Page 8

8

She parked her VW Golf at the end of the street and walked past the long line of cars that led up to the side of her parents’ yard. The ranch house sat on a corner lot surrounded by oak trees and bordered by a small creek that backed onto the parched yellow hills. The back gate was open and she could already smell burning hot dogs, fried onions and warm beer. Her mouth watered. She loved it when other people cooked.

Outside of San Francisco and the bay, the temperature always shot up and today was no exception. Heat shimmered off the parked cars and off the roofs of the houses. As she’d driven over the Dumbarton Bridge heading for Walnut Creek, she’d wished she’d fixed the air-conditioning in her old car and had to crank down all the windows instead.

For some reason, her parents had hired an inflatable for the yard, and festooned the place with pink balloons. Ella frowned as she considered the invitation again. From what she could see, the usual crowd was all here. Was there something specific she should have remembered? She’d left a message to tell her mother she was definitely coming, but hadn’t heard back.

Fixing a smile on her face, she walked through the back gate and into the crowd of people milling around the patio. She spotted her two older brothers and younger sister but didn’t call out to them. Her father was behind the barbecue, prodding at something with a worried expression on his face. The French windows that led into the kitchen and family room were open, so she went inside. If her mother would be anywhere, it would be in the kitchen directing operations. Ella also hoped she’d come to the right place for a beer.

“Ella!” Her mother was making a fresh pitcher of margaritas. “So glad you could make it. And you even put on a dress! Thanks for making the effort, honey. You look sweet.”

Darlene was blond, but the resemblance between them ended there. She was tall and slender, her face tightened, her nose remodeled, her hair blonder, less natural, and more styled than Ella’s would ever be. She gave Ella an awkward one-armed hug.

“Did you bring Laney with you?”

“I think she’s coming later.” She looked longingly at the refrigerator. “Do you have any beer in there?”

Darlene pointed at two tubs under the kitchen table filled with ice and the frosty glint of bobbing beer bottles.

“There are a lot of calories in beer, darling. Make sure you choose one of those nice new low-carb ones, and limit yourself to a couple so that you can drive home safely.”

Ella helped herself to the first beer she touched. She took an experimental sip.

“Don’t you want a glass, dear?”

“No, I’m fine with the bottle. Liz and Doug Goddard are coming with some friends. Is that okay? You did say I could invite anyone I liked.”

Darlene’s smile faltered. “Sure. I don’t think we’ll be having a full moon tonight or anything.”

Ella took a longer swig of her beer. Darlene had never been quite comfortable with any of Ella’s friends who were not quite human. She was probably worried Doug would suddenly go all wolf on them and devour one of her guests.

“It’s okay, I’ll tell Liz to chain him up in the yard if he doesn’t behave himself.”

Darlene’s cheek flushed. “That wasn’t what I meant, Ella. I was just kidding. You’re too sensitive about your friends, you know.”

She resisted the urge to stick out her lip and mumble “whatever.” Somehow her mom always made her feel like an adolescent again. They’d gotten along just fine in those days, though—what with Ella being stuck in year-round boarding school.

“Dad’s barbecuing?”

“I told him to let Scott do it, but as it’s Scott and Julie’s big day, he insisted on doing it himself.”

Ella took another beer, then paused. “Scott and Julie got married last year. Did I miss something?”

The doorbell rang, drowning her mother’s reply, although the expression on her face was enough to make Ella beat a hasty retreat to the hallway to see who’d decided to go all formal and demand entry through the front door.

She opened it wide and discovered Liz looking super cool and collected in a lemon-yellow halter dress, accompanied by Doug.

“Hey you!” Doug picked Ella up and enveloped her in a bear hug. His T-shirt bore the words, “Meat Eater and Proud of It” accompanied by a picture of a bloody steak. “How’s my favorite empath? You know these guys, right?”

He put her down and moved to one side. Behind him stood Alexei and Vadim. They both wore khaki shorts and polo shirts and looked as if they were heading out to play golf somewhere expensive. Vadim removed his aviator sunglasses and nodded.

“Ms. Walsh.”

“Morosov. I thought you had other plans.”

He half-smiled. “So did I, but I hope I’m still welcome.”

More flustered than she wanted to admit, Ella stepped back and allowed them to enter the house. It was much cooler in the hallway and she hurried to shut the door.

“Welcome to my parents’ house. They’re celebrating…something.” She started to move toward the kitchen. “There’s beer.”

