Page 17

Hazel

I was still sitting there, mulling over the fact that Liam basically just told me that if a bunch of the wizards on WEC ended up dead or mangled one morning, he and Seth would be prime suspects, when my phone rang from the sling bag I used as a purse.

Mike’s dopey grin blinked back at me from the screen. I picked up.

“What’s up, loser?” I asked.

“The ceiling.”

I rolled my eyes. “Ugh!”

“How you feeling, Sarah?”

Hayes calling me by my middle name reminded me of how strange it was that Liam and Seth called me Hazel or whatever nickname they decided to give me.

I’d been Sarah since I’d stepped foot in Darlington, and while part of it was because Hazel was too close to Hayes, it was also because I had a negative connotation from my first name mostly because it reminded me of my parents fighting.

But I found that it wasn’t so bad now, especially coming from Seth and Liam.

They didn’t fight the way my parents had fought.

Their relationship was strange, sure, but healthy.

“Meh. Still have a headache, you?”

“Yeah, still do. How’s the wizard treating you? I couldn’t believe Chief agreed to let him watch over you. I told him we had a guest room. It’s not too late now. If you want to, you can come over.”

Mike was worried about me. That was sweet, but I was afraid of answering his question lest he figure out something was happening between Seth, Liam, and me.

I knew I was a shitty liar, but I also felt like I couldn’t tell him the truth.

Firstly, because he was my partner, and whatever was happening here was definitely unprofessional.

But also because Mike kind of viewed me like a little sister he never had, and I was sure that if he knew what was happening, he wouldn’t hesitate to start a fight.

“I’m fine,” I said noncommittally. “He’s actually not a jerk all the time. I know, it’s surprising.” There, that was believable, right?

“Well, if you need me to remove any body parts, just holler.”

I chuckled. “You got it.”

“And remember, if you decide you’d rather recover here with me, the offer still stands.”

“I don’t think your wife would appreciate that at all.”

“She wouldn’t, but I don’t trust that wizard. And I trust his demon even less.”

“Liam’s actually the gentleman in the outfit.”

“Huh, I guess that makes sense to have the patience to deal with Seth.”

There was a beep on the line, and I checked and saw that it was Chief calling. “That’s Chief now. Gotta go. Bye, loser.” I picked up the incoming call. “Hey, Chief.”

“Cooley! How’s that head of yours?”

“It’s better,” I said, hoping that he couldn’t hear the lie through the phone.

“Bullshit,” he said. “Seriously, how’s the head?”

Ugh! Why did he always know?

“Like I said, it’s better,” I insisted. “It’s not perfect, but it’s not like the first day either.” At least that part was the truth. “Sometimes the headache goes away completely.”

Like when Liam and Seth were all over me, but I kept that detail to myself.

“I heard you guys are short-handed,” I said, attempting to lead the conversation away from me and my head.

“We are,” Chief said. “We had to spare quite a number of officers to watch The Breach since we can’t have anyone with active magic near it.

Did you know they started calling it the ‘wizard swallower?’ That means the EA is at a disadvantage for once.

Usually, it would be fine, but it’s like all the troublemakers knew what was happening and timed their shenanigans all at once.

We had another jewelry store robbery yesterday.

The idiots almost got away too. And I heard through the grapevine that the EA head office is sending some big shot from Rome to take over the case.

They think we’re not doing enough to—” Chief cut himself off.

“Anyway, it’s nothing for you to worry about. Just focus on getting better.”

“I’m sure Mike and I will be back soon.”

“I hope so. But don’t push it. I only want you two back when you are fully ready. No lying about shit so you can get back to work early, ya hear me?”

“I wouldn’t dream of it, Chief.”

Satisfied, he told me to get some rest and hung up.

With nothing else to do, I turned my attention over to Liam, who was sitting in front of a fancy gaming setup, swearing into a headset.

I mused over his words from before. It didn’t surprise me that Seth’s head went to dark places when left to its own devices.

In my profession, I’d run into the WEC plenty of times.

Those wizards really did act like they owned the world and everyone else was there to cater to them.

Growing up with one as a father would’ve been fucked up.

A few years ago, they’d been the masterminds of a plot to kidnap dozens of women to use their untapped magic and life force to power a spell to bring back The Wall.

