Mystic Ink Read Free Page B

if she remembered to comb out her hair before running downstairs to open for the day. Which reminded her . . . she still had a phone call to make. And shit, an hour had already passed since the body was removed.
    “Jason, I’ll be right back.” Nix passed through the break room, unlocked the door marked ‘Private’ and took the stairs up to her apartment. She needed to call Charon before there were any more interruptions. Her first appointment wasn’t due to arrive for another twenty minutes. She was inking a full back tattoo of a dragon fighting with a tiger. Today she would start adding the color, so she wouldn’t get the chance to make the call for several more hours.
    Charon answered on the first ring. “Again, Nix?” His raspy voice sounded resigned, like the whole thing was somehow her fault. “And I suppose the mortal officer of the law took the body again?”
    “Yes.” Nix refused to feel guilty about the situation. All she wanted was to run the shop and enjoy her leave time. Was that really too much to ask?
    “Meet me in the alley.” The connection ended, leaving dead silence.
    Charon was already waiting in the alley by the time Nix made the one-minute trip out of the building. He was alone this time, no Cerberus. A pity, because she liked the three-headed dog.
    “Nix, how many times must I stress that the body should not be moved?” He wheezed like a bottled up steam valve. “Without the body, I can’t trace my way back to the soul.” Charon’s perennial gray hoodie was pulled over his face, leaving his features shadowed.
    “The soul hasn’t appeared in the Underworld?”
    Charon looked at his feet, his hands tucked deep into the hoodie’s pockets. Nix hoped the hands stayed hidden, because one time, they had come out—while he gesticulated about how she shouldn’t let the mortals take the bodies—and they were hideous. She shuddered. Rumor had it that no one knew what Charon actually looked like except Hades. Thank the Gods for that. Seeing his creepy, cadaver hands once was one occasion too many. He finally answered, “No.”
    Interesting, yet disturbing , she thought. “Have any of the souls shown up yet?” Now that she thought about it, she hadn’t seen any souls traveling to the Gate since the bodies began appearing. A worm of dread burrowed into her stomach. “What’s going on?”
    Charon took an eternity to answer. “Nothing good. Hades is investigating this more actively now. ” He flashed back to the Underworld, leaving her alone.
    “That’s great. Thank you so much for the useful information!” she yelled to the end of the alley, where the Underworld Gate resided. “I don’t need this shit.”
    Nix stopped. She was doing it again. Talking to herself. A car door slammed shut in the parking lot next door. It was her client. Good. Something to think about besides where the souls might be. Though, it was very strange . . . where could they be?
    Nope. She wasn’t going there. She was off duty. Let someone else deal with the problem.

Chapter 2

    Cal stood on the balcony of his rented condo and watched the sun sink past the horizon. He took a long swig of beer, not tasting it. The stunning vista of Long Island sound only reminded him that he was alone. Nix would have appreciated it. She would have—
    He shut the line of thinking down. No point in wishing for what he couldn’t have.
    At least he had survived another day, his dignity still intact. Nix was none the wiser about his true feelings, and he didn’t shame himself by trying too hard to please her. Her icy reaction to his presence seemed to be melting. A bit.
    I asked for this . It could be worse. She could still be dating Adonis. The prick .
    He had wanted the assignment and now he had to deal with the consequential feelings. Man, he was whacked in the head. But then again, he was a glutton for punishment. So was Nix. Maybe that was why they were meant to be together.
    His lips curved into a small smile as he