Dangerous Dalliances (Maxwell Investigations) (9 page)

“Are
these the best you have?” the younger man questioned.

Siobhan
turned and looked at the younger man curiously. He had to be what women spoke
of when they said someone was tall, dark and handsome. Rich chocolate skin
covered in a black leather jacket and comfortable dark denim. It took her a
moment before turning her eyes to his. She blinked as she saw the familiar
cinnamon color.

The
store’s clerk covered the tray of what looked like jewelry. “I have a few in
the back. But I don’t know how well they’ll work for you.”

The
young man nodded before the old man turned and went to the back. He then turned
fully to Siobhan. She held back an appreciative smile when she saw a maroon
colored tee shirt stretched over his chest. “Are you looking for anything
specific?” he asked conversationally.

She
shook her head. “No, I’m just wandering,” she said with a smile. “I’m a bit of
a tourist.” When he nodded, she took a step closer and faltered. Magic was
rolling off of him. “I’m Siobhan.”

He
offered her a weak smile. “Jimmy.”

When
he turned his attention away from her, Siobhan’s eyes narrowed. This had to be
Madison’s brother. She turned and looked at the case of jewelry he was standing
over. “Are you looking for something for your girlfriend?” she asked.

He
glanced at her. “No. I’m looking for something for my sister.” He stood
straighter when the old man came back holding a black pouch.

She
stepped back and moved closer to a display of small trinkets. Nestled against
the wall was what looked to be a small dream-
catcher.
Siobhan inhaled when she realized exactly what it was. Resolve filled her as
she looked at the piece of art from her home. She would help open the Gates of
Hell here, then she would return back to her home in the Highlands and make
them sorry for ever casting her out.

“This
should work,” Jimmy said lowly.

Siobhan
looked at him and spied the ruby earring and the diamond and ruby encrusted
ring he wore.
 
Her eyes narrowed as she
thought of him going after Madison. She couldn’t allow anyone to stop her
plans. Not this late in the game.

Siobhan
leaned back against the display and looked at both Jimmy and the old man.
“Maybe you should think about picking out something for your daughter instead,”
she suggested. She took in the way Jimmy’s back went rigid and smiled at him.
“Dori is a wonderful little girl. You should be proud of her.” She straightened
and kept her gaze on Jimmy. “Any other child would be a crying mess. Dori cried
over her mother, but now she’s fully cooperating with us.”

Jimmy
looked as if he wanted to rip her throat out. “What do you want with her?” he
asked. When her lavender eyes rolled, he balled his hands into fists. “She’s
nothing to you.”

“She’s
an Oracle from two very powerful families,” Siobhan answered. Her tone was one
she normally used for children and idiots. “We’re trying to open the Gates of
Hell. What do you think we want with her? The adorable little thing is a
fountain of information.”

“If
you’ve done anything to hurt her,” Jimmy’s threat trailed off when Siobhan
waved her hand and sent him flying over the display case.

Siobhan
looked at him with irritated eyes. “Do I look like I would harm a child?” she
shouted. When he started to fight his way to his feet, she jumped across the
room to attack him. A growl escaped her when he quickly grabbed her arm and
rolled. Her breath escaped her when he slammed her into the stone wall, causing
some of the hanging decorations for fall.

The
ring on Jimmy’s finger pulsed with life. Before she could react, Siobhan’s
throat was held in a vice grip. She glanced down as much as she could and saw
that his entire arm was encased in diamond. “A Jewel Witch,” she said as she
slowly relaxed her body. “That explains it.”

“Explains
what?” Jimmy growled.

Siobhan
held up her arm and showed Jimmy her wrist. His face paled when he saw the
small bracelet he had given Dori for her last birthday. Before he could grab at
it, she made a swiping motion with her fingers. A gust of wind whipped out and
cut Jimmy across his eyebrow. Siobhan was on her feet in moments. Before either
could move, an arrow cut across her cheek.

