The alarm was still going off, which was odd. This likely did mean it was an emergency. We quickly peeled out of theparking lot, and I put the pedal to the floorboard. The squealing tires of my car echoed through the neighborhood, and I hoped with everything in me that no one was injured. I was cursing under my breath as I used my other power, the one I hadn’t liked to use because it reminded me too much of my past.
My glamour magic was unique. It was manipulative because it mimicked the world-building powers of the Gods, but really, it only could exist on top of already built environments. I wasn’t a Goddess by any stretch, just excellent at glamour. I manipulated the environment around us so that every stoplight for us was green and the lights changed to red for everyone else. Obviously, I was never lucky enough to not get stopped at every single red light in this damn city. At least we weren’t hitting any of the city’s infamous five-or-more-way intersections on our way downtown.
Usually, the drive from Maplewood to downtown St. Louis would take about fifteen minutes. I made it to the office in seven. The drive was quiet but tense. I kept wondering what the fuck had set off the alarms and running over emergency protocols in my head.
I glanced over at Vada to see she had a white-knuckle grip on the ceiling handle—the one the humans lovingly called the “oh shit” handle. I kept forgetting this was her first time in a vehicle, and I winced at my erratic driving. I slowed the car down as we got to thePaxbuilding and focused my magic on the garage door that would take us underneath the building. The emergency protocols were in place, meaning only the heads of thePaxwere allowed in and out of the building. This must’ve been an actual threat if we were on total lockdown. I tried not to react, in case Vada had the ability to scent or hear my emotions, but my jaw clenched anyway. This was all new to her, and I felt bad that this was her first experience here.
“Shit, Vada, I’m so sorry. I should have warned you we weregoing to speed our way downtown.” I turned the car off, and the silence was deafening.
She let out a shaky breath, laughing. “It’s alright. I can’t decide if that was sexy as fuck or if I’m scared for my life.”
I chuckled, relieved to break some of the tension. “Let’s go with the first option. This probably won’t be the last time we’ll be in a car together. This alarm concerns me. The last time it went off was probably a few decades ago, and that was a prank Loki pulled just to make sure people were paying attention. I’m hoping that he decided it was long enough that he did it again.”
“Have you been to the Demon faction’s floor yet?” I asked.
“I haven’t. I’ve only come to the facility to work out so far,” Vada replied, her head on a swivel at all the vehicles in the garage. Unfortunately, the tour of the cars and a driving lesson would have to wait.
“How about you head over that way? The Demons are on the sixth floor.” I brushed her hand. Maybe that was a bit forward, but I couldn’t seem to help my draw toward her. I wasn’t a touchy-feely person usually. I couldn’t imagine coming to St. Louis not even forty-eight hours ago only to have to deal with an emergency this quickly. “I’m going to head to the Unseelie floor on the thirteenth level and catch up with security. Are you sure you’re okay to get there by yourself?”
She grasped my hand in hers briefly, and that spark happened again. It ignited so many thoughts about what this could potentially be between us, but I quickly squashed them. Her powers were bleeding out of her, I was instantly soaking, and my nipples were at hard points. I clenched my legs together and fidgeted, heart racing from arousal or adrenaline, I couldn’t tell. My breathing picked up, and I glanced out of the rearview mirror toward the elevators to find some semblance of normalcy.
Vada noticed the change in me and she tensed. As we bothmade our way to the elevators, she replied back, “Sorry, I didn’t realize my powers were bleeding out. I’ll be alright to find my way there. I’ll see you shortly, sweet girl. Text me if you need any help.”
I smiled at her and hit the buttons on the elevator to get us to our respective floors. I wondered how often her control slipped, but I let it go. We had bigger things to deal with. “Same goes to you. I may be unavailable for a little bit until I figure out what’s going on, but I’ll let you know what I find out.”
Heading directly to my office, I was stopped by no less than a dozen beasties. Everyone wanted to know what was going on, and I got to the point where I had to start being a little rude to get them to leave me the fuck alone so I could figure it out. I granted my shadows free passage so they could listen in on the conversations around the floor. Most of the chatter was gossip as usual, but one thing struck me as off, and I almost stopped in my tracks.
“You’ve gotta get this out of here before anyone figures out what set the alarm off, you fucking idiot. You’re going to ruin the entire plan before it even begins,” a male voice said. It wasn’t one I immediately recognized.
“Fuck, man, I’m just following orders. I’m leaving now. This isn’t going to go over well. He’s—” the next voice, an androgynous one that sounded sort of familiar, cut off.
I issued an order to my shadows to restrain the two voices they’d reported back, but as soon as they got back to thelocation, they were gone through a portal they’d opened, my shadows unable to follow in time before it closed.
“Fuck!” I bellowed.
I sprinted toward the side of the building where the forest began, desperately trying to find the open field I’d heard the voices in. My shadows whispered to me while I fought my way through the roots and flora without tripping. My lacy top I’d worn for the day was ripped to shreds, and my bra wasn’t supportive. Breathing hard, and holding my chest with one arm, I arrived at my destination to see absolutely nothing. No signs that anyone had even been in this field. My sense of smell wasn’t as heightened as some of the other Unseelie, so I sent my shadows after folks who could help us identify scents that weren’t from our court.
While the floors were relatively open to other factions, we did not let outsiders into the forest without express permission. It was for their safety more than anything else. We had some wicked creatures inhabiting the forest, and we wanted to be sure that they had a safe place to call home, too. Finding nothing here, but being alerted that my assistants were in my office, there was nothing more I could do here except to report what my shadows told me to the other factions as soon as possible.
I cursed as I ran back toward my office. Aibell and Ionia rushed my way. “What’s going on?” I almost shouted at them, frustrated with myself that I just missed whatever culprit left my fucking turf.
“We’re not sure. We found one of the red caps with his throat slit. We sent healers his way, but they couldn’t save him. Someone with very strong magic would’ve had to have been involved, but I couldn’t detect a scent or energy signature to figure out who did it,” Aibell said, running her fingers through her shorter brownhair.
Ionia’s brows furrowed. “I’m not entirely sure what’s going on, but our floor wasn’t the only one that was compromised. They somehow hit every single faction. At least one person is dead on every floor, I think. We’re trying to find a connection between them, but it’s too early to tell if there’s a pattern.”
I opened my phone to text Poe, but my phone had several hundred unread messages. I didn’t even know where to start, so I texted thePaxheads group chat.
Me:
Just got to HQ. Wtf is going on?
Poe (Goddesses):
Can’t talk yet. Will get back to you shortly.
Maren (Witches):
At least 15 people murdered at HQ. Coordinated attack. Not sure what’s going on yet. No security breach alarms were set off inside the building, only outside.