It turned out it was a lot easier to control the world when no one knew about magic and couldn’t see that they were manipulating everything, from the church to politicians to large corporations.

Police departments worldwide had even had to fire several prominent figures after The Wall fell when it was discovered that they’d been using their powers to cover up large scandals.

When forced to choose between the WEC and their positions on the police force, it became abundantly clear where their loyalty lay.

I wondered if I’d be tempted to destroy the organization and everything in it, too, if I had the ability. And Seth had had to deal with this his entire life; he’d seen what it had done to his mother.

A shimmering between me and the giant flat-screen TV caught my attention. Moments later, Seth was stepping through a portal. Unlike some of the portals I’d seen on the internet, this one shimmered with darkness almost reminiscent of The Breach.

“Miss me?”

“Not a bit,” I said. To which he just grinned.

“Coming!” Liam yelled from his computer. “I’m almost done with my game!”

Seth came to sit next to me instead, and I wrinkled my nose at the strange smell emanating from him. Where had I smelled that before? It was almost like ozone, but not quite.

Seth reached under the coffee table and brought out a stack of menus. “Let’s look for lunch; what are you craving? We can order in, or I can take you out. And if there’s nothing you want at the restaurants, I can call my chef and have him whip up something you want.”

“You have a chef?”

“Kinda. We don’t use him as much as we should anymore.”

“What the hell? You smell like The Breach,” Liam said, approaching us and looking quite upset.

“Oh! That’s what he smells like!”

“Why the fuck were you at The Breach? I thought Desmon said to stay away.”

Seth waved his hand as if brushing off Liam’s worry.

“Desmon wanted to know why The Breach affected some magic users and not others. I didn’t throw myself into it the first time, so he sent me along with two of the Redrock brothers.

I was protected by magical shields so they could haul me back if I looked like I was about to throw myself in. ”

I realized the magical shields were to protect the two gargoyles from Seth should he turn on them mid-mission.

“I still don’t like it.”

I was reminded of how Chief had just told me they’d nicknamed The Breach the “wizard swallower.” Maybe it was best I didn’t bring that up in front of Liam. “I think I agree with Liam on this one,” I said. “You might have come back this time, but you may not be immune to it.”

“Oh, I know I’m not immune.”

“No?”

“I heard it calling to me. But I ignored it.”

“Interesting.” I tried to ignore the growing frown on Liam’s face, which told me that he didn’t find it nearly as interesting as I did. “Did it call to you the first time?”

“Yes, but I didn’t recognize it at the time. It was just noise, a buzzing. But I heard it loud and clear this time. It was a feminine voice. She was lonely and wanted me to join her.”

I felt a little stab of jealousy at the thought that some interdimensional hussy was trying to get her claws on my wizard, which was ridiculous, because Seth wasn’t mine. But he was Liam’s, and Liam reacted.

“You’d better have told her to get lost,” Liam said, pouting.

“I told her kindly that I was already taken. I have plenty anchoring me to this world.” Seth stood and went over to the still clearly upset demon and wrapped his arms around him.

“I tried to ask her questions, but she wouldn’t really answer.

She kept repeating that she was lonely and just wanted some company.

Then she started promising me things, and I got the hell out of there, and I told Desmon what I learned. ”

“What did it promise?” I asked.

“Shit it had no business offering.” Seth’s lips flattened to a straight line that told me he wouldn’t say any more.

“Maybe it only preys on lonely wizards,” I said.

“Perhaps,” Liam said. “But I still don’t want you anywhere near it again.”

“Trust me, I’d much rather be at the beach than The Breach.

Oh yeah, the two of you in swimwear?” He held the fingers of his hand together in front of him like he was an Italian chef about to wax poetic about a proper fettuccine alfredo—made with butter and parmesan, no cream—then kissed the tip of each perfectly manicured digit in succession.

I rolled my eyes at how silly it was. Even if Liam looked great in a sailor suit, I was no siren.

Which reminded me. “Chief said the EA is sending someone over from head office in Rome.”

Seth grimaced. “Yeah. They think they can do better. I want to watch them try. Anyway, enough about The Breach, who’s up for a trip to the Starving Aardvark. I’m craving some chicken and waffles.”