Eve of Darkness - By S. J. Day Page 0,57

had a good excuse by then.

Presently, she was using Google in her search for information about Gehenna Masonry. She had been distracted for a time by a brief search of Meggido Industries. It existed. And Alec was listed as the CEO and founder. The name “Meggido” also came up as a location better known as Armageddon. Alec had called himself a headhunter specializing in disaster avoidance. She had to laugh at his twisted sense of humor.

“What’s so funny?” Reed asked.

Eve glanced up and discovered him lounging in the doorway as he’d been when he first arrived. It was an insolent pose with his hands in his pockets and his pale blue dress shirt open at the throat. The room was dark, which allowed backlighting from the hallway to turn his silhouette into a dangerously compelling form.

She shrugged in feigned nonchalance. No matter what he did or said, she couldn’t dispel the memories of their encounter. “Nothing. What’s up?”

“What’s up with you?”

“I’m researching the mason who created the tengu.” Eve’s gaze returned to the monitor.

“How’s it coming?”

“Fine. It’s hard to know if you’ve found what you’re looking for when you don’t know what it is.” She watched him enter the room with that delicious stride that was just short of a swagger. The brothers moved so differently, yet they affected her equally. “Where’s Alec?”

“Checking the balcony for any water leaks.”

“Because of the Nix?”

“Yes.”

“Can he get in that way?”

“He can get in anywhere there’s a water source.” Reed stood beside her, staring down. He watched her with that indecipherable look she was becoming familiar with but didn’t understand. She got the “I want to jump your bones” part of it, but the rest—the confusion, regret, and sympathy—she didn’t understand those.

Eve turned in her chair and leaned back to look up at him. She kept her exterior cool and unaffected, even though he presented an intimidating sight. With the planes of his face lit only by the glow from the monitor, he looked more devil than angel. “Gehenna is a relatively local company,” she said. “They’re based in Upland, California.”

“That’s what? Forty-five minutes from here?”

“Depending on traffic.”

He nodded.

“Their web domain name is only a few years old,” she continued. “They’re obviously a new company, but they became solvent quickly from the looks of it.”

The light came on and Alec walked into the room.

“We need to go there.” He directed a narrowed glare at his brother. “Take a look around. See what they’ve got going on.”

“Go yourself,” Reed argued. “I’ll stay with her. No need to endanger her unnecessarily.”

“Bullshit.” Alec approached the desk. “You should’ve considered that before you assigned her to this. You can’t have it both ways.”

“I assigned her?” The incredulity in Reed’s voice was undeniable.

Eve’s gaze darted to him, trying to visually verify the surprise she heard in his voice. She caught him quickly adopting a frozen mien that gave nothing away. But the brief glimpse of astonishment was enough to spark the suspicion that Reed wasn’t as in charge of things as he should be.

“Didn’t you?” she queried.

“He won’t tell you the truth,” Alec scoffed.

Reed’s arms crossed. “Don’t speak for me.”

“You’re a one-hit loser, bro. Better get that into your head. You’re never going to be alone with her again.”

Eve stood. “Enough. I find the ‘hit’ reference offensive.”

Alec muttered, “Sorry, angel.”

“I make my own choices,” she said. “And right now, I’d really like to go back to that building with the gargoyles and take a closer look at them.”

“Why?”

“Because we can’t go out to Upland tonight; it’s already too late. And I feel restless, as if I should be doing something. I don’t like that feeling.” She looked at both men. “It can’t hurt.”

“It’s not going to be open.”

“Is that normally a deterrent to you?” she challenged.

“It’ll be guarded,” Reed interjected. “But you should have a Gadara Enterprises badge. As one of his employees, any guards should let you in with no problem.”

He glanced at Alec with eyes lit with triumph. “You’ve got a lot to learn, bro.”

Turning to the black lacquered box that had been left for her earlier, Eve lifted the hinged lid with its inlaid ivory cross and rummaged inside.

“They left a box for you, too, Alec,” she said, gesturing to a cardboard packing box waiting on the sofa. “It’s in there.”

“Fuck that,” he snapped. “Raguel only wishes he could file me into his ranks.”

Eve’s box was the size of a large shoe box and it was filled with a haphazard collection of items ranging from some