Truth Seer Book Three, page 20
I finally exhaled and half yelped. I crammed a hand over my mouth. “Crap. Bastian must’ve heard me.”
Lux shook his head. “He hasn’t exited his car yet. Now….”
Jolting with embarrassment, I peeled my nails out of Lux. “I’m so sorry. I hurt you.”
He grabbed one of my hands before I could pat his skin, “No, you saved me. Please never forget that. And I assure you,” his voice deepened, “I will remember it for the rest of my life.”
I’d told you I felt more connected with him since giving him my blood. That connection just tightened, squeezing like a rope he wrapped around my heart. With one tug, he could pull me close. With one tug, with just one, I’d give in to him.
We didn’t have the time.
He settled me down, and I slipped out of his grip. I fell onto my trembling legs. I hadn’t flown. It didn’t matter. My body was still freaked out from the adrenaline rush.
Beth popped out of my pocket. “That was intense.”
“Indeed. I imagine what will happen next will be far more intense,” Lux muttered as he tilted his head and assessed the building.
He frowned.
“What is it?” I wasn’t tall enough to see much.
His gaze cut up the side of the steel and glass structure. It looked new. But not super new. Maybe three years old? I mostly dealt with residential properties. I still knew the ropes when it came to commercial places. I didn’t know this specific building. But from the construction and the fact a little lichen had developed in damp patches I bet this building wasn’t fresh.
But as I glanced through one of the bottom-story windows, I realized no one had fitted it out yet.
I frowned. “What is this place?”
“I’ve encountered it before. Briefly. I don’t know much about it. This is Bastian’s destination.”
“Is he still in his car? How do you even know?”
Lux tapped his ear.
I immediately became quiet.
I waited until Lux moved.
He remained paused in the laneway. Then he gestured me forward. I assumed we’d take the front doors. I was forgetting Lux was a demon.
He walked straight over to one of the windows, cracked his tail forward, and went to smash it.
I grabbed his tail. “That will be property destruction. Vince will go after you for it.”
He cleared his throat. “Two things. We’re investigating a dodgy vampire. That is my prerogative as an upholder of the Treaty. Also… please don’t grab my tail right there.”
I blinked. It was close to the base. “Ha? Why?”
“There are over 10,000 nerve endings just there. It is… distracting. Somewhat like touching one’s…. Now, what would the correct organ be for a human?” He paused.
Bethany hovered close. “P—”
I dropped his tail and lurched back, lifting my hands wide like a sprung criminal. Before my cheeks could burn off my face, Lux carefully brought his tail forward and set the tip alight. It was always burning slightly. Now the flame changed to a bright blue like an acetylene torch.
He cut a perfect circle out of the window. The glass fell toward him. He grabbed it, placed it on the ground, and gestured forward.
Still ashamed, I clambered through the hole. It was large enough we both fit easily.
We soon stood on the other side, and the building distracted me.
Why wouldn’t you fit a building out? It was solid. There were no cracks on the outside indicating the build itself had failed. So someone had run out of money, then? They would’ve sold the building.
There were no light fittings. The painting was half done. The floor wasn’t polished.
I frowned and crossed my arms. “This place doesn’t make any sense. It’s like a carcass. Why would Bastian come here?”
“When in doubt, ask the Internet.” Lux grabbed his phone from his pocket. With a few clicks, he found what he was looking for. He turned the phone around and gestured at me. “This building is currently owned by a vampire property group.”
I flinched like he’d kicked me. “Not just any property group. That’s the same group that owns the construction site where Lisbeth was attacked.”
We froze and stared at one another.
It really was Bastian, wasn’t it?
And I’d followed him back to a very important clue.
My hand immediately shoved into my pocket and grabbed the spell parchment. I didn’t want to let go of it, but technically it was Lux’s. It’d be safer with him. I handed it over.
He considered it and placed it in his own pocket. Then he frowned at the walls. “This place is not fitted, but I get the impression people still use it.”
“You do? There’s no lighting.”
He pointed behind me. I turned, expecting to see staff members. Before I could freak out, I saw footprints instead.
I walked over and assessed them. I headed further down the corridor. There were plenty of them. It suggested a lot of traffic. Some footprints were faint – others dark, meaning the traffic hadn’t all come at once.
“I don’t get it. You think the property group is using this place. It’s not finished. It doesn’t have lighting. I doubt it has heating or smoke alarms or fire suppression systems. It would be illegal to move in.” I lifted my finger.
Lux chuckled softly. “I’m not sure the people we are dealing with would care.”
I shrugged. He had a good point. I ran my tongue over my palate. I wasn’t concentrating to practice magic, just thinking this through. “Why would they use an unfitted building? What on earth would be the point?”
“It’s probably the location.”
“Ha?”
“Though vampires are usually fastidious folk, they also do not like to waste money.”
“What? You’re telling me they built this massive skyscraper here because they wanted the location but stopped before they finished it to save money? I’m not following.”
“When in doubt, search for the truth. Surely you’re one to appreciate that.”
