Chapter Twenty-Six
After directing Vorren and Nazek where to meet them, Dailey and Payton teleported to Elara’s old apartment.
“It’s now or never,” she said, preparing to test her seductive siren charms. If still active, they needed to hightail it back to the cabin. Though Dailey wouldn’t be heartbroken to be there alone with her. They hadn’t had any true privacy except at Drakoryth’s Castle.
He experienced a slight trepidation when she unlocked the slider and opened the door, but he shoved his anxiety aside. Together, they stepped out on the porch overlooking town.
Dailey was struck by how little time had passed since he attempted to arrest her and that exact second.
Christmas was still days away, and tourists crowded the sidewalks of Main Street.
Festive music floated up, and from their spot, they could see the three-story tree decked out in all its holiday finery.
Payton sighed. “I love this view.”
“Me, too.”
His condo was across the thoroughfare, diagonal to this one.
Unfortunately, it didn’t boast the unobstructed views of town.
Although he’d had opportunities, he hadn’t upgraded.
As to why, he’d freely admit to being a sentimental fool.
There, he felt closer to Payton than anywhere else.
If they eventually decide to move forward together as a couple, it might be best to get rid of anything tying them to their old relationship.
“Isn’t that Doctor Weatherspoon waving at us?” With a frown, Payton leaned farther over the rail. “Does she seem frantic to you?”
“She does.” Dailey eased her away from the edge and dropped a soft, lingering kiss on her lips. “I’ll see what she wants and be right back. Please stay here. If things turn weird, head back to the cabin.”
“I’m going with you.”
“Pay—”
Gripping his jaw, she turned his face toward the street. “What do you see, Lee?”
“A very fucking crowded town and danger lurking around every corner.”
She laughed. “Yes, to the first part, and no, to the second. You’re paranoid now.”
“Okay, I give up. What am I missing?”
“The shifters are going about their business. They haven’t stopped to sniff the air, and no one but your doctor friend is trying to get our attention.” She grinned. “Archer is resting atop the building across from us, with Cecil and Greer on the adjoining rooftops.”
He scanned their surroundings with a practiced eye.
“You’re right. The dragon brothers are lounging in the doorways on either side of the entrance.”
“I’m safe, Lee.”
Her excitement was contagious, and he chuckled at her happy dance.
“All right. Let’s go meet with Hope.”
She flagged them down as they exited the lobby. “Lee! Payton!”
Although Payton frowned, she didn’t remark on the use of the nickname, and he was grateful she decided to let it slide.
“What’s going on, Hope?” he asked
“I overheard my mother and my Uncle Orson—” she began.
“Orson?” he cut in sharply. “Orson Camden? He’s your uncle?”
Today, of all days, it was too much of a coincidence. Because of their prior intimacy, finding out she was a Camden felt like a betrayal of sorts. Why hadn’t she told him?
Eyes wide and wary, Hope appeared taken aback by his aggression. “Yes. My mother is his twin sister, Ophelia. I’m sorry. I thought you knew.”
“I don’t recall you ever mentioning it.”
“Camden?” Payton asked, her eyes widening as she made the connection.
“Yes. Why are you both acting like you’re hearing the name for the first time?” Hope asked, her bewilderment showing. “My family has been here for generations.”
“It doesn’t matter,” he replied. He fell back on his police training, determined not to reveal what he knew. At the same time, he had to be smart and pry information out of her. “What’s this about your mother and uncle?”
“They were discussing your mother, Lee.” Her expression reflected her worry. “I think they are planning to use her in some way. They dropped your name, too, but I can’t be sure of what I overheard.”
“Start from the top. What was said?” he asked, suppressing his alarm.
“They began arguing after Mother said she hadn’t been able to locate Mary-Alice.
She claimed she had scryed in addition to using a location spell.
” She wrung her hands. “She narrowed your Mother’s whereabouts to this block and told Uncle Orson she intended to start searching at the town square.
I don’t have a good feeling about this, Lee. We must get to her first.”
“Fuck!” He heaved a sigh. Yes, the Triad problem existed, but he’d hoped to have more time before shit blew up in his face. “Okay, I’ll take it from here. Thanks.”
