Read Online Dog with a Bone by Hailey Edwards - Free Book Online

bath, a full kitchen and four dock doors sum up the amenities. I doubt it’s changed since.”
    I sidestepped out of his hold and locked down my hormones. I had a job to do.
    “Good to know.” I filled my lungs with musty air. “Smells clear to me. Nothing fae.”
    A slim dagger glinted in his hand. He must have palmed it from his bag. “Follow my lead.”
    Easing through the suite, I let my gaze wander. In addition to the rolled-up carpets were bolts of fabric, drapery material was my guess, and thick coffee-table-style books crammed with wallpaper samples extending past the binding. A brass plaque screwed into the outer door read Suite D. Three more to go.
    Suite C opened into a collection of antique bedroom pieces with assorted tables thrown into the mix. Suite B was even less remarkable. Lamps sat on the floor against the walls. Sofas and loveseats occupied the center of the room. A few desks huddled in a corner. On the whole it reminded me of a staging warehouse full of stock for the fancy model homes Mom had loved to visit when I was a kid.
    The kitchen sat opposite of Suite B, so we cleared it next. Empty cupboards, empty fridge. The sink carried the faint smell of rot and soy sauce. I checked the cabinets beneath it. Garbage disposal. For the scent to linger, somebody was using the place. Two weeks tops and that smell would be gone.
    Shaw ducked out to check the last bathroom, leaving me to reach Suite A first. “The door’s locked.”
    “Huh.” He jiggled the knob upon his return. “The door is locked.”
    I cupped a hand to my ear. “Is there an echo in here?”
    All-key in hand, he aimed for the lock. Metal screeched against metal. Second try, same result. “That has never happened before.”
    “It must be spelled.” I pursed my lips. “Do you have the supplies to break a hex?”
    “Several.” He patted his messenger bag. “It all depends on who or what Richardson wanted kept out.”
    “She hasn’t taken any anti-fae measures so far.” I smoothed my left palm over the door. Tingles swept up my wrist when I gripped the knob, but the frame itself felt magic-free. “Stand back for a minute.”
    With him out of the way, I turned sideways and kicked the door about a foot beneath the knob.
    “That’s not going to work.” Shaw rifled through his bag. “Nothing is that easy.”
    Starting to think he might be right, I gave it a second kick. Frustrated, I went for a quick third.
    He pulled out a plastic bag of herbs and a lighter. “I hate to say I told you so, but—”
    Fourth kick was the charm. Wood splintered, and the cheap door swung inward.
    “Me too.” I tossed a smile at him over my shoulder. “Luckily, my foot just said it for me.”
    “By the grace of the seven mothers,” he murmured, tucking away his supplies.
    My head whipped toward the room I had been too busy being smug to examine. Rookie mistake. The spelled door should have put me on guard against worse traps inside, but I had let Shaw distract me.
    Rarity or not, I was starting to think the whole not-dating-coworkers rule was there for a reason.
    Fumbling my cell out of my pocket, I tapped the flashlight app and cocked my head as the beam hit heavy plastic shrouding clunky shapes. Curiosity urged me into the room, guiding my hand. As I gripped the thick material, icy sensations rippled up my spine. Like to like, I sensed death here.
    With a trembling hand, I ripped the sheeting from the nearest item then staggered backward with a scream lodged in my throat. Perfect glassy eyes stared at nothing. Silver hooves gleamed up at me.
    “We were wrong.” Shaw braced his hands on my shoulders when my back hit his chest.
    “She wasn’t belling.” I swallowed the hard knot cutting off my oxygen. “This is...”
    “I know.” Rubbing circles on my back seemed to soothe him as much as it calmed me. “You don’t have to go back in there.”
    Yes, I did. If I ran from this job, I was setting a precedent for cowardice the next time