Agent Dark- Vegas Read online

  Kat rolled her eyes. “You couldn’t handle a woman like me.”

  Jobin grinned. “Probably not. But it’s a risk worth taking.”

  “Karsova have any more enforcers we should be worried about?” Thomas asked.

  “Plenty. Depends on how bad he wants me dead. But since I’m not your only witness I suspect you won’t have any more attacks on me. Beauty and the Beast weren’t a team you sent backup with. You know what I’m sayin’.”

  “Tell me about this Karsova,” Kat said.

  “Sure. What do you want to know?”

  “Just give me a picture of who he is. I’m not really up to speed on the trial itself. I’ve been more focused on keeping witnesses alive to worry about the trial,” Kat said.

  “That’s kind of stupid,” Jobin said.

  Kat raised an eyebrow.

  “Hey, no offense, doll face, but it is. You are trying to defend witnesses against an enemy without knowing anything about him? That’s not a very good strategy.”

  As annoying as she found Jobin, Kat knew he was right. She hadn’t been in charge of the operation. Dexter was, or at least he was in charge of coordinating the MBI agents involved with the security details. And while he probably had a good idea of who Karsova was, she hadn’t bothered to ask him enough questions. Neither had Thomas, for that matter, but she wasn’t responsible for Thomas. She’d made a mistake and she’d learn from it. “No offense taken. You’re right. It wasn’t a good strategy. Now, about Karsova...”

  “Karsova is fae. He came from Unreha about ten years ago and started smuggling humans back to Unreha. From what I understand, he has smuggling rings all over the world, but he likes living in America. He comes from a wealthy family who have a tradition of slavery and smuggling in Unreha. He’s just the first one in the family to expand their business to Earth. Anyway, Karsova has built a network of powerful allies all over the US who don’t mind trading in humans. Especially when they can get slaves from Unreha in return. A well-trained elf or dwarf slave is incredibly valuable in certain circles.”

  “What are the humans used for in Unreha?” Kat asked.

  “The same things you use any slave for: free labor, sex, armies, the usual reasons. In Unreha, humans are highly prized because they are rare, and since the majority of humans have no magic, they are easy to handle. Any middling mage or magic user in Unreha could maintain a stable of human slaves with minimal effort. Without magic or access to weapons, most humans are helpless in Unreha.

  “Karsova wasn’t the first from Unreha to take humans as slaves, but he certainly did it on a greater scale than anyone else. Every year, thousands of people are shipped to Unreha. He’s smart about it, though. He spreads it out all over the world and tends to stick to third-world countries for general slaves. American and European slaves are worth a lot more, though. It is a status symbol to have an American slave. Many in Unreha see America as the ruling empire on Earth, so to have an American slave is highly sought after among certain crowds in Unreha.”

  “This trial will put a large dent in the smuggling, then,” Kat said.

  Jobin laughed. “Oh, yeah. If Karsova goes to jail, then it has a huge impact. And that means a lot of angry people. That’s why it took so long to build a case against him. First, they had to get a few important idiots like me who got caught doing the wrong things. Once they had enough who had no choice but to testify, they made the arrest. Now all sorts of people are panicking.”

  Kat thought about Jobin’s words as she watched the road. The drive to the courthouse from the safehouse was only twenty minutes, and they’d been driving for almost ten now. So far, she hadn’t seen anyone suspicious-looking.

  “What do you know about the attack on me earlier today?” Kat asked. “A mage with four demons attacked me.”

  Jobin shrugged. “Hell if I know. It might’ve been one of Karsova’s men, but it doesn’t sound like it. Four demons? Must’ve been an awfully powerful mage to control that many demons at once. But like I said earlier, arresting Karsova affected lots of people, here and in Unreha. Who knows how many people want to put a stop to this trial...”

  Kat sighed. Learning more about Karsova wasn’t helping her figure out who’d been behind the attack this morning. “What about the werewolves that attacked us?”

