The Mage in Black (25 page)

Giguhl wrapped the end of the necklace around his wrist and swung it in an arc at his side. Valva stood on the other side of the pit, staring him down. They faced off. Each daring the other to make the next move.

Giguhl feinted a move to the right. Valva jumped into action, moving to her left. Surprisingly agile in her spiked heels, she performed a complicated series of leaping spins and kicks. Giguhl stood off to the side, watching her with wide eyes. Hell, even I wanted to applaud when she managed three back handsprings in a row.

She stopped a few feet in front of him, a challenge in her eyes. Giguhl raised his left arm and flexed his impressive biceps. Valva’s full lips spread into an approving smile. Then, inexplicably, he performed a back flip. I gasped. Who knew Giguhl was so nimble?

He jumped up and landed on just his hands and walked the perimeter of the pit. When he was back in front of Valva, he flipped back over and picked her up. She giggled as he spun her around his head. He tossed her in the air and caught her in his arms.

I rolled my eyes. Maisie laughed next to me, enjoying the show. But the rest of the crowd started booing. They’d paid to see a fight, not some bizarre demon mating dance.

“No mercy! No mercy!”

Giguhl ignored them and set Valva gently on her feet. Slade jumped into the ring and approached the pair. I ran forward to play referee should the need arise.

Slade covered the mic with his free hand. “What the fuck is going on here? You know the rules. Two demons enter; one demon leaves.”

“Screw the rules.”

“Yeah,” Valva said in a high-pitched voice. She rewarded Giguhl’s rebellion with a kiss on his cheek. His green scales flashed red for a moment—the demon version of a blush.

A few members of the audience booed. Others picked up the chant. “Two demons enter; one demon leaves!”

Giguhl grabbed the mic from Slade, who looked like he wanted to fight him for it but thought better of it. Giguhl waved his hands for silence. “No one’s going to the Pit of Despair tonight.”

Jeers and more boos greeted this announcement. Giguhl ignored them and grabbed Valva. He dipped her low, going in for a passionate kiss.

Slade turned on me. “Order him to fight!”

“Sorry, Slade. It’s his decision.”

He glared at me for a moment. “If he doesn’t win, I’m out a fortune.”

“Sue me.”

Just then, a male pushed past me and rushed into the ring. “Get off her!” He launched himself onto Giguhl’s back. I grabbed the man by the scruff of his neck and pulled him off Giguhl.

The audience went quiet, holding their collective breath as they watched a new drama unfold. Maisie eased away from the crowd and came to stand next to me. “Who the hell are you?” I demanded.

He ignored me and jumped toward Valva. He grabbed her arm, inviting a low growl from Giguhl.

Slade stepped in. “That’s Lenny. He’s Valva’s handler.”

Lenny was a mage, judging by the scent of sandalwood coming off him. His lanky frame was covered in a bad suit, and his black hair looked like it had been slicked back using a pork chop. “You get your ass in gear and finish this fight,” he yelled at Valva.

“Hey,” I called. “I suggest you get your hand off the demon before Giguhl rips it off.”

“Fuck that! She’s going to finish this.” He rose on his tiptoes and whispered angrily in Valva’s ear. Giguhl shot me a look, begging me to let him take care of the mage. I shook my head.

“Calm down there, buddy,” I said. “We can sort this out, but clearly, Valva doesn’t want to fight.”

He ignored me again and said to Valva, “You know the deal. You wanna stay with Lenny, you gotta earn your keep.” He took a breath and changed tactics. His voice went from angry to sweetly threatening. “You don’t want me to send you to the Pit of Despair, do you, sweetheart?”

Fear lit up Valva’s golden irises. “No, Lenny. You can’t send me there.”

“What the hell’s going on here?” I demanded to Slade in a low voice. “I thought she was supposed to throw the fight anyway.”

Slade shrugged. “Lenny doesn’t want to pay his debt, which just doubled since he didn’t keep up his end of the deal.”

“Whether she can fight or not, it doesn’t sound like she wants to go home,” Maisie said.

