Fae Empowerment: Zoey's Revenge, #7

By Amelia Shaw and Maggie Shaw

Book 7 in the Rover series and book 2 of the Metal Worker Series.

 

A slow burn, romantic MFM Urban Fantasy series.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Harley Romance Publishing
• Release date: Jun 23, 2022
• ISBN: 9798201080761

Book preview

Chapter One

THE CHIEF WAS MISSING.

That was the only reason I sat in a warm car watching an idiot spray paint graffiti on the side of a building all by myself. Since the events at my house and the month that followed, things had been strained. Mostly with Zoey, frantic to get The Chief back. The problem was unique, however. No one claimed to have him. There were no ransom demands, nor did anyone threaten, cajole, or send us any of his body parts.

So, while Zoey and Fin hunted for The Chief, Hawk, Helix, and I held down The Office and tried to keep things afloat. Not everyone was excited about the idea, but it’s the best we could do given the circumstances.

Howard Harvey III, the mage I’d been watching, was on a list of Esteban’s associates. After watching him for a week, though, I was trying to figure out what exactly he did for Esteban. About the only thing I’d noticed he did well was smoke a lot of weed and still spray paint in a straight line. Not a very useful skills for a mage bent on taking over the world, magical or otherwise.

I wanted to think this would be more fun if Helix or Hawk were here, but remembering the last joint stakeout round we’d done, I quickly tossed that thought out. No, even though Hawk called me a probationary bounty hunter, I’d rather do this on my own and get the experience I needed to become fully-fledged.

It wasn’t the work that drew me the most, or Hawk, it was the accomplishment of completing something. I’d never had the chance, not with what my brother had done to me. Locking me up and making me use my powers for his evil plans. Then, after I escaped, I’d been living in hiding for years.

I didn’t get to go to college, get a degree, start a business on my own, outside of the metalwork I sold for money to survive. Even then, I needed others to facilitate it all. It never felt like something that belonged solely to me.

Pretty much the only things I could call mine were my house, which had been violated enough the past year, and maybe... Hawk and Helix. At least they wanted to be mine. Since the incident in the basement, we’d put things on pause, letting us all try to figure out what we wanted to do. Every day in waiting mode tested my fortitude. There’s only so much half-naked men walking around the house a girl can handle before she wanted to touch, and I’ve always wanted to touch. But I didn’t want to break anything. Not our friendships, or what we’d slowly been building, brick by brick.

Howard Harvey III, my target, dropped his spray paint can and moved on to another one. He seemed oblivious to anyone watching him or leaving his fingerprints on the cans. Maybe he used his magic to keep himself out of jail for vandalism, not that I’d detected a single magical thing about him since I started following him. For all intents and purposes, Howard was an idiot. But Hawk said follow, so I followed. After our previous stakeout experiences, I wanted to show him I was capable of following directions and keeping myself safe.

Especially since the advertisements in the local paper started running, declaring bounty hunters a waste of money and resources. Hawk had chuckled when he read it, apparently unconcerned. Zoey incinerated the newspaper with her power until it sat in a pile of ash on a steel desk at The Office. Part of me thought she feared she failed in holding up The Chief’s legacy. At least that’s what I saw when I looked at my friend so deeply hurting, missing someone important in her life.

Did Hawk hurt the same way and simply hide it better? Something to think about, since all I had was time to think.

Howard abandoned another spray can, his image on the building taking shape. Not graffiti but the start of a mural. The way he kept watch over his shoulder told me he didn’t have permission for his artwork, though.

We were all watching mages from Esteban’s network of contacts. Anyone who’d ever been in touch with him. So why was I sitting on Howard? A sneaking suspicion at the back of my mind told me Hawk assigned him to me since he was the least remarkable, the least likely to murder me if confronted. I let out a long sigh and shook my head. No, maybe I was just being paranoid about him coddling me. He wasn’t Helix, after all.

I checked my phone for the time and groaned. Sitting for four hours straight had to be why my back ached. Keeping myself low in the seat, I opened the door and crouched out the door and onto the concrete sidewalk. No one passed while I duck walked to the curb and sat on the warm ground. I stretched my back and slung my legs straight out between my car and the black SUV parked a few feet in front of it.

I kept my eyes on Harvey, and he must have gotten spooked since he glanced to where I sat, dropped the can he’d been holding on the ground and bolted.

Shit. I lumbered to my feet and cursed as I raced after him. I detested running. Not that I couldn’t do it, I just never enjoyed it as much as a good yoga session, or basically any other form of cardio.

He was quick, slipping around the corner of a brick building, forcing me to slow and take the turn or risk crashing into the side of it. Since he’d seen me, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to shout at him now. Stop! Please stop. I won’t hurt you or anything.

He glanced over his shoulder and kept going. For the first time, it occurred to me I didn’t know what I should do if I actually caught up to him. There were no arrest warrants. No price on his head. I watched him under surveillance only.

I barely had time to realize he’d stopped when I almost crashed into his back. The sidewalks between this building and the other brick warehouse type building were narrow, so I careened around him and spun. Not fast enough. He grabbed my messy bun in one smooth motion and dragged me into his bony chest with surprising force. Why are you following me? he demanded, his breath against my cheek.

I struggled until the sharp point of a knife digging against my throat stopped me. It warmed, and I touched that awareness of the metal that had only recently returned. Why were you running?

He tightened his grip on the knife but didn’t press it harder into my skin. Interesting. Either he was an idiot, which was most likely, or he didn’t actually want to hurt me. I ask the questions here, Bitch.

