Page 8

8

“So that’s it. You’re giving up on Indigo after you had the one perfect date and then spent the night watching over her as she slept? That doesn’t seem like you,” Brax said as he picked up his burger.

“She’s made it clear she doesn’t want a relationship with an MTF agent,” Niko said, his shoulders tense. “What am I going to do? Stand out front of her apartment window with a boombox and hope she changed her mind?”

“Ha! It could work. Women go crazy for that scene in the movie.” Brax chuckled. “Just make sure you let me know when you do it so I can get video.”

Niko flipped him off and then stared out at the bay, remembering what it felt like to be kayaking there just a few nights before. “Something tells me that she’d call the cops and then close the blinds on me, but we’ll keep that tactic in my back pocket. I just wish I knew what happened in her past to make her distrust law enforcement so much.”

“I wish I knew, man,” Brax said. “But it’s the one thing the Eastons never talk about.”

“That figures.” Niko let out a sardonic chuckle. “And here I thought that my job might actually help me get a date. It turns out, I couldn’t have been more wrong.”

Brax laughed. “You thought all you had to do was put a uniform on and the witches would be following you around like you were wearing a love charm?”

Niko blinked at him and then made a face. “No. I thought having someone who could protect them might be a plus.”

He snorted. “Have you met the Easton sisters? I don’t think they’re exactly waiting around for a man to keep them safe. Between the four of them, I’m pretty sure they could level the entire town if they needed to.”

“Solid point,” Niko said, sounding dejected even to his own ears. He’d always been attracted to strong women. And Indigo Easton was no exception. That was why it surprised him that she was so averse to dating him because of his job.

“Maybe she just needs time to come around,” Brax said. “You know, time to get to know you better and form some trust.”

“Maybe,” Niko said, but he wasn’t holding his breath. Indigo had seemed pretty definitive, and he wasn’t one to push it when a woman set her boundaries.

“Or you could just forget it and date someone else,” Brax suggested.

“Like who?” Niko wasn’t interested in anyone else, but he was curious to know who Brax thought he should date.

“Maybe your secret admirer,” Brax said to Niko, smirking over his mug of beer. His friend took a sip and then nodded toward a woman making her way toward them.

Niko swallowed a groan when he realized the woman was Kinsley, the one he’d recklessly invited on a broom ride after Indigo had rejected him. He’d let Indigo bait him into asking Kinsley out even though the college student was far too young for him and far too eager to date an older man. She couldn’t have been a day over twenty-one. Meanwhile, he was in his thirties and had already spotted premature gray at his temples. “Has she already seen me?”

“Yep.” Brax chuckled as he got up. “Gotta hit the head. Try not to end up on another date. At this rate, you’ll be engaged by next month.”

Niko flipped him off and wondered if anyone besides Lily would actually miss the other man if he suddenly disappeared.

“Hello, gorgeous,” Kinsley said, flashing those wide amber eyes at him. “I really enjoyed that broom ride the other night. There’s nowhere quite as romantic as Befana Bay under the moonlight. Especially when one gets caught in the rain.”

“I could do without the rain,” he said, trying to sound disinterested. “With the wind, I think it was a little too chilly for a ride.”

“Then we should schedule a do-over, don’t you think?” She slipped into the chair that Brax had been occupying just moments before and gazed at him with what he’d started to think of as heart eyes.

All his warning signals were going off. He needed to exit this conversation ASAP. “Uh, that’s probably not—” His phone buzzed with an incoming call. He let out a sigh of relief, and as he pulled his phone out of his pocket, he said, “Sorry, I have to take this.”

When she didn’t move from Brax’s chair, he frowned at her. “Can you give me a moment?”

“Oh, sure.” She hopped up and then moved about ten feet from the table, still watching him.

He ground his teeth before he answered the call. “Agent Morales.”

“I hope you’re ready to go back to work because I’ve got a case for you,” Willa, his supervisor, said.

“Is it urgent or a cold case?” he asked, already pulling bills out of his wallet.

“Sort of both,” she said. “I’m sending you the files now. Read them over and then interview the victim. Call if you have any questions.”

“Got it.” He hit End on his phone and looked up to find Brax standing at the table.

“I guess lunch is over,” his friend said.

“Sorry, man. Duty calls.” Niko stood, clapped his friend on the shoulder, and hurried out of the restaurant. He had a case to solve.

* * *

Niko stared at the files he’d printed out and swallowed the bile that rose up from the back of his throat. He’d seen more than his share of evil over the years. It was just part of the job. But this case was one of the ones that made him understand why some agents found themselves drowning in the bottom of a bottle.

His new case revolved around a witch who had been rescued from a burning building where she had been held captive and spelled into servitude. Unfortunately, the victim appeared to still be affected by the spell, so getting any information on who was responsible for the heinous crime had so far been difficult at best. It appeared she’d been compelled to keep her captor’s identity secret. Now it was up to Niko to investigate.

He picked up his phone and called the number that was listed for the victim. The first thing he always did was conduct an interview.

“Bay View Hospital,” a kind woman said when she answered.

He quickly introduced himself and asked if there was a way to talk to Polly Smart.

“I’m sorry, sir. Polly’s family has barred visitors while she recovers,” the administrator said.

“Even law enforcement? Can you please let them know I’m working on her case and would just like a few minutes.”

