Paranormal Investigation Bureau Books 11-20 Bundle

Witch Heist in Westerham

Lily’s feeling a bit out of place at a high-end fashion show, but she can’t wait to see Will’s sister, Sarah, strutting the catwalk. Lily and Will have planned to spend some time with Sarah while she’s in town, but when jewellery worth millions is stolen from the fashion show and Sarah’s friend goes missing with it, their plans disappear in a miasma of expensive perfume.

Sarah refuses to believe her friend could have perpetrated the heist, but Lily’s magic proves otherwise. Worried about her friend and wanting answers, Sarah decides to investigate. But soon she goes missing too, sending Lily and Will into a panic.

Will and Lily recruit Imani and flamboyant make-up artist and witch Lavender, a friend of Sarah’s, to help solve the case. Their search takes them to Italy, Spain, and back. But as times passes, the worse things look. If they don’t find answers soon, someone will die.

And on top of all that, they have a new lead into the disappearance of Lily’s parents. It’s a dangerous assignment—one that will have unforeseen consequences and leave Lily despairing that they’ll never find answers.Yep, it’s just another day in Westerham.

Witch Burglar in Westerham

There’s a witch burglar on the loose, and they’re stealing more than the usual.

There’s a prolific cat burglar on the loose who’s stealing more than people’s treasured possessions. This particular burglar is stealing their pets! Will and Lily are on the case, but clues are hard to find, and even Lily’s magical talent isn’t much help.

The pressure is mounting, and with the threat of being fired hanging over Will’s head, they need to find answers—and soon. Only Lily is having her own troubles. Her magic tattoo is under attack, and she needs it removed, pronto. The trouble is, having it removed could provide deadly consequences. With time running out and more burglaries occurring every night, can Lily and Will find the vital missing clue that will uncover the burglar, or will it all go horribly wrong?

Vampire Witch in Westerham

There’s a vampire witch in town, and he’s after more than blood.

Lily has helped her PIB witch agent friends investigate missing-persons cases before, but this case is different. With no bodies and only scant clues from her camera to guide them, this is turning into their toughest assignment yet. When they finally get a break, it’s worse than she feared. Vampire witches were supposed to be extinct—except there seems to be one, and it’s preying on local witches.

If only the vampire witch was the sole thing Lily, Will, and the crew had to worry about, but their plan to raid the Regula Pythonissam factory is about to come to fruition. In the chaos that follows, will their secret investigation be compromised, ruining their chances of uncovering what happened to Lily’s parents forever?

Meanwhile, Angelica is missing in action and no one has any idea where she is. Have the PIB directors eradicated her once and for all?

Lily wishes she had time to deal with things one by one, but as usual, the universe has other ideas. Has she finally met a case she can’t solve?

Witch War in Westerham

After a year of searching for answers to what happened to her parents and living in danger, all Lily’s questions are about to be answered, but is she ready?

Regula Pythonissam is on the move, and so are Lily and Will, travelling to France, Russia, and Germany in their quest to find answers. Unfortunately, danger awaits them, as does heartache.

The snake group are growing stronger, and the more Lily and the gang find out about them, the worse things look. When Lily, James, and the others need Chad to step up and be the boss the PIB deserves, he fails them spectacularly. The group are left desperate for resources in their increasingly dangerous search for RP, in particular Dana and her dad.

When the French arm of the PIB get caught up in the tragedies, Will has one chance to bring them onside, but can he do it, and is the head agent at the Paris office trustworthy?

Just when they think things might go their way, disaster strikes, and Lily is left with two choices, neither of which will have a good outcome, but she must make a decision, one everyone might curse her for when everything is over. Can she survive the heartache of her search and RP’s machinations, and even if she does, will her life be worth living when her brother discovers what she’s done?

Westerham Witches and a Venetian Vendetta

Woohoo! Lily finally gets that holiday she’s been wishing for since she arrived in the UK over a year ago, and everyone is joining her in Venice, including her mum. Their first day gets off to an amazing start, until a pigeon drops a “gift” on Lily’s head. Then it’s all downhill from there when, on their first night, a man at their hotel is murdered.

Lily and her friends try to stay out of things, but Angelica can’t help herself. When she teams up with the Italian PIB, she puts herself in the murderer’s sights. When Angelica disappears, Lily, Will, and their friends look everywhere, but it’s as if she’s disappeared into thin air, and the Italian PIB aren’t helping.

