Emma

EMMA

"The Promenade is getting more dangerous every day," Luvar, the new chef, said as he added another pinch of svanti spice to the sauce. "I tell you, my predecessor wasn't the last person who'll get shot out there. It could happen to anyone."

"Yeah, it's scary," I said, laying the latest clean dish onto the rack. That was Luvar's job before, but now that he was promoted to head chef, I was stuck doing it, as well as the rest of the prepwork.

Frankly, I was exhausted. At least when you cleaned floors, the air wasn't as hot and steamy as it got when you were half an hour into washing dishes.

"The kind of person who could do that to someone…" Luvar went on, turning his attention to the vegetables. "There must be something really wrong with them. It might have been their first, but I'm sure it won't be their last."

"Well, I don't know about that," I said, instinctively. Immediately, I regretted it.

"What do you mean?" asked Luvar. "You think a normal person just walks up to someone on the street and shoots them?"

No, I thought. They would have to be very scared. And also pretty angry and maybe thinking about how their scary Vinduthi boyfriend would handle the situation.

"Well, I just think there might have been circumstances. Like maybe they felt threatened."

"Threatened by the chef?" Luvar laughed. "What would he threaten? That he'd overdo their pasta?"

"Well, I don't know. It's just pushing a button, isn't it? Maybe they didn't really think about what would happen until they already pushed it."

Luvar shrugged, and in the same movement, pushed the chopped vegetables onto the pan with his knife. "Maybe. There are probably some people like that out there. But there are also some people who are really scary. Who just love killing for the sake of it."

"You're right about that," I said, staring off into the distance, briefly. "You're certainly right about that."

"Don't slow down now!" Luvar called, clapping his hands. "You're almost done!"

"Right," I said, grabbing the next plate and scrubbing. "Just thinking about something."

"The really crazy ones, right?" said Luvar. "Yeah, I think about that kind of guy a lot. I tell you, we'd all be better off if we could just get rid of people like that."

"You really think so?" I murmured, putting the plate on the rack.

"Oh, I know it," Luvar continued. "Of course, they'll never do it. You'd end up getting too many innocent people if you tried. But it sure would be nice if the rest of us normal people could just get along without them."

Was I a normal person anymore? The question bothered me for some time. After all, I killed someone. In a moment of panic, sure, but that didn't change the fact that he was dead.

I also didn't like his pasta much, another voice in my head added.

Then again, I wasn't anything like Tazhr. I wasn't anything like him, but I also wasn't scared or repelled by him the way Luvar was. He fascinated me. Even when he did something that scared me, even then, there was something I couldn't help being amazed by. Something that almost felt innocent and playful amidst all the horribleness.

"You don't think there might be a place for some people like that?" I asked, placing the final bowl on the rack. "Like, maybe there are times when you need someone like that to deal with things. Even if only because of other people like that."

Luvar stared at me. "Emma, that's the craziest thing I ever heard."

Oh.

I kept working in silence, moving on to the pile of vegetables that needed to be prepped.

I couldn't stop replaying my last conversation with Tazhr in my head, wondering if we missed some vital clue buried in all those files and records I stole from Conii's office. We were so close to exposing her crimes and freeing Havek.

I just knew the evidence we needed was in there somewhere. If I could only focus long enough to piece it all together...

"Ow!" I hissed as the knife sliced into my thumb. Dammit, that's what I got for daydreaming about Tazhr's sexy rumbling voice instead of paying attention. I shook my hand irritably as a single drop of blood landed next to the cutting board, nearly marring the perfectly chopped piles. Nice going, Emma. The sous chef was gonna have my hide for that.

Right on cue, the Mondian scowled down at me, beady eyes zeroed in on the blood staining her pristine workspace. "Clumsy, foolish girl!" she snapped. "Keep your empty human head focused on the task at hand, not wandering the void!"

"Yes, chef. Very sorry, chef!" I mumbled, quickly wrapping a towel around my stinging thumb to stem the bleeding before I made an even bigger mess. Couldn't afford to have her notice how utterly distracted I was obsessing over Tazhr and our mission.

With a sigh, I turned back to the endless piles awaiting chopping, trying in vain to shut my brain off and just focus. But my thoughts kept skipping traitorously back to Tazhr—the way his muscles rippled beneath his skin when he fought, that wicked grin he got when he dug up a promising new lead, the heat in those smoldering golden eyes when we were alone...

I was startled out of my daydream by the chef smacking a heavy pot down loudly near me.

"Girl! Stop gazing at the wall like a vacant-headed fool," she snarled. "You'd think you never worked in this kitchen!"

Focus, Emma! I scolded myself. Thinking about Tazhr was only going to get me in trouble. There was no point fantasizing about his sculpted muscles or intoxicating scent, not right now.

I attacked the vegetables vigorously, trying to vent my frustration. But my thoughts crept traitorously back to Tazhr's rare, rumbling laughter, the warmth in his eyes when I made a clever deduction...

Those moments when we put our heads together to crack a clue were almost as good as the sex. Almost. I could almost picture his pleased smile when I connected the dots in a way he didn't expect...

I flushed, and it wasn't just from the heat of the stove.

