Elemental Assassin 05 - Spider's Revenge

dangerous troublemakers. I glanced at Finn, who was staring back at me, the same thought shining in his eyes.
    “You think the crime spree has something to do with Mab’s guests?” I asked him.
    Finn shrugged. “Maybe, maybe not. Although the people that Mab does business with usually have a little more self-control than to go around getting into bar fights.”
    He had a point, so I waved at Bria, telling her to continue.
    “The whole department’s been trying to crack down, but no one can figure out what the hell is going on, who these people are, and why they’ve all suddenly come to Ashland,” Bria said.
    “Yeah,” Xavier agreed. “Normally, we’d at least get a few whispers about what was up. But even the guys on the take don’t have a clue—and you’d figure they’d hear something from their sugar daddies so they could cut off some of the problems before they got started.”
    “So more people are hurting and killing each other,” I said. “Around these parts, that happens every time the moon’s full. What exactly do you need me for?”
    Bria looked at me. “I got a call this morning from one of my sources telling me that he knew what was going on and that it was something big—something that would really shake things up for everyone in the Ashland underworld. I asked him what it was, but he didn’t want to talk over the phone. Said it wasn’t secure enough. I’m supposed to meet with him tonight.”
    “I’m sensing a
but
in there.”
    A smile flitted across her face. “
But
he sounded strange when I talked to him. Like he was really excited about something, and this is the kind of guy who only gets excited when there’s a big score to be had. I don’t see what angle he’s playing by telling me what’s up, since I don’t pay him for his info. So I told Xavier about it, and he thought that it might be a good idea to talk to you about things.”
    I looked at Xavier. “Suggesting me as backup? That’s not like you.”
    The giant shrugged. “I thought that it might be prudent, what with everything that’s going on with Mab. Especially since someone tried to take out the Fire elemental last night—in her own mansion, no less.”
    I winced. I hadn’t brought up my little trip to Mab’s for all sorts of reasons, but mainly because I’d missed the shot. I wasn’t supposed to miss—ever. Especially not when the stakes were this high, not when my sister’s life hung in the balance, swaying back and forth on the end of a spider’s thin, silky thread. Mab wanted Bria dead in the worst kind of way, and I didn’t want Bria to think that I couldn’t protect her. I supposed that I was still playing the role of the big sister, just like I had when we were kids. Even though at twenty-five and with Ice magic that was almost as strong as my own, Bria could more than take care of herself.
    I sighed. “So you guys heard about that, huh?”
    “We did,” Bria said.
    All sorts of emotions clouded her features. Caution, respect, fear, and just a touch of concern. I wondered if that last one was for me or for herself.
    Mab was under the mistaken impression that Bria was the Snow sister with both Ice and Stone magic—the girl who Mab had been told would kill the Fire elemental one day. I’d wanted to put the word out to the Ashland underworld that Mab had it all wrong, that the Spider was the one with both Ice and Stone magic. But Bria had pointed out that since the Fire elemental didn’t seem to know who the Spider was or what the assassin’s connection might be to Bria, it was foolish to give Mab any information that she didn’t already have. From past experience, I knew thatthe Fire elemental wasn’t that stupid, sloppy, or clueless, but I’d acceded to my sister’s wishes. Bria wanted Mab focused on her and not me—no matter how dangerous it was.
    I thought Bria’s fatalistic attitude had something to do with the guilt my younger sister felt over how things had gone down that fateful night. Bria had seen Mab torturing me, but instead of trying to help me, she’d panicked and run away. I didn’t blame Bria for that, though. She’d only been eight at the time, just a scared kid, the same as me. If she’d tried to stop Mab, she would have been dead too—burned to ash by the Fire elemental’s magic. Still, all these years later, Bria felt responsible for things, like it was somehow her fault that Mab had tortured me instead of her.
    I looked at Bria, and our eyes locked. So