Breaking Out (17 page)

“I was thinking Tahoe,” she mumbled.

“You’d need to take 101 North. Then cut
over…”

“Tell us what happened,” I urged, rubbing her
back the way my dad used to rub mine when I was a kid.

“I can’t.”

When she’d shaken her head, the hood had
moved. “Holy shit. Who hit you?” I lifted the edge to get a better
look, but she twisted away.

“I walked into a wall.” I grunted in
frustration, making the messed up aura gesture. “You look like a
crazy person when you do that,” she snapped.

“Yeah? Well you’re being stupid. You have two
friends here.” Samson whined. “Three friends. Time to trust us and
stop lying.”

“Are we…friends?”

“Yes, of course.“

She wrapped her arms around her middle. “You
know what happened last time I tried to talk.”

“I relieved the pressure. It should
work.”

“Hmph.
Should.
” She tossed her head,
wincing. “I should not have moved my head so fast. Ow.”

“There’s always the ocean.” Jay piped in.

“I can’t go back there, ever.”

“The bathtub?” He suggested, adding a
mischievous wink.

The corner of her mouth turned up, then
twisted into a grimace. She rubbed her cheek. “I can’t even smile.”
She glared at Jay. “Don’t you dare make me laugh.”

I needed to distract her so I could sneak her
some of my magic. “Why’re you able to stay out of the water when
the rest of your race can’t?” I touched her arm oh-so-gently,
sending her my healing energy, keeping it subtle. Right now Ivy was
feeling vulnerable and pissed off about it, probably not in the
mood to be handled by a male, even one with good intentions.

“My mother was human. I’m able to live on
land.”

“But you love the sea.” I pulled down her
hood, and lifted her chin, getting a good look at her injury. I
heard a soft growl and looked up. The rage in Jay’s eyes stunned
me.

“
I’ll fucking kill this guy
,” he
sent.

“
Calm down. You’re not helping. I need to
concentrate.”

“I can reboot in a lake and the bathtub
helps, but the sea is best.” She kept talking, not realizing we
were discussing her. “Tellek won’t come to the marina, but he’ll
appear on the boat once we’re a mile out. He’ll be in his element,
able to summon magic you know nothing about.“ She touched Jay’s
sleeve. “Don’t anger him, please.” When their gazes met they both
looked away. “I don’t want to lose my only friends.”

She tentatively touched her cheek, pressing
lightly. The bruises had healed beautifully. “Is it gone?” I nodded
and smiled. “I’d heard you were a healer, but I didn’t know you
were this good. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Feel up for some
pancakes?”

“Sure.” She smiled full out, leaning over to
pet Samson. “You want pancakes too, Monster?”

Samson barked, wiggling his excuse for a
tail, his entire rear dancing on the asphalt. Too bad we had to tie
him outside.

After getting a table, Jay reached for a
menu. “You’re not eating again are you?” I asked. It had only been
a couple of hours since we’d each scarfed down two bagels with
cream cheese. When we hadn’t found Ivy, we’d given Samson the
leftovers.

“Growing bear here.”

“Man, if you grow any wider, you’re gonna
have to sit alone in the back seat.”

“Cool. I can be the most annoying back seat
driver in California.”

“You already are.” I pointed out.

“You drive like an old lady,” Jay
mumbled.

“I do not.”

Jay turned to Ivy. “All a pedestrian has to
do is think about crossing the street, and he’s already
stopped.”

“It’s the law.”

“Yeah, when they’re actually stepping off the
curb, it’s the law. Not when they’re still ten feet away.”

“I’m not used to driving around so many
people.”

“I told you I’d drive.”

“I’m not ready to bail you out of jail for
reckless driving.”

“I wouldn’t run anyone over. I’d honk to give
them fair warning.”

The server showed up. “Coffee?” We nodded.
She filled our cups and left the carafe. “Do you know what you
want?” she asked.

“French toast and bacon, please.” Ivy
said.

“Just french toast.” I figured I could give
the extra to Samson, who at the moment was unhappily staring at us
through the window.

Jay handed the server all three menus. “The
same, with extra bacon. Thanks.” She left, hurrying to put in the
order.