With little support and no local knowledge, the gang are scrambling, and Lily makes a huge miscalculation, putting her in harm’s way. Will she get out of this one alive, or has she finally met her witchy match? One thing’s for sure—when a Venetian has a vendetta, it’s best to just stay out of their way.

Witch Nemesis in Westerham

When one of Lily's friends is in trouble, she'll do whatever she can to help, even if it means risking her life.

When one of Beren's ex-girlfriends is killed in a hit-and-run accident, the team is quickly on the case. It doesn't take long for them to realise it wasn't an accident. What's worse is that all the evidence points to Beren.

Chad is happy to jump on the throw-Beren-in-Jail bandwagon, and he tries to thwart Angelica, James, Lily and the gang at every turn. His behaviour is beyond frustrating and could mean Beren spends the rest of his life locked up.

While the good witches at the PIB do their best to untangle the mystery, they might have to face the fact that Beren is guilty. Loathe to believe their kind friend is capable of such a cold-hearted murder, they continue to dig for clues, and it's not long before Liv and Lily are in grave danger.

Can they get themselves out of the mess this time, or have they finally run out of luck? And will Chad and the directors get what they desire—the demise of Angelica, her supportive friends, and the PIB? One thing's for sure—if Chad gets his way, the world as Lily knows it will be gone forever....

Witch Catastrophe in Westerham

When one of Lily’s witchy talents reveals that a horrific catastrophe is coming, the PIB have no idea what, how, and when. Can they unravel the mystery before scores of people are killed?

On a trip to the Natural History Museum in London with Lavender and Sarah, Lily decides to take some photos to remember her day, unfortunately, she sees more than she ever wanted. Many people in the museum are see through, indicating they're going to die. Lily and her friends change to detective mode immediately because whatever tragedy is going to unfold will kill scores of innocent people.

After a lengthy investigation, they narrow things down, but when the time comes to avert disaster, the unthinkable happens, and their suspect escapes with help from a surprising quarter.

As well as the disaster, Angelica and the team have Chadiot to deal with, and the directors, who have just upped the stakes. With a frenzy of danger hurtling towards them, can Lily, Angelica, and the team solve the crime and keep the bureau from going under, or will all their efforts be in vain?

Witch Karma in Westerham

How do you solve a murder when there’s little evidence and so much dislike of the victim?

When rich witch businesswoman Adelaide Fairchild is murdered by magical lightning at her office, the PIB is the first organisation her husband calls. Frantically trying to solve as many of their existing cases as they can before the directors shut them down, Angelica and James don’t want to take the job, but they don’t have a choice. A rich and powerful acquaintance has called Angelica personally because the victim is his relative. She can’t say no.

Desperate for clues and a fast resolution, Angelica makes sure that Lily is front and centre with her camera and special witch talent. But Lily’s pictures give them very little to go on, and the team is stumped.

As they scramble to solve the case, their enemies are on the attack, and tragedy strikes. Rather than let the event rattle them, the team need to use it as a motivator. But is that too much to ask?

Can Lily and the team find the clue that will break the case wide open before the directors finish them for good, or, for the first time on Angelica’s watch, will justice be beyond their reach?

Witch Showdown in Westerham

Things with the directors are coming to a head. This time, Lily and the gang have help from MI6, but the English intelligence agency might be more of a liability than a help.

Lily and Will are itching to travel to Australia and get married, but they have the not-so-little matter of their enemies to conquer first. Unfortunately, there are many of them. The directors have caught wind that MI6 is helping the Paranormal Investigation Bureau, so they've been targeting their agents and murdering them. Lily and the gang step in to help, but it spreads the PIB resources thin.

To aid in beating the directors and several of their ally criminal gangs, Angelica has given the go-ahead for Lily's dream—a squirrel army. But all too late, Lily's realised that it means her beloved squirrels will be in the firing line. Regretting her decision will get her nowhere, so she's doing her best to train them so they're prepared because if she loses any, she'll never forgive herself.

With absolutely everything on the line, will Lily and the gang's magical powers and plans be enough to beat their many enemies, or will this be the war that brings them to ruin and the PIB to a tragic demise?

Westerham Witches and an Aussie Misadventure

Lily and the gang are off to Sydney, Australia, where she and Will hope to tie the knot. However, when Lily discovers a body washed up on the beach, their plans are thrown into chaos. The body happens to be someone she knows, and it breaks her heart.

