Souljacker Read online

  He had anticipated the question though, and jerked his thumb over his shoulder toward the side wall. “Next door, there’s a second office suite for rent. I just called my landlord and agreed to take it as long as I can build a door pass-through between the two suites. We’ll have you in an office of your own within a week. That particular suite includes a small bathroom, so we won’t have to share the hall restrooms. Until then, you can just work out of my office.” Archer seemed delighted with the prospect and my impression that he was lonely increased.

  “Jolene called. The Souljacker struck again.” I told him about Peter.

  “That doesn’t give us much to go on, although it makes me more determined to search the Underground. My friend will meet us tomorrow morning at ten. We’ll have to be discreet so we don’t put him in danger, but maybe we’ll be able to find something. Jo-Jo knows the Underground like a bee knows how to find its hive.”

  I had brought my planner and now I jotted down Jo-Jo under the 10:00 a.m. slot for the next day. It felt good to see someone’s name on my calendar, considering I had crossed out almost every appointment I had booked.

  Archer pulled out a piece of paper. “I’ve accumulated a list of as many of his client names as I could come up with. At least we know it’s not just members of your India Ink Club that he’s after. So a lot of potential targets.”

  “Yeah, and I’m one of them.” I didn’t want to think about that, so I changed the subject. I tossed my planner on the desk and wandered around the room, stopping in front of the bookcase. Archer was well-read, by the number of titles I recognized. “Tell me, what kind of cases do you work on?”

  “Before I answer that, you need to fill out these forms. The moment you sign those, then I can tell you all of my confidential information.”

  Looking very pleased with himself, Archer shoved a clipboard across the table with several pages on it. Even though most transactions were done electronically, there were still some cases that called for an actual signature—in ink. I flipped through the pages, skimming over the documents. Standard NDA, authorization for a background check, the usual. As I filled out my name, address, national identification number, and a few other choice pieces of information, I thought this had to be one of the strangest weeks of my life.

  Archer sat a cup of coffee in front of me. “Cream? Sugar?”

  “Lots of cream, a little sugar. Vanilla sugar, if you have it.”

  Once we settled the formalities, he leaned back in his chair.

  “Okay, here’s the deal. A number of my cases concern political intrigue. Some of them are dangerous and those, I will take care of for the time being. I won’t put you in danger, at least not until you’re brought up to speed. Which brings me to another matter. I know Wynter wants you to be her liaison. But anything that happens in this office remains confidential. You’ll have to impress that on her, or this isn’t going to work. If she balks, remind her that I can be a valuable asset to the Fae.”

  I could see his reasoning. “I have to make another trip out this week. For one thing, the leader of the Aespions is supposed to contact me about my training. While I’m there, I’ll talk to Wynter about all of this. Somehow I doubt she’ll object.”

  “Does it bother you that she doesn’t approve of your former business?”

  I shrugged. “I don’t like being made to feel like I’m doing anything wrong. But I also understand that, in my culture, sex is thought of as a gift, not a commodity. It may be a pastime, or something to share. But it isn’t for sale.”

  “How does marriage work? I gather the Fae are primarily polyamorous.”

  “Most marriages are matters of convenience and of—for lack of a better word—social networking. Economics, heritage, breeding—it all plays into the choice of a spouse.”

  “What about love?”

  “Love…and lovers…are a totally different matter. The only thing that matters in a marriage is that you produce an heir and that you do not disgrace your spouse. And even that only matters among the nobles and those who have court status. Since I’m bound to the court, it will play into my life, if I ever decide to marry. But lovers? They are a choice of the heart. In a sense, marriage is the commodity rather than sex. So does it bother me that she was upset about my choice? On one level, yes. But on another level, I understand.”

  Archer glanced at the clock. “I’d better run. I have some documents to file with the court, and I have to meet with an informant on another case I’m working. Why don’t you start using the spare laptop over there. You can start with the cases that directly affect you—Tricia and the Souljacker. Go ahead and look up any information you need. The password is written on the notepad beside the keyboard. Or you can go home and start your official work tomorrow, if you like.”

