The phone rang, and I nearly let it go to voicemail. Then, decided to answer in case it was Jordan with a new case. “Bond Girls, Luke speaking.”
A familiar voice, clipped and bright as a razor, cut through. “Hey! It’s Jordan. Where’s Hailey?”
I suppressed a sigh. “She and Jax, er, took a trip for a few days. What’s up?”
“Got a job for you. A skip named Marvin. Real charmer. He’s wanted for insurance fraud, skipped on a hundred-k bond, and last seen in Cherry Hill. I need it handled quickly and quietly. No drama. You in?”
I glanced out the window at the portal, then at Janice. “Sure. We could use a win. Send me the file.”
“You’ll have it in five. And, Luke? Don’t let this one get away. He’s got a runner’s build and the brains of a Husky, but he’s slippery.”
“Understood.”
I hung up and immediately regretted saying yes. The portal had eaten half my team. The other half were either on loan to Baltimore or busy. It would be just me and whoever I could bribe into coming along.
I studied Janice for a moment and then decided not to ask her. Even though we got along better than we had when she first came to Philly, I wasn’t sure she’d even go with me. Plus, I needed a witch with an infinity for potions and the ability to create portals.
Kendra had been here at the house a few minutes ago. I called downstairs to see if she’d left yet. “Kendra! Got a job, need backup. Are you up for it?”
Kendra emerged from the kitchen just as I descended the stairs, mug of tea in hand. She looked at me for a long beat, then shrugged. “Sure. I need something to distract me, and I just finished my portal shift, so I’m free. Where are we going?”
“Cherry Hill. Guy named Marvin. Human, supposedly.”
“Supposedly,” she echoed. “Should I bring the tranquilizer gun or just a taser?”
“Let’s start with your bag of potions. Jordan says it should be an easy take down,” I said, not believing it for a second.
A shadow fell across the hallway, and Cleo appeared, hair braided and pinned with at least a dozen magical trinkets. She held a box of donuts in one hand and a silver ring in the other. “Am I interrupting?” she asked.
“Never,” I said. I’d thought she’d gone home when her mates left with Ransom. Cleo was mated to Nash and Grim, lucky girl. “You want in? We’re hunting a skip.”
She considered this, then nodded. “It’s better than waiting around for the portal to explode. Give me five minutes to get my kit.”
Izora entered the living room dressed in a black silk blouse and matching pencil skirt, sunglasses perched atop her head. She carried Courage the chihuahua, who was dressed in a canary yellow puffy jacket.
“I heard there’s a skip-trace,” Izora announced, sweeping past me into the foyer. “I’m joining. For security.”
She said this last part as if it were the most natural thing in the world. Courage glared at me with his usual mixture of terror and contempt, then sneezed.
I glanced at Kendra, who shrugged, then to Izora. “Are you sure you’re up for field work?”
She gave a slow, predatory smile. “I’m bored. And Courage needs the exercise.”
Cleo came back and exchanged looks with both Kendra and me, failing to hide her amusement. Kendra moved closer to me and whispered, “This is going to be a disaster.”
Yes, I was afraid it would be. But who was I to tell the mother of vampires no?
Zara slipped in behind Izora, like a shadow determined to make itself noticed. “I’m coming, too.”
Might as well make it a party.
Janice emerged from the office and headed down toward us, phone still glued to her ear. “I’m staying on portal duty.”
I nodded. “That works. Paige is across the street if you need her. Xander is still out back.”
Janice waved me off and headed out the back door.
We assembled in the driveway, and I did a mental headcount: me, Kendra, Cleo, Izora, Zara, and the chihuahua. The estrogen-to-testosterone ratio was alarming. It was a good thing that I was in touch with my feminine side.