Alexei lightly touched her elbow. “You’re okay with us being here?”

“Sure! The more the merrier. If you could do a bit of magic and enchant my mother, I’d be really grateful.”

“How grateful?” he murmured.

She grinned back at him and walked into the kitchen. “Mom, Liz and Doug are here and they’ve brought a couple of other people I work with.”

Darlene’s bright smile wavered, but she held out her hand to Alexei. “It’s always a pleasure to meet Ella’s friends. We see her so rarely.”

Knowing how Mrs. Walsh felt about them, Liz and Doug waved and said all the right things before checking out the beer and drifting outside to join the party. Alexei glided over, took Darlene’s proffered hand and kissed it. “Thank you for your hospitality, Mrs. Walsh. My name is Alexei, and this is Vadim.”

Ella moved out of the way as Vadim went past her and also shook Darlene’s hand. “A pleasure, Mrs. Walsh.”

“And where exactly are you two from?”

“We’re currently based in Russia.”

Darlene clasped her hands together. “How exciting. You didn’t tell me you were working with Russians, Ella.”

“I wasn’t until a couple of days ago.”

Darlene’s gaze lingered on Alexei who was smiling endearingly at her. She blushed and patted at her hair. Ella fought back a grin. Perhaps she would have to ask Alexei to dial it down a bit. Fae glamor could be a little overwhelming sometimes. Vadim came to stand beside her and she looked up at him.

“Would you like a beer?”

His gaze moved down from her face to the bust line of her blue flowered maxi dress.

“You look nice.”

“Which bit of me?”

His gaze returned to her face. “All of you.”

“Don’t sound so surprised.”

“Nothing you do surprises me.”

She snorted. “You poor, cynical, world-weary man. That’s such a cliché.”

“Is it?” He braced his hand on the refrigerator door behind her head, cutting off her view of the party.

Rather than look into his eyes, she turned to study his long elegant fingers and the gold signet ring shaped like a dragon. “Are you sure you don’t want a beer?”

His smile made her knees wobble. “I was wondering if you had any wine in the refrigerator instead.”

“Oh!” She hurriedly straightened. “I have no idea. I’ll get out of your way.”

She stepped around him and busied herself retrieving her beer. She couldn’t deal with his party manners at all. Her younger sister came in from the yard and walked straight over. Madison wore a halter top and cut-off shorts so tiny the pocket linings were visible beneath the frayed denim hem.

“Hey, Ella, you look nice for a change. Where did you get that dress, Goodwill?”

Before Ella could answer, Madison’s gaze fell on Vadim, who had just shut the refrigerator door and turned around.

“Holy cow, where did you find him ?”

“This is my coworker, Vadim Morosov.”

Madison tossed back her long blond hair, pushed past Ella and stuck out her hand. “Hi, I’m Madison. The not-weird Walsh girl.”

Vadim shook her hand and then looked back at Ella. “You are quite alike.”

“You’re kidding, right?” Madison giggled. “I’m way taller and thinner than her and way smarter. Oh, and I’m not going nuts in a few months either.”

“ Madison !” Darlene’s voice cut across whatever Ella had started to say. “Don’t talk about your sister like that.”

“Why shouldn’t I? It’s the truth,” Madison demanded. “I’m not sure why we all have to pretend nothing’s going to happen.”

Vadim leaned down until his mouth brushed Ella’s ear. “And I thought you were the outspoken member of the family.”

“Usually I am. I’m not sure what’s got into Madison today. She’ll probably insist on telling me later,” she replied as Darlene and Madison squared off. “Would you like to come out into the yard and meet my father and brothers? They’re much quieter.”

“Like most men.”

He followed her out of the open doors leaving Madison still arguing with her mom. Alexei had taken a seat at the kitchen table and seemed to be enjoying himself. Ella headed for her dad, who was brandishing a pepper mill over something that looked like a chunk of steak.

“How’s it going, Dad?”

His face softened. “Ella. How’s my girl?”

He put down the pepper and she walked into his arms. He smelled of the same spicy aftershave brand he’d been using since the 1980’s. For some reason, she wanted to stay with her face buried in his shoulder forever.

“I’m doing fine. How about you?”

He made a face. “Trying to survive your mom and your sister’s constant bickering.”

“That’s what golf was invented for, wasn’t it?”

“Exactly.” He turned to Vadim. “And who’s this?”

“This is my colleague, Vadim Morosov.”