“You’re like one of those hobbits who eats a
second breakfast and then an elevensies and a lunch and an
after-lunch snack and…”

“I’ll go for a run,” Jay growled.

I gave my own stomach a glance. “Both of
us.”

Ivy’s smile was weak, her mind obviously on
something else. When she lifted her head and looked across the
table, I knew she’d made up her mind to be honest. “The chieftain
wants you as an ally.”

Jay was playing with his spoon, spinning it
around on the table. “Funny way to go about it.”

“Tellek wants something else. He says he
wants you dead, but…I don’t see how he could kill you and not have
a bunch of fae up his ass.”

I rubbed my face. I was beat. “I know what he
wants. My blood’s powerful. He wouldn’t have to kill me to use my
blood.”

“That makes sense. He’s into working spells
and stuff.”

“Who’s giving your people trouble?”

“Recently, the wolves.”

“The ones we’re seeing tomorrow?” Jay
asked.

“Yes. They’ve taken over territory on the
Island that has always been ours. They’ve recently build a wall to
keep us on a small peninsula.”

“Wait, you don’t live in the sea?” Jay asked,
sitting up and taking notice.

“We do, in an underwater grotto with a dome.
But we also have an estate on Catalina and others on Santa Barbara,
San Nicolas and San Clemente Islands. We need space on land to
run.

Jay went back to his spooning around. “I’ve
been to Catalina a bunch of times. There’s no hidden estate there.
And there’s definitely no peninsula.” The spoon kept banging into
his coffee cup.

I slammed my hand down on top of his.
“
That’s annoying. You’re my second. You should be listening to
Ivy. She’s giving up info.”

“
Okay boss.”

“We’re able to keep our territory hidden with
magic.” She tossed her head with pride. “My race is ancient and
powerful.”

Her renewed confidence brought her magical
energy bubbling to the surface, cool with warm streaks, like
wandering ocean currents. “Who are your people?” I asked, hoping
for a real answer this time.

“Mermaids, right?” Jay smirked and lifted his
hands to his chest. “Do you wear those seashells…”

“No, Yogi, not mermaids.” She scowled.
“Charlie and I are trying to have a serious conversation. Go out
and play with Boo Boo.” She pointed at Samson.

Jay started to cough, clutching at his heart.
“She made a joke. I might pass out.”

Our food arrived, the server asking Jay if he
needed a doctor.

“I choked on my coffee. Nothing to worry
about.”

When she left we cracked up, trying to keep
the laughter as quiet as possible so they didn’t kick us out. Even
Ivy joined in.

“So then what?” Jay asked, happy that he’d
gotten her to laugh.

“My race is hard to explain to those who
haven’t seen us. Our history is connected with the ancient
fae.”

“It’s getting late. After breakfast, we’ll be
heading out. Maybe you can show us later?”

“Maybe.” She dug into her food, with great
enthusiasm. My healing energy had helped and it made me feel really
good. Guess Mom was right.

IVY

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

Charlie had
chartered a boat to take us out to the Island, handing over one of
those platinum credit cards. The captain was friendly and offered
us snacks and sodas, leaving us alone to soak up some sunshine. I
sat in a spot where the spray from the ocean hit my face, a
refreshing reboot.

“Why don’t you just rent a boat you can pilot
yourself?” Jay asked. He’d stacked three bags of chips on the seat
next to him. “You have your license.” He ripped into the first bag.
Fortunately, the engine noise would kill the sound of
crunching.

When he saw my puzzled look, Charlie
explained, “I can handle my dad’s sailboat, but I don’t know the
waters around here. I’d need to study the charts and that would
take time we don’t have.”

“Why don’t you take the lines?” I asked,
watching in horror as Jay crumpled the now empty bag, making a
motion to throw it in the ocean. At the last second he turned back
to me, mouthing, “Psych.”

Charlie was still explaining. “I’d rather not
use energy I might need later. We can always hop on the lines going
back if we have to leave quickly.”

Charlie was nothing like Jay. He was
conservative, careful. Most young males liked to show off, but not
Charlie. When he didn’t have to make a split second decision, he
took the time to evaluate the best course of action. And when there
was an emergency, he was calm and in control, giving clear
instructions.

He was the perfect choice to lead an army, or
at least he would be when the time came—if the time came. Like him,
I hoped it never came.

