The Fighter Page 7

  Maybe I should bake cookies and spread some joy in the manor tomorrow. If I give him a homemade cookie, maybe he won’t find me so self-absorbed, but I suppose that I would have to give cookies to all the guards and not just him. Otherwise it would be weird – like I just made cookies for him. I wonder how I’ll find him since I don’t know his name and I’ve never seen him before. I can’t exactly go up to old Kevin and ask for the handsome guard with the red beard and the kind blue eyes, can I?

  I scribbled down notes on my pad and then I continued reading the next page, where Dina made cookies and was disappointed that she didn’t find the guard anywhere. It wasn’t until five days later that he appeared in her notes again.

  December 18, 2414

  Today was the best day ever.

  I found out the name of the new guard. It’s Scott.

  He and Kevin escorted me and Magni to Mr. and Mrs. Carlson’s house, where we were allowed to use the indoor pool. Magni kept chatting with the guards and I learned that Scott has worked at the manor for three weeks now, but mostly outside. At one point I think he smiled at me, but I’m not one hundred percent sure because Magni was standing behind me so he might have been smiling at him instead. Scott is so handsome and for some reason, I get really shy around him.

  I almost didn’t want to go swimming because I didn’t want Scott to see how small my breasts are in my bikini, but Magni threatened to throw me in the water with my clothes on if I didn’t go in. I know he’s only seven, but he’s strong and I know he could do it. That would have been so embarrassing. Now I wonder, though, what would Scott have done if Magni had thrown me in the water? Would he have interfered if I screamed for help? Or would he have laughed and found it amusing?

  I wish I could ask if he’s planning to fight in my tournament, or just say something to him instead of behaving like a tongue-tied fool when he’s near.

  I was hoping for more entries about Scott in Dina’s diary, but only two days after going to the pool with him Dina ended with a comment saying, “Dear Diary, there are no more pages for me to write on. Time to begin my next diary. Thank you for listening to my thoughts.”

  Only, I didn’t have any more of her diaries.

  Putting down the book, I speculated: could Dina’s death somehow be a crime of jealousy? What if Scott and she had fallen in love over the next months before her tournament?

  I had no other choice than to pick up the diary from before the one I had just read. Unfortunately, it was nothing but thoughts and worries of a thirteen-year-old girl without any clues to my important murder case.

  The third book was a disappointment too. With a sigh, I picked up the fourth diary and saw the first entry was made on January 2nd, 2412. Dina had been eleven years old back then, and the chance of her revealing anything about her murderer a little over three years before she died was pretty much nonexistent. Still, after reading through three of her diaries, I was beginning to really like Dina and I was curious to know more about her as a person.

  She had humor, a big heart, and dreams that sadly never came true. All her thoughts about hosting large theme parties with her future husband and having guests show up in funny costumes made me smile. Her plan to name her future children Millie, Max, Maddie, and Marvin made me tear up a little bit, because here I was in the future and knew that she never got to experience any of that. If she had still been alive today, Dina would have been forty-eight years old. But because of her early death, she would always remain that young woman who had written about longing for friends her own age. The diaries spoke about her thoughts on being home schooled and lonely, with few girlfriends and very little contact with males that weren’t related. It made me reflect on how much better my own life was, and how lucky I was to have close friendships with Mila, Willow, Hunter, and others.

  Lying on my bed, I read for hours and it was well past midnight when I got to March 18th , 2412. What I read gave me goosebumps and made me sit up to read it one more time.

  I was so excited about my birthday this year, but this day turned out to be a birthday from hell. Dad was in a worse mood than ever. He snapped at Khan and Mom at dinner and said some awful things that made Mom tear up. I could tell Khan was hurt so I tried taking his hand under the table, but he pushed it away and just sat there all stiff and looking down.

  Later when I wanted to check up on Mom in her room, I heard them fighting again and even though I know I shouldn’t have, I listened through the door.

  Dad said something about being tired of people asking why Magni and Khan looked so different. “I’m fucking tired of the question.”

  Mom answered, “I don’t believe anyone would ask you that question, Marcus.”

  “Maybe not to my face, but people aren’t blind, Erika. Khan looks nothing like me and I see the question in people’s eyes.”

  “He’s your son. You know he’s your son.”

  “No, I don’t know that. Not after what happened.”

  I couldn’t see Mom’s face, but I could hear her voice break when she spoke. “Marcus, please! You said that we would never speak of it. You said that no matter what Khan would be your son.”

  When Dad didn’t answer Mom cried hysterically, and I wanted so badly to go in and comfort her and tell Dad that he was wrong. Khan might be darker than me and Magni, but that’s just because Mom’s side of the family have brown hair and brown eyes. She has told us so many times.

  But then my dad hissed, “I know what I said. It doesn’t change that he’s not my blood, and we both know it. Every time I see the boy’s face, I’m reminded of that fucker.”

  After that I ran back to my own room, and now I’m shaking and I don’t know what to do. Should I tell Khan what I heard or not? Nothing will ever be the same now.

