The Cold Kiss of Death

‘Look,’ I said, excitement sparking inside me, ‘see how the boy uses the window to check out his appearance? And then when I run by he sees my reflection and turns to watch.’ I fast-forwarded on. ‘Now look: he’s admiring himself again, and then he turns round because he’s seen someone, but there’s no one there. The street’s empty. See how his head whips back to check the reflection.’ I paused the recording and squinted at the screen. ‘There issomeone else there, look.’

Tavish leaned over my shoulder. ‘Aye, doll, seems so, and they’re using magic tae hide, but whatever spell they’ve used, they’ve nae cast it correctly. They’ve nae remembered their mirror image.’

I smiled in triumph, pointing at the screen. ‘Any chance you can zoom in on the reflection?’

‘Maybe.’ Tavish swung the chair back round and grasped my arm, pulling me onto my feet. ‘I’ll work at it.’ He sat, staring intently at the screen, fingers flying over the keyboard. ‘Only thing is, doll, it may not be enough tae clear your name.’

‘Clearing my name can wait,’ I said, determined. ‘I’m more interested in finding the killer before they go on to their next victim, and that footage might tell us who it is.’

Chapter Ten

‘If you do me a copy of the recording I’ll take it into the police and get them to have a look at it,’ Fi

‘I doubt the police will do better than me, lad.’

‘They won’t,’ Fi

‘Aye, you’re right.’ Tavish nodded, reaching down to snag a new storage stick from the shelf below. ‘T’would nae take much to falsify something, and the humans tell their own falsehoods too often to believe that others di

I leaned on the back of the chair and pointed at the florist’s boy. ‘It’s not just what the recording shows; the boy must know something.’ I turned to Fi

‘Yes, I’ll ask her,’ he said as he ran a hand through his hair and rubbed his left horn.

‘Thanks.’ I gave him a quick smile, then I mentally crossed my fingers. Time for the next part of my plan: the one that had been slowly forming in the back of my mind. I needed to summon the phouka and I wasn’t sure how either of them would react. Or maybe they wouldn’t, maybe I was just being paranoid. I decided to ease into it in bite-sized stages; though thinking of biting and the phouka at the same time wasn’t necessarily healthy.

‘Um, Fi

A line creased between his brows. ‘It depends what it is. The magic only works if you can picture what you want and where it is exactly. I’m not sure I could do that with someone else’s things.’

‘Okay. I was hoping for some clothes.’ I sighed, looking down at the T-shirt. ‘But if not, the other thing I wanted was one of those shiny black pebbles I’ve got, the ones I keep in the white dish shaped like a leaf.’ I tilted my head in question. ‘Do you know the ones I’m talking about?’

‘Yes, I remember them,’ Fi

‘That’s right,’ I agreed, keeping my voice even. Fi

‘The ones you keep on yourside of the bed,’ Fi

‘Both sides of the bed are myside, Fi

‘Yes,’ I said, giving him a get-on-with-it look. Tavish gave a soft snort and Fi

Crap. What had Tavish just told him?

‘So, doll,’ Tavish said quietly, ‘what’s so important aboot these stones?’

Briefly, I closed my eyes. ‘A friend gave them to me. They’re just something I think can help me, that’s all.’

Tavish looked at Fi

‘Haematite,’ he said, frowning. ‘But there’re no spells on the stones, I checked.’

He’d checked? When? Not that it mattered; there’d never been any spells on the stones.

‘Doesnae need tae be,’ Tavish said, then pointed at me. ‘The magic’s in her. And if you’re pla

Crap! I should know better than to try and fool a centuries-old kelpie.

‘Look,’ I said, turning to Fi

‘Aye, she wouldnae, meddling bitch that she is.’ Tavish snorted in disgust.

‘Ah,’ Fi

I stared at him, wanting to do just that, but he wasn’t trying to be evasive, so I knew he was telling the truth. Damn. ‘But I never move them.’ I pressed my lips together in frustration. ‘So there’s no other place for them to be ...’

‘The police have been in, Gen,’ Fi

My stomach twisted. Shit. I pinched the bridge of my nose, hating the thought of strangers going through my things again, and trying to think what to do next.

‘I’m sorry, Gen.’ Fi

I clenched my fists in determination. If I couldn’t get the pebbles, there was another way. I turned back to Tavish. ‘Okay, here’s what I need: a Glamour to change my appearance, clothes, a phone and some money. You can get me all that, can’t you?’

Tavish’s gills flared, then snapped back against the skin of his throat with an almost audible whisper that yelled trouble in the back of my mind. ‘Aye, but it doesnae mean I will,’ he said calmly.

‘Just wait until after Tavish has looked at the recording, Gen,’ Fi

‘I’m fine.’ I stuck my hands on my hips and gave them both an a

Tavish reached out and grabbed my arm, scattering my thoughts as he traced his fingers over the healing burns. ‘What in the River’s name happened tae you?’ he asked.

I blinked at him, puzzled and vaguely confused, as if I’d forgotten something. Why was he asking about my injuries?

‘I got blown up, Tavish, with the bakery—you must’ve seen it on the recording. Not to mention that I don’t look any different from when you first saw me outside,’ I said, still perplexed. ‘You must’ve noticed then.’