Fae Games

Chapter 2-1

THEY DIDN’T COME home.

I’d woken up at seven, expecting Mom and Dad to be here, but the apartment was quiet and their bed hadn’t been slept in. I’d showered, made breakfast for Finch and me, and cleaned up. Still, there was no sign of our parents.

It wasn’t unusual for them to stay out overnight on a job, but they always called to let me know they wouldn’t be home. Always. No exception.

The clock on the mantle chimed noon. I should have heard from them by now.

I tried Dad’s phone first, then Mom’s, and both went straight to voice mail. I swallowed dryly. There was no one more capable of taking care of themselves than my parents. Maybe I was overreacting, but I couldn’t wait any longer.

My parents’ office was nothing more than a small bedroom that served as a work space and a storage area for all the weapons and tools of their trade. On one side of the room was the desk, bookcase, and filing cabinets, everything neat and in its place. This was Mom’s domain. She managed all the finances and administrative side of the business. Dad was the tactical and information expert, and he managed everything in those areas. He knew more about weapons, combat, and the Fae than anyone else I knew.

I went to the desk and sat in the chair. Ignoring the computer, I opened the top drawer and pulled out the address book Mom kept all their contacts in. She had them on the computer, but she often said you should never put all your trust in technology that could fail on you at any time.

She was right. A few years back, a hobgoblin went on a rampage in Manhattan, and his magic took out every computer in a city block before a group of hunters, led by my parents, caught him. We had iron grounding rods on the roof to protect our building against that, but Mom wasn’t taking any chances.

Finch jumped up onto the desk, startling me. I almost scolded him until I saw the worry in his eyes. He whistled and signed, Mom and Dad?

“They’ll be home soon,” I told him, wishing I knew that were true. “I’m just going to call around to some of their friends.”

By friends, I meant their fellow bounty hunters in the area. Most hunters worked in pairs, but they sometimes teamed up to help each other out on difficult jobs. And they watched each other’s backs. Thankfully, Mom had them all clearly marked in her address book.

I spent the next hour calling every one of Mom’s contacts. I couldn’t reach a few of them, but no one I spoke to had seen either of my parents in the last two days, except for Phil Griffin. He was the one Dad had helped on that banshee job yesterday. Phil didn’t sound too worried when I told him they hadn’t come home. I had to bite back a retort when he said I shouldn’t concern myself with these matters and that my parents knew what they were doing.

After I’d exhausted all their local contacts, I dialed Maurice’s number. Last I’d heard, he was somewhere in the Everglades on a big job, but he would want me to call him. I wasn’t surprised when I got his voice mail, and I left him a message detailing everything that had happened since yesterday. He’d call me back as soon as he got my message, whenever that was.

The last person I called was Levi Solomon. I didn’t know what job Mom and Dad were working on, but it had to be one of Levi’s. If anyone knew where my parents were, it was their bond agent.

Feeling hopeful, I dialed his number.

“Hello?” rumbled a gravelly voice that sounded like its owner smoked two packs of cigarettes a day.

“Hi, Mr. Solomon,” I replied, all businesslike. “I’m Jesse James. Patrick and Caroline James are my parents.”

That’s right. My name is Jesse James. I could thank my dad and his obsession with old westerns for that.

There was a short pause before Levi Solomon cautiously asked, “What can I do for you?”

I cleared my throat. “Well, um…I was wondering if you know where my parents are. They went out on a job last night and didn’t come home.”

“Sometimes bounty hunters stay out all night,” he said with a note of impatience. “It’s part of the job.”

“Yes, but they always let me know if they won’t be home.” Dread coiled in my stomach as I told him about the strange call I’d gotten from Mom last night.

“They were probably making a capture,” he replied casually.

“If you could tell me what job they were –”

“Sorry, kid. I can’t discuss Agency jobs with just anyone.”

I gripped the phone tighter. “But they’re my parents, and they’re missing.”

He coughed loudly and wheezed. “Listen. I have no idea if you are who you say you are. And a person has to be gone longer than a few hours to be declared missing. If you are Patrick and Caroline’s kid, you should know they can take care of themselves. I’m sure they’ll turn up soon.”

“But –”

The line went dead.

I stared at the phone in disbelief. Did he really just hang up on me?

Finch waved a hand to get my attention. They never stay out this long, he signed fearfully.

My chest squeezed. I picked him up and gently hugged him to comfort me as much as him. “Don’t worry. I’ll find them.”