Just when they thought they'd left the crime and mysteries behind them for two weeks, the universe conspires to prove them wrong. Not only that, but the Australian witch authorities have banned magic use. If the gang thought solving a murder was hard before, it will be almost impossible with no resources and no magic.

Can Lily and Will solve the mystery and finally get married before their two weeks are up, or will circumstances and an annoying witch official who has it in for Lily conspire to make their nuptials an impossibility?

If you enjoy light-hearted cozy mysteries, you'll love this! For fans of Angie Fox's Southern Ghost Hunter Series and Annabelle Chase's Spellbound Cozy Mystery Series.

WITCH HEIST IN WESTERHAM

CHAPTER 1

Well, this was eye-opening. The model strutting down the catwalk to the strains of Harry Styles’s “Adore You” wore a sequined green top with spaghetti straps and the plungiest neckline I’d ever seen. The top skimmed the inside of her boobs, stopping just before each nipple. I’d never have the guts to wear something like that… not that I could afford the designer price tag. Although, maybe if I looked like a model, I would’ve been game to wear it. Actually, maybe not. 

As she passed us and neared the end of the platform, her skyscraper heel caught on something. She jerked forward and hopped as she tripped. I sucked in a breath. She scrambled to stay on her feet. Was she or wasn’t she going to…? Phew! She managed to save herself, turn, and make her way back along the catwalk. She hadn’t even looked down to check herself, and she really should have. I mean, wasn’t there a breeze where there shouldn’t have been? The top, which had only just covered things, had shifted, revealing both nipples.

Will’s eyes were wide open. When he’d agreed to come to the London fashion show to see his sister working, I bet he hadn’t imagined he’d get such an eyeful. He probably wasn’t disappointed though. I turned my head and looked at Beren. He didn’t appear to be overly disappointed either. We couldn’t blame them, but Liv and I still shared a head shake. At least it hadn’t been Sarah, Will’s sister, who’d flashed the world. I couldn’t imagine what Will would’ve done then since we weren’t allowed to use our magic in public.

“It’s Sarah,” Will said. I looked at the catwalk. It was the first time I’d ever seen her at work. I already knew she was gorgeous, but wow. Her five-feet-nine frame was made way taller by nude platform heels. She wore a red mid-thigh-length dress with a low neckline, but not as revealing as the previous model’s. Her sheer sleeves were fluted at the ends, the fabric slightly longer than her hemline. She gave us a flirty smile as she strutted past. I sighed. Models with their long limbs did everything so nicely and elegantly. It was as if they were from another planet. I knew I should be happy with myself because there was nothing wrong with how I looked, and my body worked just fine, but I sighed. It would be nice to feel stunning for five minutes, be the one everyone oohed and aahed at when I entered a room. Oh well, no one could have everything. Time to get over it.

Two more models walked by, and as the last one made it to the end of the runway, the lights went out. Totally black. That was brave of the designers. What if one of their models fell off the stage?

The music continued playing. Well, this was weird. Was it a statement from the designer? Yeah, nah. As if they’d go to those lengths to make things dramatic. Although, people had probably tried weirder things to sell stuff.

The music stopped. A woman’s voice came over the microphone, her posh English accent calm, as if nothing untoward was unfolding. “I’m very sorry about this, everyone. If you could stay seated, we’ll get this sorted in a jiffy.”

Phone torches lit up around us, people unable to bear more than a minute without illumination. Some of them were texting or maybe posting on social media. I supposed if you were rich and always flitting from fashion show to party to fashion show, not much bad stuff happened. This was probably a really negative experience for them. I chuckled.

There were a few murmured conversations, but the dark seemed to muffle people’s desire to talk loudly. Will whispered, “What’s so funny?”

“I’ll tell you later.”

“Ah-huh.” The tone in his comment meant he got me. And that, folks, was why we were still together. We understood each other. I smiled. Affection and love filled my chest. His hand felt for mine, and we entwined our fingers.

During the fashion show, I’d been getting pings of magic from many different people—there were obviously a few witches working in the industry—but a strong spike of magic elbowed me in the back of the head. I rubbed my scalp. That had never happened before. Had I become even more sensitive to magic? Just what I needed—something else that could give me a headache.

The crowd’s murmuring grew louder, and a couple of people complained, threatening to leave. The lights flickered and came back on. The two people who were going to leave sat back down.

A shrill scream came from backstage. Will and Beren jumped up and picked their way through the two rows in front of us, then ran to the backstage area. Once an agent, always an agent.

“Is this part of the show?” came from the row in front of us.