I needed to get out of here. Just for a moment.

"We're out of grimlain tubers!" I shouted, then dashed out towards the market before the chef could say anything.

Once in the swirl of the marketplace, I caught my breath, trying to focus.

I'd see Tazhr later that night. I promised to sneak out after dinner, meet up to work on our puzzle. And maybe, if I was lucky, he'd work on me…

My percomm beeped, interrupting the pleasant daydream.

That was strange. No one messaged me. Especially not Taz.

"Come immediately. T." Coordinates in the Under. No context or explanation at all. My instincts screamed that it was probably a trap.

But what if he was in real trouble for some reason and actually needed me?

What if he was lying on a floor somewhere, bleeding out, and that was all he could manage?

I had to know either way. Maybe I overreacted...I hoped so. But I couldn't ignore the uneasy prickle down my spine.

My pulse was already pounding as I descended into the chaotic, noisy maze of alleys and corridors that made up the lawless Under. This place always put my nerves on edge even in the best circumstances. And right now, my gut twisted with apprehension about what awaited me.

It took me a while to find the coordinates from the sketchy message in this labyrinth. It led to a dim, cramped dead-end passage far off the main thoroughfares. There wasn't a soul around that I could see, but the hairs on the back of my neck stood up like I was being watched.

Something was seriously wrong here.

Never mind. I should go back, go to that bakery where Taz's brother and his mate were.

Find help.

I edged cautiously back down the alley, peering into the gloomy shadows. And then I spotted the body crumpled on the grimy floor halfway down. My heart seized in my chest, but as I approached with leaden steps, the details became horribly clear.

Blobby blue body. Red and black jacket. And those tell-tell boots.

Jaxus Plarr. His throat was savagely slashed, dark blood still wet and glistening. Bile rose in my throat as I reeled back before leaning forward to brush my fingers over his hand.

Still warm.

But dead, all the same.

The one person who could definitively finger Conii as the mastermind behind the framing of Tazhr's friend. Which meant our chances of freeing Tazhr's friend just got a lot slimmer.

I stumbled against the alley wall, head spinning. This was bad. So very bad. Tazhr would be devastated. We needed Jaxus's testimony to ensure Conii faced justice. Without that...a wave of despair crashed over me. All our risky efforts over the last week suddenly seemed futile.

My spiraling thoughts scattered as angry shouts echoed down the passage from behind me. I whirled around to see a group of Enforcers blocking the only exit from the alley, weapons drawn and pointed right at me.

"Murderer! Don't move!"

I threw my hands up desperately. "Wait, you don't understand! I just found him here like this, I swear!" I pleaded.

But they didn't listen. Two of them grabbed me roughly, wrenching my arms behind my back to slap on restraints, while others kept their guns trained on me. I struggled uselessly, my heart hammering against my ribs.

"Save your lies for the magistrate, human trash," a Mondian sneered as he finished securing my wrists in the metal cuffs. "We all know your kind can't be trusted."

I pleaded with them that this was some kind of setup, that I was just lured here, that I didn't hurt Jaxus.

That I wasn't a murderer. Well, that part wasn't true, but they didn't know that.

They dragged me out of the alley into the winding maze of passages that made up this sector of the Under while I craned my neck, desperately trying to spot anyone who might help me, but the streets were largely deserted here.

Wait! Was that the Fanaith bartender I met when we were down here before?

I shouted frantically, but she faded back into an alleyway.

My heart sank, but I couldn't blame her for not wanting to get involved.

I had no choice but to stumble along between the two Enforcers holding my arms in their bruising grip.

But we already reached the transit pod station and there was no more time. The Enforcers shoved me roughly into a waiting pod, their cruel, tattooed faces leering through the door windows as it slid closed.

I was sealed in, alone.

Which made no sense.

I never had a lot of interaction with the Enforcers.

They weren't exactly encouraged company over at Conii's.

But they used official pods. Not battered ones like this.

And they got there so fast, the body was still warm.

It just didn't make sense. Enforcers didn't wander around the Under, looking for crimes to prevent.

What if they weren't preventing a crime, I wondered. What if they were there to commit one?

I strained against the metal cuffs digging into my wrists, but quickly realized it was useless. No amount of wriggling or contorting would slip them free.

Sagging back against the wall in defeat, I blinked back tears as the transit pod shot through the streets. Where were they taking me?

If my guess was correct, I wasn't headed anywhere near Enforcer headquarters.

The dim lights in the pod cast eerie shadows, making my reflection in the window look like a frightened stranger. My heart pounded so loudly, I was certain they heard it, even outside. I took a few deep gulps of the stale, metallic air trying to clear the panic from my brain.

Think logically, Emma.

Who would try to take me like this?

I wasn't important. Didn't mean anything to anyone.

Except for Tazhr.

If anyone reported my ‘arrest,' Taz would look for me at Enforcer headquarters.

That would give Conii plenty of time to hide me, to plan an even better trap for him.

Think, Emma, think! I berated myself desperately.

Before I could formulate any semblance of a plan, the pod slowed abruptly, sending me lurching sideways.

The doors slid open and I squinted against garish lights, eyes struggling to adjust.

Where the hell was I?