Oath Bound
Page 82
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I’d come to the same conclusion. Kori and Ian could dispatch a lone gunman in their sleep. What I couldn’t figure out was why Sera was still alive.
“Okay. I suspect our privacy is nearing its end. Tell me where they put Kenley Daniels, and I’ll let you go. You have my word.”
“Like you let Ned go?” At the mention of the dead man, I glanced at him, still propped up across from the bathroom, less than a foot from me now. “You can see how well that worked out for him.”
I could see the speaker by then, through the crack where the bathroom door hadn’t quite closed. He was tall and fair-skinned. Reasonably thick, like most of Tower’s musclemen. But he had to be Skilled, to have gotten into a warehouse locked from the inside. Had he come through the bathroom, after we’d left it? Was that why she’d turned the lights on? To keep a Traveler from escaping?
But that made no sense, because he still had his gun, which should have meant he was the one in power. Yet his gun was aimed at the floor, and he showed no more inclination to use it than she showed fear of it.
“That wasn’t my fault. I set him free,” Sera insisted, and on the wall, the shadow of her hand pushed back the shadow of her hair, hanging over her silhouette.
“Which is exactly what got him killed,” the man insisted. “You broke his binding, and she has no use for those she can’t control.”
She? Julia? How the hell could Sera have broken Ned’s binding?
That was the last unanswered question I could take. I shoved the door open and aimed at the man’s head. “What the hell are you talking about?”
Sera gasped, and the man swung his gun up in my direction.
“Stop!” Sera shouted, and he took his finger off the trigger. “Put your gun down. In fact, give me the damn thing!”
To my absolute shock, Julia Tower’s muscleman clicked the safety switch on, then handed his pistol to her by its grip.
Sera held it with the caution of someone who’s never pulled a trigger in her life. But to her credit, she didn’t set it in the sink behind her or drop it in the toilet to her left. Though she might have ejected the clip, if she’d known how.
“What the hell is going on here?” I demanded, still aiming at the man’s head. “How did you break Ned’s bindings?”
“Kris, stand down,” Sera said. “Mitch isn’t going to hurt anyone. Are you?” She glanced at the man with one brow raised, and Mitch shrugged.
“That’s up to you.”
She frowned. “Well, then...don’t hurt anyone.”
“Ever?” He stared back at her in challenge and seemed to enjoy her moment of confusion. “Even if someone tries to kill you, you want me to just stand there and let it happen, if the alternative is hurting him?”
“Of course not.” Sera glanced at me, then her tense focus slid to my gun before she turned back to Mitch. “Just...don’t hurt anyone until I say otherwise. Okay?”
That time a shrug was his only reply.
“Sera, what the fuck?” I demanded. “How did you break Ned’s bindings? You’re a Binder now? How many Skills to you have?”
“Just the one. Er...two, I guess. But I’m not a Binder.”
“You have two Skills?” Mitch said, and Sera’s forehead furrowed in sudden concern.
“You can’t tell anyone that. Ever,” she said, and he scowled, then rubbed his own forehead, like he was getting a headache. Or thinking about breaching an oath.
“Why is he taking orders from you?” I demanded. “Why hasn’t he shot you? How did you break Ned’s binding?”
“While we’re asking questions, why was this fucker sneaking up on us?” Kori said from behind me, and I spun to find her in the hall, gesturing to Ian, who had an obviously dead man tossed over his good shoulder, dripping blood on the floor at his back. “How did you get in?”
“The lights are on a remote,” Mitch said. “When our Tracker hadn’t picked up your signal after an hour, we turned this one off and popped in to check. Since you’re obviously here, the only reasonable conclusion I can draw is that your psychic signal is being jammed. Any idea how that might happen?” He was looking at Sera, but she only stared back at him, refusing to confirm either of her Skills.
“Mitch. It’s been a while.” Kori eyed him and I realized they’d once been coworkers. Had she known Ned, too?
“Hey, Kori,” Mitch said as if they’d just bumped into each other at the watercooler. “Listen, there’s a pool going, and I’ve got five hundred bucks riding on you gettin’ shot in the head, so when the time comes, could you do me a favor and hold still?”
“You placed a bet on how she’d die?” Sera looked horrified, but Kori only shrugged.
“That bet never pays out. You’d think they’d eventually learn.”
“I feel like I’ve missed something.” Ian winced as he lowered the body to the ground and propped it up next to Ned. “What’s going on?”
“Kori’s evidently having a mobster’s reunion, and this asshole’s taking orders from Sera and blaming her for getting Ned killed. Also, he may know where Kenley is.”