The
old man stood stoic as she screamed. With hard eyes, he crafted another emerald
arrow and took aim at her.

Siobhan
disappeared and reappeared behind him. She wrapped her arms around him in an
embrace and leaned close to his ear. “Why did you have to do that?” she asked
in a whisper. When his only response was to swallow, she looked at Jimmy as he
picked himself up off of the floor. “You should have stayed out of it,” she
growled before reaching up and ghosting her fingers across his neck.

Jimmy
stood horrified as she stepped away from the old man. “You didn’t have to do
that,” Jimmy said as his expression hardened again. He growled when she only
rolled her eyes and wiped at the blood on her cheek.

“He
didn’t have to interfere,” she countered. They both stayed still and gazed at
each other. “We’re not looking to hurt her,” Siobhan said after a long moment.

“I
can’t believe that,” Jimmy said as two throwing knives formed in each hand.
“Not until I have her back and safe.”

Siobhan
looked at him curiously for a moment. She then shook her head. “Then we’re at
an impasse.” When he threw his weapons at her, she jumped aside, barely dodging
them.

Jimmy
covered his eyes as a whirlwind came to life in the shop. He frowned when he
heard the soft chimes of Wyldlands in the air. A scream erupted from his throat
as the air started to cut at him.

Siobhan
lowered her eyes as she teleported to a nearby rooftop. She folded her arms
over her chest and watched as the building that housed the antique store
crumbled in on
itself
. Her eyes were troubled as she
looked at the knife sticking out of her arm. With a frown, she pulled the blade
out of her arm and quickly healed herself. She had to keep her mind focused.
She had come too far for someone like Jimmy Maxwell to stop her now.

Siobhan
teleported back to the penthouse and blinked when she saw Madison talking
quietly with her husband. “I believe I just eliminated another threat to our
plans,” she announced. Before she could continue, Dori came out of her room
carrying a small tray of dishes. A frown crossed her face. The child was now an
orphan. Siobhan walked over to Dori and took the bracelet Madison had given her
off. “Swear to me, you won’t use this against us.”

Dori
looked into the woman’s eyes for a long moment. She knew what the Fae Princess
was thinking, but Dori also knew she was wrong. “I swear, I won’t hurt you,”
Dori said quietly. When Siobhan put the bracelet on her wrist, she nodded and
moved away.

Madison
sat carefully watching the pair. While she knew there was something going on,
she decided to let it go for now. “We’re going to need something referred to as
the Sacred Horn,” she said darkly. “That will open the doors.”

Siobhan
frowned as she sat at the table with Madison. “Do we know where it is?” she
asked.

“Ashton
is looking into it.” Madison leaned back in her chair and looked at Troy.
“What?”

He
shook his head. “Ashton isn’t doing shit for you,” he said simply. When her
eyebrow arched, he shrugged. “Think about it. He thought he was top dog and
then you come along. Not only do you knock him off his perch, but now you’re
taking over the entire operation. It wouldn’t surprise me if he’s on his way to
see your mother right now.”

Madison’s
eyes flashed red. “He would never be that stupid,” she hissed. “I would kill
him.”

“Not
if they could get to you first.” Troy stood and went over to the minibar. “I’ll
see what I can find out about this horn. I don’t want you dealing with him any
more than you absolutely have to.”

She
looked at him as she leaned back in her chair. “And what if I want to deal with
him?” she asked in a challenge.

Before
she could straighten in her chair, Troy was in her face growling. “I will
personally eviscerate him,” he answered.

Siobhan
smiled as she watched them. Troy Davenport was a man she could come to adore.
Especially if he took out that annoying Ashton.
“Since you
have this under control, I’m going to take my little girl shopping,” Siobhan
announced. She paused at her wording before looking at Madison. “Dori,” she
corrected herself. Just as Madison opened her mouth, Siobhan turned and left.
She would care for the child, but she couldn’t let it go any further than that.

At
least not until after she had her own father in a casket.

