Owen and I lazed around for the better part of an hour before reluctantly pulling on our clothes and walking back to the beach house. I would have loved to spend the rest of the day with him, but Callie was still in trouble, and I had an appointment with Dekes that just wouldn't wait.
Using his seemingly endless network of business connections, clients, spies, and snitches, Finn had managed to score himself, Bria, and Owen invites to Dekes's press conference just like he said he would. The four of us regrouped in t
he living room that afternoon to go over some final details.
I looked at the laminated press card, the photo ID, and the other phony credentials that Finn had created for me. "So my name is Carmen Cole, and I write for some newspaper up in New York. Don't you think that's a little out there? A reporter coming all this way just to talk to Dekes about his casino?"
Finn shrugged. "Not really. According to the guest list, there are reporters from a variety of publications and states coming in for the party. I figured that was the easiest thing to do, since I have a subscription to the financial section of that newspaper and can give you some details about what it covers and how. Simpler is better, remember? That's what Dad always used to say. "
That had been one of many pearls of wisdom Fletcher had given us over the years and one that I'd taken to heart today. The plan was straightforward. Using the fake credentials that Finn had created for me, I was going to pretend I was writing a business story on Dekes's new casino and its potential economic impact on Blue Marsh. When the time was right, I'd approach Dekes and ask him for a private interview. Powerful or not, I imagined that he'd be happy to suck up to a lowly reporter if he thought it would get him some good press.
Once I was alone with Dekes, I'd make my move and strongly suggest that he leave Callie alone. Depending on what the vampire did then, I'd either walk out of his office and rejoin the press conference or sneak out the back covered with blood.
I was good with either option.
"Now, on to more important matters," Finn said, striking a dramatic pose. "How do I look?"
Finn loved dressing up, and he had more high-end suits hanging in his closet than most people had white cotton socks stuffed into their chests of drawers. But he'd gone all out this afternoon. Finn sported a fitted white linen suit that showed off the muscular lines of his body. His shirt was black, and so were his shoes, which were so slick and glossy that I could see my reflection in them. A white Panama hat with a slim black ribbon around the brim perched on top of his carefully styled, walnut-colored locks. Finn had spent more time on his hair than Bria and I had - combined.
"A Panama hat? Really?" Owen asked, raising an eyebrow.
Finn grinned. "When in Rome. "
In contrast to Finn, Owen wore a simple navy suit with a sky blue shirt and tie and a pair of black wingtips. He looked every inch the strong, shrewd, powerful businessman that he was. To me, there was nothing sexier than a man in a well-tailored suit, and I found myself wanting to slip off Owen's jacket and slide my fingers down his chest before undressing the rest of him. Mmm.
"Well, I don't know about you three, but I feel ridiculous in this dress," Bria muttered.
A long, slinky gown clung to my sister's body, showing off her killer curves. Black and white orchids covered the dress, creating an interesting geometric pattern, and small black sequins gleamed on the garment's spaghetti straps, bringing out the exquisite paleness of Bria's skin. Her blond hair just brushed her shoulders, the ends curling around the primrose rune that rested in the hollow of her throat. Smoky black shadow and liner rimmed her blue eyes, adding to her beauty, while strappy black stiletto heels gave her an extra three inches of height.
"I can't believe that I let you talk me into wearing this," she said, glaring at Finn. "Much less buy it in the first place. "
Heat sparked in his bright green eyes. "Don't worry, cupcake. You won't be wearing it long, if I have my way. "
Bria's eyes narrowed, but her red lips curved up into a knowing, satisfied smile.
"It's just too bad that Gin doesn't look as smashing as you do," Finn lamented. "Really, Gin, could you have put on something any more boring?"
Since I was going in as a journalist, I'd opted for a more serious, professional look - a body-hugging black camisole over matching black pants. My dark brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and I'd gone dark and smoky on the makeup, just like Bria. Unlike her open-toed stilettos, I had on a pair of ankle-high boots, with two of my silverstone knives already tucked inside them. Some pens, a notepad, and a small digital voice recorder were nestled inside the purse I was carrying, adding to the journalist facade.
For the final touch, I'd slipped on a fitted black jacket. But it wasn't just any jacket - this one was lined with silverstone. The magical metal commanded a high price due to its ability to absorb and store all forms of magic. No matter what power they possessed - Air, Fire, Ice, or Stone - many elementals had rings, necklaces, watches, and other pieces of jewelry made out of the metal. The bits and pieces of silverstone looked innocent enough glinting on fingers, necks, and wrists, but really, they gave folks a bonus boost of magic in case they needed it - like for a duel.
That's how elementals fought, by dueling each other, by testing their magic against another person's. Only the strong survived an elemental duel, and the result for the loser was never a good one. Suffocated by a lack of Air, fried to a crisp by Fire, an Ice knife slammed into your throat, your heart turned to Stone in your own chest. Not exactly peaceful or painless ways to die, given how cruelly creative elementals could be with their powers.
I had my own piece of silverstone jewelry, thanks to Bria - the spider rune ring that I wore on my right index finger. The metal hummed with my stored Ice magic and felt like a cold thread wrapped around my skin. The ring and the extra bit of power it contained was what had helped me kill Mab.
In addition to absorbing and storing magic, silverstone also had the added benefit of being tougher than Kevlar. Whenever I was out working as the Spider, I usually wore a vest made out of the metal, since silverstone was great for stopping bullets, knives, and other weapons. But since I couldn't go into Dekes's press conference looking like an assassin, I'd opted for the suit jacket instead. It wasn't as thick and heavy as one of my normal vests would have been, but there was enough silverstone sewn into the lining to give me a fighting chance against any bullets or blasts of magic that might come my way. Plus, the jacket let me stuff two more knives up my sleeves, while another one rested against the small of my back as usual.
That last knife felt as cold as the spider rune ring on my finger, since the blade contained my Ice magic - something else that had come out of my final fight with Mab. My body had burst into icy silver flames when I'd been dueling the Fire elemental, and the silverstone knife, along with the others I'd been carrying, had absorbed quite a bit of my magic. I'd never before used the power in this particular knife, the one that I'd killed Mab with, but it comforted me to know that it was there, just in case I needed it.
As for the icy flames, it was a trick that I hadn't done since then, although I'd tried a time or two to get my fists to ignite just to see if I could. So far, I hadn't had any luck. Then again, I hadn't been as desperate as I had been fighting Mab. I imagined that had quite a bit to do with my cold spontaneous combustion that night.
"Are you sure that you want to do this, Gin? Take on Dekes?" Bria asked, staring at me. "I know that you came to Blue Marsh to get away from all the thugs in Ashland who are after you right now. And Callie's my friend, not yours. I should be the one to help her, not you. "
"I know," I said. "But you're my sister. "
Bria stood there, like she was expecting me to say something else. But in my mind, I'd given her reason enough for putting myself in danger again. Yeah, maybe I was a coldhearted assassin, but I'd do anything for the people that I loved. Cheat, lie, steal, even kill for them. I'd done it before when I was battling Mab, and I would gladly do it again. I might be in a different city, but the rules of the game were still the same - and it was a game that I was determined to win.
"If we're all ready," I said, "let's go pay Randall Dekes a visit that he won't soon forget. "