Precarious Possessions (Maxwell Investigations) (8 page)

She slowly nodded as she pulled her shirt on. “They have
good reason to be,” she said before finding her torn pants. She sighed and
moved to the window box. “I don’t fix the Council’s problems. I find a
compromise and force the two sides to take it. If they don’t, I get rid of the
opposing party.” She turned and looked into his eyes. Madison allowed the
seriousness of her position to show through. “I kill people, Troy. I’ve killed
a lot of people. Some of them were Wolves, some were Panthers.”

“You’re trying to scare me away,” Troy said walking over to
where she stood.

She turned to him with glowing red eyes. “My little sister
was hurt, and I slaughtered a club full of Wolves.
Your
Pack, Troy.”

“They aren’t my anything, Madison,” he argued. When she
turned her back to him, he ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “It doesn’t
matter what you say. I’m not going anywhere.”

“That’s because you’ve never seen me in action.” With sharp
movements she wrapped an extra blanket around her waist. “You should be
scared.” Her eyes returned to normal as she fought back tears. “Everyone else
is,” she added in a whisper.

He ignored how tense her frame was and wrapped his arms
around her. He leaned his head on her shoulder and thought of the woman he
first met. She was trying to drown her sorrows, and instead they both ended up
drowning in each other. “I’m not everyone,” he whispered against her skin. He
trailed his lips up to her cheek and wasn’t surprised when he came into contact
with her tears. “Give me a chance Madison,” he whispered.

Instead of answering she turned in his arms and kissed him
passionately. When he didn’t know who and what she was, he treated her like she
was a normal woman. As he stood in front of her, holding on as if he would
never let go, Madison felt her resolve vanish. She pulled her lips away from
his and caressed his face. “I can’t promise you’ll like what you’ll see,” she
confessed.

Troy slowly shook his head.
“Doesn’t
matter.”

She stepped out of his embrace, but held on to his hand. “It
will.”

* * *
* *

“Are you sure she’s going to be alright now?” Eric Maxwell asked.
He leaned back in his chair as he spoke on his phone. “Last week we had to keep
her from jumping on one of the interns when they said the boys didn’t look like
her.”

Dylan sighed. “I remember,” she said dryly. She was the one
that had to talk Madison out of her anger. “And I’m hoping that she and Troy
relax and talk things out. As her mate, he should be able to keep her calm.”

Eric snorted as his brother Barry came into his office.
“Madison and calm are two things that don’t really go together.”

“Actually, you’d be surprised.” Dylan shifted the phone for
a moment. “Eric, I have to go. Lacey and the boys are after the ice cream.”

He laughed as she disconnected the call. Knowing the kids,
Aiden and Kayin already had the ice cream and Lacey was gathering the bowls and
spoons. He looked at his guest and continued to chuckle. “The kids wanted ice
cream,” he said as if that explained everything.

Barry frowned as he looked at his watch. “It’s only 8:30.”

“
Which is why Dylan’s running to catch
them.
” Eric shook his head and pulled a file from his desk drawer and
handed it to Barry. “Did Mathias call you about this?” he asked. “That’s what’s
left of three bodies over the past couple of weeks. He doesn’t have a clue what
could have done it.”

Barry nodded as he looked at the images of dried husks. “He
had to pull this now right?” he asked in a mumble. Mathias was the current head
supervisor of the Council they all worked for. It was his job to make sure
Paranormal creatures stayed in line and kept their lives secret from the human
world. Barry was sure he was pulled in because of Mathias couldn’t get his
hands on his usual Necromancers. Victor still had a ban on Madison and Alex,
and Madison’s mentor, Pan, was out of the country. The only other known
Necromancer alive has been off the grid for nearly 30 years. While Barry wasn’t
a Necromancer, he knew enough of the Death Magic to be useful.

Eric smirked as Barry’s frown deepened. He could only guess
at what his younger brother was thinking. “It could be worse. At least you’re a
detective,” he reasoned. “Mom and Dad could have pushed you into becoming a
lawyer.”