  If I left for the day, I could easily make it to my meeting with Tricia without arousing suspicion. “Can I do some of the research at home? Thanks to Nate I have a highly encrypted network. It’s been a rough past few days and I didn’t expect to feel so shaken from everything.”

  Archer frowned, squinting for a moment. Finally he gave me a noncommittal shrug. “I suppose that won’t hurt. You still meeting me at Bender’s shop tonight?”

  “Yeah, I’m good with that.”

  “I’ll swing by and pick you up. Text you later about the time.” And, with a quick peck on my cheek—which surprised me—Archer hustled out the door.

  As I headed back to my car, I looked around for Marsh, but he wasn’t there. “Oh Marsh, where are you?”

  As I unlocked my door and slid into the driver seat, he appeared in the passenger seat.

  He laughed. “Miss me? And how’s your head feeling?”

  “Like it’s full of cotton. And of course I missed you.” And with that, I turned the ignition and eased my car out of the parking garage.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Nate was waiting for me, grinning from ear to ear. “Get everything squared away with Archer?”

  “Well, don’t you look like the cat that caught the canary, and ate it, too.” I dropped my purse on the table and slid out of my coat, stamping the snow off my boots. “Yeah, I signed all the forms and filled out all the information. Now he can tell me all about his cases without any problems. Did you find out anything yet? So you decided to work from my house after all?”

  “It made sense when I thought about it, so I called in sick. With this hangover, there is no way I’m going in. Besides, I heard on the weather that we’re due for a whiteout. The storm is packing in heavy, and it’s going to get worse as the day goes on. You might want to consider rescheduling the meeting with Bender.”

  I shook my head. “No, we have to find out everything we can. Besides, it’s not that far to White Tower Center.”

  “I’ve never been there,” Nate said.

  That didn’t surprise me. Most humans didn’t frequent the area—White Tower Center was in a dangerous area, even for those of us in the Supe community. “I have to go there this afternoon on an errand. I’ll scout out where his shop is so we can park close.” I sat down, pulling off my boots and setting them by the back door. “Jolene called. The Souljacker struck again. I don’t think you knew the victim. I didn’t. His name was Peter Trent.”

  Nate frowned. “No, I don’t recognize the name. Where did it happen?”

  “Pioneer Square. And this time, he took several patches of the man’s skin. Apparently he had given Peter a hell of a lot of tattoos. There were witnesses, but you and I know that’s not going to do any good. But one thing could help us—they saw the Souljacker come out of the Underground.”

  Nate pushed back his chair. “Tea?”

  “Please.”

  He emptied what was left in the teapot and began a fresh one. “There are a lot of vampire clubs down there. Including Veek.”

  “That occurred to me too, but I doubt he’s hiding there. He managed to ditch Greg, so he’s not going to go running back to him. My guess is that Charles found out his father
was probably planning to lock him up somewhere private, where neither the cops nor Charles’s mother could get to him. Being locked up wouldn’t sit well with someone with delusions of regaining his mortality if he regains all his artwork.”

  “Yeah, that occurred to me too. So you say you and Archer are going hunting through there tomorrow morning? Be careful. Not all those who are connected with the vampires sleep at night. And there are other dangers down there—just as deadly as the vamps.” Nate was frowning. “I don’t think I’d want to get caught in there, even in the daytime.”

  “Don’t forget, I’m Fae. And Dark Fae, at that.” I pointed toward Nate’s computer. “So have you been able to find out any scuttlebutt about the Weres?”

  “I’m still untangling the web of forums and lists they have. For an insular society, they’re pretty damned chatty. I’m trying to sift through all the fluff to see what I can find. But you should be proud—and I say that sarcastically. You’re trending on WereTalk.”

  I moaned. “Do I dare ask in what way?”

