“Nothing would have stopped you from opening that IA investigation before you left the force. Could have gotten the last word in in a big way.”
“Eh, it was a lot of paperwork,” he said, underplaying it. “You hear they tapped McGinty?”
I nodded. “Last I saw him, he looked like he’d gotten a shot of adrenaline. It’ll be a good more for him.”
“He seems like good police. Hope he has an easier time than I did.”
“What do you mean?”
He shrugged. “You know, I seen a lot of shit in my day. Working homicide for so long, you see the worst of people, right?”
“If you say so.”
“I always avoided getting involved in the Arcane shit until Eldritch hired me to take over the Cauldron homicide beat. My daddy was an Arcane cop—you know that?”
I shook my head.
“Worked in the Cauldron, in fact.”
“No shit?”
He nodded. “He was killed by a Votary wiz when I was seventeen.”
I closed my eyes and cursed under my breath. All the sudden it made sense. Gardner had tried to hire Duffy multiple times to the task force because he was both a Leftie and a highly respected homicide detective. He’d turned her down flat each time. Now I knew why.
“He was an Adept too,” he added. “Before he died, I heard him complain to my mom almost every night how the Mundane cops distrusted the Lefties on the force. So, when I became a cop, I did my best to distance myself from being an Adept. Played it straight and stayed as far from the Arcane shit as I could.”
“Why are you telling me all of this?” I asked.
He licked his lips and sighed. “Because I was wrong.”
“About what?”
“About you. I never thought that police work was black-and-white. I seen lots of gray on the homicide beat. But I still managed to stay on the right side of things most of my career. It wasn’t until I got put on the Cauldron beat that those beliefs were challenged. Policing magic is complicated.”
I laughed. “No shit.”
“I mean it,” he said. “After Krystal got whacked, the murders slowed down for about twenty-four hours. Turns out, all the Votary peons were fighting over whether to listen to her or not. But once she was gone? They started killing each other to see who got to be the next leader. It’s endless. And all over what? Who got to control a few lousy street corners?” He shook his head at the futility of it.
“And then that night at the theater,” he said, “you did everything against the book. But I also realized that there wasn’t another option. It’s like the rules on the Mundane side of things don’t translate in the chaos of magic.”
“I’ve never thought of it that way, but yeah, that’s a good way to put it.”
“Truth is, since the day I started working the Cauldron, I’ve constantly felt under water. But you’re from here. You know how to swim through the currents.” He held up his hands. “Don’t get me wrong. I still believe a lot of your choices have been shady as hell, but I guess what I’m saying is I don’t condone it but I get it.”
I didn’t know how to respond to him, so I just nodded and waited for him to continue.
“I tried to hack it here. Sure, I got a few good solves, but mostly I ran into case after case of shit that I didn’t begin to understand. Then the wedding from hell happened. I’ve had nightmares about it ever since that night.” He shuddered. “The screams.”
“It got to me, too,” I admitted.
We were quite for a moment, silently bonding over the shared memories of the horror of seeing Aphrodite burn.
Finally, Duffy sighed. “I gave my resignation the next morning. Realized life is too short. I never married or had kids, because I was so dedicated to the job. And here I am, with gray hair and nothing to show for all that work but nightmares.”
I looked over my shoulder and nodded. “What’s with the fishing gear?”
He patted a hand on the truck’s bed. “Got a cousin has a place out in Montana. Gonna fish and drink beer all day.”
“That sounds”—boring, I thought—“nice.”
“You’re a terrible liar,” he said. “But don’t worry. Your day’s coming.”
“Which day is that?”
“Day when you’re too old for this shit too.”
I laughed. “I’ve been too old for this shit since I was a teenager, Duffy.”
He tilted his head and shot me a pointed look. “So, why are you still here?”
I didn’t love the way that question caused my gut to twist, so I didn’t say anything.
“I’m gonna give you some unsolicited advice, Kate,” he said. “You should take that boy”—he nodded after the direction the bus had gone—“and get out of town. Go far away. Don’t come back.”
I twisted my lips into a cocky smile despite the inner turmoil. “Why’s that?”
He sucked his front teeth, thinking it over. “Because you swim a little too well in these waters. If you’re not careful, you might forget you’re not a shark.”
I tilted my head and watched him for a moment. Finally, I decided to forgo my usual sarcastic response and go with honesty. “I got unfinished business here.”
“That’s your pride talking. Listen to an old man. It’s better to walk away with your life than to die proud.”
I crossed my arms. “I don’t plan on dying anytime soon.”
“Neither did that hermaphrodite, girl. You saw what happened to them.” He shot me a look heavy with irony. “And, not for nothing, but if your partner doesn’t get you killed, then your association with that crooked mayor will do you in.”
An electrical charge flashed under my skin. It was anger, but the reality was, I was just angry because he was telling the truth.
“Well, thanks for your advice,” I snapped. “I’ll take it under advisement.”
I started to push away from the car, but he put out a hand to stop me.
“Tell me something. What really happened with that potion?” he asked. “The one you and Volos made?”
Now that he’d dropped the advice, I relaxed against the truck again. “I don’t know. The cook was good. It should have worked.”
He nodded and looked down, thinking it over.
“But I have a theory,” I continued. “Aphrodite tried to cut corners to enlightenment. Just like a hexhead, they were looking for an outside fix—a potion made by someone else to solve their problems. But what I’m starting to realize is that inside problems require inside fixes.”
“Sounds like you’re closer to enlightenment than Aphrodite ever was.”
I smiled. “Good thing I’m not trying to become immortal.”
“Aren’t you?” He looked me in the eye, daring me to deny it.
I wasn’t touching that one. I pushed away from the truck. “Anyway, I hope you find what you’re looking for in Montana.”
“And I hope you find what you’re looking for here. I just hope the price you’ll pay on the way won’t be too high.”
“Goodbye, Duffy,” I said.
His smile told me he wasn’t offended that I ignored his advice. He seemed content now that he’d said his piece. “Bye, Detective Prospero.”
With that, he got in the truck and drove off toward his easier life. I watched him go and thought over what he’d said. Maybe he was right. I should have left Babylon ten years earlier when I left the covens. But there was too much on the line to leave now.
I turned to watch the sun come the rest of the way up over the river. Since I’d started with the MEA, we’d brought down the leaders of two major covens. The only major player still on the street was Harry Bane, but he seemed to have an unfortunate habit of getting his ass kicked often enough to not be a real threat.
Nah, I thought, I wasn’t about to cut and run. I’d fought too many battles to give up on this city now. Duffy was probably right that shit would get a lot worse before it got better. But the thing I knew for sure was that if people like me didn’t fight the hard battles, nothing would ever change.
Prosperos never ran from a fight. We stood our ground, protected our turf, and when push came to shove, we fought dirty. And if there’s one thing my time on the task force had taught me, it was that we’d never win the war against dirty magic by fighting clean.
Also by Jaye Wells
The Prospero's War Series
Dirty Magic
Cursed Moon
Fire Water (novella)
Deadly Spells
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