A Risky Proposition (25 page)

“It’s not sweet.  It’s practical,” Lorien grumbled, “more practical than wasting it on a fake house for a fake family of dolls.”

“You’re absolutely right,” I agreed, trying not to give in to the smile that kept wanting to twitch up the corners of my lips.

“Anyway, I’ve got to get going,” Lorien said with forced dignity.  “Give me a call if anything else comes up.”

“Thanks Lorien.  And tell Obie ‘Happy Birthday’ for us, okay?”

“Will do.”  She smiled, thoughts of her nephew overruling her embarrassment.  She waved goodbye and disappeared.

“I’ll get dressed as soon as Angelica’s finished in my bedroom,” I said to Sunny.  “Then, when you’re ready, we can go.”

“Mmm…Indian food,” she intoned happily as she jumped up from the couch.  “Give me fifteen minutes.”

I bent down to tease Jasper with one of his toys—a fuzzy white mouse whose felt tail was sticking out from beneath the couch.  He batted at it lazily with one black paw, for the most part ignoring me.  Apparently he was too relaxed to move after his magical catnip high. 

He’d always been more interested in rubber bands and paper clips than in any toy I’d ever bought for him anyway.

“Sydney,” Angelica said in a hushed voice, “I have found something that you must see.”

She rushed into the living room, her cotton apron askew, and what appeared to be a small glass vial in her hand.

“What’s that?” I asked with a frown.

She dropped onto the loveseat next to me and presented it for my inspection.  It was a sphere-shaped bottle of forest green glass, about an inch and a half in circumference.  The bottom had been leveled so that it could stand upright, and the tiny opening at its top appeared to be stopped with a rounded wedge of gold. 

As I stared at it, it seemed that a faint glow resided within its depths, like a dim star that could only be glimpsed from the corner of my eye.

“What is it?” I repeated.

“I do not know, Sydney.  If I had more dealings in magic, I might be able to tell you.  But I can feel that it contains great power,” Angelica said in a hushed tone.  “I found it inside one of the vents in your bedroom.”

I gazed at it dumbstruck for a moment before the gears of my mind began to spin and caution kicked in.  “What if this belongs to Balthus?  Sparrow searched the penthouse the night he arrested him, but I don’t think he looked inside the vents.  Could it be dangerous?” I asked worriedly.

Angelica studied the little vial intently.  I got the impression that she was probing the glass in the same way she had probed me the day before to determine that my soul was still intact.  Finally she looked up, her eyes luminous. 

“No, Sydney.  It does not feel dangerous.  It seems as if it is a vessel for some power that lies dormant.  I do not think you would be successful in any effort to open it or break it without the appropriate release spell.”

I gingerly took it from her hand, and when nothing happened I blew out a caged breath.  “Well, thank you, Angelica.  Lorien’s already gone, but I’ll tell her about it the next time I talk to her.  I’m sure she knows someone who can tell us what it is.”

Angelica nodded and smiled.  “Very well.  I will see you Thursday then,” she said as she stood to leave.  “I look forward to our visits—you are one of my most interesting clients.”

I laughed.  “Thanks.  You’re pretty entertaining yourself.”

∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

“I’ll just stay in the car this time,” Sunny said dryly.

I hadn’t been quite so lucky with parking today, finding no empty spaces on Hannah’s block.  Oh well, I supposed Lorien was busy watching Obie blow out birthday candles right about now, or whatever it was that faerie children did at their birthday parties.  Besides, I could use the exercise.

“If it’s Hannah’s perfume you’re worried about, you could just practice breathing through your mouth like I do.”

“Or I could just wait here,” she answered with a winning smile.  “That way you can leave the keys in the ignition so the car’s still cool when you come back.”

“Fine,” I huffed.  Sunny grinned at me as I left the wagon.

The blazing summer heat began wringing moisture from my pores as soon as I stepped onto the sidewalk.  By the time I reached the immaculate glass door of Haute Hannah’s, I was more than relieved to step into its cool, bright interior.  The sparkle of well polished gems within their glinting glass cases, and the soft sounds of French jazz, assailed my senses as usual.  I glanced around for Hannah, who came bustling from the back at the tinkling of the doorbell.