  “Oh, trust me, it’s not flattering. Not at all. You’re being demonized. Apparently you go around seducing everything with a cock, and then steal the money from them that was supposed to feed their poor starving families. Did you know you also have two vaginas?”

  I blinked, stifling a laugh. “What?”

  “Yeah, the rumor on one particularly nasty chat channel is that you have two Vs…so you can have sex with three men at one time as long as they point their dicks right.” He wasn’t smiling anymore. “Lily, you need to be cautious. Someone plastered up a fake profile on one of the hookup sites that claims to be you, with your real address, stating that you want to be raped.”

  My amusement rapidly vanished. “You aren’t kidding, are you?”

  He shook his head. “I don’t think Tricia posted that herself, but others following her lead and spreading dangerous rumors. I’ve been hacking into these sites and disabling everything I can find, but it’s going to be a while before I catch them all—if I can catch them all—and by then, they’ll probably have reposted them. You have to do something about Tricia.”

  “I know.” After a moment, I said, “Can you show me what you found?”

  “No, Lily. Forget it. It’s too ugly. I don’t want you seeing what they had to say.” He started to say more, then hesitated.

  “Yes? What is it?”

  “I sent the information to Archer, though. I figure he might have some contacts who can put a stop to this crap.”

  I wasn’t sure whether to be angry or grateful. I hated being fussed over and treated like I couldn’t handle my own business, but I had no desire to see the trumped-up posts that the Weres had been making about me. Feeling incredibly confused, I crossed to the refrigerator and pulled out bread and roast beef and mayo. I also managed find a tomato and some lettuce. My stomach had settled and now I was starving.

  “You want a sandwich?”

  “I could go for a nosh.” Nate joined me by the sink, slicing the tomato as I spread the bread with mayo and mustard, and layered the beef on it. “Lily, these Weres…they mean business. I’ve seen Weres in grudge matches before and it’s not pretty. You need to be careful.” His voice was trembling, and I realize how afraid he really was.

  “Boo!” Marsh suddenly appeared next to Nate.

  Nate jumped. “Dude, do you have to do that? Can’t you announce your appearance before you show up? You could give a man a heart attack.”

  Marsh chuckled, then sobered. “I’ve been listening to what you’ve been saying about the vampires and the Weres. My first impulse is to say talk to the authorities, but the authorities are too afraid to do anything. Can’t they just go out and eradicate the vampires? And arrest this woman who hit you?”

  “As for Shayla, nobody’s going to arrest her for smacking me. No witnesses and it’s her word against mine. Oh wait, there were witnesses when Tricia came up to me at the food court. A few other Weres, who will side with her.”

  “As for the vampires,” Nate said, picking up the thread, “the Deadfather has been investing heavily in a number of companies, providing a steady stream of revenue. This has probably been going on for years, but only recently out in the open. These corporations aren’t going to want to lose their sugar daddy. They’ve been able to buy political seats because of this. Hence, the Deadfather controls some politicians. Vampires are slowly but surely making the laws.”

  “What do you make of the vampire rights bill? Surely it can’t pass, not with all the worry over the increasing number of attacks.” Marsh shook his head. “I don’t understand people.”

  “Me neither. But the bill is bound to pass,” Nate said. “Vamps have the right to legally marry now. It won’t be long before everything else follows.”

  I nodded. “People don’t want to see how dangerous they really are because as long as it’s not their family member being killed, the money the vampires pump into the economy appears to be a good thing. You’ve got an entire subsection of society who rallies for vampire rights because they are anti-oppression, but they don’t realize that the vamps are looking at them as human juice bags. Then you have another subsection of society who’s turned on by vamps and will do anything for them. The entire situation is a mess.”

  Nate rubbed his head. “I guess we can always leave and move to Alaska. Vampires don’t tend to congregate there. At least not for six months out of the year.”

  “All joking aside, Archer is right. We can’t let ourselves be linked to destroying the Souljacker. We don’t want a big fat target planted on our backs.” I wasn’t sure how we were going to manage that, but we had to find a way.

