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Twenty-Six

Kuro

"Are you sure you want to be here with me?" Kuro asked. He kept his voice low, for Marie only. There were no other supernaturals close enough to overhear.

"Absolutely." There so much determination packed into the word Marie uttered, he couldn't help but smile just a little bit. He wouldn't dare argue with her. No one should.

They walked side by side into the boardroom currently occupied by Babel. For the time being, the organization had tucked themselves into corporate office space in one of the newest buildings in downtown Seattle, but not the newest. It was a high-rise, but not the tallest. The building itself housed a combination of office space, retail space, and residential units. It was easy to overlook in the long list of other companies leasing space in the building. And they were leasing. At any time, Babel could be gone from these offices without a trace.

But they did like their luxury.

The boardroom was immaculately decorated in a luxe but minimalist decor. It was a clever blend of just enough technology for its human leadership and not enough to interfere with any of its supernatural representatives. At the moment, there were a handful of individuals in the room, all human.

"Ah, Kuro," Eamon greeted him. "This is the first time you've completed a contract for us and had to do a formal debriefing. But then again, it's a good idea to observe such formalities, considering the way the last contract went, isn't it?"

Kuro didn't answer. There hadn't been a question. He only studied Eamon. To date, he and Joe had only interacted with Eamon over secure video call. He appeared to be a white man, not too far from Kuro's age, early-to-mid thirties. He had a long, oval-shaped face and a slightly upturned nose. His hazel eyes were bright, picking up the light in the room, and the look Kuro found there was voracious. The black suit Eamon was wearing was impeccably tailored, but it still looked like he was dressed to go to his own funeral. Kuro was inclined to revise his initial impression about it being just humans representing Babel in the boardroom today.

"Where is our partner?" Kuro asked.

Eamon smiled. "What a lovely companion you have here. I wasn't aware that there was a witch operating in the area who wasn't at least in our asset database. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, my dear."

The smile Marie returned to Eamon was cool and professionally pleasant. She held her head high, accentuating the long line of her neck. She was, more than Kuro, absolutely at ease in a setting like this. "We have successfully acquired an item from the research and development department of Socrates Industries. It is our understanding that this is an item of interest to you and your associates. I believe a trade is in order."

Eamon laughed, then all pretense of mirth left his face. "I don't like you."

"You don't have to," Marie answered, her voice the exact same pleasant pitch as before.

"Please don't tell me you all hid the chest plate someplace. I'll just have to take another one of you hostage and leave the remaining one to go off and fetch it." Eamon tapped the glass tabletop impatiently.

"Don't tell us you will consider the contract fulfilled without both Kuro and Joe present," Marie countered.

Kuro was happy to give her the speaking role. She was better suited to verbally spar. He was ready to counter the other two people in the room and any guards who might enter.

"Ah, you have a point, my dear." Eamon raised his hand and one of the other men took out a phone.

Moments later, three pain witches entered and one of them carried Joe, stuffed in a pet carrier bound with magical chains. That was something Kuro had never encountered before, and he didn't like it.

"Your gumiho is impressively strong," Eamon admitted. "It's quite difficult to bind a fox spirit while it remains aware and active. Do keep in mind that this was a courtesy. We would have had a much easier time rendering him unconscious to keep him safely contained."

Marie waved her hand, and the magical chains fell away from the pet carrier. Joe burst out on his own, darting to her other side.

"Interesting." Eamon sounded both irritated and amused, if that was possible.

"The hex was supposed to be removed upon completion of the contract," Kuro said.

He wasn't comfortable with Eamon's attention on Marie for this long, and that discomfort had increased exponentially now that the pain witches were aware of her. She was done with being discreet, which meant he and Joe needed to be ready to watch her back.

Eamon sighed. "Come now, it is tiring for you to assume we would lift the measures we put in place to keep you and your partner in check before you actually fulfilled your contract."

Kuro pulled the slender satchel he'd worn slung across his body over his head and placed it on the end of the conference table closest to him. Watching everyone in the room as best he could, he opened the bag and pulled out the amulet. But he didn't place it on the table. He kept it securely in his grip. "One item safely acquired from Socrates Industries and brought here. It is unique and confirmed to have been used in rituals for traversing to the afterlife and returning alive."

