Page 48 of Ancient Magic

Her anger shattered as she felt Gabriel press a small object between her fingers. She didn’t have to look to know it was a computer memory chip. Her brows arched as Gabriel offered a small dip of his head before releasing her hand and stepping back.

“Tell her not to worry,” she said, assuring the male that she understood.

Peri was warning her not to trust the Cabal and had sent along some sort of information that was intended to help Maya discover what was going on.

“She also wants you to know that you can contact me directly if you have any questions or concerns about the investigation,” Gabriel continued in a smooth voice. “Only me.”

Maya slowly nodded. Peri was more than likely being carefully watched by the Cabal, she silently conceded. She obviously didn’t want them getting their hands on any information that Maya might discover.

Waiting for the vampire to leave the office, Maya moved to close the door and slid her hand over the panels. Magic danced over her fingers, seeping into the worn wood to create an impenetrable barrier. Nothing could get in or out until she released the spell.

Once assured she wouldn’t be interrupted, Maya crossed to the desk and sat down. Then, opening her laptop, she slid the chip into the port and opened the file. She wasn’t sure what she expected. Maybe a coded message from Peri. Or a map to Skye’s location. Not security footage from Valen’s lair.

It wasn’t until she clicked on the video that she realized that it’d captured Skye arriving at the building along with two strangers. Then shockingly, it jumped to an image of Skye being carried out of a basement area in the arms of a vampire.

“What the hell happened to you, Skye Claremont?” she muttered, watching the video a dozen times until she had reassured herself that there were no visible wounds on Skye as she was cradled in the vampire’s arms.

Then, forcing herself to take a calming breath, she studied the video frame by frame. She zoomed in, taking in the uniforms with the Witch’s Brew badge as well as the necklaces hanging around the throats of the males. Disguise amulets. Which meant that there was no point in trying to figure out who they were. The only thing that mattered was that Skye looked angry as she marched between them. Whoever they might be, they weren’t her friends.

Deciding that she’d learned as much as possible from Skye’s companions, Maya turned her attention to the vehicle that had delivered Skye to Valen’s lair. It was a boring midsized car without any distinguishing features, but thankfully the security camera had managed to capture the license plate number.

When Maya had settled in New Jersey years ago, she’d developed a vast circle of acquaintances. Some rich, some powerful, and many who lived in the shadows, using their wits to survive. Then, wisely, she made sure that each and every one of them owed her a favor. It was her personal spiderweb of information that she could tug on to acquire whatever information she might need.

Now she grabbed her phone off the desk and typed in a quick text. A minute passed, and then ten. She was about to send another message when her phone pinged and the information she wanted popped up on the screen.

Goblin who goes by the name Long Jong. You can find him hanging at the Dead Badger.

Shutting down the computer, Maya surged to her feet and shattered the spell that protected the door. The Dead Badger was a demon bar in the Bronx. It was going to take her at least an hour to get there, and she needed to gather a few potions and reload her spells.

It was closer to two hours by the time she strolled into the shabby bar squashed between a bodega and a transmission garage. It was a long, narrow space with wooden booths along the walls and a U-shaped counter in the middle where a large goblin with a mohawk and a dozen piercings was doling out mugs of traditional grog for the smattering of customers.

Maya walked confidently toward the bar, her heels clicking on the wooden planks. She’d chosen to wear a pair of black slacks and a white cashmere sweater, knowing the elegant attire would allow her to stand out in such a neighborhood. She’d also pulled her dark hair from her face to emphasize the scars.

As the most powerful mage in the area, she was both hated and feared among the local demons. Which meant she had two choices. A disguise spell to hide her identity, or she could use her reputation to her advantage.

Reaching the counter, she smiled as the bartender froze, his gaze locked on her scars.

“Is there a contract?” he rasped.

She shook her head, assuring him that she hadn’t been sent by a rival to curse him.

“I’m looking for Long Jong.”

She waited for him to point toward a male slouched in the back booth. He wasn’t large for a goblin and his aura was barely more than a flicker of red. Wearing a leather jacket, he was absently eating his way through a bowl of peanuts and nursing his mug of grog.

Maya held up two fingers, and the bartender swiftly pulled a couple of large grogs from the tap and placed them on a tray before shoving them across the counter. Maya reached for her purse, but the male waved her away. Smart demon. He was more worried about getting rid of her than collecting her money.

Mages were never good for business.

Grabbing the tray, Maya turned away, pausing to pretend to rearrange the mugs. With a flick of her wrist, she dumped the potion she’d hidden in a large opal ring into the grog. Then, ignoring the anxious glances from the handful of customers, she headed to the back booth, sliding onto the opposite side of the table from the goblin.

“Can I join you?” she murmured.

The male jerked up his head, as if he’d been verging on sleep. He blinked, his eyes blurry. “You gotta job? Wait...” He furrowed his brow, trying to clear the grog-fog from his brain. “Don’t I know you?”

“Perhaps.” Maya placed a mug on the table in front of him. “Drink?”

Without hesitation Long Jong grabbed the mug and drained it in one greedy gulp.

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