Bound by Magic (9 page)

The majority of the bridge was empty now, save for a few abandoned carriages and steamcars. Still, I was surprised when Iannis sat down on the curb next to me and stroked a hand down my fur. A warm current flowed down my spine, banishing some of the hollow, icy feeling, and I had to resist the urge to lean into him. His masculine scent was incredibly compelling, and as he sat beside me on the bridge, looking at me with such concern in his eyes, he was more approachable than he’d ever been.

But I didn’t lean on him, because that would break the barrier that had mutually been erected between us, and there was no coming back from that.

Once my heartbeat had steadied, I pushed myself to my feet, then shifted back into human form. By the time my vision had cleared, Iannis was standing, his expression stern once again. But there was a look in his eye I’d never seen before, something that could almost be mistaken for admiration.

“Perhaps I could have found a way to do this without you, but I probably would not have found the explosive device in time. Thank you for insisting on coming along.”

I grinned at that. “That’s the first time you’ve ever thanked me for my stubbornness.”

“Indeed.” He hesitated, uncertainty flickering in his eyes for a moment. “The magic I used to help you defuse the bomb… I would appreciate it if you kept it to yourself. It is not something I’d care to share with others.”

“Umm, okay.” My brows furrowed in confusion. “What, did you use black magic or something?” What he’d done hadn’t felt evil, but it had certainly thrown me off. If Iannis could do something as crazy as invade my
soul
, what else was he capable of?

“Not black magic, just… unconventional.” He frowned. “I would rather not explain myself further.”

“Fine.” I held up a hand – it really wasn’t that important, and I didn’t want to strain our relationship after things seemed to finally be moving in a better direction. “I won’t ask questions. Your secret is safe with me.”

“Thank you.” He gave me another small smile. “As a reward for your good work today, I’m giving you the rest of the day off.”

“You what?”

“You heard me,” he said dryly as he swung himself up onto his horse. “Try not to waste it. You’ll be back to work in the Guild tomorrow afternoon.”

My grin widened as he galloped away, and I was so happy that it didn’t even occur to me until he was out of sight that I didn’t have a ride back to the Palace.

A
fter allowing
myself a few more minutes of rest, I shifted back into beast form and trotted back to the Palace. From there I grabbed my steambike and rode to the Enforcer’s Guild to see if Annia was there.

Sure enough, she was sitting at her desk, cursing under her breath as she filled out what looked like a mountain of paperwork. With her pale skin, long auburn hair and dark eyes, she was a more sophisticated version of her younger sister Noria, without the freckles or the frizz. Her slender but fully formed curves were covered from head to toe in black denim, and I arched a brow as I sat down in the seat next to her desk.

“Dressing casual today?” I asked. Enforcers usually wore leather while we were on the job – it was sturdier than any cloth, which was important in our line of work.

Annia jerked her head up at the sound of my voice. “Oh hey. Nice to see you too.”

I grinned at her peeved tone. “You didn’t answer my question.”

“Yes,” she said, returning her attention to the paper she was scribbling away at – she was filling out the forms required to claim her fee on a bounty she’d turned in. “After I fill out this flaming pile of paperwork, I’m taking the day off. So don’t even think about asking me for work, because that is a four-letter word today.”

“I think it’s a four-letter word every day,” I teased, earning myself a dirty look. I didn’t take any offense though – Annia hated paperwork with a fiery passion, and sitting down to fill out the stuff always put her in a foul temper. “I’m actually not here looking for work. I was wondering if you might be able to answer a question I’ve got about a case.”

“You’ve got a case?” Annia’s eyebrows arched as she straightened in her seat, curiosity gleaming in her dark eyes. “I haven’t seen you around here in forever. When did you have time to grab a case?”

“Well, it’s not an Enforcer’s Guild case,” I admitted. “It’s something that Inspector Lakin is working on, and I’ve agreed to help him with it.”

“Really? He’s paying you for it?”

“I wish.” My mouth twisted into a grimace. “No, actually I’m doing this one pro-bono. It’s connected to the silver murders, and more specifically, Sillara’s death.”

“Oh.” Annia set her pen down – she’d liked Sillara too. “Well that’s a whole different story, then. What can I do to help?”

I pulled out the betting tickets and handed them to Annia. “Lakin and I found these at the house of a reporter who went missing recently. They’ve got the name of a business on the back of it, and I was hoping you might know what and where it is, because it sounds familiar to me.”