Barry felt some of his humor return. Eric was known as a
silver tongued devil. Little did people know, Eric’s magic was more like a
Siren’s
song.
When he spoke, one was almost compelled
to do whatever he wanted.
Unless they were related to him or
just too damned stubborn.
“Could be worse,” he agreed. Amusement danced
in his eyes. “I could be a Jewel Witch.”

Both men started laughing as they thought of their other
brother Jimmy. While they were pushed into careers that dealt with the law, the
youngest Maxwell son was forced to become an art dealer because of his affinity
to precious gems. It didn’t seem fair to any of the boys. Madison and Dylan
were the girls, and they had ended up with the coolest of the traits.

Barry looked though the file with a frown. The ME’s report
said that all of the fluids have been drained out of each body. The pictures
showed what appeared to be large Slim Jims, and whatever appetite he had
quickly left. “There’s not even a hint of what could have done this?” he asked.

Eric shook his head with a frown. “I really want to take
this to Madison. She could try to at least
Raise
the
last victim and get some clue to what happened.”

“Victor wants her out for a while. And since Mom and Dad are
still active, he doesn’t want to run the risk that they may have to work
together.” Barry continued to look at the photo of the last victim. His face
seemed to be frozen in sheer terror. There was something seriously wrong about
the beings he was looking at. “I’ll try to
Raise
him,”
he said simply.

Eric’s face mimicked the horror in the photo. “Are you
high?” he asked in turn. When Barry’s frown deepened Eric leaned forward in his
chair. “You aren’t skilled enough to handle a Raising. What if something goes
wrong?”

Barry arched an eyebrow. “You were just ready to serve
Madi
up and make her
Raise
him.
What’s the difference?”

“
Madi
knows what she’s doing. You
don’t.” Eric shook his head as he stood and walked over to his office window.
“If something happens to you, how am I supposed to explain that to Mom?”

“And again, I’m pointing out the fact that
Madi
does this all the time and you’re not this terrified
for her. And she’s got kids to look after.” Barry paused when a light knock
came from the door.

Eric took a slow breath and sighed. By the timid sound he
could tell it was his newest secretary. Without a word to his brother he
crossed the room and opened the door. “Hi Lilavanti, come inside the office.”

Barry sat straighter in his chair as his brother spoke
quietly with the young Indian woman. She was dressed in an orange sari that
seemed to compliment her rich caramel skin tone. Dark hair that could have been
either a really rich wine or deep brown was pulled back in a severe bun. What
made him frown were the exceptionally thick glasses she
wore.
“You finally hired on that new assistant, huh?” Barry asked his brother.

Eric’s back went rigid. He looked at Barry with a deep
frown. “Yes. Lilavanti Dallas, this is my brother, Barrence.”

Barry narrowed his eyes at his older brother for a moment
before turning his eyes to the young woman between them. “Everyone calls me
Barry,” he greeted in a smooth tone. He easily took her hand and gently kissed
it.

Lilavanti blushed as she looked at Barry. “It’s very nice to
meet you.” With large eyes she glanced at Eric and cleared her throat. She then
turned to Eric. “Is he the art dealer?” she asked.

“That’s actually our brother Jimmy,” Barry said quickly.
“I’m a Detective here in the District.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” she apologized as she bowed her. Her eyes
were full of pure innocence when she hugged the files in her arms to her chest.
“The whole kissing the hand thing threw me. I’m used to only seeing that in art
galleries.”

Eric frowned. “Why am I thinking the word
gay
is omitted from that statement?” he
asked playfully. He noted the look of horror that crossed Lilavanti’s face
while Barry gave him a murderous glare. “That’s neither here nor there,” he
said to his assistant. With practiced ease, he ushered her into the office
while moving Barry almost out of the door. “Barry was just leaving and I’m
going to escort him to the elevator. I’ll be right back.”

