Page 22 of The Devil in the Details

Mal sighed. “Boring.”

Walker dropped half a foot, giving a high-pitched screech. “Okay! I didn’t know they were going to do it tonight. I swear.”

“Boring and a liar.” Mal rotated his wrist, and Walker turned slowly.

His face green, Walker silently pleaded with Zelda to do something. Anything.

“You know what you have to do,” she said. She really didn’t want to watch Mal torture Walker, but the lout also kind of deserved it. She held up her bracelet with the embedded communit to record Walker’s confession. “Hurry up. I don’t want the authorities to catch Mal playing with his food.”

Walker made a strangled noise. “Fine! Fine. Yan’s security is too good. The party was the only chance to grab the painting.”

“Tell me about the museum,” Mal ordered.

“What museum?”

Oh, the nerve of this guy. Dangling upside down, held aloft by only the power of one irritated demon, and he was playing ignorant.

“You’re right, this is boring,” Zelda said to Mal. “Drop him.”

“No! No, wait! It was me at the museum,” Walker blurted out. His eyes were glassy with tears. Snot trickled down from his nose. It should have delighted her that he had been reduced to a snotty, blubbering mess, and part of her wanted to be horrified or dispassionate, but it did delight her. She was a petty, vindictive woman.

“And?” Mal prompted.

“I used Zelda’s credentials. I’m sorry. It was all me. She had nothing to do with it.”

“Hmm. Was that satisfactory?” Mal asked her.

“That will do.” She ended the recording and sent the file to various outlets.

“Excellent.” Mal waved his hand, and Walker fell.

CHAPTER 7

ZELDA

Walker vanished below the balcony’s railing.

Zelda’s heart dropped all the way to the ground, all twenty zillion stories. She ran to the balcony’s edge, gripping the railing.

Below, on a balcony one story down, Walker sprawled on the ground. He moaned and moved his legs.

Luna—where had she been this whole time?—rushed to the railing. She turned on Zelda, jabbing a finger at her. “What did you do? You pushed him!”

“I didn’t?—”

“Do not worry. It was only a little fall,” Mal said, steering Zelda away.

“Don’t walk away from me,” Luna ordered. “Walker told me all about you. We’ll sue!”

Mal waved a carefree hand, not stopping as he walked away. “I believe he will be too preoccupied to bother with such trifling concerns.”

Zelda tried to turn around, to watch as emergency services finally arrived. Luna shouted for a medic.

“Shouldn’t we… I don’t know, help? That fall had to hurt,” Zelda said.

“I caught him. He fell a meter. Only his pride is injured,” Mal said.

“Oh,” she responded, unable to think of anything else.

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