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NJ Kuhr

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Reagan spent the next few weeks checking in with her sources. She had heard, "A buddy of mine knows a guy who knows a guy" so many times she thought she might scream. Oliver wasn't answering her calls. Asshole!

She was stomping through a street market trying to find some goblin who went by the name Earl. Even the name made her sneer. Oliver owes me two more questions and he's just going to leave me hanging because he can't handle the truth.

She replayed the voices from A Few Good Men in her head. I want the truth! You can't handle the truth! It didn't cheer her up like her usually internal commentary did, so instead she stomped through the rain. Taking out her aggression on pour defenseless puddles with no way to run.

She had dropped the goblins name around and was told he could be found in China Town hawking mermaid tears. She suspected those so called tears were actually sewer water but if someone was willing to fall for that load of b.s. she wasn't going to stop them. Served them right. Besides, anyone seeking out mermaid tears in some back alley transaction wasn't up to anything good let them waste their time and money.

She had left her umbrella in the office, as always, which wasn't improving her mood. She was dripping with rain water as she made her way down the familiar streets, cutting an angry path through the sludge. She had resorted to tying her hair back in a wet messy bun that was going to be hell untangling later. Her boots were covered in mud, she was glad she at least had the foresight not to wear her good boots this morning. She decided to stop and grab an egg roll at one of her favorite food carts.

She ducked under an awning and was taking her first bite when she saw a short man yell at a someone for nearly running him over. The man had to be under five feet. He was wearing a brimmed hat and a trench coat that nearly reached the ground. She focused her eyes, she couldn't see his face but when he gave the strangers back a very rude hand gesture she saw all she needed to see. That was a goblin.

Keeping an eye on his progress she stuffed the rest of the egg roll into her mouth, inhaling through gritted teeth to cool it off before it burned her tongue, and followed his direction from the opposite side of the street. When it didn't look like he was going to be dropping into a store any time soon Reagan checked the street behind her and when the coast was clear sprinted across. She had timed it just right to be a few footsteps behind him when the soles of her shoes landing on the concrete. It only took a few steps to gain the last couple feet.

"Hey Earl." She said as she came up beside him. The goblin made to side step around her and make a break for it down an alley but she was too fast for him. Grabbing him by the jacket she steered him into the alley he tried to escape to using his own momentum to help her corner him, she pinned him against the wall. "Look I'm not interested in those mermaid tears alright. I'm not here to bust you. Just have some questions."

She avoided touching his skin, not because it would do anything to her, but goblin skin grossed her out. His skin was scaly and cracked and although she knew otherwise, it always felt contagious. She had a good grip on his collar so he wasn't going anywhere. "I heard you got your hands on a moonstone a while back. A heavy one."

The goblin struggled against her and snarled. "Don't got it no more lady. Sold it."

"Sold it to whom?" She asked digging her knuckles into his chest.

"What's it to ya?"

How predictable. She pulled out a small coin purse of gold nuggets and watched the expression change from angry to greedy as he focused on the nuggets. She wished the sun was shining so she could angle beams off of them for dramatic effect but no such luck. So she swung the bag back and forth and watched as his eyes follow it.

"What do you want to know?" He was nearly drooling.

"Every detail you remember about the guy who wanted those moonstones. And don't try to pretend you only sold him one, Earl. When he paid top dollar you got your grubby little hands on any moonstone you could get."

He reached for the bag. "Nope." She hid it behind her back. "Not tell you give me what I want."

"He came to me 'bout a year an a half ago to buy my stone." The goblin stretched his head over trying to peak around Reagan. His Boston accent getting thicker and thicker the more he stared at the gold. "I picked up a couple other stones an when he came around asking I sold em' to him. I don' know his real name an he had a glamor spell both times, but he kept touching his lip. Like he was wiping crumbs away." he lifted his hand to his face to demonstrate.

"Anything else. I want every detail Earl." She brought the bag back around shaking it at him. Earl's hand twitched towards the nuggets so Reagan pulled back just enough.

"The glamor was good. Real good! I don' know what he look like an I don' know who he is." The goblin snarled, unfortunately Reagan believed him. She let him go and handed him the bag.

