By the time we arrive home--which should have taken hours or days, I’m almost disappointed the trip happened so fast. It’s just after 2 AM when we walk into the apartment, where Rune, Zev and AJ are waiting in the front room.
One look from AJ and it’s clear she knows I had some sexy times with vamp boy. She arches her eyebrow and looks between us in a not-so-subtle way.
Since that wasn’t the point of the trip, I ignore her and head straight to Rain, who’s happily snuggled in the arms of a werewolf. As I quietly approach my sweet, sleeping girl, Darius fills everyone in on what we discovered.
“Tilly possesses more power than I’ve ever seen in one witch, and tonight we were confronted by another member of the Order of the Star.”
Rain is sleeping, and she looks so peaceful with Zev that I don’t want to disturb her; instead I slide onto the couch next to him. He glances at me with a warm smile as Rune brings me a cup of coffee sprinkled with magic--like coffee needs anything extra to make it wonderful. It is the drink of the gods, after all.
“Did they hurt Tilly?” AJ asks, hopping from her chair like she’s ready to cut a bitch.
I shrug, my eyes stinging again at the memory of leaving her so vulnerable. “Darius doesn’t think they will. But, A, you should have seen her, when Darius held her hand, I got her back. Just for a few moments, but I got Nanny back.”
Zev uses his free arm to wrap around my shoulder and pull me into a warm hug, dispelling any remnants of chill from the trip through the snow, and offering me unspoken comfort as I grapple with my emotion.
“And that’s not all,” I say, before Darius can continue. “You’re never going to believe who it was this time.” This is obviously directed at AJ, since no one else in the room would specifically care.
“Who?” AJ asks, her eyes widening.
“Joe’s son!”
My best friend’s jaw drops. “Alex? That’s… that’s impossible,” she sputters.
“I know!” I say, as flabbergasted as she is.
The guys just stare at us, waiting for one of us to make sense.
AJ explains. “Alex was in an accident on prom night years ago. He was in a car crash and flew through the windshield. His brain… it never worked right after that. He’s been in a home ever since.”
I shake my head. “I don’t get it. He seemed… normal, given the circumstances. But it was definitely him. I checked myself.”
AJ begins to pace the room while I snuggle more into the nook of Zev’s arms. He looks down at me, concern in his eyes. “You’ve had vampire blood. What happened?”
“Oh yeah, that’s the other thing. I wrecked the car. Hit my head. Darius healed me.”
A growl forms deep in Zev’s chest. “I’m sure he did.”
Darius scowls at the werewolf. “It was that or let her pass out and suffer worse injury. What would you have me do?”
“Not bind her to you,” he says gruffly.
Rune comes over and lays a finger on my wrist, while staring into my eyes, then nods. “Darius did the right thing. It could have been much worse if he hadn’t acted quickly.”
This shuts Zev up, but I can feel the tension in his body. The werewolf is definitely pissed, and now I have a lot of questions about this binding shit.
But Rain has clearly not enjoyed the change in Zev, and she wakes up screaming and ready for her midnight snack. The werewolf’s demeanor changes instantly, cooing and loving on her as he passes her to me. It’s really incredible to see how each of the Sexies are with my baby. All their bad boy bravado shuts down when my little one is around. She’s got them wrapped around her tiny, adorable, little finger.
I take her into my bedroom and close the door, wanting some privacy for myself and knowing Rain could use less stimulation right now. You could cut the tension in the living room with a knife.
I ease into my bed and cuddle my child as she feeds, my mind worrying over all the different threads in my life that seem to be unraveling. I want to get Darius back in to see Nanny, but that seems risky after the ruckus we’ve made. Even if Darius doesn’t come with, I need to check in on Nanny to make sure she’s okay. I also need to get my car back. And...I’m going to need to talk to Joe and find out what the hell is going on with his son.
Determined to do just that, I fall asleep with Rain in my arms and am ready the next day to confront a man I’ve known literally my entire life.
Only catch is, he doesn’t show up to Morgan’s that night.
Or the next.
Or the next.