Lilavanti nodded as she continued to blush as she looked at
Barry. For some reason he was still staring at her. “It was nice to meet you,”
she called as Eric quickly moved him into the reception area.

Before Barry could reply, Eric closed the door between them.
“What the hell?” Barry exclaimed.

Eric could only stand still as he stared his brother down.
“Don’t you dare,” he hissed. Barry opened his mouth to respond, but Eric beat
him to it. “She’s new to the office. As you can see, she’s a sweetheart, and
not your type.”

“My type?”

“I will not let you fuck her and leave her. She’s too
fragile for that. I will skin you alive if you bring another sexual harassment
case to my door,” Eric said in a hiss.

Barry was completely insulted. “I am not that bad.”

Eric snorted in disbelief. “Shall I put them in alphabetical
order, height, or the rating you and Jimmy used?” When Barry stayed silent Eric
started to count off his fingers. “Alphabetical it is. Anna, Amy, Bethany,
Britney, Clarice, Diana,
Dirty
Diana,
Elena, Elizabeth, Erin, Flora, Jennifer,
Jessimin
,
Kacy
, Kimberly, Lee, Linda, Liz, Lola, Mindy, Minnie,
Nico
….”

Barry had to admit it. He was impressed. “How the hell do
you remember all of those names?” As much as he hated to admit it he couldn’t
even remember more than 5 names at a time.

“Stay away from my secretary,” Eric said with a final poke
to Barry’s chest.
“Or else.”

As cliché as it was, he couldn’t pass it up.
“Or else what?”

Eric gave Barry a dangerous smile. “Or I’ll tell Sloane and
Dylan that
you
were the one that
Worked Dad’s car into that lawn sculpture they got in trouble for.”

Barry’s eyes narrowed. Eric knew all the dirt in their
family, and his brother was never above blackmail to get his way. “This isn’t
over,” he said before walking over to the elevator.

Eric knew by the faint sound of his office door closing,
Lilavanti had just eavesdropped on their entire conversation. Hopefully, she
wouldn’t be dumb enough to fall for Barry’s charm. His eyes then caught sight
of the picture on her desk. Instead of her family, it was of her cat. Eric’s
shoulders fell. If Barry set his sights on Lilavanti, she was doomed.

Troy frowned as he followed Madison into the house. He
hadn’t seen or heard their sons and for some reason, that made him worry. “It’s
quiet.”

Madison glanced over her shoulder and squeezed his hand.
“This is a pretty big estate and there were four Vampires here last night,” she
laughed. “I’m actually surprised that Dylan didn’t bring out an overnight bag.”

Troy noted the blanket she wore as a skirt. “I like looking
at your legs,” he commented. As she rolled her eyes, he pulled her back into
his arms. “The rest of you
is
okay too,” he added
before nipping her ear.

She laughed as she gently pushed him away.
“Sweet-talker.”
She took his hand again. It was like she
needed to have some sort of contact with him. “The boys are probably down by
the gate. For some reason they like getting the paper.” She shook her head.
“It’s like a game for them.”

Troy nodded. “See who can get there, grab it, and get back
to the house.” He didn’t release her hand as she started for the stairs to the
upper floor. “Madison,” he said tugging lightly on her hand.

Brown eyes met with gold. For a moment Madison found herself
completely speechless. She couldn’t remember the last time she found herself in
a relationship, and that scared the hell out of her. “Yes?” she asked.

He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her lips. “What is
your connection to the Vampires?”

Madison slowly licked her lips as she glanced at the archway
into the kitchen. “It’s a long story,” she warned. Her eyes went round when
Troy growled and lifted her over his shoulder. “Troy!” she squeaked.

“How many times are you going to make me tell you that I’m
not going anywhere?” he asked as he carried her up the stairs. “I don’t care if
it takes you the rest of the afternoon to explain, I just want to know.”
Without knowing which way to go to her room, he turned to his left and started
down the hall.

“Put me down,” she ordered. A growl
of her
own
escaped as he continued to walk down the hall. “Troy, I’m not a
child.”