Homicide and Hot Tubs

by Annabel Chase

  “Yes, my authority covers Divine Place, but it doesn’t extend beyond our borders. I have no special role outside of here.”

  “In other words, they can kick your butt up or downstairs, depending,” I said.

  “Or keep me here for eternity,” Hera said. “There’s no rule that says one must ever leave.”

  “What about the others who confessed to harming Akwan? Will there be any consequences for them?”

  Hera gnawed on the snow cone. “The matter will be addressed at the next board meeting.”

  Randolph emerged from behind the goddess. He looked both adorable and ridiculous in a seersucker suit and a brimmed hat. “Madam President, they’re ready for your speech.”

  “Ooh, you get to give a speech,” I said. “Go you.”

  Hera maintained a neutral expression. “I give a lot of speeches, Miss Worthington. It’s nothing to get excited about.”

  “If you need any liquid courage, the liquor cart is right over there.” I gestured to the far corner of the square. “They have a wide variety of shots, including one called Gummy Bear that I highly recommend.”

  “I’ll take it under advisement,” Hera said. She motioned to Randolph to start walking.

  “Enjoy the fête, marshal,” the elf said.

  I spun around, my mind on the Gummy Bear shot, when Gia’s arm looped through mine and she began to steer me in the opposite direction.

  “There you are, neighbor. The girls from pickleball have been asking for you. They’re thinking we should pull together an impromptu game.”

  “Now?” I asked. “What about the band?” And the food? And the booze?

  “Plenty of time for all that,” Gia said. “The game won’t start for another hour or so.”

  “I don’t know, Gia. I’ll probably be too full. Wouldn’t want to vomit all over the other team.” Although it had the hallmarks of a winning strategy.

  Gia laughed and gave me a gentle shove. “You’re so funny, Eloise.”

  “How about a drink?” I asked. “I’m heading to the liquor cart now.”

  “I prefer to stay dry,” Gia said.

  “That’s easy. The downpour was an hour ago,” I said.

  “I mean that I’m not much of a drinker, dear.” She took a band of small white flowers from her head and placed it on mine. “Here. I think this suits you. Looks pretty with your dress.”

  “It’s awfully virginal for someone like me, Gia, but I appreciate the sentiment.”

  Gia had barely merged with the crowd when Mitzi and Jules appeared. It was nice to see Mitzi looking mildly less afraid of the vampire. Baby steps.

  “Oh, Eloise. Are you enjoying your first village fête?” Mitzi asked. She stuffed a piece of funnel cake into her mouth.

  “It’s pretty cool,” I said. Across the green, I spotted Linzy talking to Jakob. I was pleasantly surprised to see her at a social event so soon.

  “What’s wrong?” Jules asked, following my gaze.

  “Do you think I should tell Linzy the truth about Akwan?” I asked. “That he used magic to lure her away from Jakob?”

  “Yes,” Mitzi said.

  “No,” Jules countered.

  I smiled. “Well, that’s helpful.”

  “Honesty is the best policy,” Mitzi said. “If my mother had been honest with my father about her true nature, my life might’ve been very different.”

  “Think about it this way,” Jules said. “What does the truth matter now? Linzy can mourn him and move on. Besides, the jinni only used magic to make her choose him over Jakob. The magic didn’t make her stay. That part was real. The way she’s grieving over him now, that’s real too.”

  The vampire had a point.

  “What about Jakob though?” Mitzi asked. “Doesn’t he deserve to know?”

  “Same principle applies,” Jules said. “It doesn’t help him if the relationship was real. Maybe Linzy will go back to him now, maybe she won’t. Only time will tell if they were meant to be together.”

  I thought of Maximus and Betsy, the soul mates from Bloodlust. “Anybody here believe in soul mates?”

  Mitzi clapped her hands. “Oh, I do.”

  Jules scowled. “Absolutely not. Vampires don’t even have souls.”

  Right. Hadn’t thought of that.

  “What if your soul mate is in another afterlife?” I asked.

  “Then they’re not your soul mate,” Mitzi said. “It only makes sense if you can spend eternity together.”

  “In that case, shouldn’t you be looking for your soul mate here?” I asked.

  The witch appeared stumped. She licked the powdered sugar from the pads of her fingers, deep in thought. “I guess I never I thought I had a soul mate.”

  Jules put a hand on Mitzi’s arm. “Hang on a hot minute. You believe in soul mates, but not for yourself?”

  “Well, why would I have one? They’re for special supernaturals, not for someone like me.” She seemed completely at ease with her statement, not even remotely bitter.

  Jules and I exchanged looks. I snatched the remainder of her funnel cake from her hand and fixed her with a hard stare. “Mitzi, you listen to me right now. If soul mates are real, then you deserve one just as much as anybody else. It’s crazy to think you shouldn’t have one. That you’re not special enough.”

  “It’s okay,” Mitzi said. “Not everyone gets a soul mate, just like not every kid gets a trophy. I’m not a soul mate snowflake and I’m fine with it.”

  Powdered sugar flaked onto my hand and it took all my willpower not to lick it. “Mitzi, it’s not okay for you to believe that. It’s nonsense.”

  The witch reached for her cake and I drew my hand further back. “No. No more treats until you tell me that you’re good enough for a soul mate.”

  “Eloise, you’re being ridiculous. I don’t make the rules. If I’m not meant for a soul mate, that’s perfectly fine with me. I have Daisy and I’m content with that.”