I ask Frank about it, but Frank is as perplexed as me, saying he hasn’t heard from Joe in days.
By the end of the week, I’ve called to make sure Nanny is safe: she is. Though the staff gives me very few details about ‘an incident’ that disrupted her. I also know something is definitely off with Joe. At the close of the night, I pull the Sexies aside and voice my concern. “I think something happened to Joe. We need to go check on him and find out what’s going on.”
Leaving the baby with AJ and Rune, Zev, Darius and I head to Joe’s. One of the Sexies managed to bring back my car, but Darius determined it was a waste of metal and somehow acquired me a brand new Jaguar.
“You realize you’ve painted a big red target on me with this, right?”
Darius sniffs. “You can just tell people it is mine, if you must.”
Zev snorts in the back. “Darius has always been a bit pompous. He can’t help it.”
“You know, when AJ and I were little and would get into fights, Nanny would lock us in the bathroom together until we resolved our differences,” I say, turning onto Joe’s street. I park in front of his house and twist to face both of them. “We would ‘pretend’ to make up, and we thought we were so clever, but of course in the process of negotiating our fake peace, we actually made up in the end. I’m thinking you three need some quality time in the bathroom together. Seems like you were close once upon a time, and I think you could be again. You have a lot in common.” I wink and get out of the car, with the boys following.
We approach the house cautiously, but we don’t get far before both Darius and Zev stop and look at each other, their faces unreadable.
“What?” I ask, walking to stand between them.
Zev glances at me. “I’m so sorry, Bernie.”
The werewolf just stops there, leaving Darius to finish his thought.
“Joe’s dead.”
Chapter Eighteen
I stand in stunned silence staring at the house AJ and I had visited many times as teenagers, back when AJ and Alex dated. Before John came along and before Alex’s accident. It wasn’t something I ever talked about with Joe or my grandparents, what happened that night. Michael and I went to the prom with AJ and Alex, but Alex got too drunk and none of us were willing to drive with him, so he left alone. And then he crashed.
It’s a night that weighed heavy on all of us. I always thought it was part of the reason Michael broke up with me. Now I know better, but still.
Emotion clogs my throat and my eyes pool with unshed tears as Darius and Zev each take one of my hands. They don’t speak, and they don’t demand anything from me. They just stand by my side, holding my pain in the silence.
After several minutes, a tear finally escapes and falls down my cheek. Darius turns to face me, using his free hand to catch the tear with the pad of his thumb.
It takes me a moment before I can speak. “H--how?”
“We’ll find out,” Darius swears.
I nod and release their hands, missing the contact instantly--the cold touch of the vampire and the heat of the werewolf, but I know they can’t get me answers if they’re tied to my side.
Crossing my arms over my chest to ward off a chill, I watch as Zev sheds his clothes and shifts into wolf form, then sniffs around the perimeter of the house. Darius dashes toward the side door with his impossible speed and is inside before I can blink.
Nothing makes sense in my world anymore, so logically I know J
oe could’ve been evil or mixed up in some dark magic, but my gut says otherwise. Maybe Alex did recover from permanent brain damage, and maybe my ex is a unicorn and my best friend’s a nymph and I’m from a line of witches. But it’ll take a lot more than that to convince me Joe is anything but good. He was always so sweet, looking out for Tilly while she still lived at home, then taking care of Ed once he was alone. And then he took care of me.
Even if Darius and Zev come back and tell me he was part of this ridiculous Order and he got killed for not stealing my baby when he was supposed to, I’m not ready to believe them. Some people are still good. Not everyone is tricking me with magic and lying about their past. Joe’s on the right side of this, I’m certain.
Zev returns first, shifting back into human form and standing naked on Joe’s front lawn. Darius arrives a moment later as Zev is getting back into his pants and shirt. I’m just hoping none of Joe’s neighbors are watching us. If so, they just got an eyeful.
Now clothed, Zev steps over to me.“I’m so sorry, Bernie,” he says as he pulls me into a hug.
“What happened?” I ask, hoping they’ll say it was natural causes, but knowing they won’t. Nothing is natural in my world anymore.
