Trace of Magic by Diana Pharaoh Francis Read Free Book Online Page A

groaned. It was another fifteen feet to the pavement.
    I squatted on the ladder and gripped the bottom rung tightly, then let my feet go. My weight hit my arms with a jolt. I dangled a moment, then dropped.
    I flexed my knees to absorb the shock, and then scooted up against the building as Price followed me down. I opened my mouth to ask who was after us, but I didn’t want to waste time and give them a chance to find us. So I kept silent and motioned him on. That startled Price. He gave me an appraising look, then grabbed my hand and pulled me through the thickening curtain of snow. I gritted my teeth and fought the urge to twist myself away. I was a tracer, for crap’s sake. I wasn’t going to lose him. And given that the fucker had tabbed me, he wasn’t in any danger of losing me, either.
    We hadn’t gone far up the alley when my phone buzzed against my thigh. I pulled it out and checked the display. It was a text from my sister, Taylor. I opened it, then stopped dead, yanking out of Price’s grasp. All it said was: 911 .
    In our entire lives, no matter what was going on, she’d never sent an emergency message. She had told me more than once that she wanted it to count, so that if I got one, I’d know it was real, and not just a hangnail or a stubbed toe.
    I held my hand out flat as Price started to say something. He must have read the violent fear in my face because he shut up and waited as I hit the speed dial for Taylor. She picked up almost before it rang.
    “Oh God! Oh God! You have to come now, Riley!” She was screaming and crying, and I was pretty sure Price could hear her.
    “What’s wrong? Where are you?” I asked, forgetting we were trying to make a quiet escape. My heart pounded. What was happening? Was someone breaking in? Trying to attack her?
    She gasped and choked on sobs, then she caught herself enough to answer. “I’m at Josh’s. Oh God, Riley. There’s so much blood!”

Chapter 4
    I COULDN’T GET any more out of Taylor, except that Josh was missing and there was a lot of blood. I told her to sit tight and I’d be there as soon as I could. I hung up and looked at Price. “Our deal’s off for now. My sister’s in trouble. I’m going to help her.”
    I didn’t wait for an answer, more than halfway expecting him to try to cuff me. To my shock, he simply fell in beside me as I headed for the nearest hotel and a taxi stand. I wasn’t going to waste time on the subway. I was grabbing a cab, though in this weather, that might take longer.
    “My car’s not far,” he said. “I’ll drive you. It’ll be faster.” At my doubtful look, his brows winged down and his mouth twisted. “I’m not going to stop you. She’s your sister. I may be able to help. I am a cop, and a pretty good one.”
    I was surprised and oddly grateful. I nodded and he started off. We’d only gone a few feet when the apartment we’d just fled exploded. Glass and bricks flew through the air like shrapnel.
    Price shoved me down behind a dumpster, sheltering me with his body. My ears rang and my body reverberated with the shockwave. Snow soaked through my jeans. Price braced himself over me, his chest and thighs wedging me tight to the dumpster.
    When everything had settled, he pulled me up again. “You all right?”
    I glanced down at myself. I curled my fingers into fists to hide the fact they were shaking. “Fine. What the hell happened?”
    “A lesson. It doesn’t pay to come after me.”
    I glared at him, and part of me couldn’t help but feel a stab of disappointment. For a second I’d forgotten he was a Tyet man and a killer. A stupid mistake. I couldn’t let my guard down ever. “You did that? What the hell is wrong with you? Did you even think about who else could get hurt? Or were you only worried about your own skin and your revenge? Your enemies get killed and so do all the Nancy Jane Squires and their families in the whole building?” The words tumbled out in a torrent, partly emotional