Lenny was sweating now. His eyes had a desperate glint. Too desperate. “I told you to kill that demon!”

“Hold on just a damned minute,” I yelled. “What the hell do you mean by that? She was supposed to throw the fight!”

Shocked gasps rippled through the crowd. Slade cursed loudly. “Godsdammit, Sabina.”

I was too concerned with figuring out what the hell was going on to worry about keeping Slade’s racket a secret. “What did you mean she was supposed to kill him?”

Lenny’s head jerked up, finally realizing he had an audience. “Fuck. She’s gonna be pissed now.”

I frowned. “Who is?”

Lenny shook his head. “Like I’d tell you. It’s all your fault anyway, bitch.”

I did a double take. “How the hell is this my fault?” I felt like I’d entered the Twilight Zone.

Lenny’s eyes went unfocused and wild. “It’s too late. Unless…” Lenny spun around toward Giguhl.

A prickle started at the base of my neck as I realized Lenny was drawing up his magic. My blood went cold.

Time slowed. I leapt forward, my hand going for my gun. Valva fell as Lenny pushed her down. Giguhl’s eyes went red with rage. Behind me, I heard Slade yell.

The air shifted, crackling with energy. A bolt of something flew past me and slammed into Lenny. His body jerked, his own spell going wide. He froze like a statue.

The entire room went still with shock. I stopped with my gun aimed at Lenny’s inert body. Glancing over my shoulder, I saw Maisie lower her hands. She saw my look and shrugged. “We can figure this out without anyone dying.” Her voice held an undertone of steel I’d never heard before.

Slade burst into action, calling on his bouncers to clear the room. While they rounded up the confused crowd, I slid my gun back into my waistband. Adrenaline still singed through me, making my hands shake. Giguhl helped Valva off the floor. He wrapped his green arms around her while she quietly sobbed against his chest.

Maisie came to stand next to me. “Sorry about that.”

“No, thank you,” I said, realizing I really meant it. “Now we can get some answers out of him.”

It took a few more minutes for Slade’s men to clear the room. When the last patron exited, he came to join us. He ran a hand through his hair and blew out a breath. “Remind me why I shouldn’t kick your ass out of here right now. Do you have any idea how much money you just cost me?”

I crossed my arms. “That’s your own damned fault, and you know it.”

“Children, do you think you can hold off on the blame game until we figure out why Lenny wanted Giguhl dead?”

Slade shot me a glare but nodded at Maisie. “You’re right, Fiona. What do you suggest we do?”

I blinked. I’d forgotten the whole Fiona charade.

“First of all,” she said and paused. A trickle of energy made my skin tingle. Sparkles of magic circled Maisie, morphing her back into her normal appearance as they traveled down her body. “My name’s not Fiona. It’s Maisie.”

Slade’s eyes widened and his mouth fell open. I smiled, enjoying the rare sight of Slade being caught off guard.

“What the hell is going on here?” he demanded, looking at me.

“Slade, this is my sister, the honorable Maisie Graecus.”

He blinked and stared at Maisie. “Maisie Graecus, as in the leader of the Hekate Council? You’re Sabina’s sister?”

“Twin sister,” she corrected, smiling.

“Excuse me, but if you’re done with the introductions, we have a situation here,” Giguhl said.

Slade schooled his features. “I apologize if anything I’ve said tonight has offended you,” he said to Maisie. “I had no idea who you were.”

She waved away his apology while I rolled my eyes at his ass kissing. “That was the point. I’d hoped to avoid revealing my identity, but since this situation involves both my sister and one of my constituents…” She trailed off, looking toward Lenny.

“Of course,” Slade said. “If there anything I can do, just let me know.”

She nodded dismissively, obviously lost in thought as she puzzled how to proceed.

I crossed my arms, trying to tamp down my impatience. If it was up to me, Lenny would already be dead. But Maisie was right. We needed to get to the bottom of this mess.

“Do you have any brass handy?” Maisie asked finally.