Her agitation grew with every word he spoke, and he felt like a total dick for his suspicions. She shivered before casting a glance behind her and freezing in place.
Following her gaze, Dailey spotted Orson Camden heading their way. His visage was a mask of barely controlled violence.
“Payton, take Hope upstairs.”
“No time.” She moved in front of them and raised her arms at the exact instant green mist rose from the sidewalk grates, encircling them.
He swore as he reached for her, but she sidestepped.
“Incapsulare!” she called out.
A clear, full-body gel-like substance coated him from head to toe.
The instant panic associated with not breathing shot through him, and he struggled against the fear.
Succumbing and losing his mind would only make things worse.
Yet despite his logic, his body had other ideas, forcing him to claw at his face.
Unable to hold his breath another second, he gasped.
The surprise came in the form of air to his lungs, and he greedily drank it in.
Hope was in a similar state, and in her frantic mindset, she tore at her protective covering.
“You can breathe,” he shouted to her, praying the sound would carry to her.
Orson reached them, halting in front of Payton. His ruddy complexion was more flushed than usual. Promised retribution was there in his beady eyes.
Dailey fought like hell to get to them, but the most minute movement was like running in water against the current, and he couldn’t gain traction. Helpless, he could only stand aside while the coming drama played out.
“You foolish girl!” Orson snarled. “You’ve ruined everything! Why couldn’t you stay gone?”
Payton crossed her arms and tapped her toe. Her expression was one of cool indifference. “What did I ruin, you naked mole rat?”
In fairness to her, the man did resemble a naked mole with his squinty eyes and odd-shaped bald head. He wasn’t overly tall, leaning toward short and stout, with stubby arms and splayed fingers. His cherry-red nose was long, yet pointy and upturned on the end.
Dailey curbed his desire to laugh. Leave it to Payton to point out what others missed.
“You dare!” Orson sputtered.
“Yep, quite a bit,” she said with a bored study of her nails.
She ignored the poisonous gas rising around her. Right as Dailey’s worry for her reached a fever pitch, the diamonds on her shoes flickered to life. The mist reversed course, weaving around Orson and inching ever higher.
Was he wrong? Had Payton been the one to create the toxin? Dailey immediately rejected the notion.
From down the block, a woman cried out. “Orson, no!”
But it was too late, and the mist had closed around his throat, choking him.
Vorren and Nazek appeared on either side of Dailey like magical mob enforcers. “You want we should stop this?” The only thing missing was the New York street thug accent.
Hermes stepped from the shadows, and a mere twirl of his finger put Orson in a trance-like state. To Vorren, he said, “You can return to your Easter egg hunt, Pyro. I’ve got this one.”
“Better send Tripp after this guy’s sister,” Payton replied, tipping her chin in the direction of Orphelia. “She took off as soon as Dragon Daddy joined us.”
“She’s not who we’re after. It’s the other two members of the Triad who have been a bit more elusive.”
Payton nodded as she snapped her fingers. His protective gel shell dissolved into a puddle of clear liquid at Dailey’s feet, and Hope’s soon followed.
As soon as he was free, he stormed over and wrapped Paton in a bear hug.
“Don’t do that again,” he ordered in a low voice. “My heart can’t take it.”
She smiled and patted his chest. “You have to ask yourself, which of the two of us can withstand toxic air?”
“Valid, but how did you know it was imminent?”
Frowning, she shook her head. “I’m not exactly sure. Maybe it’s the same way Hermes can sense I’m in trouble?”
“It’s atmospheric change, Sergeant Straightlace,” the Trickster explained. “Gods—and Titans—are attuned to minuscule anomalies in their environment. It’s instinctive. Our sixth sense kicks in, and we shift into a natural protective mode for those we care about.”
“But that’s not always the case,” Payton argued. “There have been many times the deities haven’t bothered to intervene.”
“Gods are big on mortals learning lessons,” he replied with a careless shrug. Turning to Hope, he asked, “Why would your family want Payton out of the way?”
She appeared adorably confused. “How would I know?”
“I think I do,” Dailey said slowly. As the reason took shape in his mind, he became sure of it. “They wanted Payton out of the way so I could marry Hope.”
