Iron Crowned Chapter 14

This isnt what I had in brainiac when I state we should go step forward on a date.It as well ask me a few daytimes to restore in to see Enrique Valdez, and Kiyo had decided to accompany me. tour waiting for my appointment, Id checked in at a term with the poser Land, plainly to mark the full experience frustrating. Though no wholeness openly utter it wellhead, except for Jasmine they tout ensemble fancy me breaking up with Dorian was the worst idea ever. I similarly learned from Shaya that arrangements for a war run into were getting bogged cumulus. Dorian insisted completely t obsolescent leash monarchs meet in person. Katrice motivati angiotensin converting enzymed to unhorse her nephew. There was alike the matter of which region would host because several differents requisiteed to, or so c bely in the hopes of getting in genuine with mavin or inviolately of us. I t hoar Shaya I didnt c are roughly(p ceriseicate) the lucubrate and to simply do many(prenominal) it took to arrest this war cursorily.When Kiyo and I r individu whollyyed Enriques address, we square up in motion it was in a small(a), sad- catching force create in one of the more than than sum areas of downtown Tucson. I eyed it asquint as we stood outside and waited for him to buzz us up.I dont get why it took us three days to get in, I said. It doesnt really seem ilk hes got that practically business.The door buzzed, and Kiyo opened it. Maybe its a c all over, he said. We walked up to the second floor, where Enriques representation was located. Maybe he wants to p low-toned how self-make he is.Thats unreasonable I halt when the office door opened sooner we knocked. Even with Enrique standing in the doorway, I could see beautiful, expensive furnishings.Well, Ill be damned, I muttered, entering at Enriques gesture.He was shorter than me, with profoundly tanned skin and b drop whisker st ruseing to gray. I put him somewhere in his mid to late forties. His work up didnt quite match the offices opulence. In fact, it touch sensationed deal stereotypical P.I. clothing from some old detective noir exposure, complete with a fedora.Markhams girl, huh? he asked, voice laced with a listless Spanish accent. His eyes fell on Kiyo. And a bodyguard?A friend, I said sharply. I dont consider a bodyguard.Right. Enrique didnt fathom standardized he imagined that. He pointed us to some plush leather chairs while he sit down in an even bigger one across from us. A huge cherry desk was located between us. It gleamed deep red in the late afternoon light and didnt look like the kind of thing youd find at IKEA.I stared around at the rest of the office, alleviate amazed at how it contrasted with the exterior. Books ranging widely from Moby Dick to Arizona conjure law lined shelves that matched the desk, and small gentlemans gentlemans of art paintings, statues, et cetera adorned the room.So, began Enrique. Whats his nam e, and why do you see hes cheating on you?I huh? I jerked my head from a sculpture that looked like some Mayan god and stared at Enrique in astonishment. What are you mouthing well-nigh? Is that what Roland told you? zero(prenominal) he didnt tell me anything. I favourable judge thats why you were here. Thats usually what women come in for.Kiyo made a small sound beside me that I infer was a laugh. Thats ridiculous, I exclaimed, un positive(predicate) if I should be offend or non. I need you to go over a murder.Enrique arched an eyebrow. Thats what the police are for.They al rig investigated it. And actually, they declared it a self-destruction.And you need me because ?Because I dont pretend it was, I said. I think it was a murder and that the victims family capacity be in danger.Enrique made no attempt to hide his skepticism. Do you fetch any prove to support this conjecture?I took a deep breath, hoping Roland had been responsibility close this guy. The victims, u m, ghost said she didnt pour down herself.Her ghost, he repeated. As though on cue, Deanna materialized in the room, though Enrique couldnt see her. Kiyo and I could with our Otherworldly senses, but neither of us gave any indication of her arrival.I nodded. Roland said you Yeah, yeah, said Enrique. I nonice about that hocus pocus he deals with. Im also guessing suicide talent be so traumatic that afterward, maybe a ghost impede out what she actually did.Thats not aline exclaimed Deanna.I supposed it wasnt out of the country of possibility, but Id explore all other options first. I dont think thats the case. I think she really was murdered. If thats true, we need to make sealed no one else in her family gets hurt.If she was murdered, countered Enrique, so statistics say someone in her family probably did it.Thats not true eitherI ignored Deannas second outburst and stayed rooted(p) on Enrique. Well, one way or another, I need to know.He leaned pricker in his chair, put ting his feet up on his desk and crossing his arms behind his head. If hed called me dame, I wouldnt stimulate been surprised. The police take all this into consideration, you know. What makes you think Id find something they gravelnt?I thought guys like you were smarter than the police, said Kiyo. Figured you had connections and carry above the law. That you didnt play by the same rules.Thats true, said Enrique, seeming pleased at the compliment. I swore, he was also victorious Kiyo more seriously than me. I weed look into it, I suppose. But its not like Ill do it for free, just because youre cute. That was tell back at me.I suppress a scowl. I didnt expect you to. I fuel pay.He considered this and eventually gave a nod, straightening back up in his chair. Okay. give out me what you know, and Ill get to it when I can.What cried Deanna.This is kind of time sensitive, I said. Mostly because I wasnt sure how a lot more of Deanna I could handle.Enrique gestured to a stack o f folders on a table. So are these. Im swiming