Lily
was quiet as she walked with Barry down the hospital hall. Her mind was tired
and currently running in circles. Most of the journals she and Barry went
through that morning were more like handwritten textbooks. None of them
contained any information on the pending Armageddon.

Now
that they were taking a break from their research, Lily found another problem
looking at her. The last time she and Eric spoke, she had been drunk, and then
her brother attacked him. She paused as she reached the door to the hospital
room. While months have passed since the attack, for Eric it could still be as
fresh as yesterday.

Barry
looked at her with concern in his eyes. “Lily?” he questioned. When she started
to shake her head, he gently squeezed her hand. “It’s alright,” he said with a
forced smile.

She
promised to not sleep with one of his brothers, and yet when everything was
said and done, she did exactly that. “He’s going to hate me,” she whispered.
Lily’s eyes were quickly filling with tears as she thought of all of the
reasons for Eric’s animosity. “I can’t go in there.” She pulled her shaking
hands away from Barry as it became harder for her to breathe.

Strong
hands held onto her shoulders. “Lilavanti, look at me,” Barry said softly. When
her jade colored eyes locked onto his, he gave her a shaky smile. “Eric isn’t
going to hate you. If anything, he’s going to be pissy with me.” Barry pressed
a kiss to her forehead when she started to shake her head in protest. “Trust me
on this. I’m used to him.” He pulled her into a hug. Barry couldn’t help but
smile when her hands slowly returned his embrace. “Let’s save our first fight
for something big,” he said into her hair. “Like which movie to go and see, or
which tastes better, a $60 burger or one from TJ Thorne’s place.”

She
closed her eyes as she turned her face to the side of his neck and inhaled. It
was easy to see why Barry never lacked bed partners. Since his declaration of
their relationship, he had been nothing but attentive and caring. “Dinner there
tonight?” she asked.

“I
was going to have it delivered to the hotel,” he confessed. “I have an in with
the owner.” He smiled when she started to laugh. “There’s my girl,” he
whispered before pressing a kiss to her lips. “Let’s go and see what Eric’s up
to.”

Lily
was quiet as she let Barry lead her into the room. She could only swallow when
she was caught up in the assessing gaze of her former boss. “Hi, Eric,” she
greeted nervously. “It would be pretty redundant to ask how you’re feeling,
wouldn’t it.”

Eric
Maxwell forced a smile on his face as he looked at Lily. “I’m feeling good,” he
said with a nod. “All of my tests are coming back and saying that everything is
fine.” He could only frown as tears started to fill her eyes. “I never blamed
you, Lilavanti,” he said softly. Eric held his hand out to her, and smiled when
she rushed to his side. “Sloane caught me up on everything.” His eyes darted
from her to Barry. “I know you haven’t been having an easy time. I have no
intentions of making your life any more difficult.”

“Why?”
Lily asked in a whisper. “After everything that’s happened, why
would you
still....”

“Because
of Madison,” Eric said simply. When she inhaled, he shrugged. “She grew up
thinking that she was alone. That it was just her and the
Solomons
against the world. You didn’t even have that much. Only Mathias and that isn’t
right.
Especially when we were becoming friends.
I’m not
going to turn my back on you just because of your family.”

A
sob escaped Lily before she could stop it. With a hand covering her mouth, she
moved away from both Eric and Barry. At their concerned expressions, she shook
her head. “I just... I need a minute,” she said before nearly running from the
room.

“I’ll
go get her,” Barry said.

“Why her Barry?”
Eric asked
from his bed. When his brother turned and looked at him, he shook his head.
“The one time I seriously wanted you to back off, you still went behind my
back.”

Barry
slowly inhaled and ran a frustrated hand over his hair. “You know E, I don’t
want to go here with you. Not when you’re in a hospital bed and Lily’s this
upset.” He shook his head and slowly backed to the door. “All you need to know
is that I care about her. And whatever problems you, Sloane, or anyone else has
with this can kiss my black ass. I have to get my girl.”

