James paced waiting for them to return. He’d felt the Magic, or rather the attempt to disturb it. He saw the horses approach and expected phillip to bring the girl directly to him but he didn’t.
He took her to his own tent.
He scowled thinking of how insolent phillip could be sometimes. Grabbing what he could he rushed over there, knowing that he couldn’t let his pride get in the way of saving the girl.
Phillip laid her on his bed while Ridley stood at the door awkwardly.
“What do you want me to do?” He asked.
“Get James.” phillip ordered. “And get a damn healer.”
Lisa opened her eyes, aware that she was in a tent and that there were thick fur throws over her. It was dark but she could make the outline of almost everything in the tent. She shifted slightly and felt the pelts against her skin, realising that she wasn’t wearing anything except her underwear and she recoiled with fear.“It’s okay.” Phillip said moving to her side so she could see him. “You’re safe.”“Where are my clothes?” She asked, her voice barely more than a whisper.“The Agnai cut them off you.” He replied.Lisa blinked and then looked away. She remembered the cave now. And the men who had all slit their throats. She remembered how she
The army travelled further towards the coast and Lisa felt the air getting more and more salty the nearer they got. A part of her couldn’t wait to see the sea even though she knew that with it would be war.She ached to spend each night with phillip but she forced herself to sleep alone. To be alone. She knew she needed time to heal, time to forget. She had already forgiven him because after all he hadn’t betrayed her but the anger at what the High King had tried to get him to do was still there and it was raw. And the awful emptiness she felt without her Magic was practically unbearable. All she knew was that she didn’t want phillip to feel it too, she didn’t want him to know the pain that was constantly ripping through her, so she locked herself away, locked her emotions away and she shut herself off from him.
I covered my mouth and nose with a hand as the smell hit me with the force of a Mack truck. I knew that smell. My job as a journalist had put me in more than one situation involving the dead or dying. I turned the corner and entered what was undoubtedly known as “the parlor”. Governor Welling lay motionless on the ground, a small, neat hole drilled through his forehead. I sat down hard on the floor, my legs unwilling to hold me upright. I tried to untangle my emotions as I sat there. I wasn’t exactly sure what I should be feeling, but I was fairly certain it wasn’t the mixture of relief and disgust that roiled through me.I heard the sound of wailing and it yanked me back to the here and now. I followed it to the back door where a woman in a pale-blue tracksuit sat on the steps, huge gasping sobs shaking her tiny body.“You’re the one who called me,” I said, knowing this had to be the housekeeper whose pani
My first stop was the house neighboring that of the governor. Of course, “neighbor” might not have been the correct term, since there was a good mile between the Welling mansion and the smaller, but equally lavish, home to the east. I knew it was a long shot, but it was a rather out-of-the-way location without much traffic. The person who lived here may have noticed a car driving by early this morning. And there was the possibility that he or she had travelled in some of the same social circles as the governor. Being an ex-con had removed him from a few select groups, but he was far from a pariah. I found it rather odd that notoriety could make one popular among certain crowds. Just look at the Kardashians.I drove up to the wrought-iron gates and pushed the call-box button.“Who’s there?” a female voice boomed over the speaker.“Jessie Wells,” I answered.“What? I’
Jason shook his head as he walked up three steps to the screened-in porch of the Craftsman he had purchased four years ago. He had just caught what was going to be the biggest case of his career and what was he thinking about? A chestnut-haired reporter who was destined to make his life hell for the foreseeable future. He could still feel the tingle where her hand had touched his and see the pain in those hazel-brown eyes. Pain he was sure she thought was well-hidden. Was that what had gotten to him? That vulnerability behind the tough protective shell? Or maybe he had imagined the whole thing. Maybe Jess was every bit the hard-as-nails journalist who really didn’t give a damn that her father was dead. In any case, he knew without a doubt they would cross paths again sooner rather than later.“Dalia! Tess!” Jason called as he shut the door behind him. A willowy blonde in yoga pants and a slim-fitting baby-blue tee hurried into the foyer wiping h
Dammit!” Jason exclaimed as he stomped out Cara Montgomery’s front door. He had made a point of warning Jessie to keep out of the investigation, and she’d gone ahead and poked her nose into it anyway. God, he hated reporters! What kind of woman used her own father’s murder for a story?“It could’ve been worse,” said Dillon, interrupting his inner tirade. Intelligent and wiry as a coat-hanger, he had been Jason’s partner from the time he joined the VSP four years ago.Jason glared at the smaller man. “How?” he demanded.“Well, she is a school teacher. She could’ve sent you to the principal’s office.”Jason ignored his partner’s lame attempt at humor, his brain throbbing with questions. How the hell had Jessie learned about her father’s girlfriend? She had probably lied about searching the house before the police arrived &ndas
Dammit!” Jason exclaimed as he stomped out Cara Montgomery’s front door. He had made a point of warning Jessie to keep out of the investigation, and she’d gone ahead and poked her nose into it anyway. God, he hated reporters! What kind of woman used her own father’s murder for a story?“It could’ve been worse,” said Dillon, interrupting his inner tirade. Intelligent and wiry as a coat-hanger, he had been Jason’s partner from the time he joined the VSP four years ago.Jason glared at the smaller man. “How?” he demanded.“Well, she is a school teacher. She could’ve sent you to the principal’s office.”Jason ignored his partner’s lame attempt at humor, his brain throbbing with questions. How the hell had Jessie learned about her father’s girlfriend? She had probably lied about searching the house before the police arrived &ndas
I really did have research to do. In examining the governor’s history, I realized he would have gotten away with his crimes if it hadn’t been for a man named Bronson Elroy. Elroy, strangely enough, was the current favorite in the upcoming election for lieutenant governor. Fourteen years ago, he had been working for Virginia Aeronautics, one of the companies with whom the governor had been making illegal deals. He had discovered the corruption and gone to the authorities. Thus, the whole web of lies was swept out from the corners and into the light. He was hailed as a hero and had parlayed his brief time in the spotlight into a political career of his own.I wanted to spend some time studying both the company and Elroy’s life in the years immediately following his departure before I paid him a visit. Sick of staring at my own four walls, I decided to spend some time at the park, where I was always able to “borrow” someone’s Wi-F