“See if you can link him to any of the others we’ve discovered,” I said. “We’re moving up the food chain.”
“But where does it end?” Phoenix said.
“Give me the go-ahead to look into the finances of everyone on the Senate and in the coalition government,” Shay said. “I just need clearance.”
“Do it,” Phoenix said. “We need to root out everyone who’s involved with this.”
“Is Egan associated with anyone in particular?” I asked. “Is he seen with a certain species or group? What’s his agenda? Is he anti-supernatural or not?”
Carl went to my computer. “I’ll look up the society pages and see if any faces come up more than most.”
“The papers are going to have a field day with this,” Peter said.
“Egan’s about to step into politics himself,” Shay said. “This could be disastrous.”
“A politician is going to be a target for blackmail,” Val said.
“Or bribery,” Carl said. “This Egan bloke has been photographed with every important person in the Senate. The photo trail makes him look like a good friend of everyone, even you, Phoenix.”
“I’ve barely spoken two words to him,” the fae scoffed.
“But the papers make it look like more.” Carl laughed. “There’s even a photo of you with him, Ava, shaking his hand. But the look on your face is hilarious. You don’t look best pleased, my friend.” He kept clicking. “Oh, wait. There’s something… let me print this out.”
After a moment, he brought us a piece of paper bearing a header. “This is Declan Egan’s,” he said triumphantly. “From his main charity foundation.”
I looked at the generic graphic in confusion. “What about it?”
He grabbed a pen off the table and highlighted some of the lines. There, within the graphic, hidden in plain sight, was the shape of Noodle’s slave brand.
“No,” I whispered.
“Why go to all of the trouble of hiding everything and then having this in the open?” Carl said. “Either somebody’s setting this man up, or he’s definitely gotten his hands dirty.”
“None of this adds up,” Shay said, sounding frustrated.
“Somebody’s playing a long game,” Peter said. “That’s all we know for sure.”
I shivered. Somebody was always playing a long game while we played catch-up.
17
While the others got on with the task of finding enough evidence to bury Declan Egan, Phoenix organised an informal meeting with the local members of the Senate, dragging me along for good measure. Our mission was simple: convince the Senate that Declan Egan was the key to the answers we sought. Of course, simple didn’t mean easy.
We arrived at the restaurant first. A simpering waiter led us to a small room in the back with a rectangular table and a dozen chairs. It was after dark, so the restaurant was busy. Before we went through the back, I scoped the place, looking for a familiar face. There were none.
Phoenix paced the room while we waited. I sat on the edge of a seat, about to burst out of my skin with nervous energy.
“You should sit,” I said. “You don’t want them to think you’re upset.”
He gave me a surprised look then took the seat to my right. “No, that wouldn’t do at all.”
Under the table, I took his hand in mine. “It’s going to be okay. The twins are safe, and we have names and evidence now. It’s different than last time.”
“How did you know what I was thinking?”
I held his gaze. “Because I’ve been worrying about the same thing. Until our country strengthens itself, there will always be people ready to take advantage. But you’re not alone. Look at all of the people we already have working on this.”
He looked down at our entwined hands. “I’ll never have peace, Ava.”
The door opened, and he instantly moved from my side to greet Callista and James. Mick, Willow, and Layla soon followed. We waited for Daimhín for a long time until one of her volunteers called to say she couldn’t make it.
“Let’s begin,” Phoenix said impatiently. “There’s a number of problems to discuss, but all of them lead back to the one man—Declan Egan.”
Mick and James exchanged a bemused look.
“Why is she here again?” Callista asked. “No offence, Ava, but it seems we see your face more than our own.”
“I highly doubt that,” Layla murmured.
The siren shot the succubus a sharp look.
“Ava’s a first-hand witness,” Phoenix said.
“But surely we can discuss matters without her presence,” Callista said.
“Ava’s trustworthy,” Willow said.
“I’m not arguing that point.” Callista held up her hands in protest. “That’s not what I’m saying.”
Layla twisted in her seat to glare at the siren. “Then what are you saying?”
I rolled my eyes as an argument began. “We don’t have time for this. Look. A baby was left on my doorstep. Newborn, with a slave brand.”
“A slave?” Layla sat up straight. “It can’t be.”
“It is.” I made an effort to unclench my fists. “It was. Phoenix brought the baby to the children’s home so a coven of witches could trace where she was born.”
“And you didn’t tell us?” Callista sounded upset.
“I didn’t know who I could trust,” Phoenix said coolly. “Not until I looked into it further.”
“Did the witches perform the spell?” Layla asked.
I nodded. “But before they managed that, the baby was kidnapped. We followed the spell, but the building was empty.”
“There were ledgers,” Phoenix said. “Talking about tithes and debts and the like.”
“And photos,” I added. “Of me, my friends, and others.”
“What has this got to do with Egan?” James asked.
“We’re getting to that.” Phoenix leaned forward. “But it’s not just the baby.”
“Yeah, there’s been other things,” I said. “A protection racket targeted my old neighbourhood. An old friend was shot. Calls to emergency services were ignored.”
