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  Point’s office door was closed and when she peeked through the blinds on the fishbowl window into the office, he was on the phone and scowling.

  “So D says there’s a party tonight where there might be leads. When do we go?” Greg’s eager grin almost matched Darien’s frown.

  “You two are not going, thanks. I’m going to a party because I was invited to go.”

  Greg blinked, then his eyes widened. “Wait. Are you going on a date?” He gasped and clapped both hands over his mouth for a moment before moving them just enough to keep speaking. “Without us?”

  “Um. I hope very much that I would go on all my dates without you,” she said and Greg clutched at his chest and staggered dramatically.

  “Oh! Ow! Oh, it hurts!” He moaned and whimpered like she’d actually stabbed him. “Caroline, since when do you hate us so much?”

  “Cut it out, Greg.” Darien whacked the bigger man’s shoulder with the back of his hand and growled.

  “Look,” Caroline sighed. “You both know perfectly well that I can handle a normal human guy perfectly well on my own, which Lucas seems to be. The worst thing that has happened to me on campus so far was a drunk jerk crowding me a bit, and that was more annoying than anything else. Lucas called because he thinks that there might be some information to be picked up, and he is also worried about my safety which seems to me an odd thing if he was going to try to kidnap me himself. If anything, I’m going to be there to supervise him and make sure he doesn’t get in the way of our investigation.” She glared at Darien who just frowned and shrugged. “And if this ends up being more of a date date rather than just combining forces to find these girls, then I definitely don’t need a pair of overprotective doofuses hovering around like disapproving older brothers, scowling and snarling at him!”

  “You tell them, C!” Stevie Goodleaf called from a desk a few feet away. Caroline looked up and realized that the H.R. brownie and the agent she’d been talking to were both watching her little tantrum with grins. She had the feeling that they wished they had popcorn for this show.

  “God.”

  “You know, though. She’s got a good point.” Stevie said, raising an eyebrow at the guys. “She’s allowed to have a life outside this office, remember.”

  “Yeah,” Zanna— the agent sitting at the desk— agreed with a wide grin. “She needs some downtime to recharge after all the time she spends saving your butts.” Zanna became a friend when she helped on the vampire poisoning case over the summer, and was generally pretty supportive of Caroline’s efforts to settle into college life comfortably like a normal person. Well, as normal as it ever got around here.

  “Hey, now,” Greg started to defend himself but the door behind him swung open.

  “Okay, you three. Quit making a ruckus out here and let’s have a chat,” Point grumbled and retreated back to his desk.

  Caroline shot a glance at the women who defended her against the overprotective agents. They both grinned back at her, and she trailed after the guys, shutting the door behind her. She plopped onto Point’s sofa and tried not to glare.

  “So, I’ve got some news,” Point said when he sat down. Caroline was always surprised that his desk chair could hold him. He wasn’t as big as Ollie, but still, the troll was a hefty mass of solid muscle.

  “Yeah? Not good news, I’m guessing from that scowl,” Darien said.

  “No. Not good news. Just when I think the whole Beckett debacle is finally calmed down, another little landslide is discovered,” Point sighed. “It turns out that part of the reason that the police were unenthusiastic about following up on the missing students is that they’re scrambling to keep their butts covered now that bastard Beckett is in prison.”

  The silence in the room crackled with shock, until someone squeaked What? In the most stunned way imaginable. It took Caroline a moment to realize that it had been her speaking. Point sighed and rubbed his fingers over his eyes and made a soft, grumbling noise that sounded a bit like pebbles sliding down a riverbank.

  “It turns out that our disgraced ex-chief is a gift that keeps on giving. It wasn’t enough that he took about half this office out with various corruption charges related to his own massive ethical implosion, or that the whole thing put cases into question going back at least five goddamn years. No. He had to reach out to the local police in the area and ask for their help recruiting street level thugs for his various projects. Which, naturally, started rotting away at those fine institutions. Which has now started an enormous Internal Affairs investigation into pretty much every law enforcement officer in three states at just about every level.” Anger and frustration laced every word of Point’s summary.

  “You have got to be kidding,” Darien groaned.

  “I am not. At least now we know where several of those goons who jumped you last spring came from. We could only link two of them from that terrorist group to that ambush. The rest, it seems, came out as thugs-for-hire, dug up by the local police here in our fair city. The day laborers of the crime world, if you will. It’s not too long a drive to get to where you were grabbed, and the mansion you two were held in is only another hour further than that. Once Beckett was arrested for kidnapping you two,” he nodded at Darien and Caroline, “the local human cops started running their own little schemes under the impression that they had the first clue about what Beckett was into.”

  Point sighed and shook his head. “So. Now the precincts are under investigation by Internal Affairs and since we were already glancing in the general direction of this case, we have been asked formally to take over the investigation.”

  “We were going to have to request it anyway,” Greg said. His voice was serious now. “Ollie found stunning powder on the purse that C’s friend had the night she went missing.”

  “Well, that is a pretty good indication that we should handle it,” Point nodded. “And on that note, I have some other news. I’ve done a little poking around myself.”

