Shadow Duel (Prof Croft Book 9) by Brad Magnarella (ereader with android .txt) 📕

Back in the victim’s office, I pulled a small kit from a coat pocket and removed a pair of tweezers. Choosing several hairs at the center of his scalp, I plucked them one at a time, checking for follicles. The little cell clusters would make the spell more potent. When I finished, I searched my pockets for an empty vial.

“Here,” Hoffman grunted, producing an evidence bag.

“Thanks.” I placed the hairs inside and folded the bag over twice.

“Need anything else before the medical examiner takes over?”

“This should do it.” I placed the bag in a pocket and patted it twice. “Let me know if you get anywhere with his wife,” I said as we returned toward the front door. “And if you wouldn’t mind sharing the results of the tox screen and whatever the examiner finds in his stomach, I’d appreciate it. Could help.”

“All right, but I’m counting on you.”

“I’m on it,” I assured him. “I’ll brief my Order too.”

I was reaching for the door when Hoffman seized the back of my coat and pulled me around. His mask was down, his mouth in a tight grimace, but the eyes staring up at me had a panicked look. For a second I thought he was going to punch me. Glancing toward the door, he dropped his voice.

“Listen, this is the kind of case they sack detectives over. If I lose my job, I’ll never work for the department again. That can’t happen. I’m a New Yorker. My entire family’s here. My wife’s entire family’s here.” He sighed through his squat nose and looked away. “I’ve done things that probably should’ve gotten me thrown out. You remember the business with Mr. Moretti. But I don’t do that shit anymore. And I know you and me have had our differences, but that’s in the past too, far as I’m concerned.”

I wasn’t sure whether to back away from this sudden outpouring or give him a hug.

“I guess what I’m trying to say is that I’ve seen enough in this city to know I need you on this. You…” He gestured toward me, then dropped his hand in a kind of resignation. “You get things done.”

Wow, that only took three years, I thought.

“Let’s keep that streak going then, huh?” I said, clapping his shoulder.

For the first time since I arrived, Hoffman smiled. It wasn’t a good look on him, but I’d take it over his constipated face any day.

“C’mon,” he said, collecting himself. “I’ll have a car take you back to the college.”

Out in the corridor, I issued a departing nod that said, We’ve got this, but I wasn’t feeling it. Not yet.

I’d never encountered magic that left no trace.

7

“Sorry I’m late,” Vega said.

I met her at the door of our apartment and took her bag. “Tony’s already eaten, but I kept our dinner warm.” We kissed, and I gave her tummy a hello pat. “I thought you were going on light duty.”

“Don’t get me started. The filing system I took over was a hot mess. Had to spend half the day organizing just so I could start my assignment. Welcome to the NYPD. Should go better from here.”

“Just don’t overdo it.”

She shot me a look that said, Appreciate the concern, but let’s not revisit the issue.

Her plan was to work up until the week before her due date, which meant roughly five more weeks. I’d tried to talk her down to two or three, but Dr. Greene took her side, assuring me that as long as my wife felt up to it, the schedule was perfectly normal. When I held fast to my concerns, the doctor assured me those were normal too.

“Well, at least let me draw you a bath after dinner.”

“Now you’re talking,” she said. “And I wouldn’t mind swapping shoulder massages before bed.”

“Hey, tonight’s is on the house.”

She walked over to Tony, who was lying on the couch, an open book propped on his stomach. He’d recently discovered C.S. Lewis and was already on the fourth book in The Chronicles of Narnia.

“How’d your day go?” She kissed his forehead.

“Great,” he answered, turning the page. “Can Mae come again?”

“She said she can cover for as long as Camilla’s out,” I called from the kitchen.

“Sounds like a yes, then,” Vega said.

“Is no one going to consult me?” Tabitha asked in a languid voice. “It’s my domicile much more than theirs.”

She was lying on her side, her stomach swollen from the extra bowl of goat’s milk I’d allowed her. I figured if that was what it took to keep the peace, especially during the transition, I was willing to take on the extra litter work. But I’d underestimated my cat. She shifted her mound around to face me.

“I can’t even begin to describe the torment they put me through today. Not a single moment’s peace. And don’t get me started on that horrid little thing Mae had running around here, clacking and squealing. It’s like Satan himself gave him the perfect pitch to torment a feline’s hearing. I spent half the day out on the ledge, I’ll have you know.”

“Good,” I said. “You owed me surveillance hours. I’ll credit you an extra two.”

“It was more like four. I’ll tell you right now, if that thing shows up here again, I’m not going to be so tolerant.”

“Leave Buster alone,” I said, setting a pair of steaming plates on the table. “He’s harmless.”

“Oh, I’ll make certain of that. Next time he comes I’ll have a tasty bisque waiting to boil him in.”

Vega only shook her head as she came over. She’d learned early on not to engage Tabitha when she was in one of her moods, which was most of the time. My wife was years beyond me in that regard.

“Is steak and pasta all right?” I asked, pulling her chair out.

“Mmm, it’s like you read our minds,” she said as I scooted her in. “How did your classes go?”

“Well, the students seem engaged, but that’s pretty standard for day one. I’ll