“Me?” Hope gasped.
“A Camdon-Cobb union!” Payton exclaimed. “It would be a splendid merging of the town’s most powerful families.” She shot him a laughing glance from beneath her lashes. “I’m surprised Mary-Alice didn’t break a hip jumping up and down in her joy at the idea of Hope as a daughter-in-law.”
“That makes no sense. Everyone knows he loves you,” Hope protested.
“Not everyone.” He grimaced. “There are those convinced absence doesn’t make the heart fonder, and they went about feeding my bitterness.”
“So that if I returned, you’d hate me,” Payton said softly, her eyes regretful. “I’m so sorry I made you a target, Lee.”
“You didn’t. They, however, made a grave error.” He tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear, stroking the delicate shell in the process. “I would never marry anyone but you, Wildfire. Their hopes for a union between Hope and me were in vain.”
“Gee, thanks.” But the good doctor didn’t appear broken up by his comment. In fact, she looked amused.
Payton snorted, and she cast a laughing glance Hope’s way. “Neither of you was willing, though I’m sure you may have gotten there had all his emotions been intact. Right?”
“Probably.” Hope wry smile was self-directed. Stretching on tiptoe, she kissed Dailey’s cheek. “Be happy, Lee.” She shifted back toward Payton. “I still expect a girls’ night with margaritas now that you’ll be hanging around.”
“I never claimed I was,” Payton protested, and Dailey’s heart stalled until she added, “But the first round is on you, Doc.”
“We’ll charge it to my Camden credit card. Restitution on their behalf.” Sincerity shone in her coppery gaze. “I’m sorry for all the grief my family has caused you both. Please don’t hesitate to call if I can do anything to make up for their poor behavior.”
Dailey shared a look with Payton and Hermes. He wasn’t prepared to let her go without a clear warning regarding what the perpetrators would face for their crimes, regardless of connection.
“I get that they’re your family, Hope, but they can’t go around dominating people, rearranging outcomes to suit them as they have.”
“I know. They’re focused on dynastic greatness.” She shook her head. “For them, it’s all about advantageous unions. Their ambition and desire for excess wealth far surpass any morals they may have once had.”
“Can you tell us what we’re dealing with here, or how to break their hold?”
“I wish I could. If I uncover anything, I’ll contact you right away.
” She’d taken four steps before backtracking.
“I recall my mother once discussed a maze of tunnels under Witchmere. It was back when I was a child. Maybe ten or twelve. I wouldn’t swear to it, but I’m pretty sure the basement under the Camden Investment building interconnects with them all. ”
Tingling started along Dailey’s spine. “Like the one under City Hall.”
“There is a tunnel throughway under us?” Payton’s eyes lit with interest, and she eyed the buildings around them. “I wonder how many of these places open into it?”
“All of them,” answered the gravelly voice of Archer Roche. He approached, adding, “Every last one has a hidden passageway. It was how we, the magical residents, traversed prior to the charming of alleyways.”
“Clever,” Hope murmured, casting him a smile. “Maybe you’d like to go for coffee one day, and you can tell me more about this place.”
His smile was noncommittal.
Dailey imagined Archer’s lack of interest had to do with Rowan’s sister, Katie. More than once, he’d caught the gargoyle sending her pining glances. The guy consumed a helluva lot of soup from her shop, Serendipity, for a man of his muscular stature.
“The clan and I will find the Camdens if they emerge from their underground lair,” Archer promised.
Dailey could swear the man’s eye twitched as he suggested the alternative.
“You can always see if those overgrown lizards will hunt below. They are little better than sewer rats and may have an advantage.”
So saying he disappeared as soundlessly as he arrived.
“He’s already taken, isn’t he?” Hope said with a defeated sigh. “My radar is broken, and I always pick the unavailable ones.”
Hermes flashed her a grin. “I am—”
“Don’t go there,” Dailey warned, cutting him off. “You’ll get a story, a rash, and regret. In no particular order.”
With a good-natured laugh, the Trickster gestured to Orson. “Where is the best holding cell for his kind?”
“Follow me.”