Free The Company of Darkness by Lisa Olsen Page A

know, cleaning and other boring stuff that’s just gonna get messed up again when it gets busy later.  I’m serious, what am I supposed to do?” she demanded with a petulant whine as Mr. Morley’s door opened. 
    “Play Candy Crush or something, I have to go.”
    “But I…”
    Cady hung up, fairly sure he hadn’t spotted anything before she tucked the phone away and handed him his messages.   But then he was out the door, out for another agent visit, leaving her mostly unsupervised and pretty much bored herself.  The difference being, Cady could keep herself entertained, unlike her blonde friend.  After spending the afternoon practicing protective sigils on her message pad and making it to grand master in mah johng on the computer, she locked up for the day and headed straight for D’bar. 
    Of course Kelli barely managed a wave when Cady stepped out of the late afternoon sun to let her eyes adjust to the cool dimness, the after work crowd starting to filter in.  The bar had the feeling of a video arcade from the eighties – plenty of neon touches, shiny vinyl booths with more than a few duct tape repairs, a hellacious black carpet with shocks of neon colors that almost seemed to glow under the lights.  
    There was a high tech juke box that played three songs for a dollar, but it wasn’t a dance club.  The floor was too crowded with tables for that.  Cady made her way to the end of the long bar that was lit from beneath, making her legs look unnaturally pink.  Kelli hopped over before too long, her cheeks high with color, and thankfully, wearing sensible white sneakers for once instead of tottering around on her ridiculous heels. 
    “What can I get for you, stranger?” she grinned, rubbing the bar with a wet rag in a passable impression of an old timey western accent. 
    “There’s no one stranger than you, Kel,” Cady quipped.  “I’ll have the usual rum and Diet Coke, thanks.  I see you’re not so bored anymore.”
    “I know, right?  It’s been crazy for the past hour.”  Her hands were already busy, plucking down a tall glass, filling it with ice.  “Oh, I’m gonna add something super yummy to your drink.”
    “I don’t know…”
    “No, it’s delicious, I swear.  You don’t have to pay if you don’t like it, but you will, I promise.”  Kelli concocted the drink with a flourish, shaking her ass to the beat of the music, something by Shakira.  After she was done, she set the glass in front of her, waiting expectantly.   
    Cady took a dutiful sip, the syrupy, sweetness overpowering the rum and the soda.  “What is this?  It’s really sweet.”
    “It’s a shot of cherry schnapps.  Pretty good right?  It’s like a cherry coke that gets you drunk too.” 
    “It’s really sweet.”  Cady swallowed, rolling her tongue around in her mouth to try and rub off some of the cloying flavor.  Much too sweet for her taste.  And where was the usual diet soda aftertaste?  Ick , was it regular Coke?  “Kelli, I don’t think this tastes right.” 
    “Ooh, be right back.”
    “Wait…” Cady called after her, but it was too late.  Kelli was already halfway down the bar, flirting with a guy in thick hipster glasses about bottled ales.   
    “You’re a purist, eh?  Me too.”  The voice came from beside her, and even before Cady turned her head, she knew who it belonged to.  The desire to bolt out of there flashed through her mind, but she held her ground, head swiveling to confirm who’d exactly taken a seat beside her. 
    Rikard.
    He looked slightly different than she’d last seen him, his reddish brown hair mostly gone, cropped close enough to lose the curl.  A rasp of stubble covered his jaw.  He wore jeans and a brown leather jacket designed to conceal the weapons she knew he must be carrying.  A high necked, blue t-shirt stretched across his chest leaving the only tattoo in sight the one covering the back of his left hand. 
    His eyes were more of a