Edden touched his mustache, his eyes bright in amusement. “So keep track of your time.”
“You got it,” I said, not caring if he knew how relieved I was.
“If we’re done here?” Ivy said, and when Edden nodded, she touched my shoulder and turned away, walking to the back gate and her car, her hips swaying. “See you later!” she called over her shoulder, clearly in a good mood at still being able to jerk my libido around like a little dog on a string.
Yeah, she would, and I chuckled, glad we were okay and nothing had changed.
Excitement zinged down to my toes as I faced Edden, and as I tightened my mental grip on the nearest ley line, I heard a lion make a coughing roar. “Do you want to split one of those animal-shaped sugar cookies on the way out?” I asked, and he laughed, a heavy hand landing on my shoulder to turn me to the front of the zoo.
It was good to have friends.
CHAPTER
3
My arms swung confidently as I walked through the low-ceilinged FIB halls with Edden beside me, feeling at home among the uniformed men and women who had dedicated their lives to upholding decency and fairness among Cincy’s diverse needs and demands. I loved the scent of paper and gun oil that meant get-the-job-done, and though I noticed the occasional resentment directed at me—a witch-born demon walking among them—I was, for the most part, recognized and accepted. They’d seen me at my worst and best, but mostly my worst.
Which made me glad I’d dressed up today, even if it hadn’t been for them. Bobbing my head at two approaching officers, I got a respectful head nod in return as they went by.
“Phew-w-w,” I heard one whisper, and my good mood faltered. Clearly eau de zombie was still with me. I’d definitely wedge a shower in before seeing Trent at the park.
“Try rinsing your hair in tomato juice,” Edden said, grinning as he swiped a packet of papers from a desk and handed them to me. “Jack and Jacqueline,” he said, his voice shifting to a familiar bullpen cadence as we continued to his office. “A neighbor heard the fight and called us. He had her on the kitchen floor by the time we got there.”
Edden lurched forward to get the door to his office, and the scent of Old Spice washed over me. “He says she attacked him first, but we found him standing over her, dazed and with a slap mark on her face.”
I hesitated just inside his office, not sure where he expected me to sit. The room was cluttered, but it was the sort of clutter that spoke of dedication. I liked it. The only chair apart from the one behind his desk was covered with stacks of papers that still smelled like the copier. “She’s in the hospital?” I said as I looked at the top page and their mug shots: messy hair, no makeup, stubble. I could almost see the morning breath. But no massive bruises or cuts. “Why?”
Edden’s jaw tightened as he shut the door but for a crack and swooped forward to clear off the chair. “He claims he struck her only once,” he said, letting the files hit his desk hard enough to make the skirt on the hula girl beside his monitor move. “She’s only got the one bruise on her face, but she’s in the hospital because she doesn’t remember it. Anything. No sign of concussion.”
“Mmmm.” I sat down and studied their pictures. Jacqueline looked confused, a lost expression on her as she stood in her nightgown. Jack was untidy, angry, and frustrated. No wonder the FIB had held both of them.
“Yep.” Edden sat down and moved a cup of nasty cold coffee to the edge of his desk so he could spread his elbows wide. “I’d write this down as a simple domestic dispute but for the fact that between us and the I.S. we’ve now had four in as many days, all but this one ending in someone being dead. We were lucky that he didn’t kill her before we got there. But it’s harder for a human to commit homicide.”
My lips parted. “I beg your pardon.”
Edden’s eyes widened. “I don’t mean emotionally,” he said, a light flush to his cheeks. “Physically. It’s easier to kill someone with magic than with your bare hands unless you’re a vampire or Were, and even then you need the element of surprise, but that’s one of