"If you see anything else, there's more where that came from." Reagan said but the Goblin was bitting down on a nugget so she left him in the alley with his bag.

Making her way back to her office she rubbed her bottom lip the way the goblin had. Running her thumb back and forth. She repeated what he said over and over again in her head. This was a trick of hers. Mimicking, echoing. It helped her to remember the details. If they reappeared later on, she would pick up on it.

The streets were quiet. Oddly quiet. People, of course, were everywhere, humans walking to meet up with friends, others on their way home from work like she was. The sounds were the same; sirens, honking, the constant buzz of chatter. A couple ran into a coffee shop to get out of the rain. She watched as a taxi pulled over to pick up a fair, then she had to side step to avoid a janitor taking out the garbage. That's what was odd, she had figured out what was bothering her about her walk. They were human, all of them. She hadn't heard the slither of a reptilian demon, or caught a whiff of burnt sugar from off a Witch, nothing.

She lived in this world and hadn't gone a single day without witnessing the blend of the real world and the world of fantasy. She could see it everywhere she went. Suddenly, they had gone radio silent. Now that she had thought of it, it had started days ago, even a week maybe. What was going on? She could take a guess but it didn't comfort her one bit.

That morning she had noticed the gypsy across the street had taken her reading table inside. It was unusual but not unheard of. The shop had stayed open so Reagan had brushed it off but the blinds were closed and no one hung out outside. And yesterday, she had gone to talk to a street performer who kept his ears close to the ground. Literally. He had four ears, two on his ankles and impeccable hearing. She could always rely on him to tell her the word on the street. Cooper was always good about hearing the rumors and cataloging the important details, but she hadn't been able to find him. He was the local gossip and always reliable. Something was happening, word just hadn't reached her yet, and she hoped it wouldn't come in the form of one under appreciating Warlock.

She reached her office building and stomped her feet off inside the door. The doorman grinned and tipped his hat towards her then went back to the newspaper he was reading.

Riding the elevator up to her floor, she tried to think back through the day. Trying to discern when things had started feeling off. She hadn't noticed anything on her walk to china town. In fact, she did remember the troll she had scene ducking behind some garbage cans. She even spotted a cat she recognized as a bakeneko. It had been sun bathing in a window and watched Reagan as she walked past, its eyes changing colors.

Sometime during her walk through China Town and questioning Earl the Community had closed up shop, unusually early. The elevator stopped on her floor and she waiting for the doors to open. When she stepped out she didn't notice anything at first. Concentrating on trying to remember if she was aware of anything else that could explain the community shut down. Nothing came to mind.

The only other office on this floor was some financial book keeping for the business savvy. Reagan had suspicions the owner was also a bookie. Not that it mattered; gambling wasn't a crime in the supernatural Society. It was a little more rough than the humans form of cards. Considering how easy it is to cheat when most of the players can use magic, gambling in this world the games tended to encourage cheating by everyone. It made it more interesting. Most of the people involved don't advertise their participation. Its frowned upon and considered unsavory and juvenile. Comparable to gangs, they may not be doing anything illegal but people tended to distrust them more and kept a tighter grip on their wallets around them.

Even that office was closed up early for the day. Odd. The owner, Keith or something like that always stayed open late, that was Reagan's first indication they were gambling. That and they was way too much foot traffic for it to be a typical book keeping office. There where way more people on days when the Centaurs had a mock battle or if the tracks where hosting a manticore race. Even the fairies, leprechauns and mermaids had some sort of Olympics of their own that always drew a crowd to this floor. Keith's office tended to have customers that spent a few hours going over paperwork on days an event was taking place. Not that Reagan was bothered by it. Sometimes it would even drive business her way.

Today, however, the absence of people had Reagan uneasy. Stepping further down the hall and around the corner to her office that took up the other half of this floor she stopped in her tracks the minute her door came into view. It was cracked open. She knew without a doubt that she had locked up this morning. She always locked up.

