Lizzie Lynn Lee (11 page)

“None other.”

“Yeah, but how did you pull it off?”

“Babe, a good magician never tells his secret.”

“They did on Fox.”

Gabriel only smiled.

Cat took another sip of the juice. “So, why did my dead client hate you so much and kidnap and take me to Africa?”

“Ah, that.” Gabriel shifted his legs into a more comfortable position. Alex got up and walked towards the back of the plane, joining the others to give them privacy. “The gathering you saw…”

Cat nodded.

“It’s called the Night of the Lions. Werelions from all over Africa come together every winter solstice at the Tree of Life, to elect who is going to rule all prides for a year. Before we all agreed to the terms of this type of election, the pride had always been at war, fighting for territory. Fourteen years ago, Marius Veron—Sophie-Marie’s father—was chosen as the Superior Alpha. As the Superior Alpha, his words became law.”

Gabriel paused. “Marius ordered me to take his daughter, Sophie-Marie, as my mate. I refused. I didn’t love her and she was famous for being spoilt, a difficult person to be around. My father supported my decision. Marius was furious about our defiance and challenged my father to a duel. My father lost. Marius killed him.”

“God. I’m so sorry.”

“By prides’ law, I had to take Sophie-Marie as a mate. But I would never have been able to do that, so I challenged Marius to a duel. This time, I won. I hauled my father’s body away for burial and, after that, my brothers and I left for America to start a new life. I heard that Sophie-Marie was so distraught at her father’s death, she jumped into the Purifying Fire.”

“The bonfire.”

“Right. It symbolises the cleansing of our souls. One of Veron’s pride pulled Sophie-Marie out before she was burned to death. She was permanently disfigured from her self-immolation. I guess she had every reason to hate me. She hated me enough to try to kill you and she was involved in the deaths of my previous girlfriends.”

“I remember reading the news in the papers.”

“Michelle Daly jumped from her apartment. And Stacey Heyde just disappeared. My brothers and I had always harboured suspicions that Sophie-Marie was behind the incident. Only when we raided her home in Alpine to save you were we able to gather some evidence. Among it, we also found proof that Sophie-Marie was the one who ordered your brother’s death.”

Her heart stopped for a moment. “Jon?”

“Jon’s death wasn’t a mere accident. Sophie-Marie hired a pro to make the car crash look like an accident.”

“But what did Jon have to do with her?”

“Sophie-Marie had hired your brother to dig dirt on me. Sophie-Marie pretended to be a businesswoman named Kelly Rothford. Apparently, when your brother found out Sophie-Marie’s ulterior motive, she had him killed. I couldn’t quite figure out why Sophie-Marie hired you afterward.”

Cat didn’t hear Gabe’s last words. Jon had been murdered. Her brother had been murdered. The only person she’d had left in the world. For what? One jealous woman’s ambition. Sophie-Marie had ruined a lot of people’s lives.

Anger boiled in her chest. Suddenly, she couldn’t contain her tears. Gabriel quickly held her hand and tucked her head under his chin.

“Jon didn’t deserve to die,” she sobbed.

“I know, Cat. I’m sorry.”

Thousands of emotions bubbled inside her. Cat wiped her tears with the back of her hand. She needed solitude to mourn Jon. Or sleep. She didn’t want people to see her weeping like an idiot. She swallowed hard. “Can I have that sleeping pill the good doctor offered earlier?”

Epilogue

The office of Kovac Detective Agency looked empty without Jon. It was a small place he had rented in a strip mall in Newark. It had a reception area with a coffee table and a battered sofa. And in the back was Jon’s office, containing an old desk, a bookcase and several lopsided filing cabinets. Her old desk was in the waiting area, complete with an ancient computer that was in dire need of an upgrade.

Cat was nostalgic for the days when she and Jon had worked together. How happy her brother had been when they’d got a client. Or when Jon had received a cheque from a client. Jon had always taken her for dinner at Cucina Amore when they’d had some money to splurge. She couldn’t believe he was gone.

“Cat…”

Gabriel startled her. He leaned against the door frame as she cleaned Jon’s desk. It had been six weeks since they’d returned from South Africa. Her broken leg and wrist had mended and she was out of the casts. She’d lived in Gabriel’s apartment until she’d healed completely. Today, they were visiting Jon’s grave and the office. Cat was overwhelmed by the memory of her brother, but it was time to move on and let go of the past.