  “Shouldn’t you be doing more important things, now that you’re our boss?” Greg asked, the usual grin back in his voice and on his face. “Actively investigating isn’t one of your duties anymore, is it?”

  “I do try to keep my hand in a bit, thank you,” Point flashed them a grin of his own, his sharp teeth bright against his dusky grey skin. “At any rate, I found a series of auctions set up for about a month from now, aimed pretty squarely at the paranormal community.”

  Greg and Darien went very still.

  “Darien,” Point stabbed a finger at the agent who looked back at him with a stony face to rival the troll’s own. “I need you to get yourself ready for some undercover work. You’re going in as a buyer.”

  6

  “Wait, what?” Caroline glanced around the room looking for the rest of the information that they’d skipped over. “Tell us again and pretend that I haven’t been working here for very long.”

  Greg frowned and sighed and Darien actually scowled at the edge of Point’s desk, but Point grimaced and looked straight at her.

  “Human trafficking is, unfortunately, not just a human problem,” Point said. “Although humans are the targets most frequently, since they are often also the most vulnerable. As is often the case in these situations, humans are preferred first, then elves, then after that I suppose it depends on the particular group of filth that is organizing the kidnappings and trade.”

  Caroline’s stomach twisted. “Why do people do that?” It was absolutely beyond her comprehension. Some people were just sick.

  “There’s the obvious answer, of course. The one that is on the news exposé shows talk about most often: sex trafficking,” Point said, the growl still in his voice.

  “And of course, there’s a few that want their own private blood supply,” Darien said, disgust lacing every word. His eyes had a hint of red in them, telling Caroline more clearly than anything how angry he was at the idea.

  “Wait, these guys are selling people to vampires? For food? But I thought…
” The whole poisoning case over the summer hinged on the fact that vampires relied on canned blood from FPAA licensed blood banks.

  “Not everyone is an honest, civilized, law-abiding person,” Darien said. “There’s a reason vampires have a bad reputation. It only takes a few incidents.”

  “At least those vampires end up blood bonded to their victims, and have to take relatively good care of them.” Point grimaced. “Then there’s the real scum. The folks who want pets or test subjects or samples.”

  “Or breeders,” Greg gritted out. The pain that sliced through his words was as stunning as their meaning.

  “Wh- What?” Caroline blinked at him, but it was Point that answered again.

  “Magic, much like science, has a lot of ethics rules. Many of them have been codified into law at this point, and just as there are very strict rules governing scientific experiments that use live subjects, there are strict rules governing magical experiments as well,” he said.

  “I’ve read about some of them. We got a few units of mage history in school, and I know I have a couple of classes next year that are about policing mages,” Caroline said. She’d been looking forward to them, but now…

  “Well, take good notes, but I’m going to bet you’ll be ahead of the class on a few issues,” Point said. “Such as the use of humans as test subjects for experimental magic. It’s legal under some very strict conditions. Each experiment must be submitted and reviewed before it proceeds, and every test subject must be registered and monitored by an independent review board. This isn’t just U.S. law, either. It’s been handed down from the International Consortium of Mages. They come up with the lines that mages aren’t allowed to cross and the individual countries are allowed to write the laws accordingly. That doesn’t stop the really determined, of course. Laws never do.”

  “Some mages dabble in darker magics. Magic that can go so far as to touch a person’s soul or even enslave it. Anyone found doing that sort of magic is dealt with harshly, but we have to be careful since very often the punishment will affect not just the mage, but their victims as well,” Darien said. “It can sometimes take years to separate a dark mage from his victims. The ICM oversees all cases like that, and will send resources and people to aid in apprehending a dark mage. It becomes this whole huge complicated thing.”

  “Is this common?” Caroline was horrified. There being a dark side to the paranormal world was one thing, but this seemed somehow so much worse. Her stomach churned and she had to clinch her teeth together and swallow hard.

  “Not very common at all, thank all that is sacred,” Point said. He leaned back in his chair and grimaced. “Last case I can remember was about six years ago now, in Texas. It was pretty gruesome. At least ten dead and three more barely hanging on to life that we found on the premises, and the ICM just finished separating the mage from his victims at the end of last year. I don’t even want to think about what his punishment will be once the final review is held next month.”

  All three men sat in tense silence for a long moment and Caroline watched them all show signs of anxious discomfort.

  “Okay, so… that’s absolutely going to fuel a few nightmares now. Thanks for that,” she said at last. “But bringing this all back to right now…” she let the question hang. Point would take it where they needed to go, she hoped.

  “Right now,” he sat forward and leaned his elbows on his desk. “Darien is going to get set up as a buyer looking for a pretty young thing to nibble on and hopefully get a line on these people. I’ve already got one of our tech guys setting up your cover accounts. You’ll have to hit up H.R. for your disguise and wardrobe.”

  “Wonderful,” Darien grumbled. “I love playing to the stereotype.”

  “And I’ve got another tech tracking down their communications. It may tie into this damned dirty cop situation. We can’t risk running over the I.A. investigations, though, so we have to tread very lightly there. They’re sharing what information they come across, but we can’t wait around. I’ll call them and make it clear that if we find victims we’re going in, no matter what. Greg, I want you to call this other girl’s mother, the one Caroline found out about. Get her contact information from the college.”