He shook Vadim’s hand. “You can call me Ned or Mr. Walsh, whatever floats your boat. Russian, eh?”

“Yes.” Ella grinned when Vadim looked confused by her father’s faux-hippy speak.

“Is he one of yours?”

“One of my what, Dad? Men?”

He retreated behind the barbecue again. “You know what I mean.”

“No, he isn’t an empath.” She looked speculatively at Vadim. “I’m not quite sure what he is.”

“He looks like a nice young man.”

“Well, appearances can be deceptive.” She winked at her dad, who winked back. “Is the food ready yet?”

“Does it look ready?”

She studied the various lumps of meat and the half-cooked sausages. “Nope.”

“Anyway, your mother wants to make the big announcement first, so I’m waiting on her orders.” He pointed the spatula at her. “Go and take a seat and I’ll give you a shout when it’s time.”

She led the way to a couple of empty chairs that sat in the shade of the covered patio. Her brother was sitting at the table nursing a beer.

“Hey.”

He nodded at her and Vadim. “What’s up?”

“Nothing much. You?”

“Nothing much.” Dave scratched at the peeling label of his beer bottle. “I’m going down to San Diego next semester.”

“To do what?”

“Continue my studies, duh.”

“Dave’s studying to be a doctor,” Ella told Vadim who had sat beside her, one hand wrapped around his plastic cup of wine.

“That’s an excellent career choice. What specialty?” Vadim asked.

Dave concentrated on his bottle. “Supernatural studies.”

Ella put down her beer. “Really?”

He shrugged. “It sounded kind of interesting.”

“I suppose it might be,” Ella said cautiously. “What exactly do you have to do?”

“First response team stuff, for unusual or abnormal medical situations, liaising with SBLE. You know the drill.”

“I didn’t realize there was anything official like that around here.”

Dave looked up at her. “It’s a new thing. Hiding all that stuff away is becoming far too difficult, so our government decided to open up some opportunities for those who are interested.”

“And you were interested?”

He dropped his gaze. “Well, having a sister who was never there kind of sucked, you know?”

* * *

Vadim looked from Ella to her brother and tried to work out exactly what was going on between them. If he lowered his shields, he’d probably get a better sense of the emotions swirling around, but then Ella would know he was snooping and call him out on it. It was interesting watching her interactions with her family. Even just using his human faculties, he could sense there was a ton of unspoken conflict simmering beneath the surface.

“Have I met all your siblings now?”

Ella tore her gaze away from her brother and looked at him instead. Her expression was uncharacteristically solemn.

“I’ve another brother, Scott. He got married last year to Julie.” She waved a vague hand toward the edge of the pool where Vadim now noticed Alexei was chatting to Madison. “They’re over there, somewhere. I’ll grab him when I see him.”

“Your family seems very nice.”

Her smile was quick. “I suppose they do.”

Beside Ella, Dave sat forward. “What Ella means is she wasn’t around that much to appreciate them.” Vadim raised his eyebrows encouragingly and Dave continued. “She was five when they took her away to that fricking boarding school.”

“That must have been difficult for you all.”

She patted her brother’s arm. “We all got over it eventually. It was a good place for me to be.”

“Sure, that’s why you kept running away, and Mom kept insisting on taking you back. Dad would’ve let you stay, you know that.”

“Mom was right to do it. If I’d stayed here I would have attracted some funky creatures from Otherworld into our house. We would all have suffered.”

“All I remember is you crying and kicking and pleading not to go back.” Dave finished his beer and abruptly got to his feet. “You’re way too nice, Ella. I’ve never forgiven them for sending you away.”

Vadim waited, but she made no effort either to contradict Dave or persuade him to sit back down. After a moment, he nodded at Vadim.

“I’m going to get another beer. Do either of you want one?”

“I’m good,” Ella said.

Vadim showed Dave his half-empty plastic cup. “I’ve got wine, thanks.”

He waited for Ella to make some smart-ass remark but she remained quiet, her gaze fixed on the swimming pool. Having an interesting family dynamic himself, he decided to divert the conversation into less volatile channels.

“I didn’t know the American government was investing in special medical units to liaise with the SBLE.”

“Why would you? You don’t live here.”

Ah, she was back to being prickly. Vadim sipped his mediocre too-warm wine. “It’s a good idea.”

“You think so?”

“Surely the more people who are aware of the nature of Otherworld, the better it can be contained.”

“I’ve always got the impression that our government was intent on keeping the majority of the population in blissful ignorance. My folks had to know, but most people would rather not.”

