Read Online Motor City Mage by Cindy Spencer Pape - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Cindy Spencer Pape
Ads: Link
building long since abandoned by the mining operations. A simple spell opened the sealed steel door on an empty, concrete block building. An elevator in surprisingly good working order waited to take them down below the surface. Des had been in the mines once before, to help mop up after Nightshade, but that time the Wyndewin had permission to use the modern entrance, even utilizing company trucks once they’d gone down an elevator longer than the one at the Empire State Building. If his boss was working with Nightshade, though, that would explain why they hadn’t captured Nightshade or totally shut down the operation at that time. Hell, they hadn’t even found the portal.
Inside the elevator, which had obviously been restored, if not replaced, in the last year or so, Lana chuffed and leaned against his side. In her wolf form, she was compact but powerful, with cinnamon highlights in her gray-and-black coat. Only her amber eyes were the same. Des had tucked her pistol into his jacket pocket. He sure hoped she didn’t have to shift, because he couldn’t figure out a reasonable way to carry her clothes with them. He laid his hand on the top of her head and incanted the spell that would make her invisible—he hoped. It was always hard to tell what other magical species could detect.
The descent was a long one—a lot like going up to the top of the Renaissance Center, but without the glass-backed elevator. No view down here except hundreds of feet of rock. The salt deposits from the sea that had once covered the region were buried deep under layers of glacial till.
“Sorry about this,” Vin said. “They’re just for show. There’s a filed-down link, so you can pop the chain when you need to.” He pulled out a pair of handcuffs and secured Des’s hands behind his back. “Malen—Mandrake insists on it.”
The plan was a simple one, but with plenty of room for error. Vin would maneuver his boss close to the portal and activate it. Once they were through, Des would seal it from this side. Hopefully, he would also capture his own supervisor, if the man was still there. Otherwise, he’d have to deal with that part of the operation on his own, after the portal had been taken out.
The world below was white. Not the pure white of freshly fallen snow, but close. Walls, floor, ceiling, they were all solid rock salt, white with veins of beige or gray. Lights suspended from cables illuminated the tunnels every ten to fifteen feet.
Des felt Lana brush against his thigh as they walked, but refused to look down at her even though he could see her through his spell. The less attention she drew, the better. He still doubted his own wisdom in letting her come along. If she was hurt on his watch, he’d never forgive himself. Des wasn’t sure what was going on between them, but for the moment at least, he considered her his to protect. He doubted she saw things that way. Lana was the most stubbornly independent woman he’d ever met. Oddly, that was becoming part of her charm, even if it would likely drive him crazy if this was anything but a fling.
Slouching and staggering a little to give himself the look of an addict, he followed Vin through the seemingly endless grid-patterned corridors. He spotted the occasional security camera, and as they drew deeper in, they passed other demons and humans standing guard or going about their business. At the end of one hallway, Des could see workers actively mining the salt. Unsurprisingly, Vin turned the other direction.
Eventually, they came to an area where the gaps between the giant salt pillars were closed off, as if the mining had stopped here. A faint aura of magic hinted that the walls might be illusion, or have been recreated through spells. This then, was probably what divided Mandrake’s realm from the corporate mining operations still going on after a hundred years in operation.
Another turn led them to an area, guarded by maybe a dozen demons, which had been set up as
Inside the elevator, which had obviously been restored, if not replaced, in the last year or so, Lana chuffed and leaned against his side. In her wolf form, she was compact but powerful, with cinnamon highlights in her gray-and-black coat. Only her amber eyes were the same. Des had tucked her pistol into his jacket pocket. He sure hoped she didn’t have to shift, because he couldn’t figure out a reasonable way to carry her clothes with them. He laid his hand on the top of her head and incanted the spell that would make her invisible—he hoped. It was always hard to tell what other magical species could detect.
The descent was a long one—a lot like going up to the top of the Renaissance Center, but without the glass-backed elevator. No view down here except hundreds of feet of rock. The salt deposits from the sea that had once covered the region were buried deep under layers of glacial till.
“Sorry about this,” Vin said. “They’re just for show. There’s a filed-down link, so you can pop the chain when you need to.” He pulled out a pair of handcuffs and secured Des’s hands behind his back. “Malen—Mandrake insists on it.”
The plan was a simple one, but with plenty of room for error. Vin would maneuver his boss close to the portal and activate it. Once they were through, Des would seal it from this side. Hopefully, he would also capture his own supervisor, if the man was still there. Otherwise, he’d have to deal with that part of the operation on his own, after the portal had been taken out.
The world below was white. Not the pure white of freshly fallen snow, but close. Walls, floor, ceiling, they were all solid rock salt, white with veins of beige or gray. Lights suspended from cables illuminated the tunnels every ten to fifteen feet.
Des felt Lana brush against his thigh as they walked, but refused to look down at her even though he could see her through his spell. The less attention she drew, the better. He still doubted his own wisdom in letting her come along. If she was hurt on his watch, he’d never forgive himself. Des wasn’t sure what was going on between them, but for the moment at least, he considered her his to protect. He doubted she saw things that way. Lana was the most stubbornly independent woman he’d ever met. Oddly, that was becoming part of her charm, even if it would likely drive him crazy if this was anything but a fling.
Slouching and staggering a little to give himself the look of an addict, he followed Vin through the seemingly endless grid-patterned corridors. He spotted the occasional security camera, and as they drew deeper in, they passed other demons and humans standing guard or going about their business. At the end of one hallway, Des could see workers actively mining the salt. Unsurprisingly, Vin turned the other direction.
Eventually, they came to an area where the gaps between the giant salt pillars were closed off, as if the mining had stopped here. A faint aura of magic hinted that the walls might be illusion, or have been recreated through spells. This then, was probably what divided Mandrake’s realm from the corporate mining operations still going on after a hundred years in operation.
Another turn led them to an area, guarded by maybe a dozen demons, which had been set up as
Similar Books
