Lucas started to skirt his brother, but William stepped in front of us.
"Move," I said. "Now."
William glared at me. "Don't you-"
"Don't you," I snarled back. "I just saw a boy die because you people executed the wrong man. I'm mad as hell and my pain medication ran out hours ago, so get out of my way or I'll blast your ass back into that courtroom."
A whoop of laughter, and Carlos sauntered over to us. "Whoo-hoo. You've got a real spitfire there, Lucas. I gotta hand it to you. You done good."
"She's had a difficult day, William," Lucas said. "I'd get out of her way."
William strode toward me. "No little witch is going to-"
I flicked my fingers and he stumbled backward.
Carlos laughed. "The girl knows sorcerer magic. Maybe you should listen to her, Will."
"Maybe Lucas shouldn't be teaching her tricks," William said, bearing down on me again. "Sorcerer magic is for sorcerers."
"And witch magic is for witches," I said.
I recited an incantation and William inhaled sharply as the air was sucked from his lungs. His mouth opened and closed, struggling to breathe. I mentally counted to twenty, then ended the spell. He doubled over, gasping.
"Shit," Carlos said. "Never seen witch magic like that."
"And, on that note, we'll take our leave," Lucas said.
"Good night."
He led me around William and out of the courthouse parking lot.
"We need to stay on this case," I said as Lucas lowered me onto the hotel room bed. "Now more than ever. If the Cabals keep bickering, the killer will have a heyday."
"Um-hmm."
Lucas bent to tug off my pumps. I pulled my leg back to do it myself, but he waved me away and removed them, then folded back the covers. I started unbuttoning my blouse. He nudged my hands aside and did it for me.
"Weber didn't just coincidentally create that list of potential victims," I said. "He did it for someone. He had access to the files and knew how to extract the data. If we can contact his spirit, he should be able to lead us to the killer… or point us in the right direction."
"Um-hmm." Lucas tugged off my skirt and folded it.
"I know a few good necros. We can call one in the morning."
Lucas tucked my legs under the covers. "Um-hmm."
"First thing we need to do is-"
I crashed into sleep.
I was in a forest, doing a ceremony with Lucas. Someone banged on a door, which, of course, seemed odd under the circumstances, but my brain, perhaps recognizing I was asleep, overlooked the illogic, and my dream-self yelled at the intruder to leave us alone.
Another triple knock, louder this time. The forest evaporated and I clawed up from bed. Lucas's arms went around me, gently restraining.
"Shhh," he whispered. "Go back to sleep."
Another knock. I jumped, but he ignored it.
"They'll go away," he said.
And they did. I snuggled against his bare chest. Sleep tugged at me. I surrendered and felt myself drifting under again when the bedside phone buzzed.
"Ignore it," Lucas whispered.
Five rings. Then silence. I relaxed again, stretched out-Da-da-di. Da-da-di.
"Isn't that…" I mumbled into a yawn.
"My cell phone." A sigh rippled through him. "I should have turned it off. I'll answer it and get rid of him. Perhaps I can reach-" He twisted and sighed again. "Of course not."
He slid from the bed and retrieved the cell phone from his suit coat. When his tone changed, I knew it wasn't Benicio. I propped myself up on the pillow. His gaze shunted to me, brows knitting. I mouthed, "Who is it?"
"Yes, well, your timing is… interesting," he said into the phone. "Just a moment, please." He covered the mouthpiece. "It's Jaime."
"Did you call her?"
He shook his head. "She heard what happened today and thinks she might be able to help. She's outside."
I pushed back the covers and swung out my feet. "Perfect. Not my first choice, but the sooner we can contact Weber, the better."
He opened his mouth, as if to argue, then snapped it shut, and told Jaime he'd be right there.
Waking the Dead
Since we'd missed dinner and it looked as if we weren't going back to bed any time soon, Lucas went to get us something to eat. He was gone before I finished dressing. A quick hair-brushing and face wash and I was presentable, but nothing more. When I saw Jaime pacing the living-area carpet, my first thought was "Geez, she looks almost as bad as I do."
Dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, no makeup, Jaime was hardly the picture of showbiz celebrity. Though I'd originally guessed her age at late thirties, Lucas said she'd passed forty a couple of years ago. Today, she looked it. Maybe this dressing-down was intentional, a disguise to avoid recognition… although she hadn't struck me as the type who would try to avoid recognition.
I walked into the room, trying not to stagger.
"Jesus, are you okay?" she said.
She hurried to help me, but I waved her back.
"Of course you're not okay," she continued. "I heard what happened in California. I should have thought-I can talk to Lucas if you want to go back to sleep."
"I'm fine." I considered the sofa, but the recliner seemed as if it would offer more support. "So you heard about the trial?"
Jaime hovered until I was seated, then dropped onto the sofa. "Cabal gossip flies faster than a spooked spirit. I asked the guy who took my deposition to call me when a verdict came in, but I still haven't heard from him. Probably never will. I'm necromancer non grata with the Cabals."
"Really? With your grandmother, you should be prime recruitment material and, God knows, they hate to offend anyone they can use."
Jaime twisted her rings. "Well, I'm not quite the necro my nan was. And, of course, my high profile doesn't sit well with the Cabals. When I started hitting the big time, they wanted me to shut up and shut down. Lucas helped me with that. They leave me alone now."
The door lock clicked. Lucas pushed the door open with his foot, both hands occupied with a tray of food. Jaime watched him struggle for a moment, then jumped up and went over to help.
"Mmm, that smells great," I said. "Soup?"
"Seafood chowder. Not quite the caliber you're accustomed to, but it was this or split-pea."
"Good choice." I picked up a crystal glass of ruby red liquid. "Wine?"
"Not when you're taking these," he said, plunking my medication bottle on the tray. "It's cranberry juice. Dessert is crème brûlée-a more appetizing alternative to pudding."
I grinned up at him. "You're the best."
"No shit," Jaime said. "Last time I was sick, the guy I was seeing brought me a bottle of ginger ale… and expected me to pay him back for it."
Lucas took a mug and a second crème brûlée from my tray and laid them in front of Jaime. "If you'd prefer something else, the kitchen is open for a few more minutes." He placed cream and sugar containers beside the coffee. "And, no, you don't have to pay me back for it."
"I am definitely dating the wrong guys."
Lucas started unwrapping his sandwich, then paused. "Should we eat on the road?"
"Ten minutes isn't going to make a difference. Eat your sandwich, then we'll go."
"Go where?" Jaime said.
I explained the evidence against Weber, and how we were certain he'd obtained those lists for the killer. "The only way we're going to find out who wanted those lists is to talk to Weber, So you can help us by doing that, if that's okay."
"Well, umm, sure. Anything I can do. I thought we'd start by contacting Dana again but, well, I guess contacting this Weber guy makes more sense. We know where he's buried, right?"
"Oh, I'm sure they haven't buried him yet," I said.
"They have," Lucas said. "Cabal policy. They inter their dead immediately."
Jaime nodded. "Otherwise, it's like propping open the door to Tiffany's and going home for the night."