“The Dirty Habit?” Annia asked, her brown eyes sparking with recognition. “Sure, that’s a gambling den in Turain. Legal stuff, usually cards and pool. I’ve been there once or twice.”

“Right.” That explained why I’d never been there. I stayed away from gambling joints – I was bad enough at managing money as it was, and didn’t need another reason to spend it. Turain was further up the coast, outside Solantha County but definitely still part of the State of Canalo. “You a regular over there?”

“Not really.” Annia handed the slips back to me, then picked up her pen and turned her eyes back towards the stack of forms in front of her. “I’ve only been there once, about two years ago when I was running down a lead.”

“Well, I’ve recently gained a reputation for being good at paperwork at the Mages Guild,” I said wryly. “What do you say I use my newfound skill to help you out, and then you come with me to Turain to check out this gambling den and see if something doesn’t pop?”

“Hmm.” Annia dragged her front teeth over her bottom lip as she considered. “That sounds a lot like work.”

“Aww, c’mon Annia.” I nudged her shoulder. “For Sillara, right?”

“Okay. But only if you can help me get this done in the next hour. I still fully intend to enjoy some downtime today, so if I’m here longer than that I’m not going.”

I grimaced as I reached for the stack of papers next to Annia’s elbow and drew them toward me. “Well, I always do like a challenge.”

W
e finished
with time to spare, and rode across the bridge and up the coast to Turain – a little over an hour’s ride on my bike. The gambling den was located in Turain’s Maintown, so I used a magical illusion to disguise myself as a petite blonde human with hazel eyes and a beach tan, exchanging my leathers for a short silver dress and black, knee high boots.

Annia, still dressed in the same black denim she’d worn to the Guild, rolled her eyes at my clubby getup. “You planning on taking someone home tonight?” she asked, arching a dark red brow.

“No.” I batted my eyelashes and looped an arm around her waist, clinging close. “But we’re a lesbian couple now, and I have to look the part. You’re the stud, and I’m the femme.”

Annia snorted. “Would have been nice if you’d filled me in on the plan before we got here. Are you going by a different name, then?”

“Nadia.” The name popped from my lips, and it took me a moment to remember that it was the name the Chief Mage had given me when we’d gone similarly undercover at a bar in Solantha’s Maintown. Warmth spread through me as I remembered how casual he’d been, looping his arms around my waist and sitting me down in his lap as if I’d actually been his girlfriend. He’d glamoured himself up to look like a young human college student, and he’d played the part so well it had been a little disconcerting.

“Alright Nadia.” Annia’s lips twitched with laughter as I squeezed her arm, and she tugged me a little closer to her body, playing the part. “Let’s do this.”

We walked into the club, a black-painted cinder block building on the corner of the street, and were assailed by a haze of cigarette smoke. Instantly, I broke into a coughing fit, and held up my hand, my eyes watering. I
hated
cigarettes with a passion – I was ridiculously sensitive to the smoke and it always had this effect on me.

“Get it together,” Annia hissed in my ear. “People are staring.” Sure enough, a few of the patrons seated around the various round tables set up throughout the space were turning to look at me, their eyebrows raised as if to say ‘What? You’ve never been around smoke before?’ I wanted to bare my teeth at them and tell them to fuck off, but that didn’t go with the sweet, girlish persona I was affecting, so instead I turned and buried my nose in Annia’s jacket to try and regain my composure.

“Nice,” she muttered, but she stroked a hand across my back comfortingly.

“Can I get you ladies anything?” The bartender asked. “Maybe some water for your girl?” He gazed pointedly at me.

“Oh yeah, that’d be great.” Annia tugged me over to the bar, and I forced myself to pull my face away from her jacket and sit down on one of the stools. Fortunately, the smoke happened to be coming from a group sitting in a corner at the opposite end of the room, and the smell was less pungent here. “Can you get a glass of water for her, and a scotch for me? I could do with something strong to get me started.”

“Coming right up.” The bartender smiled at Annia, then served up our drinks. I forced myself to sip my water slowly instead of gulping it down – being ladylike really wasn’t my thing. Why did I decide to do this again?

Oh, right. For the victims.

“Not really sure what I’m supposed to do now,” I muttered to Annia, feeling a little put out. “I’m going to have a tough time blending in around here enough to ask questions.” I should have thought this through a little better.

Annia grinned at me over her half empty glass. “Don’t you worry your pretty little head about it, sweetheart,” she said, putting an arm around my shoulder and planting a kiss on my cheek. “You just sit next to me and look gorgeous, and I’ll do all the talking.”

