City of Magic: The Complete Series by Helen Harper (book club recommendations TXT) 📕

‘Let me down, darlings,’ Julie drawled. ‘This position is doing nothing for my dignity.’

I shook my head. ‘No.’

‘Charley, dear…’

I balled my hands up into fists. ‘Was it you?’ I asked quietly. ‘Did you manipulate Philip into killing Valerie?’

Even upside down, I could tell that she was stunned. ‘No. Good heavens! What would make you think such a thing?’

‘And Maggie?’ Monroe interjected. ‘Did you hit her over the head and then get her to attack Philip?’

‘What?’ she spluttered. ‘How would I manage that? Why would I want to?’ Her arms flailed as she tried to gesticulate. ‘I can’t believe you’re asking me that!’

I steeled myself for what was to come. ‘We know you went to Nimue yesterday. Or tried to go. You took Valerie’s lover and you both went there with guns to hurt her. With grenades.’

‘Darling,’ Julie said. ‘I have no idea what you’re talking about. Who on earth is Nimue?’

‘The mermaid. The one I told you about.’

Jerry hissed in surprise. ‘A mermaid? Seriously?’

‘This is a joke, right? You’re having a laugh.’ Julie waved her hands towards me. ‘You’re trying to lighten the atmosphere and have some fun by accusing me of … what? Murder?’

‘It’s no joke,’ Monroe said. ‘We need to know exactly what you did and why you did it. Was it the magic in the air? Did it override everything else and make you want to kill?’

‘Darlings,’ Julie began. ‘I…’

‘Where is this mermaid?’ Jerry asked.

‘Over on the east side,’ I told him. ‘Near a place called Boggart Hole.’

‘I’ve never been to Boggart Hole!’ Julie exclaimed. ‘So this isn’t me! You’re looking for someone else. Let me down and I’ll prove it to you.’

‘How?’ I asked. ‘How will you prove it, Julie?’

‘She doesn’t have to,’ Jerry said quietly. ‘We’ve been following her for days. She’s not gone anywhere near the place you’re talking about. She’s certainly not gone near any mermaids. The only people she’s spoken to are you two and some teenager who’s helping out at the hospital.’ He raised his eyebrows. ‘Believe me, I wouldn’t lie about this. If she’s been causing any more trouble, I’d tell you about it.’ He paused. ‘I might be walking away from her now but I still despise her and everything she’s ever stood for.’

That was his prerogative. I knew without checking his face for tells that he wasn’t lying. He was the most unlikely alibi I could think of – and that made him all the more reliable.

I breathed out and met Monroe’s eyes. ‘We’re back at square one,’ I said. ‘Again.’

Chapter Twenty-Four

Julie was more shaken than she wanted to admit. Her hand trembled around the glass as she raised it up to gulp down her gin. For a moment I was tempted to offer her some of my blood, if only to calm her down, but fortunately the temptation was brief. I liked my red stuff where it was, despite the tales of feeder euphoria that had been described to me.

‘Much as I hate to admit it, that was rather a close call, darling,’ she said. ‘Far too close for my liking.’ She shuddered delicately. ‘That Jerry was out to get me. I’m sure his partner would have persuaded him to let me go in the end, but it wasn’t much fun. I might have been a tiny bit frightened.’ She flashed me a smile. ‘Don’t tell anyone that. I’m sure I can trust you. But how could you entertain the idea that I’d manipulate people into committing murder? It’s too much to think about. I’m going to need therapy after this. For obvious reasons therapy wasn’t something I could think about in the past, but things are different now. I can pour my heart out without fear of reprisal or disbelief.’ She pursed her lips. ‘There’s definitely something to be said for all this apocalypse business.’

‘I’m glad you’re alright,’ I said. ‘And I’m sorry for flying around making accusations. The evidence pointed to you, but I’m truly glad that you’re not involved in any of these deaths.’ I wondered if Julie would hold it against me. It didn’t look like it; we’d all learned not to dwell too much on the past.

I ran a hand through my hair and teased out a few knotted tangles. ‘Someone is involved in these deaths,’ I sighed helplessly. ‘Goodness only knows who or why.’

Julie fixed me with a look. ‘Are you sure you’re not looking for links between the killings when they’ve actually got nothing to do with each other?’

‘No,’ I said. ‘They’re connected. I know they are. I can feel it in my bones.’

‘And Monroe?’ she enquired. ‘Does he feel the same?’

‘I think so.’

‘Are you and he…’ She made a rude gesture with her forefinger and thumb, which was definitely not what I’d have expected from her.

I shoved her playfully. ‘No!’

‘Well,’ she sniffed. ‘You should be.’ She took another sip of her drink. ‘I’ve seen him naked now, you know. That’s not the sort of thing you see every day, darling. He’s yours for the taking – and if you don’t take him, I will.’ She grinned at me. ‘Unless he’s not for you. You could always take a leaf from Valerie’s book and sort yourself out with your own well-stocked harem.’

I laughed. ‘I don’t need that kind of hassle.’ Besides, the only man I wanted was Monroe, no matter how dangerous he might turn out to be. I traced a random shape on the table top. ‘Julie,’ I began.

‘Uh oh,’ she said. ‘Here we go.’

I smiled weakly. ‘You’ve experienced loss of control before,’ I said. ‘You know, when you…’

‘Almost caused the destruction of the world?’ She inclined her head. ‘Yes, darling. I remember.’

‘Do you think you’ve ever felt close to something similar? I mean,’ I added hastily before she mistook my meaning, ‘do you think the magic that’s around us would speak to your vampire self and you could be unable to control your bloodlust?’

Julie frowned