“What about the Midnight Carnival brings you here?” she asked.
“Last night one of the relics went missing.”
“Tsk, tsk. If the collection was so valuable they should have installed better security.” A terrible thought struck her. “You think I had something to do with it?”
That succeeded in startling him. He was first shocked, and then she could have sworn something akin to pain flashed in his eyes. Had she somehow hurt him? Impossible. He was a Guild boss. Everyone knew they were as hard as the green quartz the Aliens had used to build their cities and tunnels.
But the ruins were not entirely impervious, she reminded herself. Eons earlier, some unknown force had ripped through the Dead City here in Illusion Town, and there were plenty of fissures in the tunnels. Nothing and no one was truly indestructible, including Guild bosses. She was annoyed to discover that she felt bad about the faint possibility that she had hurt Gabriel. The man had saved her life. She had to cut him some slack.
“No one thinks you took the damn artifact,” he said.
“I can’t tell you how relieved I am to hear that. Things have been a little rough careerwise for the past two months. I don’t need any more bad publicity.”
“I, uh, heard some of the talk,” he admitted.
“I’m sure you have.” The last thing she wanted from him was sympathy. “Let’s move along here. I’ve got plans for tonight.”
“Right.” He cleared his throat. “Let me just say that, for the record, Arcane has good security in place. The theft of the artifact appears to have been an inside job. Indications are the thief or thieves escaped into the Ghost City.”
“That’s a tough one. Very few people can track someone down there.”
“Pretty sure I can handle it.”
She smiled. “Of course.”
“But I’m going to need a very, very good weather channeler.”
“And you came to me because?”
“Everyone says you’re the best.”
She shook her head. “You misunderstood. What everyone says is that I used to be the best but that’s no longer true.” She waved a hand to indicate the tour bus. “I’ve changed careers.”
Her talent for being able to channel the paranormal wavelengths associated with the bizarre and often dangerous weather in the Underworld was as strong as ever. She loved the work. The thrill of controlling such powerful energy was unlike any other. She had the ability to save lives and prevent disasters. But handling weather down below was a business, and she was no longer in that business, thanks in large part to Gabriel Jones.
“I’m aware that your reputation took a hit after the incident two months ago,” Gabriel said.
“My reputation was shot to green hell, Mr. Jones. No security team wants to work with me. I’m bad luck. I suggest you try Roxby Weather Wizards. They’re handling a lot of the Coppersmith Mining jobs these days. Big outfit. Lots of strong channelers. They look good, too. Flashy uniforms.”
Gabriel considered the empty tour bus seats and then turned back to her. “You’re working as a tour guide because of what happened two months ago?”
She gave him a steely smile. “What happened two months ago changed my life. And not in a good way.”
“Do you want me to apologize for pulling you out of the Underworld?”
“Nope. I’m well aware I owe you my life, and I am very glad to be alive. So, thanks for that.”
“But?”
“But if you’re here because you think you can do me a favor by throwing some weather work my way, forget it.”
“I’m offering you a contract,” Gabriel said evenly. “I’m here because I need your skills and your talent.”
She shook her head. “You’re wasting your time. Even if I took the job, you wouldn’t be able to find a team that would be willing to work with me. I told you, I’ve got a reputation now. I’m the channeler who got drunk at the wedding, did drugs at an after-party, and got lost in the Underworld. Had to be rescued by a Guild security agent who risked his life to haul me back to the surface. Afterward I went crazy because of the alcohol, the drugs, and the trauma of three days in a hot paranormal environment.”
“Lucy—”
“Hey, could happen to anyone, right? But no one wants to go down into the tunnels with a weather channeler who got into that kind of trouble. In my business it’s all about reputation. I don’t have one to speak of anymore.”