  Jobin shrugged. “Probably locals. Karsova has connections everywhere. Like I said, Beauty and the Beast were the two killers in that crew. Everyone else didn’t matter. Just hired guns.”

  Thomas glanced over at Kat. “Don’t stress out over it, Kat. You weren’t even the one who killed him. Vesper can’t blame you for that.”

  “I’m not worried about being blamed, I’m worried about why it happened, and breaking it all to Vesper without hurting her.”

  Jobin looked at Kat. “There’s something you’re not telling me. Not that it’s any of my business, but what did the werewolves do to you?”

  Kat debated how much of her business she wanted to discuss with a criminal like Jobin, but he was being helpful and he did have insights into how Karsova did business. “One of the werewolves that was in the attack slept with my roommate.”

  “She as hot as you? I don’t blame him.”

  Kat shot Jobin a look that made him slouch back in his seat.

  “Take it easy, girl, I’m just sayin’ some werewolves can be horn dogs. Although that does sound like something Karsova would set up. He likes using sex as a weapon.”

  Kat didn’t respond. She was already putting the pieces together. She’d never thought that she’d be in a position where she’d have to suspect guys of hitting on her for ulterior motives than trying to get into her pants. It would put a significant damper on her desire to date if she had to run background checks on every guy she met.

  A few minutes of silence followed as they drew closer to the courthouse. Kat was focused on traffic and making sure they didn’t encounter any last-second problems. But her worries were for naught. They arrived at the courthouse without incident.

  “I’m going to take Jobin in and then report to Dexter,” Thomas said. “Thanks for the help today.”

  “Yeah, thanks for the help, doll face. Without you, I’d be a dead man right now,” Jobin said.

  Kat glanced at the gangster. “Keep calling me doll face and you still might meet a quick end.”

  Jobin grinned. “Babe. I got nothing but love for you.”

  Thomas rolled his eyes. “Right. Now let’s get you inside before Kat changes her mind about not killing you.” He turned to Kat. “You want to take the SUV back to the hotel?”

  “Nah, I’ll just call an Uber,” Kat said. “You just get Jobin to the trial before some woman shoots him in the face for cheesy pickup lines.”

  Thomas chuckled. “Will do. Talk to you later.”

  19

  Kat

  After saying goodbye to Thomas and Jobin, Kat had a short wait before her Uber pulled into the parking lot.

  The driver was polite and friendly, but seemed to prefer listening to his music to trying to chat, which suited Kat just fine. She closed her eyes and just relaxed. The day so far had been eventful. The two fights she’d been in had taken a lot out of her, and her body felt like it had been used as a heavy bag at the local gym.

  When they arrived at the hotel, Kat thanked the driver and headed directly to the room. When she got inside, she spotted Vesper in the living room area. “What are you doing?”

  Vesper answered without looking at her. “Warrior pose.”

  “I can see that. But why are you doing yoga while on vacation?”

  “Well, since this is more of a workcation that a real vacation, I don’t think normal rules apply. Besides, I’ve been doing yoga almost every day since being kicked out of the MBI training program. I’ve never been in as good a shape as I was then, and I don’t want to lose it.”

  “When have you been doing yoga? I’ve never seen you do it at home.”

  “In my room. I do fifteen to twenty minutes every morn
ing, plus some pushups and body-weight squats.”

  “Huh. And I thought you were slow waking up because you were just lazy.”

  Vesper flipped her the bird.

  “That’s not very Zen-like. I don’t think your yoga instructor would approve,” Kat said.

  Vesper switched to the next warrior position. “If they knew how calming it is, they would. How did your date with Thomas go?”

  “Fine, if you call getting into a battle with a bunch of gangsters a date. We were followed and attacked at the safe house. Thomas thinks they had several of the local safe houses under surveillance and waited to see who came to pick him up.” Kat wasn’t ready to bring up Hector, so she left the whole werewolf part of the story out. She’d tell her soon, but she was still waiting on Lola’s report on the mysterious Hector before revealing the truth to Vesper, or that was what she kept telling herself.