“Sydney, how lovely to see you!  You look beautiful today.  I have just finished pulling your papers together.  Good timing, yes?”  Hannah’s energy left me smiling, as always.

“Yes—thank you, Hannah.  You look lovely as well.  Could it be that you have a certain glow about you after your weekend with your friend?” I teased.

“Ah!” she tapped me on the arm playfully.  “It is the glow
d’amour
!” she sighed, the back of one be-ringed hand drifting across her forehead in an exaggerated gesture.

“Well, it suits you,” I said with a laugh.

“
Amour
suits every woman, my dear.”  She smiled.  “Oh—and I have a gift that I believe will suit you, in particular, quite beautifully!” she exclaimed, turning to hurry behind one of the display cases.

My face fell; I had forgotten about the gift.  I tsked at her.  “Hannah, you know you shouldn’t have done that,” I complained half-heartedly to the back of her well-coiffed head, knowing it would have no effect.

“Now, none of that, Sydney,” she chastened me, pronouncing the second syllable of my name with a heavier emphasis than usual.  “If I wish to give to my favorite employee a gift, I shall do so.  And here it is!”

She beamed with triumph as she rose from behind the display case.  In her hand she held a large, irregular chunk of fused crystal.  It was dark amber in color and accented with gold in a pattern that made it look a bit like a deranged flower.  The crystal sparkled beneath the shop’s concentrated lights as if it was alive, and I used that one positive thought as fuel for my effort to conjure a delighted smile for Hannah. 

It might actually have been pretty, if its natural beauty hadn’t been mutilated by the gaudiness of the gold.  And if it were sitting on a shelf with someone’s crystal collection, instead of attached to a pin designed to sit heavily above a woman’s breast.  It was a brooch—the most massive and ornate one I had ever seen.  And Hannah was grinning at me expectantly, waiting for my reaction.

“Oh, Hannah, it’s…unbelievable.”

“It is, is it not?  The amber shading—it reminded me of your beautiful golden brown hair and your lovely russet eyes.  I thought to myself, Sydney must have this piece!”

“That’s very sweet of you, Hannah.  I can’t tell you how touched I am.”  And I was.  No one had ever called my eyes—which I thought were a rather plain shade of brown—anything as exotic as ‘russet’ before.  “But I can’t accept this—it must be worth a fortune!”

Hannah frowned at me and threw her hands up in a gesture of dismissal.  “Nonsense, Sydney.  I am surrounded by beautiful jewels that beg to be worn every day.  My greatest joy is to bestow them upon women who will flaunt them.  I also greatly enjoy my fee, of course,” she added, smiling at me from beneath lidded eyes, “But this piece—it is meant for you.  Here, I will pin it on you.  It will look nicely against your black blouse.”

She brooked no argument, and I gave in, allowing her to fasten the heavy crystal formation to my shirt.  Luckily, it was a sturdy cotton knit fabric that would most likely recover from the pin holes and the weight of the thing.

She stood back and gazed at it with a critical eye.  “It is beautiful on you, Sydney, just as I knew it would be!” she reported.

“Thank you, Hannah.  I don’t know what to say,” I told her.

“You are welcome, Sydney,” she replied in a satisfied tone.  “Now, let me get your papers so that you may be on your way,
oui
?”

She disappeared into the back room, returning with my work for the week and smiling indulgently as I thanked her again before I left.  The brooch pressed through my shirt and into my skin like a burden of guilt.  I was grateful she hadn’t chosen that moment to ask me about the money D.J.D. owed her.

As I walked back to the car, an itch rose up between my shoulder blades.  I rubbed at it and glanced around nervously.  It was more a feeling than a physical sensation, and not so much a warning as the sense that I was being watched.  But I saw nothing out of the ordinary—only the usual Worth Ave crowd of languidly moving shoppers with too much time on their hands and too much money to spend.

Maybe someone had been staring at the enormous rock formation above my breast, in awe that I hadn’t yet toppled forward with its immense weight.