  “Sure thing, boss,” Greg saluted.

  “Smartass. Now I need you all to be careful. D, you’ve been seen with Caroline around campus. If you’re recognized, you might need to take the tack of having been on the campus and had the urge creep up over you, and now you’re dipping your toe in the water.”

  “I’ll work it out.” Darien shrugged.

  “Caroline, you need to be extra careful when you’re out and about. I don’t like any of this, and you’re probably more of a target now that you’ve been nosing around. People like this don’t deal well with being exposed,” Point slanted her a sharp glance. “And I’ve come to realize that you’re prone to going off on your own. Try to keep that under control, will you?”

  “Me? I’ve got a date tonight, don’t worry about me,” Caroline grinned.

  “Oh, no you don’t! I don’t trust that guy!”

  “You’re not going anywhere, not without one of us there, too. What are you thinking?”

  “A date? What date? What?”

  Caroline smirked and did her best not to let the laugh escape. “What? I might as well go. It’s not like I can infiltrate a human trafficking ring on my own. Well, not in any way that’s useful to an investigation, anyway.” She had to be fair. The most likely role she’d play there is victim.

  “You’re not going to that party alone!” Darien growled and glared at Caroline.

  “When did this become a date? I thought it was just a friend!” Greg protested.

  “Both of you settle down!” Point barked, then turned to look at Caroline. “You ought to start talking, C.”

  “Lucas is heading to another party tonight. He called a little while ago and asked if I wanted to go with him,” she shrugged. “It wouldn’t be a bad idea to be out there gathering some information. Maybe someone saw Sara at a party so we can narrow down when and where exactly she was grabbed.”

  “And what do we know about Lucas?” Darien was still growling and Caroline had to roll her eyes at his tone. “Nothing! We know his first name, and that he’s looking for someone. He could be one of the traffickers for all we know.”

  “No, we know he isn’t,” Caroline protested. “I can tell that he’s not lying about his concern for either his friend or for me, remember? You know damn well that I can hear if someone’s being shady, or if I can trust them. If I couldn’t, we’d both be corpses in the basement of that stupid abandoned mansion and Becket would still be in charge here.”

  “I hate that she has a point,” Greg said. His face was scrunched up in a grudging admission that she was right.

  Darien glared at him. “That doesn’t mean—”

  “Enough!” Point snapped. “Darien. Go check in on your new accounts. Now.”

  “But—”

  “Go now before I get cranky. Come back at four and we will have a chat about how we’re going to proceed.” Point stared Darien down for several breaths before the vampire growled and shoved to his feet. Once Darien had stormed out of the office, barely avoiding slamming the door behind him, Point released a long sigh.

  “Caroline,” he said, his voice tired. “For someone as smart and capable as you are, you’re damn good at throwing us off our stride. You know perfectly well that he’s just worried about you. For that matter, so are the rest of us.” Greg made a sound of agreement, but kept his thoughts to himself.

  “Because every time I have a good idea, it gets shot down just because I’m human! You treat me like I’m useless,” Caroline huffed. Okay, that was totally petulant bullshit and she knew it, but what else was she going to say? Whine about them treating her like a child? That would work, wouldn’t it?

  “No, we treat you like an intern who’s only been here for four months,” Point said.

  “Come on,
C. You’re our partner and our responsibility here at work, sure, but you’re also our friend,” Greg finally spoke, unusually serious. This whole meeting had been weird that way. “You’re Darien’s bestie, and honestly, after everything that’s happened to him in the past few years, that’s saying something. He really doesn’t let people get close very easily.”

  “What are you talking about. He’s got tons of friends. More than I do, that’s for sure.” Way to sound mature and adult. God, she could kick herself sometimes.

  “First, you’re selling yourself short, I think. Besides me and Darien, you’re always hanging out with Julia. You have regular lunches with the H.R. team— and before you say it, it’s not just because you can teach them more about being or looking human. Every time I walk by them you’re all giggling and gossiping,” Greg smirked, his voice sounding much more normal. “I heard you talking today about some guy you met. Should I assume that tall, dark, and gentlemanly not to mention hot is this Lucas guy?”

  “Oh my god.” Caroline tried to sink back into the sofa cushions. Point quirked an eyebrow at her, and she swore his lips twitched. If he cracked a smile, she was so gone.

  “Second, if you actually watch D talk to people, most of the time he’s friendly and encourages them to talk, but is not very forthcoming himself. But he actually talks to you. I’d guess you know more about his old team than all the rest of us put together.”

  Caroline frowned at that. It was true, Darien really didn’t like talking about when he worked in Washington State. The fact that both of the offices he had been assigned to had fallen to corruption based almost completely on his superiors’ feelings about vampires hadn’t gone unnoticed by anyone, and it nearly caused him to quit the agency entirely. It had taken Point, Deputy Director Silverrain, and a number of their colleagues from both here and, surprisingly, the FBI to convince him to stay. Even she herself had spent several hours on the phone with him, more than once, talking about his future career. He didn’t talk about that stuff with anyone else here, so far as she knew.