Grave Destiny (Alex Craft, #6) - Kalayna Price Page 0,7
up as decayed ash and someone with a very high pay grade had marked the cases classified and redacted any and all mentions of me.
“That’s not the kind of investigator I am. If you need a case built, especially one that would hold up in the mortal realm, you need to contact an official authority. Nothing I documented would be considered admissible or within chain of evidence.” My gaze moved to Falin, because he was one of those authorities. He was the lead agent in charge of the local Fae Investigation Bureau.
Falin caught my look, and I noted the anxiety snagging at the edges of his eyes and lips as he tried to read what my expression might mean. I gave him a weak smile, trying to reassure him, but it must have been pretty poor because it only made him look more worried.
Dugan’s lips twisted with thought, not quite a frown, but a very serious expression as he considered my words. “Questioning the deceased is the most important thing. Anything you could document about the scene would be a helpful bonus. Learning the connection between the bodies, and why our fae was where he was when he died, is of the most importance. And who killed him, of course.”
“Bodies?” As in more than one. But it sounded like Dugan’s interest was focused more heavily on one.
Dugan nodded.
“Why me? Obviously you need a grave witch, but surely there is someone more easily accessible to you. And as far as investigating the scene, I’m sure your court has its own investigators who are better qualified than me. Someone the equivalent of the Fae Investigation Bureau like the seasonal courts use.”
“Shadow has no direct doors to the human realm, so we have no organization like the seasonal courts’ FIB because we have no direct interaction with mortals. On the occasions crimes have occurred within our court, we’ve relied on . . . more archaic means of determining guilt,” he said, and I could only imagine what he meant. From my experience, the fae who resided in Faerie tended toward a preindustrial society. Pre-Victorian investigations tended to lack any need for scientific evidence or proof. The dismay on my face must have been obvious, because he nodded solemnly before moving on. “As to why you, there are a number of reasons. As you said, the ability to question the deceased is the most obvious. There are other grave witches out there, but you are the only practicing witch who has interacted with our court. You are also familiar with modern methods of investigating murder, even if you are not officially authorized to do so in the mortal realm. But you in particular because while you are not connected to our court, you are someone our court believes we can trust.”
Well, wasn’t that nice. I had the trust of the court of secrets and shadows. What did that say about me? “Tell me about the case. This is murder, I’m guessing, but what details do you have?”
“We need a binding agreement before I can tell you that.”
“No.” I didn’t hesitate or waver. I wasn’t getting into any binding agreements with a fae without all the details up front. If that meant passing on the case, so be it. It was definitely safer not to work for a Faerie court anyway, regardless of how badly Tongues for the Dead needed a case or if it would put my father in my debt. There would be other cases. And I’d find another way to reach the planeweavers in the high court.
I began to stand. Dugan’s hand shot out, wrapping around my wrist. His skin was smooth, cool, and his grip solid, but not painful. “Do not dismiss me yet. We can negotiate.”
Outside the privacy bubble, Falin had his weapon in hand again—likely in response to Dugan grabbing me. I held up a palm, stalling him, but I looked pointedly at where Dugan’s hand was locked around my wrist. He dropped it without comment. I didn’t sit back down, but I also didn’t turn off my charm and walk away. It was a dangerous game to negotiate with fae, but at least I had the upper hand in this case—Dugan wanted something from me, but I didn’t need anything from him.
“Where is the scene and the bodies?”
Dugan hesitated so long I thought he wasn’t going to answer, but finally he said, “Not in the shadow court.”
“Then where—?” I started, and his eyes flickered toward where Falin hovered