“Maybe in this insane digital age, they’ve realized they can no longer do that.”

“That’s a good point.” Ella tucked her hair behind her ear. He liked it down around her shoulders. He liked her soft blue dress too. “Maybe if they keep opening up the boundaries, they won’t need empaths anymore.”

“I’m sure there’ll be plenty for you to do. Not everything that comes out of Otherworld is super-cute and fluffy.”

She shuddered. “Ugh. Some of those things still give me nightmares. I don’t think most human brains could survive the experience.”

“So you’ll always be needed.”

“Unfortunately, yes.” Her cell phone chimed and she glanced down at the green-lit screen. “It’s Laney. She’s supposed to be coming over.” She frowned. “Looks like she’s in the middle of changing her mind. I wonder what happened with her OCOS mate? Maybe I should call her.”

She was just about to rise when there was a clapping noise from beside the pool. Ella’s parents joined hands with another younger couple Vadim could only assume were the aforementioned Scott and Julie.

“Damn,” Ella muttered as she sank back down. “I hope this is quick, whatever it is.”

Ned cleared his throat. “Firstly, we’d like to thank you all for coming.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Ella’s cell chimed again and she squinted at the screen.

Her father continued. “Secondly, we’d like to offer our congratulations to Scott and Julie who are expecting their first child at the end of the year!”

Everyone started to clap and whistle. Ella’s thumbs stopped texting.

A proud looking Scott stepped forward, one arm around his wife. “I’m also pleased to tell you that we will be having a little girl.”

More cheers and then Darlene and Madison started handing around trays of something pink and bubbly. Ella stood up.

“Excuse me.”

Vadim rose too and followed her direct path toward the house. She was waylaid by her father who put his arm around her waist.

“Honey, aren’t you going to wish Scott and Julie well?”

“Sure!” Ella’s smile was brief. “That’s awesome news, you guys!”

Julie’s eyes filled with tears. “That’s so sweet of you, considering everything, I mean…” She swallowed hard. “We’re even thinking of giving her your name if…”

“If I don’t make it?” Ella disengaged herself from her father’s arm. “Cool. Thanks.”

She kept going. Vadim followed, ignoring the looks of consternation on her father and brother’s faces. She walked through the kitchen, down the hallway and took a left turn into what he guessed was a bedroom. He followed her in and shut the door behind them.

* * *

Ella took several deep breaths and tried to unclench her fists. She was aware that Vadim had come in, but somehow she didn’t care.

“It’s not that I’m angry with them. It’s just that sometimes, when I remember I’m not going to be around to see the future, I get angry with myself.” She looked at him, but he didn’t say anything. “Sometimes I wonder what it would be like if I could have a family, a kid, a?—”

The door burst open and her mother appeared. “How could you?” Darlene shrieked. “You upset Scott and Julie on their special day!”

“And you don’t think that I might be upset, to have someone tell me they ‘might’ name their baby after their delusional or preferably dead auntie?”

“It’s not all about you, dear. Julie was trying to do something nice.”

“It’s never about me. You spend your whole life trying to pretend I don’t exist. And being reminded that I’m probably not going to be around in my present state to see my first niece being born? That sucks.” Ella shook her head. “You just don’t get it, do you?”

Darlene raised her chin. “I asked you to the party because I wanted you to share in this special moment, not throw back a kindly meant gesture in Julie’s face.”

“Wait, you knew she was going to say that?”

Her mother looked away. “Your father and I thought it was a lovely gesture.”

“Why’s that, Mom? Because you’re relieved you’ve already found my replacement? Why the hell would you want another Ella? God help the poor kid if she displays any psychic ability. Everyone will start blaming me.”

Darlene shot her a furious glance and marched out, slamming the door behind her. Vadim moved to stand against it.

“I can ward the door to keep everyone out, if you like.”

Ella drew an unsteady breath. “That would be awesome. I’m sorry you got stuck in the middle of this. That’s why I don’t come here very often.”

He shrugged. “Last time my whole family got together there were two deaths, one disembowelment and twenty-seven activated curses.”

She met his gaze, but there wasn’t a trace of amusement in his eyes.

“You’re not kidding, are you?”

“I wish I was.” He sauntered toward her, one hand in his pocket. “Do you want to leave? I’m more than happy to come with you.”

“I can’t yet. I have to check on Laney, and then I’ll have to apologize to everyone.”

He was close enough that she had to look up at him. “Why should you have to be the one to apologize?”

