“Gemma,” my mother started, crossing her arms on the desk and taking a deep breath. “I have requested that you be taken off this case.”
Opening my mouth, I went to protest. She held up her hand, forcing me to be quiet as she shook her head and glared at me.
“No. You will not dictate to me. Your life is in danger and the reason that the other women were killed was because of you. If you think that Paranormal MI5 will allow you to work on a case against Xvair Harvey, you can think again.”
Forcing my jaw to lift from where it had dropped, I clenched my hands into fists. “We saved the woman that Lucien had kidnapped before he killed her. Why would you take me off the case now?”
Dave cleared his throat, shaking his head in warning as I went to step forward.
Pausing, I swallowed hard as I crossed my arms over my chest.
My mother sighed deeply as she took out a piece of paper from a file that lay on her desk.
“Ever since your father came home and told me that he had lost you in a bet, I have tried to protect you. By not telling you the whole truth, I put you in more danger. Xvair Harvey will not stop until you have a child by one of his sons. If I allow you to work on this case, it means that I’m risking my daughter. I cannot imagine what could happen if you come into close contact with him. I cannot allow it.”
Why would my mother suddenly gain a guilty conscience? For twenty five years she had pushed me into the idea of honouring my father’s debt. Now, she wanted me to do the opposite. If I was confused as a child, I was more confused as an adult. Why should I give up the fight that I had promised to win?
“What would you have me do?”
Licking her lips, my mother handed me the piece of paper. My gaze scanned it, reading the decree that announced that I should take a sabbatical for three months. Heat seared my insides as I resisted the urge to screw up the order and throw it in her face. I could see what she was doing. As much as I didn’t want to admit it, she was trying to protect me.
In a way, the freedom to find Brianna would be granted. However, if I wanted to be brought back from the dead, I had to find and kill Xvair Harvey myself. With or without my mother’s permission.
“You want me to sit around and do nothing?”
Dave took the paper off me and read the words, a frown coming to his face. “No disrespect,” he said to my mother. “But Gemma is a vital part of our investigation. I can protect her.”
Pushing up from her seat, my mother stared at me. “There will be no discussion on this matter. You mentioned to me briefly last night that you wanted to find your friend. I give you permission to do that, but you must stay away from the MI5’s investigation. I know you, Gemma.” Flicking her hair behind her shoulder, she held out her hand and gestured with her fingers. “I need your badge and gun.”
Fury raced through my veins, the heat of it burning my skin. How dare she dictate what I do? Surely, they couldn’t kick me off the case? This was my job. This was something that I had been doing my whole life. If I was no longer an agent, what would I be?
“Don’t glare at me like that.” My mother sneered. “Just give me your badge and gun. You are dismissed.”
My breath came short as Dave inspected his hands, his wary expression creasing his forehead as he avoided looking at either of us. Would the illusionist witch be able to handle the case without me? Jake and Kate would need to be directed every day. Would they agree to carry on the case without their leader?
“How can you do this to me? The ancestors want me to get rid of Xvair Harvey so the balance of magic can be restored. Me, Mother, no one else.”
Coming around the desk, my mother stomped her high heels into the carpet. Without waiting for me to reach for my badge, she grabbed the zip of my jacket and tugged it down.
My hand reached out to shove her, but Dave managed to get hold of me before I could.
Placing his arm across the top of my shoulders, he pulled me back and whispered in my ear. “Hand them over.”
Swallowing as a lump came to my throat, I reached into my pocket with one hand and into my holster with the other. Handing my mother the very items that made me an agent, left a bitter taste in my mouth. At least she could never take away my blade, that was my ancestral birth right. The Essex dagger could only ever be used by myself.
Taking my identity, my mother dropped her gaze to the floor before she straightened her spine and turned away. “I’m doing this for your own good. It’s time I protected my daughter.”
Keeping my mouth shut, I ripped away from Dave and stormed from the office, not bothering to give her any more of my time. If the witch thought that I would leave my team to tackle one of the hardest cases that Paranormal MI5 had ever seen, she had another thing coming.
“Gemma?” Dave called as we marched into the elevator.
Gripping his arm as the doors closed, I looked up into his eyes. He was about to speak, but when he saw how intently I watched him, he sucked his bottom lip into his mouth.
“Dave,” I whispered, keeping my hands on his arm. “Are you with me, or are you against me?”
The corner of his lip lifted into his cheek, creating a half grin. His handsome dark eyes