I chewed my lip and pondered what to do next. My fingers automatically went to the braided black leather bracelet Mom had given me when I was twelve. I rarely removed it, and I took comfort in its familiar texture.

I picked up the address book. The longer I stared at Levi Solomon’s name, the more my jaw tightened until it hurt. He was my only lead to finding Mom and Dad, and I’d be damned if he was going to brush me off that easily. If he wanted proof I was Patrick and Caroline James’s daughter, I’d give it to him.

Setting Finch on the desk, I pushed back the chair and stood. In my room, I changed into jeans and a thermal top and pulled on a coat. I stuffed my phone, a credit card, and some cash into my coat pocket and picked up my keys.

Finch was waiting for me in the living room. Where are you going? he signed.

“To talk to that bond agent. I’ll be home as soon as I can.”

Waving goodbye to Finch, I left the apartment and locked the door behind me. I hated to leave him alone when he was worried about Mom and Dad, but I wasn’t going to get any answers sitting at home. All that would do was drive me crazy.

It took me over an hour to reach the four-story brick building in Queens that housed Levi Solomon’s agency. The Plaza, as it was called, was home to over half a dozen bond agencies, and it was like walking into a bounty hunter convention when I entered the main lobby. Four armed hunters conversed off to my left, while five others talked to my right. Two more waited by the elevator with a bound ogre supported between them. The yellow-skinned ogre growled something around the gag in his mouth, and then he tried to butt one of the hunters with his bald head.

The elevator dinged, and the doors opened. I watched the three get on and decided I’d better wait for the next one. Ogres were unpleasant on a good day. No way I was getting in a little metal box with that one.

I felt eyes on me as I waited, and I met the curious stares of several hunters. I didn’t know any of them, but I was aware of how out of place I was here. Bounty hunters were like a club that everyone knew about, but only members got to see what went on inside. Except for Agency operatives, outsiders didn’t come to their place of work.

“You lost, kid?” a woman called a second before the elevator doors opened.

“Nope.” I stepped inside, and the doors closed behind me.

I got off on the fourth floor and immediately spotted a door to my right with The Solomon Agency painted on it. The door was unlocked, and a bell tinkled when I entered.

I wasn’t sure what I had been expecting a bond agency to look like, but it wasn’t this one-room windowless office that reeked of stale cigarette smoke. There was a metal desk in the corner and a row of tall filing cabinets along one wall. The other walls were covered with wanted posters featuring just about every race of faerie you could think of – except Court Fae, of course. It was extremely rare that a bounty was issued for one of the Fae ruling class.

At the back of the room was a door I hadn’t noticed when I came in. I had no idea if it led to a bathroom or to another office. There was no one sitting at the desk, and I stood uncertainly for a minute before I took a seat on one of the rickety visitor chairs. Levi must have stepped out briefly, or he wouldn’t have left the door unlocked. I would just wait here for him to return.

Five minutes passed before the door at the back of the office opened, and a very overweight man came out. His dark hair was peppered with gray, and he had so many chins I couldn’t see his neck. Wheezing, he lumbered over to his desk, without looking in my direction, and eased his body down onto his chair. Metal groaned ominously, and I held my breath as I waited for the chair to give out under his weight. Miraculously, it held, and I couldn’t help but wonder if he was using some kind of Fae spell to support it.

It wasn’t until the man was seated that he finally noticed me. Surprise flitted across his face, but it was quickly replaced by suspicion. His hand went under the desk, no doubt to grip a weapon he kept there. With that in mind, I decided it would be prudent to stay seated and not make any sudden moves.

“Mr. Solomon, my name is Jesse James,” I said before he could speak. “I spoke to you earlier on the phone.”

It took a few seconds before I saw recognition dawn on his face. No one who knew my mother could miss my resemblance to her.

His posture relaxed a bit, but he kept his hand under the desk. What did he think I was going to do? “Miss James, you’re a long way from home, and I’m sure your parents would not be pleased to find you here.”

I had to bite back a snarky reply. If he’d been helpful when I called him, I wouldn’t have had to come here to see him in person.

I pasted on a smile instead. “You told me you had no way of knowing I was who I claimed to be. I came here to give you proof of my identity and to ask for your help.”

He pursed his lips. “I’m sorry you came all the way down here, but like I told you on the phone, your parents are more than capable of taking care of themselves. They haven’t even been gone twenty-four hours.”