* *
* * *

Lily
quickly found herself down in the hospital’s chapel. She took a shaky breath as
she saw the young priest she had often found there. “Father Daniel,” she
acknowledged.

Daniel
looked at her with kind brown eyes. “Lily, I didn’t expect to see you here. I
heard your friend woke up.” When she started to nod, he frowned. The tear
streaks on her face did not tell a happy story. “Is everything okay?”

A
false smile crossed her face. The priest had always given her a kind ear, even
when she confessed about what she really was. It wouldn’t be fair to start
lying to him. “No,” she said trying to sum up her current world.

He
quickly went to one of the boxes of tissues he kept stashed all around the
chapel and took it to her. As she wiped her eyes, he guided her to the front
pew. “Would you like to talk about it?” he asked as they sat.

She
blew out a breath and tried to think of a good place to begin. Her eyes looked
at the large stained glass window and leaned back in her seat. “The End of Days
is coming,” she told him. “And according to one of the many prophesies about
it, I’m supposed to be one of the Four Horsemen.” When he looked at her, she
shrugged. “I’m supposed to be Famine.” When he slowly started to nod, she stood
and started to pace. “And if we put aside that little tidbit, I still have to
deal with the fact that my brother nearly killed a man I think of as one of my best
friends. Oh, and I think I’m falling for said best friend’s brother, who is...
was... as big of a whore as I am.”

Daniel
stood and stopped her pacing. His eyes were serious as he looked into hers.
“You’re not a whore if it’s survival,” he said clearly. When she blinked at
him, he shook his head. “You said that you don’t enjoy what you have to do to
survive. That isn’t being a whore.” He watched as she lowered her head and
wiped at her eyes again. “Does this young man know what you are?” he asked softly.

Lily
nodded. “And so far he’s been fine about it. I told him about some of my own
insecurities, and he’s been perfect about everything.”

“Alright,”
Daniel said slowly. “Does his past bother you?” he asked. When she froze, he
shrugged a single shoulder. “Then this is something you need to talk about with
him. If he’s as perfect as you say, he’ll
be understanding
about your situation.” As she went to sit back down, he saw a black man quietly
make his way into the chapel. “Can I help you, Sir?”

Lily
turned and offered Barry a weak smile. “
It’s
okay,
Father, that’s him.”

Barry
looked at the priest that was standing almost protectively between him and his
girlfriend. He was used to seeing old men as members of the cloth. Here was a
man that barely looked old enough to drink. “Barry Maxwell,” Barry said holding
out his hand. “I was just coming to check on Lily.”

“Father
Daniel Tennant,” Daniel replied shaking Barry’s hand. He then looked at Lily.
“Our girl is a little stressed,” he said calmly.

“There’s
a lot going on,” Barry agreed. He moved around Daniel and knelt in front of
Lily. “You okay, Baby?” he asked. “You just ran out.”

She
gently touched the side of his face and nodded. “We’ll talk later,” she
whispered. Lily could only blink when Barry nodded and pressed a kiss into the
palm of her hand. Green eyes looked up and saw that Daniel stood silent
watching them. She cleared her throat and smiled at her friend.
“Father?”

“You
mentioned something about the Four Horsemen,” Daniel said moving to sit next to
Lily. “You both know that I would be more than happy to help you in any way I
can.”

Lily
smiled. “Thank you Father,” she said before squeezing Barry’s hand gently. “But
we’ll get it all figured out.”

Daniel
frowned as he looked at the pair. “You don’t have to protect me, Lily,” he said
lowly. When she blinked at him, a rueful smile crossed his face. “I know
there’s more than one way to view what’s coming.” When Barry slowly pulled Lily
away from him, Daniel shook his head. “I don’t want either of you to be frightened,
but there is something you should have.”

Barry
stood and pulled Lily behind him. With all of the madness going on, he didn’t
want to take any chances with Lily being hurt. He frowned as Daniel walked over
to a small door and opened it. “What could you possibly have?” he asked darkly.