  I lowered the diary and I realized that I’d been holding my breath while reading. Sucking in air, I stared at the pages of the old book where some of the letters were smeared from what I assumed had been Dina’s tears.

  Who would have known that in between the pages of trivial thoughts from a twelve-year-old girl lay a bombshell of a secret? Khan wasn’t Marcus’ biological son.

  Of course, I had noticed how different Magni and Khan were in appearance, but like Dina, I had believed that Magni was blond after his father, and that Khan took after his family on his mother’s side. Growing up in the Motherlands I was used to siblings looking different because we all had different fathers due to the anonymous sperm donors that were used at the fertility clinics. Maybe that’s why I never thought much about the two brothers being opposites. But now that I thought about it, Khan was a few shades darker than his mother and with a white father, that was unusual.

  With my pulse hammering away, I couldn’t sit still any longer. My mind was like an antique popcorn machine popping questions at a high speed, and it made me get up to remove two paintings from the wall to make room for an overview of my investigation. With a picture of Dina in the middle, I plastered the wall with my suspects and the most pressing questions.

  Husband – Henry Hudson.

  Did he kill Dina in a fit of rage?

  Guard Scott (last name unknown).

  Did a relationship evolve between the guard and Dina? And if so, could jealousy be the motive for her death?

  Who is Khan’s biological father?

  Did Erica cheat on Marcus or was she already pregnant with Khan when she married Marcus?

  Who knows that Khan isn’t Marcus’ biological son?

  Did Dina tell Khan about it? And what about Magni, does he know?

  Did Dina find out who Khan’s real father is and is he still alive today?

  Could this secret somehow be related to Dina’s early death?

  CHAPTER 9

  Leo’s Type

  Leo

  All day Raven was acting weird.

  She didn’t give me any of her endless shit about working in the basement and she didn’t poke me or tease me like she usually did.

  For my part, I hadn’t b
een able to stop thinking about her strange reaction to Gennie the other day, and it was distracting me from my work.

  First of all, why would she threaten to break Gennie’s arms if she touched me? It wasn’t like Gennie would be a physical threat to me in any way, and I was none of Raven’s concern. She didn’t even like me much or was that just what she wanted me to believe?

  My head kept going back to the first time I met Raven, which had been about a year ago when I was in charge of the security for an ensemble of artists from the Motherlands who were touring the Northlands.

  We had arrived at the Gray Manor after a hectic day of fighting and were met by Mila and Raven in person. The two of them had been like two goddesses but opposites in looks. Mila resembled an angel as she stood smiling at us with her large blue eyes and cute dimples. She was the essence of femininity with her blue summer dress and flowers in her blond braided hair. I imagined it would have taken her a long time to arrange her hair like that, while Raven’s black curls were pointing in all directions like she couldn’t care less. She was gorgeous, though, and I had to pretend to rub my forehead clear of sweat just so I could close my eyes and get my heartbeat under control. Raven was wearing clothes, but my imagination had no problem removing the shorts and tank top because she was already showing off plenty of her caramel colored skin.

  Get yourself under control.

  I had spent the last days with beautiful female artists from the Motherlands, but none of them had made my hands shake like this. If she could read my mind, she would think me a creep because all I could think about was that I wanted to lick her toned legs to see if she tasted as delicious as she looked.

  Fucking get a grip! I scolded myself and focused on what was happening in front of me. Solo was talking to Mila’s younger brother, Mason, who was ten and bragging about how good a warrior he was.

  “My dad says that you’re the best warrior he has ever trained and that when I can beat you, I can call myself the greatest warrior of my generation.”

  “Magni said that?” Solo looked surprised. “How good are you now?”

  Mason threw a nod in Raven’s direction. “I can take her.”

  Raven objected, “You took me by surprise, Mason. That was all.”

  “Have you ever fought a real fighter, though?” My question to Mason made Raven spin in my direction.

  “Hey, wait a minute. Are you saying that I’m not a real fighter? Who are you anyway?”

  Solomon was quick to answer her, “Sorry, Raven, let me introduce my friend, Leo. He’s a police officer.”

  “Police Inspector,” I corrected him and squared my shoulders. I wanted all the leverage I could get with this beautiful woman.

  “Right. Sorry, I always forget about your promotion.”

  Raven’s face glowed with excitement. “I plan to join the police force too.”

  She had to be joking, so I gave her a smile. “Women can’t be in the police force here. It’s too dangerous. Maybe if you go back to the Motherlands…”

  Raven’s left hand landed on her hip, which she pushed out to the side. “The Motherlands don’t have a police force. They have mediators and it’s not the same thing. For the record, I’m not going anywhere. This is my home and has been for ten years. Just because there are no women in the police force yet doesn’t mean there never will be. Times are changing, or haven’t you noticed?”

  I didn’t believe she was serious for one second. Even her tank top had a joke on the front saying: Support bacteria – they're the only culture some people have. It was unexpected and refreshing to see a woman with a sense of humor so I grinned. “You’re a funny one, aren’t you?” Shaking my head, I placed my hands in my pockets. “Female police officers, now that would be a sight.”

