The Prof Croft Series: Books 0-4 (Prof Croft Box Sets Book 1) by Brad Magnarella (best business books of all time txt) π
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- Author: Brad Magnarella
Read book online Β«The Prof Croft Series: Books 0-4 (Prof Croft Box Sets Book 1) by Brad Magnarella (best business books of all time txt) πΒ». Author - Brad Magnarella
I squinted at Budge, trying to figure out his angle. He was in a mayoral race that, by all rights, his opponent should have been running away with. That Budge was even close was owed to his wifeβs condition. But sympathy was only going to carry him so far. Enter the eradication programβor at least an expedited operation or two that would show dramatic results.
βAll so you can announce βmission accomplishedβ in October,β I said, βsweeping you to victory in November?β
Budge grimaced before breaking into a you-got-me smile. βI have to keep reminding myself that youβre a college professor, not one of my typical voters. Yeah,β he conceded, βyouβre more or less in the ballpark. Which means I have three months to do what I announced. Not much time at all.β
I studied his imploring gaze.
βLook,β he said, βthe federal government spotted me an advance, so the team Iβm putting together is ace. But most of them are new to this supernatural thing. You know the ins and outs. Hell, Iβve seen you in action. Youβre good. Damned good. Plus, youβve advised the NYPD before. Itβs just a matter of renewing your contract.β
I couldnβt believe what I was hearing. The man didnβt want me dead. He wanted my help. I thought about Carolineβs warning before answering. βWhat would your wife say?β I asked.
Budged looked toward the door and lowered his voice. βWhat can she say? By the time she awakens, the program will have wrapped up. Iβll be in my second term, and Iβll have you in part to thank. We both will.β
βYou sure about that?β
He nodded, his eyes moving back and forth over mine. In exchange for helping him, he was offering a kind of amnesty. No more looking over my shoulder to see whether Pennyβs pack was stalking me.
βAre any wolves going to be involved?β
βGod, no,β Budge replied, keeping his voice low. βJust NYPD officers and specialists.β
βDetective Vega,β I said.
Budgeβs brow furrowed in question. βWhat about her?β
I was considering what Caroline had said about how the information Vega and I wielded over the mayor and his wife would no longer be a deterrent. βI want the same deal for her.β
Budgeβs face smoothed. βAlready done.β
βAnd there has to be discretion. I donβt want every New Yorker and their grandmother knowing what I can do.β
βHey, mumβs the word.β His eyebrows rose above his glasses. βSo?β
Even with my throbbing headache, the calculation was a simple one. Whether or not Budge could control his wife were she to awaken, I would be safer inside the eradication program than outside of it.
βIβll have to clear it with my higher ups,β I said. βBut as far as Iβm concerned, yeah, Iβm on board.β
Budgeβs face lit up as he slapped my knee.
βAttaboy!β
8
I plodded up the final steps of my apartment building, cane and necklace back in my possession, casting prism restored, and reviewed the deal Iβd made with Budge. If nothing else, it offered Vega and me another layer of protection. The only question was how robust that protection would be. I didnβt know how much control Budge wielded over Pennyβs pack.
I unlocked the three door bolts and prioritized my next moves. First, heal up. Second, contact the Order about my participating in the eradication program. And third, start figuring out why the wolves had murdered Lady Bastet. That would tell me what kind of danger Vega and I might be in.
The apartment was dark when I entered. I was reaching for the light switch when, from the direction of Tabithaβs divan, came a strangled moan. I stopped and yanked my sword from my cane, the bloody image of the decapitated cats searing through my mindβs eye.
βTabitha?β I called.
A pair of eyes flashed from the divanβbut not the ochre-green of my catβs. These were yellow.
βProtezione!β I called.
Sparks burst from my orb as it manifested a shield of white light. In the sudden glow, the being on Tabithaβs divan took shape. Not a wolf, though. A squat man in a corduroy sports jacket with elbow patches was sitting there, the pointed toes of his green leather shoes just touching the floor. Beneath a mop of gray hair, the manβs eyes squinted back at me.
βChicory?β I said.
The last time Iβd seen my mentor had been ten months earlier, when heβd rescued me from a group of druids in Central Park and then forbade me from pursuing the demon cases. I dissolved my shield with another Word and hit the flood lights. Chicory lowered his hand from his brow.
βAt ease,β he said in his Irish brogue.
Tabitha was on his far side, purring and moaning as Chicory scratched the hair around her ears. They had always gotten along well, despite my mentorβs disapproval of her succubus nature.
I sheathed my sword. βYou scared all hell out of me.β
βAh, yes, I let myself in,β Chicory said. βI hope you donβt mind. Iβd almost forgotten about your companion. Sheβs quite a beautiful thing, isnβt she? Though a little starved for attention, I should say.β
I watched Tabitha moan and twist her neck as Chicory scratched around it.
βNot anymore,β I muttered, walking toward them.
I searched my mentorβs face, with its bushy brows, squash-shaped nose, and curmudgeonβs lips, for some indication of why heβd come. His visits rarely heralded good things.
βSo, whatβs up?β I asked.
Chicory gave Tabithaβs head a final pat. βThere you are, love.β He wiped his hands together and stood
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