She briefly put him on hold. When she came back on the line, she said, “Unfortunately, the family is adamant that she be left alone to heal. They said she already gave a statement.”

“I understand. Thanks for checking.” He ended the call slightly frustrated, but he understood the family was going through a lot, and there was no guarantee she’d give him anything useful as long as she was still spelled. He’d try again anyway, but next time it would be in person.

Niko spent the rest of his afternoon pouring over the documents, trying to come up with a plan for the investigation. First, he’d check out the scene of the crime, see if any clues had been left behind or if anyone who lived nearby had seen anything suspicious. He’d also make a list of Polly’s closest friends and family, and he’d interview them for anything they might have to say.

But before he did any of that, he decided to search the Magical Task Force’s database for any cases that might be similar. Oftentimes, criminals couldn’t stop themselves from repeating the same crimes over and over again. He’d solved more than one case that way.

Settling in with a fresh mug of coffee, he got to work, searching through case file after case file. It was grueling work, but even if he’d had a team, he’d still search all the files himself. It was remarkable how sometimes just one detail could break a case wide open. If there was one in the database, he was determined to find it.

He was about halfway through his search when an old case from over a decade ago caught his eye. It was labeled as a USCC, the code for unsolved cold case. He clicked on the file and started to read.

Victim: twenty-two-year-old female

Incident: Victim was compelled to rob a series of convenience stores. Shot by local security. Victim was still trying to rob the store, despite being shot in the abdomen. Witnesses testified that she seemed single-minded and robotic as she demanded the cash from the register and safe.

Outcome: Victim seemed to come out of the trance just before she took her last breath. Her last words were: Find Indigo Easton.

His eyes bugged out when he spotted Indigo’s name. She’d told him there was a file on her somewhere, but he intentionally hadn’t looked for it. He wasn’t sure why. Maybe he hadn’t wanted to know. But he also knew better than most that files didn’t contain the whole truth more often than not, and he wanted to hear her story from her .

But now he was staring down a very serious case, and this old file was more than relevant. He had no choice but to finish reading every detail in the incident report. The victim, Tricia Brighton, had robbed five convenience stores in one night, only stopping when she died from her bullet wounds.

The prime suspect had been Indigo Easton.

There were pages and pages of information on Indigo about her past, her family, and the fact that she was Tricia’s roommate.

Final line of the report: Not enough evidence. No charges filed.

Niko sat stunned as he reread the pages again, trying to make sense of the overwhelming information. On the second round, he spotted a detail he’d missed. The victim had burn marks on her arms in the shape of daggers.

He immediately picked up his phone and called Indigo.

It went straight to voice mail. He glanced at the time, noting that all the stores on Main Street would already be closed, which meant she likely wasn’t at work.

Jumping out of his chair, he grabbed his keys and headed straight for his truck. He didn’t know where he’d find her, but he had to talk to her immediately. One way or another, he needed to get to the bottom of what happened a decade before with Indigo’s roommate.

Once he was in his vehicle heading back to Befana Bay, he told his phone to call Braxton.

His friend picked up on the first ring. “Hey, man,” Braxton said. “What are you doing right now?”

“I’m headed to Befana Bay. I’m looking for Indigo. Can you ask Lily if she has any idea where she is?”

“No need. She’s here with us at the bookstore. We’re working on setting up that fundraiser for the library. Why don’t you stop by?”

“I’m on my way,” Niko said.

Ten minutes later, Niko walked into the bookstore. The outside looked like an enchanted fairy garden with twinkling lights and spelled fireflies. Inside was full of vibrant flowers and a pleasant floral scent as if it were some sort of botanical garden instead of a musty bookstore.

Under normal circumstances, he’d have lingered and admired the work his friends had done, but tonight, he had only one thing on his mind. He hurried upstairs, following the light din of voices, and he found Lily, Brax, Mateo, Dante and Prim all standing around a display with a floating book that was being read aloud by a soothing, masculine voice that seemed to be coming from nowhere and everywhere at the same time.

“Hey,” Brax said, moving over to clasp him on his back. “You made it.”

“Yeah.” He glanced around. “Where’s Indigo?”

Brax frowned. “Sorry, brother, but she took off right after I talked to you. She said she had something to take care of and then hurried out.”

Lily glanced at him and gave him a sympathetic frown. “Don’t take it personally. She just needs time.”

He might be able to take that advice if he hadn’t just read that old case file. But now he had a job to do. “Do you know where she is?”

“No.” Prim moved to stand next to Lily and crossed her arms over her chest, looking determined. “Just let her be, Niko. She’s had a rough week.”

“She’s not the only one,” he said and then turned around and left.

When he got to the ground floor, one of the sections of books started to glow. He almost ignored them, but when he realized it was the section that Indigo had shied away from on their date, he changed course.

The first book he pulled out was titled Exploring your Power . The second was Deep Dive into Harnessing Your Magic . And the third was Experimental Magic . Title after title was focused on exploring magic or harnessing power. They weren’t simple spell books, but rather how to become a stronger witch and create new spells and potions.

He stood there staring at the books, remembering how she’d looked when she’d pulled the first book that night.

Unsettled.

Maybe even scared.

That was not the look of a witch who was excited about tapping into her raw talents.

He made a mental note and strode out of the building.