  Mason, Mila’s younger brother, looked from me to Raven. “She’s a good fighter.” He bit his lip. “But not as good as me.”

  A few minutes later, I watched her walk away with a group of people and it gave me a chance to question Solo about her. “Tell me about Raven.”

  “Ahh, Raven.” He grinned. “I know she’s stunning, but trust me, that woman is a handful.”

  “Is she with anyone?”

  He chuckled. “My friend, I’ve watched some of the finest boys and men of this country be burned by her rejections. One of my classmates, Nero, had the biggest crush on her for a long time and she ripped his soul apart with cruel jokes. If Raven has a special talent, it’s to make men look stupid.”

  “Maybe she hasn’t met the right man yet.”

  “Maybe. But personally, I wouldn’t waste my time. I’m pretty sure Raven isn’t into men at all.”

  “Is she a lesbian?”

  “Or asexual.” Solo shrugged. “Either way, if I were you, I’d go for Mila. She’s the kindest and most amazing human being you’ll ever meet, and she’s going to have a tournament.”

  “But isn’t she a Motlander? Why would she have a tournament?”

  “She is, but Magni and Laura adopted her. I guess they influenced her to want to marry the traditional Northlander way.”

  “Is Raven going to have a tournament, you think?”

  Solo patted my shoulder. “I can see you’re taken with her, but no, Raven isn’t that kind of woman. I can’t imagine she’ll ever want to marry. At best, you might be her toy for a while, but I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy. I know what loving and losing feels like. It will destroy a man.”

  Refocusing my thoughts on the present, I tapped my fingers on my desk. Solo had known Raven for ten years and he had been right about her. The times I’d tried talking to her during our stay at the Gray Manor, she’d teased and provoked me. There had been no signs that my attraction to her was mutual. Eventually, I had redirected my hopes upon Mila, who would make any man a fine wife.

  Still, the dream popped up when I was alone at night. Raven was always there when I fantasized about making love to a woman. What if I hadn’t been reading Raven right?

  Looking around to make sure no one was close, I cleared my screen from the case I should be working on and brought up a blank slate to write on.

  Clues that Raven doesn’t like me.

  - She won’t put in a good word with Mila for me.

  - She says I have no sense of humor.

  - She’s being disrespectful on purpose

  - She’s mad that I don’t allow her to come on dangerous missions and she tells me so all the time.

  - She never flutters her eyes or lifts her shoulders to her cheek as an invitation like the women in the books I’ve read.

  - She tried to strangle me with her legs when we fought.

  Clues that Raven likes me.

  - She won’t put in a good word with Mila… maybe she wants me for herself?

  - She acted jealous when Gennie came on to me.

  - I’ve never seen her fight anyone the way she fought with me. I don’t care what she says, that was fucking porn.

  - She has joked that she flirts with me, but what if she wasn’t joking and she really is flirting with me in her own strange way?

  “Inspector, can I have a minute?”

  I had been so engrossed in my own thoughts that I hadn’t seen Cameron approach. With a quick swipe of my hand, I brought back the case I’d been working on before I got stuck on whether or not Raven liked me. What the hell had I been thinking anyway?

  “What’s up?”

  “It’s Raven, sir.”

  I lifted my gaze to meet his eyes and leaned back in my chair. “What about her?”

  “Something is wrong with her, but I don’t know what it is. She didn’t come up for lunch, so I went down there to see if she was alright. She tried to tell me she forgot about lunch because she was distracted by her work, but we both know that’s a bloody lie. She’s always dying to get out of that room.”

  “Hmm…” I narrowed my eyes. “Did you see her do anything suspicious?”

  “No, she was looking over some papers. I assume they were files that she
was sorting. But here’s the next thing that worries me; I offered to spar with her and she said she wasn’t in the mood.”

  That part got me out of my chair. “Yeah, something is wrong here. Raven would never pass up the chance to have some fight training.”

  “That’s what I thought. I worry about her. What if some ass hurt her or something?” Cameron scratched his beard.

  I was already making my way around my table. “Then that ass would die a slow and very painful death.”

  Cameron groaned in agreement. “Don’t tell her I sent you. I don’t want Raven to think that I fuss over her or anything.”

  “Don’t worry, I won’t. I’ll just go down to check up on her.”

  Three minutes later I walked into the archive and saw Raven sorting files at a desk.

  “You changed your system.”

  She didn’t look up. “What do you mean?”

  “You used to stand over by the file cabinets, now you’re sitting by the desk.”

  The normal Raven would have given me some kind of sharp reply about me being a fine inspector and very attentive to details, but not today. Raven showed no interest in talking to me and simply shrugged her shoulders.

  “Raven, what’s going on?”

  “Not much.” She kept her eyes on the papers, but I wasn’t that easy to shake off.

  “It’s Friday.”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “That means no fight training. Is that why you’re a little down today?”

  “I’m not down.”

  I moved over and pulled a chair out, turning it around and sitting astride it. “Wanna take another round with me in the gym today?”