She pulled a glock out of the holster she habitually carried under her jacket, she aimed it at the floor using both hands to grip it as she glanced around her and stalked quietly towards the door. This wasn't a regular gun either. Bullets where design specifically for anything not human. Carved into each was a rune to temporarily paralyze just about anything. Maybe not Oliver and she was hoping it was him but she had a pretty good feeling he wouldn't break into her office and leave the door open.

Oliver wouldn't need to break in, he could blink in and she was pretty sure he didn't need to guess where she was in order to find her. He wouldn't have to show up here and wait. He would show up where ever she happened to be any time he wanted to. No one had ever tried to break into her office before. Maybe she was being paranoid but she couldn't help but presume that it had something to do with Oliver, being uneasy before she arrived was not helping.

Stepping up to the door she edge closer to the wall. Taking a deep inhale she pushed the door completely open with her foot and keeping her back to the wall burst into the room. She first kept the gun pointed to the sofa along the wall and then spanned it around the room

Some guy was sitting in a chair across from her desk scrolling through something on his phone. When she stepped in he looked up at first relieved she was finally here and then shocked and scared as soon as he saw the gun in her hand.

"I'm not stealing anything." He burst out, his hands jumping into the air to show her he wasn't armed. "I'm here to see Reagan Blake." He yelled out of surprise but kept his hands up.

Reagan glanced around her office to make sure there was no one else there to surprise her. It didn't appear that anything was missing. She would have to check her security system when he was gone and double check her valuables. Mostly she was concerned about her files. They were stored in a wall safe within the perimeters of the runes behind her desk so she could tell from where she was it hadn't been tampered with. Lowering her gun she placed it back in the holster but didn't clip the latch. She wanted to be prepared in case he made a move.

He noticeably relaxed when she did that. She walked passed him keeping her guard up and stepped into the protective circle. She decided to sit partially on the edge of her desk to give her the advantage incase he did try to do something. She could react better from here than at her desk where she could easily be cornered in.

"I'm sorry." He didn't sound sorry. "The guy down that hall saw me waiting, he said you would be back sometime but he didn't know when. I decided to wait for you."

Reagan glanced back up at the door to make sure she hadn't been followed or that he had an accomplice. It didn't look like he did. He must have been talking about the bookie. He had closed up recently than.

She couldn't quiet figure out what or who he was so she couldn't be sure that it would stop him but the runes at least was an effort. Not being able to identify him was not the most comforting position to be in. He clearly knew who and what she was.

"Mrs. Blake, my name is Theo Sinon." He started to introduce himself.

"Just Reagan will do, Mr. Sinon." She corrected him

He paused and nodded at her. "Just Theo as well." He seemed a little annoyed that she had interrupted him but he let it go and continued. "A friend of mine, George Kele told me to come talk to you. I've managed to get myself into some trouble. He told me you helped him out when he needed it and suggested you were the best." It didn't sound like Theo believed that himself but Reagan was used to that attitude at this point.

George Kele is a Native American client of Reagan's. He can transform into a sparrow and lives up in Queens. He says it's for the yard and the peace and quiet but Reagan know it's mostly because the horde of pigeons that grace New York are bullies and they're mean.

And, naturally being what he is, he hates cats as well. Despises every last one of them and the cats, in turn, hate him just as much. He had managed to keep the majority of the neighborhood strays off his property and away from his house but not when he was walking around the neighborhood. He was the only member of the supernatural community that lived in that particular neighborhood.

As luck would have it, the bratty kids that patrolled the streets noticed his aversion to the felines when he went to get his mail. A street cat had been sleeping on top of his mail box and he had waited patiently tending to his fence line and weeds until the cat left.

After that, game on. The kids would catch the strays and sneak back along his fence line between the house next door and drop cats over the lowest part of his fence. That fence being a foot wide brick monstrosity that he had built to keep prying eyes away from his windows and back yard. Up until this point, George had been able to hold ceremony's and have his local tribe come by to conduct dances and so forth without any of the humans noticing anything.

He was tending to his landscaped back yard when, out of nowhere, a massive orange tabby cat came hissing from over the wall scaring George into transforming into his swallow and flying up into the tree in an effort to escape. What didn't escape was the notice of the children who had been watching his reaction from over the fence and all three of them got to see him transform.