He had a point.
“Should we just investigate this place or make it official?”
He drummed his fingers on his thigh. “We should make it official.” He winced.
“What if they find out we broke a window?”
“I’ll tell them I had an itchy tail.”
I cast my gaze away from him quickly, hoping I hadn’t… well… you know. Hoping I hadn’t done too much when I’d grabbed his tail. I’d had no idea they were such a sensitive place with demons.
That was probably why they kept them tucked out of sight, right?
Lux quickly decided we ought to head out and re-enter through the real entrance.
We clambered through the hole. He picked up the glass circle and remarkably melted it back into place with his tail.
I distracted myself with thoughts of what Bastian was up to as we headed around to the front of the building.
I didn’t want Bastian to know we were on to him. Lux didn’t seem to think it was a bad idea. I guess it would pressure the vamp.
We appeared at the front doors. It looked like they wouldn’t open. While I could see more muddy footprints beyond, there wasn’t a reception counter, and no one was walking to-and-fro. But the doors opened, and as we walked through them, I heard hurried footsteps.
A dapper vampire in a suit and vest appeared. He glowered at Lux but said nothing rude. “And to what do I owe this pleasure?”
Lux smiled briefly. “I’m investigating something for the Council, of course. And I’m assuming you know what that means?” He revealed his teeth in a wide smile.
“Indeed,” the man said.
Lux reached a hand out. “And you are?”
“William Nottingham. The head of this group.”
“Interesting building you’ve got here. Not quite to my liking, though. I prefer places with… a little more flair.”
“If you’re referring to lighting, electricity, and paint, we haven’t gotten around to it yet.”
“Interesting,” Lux commented noncommittally.
The head said nothing. He’d found us in seconds after we’d walked in. He must’ve known we were here.
Nerves plucked at me like long nails down guitar strings. I was thankful Lux was here. He was better at acting.
Beth was still in my pocket. I wanted to clutch her for support. But I didn’t want to draw any attention to her.
The head of the group took us to a mildly functioning room. By that, I meant someone had erected battery lamps, grabbed some old milk crates, and found a trestle table.
Lux smiled widely. “Is this your office?”
William laughed. “It’s the best we’ve got right now.”
“I admit that I looked up this building before heading here. It was built four years ago. I’m sorry if this is a leading question, but—”
“We didn’t run out of money,” William got there first. He leaned back, somehow looking casual on an upturned milk crate.
“Then what did happen?”
William’s jaw stiffened like he wanted to crush the joint. “This building has… problems.”
I frowned. “It’s not cracked. The foundations seem fine. None of the glass is broken. What kind of problems?”
William watched me with a careful eye. “I didn’t know a truth seer was capable of assessing buildings—”
“Ex-realtor,” I spoke over the top of him. “What kind of problems could this building have?”
“Magical problems,” he answered plainly.
I opened my mouth but closed it. I could only call bullshit on certain facts. I didn’t know enough about the kind of magical problems that could affect a building to continue the conversation.
“I’m not here to take too much of your time,” Lux said, smiling. “I’m simply interested in your connection to a building site—”
“I’ve spoken extensively to Vince and the rest of the Council about that location. I’m not entirely sure why I have to speak to you,” William said stiffly.
Lux leaned forward, locked his elbow on his knee, and pressed his chin against his knuckles. “Because I’m head of the dark side.”
He didn’t need to reveal his wings. He didn’t need to fill his eyes with fire. His position spoke for itself.
William straightened, and from his expression, he decided to stop sassing the most powerful demon in town.
Lux played with his short thumbnails then glanced at the room. “I want your financial files.”
“You can’t—”
“As a member of the Council, I can. The fact that you are resisting this suggests Vince did not demand them. I do. I want to know why this building isn’t finished. I want to know why you’ve paused construction at that other site—”
“Because a little girl was almost killed there.”
Lux called William’s bluff. “And a big vampire cares about that, does he? I’m familiar with your property group. Murders, disappearances, and crimes occur on your premises regularly.”
“Are you trying to suggest something?” William snapped.
“I’m simply relaying facts. It’s up to others to connect them together and find the truth.” He flicked me a smile.
I wasn’t in a smiling mood. I was done with gnarly confrontations. Today had done my head in. My ears still rang from all of the Councilmembers screaming.
They were one thing. William had a distinct edge. The kind that would cut me if I dared brush against it.
I slipped a hand into my pocket and surreptitiously slid my fingers down Bethany.
I longed for one of her witty retorts. Hell, one of her insults, frankly. Anything to calm me down.
William felt dangerous. The whole building did. I was here with Lux. But if today had proven one thing, that didn’t necessarily matter. Our enemies were more powerful than us.
“You can request the financial records. I will fight you on that. This is overreach, Demon—”
“Refer to me either as my name or as head of the dark side.” Lux lifted a hand, voice hard.
William’s lips twitched. This pompous, arrogant look filled his eyes. It relayed how much lower he thought Lux was. “Very well… Lux.”