Eamon sat forward, steepling his fingers as he rested his elbows on the table. "Excellent. Once your hex has been lifted, you can place that on the table and leave. I'm sure your witch can confirm it has been dispelled. Do you see how simple it can be to complete contracts with us? There really is no need to worry, so long as you fulfill them."

Eamon gestured with one hand again.

One of the pain witches held up both hands. "Wait. Before we let them go—"

"That is not within the bounds of this contract nor the contract between Babel and your coven," snarled Eamon.

"We're not lifting that hex until the gumiho undoes whatever he's done to Ruben."

"He's not going to undo anything while he's still locked in fox form," Kuro countered.

Marie added, "This is not a part of any contract. It seems like a problem to take outside, after you fulfill the contracts to Babel."

"Shut up, white witch," snapped one of the pain witches, who was apparently not Ruben. "You're all alone. You should watch yourself around us."

"Not alone," Kuro growled.

"Not white." Marie shrugged.

"Don't talk back to us!" shouted the pain witch.

Marie tilted her head, then walked—no, glided—down the length of the boardroom table to the nearest empty seat to Eamon. She placed the fingertips of one hand on the table surface, and addressed him. "I'm not talking to anyone but you. Finish the contract, then we'll take all the background noise out of your office."

"Bitch!" The pain witch pointed at Marie. Kuro didn't see anything, but Marie flew backward and smacked into the glass window hard enough for her to immediately crumple to the floor.

Kuro and Joe both darted to her side. Joe let out a bark that sounded more like a scream.

"How dare you!" Eamon's raised voice lashed out as he surged to his feet.

More guards entered the room, taking hold of the pain witches. One of the humans rose from the conference room table and approached Marie. Both Kuro and Joe snarled at her.

"She's dead, assholes." The pain witch was red in the face. "She was too stupid and too slow to even try to dodge that death spell."

Eamon moved too quickly for him to be human. He was suddenly behind the pain witch with his arms wrapped around his upper body, pinning the witch's hands across his chest. He spoke so close to the pain witch's ear, his lips brushing the outer shell, but he wasn't whispering. "You will honor contracts made with Babel."

A wet stain formed on the front of the pain witch's pants and the acrid scent of urine tinged the air. Hurriedly, the other pain witch, the one not clutching his chest, took out two photographs bound in string. He began unwinding one, and Kuro felt constrictions he hadn't been aware of falling away. The witch tossed both the string and the physical photograph on the conference room table. It was a picture of Kuro, taken at a distance. The pain witch repeated the process with the other photograph of Joe.

Joe instantly changed to human form.

"Marie," he whispered, immediately bending over her and carefully touching her body.

Kuro stalked forward and took the photographs and string. He shoved them into his satchel, slinging it across his body. Then he placed the Egyptian amulet on the table.

"Business is completed," the human woman stated, retrieving the amulet and returning to her seat.

"Well, Kuro and Joe, you two may leave with the body of your witch. I do apologize for the unforeseen tragedy. I will see to it that a bonus is included in your payout as compensation," Eamon said, back to his pleasant and professional self.

"Y—"

Kuro shook his head at Joe. Joe met his gaze and choked back his rage. Instead, he rose to his feet and charged the pain witches. Before anyone could stop him—Eamon simply didn't bother, his expression mildly curious—Joe took Ruben's face between his hands. Joe didn't kiss the man, instead holding Ruben until Ruben's eyes opened wide and he started to scream. Joe's yeowoo guseul ripped its way through the man's throat, leaving him gurgling blood as Joe took it back in his own mouth. He released Ruben and the man fell to his knees, clutching his throat.

"Her life was too precious for an exchange," Joe growled.

Leaving the man kneeling in the growing pool of his own blood, Joe gathered Marie's unmoving body in his arms. Kuro ushered the both of them out.

As they left the conference room, a young man in a shirt and tie met them. "We have a car downstairs waiting to take you to whatever destination you wish. It can take you to an emergency room, if there's a chance for your, uh, friend. Or it can drop you anywhere discreetly. This way to the private elevator."

Of course. Babel was thorough that way.

After they exited the building, Kuro and Joe rushed to the waiting vehicle. "Pier 66," Kuro said. "Hurry."

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