The velvet handcuffs were dangling from the refrigerator door handle. The sequined dust bunny was locked inside one of the cuffs. It dangled a couple of feet off the floor. Otis was on the floor, hopping up and down in increasingly alarmed attempts to recover the toy. Every time he bounced up to seize the dust bunny, he succeeded only in batting the cuff, which sent its glittering prisoner swinging out of reach.
“How in the world did he manage to lock his favorite toy inside the cuffs?” Lucy asked. “Never mind.” She looked at Veronica. “Good thing you brought a spare key.”
“You know,” Veronica said, “this gives me an idea for expanding my list of discipline therapies. Thanks, Otis. You’re an inspiration.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
“I’m not sure this is a good idea,” Brock Roxby said. “There’s a lot of risk involved in your plan.”
Jocelyn Roxby had been pacing the office. She stopped and swung around to glare at her husband. Brock was seated behind his impressive desk, cranked back in an equally impressive chair. The desk and the chair went well with the stylishly decorated office.
Her office was just as imposing. The interiors of Roxby Weather Wizards had been designed by Fortune & Associates, one of the most prestigious design firms in town. The goal had been a CEO suite that could compete with the offices of the top casino moguls. Helen Fortune, the owner of Fortune & Associates, had outdone herself.
“There is very little risk if we handle things carefully,” Jocelyn said. “Don’t be a wimp. This is an incredible opportunity. We can’t let it slip away.”
“But if things go wrong, we could lose everything,” Brock said.
“Here’s the plan, Brock,” Jocelyn said through her teeth. “We don’t let things go wrong. We negotiate. Carefully. We’re good at that, remember?” She swept out a hand to indicate the spacious, expensive headquarters of Roxby Weather Wizards. “Look at the business we’ve built.”
Brock regarded her with a grim expression. She couldn’t deny that he had reason to be apprehensive. She was nervous, too. This was a deal that had to be carefully managed. There was a lot at stake.
“We have to do whatever it takes to make this happen,” she said. “If we pull it off, we’ll be able to expand to the other city-states. We will control the entire weather channeler market. We’ve already got ninety percent of the business down in the Ghost City, and that’s just the beginning. Who knows what will be discovered next in the Underworld? Whatever it is, you can bet weather will be a problem.”
“I know.”
“The Federation authorities and every smart CEO on Harmony who has a stake in the Underworld will want the best channelers. With sharp marketing and financial backing, Weather Wizards will be the number one choice.”
At long last there was a spark of excitement in Brock’s eyes. “Huh.”
“If we play our cards right, Weather Wizards could ultimately become as powerful as the Guilds.”
Brock sat forward abruptly. “All right. Call the client. Tell him we’ll get Lucy Bell for him.”
Jocelyn did not hesitate. She was on her phone, punching in the number, before Brock finished the sentence.
The client answered immediately. Impatient and eager.
Her fingers tightened around the phone. She didn’t want to admit it, but she was as uneasy as Brock. They were about to take a very big risk. But the payoff would be huge. She infused her words with cool, professional confidence.
“Weather Wizards will make it happen,” she said. “Trust me, Lucy Bell will not be a problem.”
Image was everything.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
“A decorator?” Gabriel looked up from the long string of messages on his phone. “Why in green hell do I need a decorator? This is an office. All it requires are a couple of chairs and a desk. I’ve got those.”
He was sitting behind the desk at that very moment, looking straight at the two chairs on the other side.
“All of the office furniture we are currently using is rented,” Aiden Shore said. He pushed his glasses higher on his nose and stood his ground in the doorway. “It’s functional, but I never intended for any of it to be permanent. I had to get the new headquarters in working order in a hurry. Those were your instructions, sir.”
Aiden was young, earnest, and determined. He had joined the Cadence organization two years earlier. He had the basic ghost hunting talent required to handle dissonance energy in the Underworld, but within the first month he and his instructors had concluded he was incurably claustrophobic. He got panic attacks when he went belowground into the maze of tunnels.