Magic Misled (Lizzie Grace #7) - Keri Arthur Page 0,95
need to get closer if I’m to have any chance of getting past the band’s electronic wall and freeze the bastard.
It’s too big a risk, given he’s armed.
It’s not if we go through the factory next door. If kids can break into it, surely a ranger can. To Roland, she added, “And you think telepathy is my only skill?”
He laughed. “I think your other skill isn’t really up to scratch if all the books you’re collecting on magic is any guide.”
“You’re quite welcome to think that if you want, Roland. Now, is there a point to this call? Because otherwise, I’ll bid you goodbye and hope the rangers catch your ass and throw it in jail for a very long time.”
“You hang up, and I’ll destroy that fine collection of books that you’ve been so secretive about.”
“You and Kash can’t make money from them if you destroy them.”
“True, but I’m thinking you care a little more about them than I do. They were a gift from your dead old granny, weren’t they?”
Belle shot me a gaze. How the fuck did he know that? It’s not something I ever told Kash.
I’m betting Professor Janice Hopetown did some digging and discovered the likely source. It was no secret that Nell kept an extensive library on the occult and magic, so it’s possible one of the volumes Kash and Roland converted was recognized by one of the blue bloods.
Belle grimaced. If that’s true then we really do need to hide the library elsewhere ASAP. “So, what do you want, Roland?”
“The books, of course. Ten minutes should be just enough time to get here from your café. Any later, and I’ll burn the whole fucking place down.”
“And if I do appear, you’ll no doubt shoot me like you did Kash.”
“I won’t kill you, if that’s what you’re worried about. A murder charge is not something I want hanging over my head anytime soon.” There was amusement in his voice. “Why do you think I only pinged Kash?”
“Maybe because he was stealing from you?”
He paused. “How did you know that if you didn’t ride to his rescue?”
Damn, caught by my own lies, she said, then added, “How do you think? I’m a telepath, remember? And, by the way, we passed all information about your scam, your company—Black Arts, in case you think I’m bluffing—and your Canberra contact—one Professor Janice Hopetown—to the Witch Council. Given their views on theft of ancient articles, I daresay you’ll be hearing from them soon.”
“Bitch,” Roland growled. “Ten minutes. Not a moment longer.”
He hung up. Belle snorted. “Part one of the plan down.”
“What plan?” Duke said, reappearing at the side window.
A squeak escaped my lips as my heart landed briefly in my throat. “Fuck, way to give a girl a heart attack, Duke. Did you locate him?”
“He’s on the rooftop of the unit diagonally across from yours. Now, answer the damn question.”
I quickly filled him in. “Can you get Belle into the factory next door without making much noise?”
“I’ve bolt cutters in the truck, so yes, but given he’s already shot his partner, I’m not sure putting you in the line of fire is a good idea.”
“He won’t know I’m not Belle until I step out of the car, and he won’t immediately shoot me, because he wants the books.”
“And with any sort of luck, I’ll have him disabled before then,” Belle said.
Duke hesitated and then nodded. “How much time we got left?”
I glanced at the clock on the dash. “Eight minutes.”
“Then let’s move.”
Belle dropped her phone onto the center console and then climbed out. Once they’d moved away, I locked the doors and tried not to think of all the things that could go wrong with this plan.
Time ticked down so very slowly.
We’re in the factory next door, Belle said eventually. I can feel him—or rather, the buzz of the shield protecting him.
How quickly do you think you can break through it?
Four or five minutes.
We’ve only three before I have to go in there.
Then drive slowly through the gate.
I snorted softly but didn’t bother replying. She needed to concentrate on the task at hand. As the clock hit the one-minute-to-go mark, I started the SUV, made a U-turn, then switched on the headlights and drove back to the storage facility.
I took my time at the gates and waited until they’d fully opened before driving through. The SUV’s high beams washed brightness across the whole area but didn’t quite reach the rooftops.