Grim Rites by Bilinda Sheehan Read Free Book Online

turning down the case didn’t sit right with me, but what else was I supposed to do? I didn’t have a badge anymore, and my gun had been taken into evidence. It made things more than a little uncomfortable. And I knew what Jon would do to me once he found out I’d taken Victoria up on her offer. He was looking for a reason to get rid of me, and if I directly disobeyed orders now, he’d get his way.
    “Victoria, I….”
    “Listen, I think this one is your wheelhouse; you’re going to want to see it.”
    “What does that mean?”
    “I need you to meet me at the intersection of Haven and 53rd street. If after you’ve seen it, you decide not to go ahead, I won’t say anything else.”
    It sounded so reasonable, but there was something about the way she said it was in my wheelhouse that told me I wouldn’t be going home after.
    “Look, before I go racing over there, I’ve got someone I need to see and I need you to get me the address.”
    “What could be more important than solving a crime?” Victoria asked. Her needling tone suggested she honestly believed that dangling a dead body in front of me would be enough to make me want to hop to it.
    “A friend of mine is in trouble and I don’t let my friends down….” Silence greeted my words. “You still there?” I asked.
    “That’s good to know. I can get you the address and the longest I can hold the scene for is an hour. Dead bodies don’t exactly stay fresh.”
    “I’ll be as fast as I can,” I said. “Find me the address for a Mia Harris,” I said, but the line was dead. Had she even heard me?
    My answer came in the form of a beep as a text message appeared on the phone screen seconds later.
    “What’s going on?” Nic asked.
    “It seems I’ve got a case….”
    “But you’ve been suspended? And I thought we were going to see this friend of yours?”
    “Yup, but Changelings don’t hold much store in that kind of thing. Anyway, Victoria seems to think it’s something I’ll be interested in, and I’m inclined to believe her. I’ve got Mia’s address here; I’ll swing by her place first and check it out.”
    “Wait, Victoria’s a Changeling?” Nic said, his eyebrows disappearing up into his hair line.
    “Shit,” I muttered. Nic hadn’t been in the room when I’d watched her change and snap Zeck’s neck, not to mention the fact that I’d promised to keep her secret.
    “I’m guessing that was something you weren’t supposed to tell me,” Nic said, with a wide, smug grin.
    “No, I bloody well wasn’t. Christ, what’s wrong with me? I’m normally so careful. I’ve spent years keeping my own secret, and two seconds with someone else’s and I spill the beans without even a second thought.”
    “Well, I guess it goes to show you’re comfortable enough around me to forget yourself…” Nic said, swinging his leg over the bike once more.
    “That’s really not the point,” I said, frustration making me clench my hands into fists.
    “If it makes you feel any better, I won’t tell anyone,” Nic volunteered.
    “Thanks,” I said, shame sending heat flaming into my cheeks.
    “Now, where are we going again?” he asked.
    “I’m going alone, Nic….”
    He shook his head and his smile only grew wider. He looked like an idiot—a drop-dead gorgeous idiot. An image of him slamming me into the table, his hands on my body as his mouth trailed fiery kisses lower and lower, filled my head, unbidden, and the heat in my face burned hotter. The demon mark tingled as though to prove how easily it could manipulate me, and I gritted my teeth.
    “Nope, I’m going, too. You’re suspended, remember? You need all the backup you can get,” he said.
    “And you’re a civilian; when we go to the crime scene, they won’t let you anywhere near it.”
    “That’s where you’re wrong. I’m a registered hunter; it means I can work on Elite cases if I’m invited on. Sorry, babe, in this case, you’re the civilian.”
    “Did you really