  Marsh grinned. “In other words: walk softly and carry a big stake.”

  “That’s about right.” I cut the sandwiches in half and placed them on salad plates.

  Nate rummaged through the refrigerator for a couple cans of soda. He handed me one and popped the tab on his own. He took a long drink, then set the can down as he leaned on the counter, staring out the window.

  “It’s really blowing out there. It’s so beautiful.” His voice trailed off as he watched the rising flurry outside.

  I walked over to stand beside him in a comfortable silence. Nate leaned toward me, and we stood there, bare inches apart, watching the storm. Marsh was kneeling by Mr. Whiskers, who rubbed his chin through Marsh’s leg. The silence in the kitchen intensified, shrouding us in a muffled blanket. Outside, the snowfall picked up as huge white flakes piled up on the already significant snowpack.

  “I think they’re right—the weatherman, that is. We’re in for a real blow.” Nate wiped his hands on a dishtowel. “Lily, please don’t go out today. I have a really bad feeling…like you’ll be caught in an accident or something.” He was serious; I could see the concern in his eyes.

  “I have to. This errand…I need to take care of something. I’ll be careful. I promise.”

  “Nate’s right. I don’t think you should go either.” Marsh looked up from where he had been wiggling his fingers in front of Whisky, who tried to catch them. It was better than a laser-dot toy, I thought.

  I knew they meant well and I wasn’t exactly sure what I could gain by talking to Tricia, but I had to try. Maybe she didn’t know about the crass postings, that her anger had just fueled some of the more dubious members of their society. Inside, a voice whispered I was being stupid, but I knew that as long as Nate and Dani were in danger because of me, I had to do whatever I could to mitigate the situation.

  “I don’t like to sound obstinate, but I have to.” I turned back to the table.

  Nate shook his head. “If you won’t budge, we can’t stop you, but I still think it’s a bad idea.”

  My phone rang at that moment, and I checked caller ID. I didn’t recognize the name but the area code was from Wynter’s land. The Fae court had its own area code. Granted, it was a small area, and the sovereign rights acceded it didn’t include anything not in the favor of our current gove
rnment, but it was step toward autonomy.

  “Hello?”

  “Vesper here. Wynter told you I’d be calling. I’m the director of the Aespions. I’m calling to set up your first training session. I will need to see you tomorrow afternoon at one o’clock. Be here, no excuses.” Her voice was cold enough to freeze scalding water. I started to answer, but she hung up.

  “Well, she’s sure of herself.” At Nate and Marsh’s questioning glances, I told them what she had said.

  “I think this will be good for you,” Nate said. “I have a feeling that the Aespions are pretty freaking formidable. And as much as I admire you, Lily, I have to say that you don’t seem…um…all that in shape as far as defending yourself goes. Maybe you used to be a kickass traveler in the world, but I think you’ve kind of let your training go.”

  “I’m not sure if I should be insulted or not.”

  “Oh, give it a rest. You never go to the gym and while you can eat like a horse and never gain an ounce, you aren’t gaining muscle, either. Hey, do you think Archer will teach you how to shoot? He could get you licensed as a private investigator so that you can legally carry a gun.”

  I blinked. I had never touched a gun in my life and I really didn’t feel comfortable doing so. Guns were illegal for the general populace to own, and so many had been melted down that they weren’t easy for criminals to procure, either. But there were whispers about opening up gun licensing again, and the fury was loud and strong between the two opposing camps.

  “Are you sure you would trust me carrying a gun?”

  Nate shrugged. “Better you than Dani, to be honest. And with you working for Archer, it makes sense, for your own protection.” He arched his eyebrows and grinned. “Somehow, I don’t think you’re a hothead who’s going to go off her rocker and start shooting up the joint.”

  “We’ll see. I’m not that comfortable with the idea, but perhaps if I trained with one I’d be more apt to agree. I’ll ask Archer when I see him next.” I paused as a knock sounded on the back door. “That’s probably Dani.”