Page 27 of Veiled Justice
I blew out a low breath. Imbarum was the product of some very sick minds, rare and incredibly expensive. It was a very dark potion and required blood magic to work; the Connection potion experts were certain that a death sacrifice was required to create it. People were murdered to make it and others were murdered with it. It was a foul concoction all round.
Imbarum’s purpose was to rapidly immobilise its victim whilst keeping them conscious; no matter the level of pain they suffered, they wouldn’t pass out. It was a highly illegal torture potion – and that made me frown.
If Kate was right – which she pretty much always was – then Helga’s death had been quick and precise. Why give her a torture potion and not torture her? There were other potions, other magic, that could immobilise someone. Whatever the reason, wehad a problem because no one would talk to an officer of the Connection about Imbarum.
‘You’ve heard of it?’ Kate asked.
I nodded and recited what I knew. Next to me, Krieg’s huge fists were opening and closing rhythmically and his nostrils were flared. I reached out to offer comfort but hesitated. His hands froze and I completed the touch, lightly squeezing his forearm. ‘I’m sorry,’ I murmured. And I was.
Helga didn’t deserve to be forced to stay conscious as she died. No one did.
Chapter 15
As we left Kate’s office with Loki in tow, I texted Channing:Pull out the reports on Verona and Ludwig please.
Moments later, they landed in my inbox. Channing was beginning to grow on me. I was used to working alone, but my caseload was so overloaded that Thackeray had insisted I take on a partner. I’d been annoyed at the time but maybe Channing had a use after all. If nothing else, he was saving me time; in Laura’s absence I had to do all my own typing and I despised paperwork. The field was the place for me.
After a few moments of huffy silence, Loki said, ‘What find?’
Feeling a shade ridiculous, I filled in the bird on the autopsy results. ‘Need witch,’ he suggested. ‘For potion.’ He wasn’t wrong. I hoped that the use of the rare potion would give us a solid lead to tug on.
I pulled out my phone and texted my friend Kassandra – the witch Symposium member, whom I trusted completely. Maybe she could make enquiries on my behalf.
Hey Kass, how are you? I caught a case, a deadly one. Imbarum was used. Can you make discreet enquiries about who’s selling it?
Looking carefully at Krieg and checking he couldn’t see my phone, I also messaged Channing.Look into an ogre called Einar. He was dating Helga. Let me know what you find. Have we heard fromJi-hore Helga’s phone?
He responded immediately.I chased Ji-ho, he is still trying to unlock it. I’ll look into Einar and report back.I wasn’t sure whether his speed in getting back to me showed that he was sharp, or he was bored out of his mind and playing on his phone.
I replied with an approximate address for Einar based on the location of the ogres’ den then pulled up the reports on the vamps, Verona and Ludwig. I read them quickly: Verona had claimed to be outside during the fireworks, and Ludwig had said he’d stayed inside at the bar.
I trusted Ava and her recollections but there’d been a lot of guests that night; just because she hadn’t seen Verona outside and Verona hadsaidshe was outside didn’t mean Verona was lying. In such a large crowd it would be easy to miss someone and besides, vampyrs could lurk unseen in the shadows. Still, I definitely wanted to speak to Verona and look her in the eyes to assess if she was being truthful.
Verona and Ludwig both worked for Lord Volderiss in Liverpool. It would take us forty-five minutes to reach them but it would be worth it to question them in person. It was so much harder to detect a lie over the phone unless you were a truth-seeker, which I was not.
I dialled Lord Volderiss; I knew he’d recognise my number because he’d called it often enough. Fellow Inspector Elvira Garciaoften worked out of Liverpool, but if she wasn’t available he’d reach out to me and I’d always helped him out, even if it didn’t make its way into a formal report. I’d worked hard to cultivate our good relationship. He’d take my call.
Moments later he proved me right. ‘Yes?’ he answered impatiently.
I identified myself out of politeness. ‘Inspector Wise of the Connection, sir. I need to speak with two of your personnel who were in the vicinity of a murder last night.’
‘Who?’
‘Your receptionist Verona, and Ludwig, who I believe works in security.’
There was a pause and some clicking on a computer. ‘They are both in the building. I will make sure they are available to meet with you, Inspector.’
‘Thank you, sir, I’ll come within the hour. I appreciate your co-operation.’ I really did. Lord Volderiss was the new Symposium member for the vampyrs and he could have thrown his weight around, made me go through slower channels to get to his people. Clearly the help I’d given him was weighing in my favour.
‘We’re on the same team, Wise,’ Lord Volderiss said wryly and hung up.
I pocketed my phone and turned to Krieg. ‘I’m heading to GV Law, in Liverpool. It’s a law firm owned by—’
‘I know who owns it,’ Krieg interrupted. ‘Lord Volderiss. The Symposium member.’
Like the dragon shifters, ogres weren’t part of the Symposium; I figured that was mostly because anti-creature sentiment was rife there, as well as in the Connection. Unfortunately, that meant that there was no one on the Symposium to try and protect their rights. The ogres had written off the Connection and it, in turn, had written them off. It was a vicious circle so nothing ever improved.
‘Get in,’ Krieg said as he unlocked the car. ‘I’ll drive you.’