He was watching me. “What?” He was always
watching me, a particularly annoying habit, IMHO.

“Will the wolves know what you are?” he
asked.

Good question. “Tellek warned me about the
alpha female. She’s got game.”

His eyebrows shot up. “He used those
words?”

“Pfft. We don’t speak in English when we’re
alone.”

“Can I hear an example of your language?”

When I’d researched his abilities I’d read in
several places that he was an ace with languages. I told the truth,
managing to put him off. “The boat engine would drown me out. Also
it’s tougher in this form.” I pointed to my vocal chords. Both
true. “In human form, my people would speak fae around you.”

He nodded, looking thoughtful. “On the
island, I’ll deal with the wolves. Think you can handle being my
assistant?”

“I don’t have a degree from Stanford, so I
guess not,” I snapped.

He laughed and held up his hands in
surrender. “Sorry. Dumb question. Just take notes. If you have
comments or questions you think I should ask, write them down and
show me. The less they notice you the better. I’ll do all the
talking.”

“What about me?” Jay was on his last bag of
chips.

“You’re the chief assassin.” I suggested.

“What?”

“Don’t all private investigators have guys
they call in to do the dirty work?”

“You’re thinking of mob bosses.” Jay replied.
“Like Luca Brazzi, the guy who makes his victims swim with the
fishes.” His eyes widened. “That’s kind of appropriate if you think
about it.”

“Focus, Jay. You’re my science/tech guru.
Your job is to take care of collecting and analyzing the data.”

“Hey, I wanna be that person,” I
grumbled.

Jay put his feet up on the bench he sprawled
on. “It might interest you to know,
Mysterious Sea Creature
,
that my dad, Kyle, does lab analysis for cases he works on with
Charlie’s mom and dad. I’ve helped him out in his lab dozens of
times. “

“Yeah?” I looked to Charlie for confirmation.
He nodded.

Jay sat up, turning to Charlie, all
business-mode. “We need equipment, Char.”

“No kidding. It’s time to give Uncle Aaron
another update.”

“You taking money from your relatives?” I
asked.

“I’ll be paying back every penny, with
interest. He’s helping me out with seed money so I can get
started.”

“I thought rich uncles were a myth.”

“More of a trope.” Jay said.

“Oh.” Now I was more confused than ever.
Charlie and Jay were laughing. Guy-speak—ugh.

The island had been visible for the last half
hour, but now the dock came into view. It wasn’t the usual touristy
dock in the middle of town. Nope, this one was smack on the edge of
territory belonging to the Catalina wolves. I sank down in my seat.
This could get dicey.

CHARLIE

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

“Mr. Cuvier.
So happy to see you again.” She was dressed in another business
suit, this one a dark gray.

Guess she’d done her homework. Still, I was
surprised that she’d used my real name in front of several
unfamiliar members of her pack. I sent to Jay, “
You and I have
been outed. Don’t bother using your fake last name. Keep Ivy under
wraps.”

“
Copy
.”

“Ms. Turner.” I held out my hand, smiling in
the professional way I’d practiced in front of the mirror, adding
just a touch of Charisma, a kind of glamour Isaiah had helped me
practice. I wasn’t hurting anyone when I used it. In this case I
was just encouraging her to feel comfortable around me. Less
suspicious. Her hand was cool and soft, yet firm, her handshake
speaking of power and confidence.

“May I call you Charles?” I nodded. She
smiled. “Welcome to our packlands, Mr. Bain.” She extended her hand
to Jay.

“Thank you, Ms. Turner.” Jay turned to the
others, nodding a greeting. “Ladies, Gentlemen.” The three females
and four males in the party smiled back. Jay might seem like a goof
ball around me, but in these situations he was coolness
personified, charming the females with his American boy appeal and
winning over the most alpha of males with his I’m just one of the
guys glamour. Other than their ability to shift forms,
shapeshifters had no real magic to call on, unless they knew how to
use the natural gifts they were born with, like Jay.

“This is Ivy. She’s my assistant,” I told
Staci. There were a few nods, but other than that no one paid a bit
of attention to her.

“Would you like to speak to the families of
the dead wolves?”

“Dead? I thought they were missing.”