“Because I make them uncomfortable and they don’t deserve that. It’s not their fault I’m the odd one out.”

“And what about how they make you feel?”

“You know how it is. I can’t expect them to understand.” His mouth kicked up at the corner and she found herself staring at it. “Did you really ward the door?”

“Yes.”

She concentrated on his mouth. “Would you kiss me?”

In answer, he bent his head until his lips brushed hers. “Like that?”

“No, like you mean it.”

“I thought you didn’t date your coworkers?”

“I’m not dating you. I just want something else to think about other than my family. You happen to be standing here, and I want you to distract me.”

“Ah.”

He kissed her again, this time parting her lips with his tongue and possessing her mouth with a tenderness she hadn’t expected. She shut her eyes and kissed him back, let her hand curve around the back of his head to keep him near. He drew her even closer, one arm around her hips, the other around her shoulders until he was practically holding her up.

“Mmm…” she murmured against his mouth. “Very nice.”

“You’re welcome.”

Her cell chimed and then again. She forced herself to stop kissing him. “I have to answer it. It’s either Laney or Madison wanting to know why she can’t get into her own bedroom.” It was also another distraction, but she guessed he knew that.

She scowled at the screen. “Laney’s not making any sense. I’ll try and call her.”

Vadim stepped away. “Go ahead.”

She touched the screen and Laney picked up instantly.

“Oh my God, Ella, I can’t do this anymore, I just can’t…”

“Laney, what’s up?”

She was crying so hard that Ella could barely understand her. She glanced over at Vadim who could clearly hear as well.

“I can’t, Ella. I’m a worthless mess. I don’t deserve to live like this, or find happiness. I just don’t. I’m sorry. This is the best thing for everyone.”

“Laney, just hang on, I’m coming over right now. Just keep it together.”

Vadim was already opening the door. “Where is she?”

“Not far from here.”

He nodded and they both headed for the front door. Madison appeared in the hallway and shouted something after them, but Ella didn’t even stop.

“Got an emergency! I’ll call tonight!”

As Madison opened her mouth again, Ella was already through the door and running. Vadim kept pace with her, his sunglasses neatly in place, his breathing easy. She unlocked her car and leaned across to let him in.

“Thanks.”

Ella started the engine, praying that it would turn over. “We’ll be there in about ten minutes.”

“Good.”

She grabbed her sunglasses from her purse and backed out of her space. “The air con is broken. If you get too hot, crack open a window.”

She concentrated on her driving, aware of a growing anxiety in her chest.

“Do you think she’s totally lost it?” Ella blurted out.

“Has she turned twenty-seven?”

“Not yet. Two weeks to go, I think.”

“It’s unusual for a complete breakdown to occur before an empath’s actual birthday.” He sounded way too calm for her liking. “Most empaths I’ve met have been relatively normal up until then.”

“Relatively.” She took a sharp right and Vadim grabbed onto the back of his seat. “That’s not helping.”

“Did you say she was meeting her OCOS mate today?”

“Not in person. He was supposed to call her. Maybe he was a complete dick and she’s gotten scared about what will happen if she rejects him.”

“It’s possible.”

She slowed down and searched for a parking spot along the side of the tall apartment building Laney lived in downtown.

“Do you want a space close to here?” Vadim asked. She nodded and made a left turn to circle around again. The next moment, a car started to reverse out of a spot right in front of them. Ella braked and stuck on her indicator. She glanced at Vadim but he wasn’t even looking her way.

“She’s on the third floor.”

He got out, locked his door before she even reminded him, and followed her into the lobby of the apartment building. The bank of elevators was protected behind a set of glass doors with keypads. He touched her arm.

“You have the code?”

“Somewhere.” She looked for her phone.

“I’ve got it.” He brushed his hand over the keypad and then pushed the first door. It opened immediately. She studied the elevator lights. “Let’s use the stairs.”

He found the door and held it open for her. “You don’t like elevators do you?”

“No.” She kept it short. She’d need all her breath to climb. As she went up, her sense of urgency increased as she caught a scent of something…unpleasant.

“ Hurry .”

As she ran along the hallway, she dove into the bottom of her purse for Laney’s spare key, but it was hard to find it amongst all the junk.

“What number is it?”

“3221.”

Vadim went ahead and was already pressing the buzzer when she reached him. She finally found the key and pushed it into the lock. As the door swung open, the sickening all-too-familiar stench of Otherworld magic and death engulfed her.

