In a row? That was foul play of the premeditated kind. For whatever reason, someone out there didnât want SPI New York to have a seer.
Now I could see portals.
Portals werenât exactly common. It took specialized and expensive talent to create them. Well-connected criminals used portals as escape routes. Powerful and highly placed elves and goblins used them to travel between the dimensionsâmost notably oursâundetected. For someone in law enforcement to be able to see them? Well, thatâd make me the most popular girl on any number of hit lists.
My mouth went dry at the thought, and I downed the last of my sweet tea. âI already have a target on my back by being a seer; now Iâve got the magic equivalent of a red laser dot between my eyes.â
Silence.
âIsnât anyone going to tell me Iâm wrong?â
âI make it a point never to lie to my agents,â Ms. Sagadraco said.
âMaâam, I wouldnât mind the occasional happy, fluffy, white one.â
She turned toward Moreau. âI want to bring Martin DiMatteo in on this.â
Oh boy.
That confirmed that demons were going to be a big part of my immediate future; though as long as I didnât end up like Sar Gedeon, I could deal with it.
Martin DiMatteo was SPIâs expert on all things demonic. Weâd been introduced during my first week when, as a new employee, I felt like Iâd been introduced to every person who worked at SPI and their intern. No one really expected newbies to remember all the names and faces thrown at them, but Iâd had no trouble remembering Mr. DiMatteo. If SPI had business cards, Martin DiMatteoâs wouldâve saidâDirector of Demonology.â When weâd been introduced, heâd had pink scorch marks where his eyebrows should have been. That earned him a special place in my memory.
The eyebrows hadnât grown back.
A couple of weeks later, what hair he had on his head had disappeared as wellâthough I think the hair was a personal style choice rather than another work-related mishap.
Martin DiMatteo was probably a nice enough guy once you got to know him, but letâs just say Iâd always hoped our caseloads would never intersect on the agency meeting calendar.
Sounded like my luck was about to run out; but like I said, if I didnât end up on a slab in the morgue, it was all good.
âWhen we leave here, Iâll be going to see Bertram,â Ms. Sagadraco said. âI would like to be there when he regains consciousness. I donât want to tax his strength having him tell me what happened.â
âWhereas we were there and
didnât
get walloped by a demon,â I said.
âExactly.â
I let Ian do the honors. Heâd had much more experience giving detailed reports.
âDetective Ash and I couldnât get Dr. Ferguson to let go of the corpse, though I think it was more like the corpse wouldnât let go of Dr. Ferguson. It was Agent Fraser who was able to help break whatever had hold of Bertâs mind.â
âMay I ask how?â Ms. Sagadraco asked.
âYou can ask, maâam,â I said, âbut I honestly donât know. I just blocked Bertâs visual contact with Sar Gedeon. I think Bert did all the work. I just let him know we were there and he wasnât alone.â
âSometimes the reassuring touch of another being is more effective than any magic.â
âWhat attacked him?â Moreau asked.
âThat we wonât know for sure until Bert wakes up and tells us,â Ian said, âbut I think it was a trap, deliberately setfor a necromancer attempting a postmortem contact. In this case, the soul had been taken and the trap left in its place.â
Moreau leaned forward. âTaken?â
âThe heart had been removed in addition to the soul.â
âIâm unfamiliar with any demonic significance of those acts,â Moreau said.