Needless to say, George went straight to Reagan, as the bird flies. Landed right on her window ledge and pecked at the glass until Reagan obliged him and opened it up. He flew into the middle of her office and turned back into his human self.

After the first initial shock Reagan was excited that she got to witness it in person. Natives are very private and like to keep their rituals and lives to themselves and their tribe. Reagan had heard of the spirit warriors before but had never had the opportunity to meet one or meet his spirit animal.

George explained what had happened and after calling in a couple favors and making a few deals they were able to get the children's memories altered and the incident went away. For payment the tribe got together and blessed her bracelet to give her the protection of the tribe where ever she went. She felt honored and proud to be included in the ceremony. It was something very special. Beautiful really.

Theo Sinon was definitely not a Native nor was he a spirit warrior. He was dark and a little exotic. He had thick black hair that was cut short. It came down his forehead into a sharp widow's peak. His eyebrows were just as thick and she could tell he got them groomed and shaped. His eyes set back in his scull a bit, not noticeable unless you were looking closely. His lips where thin and he kept a five o'clock shadow. It looked intentional to Reagan, he kept it trimmed and didn't let it get out of control but he didn't do a clean shave either. If she had to guess she would say he was of Middle Eastern descent, possible Egyptian but she didn't get that feel from him.

"How is George doing?" Reagan asked politely. She also wasn't entirely sure this man knew George. George was secretive and suspicious, she highly doubted he would admit to anyone about what happened or why he hired her so sending someone her way didn't sound like the grumpy bastard. Reagan herself may or may not be considered a friend. That was constantly in question depending on his mood.

Again, Theo looked disgruntled at her changing the direction of the conversations. He was one of those controlling types that wasn't pleased when other people directed the show. He tried to come off as charming but Reagan wasn't buying it. She had a sinking suspension that underneath that calm facade was a temper and a violent streak. She wasn't pleased he was here.

Oliver!! I could really use your help right about now. She considered summoning him but if this man wasn't here about Oliver she didn't want to alert him to the fact there was a Warlock seeking her aid.

"He's doing fine." Theo blurted out dismissively. "I've brought you some details about my situation." He reached down into the briefcase tucked in next to his chair and pulled out a folder. She couldn't see into the case but judging by how easily he pulled out the folder she had a sinking feeling that there was nothing else in the case. Again, not the best indication. The briefcase was for show, like a disguise and she didn't think that helped ease her suspicions.

"Unfortunately," Reagan interrupted him again. She didn't have to but she was going to see how close she could get his anger to the surface. People always show who they are when they're angry. His eye darkened as she spoke, going nearly as black as his hair. "I am already billed out this time for another client. I would be happy to look into your case as soon as I can but at this time I am unable to say exactly when that will be. You're welcome to leave me your information but I can't in good conscience work both cases and allow my client to pay for the time." She tried to give him a final tone to let him know there wasn't any arguing with her.

She reached out to accept the folder from him and he tossed it onto her desk instead, deliberately ignoring her outstretched hand. "You're not even going to look at it. Not even going to ask me?" His tone was brisk and accusing.

"I'm afraid I can't at the moment, Mr. Sinon." She countered. "As I have already told you my time this evening has already been booked and paid for by my currant client. It would be unprofessional of me to take his allotted time and use it to work on another case." This was a lie but the man got under her skin and she really didn't want to spend anymore allotted time with him than she had to.

There it was, that streak of violence in his eyes. He didn't get up but starred her down until he realized she wasn't going to budge.

"Fine." He rubbed his palms on his jeans. She knew he hadn't been sweating so she had guessed correctly about the anger. He wanted to strike out but had some other agenda that following through with his thoughts would somehow directly affect. Instead he stood up, grabbed his suitcase, again it appeared to be lighter than a business man's briefcase should be. Walking around the chair he turned to give her one last look. Debating whether or not he was going to try to persuade her again.

Reagan gestured towards the door to let him know he could try but it wasn't going to work. "I will check into your file as soon as I am able and give you a call. If it's something I can help, I will do my best. If not, than I will send you to someone or something that can. That's all I can do for now."

