A Walk on the Dark Side

by Kendra Ashe

  “I am basically an amateur detective and I’ve been following the disappearances of some of the girls in Graves County. I was hoping you would be able to provide some insight.”

  It wasn’t really a lie but it wasn’t the entire truth. I just hoped that it was close enough to the truth to throw her off.

  “No,” she said, forcefully. “I can’t tell you anything about that.”

  I thought she’d been way too quick to jump in with her answer. I wasn’t convinced.

  “So you can tell me about my love life but not the disappearance of some of your local girls?”

  “It’s not something you want to get involved with. Things aren’t always what they appear to be in Graves Parish.”

  At the very least, her denial meant that she suspected that something strange was going on in Graves Parish. If Kieran wasn’t sure of her identity, he might be going after anyone who fit the bill without much regard for killing the innocent.

  If I had to guess, I’d say that Miss Pepper Boucher was probably my long lost sister. Too bad I couldn’t tell her as much.

  Thanking her, I left the Paranormal Huntress headquarters.

  I didn’t waste any time getting back to New Orleans. We had to do something before more innocent lives were lost.

  Plus, I wanted to find out what Wren knew about Texas.

  * * *

  I found Wren kicked back at his desk with his headphones on. He was rocking out and getting no work done at all.

  Placing one hand on my hip, I glared at him. “What are you doing? I thought we had a major case going on?”

  Wren slid the headphones off and placed them on his desk. “I’m the boss. That means I get to take a break when I want.”

  “That’s a crappy attitude to have.”

  Wren gave me a contrite smile. “Sorry, but even vampires need a break sometimes.”

  “I guess I’m just in a bitchy mood,” I told him before going over everything that I’d learned from Pepper, including that bit about Mason being in Texas.

  “What do you know about that?” I asked.

  After a few minutes, Wren got to his feet and made his way around his desk to drape an arm around my shoulders. “I probably shouldn’t tell you this but Ax also did some snooping to find out what Mason has been up to. It seems his band is scheduled to perform at an outdoor concert in Texas, this weekend,” he added.

  I was practically holding my breath as I waited for Wren to continue.

  Pepper was right! Mason was in Texas!

  He wouldn’t be telling me this if it didn’t have something to do with Mason.

  “And?” I urged.

  “Well, there’s talk that Mason will be performing with them, but as I said, these are just rumors.”

  My heart flip-flopped in my chest.

  I knew exactly what I had to do and judging by the look on Wren’s face, he knew also.

  “Can I take a few days off?”

  Wren smiled. “Sure, but be careful, Claire. Don’t forget what he and his band really are and don’t forget that Kieran would still love to get his hands on you. If Mason isn’t there, don’t hang around.”

  “I won’t,” I promised, barely able to contain my excitement.

  Suddenly my enthusiasm vanished.

  What if he didn’t want to see me?

  “Is something wrong?” Wren asked.

  “Well, I was just thinking. Mason was the one who broke it off. What if he doesn’t want to see me?”

  Cocking his head to one side, Wren smiled. “In that case, maybe you’ll just have to convince him how wrong he is.”

  Wren was right.

  Maybe Mason would turn me away, but if he did, then I’d fallen in love with someone who hadn’t been real.

  “Thanks,” I told Wren as I turned to leave.

  “There’s something else you should know.” Wren stopped me just as I reached the door. “There’s been talk that Pepper Boucher has some trouble brewing around her. I think you are right. She’s the one. It would be a good idea to bring her into the fold as soon as possible.”

  Although he hadn’t meant to, Wren’s words had cast a shadow over my little burst of optimism. “I plan to look into it as soon as I get back from Texas,” I said. “But don’t wait for me. You and Ax should find out what you can about that and about the girls of Graves Parish that have gone missing.”

  Wren nodded, but there were worry lines around his eyes that hadn’t been there before. I was sure of it.

  Even the near-immortality of the vampire wasn’t enough to stop some things, including worry lines.

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  The once empty field on the outskirts of San Antonio was now full of people. I could see nothing but people in every direction.

  The event was an annual rock festival that lasted all weekend. Several bands were scheduled to perform. According to the program guide, Mason’s band should be coming on soon.

  They weren’t scheduled to start until after sundown. The wait was agonizing.

  Every few minutes, I glanced at the western horizon. Each time I checked, the sun had descended just a little more.

  There were so many people, I felt like I was in a sardine can. To get near the stage, I had to push my way through the crowd. Once I did finally make it to the stage, keeping my spot wasn’t easy. People kept trying to push me out of the way, but I wasn’t moving.

  They could just eat pickles.

  As the last rays of sunlight faded, the stage exploded in a spray of fire. Simultaneously, the guitars came alive, sending out waves of haunting chords. The spotlights cast an eerie red glow as fog billowed from the stage.

  When the smoke cleared, I saw him.

  The wind was blowing through his hair and his eyes were alive with hunger. Mason’s voice rang out above the roar of the crowd. His words of love and desire pierced right through to my soul.