“I don’t know,” a woman answered, “but they do look like models, so maybe?” I had to agree—Beren and Will radiated gorgeousness. Liv and I were lucky girls because they weren’t just good-looking; they were both wonderful humans. 

I turned to Liv and leaned over Beren’s chair towards her so I could talk quietly. “Hey, should we go and see what’s up? Maybe they need our help.”

She looked around, then back at me. “Um, I can’t really do anything. Maybe you should go check. Text me if you’re not coming back.”

A tall, slim man in a spiffy white suit came through the curtains and onto the stage. He held a microphone. He walked to the middle of the catwalk and peered around the room until everyone was quiet. “Our apologies, but we have to cut this evening short. If you could make your way to the foyer, we’ll be serving complimentary champagne and canapés. Again, our apologies, and thank you for coming tonight to Evelyn’s show. We hope you like what you’ve seen. Good evening.”

Well, there went me going to see if they needed help. I slid my phone from my bag and texted Will. Is everything okay? Will you be long?

Not sure how long we’ll be. Something’s happened. Take Liv and go downstairs.

Is everyone okay?

I don’t have time to fill you in. Please just go downstairs. We’ll be there as soon as we can. I hmphed. I hated not knowing.

I eyed the door to backstage, wanting so badly to go through it.

My phone vibrated with another message. Don’t even think about it. My mouth dropped open. How did he know? I sighed. Okay, so he knew me too well.

I hmphed. Okay, fine.

I told Liv the situation. “Do you think someone died?” she asked.

“I have no idea.” I glanced at the backstage curtains and the door next to the stage again. Tempting as it was, I’d been given instructions, and I wasn’t in the mood to get into trouble. “He said they’ll be down soon enough. Come on.” Behaving wasn’t nearly as much fun as it should be—if it was, people would do it way more often, and by people, I meant me.

Liv and I waited till the beautiful crowd had left in a smog of allergy-inducing perfume before we made our way out and down the stairs to the ground floor. In the spacious reception area, waitstaff in black-and-white livery served alcohol and expensive-looking finger food from silver trays. We stood to the side—all these Botoxed, expensively dressed people were intimidating. I was just a normal person, and I was sure they could tell. Maybe I needed to get out of my own head. If they looked down on me, who cared? Besides, I could do magic, and most of them couldn’t. Come to think of it, I could buy nice fabric and magic my own designer clothes into being if I was really that worried about it. To be honest, I couldn’t be bothered. There was my answer. I laughed to myself.

“What’s so funny?” Liv popped an hors d’oeuvre in her mouth.

I grabbed one off the proffered tray. “Just realising how silly I am. Nothing new.” I laughed.

“Well, fair enough, then.” She smiled. “I wish I knew what was going on up there. What if it’s dangerous?”

“I can’t feel anything unusual. Besides, if it were dangerous, Will would have told me to get you out of here ASAP.”

“True.”

An older woman, her white hair slicked back and her ears glittering with what I assumed were diamond earrings, abruptly stopped talking. She slapped her hand on her mouth, her eyes wide. She frantically jerked around, then hurried away but didn’t make it more than ten feet before she threw up all over the floor. Splat! Splat! Splashes from the impact with the timber floors flung up and soiled a man’s black trousers. I cringed and put my own hand over my mouth.

Ew.

“Are you ready, Lily?” my sister-in-law, Millicent, asked.

I wiped my sweaty palms on my jean-clad thighs and swallowed. “Yes. I think so.”

Will gave me an encouraging smile. “You’ve got this, Lily. It’s not that hard.”

I glared at him—he was annoyingly handsome in a tightish-fitting long-sleeved black T-shirt and blue jeans. “Easy for you to say. You got this a week ago. Some of us aren’t as quick on the uptake.” Okay, so frustration was not a good look on me.

“Meow.”

I looked down at Abby, who sat on the floor. The long-haired dark-brown-and-white kitty had been part of our family for two weeks, and I still hadn’t managed to communicate with her mind to mind. She was so adorable, though, and I couldn’t help but smile at what I assumed was her encouragement. My smile fell. Hmm, maybe she was chastising me for being cranky at Will for no good reason. But I wouldn’t know because I couldn’t read her thoughts. Dammit.

Millicent chuckled. “Lily, stop overthinking it. And Abby was encouraging you…. Don’t look at me like that—I didn’t read your mind; Abby did.”

My forehead tightened. “Don’t mind shields work against animals?”

