she made her way out, though, she turned, looking over her shoulder. “Take care of yourself out there. The city is not kind to people like us. Especially those that are pretending.”
My stomach churned at the thought.
Now someone knows my secret. Maybe not all of it, but enough. All I can do is hope that she keeps her word.
I untied my coin purse from my hip and dropped the bag full of gold coins on her counter before leaving. I made my way through the tavern, locking eyes with Emory Blake as I passed him.
His lips parted as if he wanted to tell me something, but I was much too far away for his voice to reach me over the cacophony of the merry crowd. Then he closed his mouth and gave me a slight nod right before I stepped outside.
It was already getting dark outside, and all the fishermen seemed to have left their stations for the day.
The pier was largely empty, except for a young man sitting on top of the pier wall, scribbling in a book.
There was something about him that resonated with a younger version of myself.
I couldn't help but laugh.
He glanced over at me as I passed him. “Are you laughing at me?”
“Perhaps. What are you doing out here by yourself?” There was something familiar about this young man, but I couldn't pinpoint it.
“It's the only place that's quiet.” He was a werewolf. That I was sure of. But his scent… For some reason, he smelled like home.
I shook my head, mentally knocking sense into it as I did. “What are you scribbling in that book? Little doodles?” I poked fun at him, and he quickly got flustered.
“As if. I'm not a child. I'm writing serious potions. I'm going to be a great Potionist someday!” He declared with gusto, a charming smile breaking across his handsome face.
“You remind me a lot of me when I was your age… I used to have my nose stuck in my notebook all day, dreaming of becoming a great Potionist as well.” I smiled, even though the thought made me somber now.
He snapped his book closed and looked at me curiously. “Really? That gives me hope. I can see you did very well for yourself.”
I looked down at my expensive robes. It was all a lie. “Yeah…I guess.”
I couldn’t make my eyes rise again. I didn’t know why, but I simply couldn't face the stranger anymore. Lying to him brought me a strong sense of shame. “I'll be on my way now.”
I turned away from him before he could respond and continued walking.
“Oh, okay.” He sounded disappointed.
For some reason, it broke my heart.
What's wrong with me?
I hadn't had trouble lying to anyone before.
I dismissed it with a shrug, and continued walking home in silence. But the heaviness of my disappointment weighed on my shoulders, the stinging of my new tattoo a helpful distraction.