Page 108

"Ifi? Elal?" I walk over to them and they turn, smiling, and dim their fires until they look almost human. Ifi, the smaller one, is dressed in a white lab coat and Elal, the taller and more musical of the two, is wearing a dark cloak and slacks underneath. They both have burnt orange-red skin and red hair that looks impossible to tame. Their eyes glow like mini suns and it's almost hard to maintain eye contact with them for long with how intense their gazes are. "What are you two doing here?"

Ifi glances at his feet and I see the body on the ground.

"Ah," I say, solemnly. "I didn't realize there were casualties."

Ifi walks over and hugs me. Fortunately, he's not covered in body goo this time. "Girlfriend, there are always casualties in life. And this is a mess of one. I know I say this a lot, but I really mean it. It has been a day. Has it not, Elal?"

Elal joins his lover and nods. "Ifi isn't exaggerating this time. It has, indeed, been a day."

Then Ifi frowns, gripping my arms. "We heard about Liam and are so sorry. How's that sweet little girl doing?" he asks.

Ifi and Elal took care of Alina after Mary's death, so of course it makes sense they would have a bond with her. "She's well. She wasn't hurt in the explosion. Seems she got her dad's penchant for fire-immunity," I say. "But I'm sure she misses you. You should come for a visit soon."

Ifi claps his hands in delight. "Yes, please and thank you." He looks to Elal. "I think we need a baby, lover. I miss Alina, don't you?"

Elal puts an arm over Ifi's shoulder. "I do miss her. And maybe it is time to expand our family."

I'm dying to ask what the process is for two gay Ifrits to have a child in the Otherworld, but one: that seems rude and inappropriate, and two: I just now notice the details of the body at their feet and I have so. Many. Questions.

The Enforcer is more creature than person. Very whip-like with hair made of tiny serpents, now dead, and a body that ends not in feet but in a long snake form wrapped in a black Enforcer uniform. Their eyes are also blindfolded. "Why are their eyes covered?" I ask.

"My dear, that is a basilisk," Ifi says. "One look into her eyes would paralyze you."

"So, she wore this while alive?"

"Yes," Elal says. "Else she would make a very ineffective guard, paralyzing everyone she saw."

Sebastian joins us, laying a hand on my back. "I've battled a rogue basilisk in the past. They are not ones to trifle with."

"How could she see anything if she was always blindfolded?"

"Their other senses are extremely honed," Elal says. "She was especially gifted. Top of her class at the academy. Her name was Ethne Brinn. She was 6'7", single, parents deceased."

Sebastian crouches to examine the body more closely. "Cause of death?"

"Stabbed in the bloody chest," Ifi says dramatically. "And the skin around the puncture wound is black, indicating it's decaying faster than the rest of the body."

"Like those black marks on the wall," I say, noting the similarities.

Sebastian nods. "This was dark magic. Not something you see often anymore." He glances at the marks on the wall and frowns. "Where are the other victims?"

"There are no other victims," Elal says. "Just her."

"Only one person was left to guard the egg?" Sebastian says in disbelief. "That seems highly reckless."

Elal nods. "There are usually a few more guards from the Elite, but the attack happened during a shift change, apparently."

Derek pauses his examination of the nest to listen to our conversation, though he doesn't join us. He's still pissed, clearly. I don't blame him.

"This was well-planned," I say, thinking things through.

Sebastian nods. "At first I thought whoever did this took advantage of the explosion at the courthouse. A bit coincidental but possible. But this happening during a shift change makes that unlikely. The timing is too perfect. The crimes must be related."

"These are dark times," says Ifi, shivering. "Earthquakes. Fires. Storms. Missing corpses."

"Wait, what? Corpses have gone missing?" I ask.

Elal nods. "Someone has been breaking into the morgue and stealing the bodies. Particularly, rare races."