“Where is she?” Kori dismissed everything else as unimportant. Sometimes I admired her single-minded focus. Other times, it drove me nuts. I couldn’t decide which kind of time this should be.
“Okay. I suspect our privacy is nearing its end. Tell me where they put Kenley Daniels, and I’ll let you go. You have my word.”
“Like you let Ned go?” At the mention of the dead man, I glanced at him, still propped up across from the bathroom, less than a foot from me now. “You can see how well that worked out for him.”
I could see the speaker by then, through the crack where the bathroom door hadn’t quite closed. He was tall and fair-skinned. Reasonably thick, like most of Tower’s musclemen. But he had to be Skilled, to have gotten into a warehouse locked from the inside. Had he come through the bathroom, after we’d left it? Was that why she’d turned the lights on? To keep a Traveler from escaping?
But that made no sense, because he still had his gun, which should have meant he was the one in power. Yet his gun was aimed at the floor, and he showed no more inclination to use it than she showed fear of it.
“That wasn’t my fault. I set him free,” Sera insisted, and on the wall, the shadow of her hand pushed back the shadow of her hair, hanging over her silhouette.
“Which is exactly what got him killed,” the man insisted. “You broke his binding, and she has no use for those she can’t control.”
She? Julia? How the hell could Sera have broken Ned’s binding?
That was the last unanswered question I could take. I shoved the door open and aimed at the man’s head. “What the hell are you talking about?”
Sera gasped, and the man swung his gun up in my direction.
“Stop!” Sera shouted, and he took his finger off the trigger. “Put your gun down. In fact, give me the damn thing!”
To my absolute shock, Julia Tower’s muscleman clicked the safety switch on, then handed his pistol to her by its grip.
Sera held it with the caution of someone who’s never pulled a trigger in her life. But to her credit, she didn’t set it in the sink behind her or drop it in the toilet to her left. Though she might have ejected the clip, if she’d known how.
“What the hell is going on here?” I demanded, still aiming at the man’s head. “How did you break Ned’s bindings?”
“Kris, stand down,” Sera said. “Mitch isn’t going to hurt anyone. Are you?” She glanced at the man with one brow raised, and Mitch shrugged.
“That’s up to you.”
She frowned. “Well, then...don’t hurt anyone.”
“Ever?” He stared back at her in challenge and seemed to enjoy her moment of confusion. “Even if someone tries to kill you, you want me to just stand there and let it happen, if the alternative is hurting him?”
“Of course not.” Sera glanced at me, then her tense focus slid to my gun before she turned back to Mitch. “Just...don’t hurt anyone until I say otherwise. Okay?”
That time a shrug was his only reply.
“Sera, what the fuck?” I demanded. “How did you break Ned’s bindings? You’re a Binder now? How many Skills to you have?”
“Just the one. Er...two, I guess. But I’m not a Binder.”
“You have two Skills?” Mitch said, and Sera’s forehead furrowed in sudden concern.
“You can’t tell anyone that. Ever,” she said, and he scowled, then rubbed his own forehead, like he was getting a headache. Or thinking about breaching an oath.
“Why is he taking orders from you?” I demanded. “Why hasn’t he shot you? How did you break Ned’s binding?”
“While we’re asking questions, why was this fucker sneaking up on us?” Kori said from behind me, and I spun to find her in the hall, gesturing to Ian, who had an obviously dead man tossed over his good shoulder, dripping blood on the floor at his back. “How did you get in?”
“The lights are on a remote,” Mitch said. “When our Tracker hadn’t picked up your signal after an hour, we turned this one off and popped in to check. Since you’re obviously here, the only reasonable conclusion I can draw is that your psychic signal is being jammed. Any idea how that might happen?” He was looking at Sera, but she only stared back at him, refusing to confirm either of her Skills.
“Mitch. It’s been a while.” Kori eyed him and I realized they’d once been coworkers. Had she known Ned, too?
“Hey, Kori,” Mitch said as if they’d just bumped into each other at the watercooler. “Listen, there’s a pool going, and I’ve got five hundred bucks riding on you gettin’ shot in the head, so when the time comes, could you do me a favor and hold still?”
“You placed a bet on how she’d die?” Sera looked horrified, but Kori only shrugged.
“That bet never pays out. You’d think they’d eventually learn.”
“I feel like I’ve missed something.” Ian winced as he lowered the body to the ground and propped it up next to Ned. “What’s going on?”
“Kori’s evidently having a mobster’s reunion, and this asshole’s taking orders from Sera and blaming her for getting Ned killed. Also, he may know where Kenley is.”
“Where is she?” Kori dismissed everything else as unimportant. Sometimes I admired her single-minded focus. Other times, it drove me nuts. I couldn’t decide which kind of time this should be.