“Of course,” Slade said. He walked over to Giguhl and pulled a set of keys out of his pocket. Giguhl glared at him while he unlocked the collar.

“Take off hers, too,” Giguhl demanded.

Slade glanced at Maisie. She nodded. “By all means.”

He clicked off Valva’s collar next and brought both to Maisie. She shook her head. “Please place it on Lenny.”

Slade smiled his apology at his lack of thought. Brass dampens magic. That’s why all the demons in fight club had to wear brass collars. It prevented them from cheating and blasting their opponents with demon magic. They also worked on mages, which was why Maisie refused to touch them.

Slade clamped a collar around Lenny’s neck. “Okay,” he said.

Maisie’s movements were economical as she switched into business mode. “I’m going to release the spell in a moment. Let’s make this clear from the beginning: I’ll be asking the questions. If any of you are unable to hold your tongue during this process, you will be asked to leave. Is that clear?”

The four of us nodded. Maisie took a step closer to Lenny and whispered something under her breath. The air popped as the spell released. Lenny stumbled forward, his previous momentum cut short. “What the hell?” he yelled. His hands moved to his neck. When he realized what was around his neck, he paused. His eyes closed. “Oh, fuck. I’m a dead man.”

“Now, now, no one’s going to kill you,” Maisie said. “We just have a few questions.”

Lenny shook his head. “You’re wrong. When she finds out the demon’s still alive, she’s going to kill me.”

“Who is?” Maisie said in a soothing voice.

Lenny was so distraught he didn’t even realize Maisie had changed appearance. “I don’t know!”

I clenched my fists against the urge to jump in and throttle the mage. Maisie moved closer, all soothing voice and calming movements. “What do you mean you don’t know? How did you know someone wanted Giguhl out of the way?”

Lenny ran a hand through his greasy hair. “I got a phone call. Some chick told me that if I had Valva challenge the new demon fighting at Vein, she’d make sure all my debts were paid.”

“She asked for Valva specifically?” When he nodded, she continued. “Why?”

“She said he’d beaten the other demons too easily. Maybe a hot piece of demon ass like Valva would distract him long enough so she could kill him.”

I glanced over at Valva. She shot Giguhl a pained look, as if apologizing. He patted her arm to let her know he didn’t blame her for Lenny’s plan.

Maisie frowned. “But I thought you and The Shade had an agreement that if Valva threw the fight, your debt would be forgiven. Why agree to this mage’s plan?”

“He offered me that deal after I’d accepted the chick’s offer. She sent a wad of cash as a down payment. The note she sent with the money said failure would be really bad for my health.”

“If she sent you money for the debt, why accept Slade’s offer?” I said, unable to help myself.

“It was the only way I could guarantee Valva would get in the ring with the Mischief. Shit! Now everything’s ruined.”

“Damned straight,” Slade said. “Your debt just tripled to cover the money I lost tonight.”

“Oh, gods!” Lenny’s shoulders drooped.

“Lenny, I need you to calm down and focus. When did this female contact you?”

He gasped back a sob. “Two days ago.”

“Did she give you a name? A number? Anything?”

He shook his head. “Nothing. The number showed up as unlisted. No name, either. I think she was a mage, though.”

Maisie’s eyes shot to mine. I nodded, acknowledging I caught the implication. Now we knew whoever sent Eurynome was female. Now the suspect list included only fifty percent of the mage population.

“Why do you think she was a mage?” Maisie asked.

“She said something about that one there”—he pointed at me—“being a threat to magekind.”

The hair on the back of my neck prickled. I gritted my teeth against the questions that revelation brought up. Maisie was on top of it, though.

“If Sabina’s the threat, why did she want Giguhl dead?” Maisie asked.

“She said she needed the demon out of the way so she could personally take out the mixed-blood.”

A growl ripped through the room, echoing off the concrete walls. Lenny cringed, not so brave now that he couldn’t hide behind his magic. I could practically smell Giguhl’s anger. I couldn’t blame him, since I was feeling pretty hot myself. Maisie shot the demon a warning look. Valva petted his arm until he stilled.