I rolled my eyes, keeping hold of his forearm but not actually making a move to free myself. From what I could tell, he didn’t want to hurt me, and he didn’t seem to know why I was watching him. Maybe this was my chance to get some intel so I could cross Howard off our list. Original. I want to know about your association with Esteban, the mage.

He jolted against my back, his arm tightening almost reflexively. I have no idea what you’re talking about.

Or maybe I wasn’t getting any new information. I sighed and tapped into my magic, pulsing my power into his knife so that it burned bright and hot. Hot enough that he shouted, releasing me and the blade at the same time.

I put some distance between us and faced him. Sorry about that. I didn’t really want to hurt you, but you were being rather rude.

His eyes shot sparks as his hand reddened further from the burn. I snagged the blade from the ground and held it out to him, but it only made him stumble back. My hands! he wailed. I can’t paint with my hand this way.

Guess you should have thought about that before you held a knife to someone’s throat. Now, will you please tell about me your association with Esteban so I can remove you from my list and leave you alone forever?

He spit a curse at me then followed up with real spit, forcing me to take a step back. I have nothing to say to you. Leave me the hell alone.

I put my hands on my hips, using the moment to stretch my lower back again. Why is it always so difficult with men? I ask you one simple question that will end all of this, so we can go about our day, but you feel the need to argue about it. Once a woman knows she won’t be harmed by answering, she usually has no problem answering the questions so everyone can move on with their lives, but no... men take it as a challenge to their masculinity or some shit and...

I broke off as he charged me. Not fast enough, not since I’d been working out with Hawk and Helix. He might have me in height, but I could take his scrawny frame down if he kept pushing me. You don’t want to fight me, trust me. I’ve been getting my butt kicked every other day by two guys who would need two of you to make a decent meal.

He panted, leaning on his knees, drawing in heavy breaths. Who the hell are you?

No one you need to concern yourself with. Will you answer my question so I can go home and get a proper meal? It’s been nothing but fast food since I’ve been tailing you. I don’t want to look at another burger for a month.

He stood, narrowing his eyes, still out of breath. You’ve been watching me for a month?

No, I’ve only been watching you for a few days. And as far as I can tell, there’s nothing remarkable about you. For a mage, you live a pretty magic-less life.

He sputtered and threaded his hands up over his buzzed hair. "What are you talking about? I’m not a mage.

I reached out with my power and felt... something, but I wasn’t sure what. It felt like mage magic, and yet not quite. Not a mage, you say, so why do I feel power around you? Have you been interacting with them a lot? Did they work magic on you? Are you still in contact with Esteban’s old crew?

He threw his hands out. Look lady, I don’t know what the fuck you’re carrying on about, but I’m not a mage.

I stepped toward him, which made him scurry backward a few steps. There’s something there... I can feel it.

Each advance I made forced him back a few steps until he stumbled, falling flat on his ass, his head bouncing back onto the concrete with a disturbing thud.

Well, shit. I was either in for the world’s biggest lecture, or maybe jail time if I killed the poor bastard.

I closed the distance between us and crouched down to measure his pulse. It beat strong in his thin neck. At this angle, even his cheeks were hollowed out. Strange.

The magic around him felt the same with him unconscious, but I didn’t know what it meant any more than I understood who this man was to Esteban.

With a sigh, I dug my phone from my jeans and wiped the line of sweat from my upper lip as I brought the phone up to my ear. Hawk answered on the second ring with a gruff, Hawk.

I swallowed the butterflies that climbed up my throat at the sound of his voice and took a deep breath. I have a problem. If I killed my target, should I call an ambulance, or does The Office provide clean-up services along with dental benefits?

Chapter Two

IT’S LIKE YOU’VE OPENED your mouth and Zoey’s words have come out, he said with a huff of a laugh. What the hell happened? You were only supposed to be watching him. There wasn’t a reason for you to have any interaction with him.

How did I explain what happened without making it all seem so much worse? Well, he saw me, and I followed him to simply talk to him and he ran, and became very hostile for an artist, and things happened...

His voice cut through the phone, deadpan. Things happened...

I cut him off because I couldn’t bear to hear the edge of disappointment that crept into his tone. Yes, things happened, so maybe you could save the lecture for later and tell me how you’d like me to deal with the passed-out mage for the moment.

When he responded, his voice stayed carefully neutral. Stay there for now. One of us will come help you get him to The Office. Or, if he wakes up, just let him go and come back here.

I wasn’t excited about walking about from all the surveillance I’d already done. Just letting him run off and hide seemed like a bad way to figure out what kind of magic surrounded him. Are you sure? Maybe I can talk to him, convince him I don’t mean him any harm.

I take it you already tried that though...before things happened?

I narrowed my eyes and glared at the brick wall a few feet away, even if the subject of my ire couldn’t see me. I talked to him, but it’s not my fault he’s unconscious.

He’d grill me on what happened later, I was sure, but for now he held back with his questions. Hang tight, someone will be there soon.

I hung up before I could try to explain, or apologize, or make myself feel even more like an idiot than I already did. I glanced around, but no one else lingered. He’d run from one pretty secluded spot to one even more secluded. If Howard here hadn’t proven to me over the course of watching him how much of an idiot he was, I’d have suspected this might be a trap.

A shiver rolled down my spine and I stepped toward the brick wall, putting my back to it, needing to not be so exposed. With The Chief missing, things weren’t completely safe but old habits die hard, especially when you lived longer than most.

The need for Helix at my side rose up, and I had to tamp it back down. No, I need to do this for myself, and for them. Continue to prove to everyone I can keep myself safe, even if the thought scared me. Not a fact I’d admit to anyone.

I felt someone come closer, like a heat ripple against my