won’t be able to get him out before morning.”
“You’re going to blackmail the judge? But, Thomas, you can’t do that. Couldn’t she have you disbarred or something?”
“Oh, it won’t be me blackmailing her. If Billy can borrow my aura without asking, I don’t suppose he’d have any objection to me returning the favor.”
Chapter 11
No way was I going to let Brian stay in jail overnight. The odds of Thomas getting him released before morning weren’t nearly good enough for my peace of mind, so I’d just have to take matters into my own hands. Whatever reason Billy had for getting my gentle, peace-loving brother mixed up in this, it had better be damn good.
When James was busy with Molly again, I borrowed the suit he kept at the lab for when he had to entertain university bigwigs to keep those grants flowing, and headed over to the precinct where “Billy” was still being held. The jacket was snug across the shoulders for Thomas’s aura, and definitely not up to his usual impeccable standards, but it would have to do.
The young, uniformed woman at the desk remembered Thomas, and gave me a worshipful smile. “Hey there, Mr. Halligan. You back already?”
I shrugged. “Forgot to get a certain critical piece of information from my client. Do you suppose we could get the private room again? You know, privileged … stuff.”
She seemed hesitant. I smiled big, making Thomas’s teeth a half-shade brighter than they really were. Her eyes widened, the pupils getting larger. “Well, usually … um, sure. Sure. I’ll set it up. Just be sure to stop by the desk on your way out, okay? I get off work soon.…”
* * *
Brian, with a big, goofy grin on Billy’s aura, was handcuffed to the table when I got to the room. I waited until the door was shut behind us and then said, “What the hell, Bri?”
His eyes—those beautiful, dark blue Doyle eyes, not Brian’s soft brown ones—looked perplexed. “Dude, you were just here. We’ve already been over this.”
“Yeah, well I’m back. And this time we’re switching places, just like you did with Billy.”
“But why, man? I can wait until you bail me out. No sweat.”
I pulled myself up to big-brotherly proportions. “Because I said so. Come on, no time to discuss. Let’s go.”
He shrugged philosophically, kicked off his shoes, shifted to a very tiny aura, and slipped out of his cuffs, both hand and ankle.
“Nice,” I said, remembering how I’d pulled the same trick in Sweden when my last job went awry.
“I know, right? Billy gave me this aura. Said it was a handy one to have.”
Yeah, trust Billy.
We finished the switcheroo, with me mostly keeping my eyes shut. I swear, if I never risked seeing another one of my brothers naked again, it would be too soon.
I made my way into the cuffs the same way Brian had—by borrowing the handy aura Billy had given him.
“So, who’s going to bail you out tomorrow if you’re in here?” Brian said, now thinking like a lawyer.
“Uh … don’t worry about it. I have it covered.”
* * *
The holding cell wasn’t bad, as holding cells go, I supposed. There was only one other guy in there with me, and I was pretty sure I could take him if I had to, since I had access to Billy’s strength. I’d feel even better if I also had access to his martial arts training. Unfortunately, some things don’t convey with auras.
The guy looked Italian, maybe Greek, with buzzed black fuzz all over his head (and half his forehead). He probably shaved his scalp regularly so his skull-and-crossbones tattoo would show.
He smiled, big and evil, when he saw me glancing at him, proudly displaying a gold-capped front tooth. “We gonna play now?” he said, his voice rough, like someone had whisked an eggbeater in his throat. “You promised we’d play when you got back.”
Crap. What had I done?
I clenched my fists, taking what comfort I could from the size of Billy’s hands. Well,
“You’re going to blackmail the judge? But, Thomas, you can’t do that. Couldn’t she have you disbarred or something?”
“Oh, it won’t be me blackmailing her. If Billy can borrow my aura without asking, I don’t suppose he’d have any objection to me returning the favor.”
Chapter 11
No way was I going to let Brian stay in jail overnight. The odds of Thomas getting him released before morning weren’t nearly good enough for my peace of mind, so I’d just have to take matters into my own hands. Whatever reason Billy had for getting my gentle, peace-loving brother mixed up in this, it had better be damn good.
When James was busy with Molly again, I borrowed the suit he kept at the lab for when he had to entertain university bigwigs to keep those grants flowing, and headed over to the precinct where “Billy” was still being held. The jacket was snug across the shoulders for Thomas’s aura, and definitely not up to his usual impeccable standards, but it would have to do.
The young, uniformed woman at the desk remembered Thomas, and gave me a worshipful smile. “Hey there, Mr. Halligan. You back already?”
I shrugged. “Forgot to get a certain critical piece of information from my client. Do you suppose we could get the private room again? You know, privileged … stuff.”
She seemed hesitant. I smiled big, making Thomas’s teeth a half-shade brighter than they really were. Her eyes widened, the pupils getting larger. “Well, usually … um, sure. Sure. I’ll set it up. Just be sure to stop by the desk on your way out, okay? I get off work soon.…”
* * *
Brian, with a big, goofy grin on Billy’s aura, was handcuffed to the table when I got to the room. I waited until the door was shut behind us and then said, “What the hell, Bri?”
His eyes—those beautiful, dark blue Doyle eyes, not Brian’s soft brown ones—looked perplexed. “Dude, you were just here. We’ve already been over this.”
“Yeah, well I’m back. And this time we’re switching places, just like you did with Billy.”
“But why, man? I can wait until you bail me out. No sweat.”
I pulled myself up to big-brotherly proportions. “Because I said so. Come on, no time to discuss. Let’s go.”
He shrugged philosophically, kicked off his shoes, shifted to a very tiny aura, and slipped out of his cuffs, both hand and ankle.
“Nice,” I said, remembering how I’d pulled the same trick in Sweden when my last job went awry.
“I know, right? Billy gave me this aura. Said it was a handy one to have.”
Yeah, trust Billy.
We finished the switcheroo, with me mostly keeping my eyes shut. I swear, if I never risked seeing another one of my brothers naked again, it would be too soon.
I made my way into the cuffs the same way Brian had—by borrowing the handy aura Billy had given him.
“So, who’s going to bail you out tomorrow if you’re in here?” Brian said, now thinking like a lawyer.
“Uh … don’t worry about it. I have it covered.”
* * *
The holding cell wasn’t bad, as holding cells go, I supposed. There was only one other guy in there with me, and I was pretty sure I could take him if I had to, since I had access to Billy’s strength. I’d feel even better if I also had access to his martial arts training. Unfortunately, some things don’t convey with auras.
The guy looked Italian, maybe Greek, with buzzed black fuzz all over his head (and half his forehead). He probably shaved his scalp regularly so his skull-and-crossbones tattoo would show.
He smiled, big and evil, when he saw me glancing at him, proudly displaying a gold-capped front tooth. “We gonna play now?” he said, his voice rough, like someone had whisked an eggbeater in his throat. “You promised we’d play when you got back.”
Crap. What had I done?
I clenched my fists, taking what comfort I could from the size of Billy’s hands. Well,
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