Cat took a seat behind Jon’s desk. “I’m going to carry on running this agency. In Jon’s memory.”

Gabriel didn’t look surprised. “I knew you were going to say that.”

Gabriel had proposed to her two weeks ago, and she had accepted. They planned to have a small, private wedding in Bermuda. Her fiancé had probably thought she was going to sit still and be a nice housewife, but Cat couldn’t do that. She enjoyed sleuthing so much, even when it got her stuffed into the trunk of a car or boxed into a wooden crate and flown to Africa. Besides, this was Jon’s legacy.

“Do you object?” Cat asked.

“Naturally, I do. The thought of your running around the city, stalking bad guys, gives me migraines. But what can I do? Each time I tell you to do something, you do the exact opposite.”

She couldn’t help grinning.

“Here’s my proposal. We’ll run the agency together.”

“You want to work as a PI?”

“I think it would be a fun job.”

“What about your companies? Don’t you have to run them?”

“I don’t see why I can’t have both. Besides, I have Alex and Ren to keep an eye on things. That leaves me plenty of time to spend with you.”

“You’re so sweet.”

“We’ll hire a secretary to tend the office while we’re working together.”

“Why do I have a feeling Danielson and Wyatt are still going to be involved in this?”

Gabriel smiled. “You have a knack for being hauled into enclosed spaces. I’ll have to watch over you for a while.”

Cat harrumphed.

Someone knocked on the door.

Cat raised her eyebrow, wondering who it might be. Gabriel opened the door. A woman in her thirties, dressed in a two-piece suit and wearing sunglasses, asked if she could see Jon Kovac. Gabriel invited her in.

“Please have a seat. This is Catherine Kovac, Jon’s sister. And I’m Gabriel Larousse, Cat’s fiancé.”

“Nice to meet you, Miss Kovac.” The woman watched Gabriel with interest. “Do I know you from somewhere?”

Gabriel slickly brushed her suspicion off. “I doubt it. People often mistake me for a celebrity look-alike.”

“Ah, I see.”

They sat.

“My name is Sarah Rowe. My friend Jessica recommended you. She used Jon’s service for her divorce proceedings. I’d like to engage your services to get proof that my husband is cheating on me. I know he’s keeping a mistress in the Bronx. Paid for her apartment and car. That bastard.”

Gabriel traded gazes with Cat.

“You’d like to file for a divorce from your husband?” Cat asked.

“Yes.”

“I think we can help you,” Gabriel said quickly. “It’s within our limits.”

Cat wanted to roll her eyes. She sat in silence as Gabriel expertly took notes and extracted information from Mrs Rowe. He was just like Jon.
Déjà vu.
When Gabriel had taken the info he needed, he showed Mrs Rowe to the door.

He turned to Cat. “Well? What do you think? It’s our first case.”

“You really want to do this?”

“Of course.”

Cat lunged at him. Gabriel welcomed her in a tight hug. They kissed.

“I appreciate what you are doing for me.”

“I’m just glad you’re mine.” Gabriel kissed her some more. “Now, who’s up to catching a naughty husband
in flagrante delicto
?”

“Me, me, me!”

Coming Soon from Total-E-Bound Publishing:

Chain of Lust

Lizzie Lynn Lee

Released 21
st
May 2012

Excerpt

Chapter One

Please not the diploma, oh, please not the diploma…

Madeline Cartwright froze in her seat as she surreptitiously watched the framed diploma on the wall behind her interviewer, Doctor O’Bannon, become unhinged from the hook. It hovered three foot above him. And the culprits—a pair of poltergeists—leered at her, apparently ready to drop it on Dr O’Bannon’s head.

Maddie clawed the edge of her seat, feeling cold all over.

The poltergeists, volatile spirits that love wreaking havoc, swarmed around the office like renegade bullets. She was the only one who could see them. And Dr O’Bannon, a dermatologist who was looking for a new receptionist, remained oblivious. He’d been oblivious when the poltergeists moved a framed picture of him and his family from his desk and defaced it by scribbling moustaches on each person with a Sharpie pen. And he was still oblivious when the poltergeists dropped paperclips and an eraser into his coffee mug. Maddie sincerely hoped Dr O’Bannon wouldn’t notice any of that until the interview had finished and she was long gone from the office.