in paperwork. Cant keep fractional of these straight.Well pay for you to expedite it, said Kiyo.I coolness him a look of astonishment, not thrilled that hed speak for me especially considering my income was level than it utilise to be. Nonetheless, it got Enriques attention. Expediting it is, hence.I gave him all the details Id recently learned from Deanna, and to his credit, Enrique diligently wrote them all down and asked pertinent questions that reaffirmed my faith in his legitimacy. The price he named didnt cheer me up as oftentimes, but in that respect was zip fastener to be through with(p) for it.When Kiyo and I finally got up to leave, I couldnt resist enquire the obvious. You seem to be doing pretty well so whys your office in a dump like this?Enrique didnt look offended so much as overbearing that Id ask such a ridiculous question. Do you know how much office rent is lately? Im saving oodles of money.Maybe you s hould put that surplus toward a secretary instead of statues, I pointed out, nod toward the tower of folders.I dont trust anyone, he said bluntly. Especially when ghost clients see up. He opened the door. Ill be in touch.Charming, I said, once Kiyo and I were on the road again. The only thing Im convinced(p) that guy can do is answer in the regression of womens sets.Kiyo tried to hide a make a face and failed. He was remunerate about you organism cute, though. And I dont know something tells me that despite the attitude, hes pretty competent. Crappy make aside, he couldnt afford that office if he wasnt achieving results. Besides, Roland wouldnt recommend anyone incompetent.Unless he was trying to debase me.Kiyos smile faded. Do you really think hed do that to you?I stared out the rider screw window. No. He wouldnt.Im sorry, you know. I really am. About Roland.I dont want to talk about it, I said. My snappishness plummeted each time Rolands name came up.Okay, then. You wa nt to salvage this date and get some dejeuner?I didnt defecate faith in the change of line of business. I didnt think anything could really distract me, certainly not the shitty Mexican restaurant Kiyo took us to. ar you serious? I asked. Felipes Fiestaland was the cheesiest restaurant in town, figuratively speaking. In a steer like Tucson, where you could get amazingly trustworthy Southwestern cuisine, Felipes was for tourists and suburbanites who didnt know any better. ar you saying a margarita wouldnt do you bang-up? he asked, getting out of the car.I would neer say that. But at that place are better places with better margaritas.They soothe use tequila in theirs. Isnt that what really matters? true(p) point.We were greeted by a hostess who sounded like shed taken one semester of Spanish in high school. Piatas hung from the ceiling, and bad mariachi harmony b netted from speakers. I scanned the drink wit as soon as we sat down and was ready when the waiter came by.Ill have your Double Platinum Extra bonus Margarita, I told him.Grande or super grande? asked the waiter.Super.Kiyo looked impressed. Ill have the same. When we were alone, he asked, What is that exactly?I propped an shove on the table, resting my chin on my palm. Im not sure, but it sounded like it had the most alcohol in it. Places like this tend to drown their drinks in mixers.Spoken like a pro.Stating the obvious. You and I both know Rozas has the beat margaritas.Kiyo smiled at that, flashing me a potent and knowing look. I had a sense of smell he was thinking about a memory that had come to me too, back from when wed dated. Wed gone out to Rozas which really did have the efflorescence hat margaritas in town and gotten so rummy that neither of us could drive home. So, wed used the car for the only thing we could sex. Twice.The drinks arrived and were about the size of fishbowls. They were also about half-mixer, as suspected, but at least that stillness left(a) a reason able criterion of alcohol. I drank mine down quickly as we waited for our food. Alcohol numbed my shamanic powers a minuscule bit and sometimes let me choke up my problems. non so much today.Do you think Enrique aptitude be right? I asked. That Deanna did commit suicide and occlude it out? The ghost had left us once we departed from the office.I dont know. I dont know if shed believe it, even if he turned up a film or something.I grimaced and downed more of the drink. I hope not. Its nothing Id want to watch. Im old-hat of bloodshed.I know, he said gently. And no matter what I said before and how upset I was when this war touch offed well, I have to admit. Youve handled it as best you could. tidings gets around. I know youve made some tactical moves that minimized casualties and not just for your own people.Tactical. Casualties. I shook my head, eyeing my low margarita. Those are terms I never thought Id use. And really, I dont have much to do with that planning. Rurik does.But you give the okay, Kiyo pointed out. Not many rulers would. Most would do some(prenominal) it took to crush their enemies quickly.Ive certainly wanted to. Dorian had as well, and the few disagreements wed had during our wartime partnership had been over civilian collateral damage. Can we talk about something not Otherworldly? And not about suicide?Sure. Our waiter of a sudden appeared with the plate of Mile High Muy Bueno Nachos wed ordered. Kiyo flashed him a grin. Shell have another margarita. Also, its her birthday.I shot Kiyo a look of horror as the waiter scurried off. Are you out of your reason? You dont say something like that in a place like thisBut it was too late. Because in a matter of minutes, the entire waitstaff of Felipes Fiestaland had surrounded our table. Someone put a sombrero on my head and a candlelit piece of flan in front of me. The whole gathering then launched into an out-of-tune rendition of Cumpleaos Feliz, set to equally bad out-of-rhythm cla pping. I stared at Kiyo the whole time and mouthed I testament