Chapter 40: Questioning

I ran away from Sicily's house satisfied. I did exactly what the Sorceress had requested of me. Maybe she would release me from this genie hell. I never should have stolen that money from her. I would be free right now.

A lot of times my greed gets the best of me. That was the side effect of me growing up in the system. I learned to fend for myself, even if it meant being selfish. I ran away from my last foster home because they kept trying to change me. I've always been kind of mean and rebellious. My last foster family was way too square for me, always telling me to sit up straight, do good in school, be nice to their kids, blah blah, blah. I lived on the streets for a while till a local crime lord took me in.

He liked my personality and I fit in with his group quite well. At first I did small things like muggings. As I proved myself and my skills to the group, I got sent out on robberies and complicated heists. The first time I murdered a guy I was fifteen. The boss loved me since most of the other young ones were too wimpy to do it. Now I'm a hit man, one of the boss's best. On my last job, I tried to take some extra money from the hit, and was caught by this lady who turned me into a genie. Now I'm stuck. She said she'd free me if I did some stuff to this Sicily Zenteri chick. I'm excited because I'll finally be free again.

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I took the photo from Agent Skylstud. His finger brushed my hand as he gave me the picture. I noticed that his hand felt rough. He was wearing a fancy Armani suit, an equally fancy shirt, and sunglasses. I wished he would take them off so I could see his eyes. He had purple hair that fell across his face in gentle layers. A soft breeze came by and blew some of his hair around. He was so gorgeous. I looked at the photo. I was curious as to why Delano wasn't wearing his genie outfit as well as why the RBI would be looking for him. I knew he was a berryhole, but to have a government agency after you screamed really bad berryhole.

"Yes, Agent. I have seen this man before. He stayed with me for a few days. At some point, he left, I am unsure of when. I had a few problems that happened over the course of his stay so I was a little distracted. Why are you looking for him?"

"He's a wanted hit man in four cities, including Ravenview. He's been jumping towns, but I tracked a cell phone call he made the other day to your house."

I was shocked. I had let a hit man into my house? He'd definitely fooled me. He'd even made me feel sorry for him.

"He's not here any longer, then?"

"Correct."

I didn't want Agent Skylstud to leave yet, so I invited him in for a cup of coffee. He accepted, and we sat down at the breakfast bar.

"If I may ask, how did you meet Delano?"

"I found him in a genie lamp in the junkyard."

"Hm. That's curious. A genie, you say?"

"What, you don't believe me?"

"I do. It's just that the first time I came in contact with Delano, he wasn't a genie. I'm not surprised he became one considering his rap sheet."

"I'm not sure I understand. People can become genies?"

"Yes, if they cross the wrong people who have the power to do so, they can be turned into a genie as punishment."

I laughed a little, and Agent Skylstud looked over at me, annoyed at my behavior. He peered over the rims of his sunglasses, and I finally got to see his eyes. They were bright red, the same color as his shirt. He looked even sexier when he was angry.

"What's so funny?"

"I didn't know that an RBI agent would know so much about genies. Aren't you feds supposed to stick to the facts and be realistic? Why would you even consider the possibility of supernatural activity?"

"The RBI deals with supernatural crimes and criminals on a regular basis, Miss Zenteri. We have for a while. This doesn't mean we ignore facts. We are aware and acknowledge the presence of supernatural beings in this world. Just because we don't understand them fully doesn't mean that we are closed minded."

"Aww, I'm sorry, Agent. Did I piss you off? Let me make it up to you."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean..."

I leaned close to him and nibbled on his earlobe. His earring was cold on my lips.

"Miss Zenteri. I have more to tell you."

His statement caught me by surprise. I looked at him with inquisitive eyes.

"I think that Delano may have been assigned to kill your father."

I sat down on the chair again and looked at the counter, not knowing how to respond to this news.

"What happened to him? Why would someone want to murder him? He wasn't a bad man, was he?"

"No, he wasn't a bad man, but he had a jealous ex-wife. She couldn't deal with their divorce and resorted to stalking him constantly. He had a restraining order against her. She confessed to hiring a hit man to kill him. If she couldn't have him, she didn't want anyone else to either."

"Why isn't Delano in jail?"

"Delano was still underage during the time. He was too young to be tried as an adult and the case against him didn't hold up well in court. That's why I am looking for him now. He's still a very active criminal and I'm hoping I can catch him and lock him up."

A wave of emotion crept up on me. Before I knew what I was doing, I hugged Agent Skylstud. I didn't know what to think. I wonder if my mom had known about this. Agent Skylstud patted my back, comforting me.

"It's all right, Miss Zenteri. I needed to follow this lead in case Delano was here."

"I hope you catch him. I don't know much about my father and I just recently found out he was murdered. Finding out someone actually wanted to murder him rather than it just being a random act of violence hurts more."

"I'm sorry about your father. I can't arrest Delano for his murder, but I can look into the old case file and let you know more about your father, if you want."

"Aren't you busy with more important things? More recent things?"

Agent Skylstud put his hands on my shoulders and looked at me with concern in his eyes.

"Finding justice is important to me. If I can help you find a sense of justice, then you are important to me."

"Catch that berryhole. If not for my father's murder, then for his next crime."

"I am working on it. I don't want him out there killing any more than you do. I should go though. Here is my card."

Agent Skylstud handed me his business card. I smiled at him, thanking him with my eyes. He smiled back and walked out the door.