“Only partly. When we think, we project emotions too. Complex thoughts are blocked by mind shields, but our emotions aren’t. Half of an animal’s understanding, once they can decipher our language, is via picking up on emotions. She’s told me you’re frustrated—not that I didn’t already know. You have no poker face to speak of.” I rolled my eyes. She laughed. “Exhibit A.”

“You were meant to see that. I was making a statement.” I knew I was being ridiculous, but I couldn’t help myself. Feeling left out was horrible. What if I could never communicate with Abby and our new dog, Ted? I shut my eyes. Non-witches had totally fulfilling lives with their pets without being able to fully understand them. And these animals had had witch intervention, so they could communicate rather well nonverbally. And if I spoke, they understood me. I opened my eyes. “Okay. I’m fine. Sorry for being cranky. Even if I can’t get this stuff, it’s not the end of the world. I can still understand them enough to know when they’re hungry, happy, or sick, and I can still love them.” Abby jumped into my lap and booped her head against my hand. I patted her. See, Lily. It’s not that hard to understand them. Ted, the previously scruffy dog who had now been groomed into a handsome version of his former self, stood from his spot on the floor next to Will’s feet and came over to me, tail wagging. I gave him a firm pat too.

Will smiled. “They love you, and that’s all we really need, isn’t it?”

I met his warm gaze and smiled back. “Yep. You’re right.” He smirked. “Well, you have to be right one time out of ten, or it wouldn’t be fair.” My serene expression was all innocence. He raised a brow. 

“Now, now, children.” Millicent grinned. “Let’s get back to what we were doing. We’ll try this one more time, Lily. If you don’t get it, don’t worry—it will likely come when you least expect it. You’re trying too hard. You have to let it happen.”

Gah, why was this so confusing? “That’s pretty much the opposite of other magic.”

She cocked her head to the side. “Yes and no. When you perform normal magic, if it’s your talent or something you’ve done time and time again, you only think about what you want, don’t you? It’s not a difficult thought process but a simple request. Even with complicated spells, you’re concentrating on getting the steps and words right rather than pushing hard with the power itself. You’re projecting and straining too much.”

“Well, that’s so much clearer. Thanks.” I shook my head. I didn’t think I was straining any harder than I normally did when trying to perfect something I wasn’t familiar with. I sighed. Arguing was getting me nowhere. “Okay, one more try, and then I’m done for now.”

“Take a deep breath and open your mind up to the room.” Millicent’s soothing tone was ruined by what she said. I knew just opening my mind wasn’t easy, but I’d try, nonetheless.

I shut my eyes and took a deep breath.

I opened my mind.

I waited.

The only things I could sense were my breathing and darkness.

Nothing.

I took a few more breaths. Nope. Not happening. Swallowing the salty rush of defeat, I opened my eyes and pretended I wasn’t devastated. “Well, that was a bust.” I smiled my fakest of smiles. “Maybe tomorrow.”

Millicent’s and Will’s hopeful faces fell in unison. They weren’t buying the snake oil I was selling, but in true kindred fashion, they pretended everything was fine. Millicent shrugged. “Can’t win ’em all. But you’re right—tomorrow could be the day.” She smiled gently, and Abby nudged my hand for another pat. Her soft fur took the sting out of my failure. At least I still had their love.

This time, my smile was genuine—maybe a touch sad, but, hey, I was only human. “It’s fine. I’m sure it will happen eventually.” Abby purred, and Ted barked once. “At least you guys are making it easy for me.” I laughed.

“Squeak, squeak.”

I looked at Millicent. Bagel was perched on one shoulder and Cinnamon the other. They twitched their noses at me. A grin spread across my face. “Okay, okay, you’re all awesome. Thank you.”

Millicent translated their next squeaks. “They said you’re welcome, and you shouldn’t give up, but even if you never get it, they still love you, flawed human that you are.”

My eyes widened, but then I laughed. “You guys are so honest.” At least you got the real deal when you were chatting to animals. From what I could tell from Will’s translations at home, Abby tended to put a kinder spin on things when it was all going wrong, and Ted tended to say not much, but they never said anything that wasn’t true, and with the rats… well, they were pretty blunt, but I could handle it.

Will stood. “I think we’re done here for today. We’ll keep working on it at home, Mill.”

A baby’s cry came from the monitor. “My niece is awake! Can I have a quick cuddle before we go?”

“Of course you can. Why don’t you go get her?”