  And then his eyes were on me. Once again, I was falling under his spell. This time I didn’t fight it, but welcomed it.

  At that moment, I saw no one else; not the rest of the band, not the people around me. I saw only Mason and his exotic, hypnotic eyes - his vampire eyes!

  To be so close to him after so long, but not feel his arms around me was more painful than anything I could have imagined. Throughout the show, his eyes rarely left me.

  My heart called out to him. I needed him to end my suffering.

  Too soon the music faded and Mason disappeared, taking my heart with him.

  I was too devastated to move. All I could do was stare at the empty stage.

  The lump in my throat was literally cutting off my breath. To be so close to him and then have him disappear without a word was like having a knife shoved into my heart. I’d never realized before that instant that heartbreak could actually cause physical pain.

  He’d acknowledged me with his eyes, but no more than that.

  Turning away from the stage, I pushed through the crowd. The world seemed to be moving in slow motion. All I wanted was to get away from the people and find solitude so that I could grieve in peace.

  Finally, I was out of the crowd and walking through a sea of parked cars. The tears blurred my vision as I wandered around, trying to remember where I’d parked. It was dark so all the cars looked the same.

  Finally, I saw my car and started running in that direction.

  I had to get away!

  Brushing away my tears, I hit the button to remotely unlock my car door. That’s when a hand reached out to cover mine, taking the keys from me. When I twisted around, Mason was standing beside me.

  Without thinking, I threw my arms around him, welcoming the feeling of his arms encircling my waist.

  “Don’t cry, love. There have been too many tears in your life,” he said before kissing away the tears that were streaming down my cheeks.

  Pulling away, I stared up at him. “You shouldn’t have left.”

  “I left only because I love you,” he whispered. Mason’s mouth c
ame down on mine and he kissed me with all the passion I could ever hope for.

  I clung to him, afraid that if I let go he’d disappear and I’d wake up to find that it had been nothing but a dream.

  When the kiss ended, he gazed at me with such adoration that I could feel my heart bursting with love.

  “I will never leave you again,” he promised.

  “What about my father?” I asked, still a little shaken.

  Mason held me, his lips close to my ear. “He will have to kill me to keep me away from you. I was going to sleep through your lifetime so that I would not be tempted to return, but I can’t do it.”

  The thought of never seeing Mason again was the most terrifying thing I’d faced so far.

  “What about my sisters?” I asked, recalling the prophecy.

  “We will face this together,” he said, kissing me again.

  Mason cradled me against his chest and lifted me into his arms.

  “Where are we going?” I asked.

  “Somewhere where I can do what I have been dreaming of doing every night since the last time I saw you,” he told me.

  His words sent waves of heat through me, and the best part was that this time, I wouldn’t be dreaming.

  But it wasn’t meant to be. Just as he was ready to set me on the passenger seat of my car, a voice stopped us.

  “Not so fast, lovebirds.”

  I felt Mason tense before he set me on my feet. Swinging around, he faced the man who’d dare intrude on our momentous reunion.

  “Not you again!” Mason grumbled.

  The man was wearing a long trench coat and an old fashioned Fedora. I couldn’t see his face but there was nothing familiar about him.

  Correction, there was nothing familiar about him but his voice. I’d heard that voice before.

  “She should be in hiding. Not running around with a wayward vampire,” the man said.

  “Wait a minute!” I said as I glared at the intruder through narrowed eyes. “Who are you?”

  “Who I am is not as important as why I am here,” he said as he stepped forward. “You are too important to be unprotected.”

  I was happy that this stranger thought so highly of me, but it was still kind of odd.

  “Who you are is kind of important, or why should we listen to you,” I told him.

  “He’s a wolf from Shadow Valley,” Mason said before turning his attention to the intruder. “Why do you care what happens to Claire?”

  “She is important to the future and not just the future of the vampires. Only Claire and others like her can bring harmony to the vampires and wolves. By watching over Claire, I am protecting my own granddaughter.”

  “How?” I asked.

  The wolf shook his head. “There is a storm coming. I can feel it deep in my bones. The world as we know it is about to change and you are to play a significant role in calming the storm. Even now, Kieran is gathering an army and gaining strength. He is determined to bring back the Originals. If he is successful, there is no telling how bad things will get.”

  Without waiting for an answer, he turned and walked away.

  Mason wrapped an arm around me. “I guess that was our warning.”

  As happy as I was to be with Mason, I could feel the dread blossoming in my stomach. Things were going to get ugly. That much I knew for sure.

  # # #

  Look for the next book in this series, Witchy Business, here. Join the Kendra Ashe mailing list to be notified of new releases and get a free ebook.

  Kendra Ashe

  Kendra Ashe writes Urban Fantasy Romance and Cozy Mysteries. Ms. Ashe studied Criminal Justice and Anthropology in college and has been writing stories since she was a teen. Kendra Ashe and her family now make their home in Utah. You can get Kendra Ashe news by following her on Facebook or Twitter.