Darius answers first. “I can’t say. He’s seated at the dining room table, a glass of water by his hand. No blood, no sign of struggle.”
Zev nods, stepping away from me but keeping his hands on my shoulders. “The smell works with our timeline. He’s been dead for four days, five at the most. I will say…” He pauses mid-sentence, taking a long, full breath, then slowly breathing out. “Bernie, do you know Joe’s wife?”
I shake my head. “I knew her, past tense. She died a couple years back.”
Darius and Zev share a look.
“What do you smell?” the vampire asks.
“I don’t know,” Zev answers. “But it’s not a scent that should be here. Not if Joe’s wife really died two years ago. Not if he’s been living alone.”
“How… how the hell do you smell that?” I probably sound angrier than I am, but I take so many impossible outcomes as fact these days that I just need a little piece of logic to hold onto.
The werewolf frowns, bringing me in for another hug and whispering the answer in my ear. “The same way I smell your fear and your sorrow. And the many other things you feel.”
His answer doesn’t really have a science behind it, but it’ll have to do for now. It also makes me a little bashful, knowing that not only can the vampire hear my thoughts but the wolf can smell my feelings. Not a lot of privacy around a group of men who make me think and feel the types of things I’d rather keep secret.
I pull out of Zev’s arms and take a deep breath, trying to steady myself and think clearly. “What do we do? About Joe?”
The question brings a steady flow of tears, as the reality of his death starts to sink in. Darius steps forward, putting a hand on my shoulder and softly running it down to my elbow.
“Anything we do will only bring attention to us, and there’s already too many watching.”
“But we can’t just leave him there. I’ll call the police, or an ambulance…”
I start to pull my phone from my pocket, but Darius stops me. “Make that call, but not while we’re here. We need to be back with Rain. I’m more convinced of that now than ever.”
My phone is in my hand, and I have half a mind to ignore Darius even though he’s probably right. Joe just deserves so much better. He’s a stone’s throw away, lying dead at his table, and I’m just going to leave?
I nod, acquiescing to the vampire’s point. As I look down, I notice I have a new text message.
It’s from AJ. Two minutes ago.
And it just says, Help.
The instant I show the message to Darius, I’m in his arms and we’re bounding through the woods of Rowley. Joe lives just a few blocks from Morgan’s, and clearly this vampire thinks it will be quicker to leap over fences and barrel through snow banks than take my fancy new ride. Zev follows close behind, once again in wolf form, sprinting on all fours.
Darius comes to a stop when we get close to Morgan’s, waiting two seconds for Zev to catch up. I watch the two of them make eye contact, surely discussing an unspoken plan, and then Zev darts off into the shadows. Before I can ask where he’s going, which, like an idiot, I was about to do, Darius whispers into my mind.
We mustn’t speak. Zev’s going to check the perimeter to make sure we’re not being lured into a trap. Then we’ll follow him inside.
I think some sort of affirmation, probably just the phrase “uh-huh,” and then hold my breath while I wait for Zev to lead us in. My baby’s in there, and while I take the slightest bit of comfort in knowing Rune’s nearby, I’m starting to think that there’s a limit to the powers my Sexies possess.
There, Darius mind-speaks, and I follow his gaze to the roof where the wolf now stands. Hold tightly to my neck.
I wrap my arms around him as firmly as I can and a rush of wind hits my face as Darius takes three huge steps and then leaps into the sky. I guess he’s jumping, but I feel like springing from the ground to the top of a two-story building is more like flying. And just as impressive as him going airborne is the silence with which he lands. Dude is high level stealth mode.
Zev gestures us forward, leading us toward the roof above the bathroom. As he nears the edge, he shifts back from a wolf to a naked human. The cold doesn’t seem to bother him. It also doesn’t affect him in the ways it might affect other men, I can’t help but notice.
“The baby is in the bedroom,” Zev says in a whisper, not nearly as aware as I am of his nudity. “I’m guessing she’s being concealed by Rune. There are at least four bodies in the front room, though I can’t hear all their movements because… well, because AJ won’t stop talking. She seems very angry.”