Lux chuckled. “Interesting choice. You can fight me on the financial records. I have a good case on that. And I have a deadline. I’ll get them by the end of the week.”
William smiled slightly. It was just a twitch. It told my truth-starved brain everything it needed.
I pushed to my feet. It was a lot more comfortable than sitting on the milk crate and getting plastic imprints on my butt. “We’ll get them by the end of the day,” I snapped.
Lux looked at me, slightly amused.
William growled.
Lux lifted a finger and pointed at him. “Remember who you’re growling at. You can sass me, but it will cost you a lot more to sass her.”
A cloud could’ve passed over the sun and consumed it.
William twitched but remained seated. “And why would you want the files by the end of today?”
I looked at Lux. I didn’t need to say it. William had smiled when he’d heard of the week deadline, suggesting it wouldn’t matter if Lux managed to secure his files by then. William would already have done whatever he needed to do.
“The truth seer is right. We must move on this quickly. You are aware of the current situation in the city, are you not?” Lux’s voice wasn’t leading. It was remarkably even considering William was definitely working with our enemies. “I will have a strong case to requisition those files immediately. Someone must stop Lord Omega.”
“And is the implication that we are connected to him? Do you think you’ll find receipts in our petty cash referencing his name?”
“No. I don’t know what I’ll find. But I might find something.” Lux’s voice tightened around the words something like he’d plucked a chicken and waited to snap its neck.
William glowered at him.
As much as I wanted to wait around and find out where this argument would go, Bethany shook in my pocket. I slipped a hand into it and grasped her.
She trembled against me insistently. While she could hide our conversation from normals and certain magical practitioners, Lux wasn’t one of them. I had to guess William wasn’t either, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to shut her up.
I glanced at Lux. “I need to go to the bathroom. Would that be okay?”
I gestured to William. He didn’t care about me. His aggressive stare was locked on the demon. “Do what you want, Truth Seer.”
I slipped from the room. Unfortunately, the corridor was filled with staff. Where had they all come from? When we’d broken in, this place had seemed so empty.
I asked someone where the bathroom was and headed there. It was fortunately empty. I still walked into one of the stalls and shut the door. Finally Bethany was confident enough to rise from my pocket. She darted close to my face. “I can feel something in this building.”
I snorted. “Is it sheer criminality? I don’t get how this property group has managed to do what they have for so long. They’re clearly dodgy.”
“It is not criminality. It is just….”
I frowned. “Bethany?”
“Investigate. I have a vague sense. As a truth seer, you must have something more concrete.”
I bit my lip. Must have, ha? This place really was a mess. I don’t know if the fact it wasn’t fitted out was getting to me. Though it clearly had plumbing. At least the vampires hadn’t scrimped on that. Something about this building disrupted me, though.
I still hadn’t encountered Bastian again. I didn’t want to without Lux by my side.
I shook my head. “We should head back. We shouldn’t investigate this place without Lux.”
Beth snorted. “Seriously, Harper? For one thing, Lux is not Vince.” She delivered that like a revelation.
I had to tilt my head back and snort. “Never a truer thing was said.”
“I’m not asking you to compare their bodies.”
“I’m not,” I grew defensive.
“I’m asking you to compare their protective styles. Lux gives you far more latitude than Vince. He would not have let you go to the bathroom if he didn’t want you exploring.”
My nose scrunched. “That’s an assumption. I didn’t actually pull him aside and tell him we wanted to do anything dodgy.”
“Dodgy?” Her voice rose indignantly. “We are simply doing what we must. A truth seer tracks down the truth. Now get to it.”
I still didn’t agree that Lux would want me to do this. He had let me go. The question was what could I actually achieve? Sure, the place wasn’t complete. Enough staff thronged the corridors to make it hard to investigate. Plus, I just couldn’t get a strong sense of anything. My gut prickled, warning me something was around… but that was it. The sensation was irritatingly diffuse.
Curling my fingers into loose fists and tapping them against my thighs, I soon washed my hands and left the bathroom.
More staff filled the corridor. They were watching me, then? I imagine William had sent them.
Did I really think I could get anywhere?
I didn’t want Bethany to reveal herself in public. Maybe the various vampires around us weren’t as powerful as William, because she encouraged me to grab her up as she shook. I squeezed my fingers around her, and she said, “Just concentrate. It will come to you. Your mind is currently diffuse. Gather those strands, tie them back together, and point them in the same direction.”
I had a thousand things to say to that. Magic was way more complicated. Beth and Lux seemed to think I just had to use my mind like a torch beam, point it in a specific direction, and wait. It wasn’t that easy. Nowhere near.
My magic was more like herding cats. Each spark wanted to go in different directions. If I wasted my time gathering them up, I’d just drop them.
“Harper,” she began, voice twanging with irritation.
“Got it.” I lied. I had nothing but this irritating sense niggling through my gut.
Worse than that, it promised me I was running out of time.
Lux could only threaten William for so long. Either Vince would find out and make this official Council business, then question where the heck I was, or William would kick Lux out.
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