kill you. It only made his smile grow.You dont look a day older, he told me, once the mob had dispersed.I cant believe you did that. I jerked off the sombrero and dove into the mod margarita. Do you know how humiliating that is?Hey, it got your mind off everything else, didnt it? Plus, check it out. Free flan.I blew out the candle and hesitantly poked the thick mass below it. It looks like its been seated around a while.Dont worry, he said, force the plate over to his side of the table. With all the preservatives in it, Im sure its fine.Im button to get you back for this, I warned, narrowing my eyes.The look he gave me was knowing. I hope so, he said. I certainly hope so.I can only blame the margaritas for what happened next, because as soon as wed paid our commove and were back in the car, we attacked each other. arrest? he said, trying to pull my garb over my head. Who needs Rozas?It was dark out then, I remind ed him, my own hands butterfingered for his pants.Were in the back of the lot, he argued. And the suns release down.He had a point, and when he brought one of my nipples to his mouth, I kind of let the subject drop. We really were out of sight, and there were more important matters to take care of. We reclined and pushed the seat back as far as it would go, then finally managed to get each others jeans off. I brought my hips down, taking him into me.See? I gasped. Youre sorry now.Very, he managed to say.Our awkward post kept my breasts pretty close to his face, and he was taking advantage of it with his hands and mouth. As for me, I was just thrilled at the feel of universe on top of him. later always playing tractable with Dorian, I suddenly exalted in this sense of power especially since Kiyo had in spades been the one in control the last time we had sex. Now, it was all me, and I took a fair amount of satisfaction in taunting him, alternately increasing the travel rapidly of my movement and then slowing down when he got close to coming.Eugenie, he begged at last. Enough. Please do it.I leaned toward him like I might kiss him and then pulled back when his lips sought mine. With a grin, I straightened up as much as I could and rode him hard, finally letting him have the release hed begged for. His body bucked up as he came, his hands holding tightly to my hips as though I might leave before he finished.After that, I guess we were kind of go out again. The next week or so passed in an easy pattern. I apothegm Kiyo almost every day, and we slipped back into our old routines. I started taking more jobs, much to Laras relief, while Kiyo alternately worked at the be clinic and checked in with the Otherworld. At night, he and I were always together, either at my place or his. My body began to esteem what it was like being in a kindred, and slowly, my heart did as well.I only crossed into the Otherworld once during that time, both from Thorn Land with drawal and curiosity over the war proceedings. No progress was being made with Katrice. I was grateful for the lack of fighting, but the hoped-for peace dialog still seemed a ways off. It was frustrating.Shes being difficult, said Shaya, when I asked about it. Understandably, she looked weary. These are delicate matters. They take time.I left it at that, feeling impatient, but count she knew better than me. Back in Tucson, I also got sporadic updates of another associate Enriques. To his credit, he called almost every day to report what hed done or investigated. At first his attitude remained the same, full of that forwardness and irritability that said this was a bollocks of his time. Then, one day, things changed.I think, he said. You might be right.Im not sure who was more surprised by this him or me. Id aboveboard started to believe he wouldnt turn up anything at all as cause of either a suicide or a murder. I gripped the phone tightly.What? That someone killed her?Yeah I found a couple things. Did you know her maintain has a missy?Deanna told me. She seemed okay with his moving on. It had been a few months since her death, too soon to start dating in my book, but still a semi-respectable time frame. According to Deanna, hed begun comprehend someone a few weeks ago.Yeah, well, he moved on before she was dead. The girlfriend? His alibi.I frowned. Seriously? Deannas husband had been aloof from suspicion because hed had a solid line up to his whereabouts when shed been killed. Hed been at a real dry land agents office the agent was helping him with a vacation home for their family. Maybe their relationship started after Deanna died Not if a attester I found is reliable. I also might have a call for that proves Deanna wasnt the one who bought the gun.If thats true I couldnt finish right away. Deanna acquiring the gun that had killed her had been one of the most damning pieces of evidence for suicide. If you can prove that, then it could reopen everything.Yes, said Enrique matter-of-factly. Yes, it could. Ill be in touch.We disconnected, and I suddenly wished he hadnt been quite so good at his job. If he was right about all this and turned up the evidence he needed well, someone was going to have to break the news to Deanna that her husband had murdered her. And that someone would be me. She soon believed some crazed killer had done it, one that was after her family now. The thought of it all sickened me.As I sat there in my room, an Otherworldly presence made my skin tingle. For half a second, I thought Deanna was appearing unsummoned something I wasnt ready to deal with. Id essentially given her a dont call me, Ill call you directive. But, no. It wasnt her. It was Volusian, his red eyes as malevolent as always. Lately, his appearance meant news from the Otherworld. I hoped it would be good.Whats up? I demanded.Shaya requests your presence immediately.Something good at last. The peace talks?No. She needs you because th e Oak King is at your castle, demanding to see you.