I scratched the side of my head with my middle finger, and Annia nearly choked on her drink. We finished up at the bar, and then she led me over to one of the card tables. I eyed the heavy money pouch at her hip enviously as she withdrew a handful of coins to buy chips from the dealer – Annia had really been cashing in on the bounties lately.

As Annia suggested, I sat next to her and looked pretty while she played with the big boys, going through several rounds of Mad Jack at this table, and then moving on to another one to play Seven Card. I simply batted my eyelashes at the men, cooing and praising Annia every time she won a round – which was quite often, to my surprise. Annia might not’ve been a regular around here, but she was definitely no stranger to playing cards. Between her good looks and her natural gift of gab, she got the men to relax and chat with her despite the fact that she was taking their money.

“So,” Annia finally said to the man next to her after they closed out another round. “My brother gave me some betting tickets awhile back that I never ended up using, and I forgot what they were for. Think you might be able to help me out? I’m looking to find something new to spend my money on.”

“Sure.” The man took the tickets from Annia, but the smile from his face faded as he stared down at the tickets. “You said your brother gave these to you?”

“Yeah.” Annia arched a brow. “There a problem with that?”

“Well, no…” The man’s forehead furrowed, as if he wasn’t quite sure how to explain. “I mean, it’s just that this isn’t the type of betting ring you usually buy tickets as gifts for, at least not for a woman.”

“In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not the average woman,” Annia drawled, looping an arm around my shoulders and drawing me close. I smiled vapidly and pressed a hand to her chest, and the other man grinned.

“No, that you’re not,” he agreed. “I can tell you’re a woman who can handle herself, so I guess you’d enjoy this kind of thing.” He glanced around the room, then lowered his voice. “These betting tickets are for the Shifter Royale.”

“The Shifter Royale?” Annia echoed. “What’s that?”

“It’s an underground fight club where different types of shifters are pitted against each other,” the man murmured. “I’ve only been to a fight once myself, and I have to say it’s pretty brutal. Definitely not for the faint of heart.”

I stiffened at that, and Annia gave my shoulder a warning squeeze. “Well that sounds exciting. Where do I get seats?”

“Silon can help you out with that.” The man nodded toward the back corner of the room, and I stifled a groan, knowing he was referring to the table of smokers.
Figures
. “He’s the one who sells the admission tickets. There are bookies at the event itself to take your bets, of course.”

“Good to know.” Annia turned her head in my direction and gave me another squeeze. “Hey Nadia, I’m gonna go over there and talk to Silon. Why don’t you hang out at the bar for a second? I’ll be right back.”

“Sure thing sweetheart,” I purred as she kissed me on the cheek, relieved that Annia was giving me an out. Much as I would have liked to go with her, I would be useless standing next to her just hacking and coughing, and my shifter hearing would allow me to overhear the conversation anyway.

“Buy three tickets,” I murmured in her ear as I stood up, and then I went to sit at the bar again as she’d told me to. I watched out of the corner of my eye as Annia approached Silon, a stocky, bald guy with a bushy red beard and a cigar shoved between the corners of his lips. He didn’t look too friendly as Annia approached, and when one of the men at the table stood up to frisk Annia for recording devices or any other suspicious items, I was glad that she’d left her Enforcer bracelet at home. Once that was out of the way, Silon relaxed and sold her the tickets without further fuss. He told her that the show was for tomorrow night, then gave her an address. It was all pretty straightforward, almost ridiculously so.

“Well tomorrow night should be interesting,” Annia commented once we were outside the club.

“No kidding,” I spat as we rounded the block, heading for my bike. “Underground shifter fights? There’s no way in hell that’s legal.”

“I doubt the shifters are being hurt too badly,” Annia said, but her voice was heavy with disapproval. “I mean, whoever’s running this thing is clearly making money off the fights, so they’ll want to keep the shifters alive for repeat performances.”

“By Magorah,” I hissed, outrage sizzling in my gut. “I can’t believe there are humans using shifters for sport! It's slavery all over again, except this time it’s not the mages who are responsible.”

“You don’t know that,” Annia said darkly as she settled herself behind me on the bike. “There are rogue mages out there who consider themselves above the law, and one could be pulling the strings here.”

“Well regardless if they’re human or mage, they’re going to pay,” I growled, tightening my grip around the handlebars. I kicked off with a shrill whistle from my engine, and left Turain behind in a cloud of steam. I would be back tomorrow, and when I did I was going to blow a hole in this scheme and find out what was really going on. I was going to drag the cruel son of a bitch behind this out of his hidey-hole.