Erik walked into the apartment, expecting it to be empty. He hadn’t felt Vivian’s presence since before a lunch he didn’t eat. Monique stepped into the living room. The hurt and anger on her face tore his heart out.
Monique blinked and a tear fell. “I wish I’d listened to you.”
“What did you do?” he whispered.
“A client came in. Knew what happened. She let Mom in.” Her eyes closed and he crossed the room, taking her face in his hands. “I’m so sorry, Monique. She was probably worse because of me. I didn’t want you to hurt more.”
She wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head on his chest. He held her close, wishing he could change what happened.
“What she said…she’s right. I can’t compete with what you’re doing. I don’t want to.”
“It’s not a competition. I can have you and still do my job. Why would you ever question that?”
“As an enforcer, you’re going to be asked to do things I can’t stand by. I’ll only be a distraction.”
He pushed her back and pulled her chin up. “You’ve never been a distraction. You’re my whole life, Monique. I don’t want anything but you.”
“And to change the Council, but you can’t do that with me by your side.”
“I’ll leave. I’ll quit.” His voice broke. If it meant keeping Monique, he’d walk away even if it disappointed his father.
“No. You need to do this, and I need to let you. Besides, I’ll be traveling. I want to absorb everything fashion to further my career.”
“I’ll come with you. I’ll leave the Council behind.”
Stepping back, she wiped at her face. “You couldn’t even tell me she was here, Erik. You didn’t trust me. And it will happen again. You’ll have to keep your mouth shut about a case. Or I’ll lose someone dear and you’ll refuse to tell me what they want me to hear.”
“If it wasn’t all hate filled rage, I would have shared. Don’t you get that? If she had wanted to tell you how much she loved you, I would have done it in a heartbeat. But the shit she wanted to spew is tearing us apart.”
“I know, but it doesn’t change how much it tears me up to know you wouldn’t even tell me she was screaming at you.”
“You were already hurting. I didn’t want to make it worse.”
“I can’t do this, Erik. Something will always hold us apart.”
“I’ll leave the Council. I’ll tell you next time. Just don’t go.”
“You say that now, but next time…” She sucked in a breath and backed toward the door. “Next time you’ll come to your senses and you’ll be right to do it, but I can’t live like that.”
He closed the distance. “Tell me what to do.”
“It’s too late.” She placed her hand on his chest and whispered, “I’m sorry.”
He slid to the floor as darkness washed over him.
* * * *
Crying, Monique left him in the apartment and took her suitcase. Consuela gave her a talisman in order to put him to sleep. He would have chased her, convinced her to stay. Leaving was breaking her heart, but she needed to get far away before she changed her mind. This was the right choice.
It had to be. She was flying to France, then London and whatever else she could squeeze in before she had to come back for her mother’s funeral.
She stopped at a payphone and loaded it to call Dad. He answered after a few rings.
“Hello?”
“I’ll be back in time for the funeral. I closed the shop. I’m going to tour Europe until then. I’ll probably go back afterward.”
“What about Erik?”
“I left him. He lied to me, Daddy. He wouldn’t tell me Mom came to the house. And sooner or later, he’s going to have to choose between me and his job.”
“He would choose you every time. I know your mother hated that you chose Erik. And as much as I love her, she was always wrong about him. You need to think this through. A break is smart, but he’s your heart. You can’t tell me you don’t love him.”
“I do, and that’s why I’m leaving. I won’t be the reason he leaves the Council, and I won’t be the reason he can’t complete a mission. It’s better this way. Mom was right. He’s more mage than not.”
“You’re wrong. He’s a necromancer, Monique. Even if this program succeeds, he won’t ever be a mage, and I can’t foresee a time the whole of the Silver Council will accept him. Maybe it’s best if he leaves for you. And he would follow you anywhere.”
“I don’t want him to. Maybe I’ll change my mind. But I need time.”
“He’ll wait for you. Forever,” Dad told her.
“We’ll see. Right now I need to figure this out.”
“I love you, angel. Call me when you land.”
* * * *
Erik woke and knew he was alone. He pushed himself from the floor. Someone knocked like they’d been there for a while. He pushed his hair out of his face and opened the door.
Gwen stood there, an impatient look on her face.
“I have a lead. You ready to go?”
“Yeah.” He let out a breath and locked the door.
She glanced over and frowned. “Tell me on the way.”
“Not much to tell. She left.”
“What do you mean she left?”
“She left. Monique is going to Europe. She’s done with me. And she used a spell to put me to sleep before leaving because she knew I’d follow her.”
“She’ll be back.”
“I don’t know, Gwen. She doesn’t want me to pick her over the Council, and she’s sure the Council will come between us. But I would leave in a heartbeat if it meant keeping her. Hell, if I could go back, I’d do what I swore I wouldn’t just so she’d stay.”
“Would she have?”
“I don’t know. Probably not. Fuck, can we talk about anything else?”
“Yeah, like the case?”
“Yeah, what’s the new development?”
“Demon infested corpse. It’s wreaking havoc on a cemetery.”
“Who do you think brought it back?”
“Rumor is Consuela Bordeaux is in town.”
“Unlikely. She doesn’t make mistakes. Not like that.”
Gwen nodded, her eyes sliding away.
He told her the ugly truth, “More likely Coltrain. He doesn’t have the control or discipline he needs to control the dead like that.”
Sad determination flowed over her face. “I know.”
“Will you be able to bring him in?”
Gwen nodded slightly. “Yeah. I’m going to have to.”
“Sorry, Gwen.”
“No, don’t. We’ve been falling apart for a long time. And if he’s stupid enough to pull that and not clean up his own mess, he needs to be brought in.”
“Not because of what he is?”
“No. But he did bring something back he couldn’t control and it’s killing innocent people. So yeah, he needs to pay for his crime. If it were a mage who couldn’t control their fire and burned an apartment building full of people down, they’d deserve punishment too.”
“Sorry. Monique questioned if I was becoming too much like you all.” Erik rubbed at his face. “I want to go after her, but she made her choice. So what do I do?”
“Give her time.”
“And what if she never changes her mind?”
“Can you really let her go right now?”
“No.” He let out a heavy breath. “Let’s just get the job done.”