“Laney,” she whispered.

Vadim was already moving ahead of her into the apartment, his gun out, his magical senses on high alert. He stopped so suddenly that she cannoned into the back of him. He held her back, one arm outstretched.

“Ella—”

She pushed past him and took another two steps before coming to a halt again. Laney was on her back on the floor, one hand still grasping her cell phone, her eyes open but seeing nothing, her expression frozen in a scream of anguish.

“Oh my God!” Ella dropped to her knees. “ Laney .” Vadim crouched between them and took hold of Ella’s shoulders. “Don’t touch her. Don’t touch anything.”

She struggled to free herself but he held firm. “Morosov, what’s fucking wrong with you? Let me go! She needs help, she?—”

“Ella.” He gave her a sharp shake. “She’s dead. Now think! Is the killer still around?”

“She’s not, she’s…” Ella took another look at Laney and started to shiver uncontrollably. “There’s so much psychic shit swirling around in here, I can’t get it straight.”

Vadim shook her again. “Yes, you can. Do it for Laney.” Still holding on to her he punched in a number on his cell phone. “Alexei? Are you getting this? Call Feehan and get him to call the police.”

She took a deep breath and then another and Vadim nodded. “That’s it. Get a grip. Help her in the only way you can.”

“Let me go.” He hesitated. “I swear I won’t touch her.”

He released her arm and moved out of her line of vision exposing her to the full horror of Laney’s body. Her friend lay on the floor, her hair spread around her as if she’d fallen back into a pool.

“I can’t see any obvious injuries, can you?” Vadim asked.

His calmness helped steady Ella. She tried to pretend it was just another body, just another weird day at the office, just another dead empath…

“No, just a trickle of blood from her ear and her nose. Like Christa Morehouse.” She closed her eyes and focused on what her normal human senses couldn’t see. “Same malevolent psychic scent too.” She took another breath. “No sense of Laney.”

Ella jumped as her cell phone beeped, then she took it out of her purse. A new text message flashed up.

“It’s from Laney.”

He moved toward her, his hand extended. “Don’t?—”

But she couldn’t help but read it. “Sorry, too busy to chat. I’m dancing with the Siren. X”

She looked up at Vadim. “What the fuck? Who the hell is the Siren?”

He took the phone and reread the text. “I assume he’s our killer. Nice of him to leave his name.”

Footsteps sounded outside the apartment, and someone knocked on the door. Vadim patted her shoulder. “I’ll go and see if that’s the police.”

She nodded and remained where she was. Nothing else in the apartment appeared to have been affected. She leaned in to touch her best friend’s outstretched hand, which was still warm. A frisson of Otherworld power zapped across to her like an electric shock. But there was nothing left of Laney. Ella didn’t mind the pain. She deserved it for not even thinking of warning her friend to be on the lookout for a killer.

“I’ll get him for you, Laney. I’ll get the bastard if it’s the last sane thing I ever do.”

Vadim returned accompanied by two police officers and a couple of medics. He came over, then helped her stand up.

“Is there anything else you need to do here, Ms. Walsh?”

She glared at him. “I’m not leaving, if that’s what you mean.”

“Yes, you are.” He lowered his voice until only she could hear him. “You are in shock, and far too personally involved in this to help anyone.”

“I am perfectly in control of myself. I won’t leave unless you knock me out and carry me.”

His gaze narrowed. “That could be arranged. If there is nothing else you can add professionally, will you at least wait on the sidelines until Feehan gets here?”

“So he can kick me out?”

“He’s the boss. He can do whatever he likes.”

“Not if I don’t work for the SBLE anymore.”

He went still. “You’re quitting?”

“I want to catch this sick bastard and when I do catch him, I want to kill him slowly and painfully. The SBLE won’t let me.”

“So you’ll quit on Laney?”

“Of course not. Didn’t you hear what I said?”

He gripped her shoulder. “Ella, the best way to get this man is to work within the SBLE.”

“You’re just saying that because you need to solve this case.”

He scowled. “That’s not the only reason. What if I promised you that if we catch this guy I’ll make sure his punishment is as slow and painful as you could want?”

“How could you do that?”

“I have…contacts in Otherworld who could make it happen.”

She stared into his eyes and for a second he allowed her to feel the complex power he hid so well behind his shields.

“I swear on my mother’s grave, Ella. You will get your vengeance.”

She sank down onto a chair by the wall. “Okay. But don’t fuck this up.”