City of Magic: The Complete Series Helen Harper (fox in socks read aloud TXT) 📖

there, beaming with pride; the next second he was gone. There were so few ripples on the surface of the lake that I wasn’t sure he’d had any time to fight back.

I gaped and shuddered. Monroe marched over and wrapped his arms round me. I leaned into him and we stared at the water. It didn’t take long. Nimue’s head broke the surface. ‘Thank you for my gift,’ she purred. The faintest smear of blood still clung to her lips

I found my voice. ‘You shouldn’t have done that. You shouldn’t have killed him.’

She smiled. ‘It’s in my nature. I can’t help it. Besides,’ she added coyly, ‘you both wanted me to.’ She raised her hand in a wave. ‘Don’t forget to come and visit,’ she called before she disappeared beneath the water once more.

Monroe and I stood there in silence. When I finally spoke, I didn’t turn my head to look at him. I wasn’t sure I wanted to. ‘Were you ever under his control?’

‘For a time,’ he murmured, his lips close to my ear. ‘He was very … persuasive. His words made sense and he understood which buttons to press. He was a wily bastard. Just not wily enough.’

‘You see?’ I said quietly. ‘You’re not the predator you thought you were.’

Monroe’s arms tightened round me. ‘Oh, I am, I’m just more in control than I thought I was. I know who my targets are. In a way, Albert’s therapy worked. I know my limits and my boundaries, regardless of the magic.’ He pressed his lips to my cheek, the heat of his mouth searing into my skin. ‘I win.’

There was the sound of running feet. From beyond the lake and the woods, Anna appeared with at least a dozen bogles at her back. ‘We’re all here!’ she roared. ‘We’re all going to…’ Her voice faltered as she took us in. ‘Isn’t he here?’

I glanced out towards the now still water. ‘He was,’ I said. ‘But he’s not any more.’

Epilogue

Timmons had a knowing smile on his face as he pressed the key into my hands. ‘Your room is on the top floor,’ he said. ‘It’s out of the way of the others. You won’t be disturbed.’

‘Thank you.’

He handed me a plate covered by a silver dome. I frowned and lifted it. Underneath was a jam sandwich, cut into neat diagonal shapes. ‘In case you get peckish,’ he told me. He gave me a little nudge. ‘Off you go.’

The door to the hotel room was already ajar. I pushed it open with my free hand and walked in, carefully laying the sandwich on the side table where a television would once have stood.

I turned and regarded Monroe who was lying spread-eagled on the bed, surrounded by rose petals.

‘We have chocolates,’ he said, without taking his eyes off mine. ‘And wine. Clearly, the faery has been holding onto his own secret stash. I’ll have words with him about that later.’

‘No, you won’t,’ I said. ‘Besides, we’re all in this together.’

He smiled at me, a secret smile that I’d never seen him bestow on anyone else. ‘That we are.’ He licked his lips. ‘These trysts will be a lot easier to manage once you all move into the north.’

‘Everyone is pretty much packed up.’

‘Good. Has there been much argument?’

I shook my head. ‘Not as much as I expected. I think everyone gets it. Before it was about survival, about making it past the apocalypse and adapting. But now we’ve moved past merely surviving – we have to start living too.’

He stretched his arms behind his head. ‘I’m glad you came,’ he said softly.

I breathed in deeply. ‘So am I.’

‘If you don’t want to be here…’

I didn’t give him a chance to finish. ‘I do. This is all that I want.’ I squinted at him. ‘Do you want to be here?’

His answer was quiet. ‘Like you wouldn’t believe.’ He looked away as if he were suddenly nervous. ‘I’m sorting myself out properly, too. Albert’s not the only counsellor in town. It turns out that Theo the vampire is also a fully-qualified therapist. In fact, hypnotherapy is one of his specialisms. I’ve signed up for a month.’

I smiled. ‘I think that’s a really good idea.’

Monroe seemed to relax. ‘I’m going to get over this. I’m going to be the person you deserve.’

I walked over and forced him to look up at me. ‘You always were.’

His eyes flared, their blue light darkening to a stormier grey. ‘Not always.’ The corners of his lips curved slightly. ‘I like your plans for different clubs and societies. Julian was particularly enamoured by the thought of amateur dramatics.’

I blinked. ‘Really?’

Monroe laughed. ‘No. Although he would make a fabulous pantomime dame. He is keen on taking poker lessons, though.’

I rubbed my palms together. ‘Excellent. I could do with some easy targets. I’d have thought that Julie would be interested in some theatre but she’s decided to offer Pilates instead.’

Monroe raised an eyebrow. ‘It’s a strange new world.’

‘It is indeed.’ I sat on the edge of the bed. ‘Do you think we’ll manage?’

He sat up and tugged at my collar, drawing me towards him. ‘Yes,’ he breathed. ‘I do.’

Then his lips descended onto mine.

FURTIVE DAWN

CITY OF MAGIC

Chapter One

There are many differences between average poker players and elite poker players. I could wax lyrical about those differences for hours but that would mean giving away all my secrets. I might not play cards or gamble very often these days, but I still hold out hope that I might make a return to the tables. For that reason, I keep most of my best strategies to myself.

One strategy that you should know about, however, is that it’s vital to think about ranges rather than specific hands. It’s tempting to imagine that the player opposite is holding a top pair and then work from that. What’s more useful is to picture the entire range of hands in a certain situation and make your play with that understanding. Your opponent certainly could