I bet she is. But whatever rage she’s dishing out now, it’s going to look like a soft rap on the knuckles compared to the fury I’ll unleash.
“Darius, go in first,” Zev continues. “Careful of any energies you feel--I’m not sure what’s Rune’s magic and what’s not.”
“I’ll know,” Darius says in a deathly serious tone, then he quickly vanishes over the edge of the roof.
I shiver, glad I’m not on the receiving end of him when he’s angry.
Zev turns to me. “We need to get inside, but I want you to stay in the bathroom.”
“Not a chance,” I hiss with as much quiet rage as I can. “I need to find my baby.”
“You won’t be able to see her,” Zev says. “I’m sure Rune took every precaution, and now you need to do the same. You’re too important, Bernie. Please do as I ask.” His forest green eyes, practically aglow in the moonlight, plead with me.
I give the slightest nod, knowing he’s right, but not trusting myself to heed his advice. I’ve said before that I’ll die for my child, and I don’t think anyone can talk me out of that.
Zev takes me under an arm, then uses his free hand to lower us down to the window that Darius left open. I can’t imagine the strength it would take to hold two adult bodies with one arm, but I suppose his strength is as magical as all the other magical shit that’s taken over my life.
Once in the bathroom, he returns to wolf form and creeps to the door, listening to whatever sounds are coming from the bedroom. He’s probably trying to hear movements and smell feelings or some shit, because the dialogue is plenty audible from where I’m standing even with my bullshit human hearing. Mostly because of AJ.
“I don’t care, Alex!” my friend yells. “There’s nothing you could say that would make me give two shits about our past, because what you’re doing is wrong. Now get this goddamn blindfold off of me!”
“How can you trust these guys and not me, AJ?” Alex sounds serious.
“How can I… you pretended to have brain damage for ten years!” AJ makes a really good point.
“I wasn’t pretending, I was… look, you don’t understand, and you’r
e not--”
“Alex, stop.” Another voice enters the conversation, this one a woman’s. She sounds familiar, but I can’t place her.
“We don’t have time to debate these issues,” the woman continues. “I’ve come for the child, and I’m not going to waste time trying to convince you.”
“You sound familiar,” AJ says, mirroring my own thoughts. The voice has a nostalgic quality. Like a high school teacher or someone I once knew long ago. Chances are pretty strong that’s who it is. AJ and I definitely called Ms. Day a witch all the time; maybe the reason she got so mad is because we were right.
The voice ignores AJ entirely and speaks directly to Rune. “Fae, you’re running out of options. I’ve got plenty of spells left to try, and sooner or later you’ll lose consciousness and any mystique you’ve created will vanish.”
Jesus. I can’t tell what’s going on, but it appears Rune doesn’t have the upper hand. Whatever he did to help hide Rain seems to have put him in a bind. Zev’s hackles are up, and his left paw is raised, like a hunting dog ready to strike. But where the hell is Darius?
I hear Rune clear his throat before speaking. “Like you said, Witch, we’re not debating anything. Please, continue with your spells.” His voice is extremely strained, even if he’s still putting up a verbal fight. I can only imagine what’s been done to make such a strong man suffer so much. I wish I could do something to help him, but I know I’m way out of my depth.
“Very well,” the voice says with a trace of disappointment. God, she sounds more familiar with every word. Who is she?
I hear the clinking of some glass, maybe a spoon hitting the edges of a cup as it stirs. “Would you like to drink this one on your own, Fae? Or shall I pour it in your eye like the last?”
Before Rune can respond--or not respond, depending on how he prefers his torturing--Alex speaks up.
“Hey, we might have a problem.”
“What?” the mystery woman asks sharply.
“I, um… I just looked at AJ’s phone.” Alex fumbles his words, sounding pretty nervous, just like the guy I remember from high school. “She… she sent a text to Bernie before I took it away, I guess.”
A Werewolf, a Vampire, and a Fae Walk Into a Bar Page 17
