Waylaid Read Online Free

anything. Maybe it’s me. Did you hit me with one of those joke spells to cut off my access to the lines?”
    Absolutely bonkers , Peri thought, worried the woman was going to try to take her phone. “Anything look familiar?” she asked instead of answering, and Rachel shifted the map around with one thin finger, delighting in it.
    “No. But ley lines exert an unseen force. People usually put their important buildings over them. Museums and the like. The demons get a kick out of it. This looks like a good bet,” she said, extending the phone so Peri could look. “See how the roads kind of lead to it?”
    Demons? Peri rocked forward onto her toes, then away. “You’re serious?” she said. “All roads lead to it because it’s a mall.”
    “Is that what that says?” Rachel mused, then started when Peri used two fingers to zoom in on it. “My God. That is so cool,” she blurted, then added, “Yeah, demons like shopping as much as anyone else. Al says that’s where bell-bottoms and leisure suits came from. Some kind of joke that went wrong.”
    Peri itched to take her phone back, but she didn’t like crazy. Skilled, powerful, dangerously wealthy she could handle. Crazy was different.
    “There’s got to be a ley line there,” Rachel said, seemingly buoyed up. “If I can get into it, I can get out of here. Without Mr. Man there on the floor.” She bit her lip, then smiled at Peri. “Thanks for the map.”
    “Hey!” Peri cried when Rachel spun to the elevators, sequins glinting. “That’s my phone.”
    “Thank you!” Rachel sang out, and Peri’s jaw clenched.
    You can beat up my partner. You can try to steal my cat. But don’t you dare take my phone. Peri made a hop-skip and jogged after her. “You’re not leaving with my phone,” Peri said, jerking Rachel to a stop as she hit the elevator button. Backing up, Peri’s hands fisted. “Don’t test me. I’m small, but that doesn’t mean you can walk all over me.”
    Rachel hesitated when the doors slid open, and Peri wondered if she should pull her Glock just to hammer her point home. “Don’t I know it,” Rachel said tiredly, still in the hall as the door slid shut again. “So what do you propose, Peri Reed from Opti?”
    Peri thought for a second, then unfisted her hands. “You mind if we go back and get my jacket? And maybe my boots?” She hesitated, a smile quirking her lips. “Put Jack on the couch. He has a coat that might fit you, too. Unless you want to go traipsing around Detroit in that.” She could stash the accelerator in their apartment safe, too. She wasn’t going to risk taking it into the streets with this woman.
    Rachel’s expression eased, going from a calculating determination to a friendly acceptance. “That would be nice. Thanks.” She hesitated, then added, “I sure could use the help.”
    You got that right , Peri thought, deciding that if things went wrong, she could text Bill to come pick up the wack job. The Packard Mall would be as good a place as any, and better than most.

2
    Peri’s grip on the wheel of her Mantis tightened as they drove sedately through Detroit’s night-slow streets to Packard Mall. Rachel wouldn’t stop fiddling with the vents, and it was getting on Peri’s nerves, the woman angling them just perfect to shift the stray strands of her red hair. It was far too long for a proper agent, and Peri was beginning to wonder who she had in her car. Rachel was an odd mix of confidence and curiosity. This is very bad for my asthma , Peri thought dryly, the inside joke having nothing to do with her health, and everything to do with her unease.
    “What did you mean when you said I’m human?” Peri asked, trying to get Rachel to stop touching her car.
    Rachel stiffened and sat back. “Nothing,” she said, flashing her an empty smile. “Forget it. This is a nice car. It’s electric? When did they start making them?”
    “Since forever.” Peri slipped off the interstate, and Rachel watched