“Shay later discovered a clerk had been bribed to ignore calls from a certain blacklist,” Phoenix added.
“Right,” I said. “And the shooter’s files were mixed up with another criminal—who was paid off and kept quiet. The shooter was let out on bail, and the bail was paid for by a holding company that owns the building we searched.”
“And a number of businesses associated with Declan Egan,” Phoenix said. “Also, the gun which was brandished in the school was the very same one used by the shooter. It had been stolen out of evidence, according to Shay.”
“There’s more weird circumstances, but we haven’t made all of the connections yet,” I said. “Human loan sharks using magic, for example, and the death of a renowned criminal. There are agitators out on the streets, whipping people up into a frenzy. A reporter is being blackmailed to write articles of a particular slant.”
“That newspaper is also connected to Egan,” Phoenix said to me. “I discovered that this morning.”
“Hold on a moment,” James said. “You’re blaming Egan because he funnels funds into charities and businesses? He funds us, too.”
“It wouldn’t take much effort to find out if anyone here is being blackmailed or bribed,” Phoenix said coldly.
“There’s just no way,” James said. “It can’t be Egan. Perhaps he was fooled into bailing out this woman, or… didn’t you say that there was a mix-up with her identity? Perhaps he intended to bail out the woman who was supposed to be released that day. And the building… Egan’s a big name on the property market. He could easily have bought that building after the child was born. Or he may have rented it out.”
“You’re very quick to defend him,” Layla murmured.
“Shouldn’t we all?” James continued. “It’s in our best interest.”
“He’s a big supporter of the Senate,” Mick s
aid. “Financially and politically. Some of us have even discussed the possibility of Egan earning the empty seat with us.”
“He has done a lot of good for the city,” Willow said. “Are you certain of his connection to this?”
“We don’t know if he’s controlling the situation or is merely acting as a front for another person,” Phoenix admitted.
“You need proof,” Mick said. “Real evidence.”
“We’re working on that,” I said. “But if we could just bring him in officially and ask him questions, then he won’t get the chance to cover anything up.”
“Cover anything up?” James sounded astonished. “He’s a pillar of the community.”
“So was Fionnuala,” I said.
“Not like this,” Callista said, looking uncomfortable. “He’s been so helpful. He’s popular with the people. When things are already so tense, accusing Egan of something would appear like an act of aggression.”
“You’ll do nothing,” Phoenix said. “You’ll let slavery continue in our city.”
“We’ve seen no evidence of slavery,” James said. “You don’t even have the child! If there is a child.”
“Don’t you dare,” Phoenix said through clenched teeth.
“Get more evidence,” Layla said. “Tread carefully. That man has more connections than most of us.”
“So he could be running the slave trade,” I said.
“How could a human manage something so shady?” Willow said. “Why would they do it? Vampires, I could understand, or maybe…” Her voice trailed away when she met my gaze.
“Maybe who?” I folded my arms across my chest. “Maybe only supernaturals can do bad things? Did you mean that to sound so obnoxious?”
Willow looked away.
“I won’t agree to persecute this man,” James said. “We can’t afford to throw baseless accusations around.”
“We’re not persecuting him,” Phoenix spat. “We want to ask him questions!”
“There’s no evidence,” Mick said, sounding uncomfortable. “It’s all circumstantial. There’s not even any evidence of an enslaved child. We can’t burn our bridges over nothing.”
“You fools,” Phoenix said before storming out of the room.
I made to follow him, but Layla called my name. “Careful,” she said. “Don’t let old fears trip you both up.”
“Too late,” I said. “That happened when I found a slave on my doorstep.”
I followed Phoenix outside. “Phoenix,” I called out.
“Get in the car,” he said, scrolling through his phone. “It’s raining.”
I zipped up my jacket and got into the car. Phoenix sat in the driver’s seat, still searching through his phone.
“They’re idiots,” I said. “But in a few days, we’ll have more evidence.”
“In a few days, Egan could be gone,” he snapped.
“So what can we do?”
He held up his phone, revealing an address. “We go get him ourselves.”
* * *
On the drive to Egan’s family home, Phoenix was unnervingly silent. The calm that he normally emanated was gone, and left behind was a trembling rage. He was taking it all personally. I didn’t speak, either, afraid that his capacity for rage would consume me, too. One of us needed to remain calm when faced with Egan.
But if Egan was the slaver, I wanted to rip his head from his body. I wouldn’t do it, but I would want to, and I could already tell I would have to keep a close eye on Phoenix.
“I don’t understand why he’s doing all of this,” I said. “If he has a hand in all of the things that have happened, I mean.”
“Why? Who cares about why?” Phoenix said. “Like others, he’s fuelled by power, and with power comes greed. They walk hand in hand.”
“Don’t you think it seems a little messy?” I tapped my fingers on my knees. “If he’s aiming for a seat on the Senate, or even total control, surely there are cleaner methods.”
Phoenix glanced at me. “I don’t want to stare into his soul, Ava. I don’t care what makes him tick. I just need him to pay. Why would he have so many pictures, so much information, if he wasn’t hunting you?”
“He can’t get to me.”
