“What about our contract? What about you coming back to work for the police? I thought you came here so we could work out a deal.”
Ant just shook his head. “I won’t be making any deals with you today.” He reached for the door, but his hand was blocked by an unseen wall of flesh. “We’re ready to leave now,” he murmured too quietly for the captain to hear.
The door opened, as if by magic. Two men were on the other side, looking more angry than concerned. They were both in uniform, and while Ant recognized them as officers he’d seen before, he had never worked with them and didn’t know their names.
“The door was stuck,” he said, nodding briefly at them. Keeping his senses wide open, he edged his way between the two officers – a situation made easier as they tried to go into the office as Ant was coming out of it. The perfect opportunity to make physical contact with them both.
There’s the Carmine connectionAnt sent to his mate as he carried on through the police station. He could only assume that Viktor was following him or had gone on ahead.
Making his way outside, Ant was hit with a dark feeling – a punch to the gut, a brief pain in his head, a feeling of disconnect as though he was saying goodbye to someone or something special.
Grief?It was possible, but as Ant made his way down the steps to the pavement, he knew changes were coming. The reputation of the police department would only dip slightly if what the captain had done became public knowledge. That was the nature of society. There would be a scandal for five minutes, and thenit would die down and go away. The captain would probably be quietly persuaded to resign. But in Ant’s opinion, that was better than having a person in charge of the police being manipulated by the same shadows that Viktor used to walk through.
Are you going to help the captain?Viktor’s voice quietly wafted through his head.
Ant shook his head again. “The only person who can help the captain,” he said quietly, “is the captain himself.” Able nudged his leg as they walked down the road toward the car.
“I’m not sure why, but I think I need a hug. Is it all right to ask for that? Able senses it, too.”
A heavy, unseen arm dropped over his shoulder, and there was a brush of lips in his hair.I’m here for you, babe. Always will be.
Chapter Eighteen
Viktor did not like Prosecutor Hammond. Although he had never met the man personally before, it was clear Hammond knew exactly who he was. At least Viktor assumed that was why the man’s features paled the moment he followed Ant into the prosecutor’s office. There was also a notable spike of anxiety in the air.
As Viktor was used to eliciting that sort of reaction from people, he didn’t worry about it. Ant seemed determined to be as bright and breezy as possible – definitely faking it. Viktor hoped there wasn’t going to be too much chit-chat. His mate was hurting for some reason, and while Viktor would never profess to know the workings of his mate’s unique mind, he knew that the only reason Ant insisted on keeping the appointment with Hammond was because that was the type of person he was.
“I never let anybody down if I can help it,” Ant said firmly when Viktor tried to put his foot down in the car and take them home. Viktor settled for getting Ant to agree that there was no point in him being invisible for a short visit to collect a file.
Viktor didn’t believe that Ant had gotten anything useful out of Captain Bains that he couldn’t have gotten with Viktor present. Admittedly, Captain Bains might not have broken down and proven to Ant how unreliable he was as a person if Viktor’s presence had been known, but they weren’t going to know that one way or the other now that the meeting was over. But Viktor was determined not to do it again.
“I was in the area,” Ant said, his tone fake enough to make Viktor wince. “I just called in to pick up the Carol Doukas’s file. Did you have it handy? I really don’t want to take up any more of your time than necessary, and wouldn’t have even popped in today.But you did say you were going to send it over to my office, and Bridget hasn’t received it yet.”
“Doctor Channon, yes, about that file...”
“Please don’t think about lying,” Ant interrupted quickly. “It’s extremely embarrassing when non-paranormals do that in front of a being such as a vampire. You’ve met my mate, Viktor, haven’t you? He’s so old he can smell a lie a mile away.”
Ant’s chuckle had the same fake tone as his voice.What’s wrong with him?Viktor was getting more and more concerned. “So, if you could just hit your little button on your box there, on your desk, the intercom thingy, and let your receptionist know I’m here to pick up the file, that would be extremely helpful. Thank you.”
Hammond sat behind his desk, his elbows on the table, drumming his fingers together. “There is a slight problem with your request, Doctor Channon,” he said, putting on a grave tone. “While I appreciate we have always freely shared information between our offices in the past, that was when you were working for the police department. I am afraid, unless the situation has changed with Captain Bains, I can no longer give you access to what are confidential files.”
“If the situation with Captain Bains you’re referring to is related to my resignation as a consultant, that hasn’t changed at all,” Ant said firmly. “I’m not here in my guise as a police contractor. I am here as the Dean of Police Studies for the Mage Academy. Therefore, it is within my scope to request case files and any other information I require from any authorities.”
“The Mage Academy?” Hammond was scratching his head, and Viktor would have done that, too, but he was supposed to be supportive of everything Ant was doing, or at least give the appearance of knowing what his mate was up to.
“Why is the Mage Academy involved in the Carol Doukas case? There was no magic or paranormal elements associated with the murder scene or Ms. Doukas’s death. I remember that much.”
“I am aware that was the finding of the M.E.’s office, even though they did not conduct or authorize any magical testing to determine Ms. Doukas’s cause of death,” Ant said. “I was employed in a private capacity by Carmine Doukas to do a scene reading where his sister’s body was found. I found definite elements of magic at the scene. Magical traps and scene distortions, which as you could appreciate, had me concerned about the validity of the investigation conducted ten years ago.
“Part of my investigation now is to find out who was connected to the murder in the first place because somebody tried to interfere with my ability to read the scene. It’s logical to believe they have something to hide. In the meantime, I have every right to the information I’ve requested from you. I’m happy to wait.”
There was another surge of uneasiness in the air. Hammond didn’t like the position Ant was taking. Viktor had no idea what the relationship was between the Mage Academy and the justice department in town. But he was aware that the Mage Academy had a ‘don’t fuck with us’ mentality which was surprising for a group many people underestimated.
It also had the full backing of the National and International Paranormal Council. Going against such an organization could tie up any legal firm in numerous court cases for years, only for the judge to award the win to the paranormal side. It had something to do with the fact that most paranormals could detect lies, so they didn’t lie themselves.
Although, I’ve been watching Ant lie all morning.However, Viktor also knew Ant could justify every stretched truth.
“Doctor Channon, I have to say this is very irregular,” Hammond said at last. “I feel a moral obligation as the prosecutor in that case…”
