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“We finally have access to the crime scene where Frida Clemens was killed. I haven’t seen it yet, but I want you to let me know if you sense any magical residue or evidence of spellwork.”

Shit. “Okay.”

His nostrils flare, but he doesn’t look at me. “If this is too much, you can wait in the car.”

I steel myself for whatever I’m about to see. Her body won’t still be there; I know that much. “The bastard who did this needs to be caught. I don’t know if I’ll be any help, but I want to try.”

This is exactly the chance Nyoka wouldn’t give me. Well, not seeing a murder scene exactly, but the opportunity to make a difference.

Ethan considers me for a moment, then gets out of the car. I follow him towards a narrow back alley blocked off with human police tape. As soon as we get close, I recognise the leopard shifter in the human police uniform guarding the scene.

My smile is a little forced considering the circumstances. “Jack, how’s it going?”

Jack greets me with a bro hug. “Hey, what are you doing here? Nyoka finally let you off the leash?”

“Not in this lifetime, bro. Nah, this is my new boss, Ethan Lupo of Soldati Security. You got us on your access list?”

Jack’s nostrils flare as he assesses Ethan, but ultimately nods. “Yeah, you can both go past. Your fam haven’t been here yet. Should be an uncontaminated scene. Keep it that way, yeah?”

“Yeah, I got you. No worries.” I duck under the tape with Ethan, very aware that he stayed silent throughout that entire interaction.

I wait until we get far enough down the alley that Jack can’t hear us. “Jack doesn’t like wolves, but if you need any deets from him, let me know and I’ll ask.”

Ethan’s jaw remains firm, and he gives me a sharp nod. “Noted.”

It’s not exactly a thank-you, but baby steps. If the man is concerned about my loyalties or confidentiality, I’m not going to win him over in a day.

A bit further on, we both stop at the same time.

Faint bloodstains streak the cobbles despite last night’s rain, and my magic tingles unhappily.

I don’t know how long I stare at the same spot while Ethan moves around the area, alternating between inhaling and examining things without touching them. Eventually, he comes back over to me.

“What do you sense?” His voice is quiet, respectful.

I blink a few times and manage to meet his eyes. “She didn’t die in this spot.”

“Elaborate.”

“A magical death leaves a residue. It varies in intensity depending on the power level of the magic-user, the location where they died, and how recently the body was in a specific place. As a witch, Frida didn’t have a lot of magical power, but it was enough that if she’d been killed in this alley there’d be a lot more residue than there is.

There’s death here… but not enough. Fuck, that probably doesn’t make sense.

” I press my palm to where my focus lies under my shirt, not sure how to explain it better.

Ethan turns and studies the spot I’ve been staring at. “It makes more sense than you’d think. Based on the way she was killed, there would be a lot more blood if she’d died here. Either the bloodstains would cover a larger area, or rain would have washed all of it away before it dried.”

“How was she killed?” I immediately regret my question.

Thankfully, Ethan just scowls. “Later. I can smell a small amount of magic that isn’t yours, but it’s barely there. I’m not getting any distinct species scents. Is there any evidence she tried to defend herself magically?”

I shake my head. “If she did, it wasn’t here. It would have been difficult unless she had a charm on her, though. Witches need time to prepare the spells they perform, as well as the right ingredients.”

Ethan nods, expression thoughtful. “I think we’ve done all we can here.

I want you to walk around this area with me.

Talk me through any supe businesses, discreetly of course, and any reason a witch might have had for being in this part of the neutral zone late at night.

While it seems likely she didn’t die here, there may be a reason her body was dumped in this location, or she may have been killed close by. ”

“Of course.” My voice comes out a little hoarse, and Ethan eyes me. “I’m fine.”

We spend the rest of the afternoon walking around the area, with me talking Ethan through what and who I know. There’s nothing that would explain Frida being in this part of town late at night, but since we don’t know if she was even here when she was killed, that doesn’t narrow things down much.

Fuck me though, I did not expect my first day to include working with my boss on the very murder investigation I wanted to assist the task force with. At least it’s distracted me from how attractive Ethan is, so I haven’t made a complete fool of myself in front of him.

When we’re in his SUV on the way back to the office in West Green, he turns the music down. “How is it you know details of how much magical residue remains after death? It’s not something I’d expect a twenty-year-old admin to know.”

A chill runs through me. I really wish I didn’t have to answer, but it’s a fair question.

“My cousin, Qadir, died from a brain aneurysm rupture just before I turned sixteen. He was my guardian, and because he died in our home, there was all this weird magical residue that hung around afterwards. I got kind of obsessed with reading up about death residue for a couple of months until Nyoka sat me down and told me I was starting an apprenticeship.”

Ethan’s hands tighten on the wheel. “If this is bringing up too many bad memories, I can keep you away from the details.”

Does he mean because of Qadir? Or did the background check Soldati Security undoubtedly did on me flag up that my parents were killed in a rogue shifter attack?

Either way, it doesn’t change anything. I stare out the passenger window at the humans rushing about their days. “It’s hard, not gonna lie, but I came here to do my job to the best of my ability. If this is what you guys need from me, I’ll help in any way I can.”

Ethan doesn’t say anything else until we pull into his parking space in the basement car park of the office building.

He switches off the engine, then turns to me.

“You’ve been a lot more open and helpful than I was expecting.

I still don’t know if I trust you, but if you can handle being part of this investigation, your knowledge of the city and the people in it will be extremely valuable. ”

His presence fills the car, and for a moment, I get lost in those blue eyes. Don’t get a crush on the boss, numbnuts.

I blink a couple of times and focus on answering him.

“I get why trusting me might be hard. Truth, though? I really want to be a part of stopping whoever is murdering my people. Nyoka won’t let me; you will.

As long as you don’t ask me to go against the fam, you’ve got my loyalty.

I’ll keep all the secrets. I’m a literal vault. ”

I might have gone a bit far at the end there, but it does tease a reluctant smile out of my wolf boss. “A vault, huh?”

“Absolutely. Ask anyone.”

He laughs out loud at that. “If I ask anyone in the city about you, what are the chances they’ll tell me anything? Because if they were being open and honest with me and my team, we wouldn’t have needed you in the first place.”

“Eh, you may have a point.” I don’t have any way of convincing Ethan other than time, but as we head up in the lift he does seem less tense around me than before, which in turn takes away the edge of nerves I’ve been battling for most of the day.

I’ll convince my hot new boss to trust me if it’s the last thing I do.