Magic Edge by Ella Summers Read Free Book Online Page B

business, Alex,” he told her. “They won’t take on a job worth less than six figures, which generally means something supernatural. If anyone knows who’s after the Orbs, these fellows will.”
    “Ok.” She rolled back her head, stretching out the stiffness. A stream of pops scraped across her neck. “Damn it, Logan. I’m stiff all over from sleeping in those stupid chains. I’m going to have to do yoga for at least an hour when I get home tonight.”
    His eyes lit up. “Can I watch?”
    “No, you may not.”
    “Participate?”
    “Absolutely not,” she said, brushing past him to enter the building.
    The interior was surprisingly well-lit for a bar full of scoundrels. An assortment of tasteful hanging lamps dangled from the ceiling: orange and red frosted glass cylinders, pale blue cubes, and a few yellow mesh boards that resembled kites sewn together in triplet bundles. The floor was made of glossy red tiles, which blended beautifully with the warm tones of the cherrywood bar and the other furniture in the room.
    There were only eight people in the room, which was eight more people than you’d see in any other bar in the city at this early hour. A blue-haired fairy with enormous breasts and a tiny waist stood beside the bar, wiping down the tabletop in sensual strokes. When she saw Logan, she winked, then turned so he could have a better view of her ass as she caressed the bar with that silly pink dishtowel.
    A pair of male mages sat at a nearby table, sipping nectar and munching on peanuts. They were bent over a large sheet of paper spread out between them, but every so often, one of them would steal a look at the Blue Fairy. Bah, men.
    A few tables over, a pair of fairies dressed like they were ready to raid an Egyptian tomb were flipping through pictures on a phone screen. One of them, who looked like the male equivalent of the Blue Fairy, shot the mages an icy glare. He must have been her brother. His female companion wore twin pink braids beneath her sable fedora.
    But not all the thieves here were supernatural. Three human men stood in front of a cork board tacked full of jobs. One of them pointed at a square card with a crimson border.
    “A job from the vampires,” Logan told her. “The jobs are all color-coded. Crimson for vampires, gold for mages, green for humans, blue for fairies, and silver for the otherworldly.”
    “The otherworldly? What could ghosts and phantoms possibly want to steal?”
    “Usually things that were once theirs, back when they were alive, but they’ve lost track of since. Sometimes, they just want to steal from people living in their former houses. Or from another otherworldly they despise.”
    “What a bizarre way to spend eternity,” she said. “Do you think whoever wants the Orbs put up a notice here? There was one up at Impulse.”
    “Yes, a notice with a black border.” He walked toward the wall with the board. “Black means whoever is paying wants to remain anonymous.”
    “Is that a common color?”
    “Not really. Often enough people who want something stolen also want the victim to know who it was that stole from them. It’s all part of the game.”
    “What game?”
    “The game for power,” he replied. “Black borders are a lot more common on the assassin boards.”
    “There are assassin boards?”
    “Of course.”
    “Where would I find one?”
    “You don’t. They’re secret.”
    Too bad. Alex could prevent a lot more vicious killings if she knew they were coming. Then again, maybe it was for the best. She’d probably find herself on that board. She’d made her share of enemies since coming to Zurich. Last night, one of them had even tried to poison her. How long would it be before someone else made a move on her?
    “Slayer,” one of the human thieves said as she and Logan stopped in front of the board.
    “Brigand.” Logan returned the manly nod, then pointed at the Orbs notice. “Say, have you heard anything about this job?”
    “Two