  Jules spat on the ground. “I’m not content with that. Listen up, girlie. We’re going to find your soul mate if it obliterates us.”

  I turned to the vampire. “Okay, let’s not go that far.”

  “Right.” Jules offered a crisp nod. “And we’ll find yours, too, Worthington.”

  I laughed. “That’ll be tricky since I don’t even belong here, remember?”

  “I don’t know about that,” Mitzi said. “You seem to fit in really well. If that’s not belonging somewhere, then I don’t know what is.”

  “I’m the marshal,” I said. “It’s sort of baptism by fire rather than naturally fitting in.”

  “You should bring Mischief for another playdate tomorrow,” Mitzi said. “Daisy would really like that.”

  “No can do, witcherino,” I said. “I have an all-day spa appointment that I am not cancelling for any reason.”

  The sound of a drum roll rippled across the village square and I turned toward the gazebo to see Lauren-Ann zip across the front, clapping her hands for attention. The crowd quieted.

  “This next song is dedicated to our dear friend, Akwan,” the lead singer said. “We miss you, buddy. We hope that, wherever you are, you’re at peace. This song is called Mythos.”

  The drummer tapped a cymbal and the song began. I listened to the music and wondered how much of the original the band had changed. Lauren-Ann had said that Akwan’s song needed a lot of work and I doubted they’d had time to whip it into shape. Either way, it was a nice tribute to their fallen friend. I made a mental note to write a truly terrible song that my friends would feel compelled to play when I was gone. The idea gave me more pleasure than it probably should have.

  “Tempura corndog?” a voice offered.

  I forgot all about Mitzi and Jules and followed the lure of fried food. “I didn’t think it was possible to improve a corndog, but I don’t even need to taste it to know that I was wrong.” Despite recent events, this fête was definitely lifting my spirits. As long as there was no drama, I was ready to chalk
this up to a success.

  “You shouldn’t have confronted him without me,” said the voice of one very annoyed demigod.

  And there went my successful day. “I lived to tell the tale, didn’t I?”

  “You got lucky this time. What about the next time?”

  I turned to fully face him. “Typical dude. You’re just mad because I managed without you.”

  He pinned those blue eyes on me and I brushed aside the weak feeling in my knees. “Eloise, we’re supposed to be a team. In fact, we’d just had a conversation about being a team and then you went off on your own anyway. What you did was foolish. It could easily have ended badly for you.”

  I spared him a glance. “And why would you care about that?”

  “Come on,” he said gently. “Let’s not do this.”

  I suppressed a sigh. I knew what this was. I always did this. Turned petulant or combative when I didn’t get my way. When I felt rejected. One of my therapists had tried to explain that my reactions were the result of a core wound that hadn’t healed. I didn’t manage to get much further than that because I ended up quitting my job not long after, which meant changing insurance companies again, and my sessions were no longer covered—so that was the end of Dr. Albright.

  “You asked me to understand something about you. Well, here’s a little insight into Eloise. I have forty-seven years of experience handling matters on my own. I haven’t needed anybody.” Sadness flooded me as I remembered Louis’s sacrifice. “Instead, I got someone else hurt in the process.”

  Cole placed a warm hand on my shoulder. “You didn’t force Louis to go in there. You didn’t even know he was following you.”

  I blinked back tears. “You’re right. I got lucky. What if he’d been obliterated instead of ascended? Even worse, what if he’d descended? It would’ve been my fault.”

  “Louis chose to go charging in there, same as you did. He’s as responsible for what happened as you are.”

  “But he charged in for the right reasons. I charged in because I’m a stubborn pain with a chip on my shoulder.”

  He sniffed in amusement. “Sounds like we both have some issues to work through.”

  “Welcome to the club.” I made a sweeping gesture meant to encompass the rest of the villagers.

  “I like the hair accessory, by the way. Makes you look deceptively innocent.” He shifted his attention to the band. “This is your first village fête, isn’t it?” he asked. “Hat Trick is a good band, although this song is a little iffy.”

  I looked at him sideways. “You don’t have to chitchat with me. This is a personal event, not a professional one.”

  Cole lifted an eyebrow. “And?”

  “And you said you want to keep our relationship professional, so I’m trying to stick to that.”

  He opened his mouth as though to say something, but then closed it again. He couldn’t have it both ways. Typical male thinking that he could dictate the rules and then bend them when it suited him. The demigod didn’t fall far from Mount Olympus.

  “Eloise,” he said quietly. I turned to look at him and was shocked by the vulnerability in his expression. “I’ve been giving this a lot of thought and, the truth is, I could really use a friend here. I’d like it very much if that friend could be you.”

  Ugh. Why did he have to be both hot and needy? That was my weakness. Throw in that tragic backstory and I was a complete goner.

  “I’ll be your person, Cole,” I said, which was an easy promise because I was literally the only person in all of Divine Place.

  Relief flashed in his blue eyes. “You have no idea what that means to me.”

  In a rare display of affection, I reached for his hand. It felt slightly awkward and uncomfortable and I was pretty sure we both had a dusting of powdered sugar, but someone once told me that the only way to experience personal growth was to make yourself uncomfortable and then keep going.

  I decided it was time for me to keep going.

  Want to spend more time in Divine Place? You can preorder Graves and Golf Carts here.

  Also by Annabel Chase

  Thank you for reading Homicide and Hot Tubs—I hope you enjoyed it!

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