As I approached the car, Sunny was leaning against the rear door, legs crossed and feet resting on the edge of the curb.  She smiled and waved, motioning for me to join her there.  My forehead creased as warning bells sounded in my brain, her posture seeming forced and out of place.  Why was she sweating out here instead of waiting in the air conditioned car?

“What’s up?” I asked when I was closer.

“That is some hunk of rock.  I’m surprised you don’t have a bunch of little rocks swirling around you, being helplessly pulled into its orbit.”

“Give it time,” I said, only half joking.  “Is something wrong?”

“Well, don’t look now, but I’m pretty sure someone’s following you.  Just lean against the car and pretend like we’re talking.”

I smoothed my frown and moved to Sunny’s side.

“Smile and try not to look so worried,” Sunny advised.

I immediately spread my lips in what I hoped was a convincing semblance of a smile.

Sunny chuckled.  “Now laugh like I’ve said something funny,” she encouraged.

I feigned an amicable laugh.

“Good,” Sunny smiled cheerfully.  “Now do the hokey pokey and turn yourself around.” 

I glanced at her in confusion.  Her voice was so deadpan that it took a second to register that she was kidding.  I scowled and elbowed her in retaliation.

“I don’t have to take this abuse you know,” she complained with a smirk.  “If you didn’t want to do the hokey pokey, all you had to do was say so.”

“Just tell me who’s following me,” I snorted in exasperation.

Sunny’s eyes glowed with amusement.  “Look across the street and a few doors down at the woman standing in front of the window with the sunglasses.  She’s wearing black slacks, a silky beige blouse and a big floppy black hat.  She’s kind of short with curly brown hair and she’s got a white shopping bag in each hand.”

“I see her.”  I eyed the plump little woman in the ridiculously large hat with skepticism.  “But she’s not even looking over here.  What makes you think she’s not just shopping?”

“Don’t stare!” Sunny hissed.  “She may be able to see our reflection in the window.  I saw her follow you down to Hannah’s and then wait nearby until you came out.  Then she started to follow you back here.  I thought you were going to spot her when you stopped to look around, but she stepped into one of the shops.  She came back out as soon as you started walking again, and she’s been staring at those sunglasses for an awfully long time now.”

“I did feel like someone was watching me before.  I’m going to talk to her.”  I pushed myself away from the car, realizing that I was angry.  Now people were following me?

“Wait!” Sunny demanded, grabbing my arm.  “What if she’s a death djinn?  Lorien said they could be women too.”

“You have my permission to tackle me if it even looks like I’m starting to make a w-i-s-h—just watch out for Lorien and her sneeze dust,” I warned drily.  “But death djinn or not, I’m
going to find out why that woman’s following me.  Come on.”  I tugged her across the street and down the sidewalk, stopping close enough to touch the woman.  I was sure she saw my reflection in the window beside her, but she gave no sign of a reaction.

“Excuse me,” I said loudly.

She turned to look at me with a polite question in eyes that were an even deeper shade of brown than mine.  “Yes?” she asked.  She had dark, ruddy skin and a compact torso that looked out of proportion to her height—even though she was barely pushing five feet tall.

“Do we know each other?” I asked.

She studied me, her eyes alighting on my unwieldy brooch.  “Uh, no.  I don’t think so.  Should we?” she inquired.  Her speech was rough, and colored by an accent that I couldn’t place.

“Well, my friend saw you following me, and we thought perhaps it was because you recognized me from somewhere.”  My tone bordered on accusation.

She tore her gaze from the chunk of crystal to my waiting stare.  She looked from me to Sunny in silence for a moment, and then sighed.  “Beautiful.  First day on the job and my cover’s already blown.”  There was a wry twist to her sturdy lips.  “My name’s Galena.  Pat Sparrow asked me to keep an eye on you, Sydney.”

“Agent Sparrow didn’t say anything to us about having Syd followed,” Sunny said suspiciously. 

Galena’s dark eyes twinkled with humor.  “Well, I could flash you my Seelie badge, but I don’t suppose that would mean squat to you.  And I assume he didn’t say anything because I was supposed to stay out of sight—you know, not interfere with your daily routine or give you any cause for concern—just make sure you didn’t get into any trouble.  You can ask him the next time you see him.”