  “Well, since you’re not bleeding to death, I’ll assume you kicked ass.”

  Kat laughed. “What’s the plan for today? Did my going to help Thomas ruin our plans to meet the girls?”

  “No. I spoke to April. She and Erica are doing a little sight-seeing right now. They’ll meet us for lunch whenever you’re ready.”

  “Cool. I am getting hungry. I haven’t eaten all day and had to use magic twice.”

  Vesper stopped her pose. “You haven’t eaten all day? Get in the shower and get changed right away. We need to get going.”

  Kat frowned. “Why?”

  “There’s no way I’m spending the rest of the day with ‘Hangry Kat.’ We need to get some food in you ASAP.”

  Kat rolled her eyes as she headed to the washroom. She wasn’t that bad when she got really hungry. But using magic did take it out of her, and her mood was always better once she got something in her, so the sooner that they went to eat, the better.

  After her shower, Kat changed into her evening wear, jeans and a tank top. It looked remarkably like her daywear to the untrained eye, but on closer inspection one could see she clearly wore darker tank tops during the evenings, and her jeans were fancier.

  “Ready?” Vesper asked.

  “Ready,” Kat said as she slipped her guns into her holster. Vacation or not, Vegas was filled with bad guys. “Where are we going?”

  “Erica and April are at Excalibur right now, so we’re going to meet them at the Hard Rock Café.”

  “Ah, that sounds perfect. I could go for a greasy burger or six right now.”

  “I’m not sure how greasy the burgers are, but they are tasty. We can get something fancier later.”

  “You’re preaching to the choir, sister. I just want food, and lots of it.”

  Vesper started running towards the door. “The hangry monster has arrived, run for your life.”

  Kat started to frown, but then broke into a laugh as she started running after her cheeky roommate. “I’ll show you hangry. Where do you think you’re running to, anyway? You’re going to be stuck in the elevator with me unless your afternoon exercise includes going down stairs.”

  “Well, that isn’t going to happen,” Vesper said as she entered the elevator. “No way I’m breaking a sweat today unless it’s from excessive consumption of food and beverages or dancing.”

  As they walked down the Strip, Kat couldn’t help but notice how busy it was. But it wasn’t a bad busy. There was a certain energy to the crowd. Certainly there were a number of people that were drinking and partying, but others were obviously sober and just enjoying the attractions. Vegas was a spectacle, and most were enjoying it.

  But Kat couldn’t help but notice that Vegas had a darker side. The street hustlers, the poor begging for change, there was sadness in their eyes. They were hustling to survive. There was an element like that to every big city, but like everything else in Vegas, it was on a grander scale. Kat wondered how many of the so-called bums on the street were vets who were having trouble fitting back into society after serving their countries. How many of the young women were victims of abuse and had slipped through the cracks until they ended up here. It was a troubling aspect that took away from her ability to completely enjoy Vegas, but she’d also grown up rough, and had had to hustle to survive, so she knew that it was just part of life and she couldn’t help everyone.

  “You look lost in thought,” Vesper said.

  “I was just thinking about all the street hustlers here. It reminded me of my life before the MBI. I had it rough, but it could’ve been worse. I wonder if my parents really thought growing up an orphan in America was better than whatever life I would’ve had in Unreha?”

  “Hard to say. We know so little of Unreha, and even less about the draia. But if your parents brought you here to protect you, it worked. You’ve grown into a strong warrior, mentally and physically. It could be that it was the right decision.”

  Kat nodded. She knew that was a possible answer. That as rough as her childhood had been, she’d been far safer here because no one had known she was a royal-blood draia. Now that her secret was becoming harder to keep, she’d learn the truth. At least she wouldn’t have to face that future alone. She had good friends that would have her back. “I don’t tell you this enough, Vesper, but you’re a good friend.”

  Vesper stiffened. “Oh God. This is bad. We’ve skipped hangry and gone right to emo Kat. Thank God we’re almost to the restaurant.”