“There’s
a lot of history that you’re diving into. And over the years, I’ve learned a
lot about history.” He went into his small office and came back with a small
box. “This is something that I was told to give to you.”

Lily
bit into her lip as she looked at the small box. “Told by who?” she asked.

Daniel
looked at her and gave her a sad smile. “That’s a story for a completely
different day,” he answered placing the box on the pew. “Just know that a
friend gave it to me for you.” As he stepped back, he didn’t know if he was
annoyed or impressed by Barry’s refusal of the box. The man stood as still as a
stone. He slowly inhaled through his nose and allowed a harsh breath to leave
him.
“If you really need to know that much, fine.
It
was given to me by Michaela Crow, nearly 200 years ago,” he said with a thick
Scottish accent.

Barry’s
eyes narrowed as he looked at Daniel. The man had been speaking to them without
any trace of an accent. Now the chapel was being flooded with power. Barry drew
his gun and aimed at the man Lily thought was a friend. “You’re Fae?” he asked.

Daniel
nodded. “Just take your box and go. She said everything would be explained in
there.”

Lily
moved to pick up the box, only to cover her mouth to fight back a wave of
nausea. She turned to Daniel and frowned. “What’s in there?”

“The
only way you’ll be able to close the Gates, if they open. The only way you’ll
be able to stop a Horseman if they try to open the Gates. Take it, I have a
feeling you’re going to need it.”

Barry
could see how pale Lily had become as she looked at the box. He snatched it off
of the pew and kept it away from her. “I’ll be back later to talk to you,”
Barry told Daniel. When the priest nodded, Barry escorted Lily out of the
chapel.

* *
* * *

The
wind was wild as Madison stared at Troy. “Are you sure you want to be here for
this?” she asked. They stood on the roof of the hospital parking garage
watching as Barry and Lily quickly made their way to his car. “I can understand
if you can’t stomach it. He is your friend.”

Troy
slowly nodded. “He was my friend,” he admitted. His golden eyes then focused on
Madison. “But you’re my Mate. I back your play,” he said confidently.

She
smiled at him. “I love you,” she said before pressing a kiss to his lips. “Now,
remember, you just have to get the security feed from the garage. We’ll give
YouTube something to talk about.”

With
a quick kiss to her cheek, Troy quickly made his way to the inside of the
garage. Madison turned and started for the elevator when a shadow stepped in
front of her. “What?” she questioned as she looked up into Ashton’s eyes. “Are
you going to tell me how much of a bad idea this is?”

He
slowly shook his head. Watching Madison showed him something that he honestly
hadn’t thought possible. There was only one way he could stop her. “You know he
doesn’t have the stomach for this,” Ashton said quietly. When she pressed her
lips together, he continued. “You know
that as well as I do
.
Otherwise you wouldn’t have sent him away.”

Madison
stepped around Ashton and continued on her way to the elevator. “My reasons are
my own,” she said over her shoulder. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to talk
with my brother.”

Ashton
watched as she vanished from his sight. She was too confident in her control
over Troy, and that never sat well with him. He turned and went after Troy. He
would have to make sure the Wolf carried out his orders. And if he didn’t, he
would just have to take care of him before Madison found out.

* *
* * *

Barry
walked with Lily tucked under his arm. Since leaving Father Daniel, she had
become withdrawn. He pressed a kiss into her hair. “You okay?” he asked softly.

After
a moment, she nodded. “I feel like I should feel betrayed, but I don’t. Father
Daniel’s spent many days just listening to me ramble about nothing and
everything. I should have known that something wasn’t right with him.” She
sighed as Barry brushed another kiss into her hair. “And he thinks that we
should talk when we get home,” she confessed.

A
frown crossed Barry’s face. “So everything isn’t alright.” When she lowered her
head, Barry stepped closer to her. “Talk to me.”