He looked like he was about to say something rude but stopped himself. Instead, he said, "Thank you. Miss Blake. I hope to hear from you soon." False sincerity plagued his words. His focus on the rug beneath Reagan's feet as he tried to keep from looking at it. He knew about the runes.

Normally, Reagan would escort potential clients to the door but that look in his eyes had her staying right where she was. She didn't think he would do anything but she didn't want to temp him with her proximity either. "I hope so too." She lied.

He opened the door and nodded once at her before stepping out into the hallway and closing the door behind him.

Reagan heaved a sigh of relief. She wasn't going to be taking him on as a client and had already set her mind to refer him to someone else. Waiting a beat to see if he came back before she pulled her pistol back out just in case. Keeping it prepared, she rushed over to the door and reset the locks and flipping her closed light on. This way if he or someone else did come back she would at least have a warning.

She stepped back to see if anyone knocked on the door. When it stayed quiet she walked back over to her desk and sat down placing the gun facing away from her on top of the desk instead of locking in the safe as she usually would. She kept looking up at the door. Calm down. Why are you so jumpy?

She pulled her laptop out of a drawer, logged on and opened her security app. There were a few notifications. The first to indicate someone that wasn't her had opened the door roughly an hour before Reagan got here. They stayed in her office for about thirty minutes, had attempted to get passed the barrier and behind her desk but had fail to get passed.

That's was a little comforting. The security hadn't been able to identify what kind of supernatural broke in but they were definitely supernatural if they couldn't get around her desk. In order to prevent humans from getting suspicious in the event that one happened to get off on this floor and to her office the runes couldn't block their path. That would advertise there was something magical about this office. However, if a human does step into the circle the desk, drawers and bookcases would automatically lock up. Panels would drop obscuring the view of the books and artifacts. It was an extra precaution to keep the supernatural world secret.

Reagan clicked on the next alert icon. About ten minutes after the burglar left another individual stepped into her office and stayed inside until Reagan herself stepped through. That was Theo. There was an alert for when she arrived about twenty minutes later.

That didn't mean the burglar wasn't Theo. He could have easily broken in. Than when he couldn't get passed the runes decided to wait until Reagan got there. If he realized there was a security system he could have made the decision to step back into the hall until there was a witness to see him waiting for her and then stepped back in to cover up his tracks.

The entire episode had her on edge. Paranoid much. Oliver and those damn Warlocks are making my life difficult. She pulled up the home screen and clicked on her apartment. There weren't any disturbances or alarms there.

Deciding it was best to work from home tonight, she packed up everything she would need. She didn't want any guns in her home so she locked up the weapon in the safe but before she left she pulled some pepper spray out of a drawer. This wasn't normal pepper spray by any means. It was one of Sophia's concoctions. Reagan might not like the woman but that Witch had skills.

Before locking up tight she sent a note to the security company to do a sweep for bugs or monitoring devices and stop by to restart her system and check for any breaks that may have been rigged. She could have been hacked or sabotaged. Hopefully, the installer would come early tomorrow so she could get in here and not feel invaded or spied on. For the first time since moving to New York she felt vulnerable.

Locking the door from the outside after she closed up she set her hand palm out on the door above the lock and reset the alarm system. A red glow spread from her palm and incased the entire door. She felt a little better but doubt crept into her mind.

On the elevator she open the security app on her phone and kept a close eye on any notifications from her home. She kept turning on the screen the entire cab ride there as well. No one was going to get the jump on her there. If Theo, ok well maybe it wasn't Theo but that was who Reagan imagined, if the intruder hadn't gotten what he wanted at her office he could have easily gone to her house next. She wanted to be prepared. As it turned out she was being a little over the top. Her alarm system stayed locked and armed. Maybe, a lot over the top.

Sitting in the cab she kept her phone in one hand and the mace in the other. Convincing herself there was nothing wrong with being a little more cautious than was needed. She was safe and prepared, but there was something about Theo Sinon that rubbed her the wrong way and her guard was up.