  “Emo? You want emo, just wait twenty minutes. There better not be a line to get in.”

  “The girls got here ten minutes ago. They have a table and already ordered appies.”

  Kat eyed Vesper suspiciously. “How many appies?”

  “I told them they needed appies for ten people. They didn’t believe me, but I made them order them anyway.”

  “Good, my tummy is really starting to rumble.”

  Kat followed Vesper into the restaurant. She’d been so caught up in her own thoughts, she hadn’t even realized they’d arrived. Vesper led her to the second floor and then out onto the balcony. Erica and April were there in the corner. It was a great spot with a view of the Strip.

  “Hello, ladies,” Erica said as they arrived at the table.

  “Erica, April, good to see you again,” Kat said as she sat down.

  “Likewise,” April said. “How was your morning, Kat? Dexter mentioned you had some excitement.”

  “You could say that. I went car shopping and was attacked by four demons, and then Thomas and I helped fight off another attempt to free one of the prisoners scheduled to testify. That was a bit of fluster cuck, but we got the prisoner to the courthouse. At the rate this trial is going, I don’t think there’ll be any criminals left. They keep dying trying to get their friends out.”

  “I doubt there is a limit to the supply of criminals available. As long as there is easy money out there and people with moral flexibility, there will be crime,” Erica said.

  “True, I suppose,” Kat said. “It will be interesting to see what becomes of this trial. I haven’t really paid much attention to it, aside from making sure people got here safe.”

  “I think it will have a major impact, at least in the short run. The criminals behind the trafficking ring will be stopped, at least in this realm. The ones from Unreha that were arrested will be punished, but the agents involved weren’t able to find out who was behind them. Eventually, everyone just agreed to arrest and try those they could prove were involved. As long as the trial goes according to plan, the trafficking will stop, at least until some other criminal fills the void.”

  April sighed. “Such a pessimist.”

  Erica smiled. “I think it comes with living with someone who’s been alive for several hundred years. He doesn’t think there are any new crimes, just old ones committed with new techniques. There will be more smuggling after this case, it is just a matter of time.”

  “Yes, but think of all the lives that will be saved by stopping these smugglers,” April argued.

  “True, that is why Dante and I agreed to help. I just can’
t help being cynical.”

  “Kat, was there anything else worth mentioning about your attacks? I’ll fill Dexter in later, save you the time.”

  Kat thought about the two attacks. Even though they were so close together, there was nothing similar about them. “I think they were unrelated, or at least done by two different groups.”

  “That is strange,” Vesper said.

  “But very possible,” Erica said. “I don’t think that all of the parties involved in the smuggling ring worked well together. It is likely they all have their own agendas. What makes you think they aren’t related?”

  “The attack this morning, it was strange. Four demons, that takes a powerful magic user, yet he didn’t even try attacking me. It was like he was testing me, and he wanted Chuck Ringle, but I got the impression he meant alive. The guys who attacked Thomas and I weren’t trying to rescue the prisoner, they were trying to kill him.”

  “Interesting,” April said. “I’ll be sure to let Dexter know. I can also check the files we have, see if anyone fits the description you have for the guy who attacked you this morning.”

  “Not much to go on. He was wearing a weird hoodie, and I couldn’t see his face.”

  “Yes, but the weird hoodie, that could be clothing from Unreha, and the fact that he controlled four demons speaks to a great level of power. Those are important details that could help us find him.”

  “Any other details that you can remember?” Erica asked.

  Kat glanced over at Vesper, unsure if she should mention the fact that she thought she’d seen Vesper’s new boyfriend, not said anything and then she ended up killing him.. It promised to be an awkward conversation; one she wasn’t ready to deal with. “Only that I learned guns aren’t the only important weapons in a fight. I really could’ve used a sword or a big-ass ax today. Those demons moved stupidly fast.”

  “I actually have a solution for that,” Vesper said. “After we’re done here, anyone up for a little weapons shopping?”

  April grinned. “As if any of us are averse to a little shopping.”