I placed Abby on the couch next to me and jumped up. “Thanks, Mill.” I soon returned with a bundle of smiling cuteness. After Will and I both cooed over her and smothered her with kisses, I handed my niece to Millicent.

She took her. “Time for you to have a feed and nappy change.” Millicent looked at me, then Will. “Don’t forget our meeting tonight at eight.”

Will and I shared a serious look. Tonight was all about planning our trip into Dana Piranha’s dad’s factory. This was going to be dangerous. There was a chance we could get arrested, or worse. And when I say “we,” I had no idea who was going in. Chances were that James and Will would make me wait it out since I wasn’t an agent. As much as that frustrated me, I understood where they were coming from. Although that didn’t mean I was going to let them leave me behind without a fight.

“Argh! You’re blinding me!” Imani threw her forearm up to protect her eyes. “Be careful where you angle that thing.”

Liv laughed, and I grinned as we walked home after enjoying brunch at Costa. “Ha ha. Very funny.” I splayed my hand and admired my dazzling engagement ring. “Anyway, I can hardly be proficient with managing it—I’ve only had it a week. Surely wearing bling like this should come with a grace period?” I see-sawed my hand side to side. Such pretty twinkles. Who knew light refraction could be so enthralling. “It could probably do some damage if I punched someone in the face.”

Liv nodded. “It could definitely take out an eye.”

Imani had removed her arm from her face, but she jokingly side-eyed the ring, pretending to fear its brilliance. “Shiny and practical—my favourite combination.”

“When are you setting a date?” Liv asked.

“I have no idea. We’re going to talk about it after we sort out the DD thing.” DD stood for Dana’s Dad. Rather than anyone knowing what we were talking about, we’d given him that nickname.

“Wow, love. That could take a while. We still have interviews to get through.” Imani was talking about the captives we’d found in the basement of DD’s factory. There was so much to record that they’d had to have days with just one victim to ask what they needed. It was definitely a huge mess. At least we’d gotten this far. It had been the biggest break through so far to finding out what happened to my parents. But I didn’t want to bring that up here, and I was pretty sure neither did my friends.

I shrugged. “Whatever. It’s fine. The fact that he loves me and asked is enough. It’s not like I’m in a hurry to have kids or anything.”

“Why not?” Liv asked. “You’d make such gorgeous babies.”

I chuckled. “That’s not a good reason to have kids, Liv. Ask me when I’ve travelled the whole of Europe and run out of things to do. I haven’t got time to have kids right now… or for the next few years.”

“Party pooper. I can’t believe you’re going to wait so long. I thought it would be cool if we had them at the same time. It would be amazing if our kids could grow up together.”

My eyes widened. “You’re not pregnant, are you?”

She snorted. “No! But, you know, I’m hoping it will happen in the next two or three years.” She lowered her voice. “We’ve been talking about it.”

“What about marriage?” Not that it mattered, but it was the natural thing to ask.

She shrugged. “I’m not that fussed, to be honest. After going through that whole engagement thing and the aftermath, it’s kind of lost its appeal. I mean, if B asked, I’d say yes, of course, but it’s not a priority. We’ve been living together for a while now, and it’s the best thing in the world. I don’t want anything to change—it’s perfect just the way it is.”

Imani raised one eyebrow. “And you think nothing will change when you have kids? Is that what you’re telling us?” Liv opened her mouth to answer, but Imani’s phone rang, cutting her off. “Sorry, love.” She slid it out of her pocket. “Hello, Agent Jawara speaking.” She listened for a minute. “Yes, of course. I’ll be there as soon as I can. Bye.” She looked at me. “That was your brother. He’s called us in.”

“Me too?”

“Yes.” Her tone held enough gravity that Liv and I both knew what she meant—I was wanted for my talent. While it paid well, I was tired of being in the thick of crime scenes. There were some things I just didn’t want to see.

I sighed. “Okay. What is it?”

We’d reached Angelica’s. Imani kept her own counsel until we went inside. As we stood in the hallway outside the living room, she made a bubble of silence. “It’s a murder scene—two of the slaves we haven’t interviewed yet.”

Liv sucked in a breath. “How did that happen? Aren’t they living in PIB housing under agent protection?”

“Yes.”

Yikes. That was scary and bad news. “Do you think they had information that could do lots of damage or is it a warning to the other slaves?”

She pressed her lips together for a moment. “Either or, neither nor. Who knows? The point is, we need to get to the bottom of it. Anyway, love, put your uniform on and grab your camera. We’ll travel to headquarters and go with Will from there. It’s safer.”