Marked By Lies: A Reverse Harem Series (The Marked Series Book 1) by Paige Orr (the red fox clan TXT) 📗

“Of course I am. I might be willing to put my life on the line, but you can bet your ass that I wouldn’t do it for scraps. My client is paying enough for me to live comfortably for a while.”

“At last, you're not completely bonkers. You realize that this is a suicide mission, right? Sure, the wards and security will be a bitch, but the main thing that should have you saying fuck no is being caught by the Prince.”

Even while she berates me for my bad choices, I can hear her fingers flying across her keyboard as she looks into what I need. I stay silent for the moment, not wanting to break her concentration. I throw myself onto my sofa, stretching out to get comfortable for the wait when a black ball of fur lands on my stomach, causing the air to whoosh out of my lungs with an unladylike oomph.

I scowl down at the cute little ball of hate as the cat kneads at my stomach before curling into a ball with a purr. I found Nightmare two years ago when I was on a job to retrieve proof of my client’s husband, balls deep in his secretary. There I was hanging from the side of a seedy hotel with my camera lens pointed at the fat, balding man and his young bimbo secretary when Nightmare leapt at me from the fire escape.

It took everything inside me to hold in my screams as the kitten landed on me, staring creepily into my eyes. After a few minutes of our staring contest, I realized that I wasn’t getting rid of the little creep and turned back to finish the job. It’s fair to say my near-death experience at the hands of a kitten would not stop this bitch from getting paid. When I finally had enough proof for my client, I got the fuck out of there and Nightmare followed me.

After that night I got the privilege of being at the divorce hearing as a witness for my client along with my evidence, and I had a new flatmate. As much as I act as though Nightmare gets on my nerves, it’s nice to have any sort of company so I can’t complain. I bring my free hand down to her, scratching her head and enjoying the feeling of her purrs rumbling against me when Annika finally stops typing.

“You might be in luck. It would seem our little Prince is having a fancy schmancy party tonight, which means all I have to do is get you on the guest list and your good to go. You just need to let me know which alias you want me to use”

“Wait, did you say tonight? How the fuck am I going to attend a party with a bunch of rich snobs when I'm lucky if I have a fucking dress suitable for that type of party in my closet. I’m so fucking screwed”

“Well, I could give you the dress I wore at my covens summer solstice celebrations. Our Coven Mistress would kick my ass if I didn’t dress for the occasion, so it should be fancy enough.”

“You’re a fucking lifesaver, Nika! Is there any way you could whip me up a glamour potion just in case as well, and we can talk about how much I owe you when I come over to pick everything up? You can pick whichever alias you want, I’ll bring a few different things to fit most disguises.”

“Yeah, no problem, you owe me for this one though since I’m working on something else that’s time-sensitive.”

“You’re the best! I’m going to grab a shower and get my shit together so I’ll be over in about an hour. What time does this shindig start?”

“You have a few hours before guests are supposed to arrive, I would get there as close to the start of the party as possible so you can search for what you’re looking for while the host is distracted greeting everyone. I’ll see you when you get here.”

“Thanks again Nika, I’ll see you soon.”

With that, I hung up the phone feeling more optimistic about stealing the necklace than I was when Adelaide told me it was in the Seelie Prince’s possession. I knew this mission would not be easy, but I’m feeling a lot better about it now I have a proper plan in place. I've learned over the years not to rush into a situation without thinking it through properly, that’s usually how someone ends up hurt.

Walking into my bathroom, I start the shower and strip down while I wait for the water to heat up. When the room fills with steam, I step under the water, letting the spray slowly relax my muscles. Something tells me that even if everything goes smoothly, I won't have a moment to myself for a while, and I’ve learned over the years to trust my instincts. I get lost in thought as I go through the motions of washing myself, thinking about the meeting with my newest client.

I look over the document in front of me in mild irritation at seeing it’s another request to find a missing pet. I know that it takes a while to build a name for yourself as a private investigator, but in the last two years, I’ve had no big cases to get my name out there. When I told Adelaide that I planned to open the place up, she was wary about the idea and now I’m starting to see why.

I nearly jump out of my skin when there’s a knock at the door. Clearing my throat, I straighten in my seat, feeling a blush spreading across my cheeks as I call out for the person to enter. A middle-aged man with a receding hairline and his nose so high in