“He could have someone walk up to you while you’re shopping and shoot you in the head.”
“But he hasn’t.” I frowned. “So what’s he waiting for?”
He shrugged. “Perhaps he thinks he can still make allies of us. He lost that hope the day he focused on my children, the day he…” His hands tightened on the steering wheel. “If we get a confession, then we can seek vengeance.”
“You mean justice,” I said softly.
“Do I?” He nodded. “It’s just ahead. Be careful. We need him to talk.”
Egan lived in a gated community. The gates hung wide open as if welcoming us in. I grew nervous—mostly because of the energy leaking from Phoenix. If he decided he didn’t want to be good anymore, then the world was screwed.
“What do you want me to do in there?” I said as we approached the house.
“Stop him from running if he tries. Listen for lies.” He glanced at me. “You don’t need direction from me.”
“I get the feeling you’d like to take the lead.”
“I’d like the person responsible for all of this to get what they deserve.” He reached out and brushed his knuckles across my cheek. “And I appreciate you being here. It would be easy to bury your head in the sand like the Senate.”
“They’re just being careful. Maybe you should be more careful, too. You’ve more to lose than I do by being here.”
He pulled in outside the house and looked at me. “To stop this man, I would give up the Senate. And if we have to, we can appeal to Rosa for help.”
I got out of the car to avoid answering. I absolutely did not want to owe a paragon any favours.
Egan’s home was one of the largest in the community, and all of the lights were on. The front door hung open, and the garage door was open. No cars.
Phoenix got out of the car. “It looks as though nobody’s home. As though somebody ran.”
I squeezed my eyes shut. “As though somebody warned him.”
“One of the Senate,” he said. “Of all the…” He sucked in a breath. “Let’s take a look around. The door is open. We’re concerned citizens.”
“Oh, you need legitimate excuses to do what you want now?” I said teasingly.
His smile was brief and heartbreakingly small. “If the Senate want to be so precious about everything, we, too, must at least pretend to take a little care.”
We headed inside. Nobody was around.
“I’ll check upstairs,” Phoenix said. “But there’s obviously nobody home, and this man likes to leave nothing behind.”
He hadn’t exactly left nothing, although the furniture was sparse for a home. I walked along the hallway alone. Music came from a study, so I decided to look there first. There was an old-fashioned record player in the corner. I stopped the music. Whoever had started it playing hadn’t left too long ago.
Looking around, I noticed the desk had been cleared hurriedly, but I searched the drawers nonetheless. Nothing. On the fireplace, a couple of photo frames had been knocked down. I picked them up and looked at them all. One was a large photo of a couple of families. And amongst them, under Egan’s arm, was our missing shooter.
Phoenix came into the room. “Anything?”
I held up the photo. “This. Egan knows Jennifer Boyle well enough to have her photo in his office.”
“Who?”
“The girl who shot Wes with the gun that was used to threaten children at the school.”
Phoenix took the photo, stared at the people, then flung it at the wall. The frame shattered. I winced at the sound of the glass cracking.
“He knows what’s going on,” he said under his breath. “He knows everything.”
He swung his arm across the mantelpiece, sweeping everything off.
&n
bsp; “Stop,” I said, holding his arms before he damaged anything else. “You can’t destroy everything!”
“What am I supposed to do?” he said pleadingly. “The shooter’s been seen in Spain. Egan could be on a plane right now. He’s our only link to it all. He’s either in charge, or he knows exactly who is.”
“So we follow him.”
He dropped his arms and stared at me. “You would do that? Leave everything to follow him?”
I closed the space between us. “I went to Hell for the last slave market. The least I can do is travel to Spain for this one.”
The corners of his mouth rose. “I am so very glad that you’re on my side.”
The way he was staring at me made me embarrassed, so I turned away, pretending to study books on the bookshelf. “I think these are more ledgers,” I said, pulling one free. I opened the book. Its pages were brown and faded. “It’s really old. I can’t even read this. Can you?”
He stood behind me, his arms around me to hold the book steady. “This is a list of debts owed to a family,” he murmured. “That’s a lot of debt.”
“What family? Egan’s?”
“In the past, perhaps. These are old debts, but they look as though they’ve never been paid.” He shut the book. “This is evidence. If he’s following up on ancient debts, then we may be able to track him down.”
He let me go to keep looking on the shelves. We found other notebooks, some too old to read, but one was newer.
“This has Egan’s signature on it,” Phoenix said, pulling me to his side to look with him. “See this? He’s buying debt.”
“Maybe the old books don’t belong to his family.”
“It’s possible. He’s buying debt for what purpose? Control? Power?”
“He’s definitely human, right?” I said.
“I’m certain of it.” He frowned. “Supernaturals haven’t always been more powerful than humans. The rich families rose above the poor for a reason. Perhaps books like these are partly why.”
“This is like a twisted history lesson. What do we do now?”
“Get Shay to organise people to watch over the ports and airports. If Egan’s trying to leave, he can’t have gone far. The computer is still warm, and the washing machine is barely halfway through a cycle. We’ll find him, and we’ll learn everything there is to know about what he’s been up to.”