Page 45 of Deadly Deception
“Necromancer Boone?” the caller questioned, his voice vaguely familiar.
“That’s me. How can I help you?”
“I don’t know, you’re the one that called me. This is Agent Frost.”
Ah, that’s why he sounded so familiar.“Sorry, I thought you sounded familiar but couldn’t place the voice.”
“That’s fine. What can I do for you?”
I liked that Frost got directly to the point. You never knew with pixies. They could be a vivacious group and that often came through in their speech patterns. But Frost wasn’t like most pixies. In fact, I thought he might just be one of a kind. He was a pixie/Pallas’s cat shifter. It was a miracle his mother had conceived him, let alone carried him to term. Frost’s pixie temperament was heavily influenced by his Pallas’s cat heritage.
Replying in kind, I got down to business and related my concerns regarding Navarre and his need for a medium. Frost patiently listened, humming in some parts and offering a gasp or two in others. I finished with “Does the Magical Usage Council employee any mediums?”
“We’ve got three.”
“Three? Wow.” I wasn’t certain they’d have one, let alone three.
“Mediums have varying levels of abilities, probably similar to how necromancers differ. I think two of our mediums might be up to the level to help Navarre. I doubt the third would be. That’s not a judgment, simply a fact.”
“I understand.” I swallowed and shared a concerned look with Franklin who sat down on the bed beside me. I couldn’t even remember sitting myself. The next question was the most difficult but needed to be asked. “Honest opinion, Frost, will the Magical Usage Council be willing to send a medium to help Navarre?”
“Why wouldn’t they?” Frost’s denial was immediate.
“He’s a necromancer,” I answered, carefully keeping my tone neutral.
Spluttering sounded from the other end of the line. Frost’s voice grew quiet and I got the distinct impression he wasspeaking to someone else. When I heard him say, “I know that, Leon.” I knew who was listening in. Frost’s vampire beloved was nearby. Vampiric hearing was excellent, negating the need for speakerphone.
With a heavy sigh, Frost seemed to come to some sort of conclusion and said, “I want to be angry that you asked that, but Leon pointed out that would be hypocritical. He’s going to be very full of himself tonight, knowing that I had to admit he’s right. Thank you for that, by the way.”
My lips twitched. I had a feeling Frost and Leon had a ratherinterestingrelationship.
“I want to tell you that of course they’ll help, but you could have a horrible point. I say horrible because it shouldn’t matter. It will probably depend on who I ask, so leave that part to me.”
I held my hand up and Franklin high-fived me, or maybe side-fived me considering we were sitting on the bed. I’d definitely contacted the right pixie/shifter for the job.
“I’ll see what I can do. Scratch that. I will get you a medium. If the council gives me any blowback, they’ll see just what a pissed-off pixie can do. And if that doesn’t work, I’ll shift and scratch and bite the shit out of them. Trust me, a pissed-off pixie is nothing compared to a pissed-off Pallas’s cat.” Frost darkly chuckled. “If it weren’t so important for Navarre, I almost wish they’d tell me no just so I could go feral on them.” There was a pause, and I could hear another voice in the background. Frost came back and said, “Leon says he’ll back me up.” There was another pause, and then Frost surprised me by saying, “And if that doesn’t work, I’ll remind the council members that, at this point in time, you’re the only known individual that can stop a djinn.”
I swallowed hard. “I don’t know that I want that getting around. Besides, I have no plans on putting Aurelia’s soul back unless she asks me to.”
“I’m not just talking about Aurelia. There are other djinn out there besides Janus and Aurelia. We all hope they’re peacefully sleeping within their object of attachments or that they’ve got a sane and benevolent master.” Frost spat the wordmasterhis tone making it obvious how likely he viewed that possibility. “The point is, no one knows for certain if, or when, another djinn will pop up, and until someone figures out another solution to their infinite power, then you’re all we’ve got. You and possible other necromancers out there that might be able to do the same. That should be reason enough to take an interest in your species. I’m not above reminding the council of that important fact.”
It was a shitty fact of life that usefulness gained you aid. Protecting a life, or a species, simply because it was the right thing to do didn’t carry as much leverage as it should.
“Thank you, Frost.”
“No thanks needed, but still appreciated. I’ll make some calls tonight and get back to you no later than sunset tomorrow. Take care, Erasmus.”
“You too.” The call ended, and I tossed my phone across the bed before flopping back on it, arms spread wide. Franklin loomed over me, and I welcomed his cocooning presence.
“That sounded encouraging.”
“It did.” I blew out a garlic bread-fueled breath. “Sorry about that. I don’t think the mint I had after dinner helped that much.”
Franklin chuckled before leaning down and kissing me breathless. His tongue slipped into my mouth and danced across my palate. When he pulled away, Franklin said, “We both ate a lot of garlic, so it’s okay. The only time I’d hesitate to kiss you is after you’ve thrown up.”
“Ew. Talk about a mood killer.”
“Just saying, that’s my only hard limit when it comes to putting my lips on you.”