But if those nasty spirits decided to drop the diploma on Dr O’Bannon’s head…

Maddie shifted her gaze to her interviewer, schooling her best poker face. Dr O’Bannon had noticed she’d been nervous earlier. The good doctor had joked he wouldn’t bite her and Maddie had forced herself to make a polite girlish giggle. She liked Dr O’Bannon. The middle-aged man with receding hairline and cheery disposition seemed like a good boss to work for.

And besides, she really needed this job.

She was tired of scraping here and there just to get by, and facing eviction every month because she couldn’t hold down a steady job. Maddie wasn’t lazy or anything. She was just a magnet for spirits, ghosts, and all things unseen, to the point that she had trouble functioning in real life. Ghosts loved pestering her to help them with their worldly unfinished business, and other kind of spirits—wraiths, spectres, and their whole gangs—loved messing around with her. Maybe because they didn’t encounter many humans that could see them, or maybe she was catnip for the spirits, but her gift had become a curse.

Dr O’Bannon cleared his throat as he finished reading her résumé. “You worked as a front desk clerk at your last job?”

Maddie stiffened in her seat. “Actually,” she decided to be honest, “I was working as a cashier in 7-Eleven after the hotel job. I didn’t put the cashier on my résumé because I didn’t think it was relative to the position I’m applying for.”

“I see.” Dr O’Bannon went back to scrutinizing her résumé. “You only worked for three months at the Red Inn.”

“Yes, sir.” Maddie swallowed hard. “The hotel management wanted me to work the graveyard shift and I couldn’t. I’m the primary caretaker of my mother.” The truth was, she was afraid of working nights. The spirits particularly loved to prowl after sunset. She preferred to be at home, in her own apartment, where she could put some wards against them. Sometimes, the wards worked. Many times, they were useless. Either way, she felt much better fending them in her own turf.

“And how long did you work in 7-Eleven?” he asked.

Maddie shifted uncomfortably, wondering whether she should lie or not. She’d lasted only one day in the 7-Eleven. A customer ran away from the store after claiming she was handing him a snake. It wasn’t a snake. It was his change. She didn’t know why, or what kind of spirit had the power of illusions, but to the eyes of that customer, he thought Maddie had handed him a three-foot long hissing cobra.

But that wasn’t all.

With his demented screaming, other customers were also running from the store thinking the place was being robbed. Within minutes, the store was surrounded by police officers and she had gone through some embarrassing interrogations, and before lunch time, she was out of her job.

Of course, when she argued to the owner he should check the security camera that she hadn’t played any hanky-panky like the customer had claimed, the owner wouldn’t hear her reasons and ousted her anyway. It was so unfair.

Maddie halted her breath, decided to skitter along the truth. “Only a day, sir. The place was robbed, and I was too startled to go back the next day.”

Dr O’Bannon let out a sympathetic sound. “That was unfortunate.”

Maddie nodded hopefully. “That’s why I prefer an office job. It’s more…secure.”

Dr O’Bannon nodded along, looking eager. “I can understand your concerns. I assure you my clients are respectable members of the society. In fact, we have a few celebrities, as well.”

A flicker of hope lit up. Does this mean he’ll hire me? Maddie straightened her posture and hoped the good doctor would hire her before those poltergeists ruined it all.

Unlikely though.

The poltergeists that had been following her since she got off the train in Dan Ryan started to chant an annoying sing-song audible only to her. “Maddie, Maddie, Maddie…”

She knew the drill. Poltergeists loved to chant whenever they were about to create havoc. This wasn’t the first time she had encountered nasty ones like them. Maddie forced herself out of her trance and took the initiative. “Sir, is it possible if we conclude this meeting at a later time? Suddenly, I’m feeling unwell and—”

Crash!

God no. For a long moment, she couldn’t breathe. The diploma slammed into O’Bannon’s cranial in full force. The glass cracked. The frame balanced on top of the doctor’s head before it tumbled and hit the carpeted floor. Dr O’Bannon, who was shocked and puzzled, could only mumble unintelligently, wondering what had just happened.