by Lily Webb
Gorloz’s arms wrapped around me and scooped me off the floor, but I didn’t fight him. I didn’t have the energy to. “We can’t stay here, Councilwoman. It isn’t safe.”
As he carried me outside and took off, a thought crystallized and repeated in my head like a song I couldn’t shake: whoever did this, whoever abducted Dawn, Blaine, and maybe Grandma too, they’d done it to hurt me.
And I didn’t have a clue who it was.
Chapter Thirteen
The walls of my office threatened to swallow me, and each time I looked up from the spot on the carpet I’d been staring at for the last hour, they seemed to have moved a little closer.
It was awful enough that Dawn and Blaine had disappeared, but even then there was separation because they weren’t blood — but now that Grandma and Luna were gone, I felt more alone than I had since moving to Moon Grove. The two things that most anchored me had vanished, and I feared I might float away.
“Zoe, I’m so sorry. I can’t even imagine what you must be feeling,” Heath said as he paced the length of my office frenetically. I appreciated his condolences, though I knew they wouldn’t bring Grandma back. Each time I thought of her, the pain in my heart twisted and my throat closed as a new round of tears swelled.
“I knew I shouldn’t have let anyone leave. What was I thinking? Two council members went missing back to back and I let everyone go home like nothing happened.”
“You couldn’t have known. No one could’ve. Besides, whoever did this, I don’t think they meant to take Grandma.”
Heath turned and looked me right in the eye, his expression cloudy. “What do you mean?”
“I think the attacker wanted me, but they took Grandma and Luna when they realized I wasn’t home. They knew it was the best way to hurt me and draw me out.”
I didn’t understand why they took Luna too — what could a cat do for them other than to further hurt me? Then again, maybe they hadn’t taken her at all. She could’ve run away in the scuffle, but if that were the case, where had she gone? The other possibilities were too unthinkable to consider.
“What do we do, Zoe? I feel so helpless. We don’t have a clue who might be behind this so I don’t know where to look, but I have all this energy and I need to do something, anything. This is unbearable.”
He wasn’t alone in that feeling. If I had even the slightest clue where Grandma might be or who might’ve taken her, I would’ve dashed off without a second thought to get her back — but that was the worst part of everything; I didn’t have a single lead. I could’ve gone to The Witch's Brew and asked the owner about whether he’d seen Dawn the morning she disappeared, but I didn’t think it would lead to anything useful.
Claws lightly tapped on the office door. “Councilwoman, you have a visitor,” Gorloz said. Heath and I exchanged looks, but I told Gorloz to let them in, anyway. The door opened and I nearly fainted when I saw Raina standing with Luna in her arms.
I bounded out of my chair and ran toward them, tears streaming down my face. “Oh my God, you're alive! Thank Lilith!” I scooped Luna into my arms and held her so close and tight I worried her little head might pop off.
“I can’t breathe,” Luna squealed, so I carried her to my desk, set her down, and petted her like my life depended on it. She purred and rubbed her head against me, and for once had nothing sarcastic to say. She was probably just as happy to see me as I was to see her.
“She’s lucky I was home,” Raina said as she shut the door behind her.
“You little genius. Did you really run down to Raina’s house in the middle of all that?” I asked and Luna nodded.
“Not right away. But when I was sure the coast was clear, I ran as fast as my paws could carry me. I didn’t know where you were or if someone had attacked you too, so I thought Raina’s place was the smartest choice.”
“What happened? Where’s Grandma?” Luna looked away. “What? What is it? I don’t care how bad it is, just tell me, I need to know.”
“It was Christian.”
I backed away from her and sank down into my chair, gripping its arms like I might fall through the floor if I let go. Christian? The young reporter with a boyish, disarming smile, who idolized me and took my old job? Why would he do something like this?
“I don’t understand.”
“We hadn’t been home long, maybe a few minutes, when he showed up. He wanted to talk to you, but Obax told him you weren’t home, so he asked if he could speak to Eleanor instead, but she turned him away. He got all whiny about it, and Obax started to make him leave when he stabbed her with a dagger and she exploded,” Luna said, her little body shaking all over as she recounted the horrible incident. “After that, he used magic to open the door, so I ran and hid under one of the chairs. He cornered Eleanor and I’m not sure how, but he hypnotized her and the next thing I knew the two of them walked out together like Eleanor decided it all on her own.”
I wrapped my arms around her and rested my head against hers. It was awful to hear, but I was glad to know the truth. “And you’re sure it was Christian?”
“I could never forget him. I told you he was bad news, Zoe,” she said, and part of me would never forgive myself for not listening to her that first time I met Christian in my office. “I couldn’t place it but now I know why he smelled so funny: he’s a vampire.”
I sat back to stare her in the eye, confused. “What? No, he can’t be, I saw him using his wand and casting spells when Blaine held his self-defense course. There’s no way he—”
“Do you remember Delia Frost?” Luna interrupted and all at once everything fell into place. Delia was a vampire-witch and a professor at Veilside Academy. Though she had some characteristics of a vampire — cold skin, fangs — she lacked the others because of her origins as a witch. Rather than the bloodied eyes most of the vampires had, hers were a striking ice blue… Just like Christian’s.
“That’s why he wouldn’t let me touch him!” I shouted as the realization struck me. “He swore he was a germaphobe when we met and wouldn’t shake my hand because of it, but he was lying. He knew if I touched him, I’d figure him out right away.”
My mind raced with possibilities and I tried to follow them all to their logical ends. Christian said he’d come from another community, and given that Mitch hired him it was probably true, but that also gave Christian the ability to cover up anything he didn’t want people in Moon Grove to know — including his status as a vampire-warlock.
“I can’t believe I missed all the signs. It’s so obvious now.”
“So did we,” Heath said. “He sat in the front row on the day we were supposed to vote on the Council expansion and none of us paid him any attention because he was a journalist. It must’ve made him think he was the smartest person in town.”
“And that must be how he did all this. He used his position as a reporter to get access to important people like Dawn and Blaine because he knew they’d never say no to media coverage.”
“As evil as it is, it’s genius,” Raina said.
“It goes deeper than that. When I talked to him about his interview with Dawn the day she vanished, he sounded so upset about it. He even lamented what he could’ve done to stop it, but it was all an act to cover his tracks. I bet he glamoured Dawn during their interview and no one else in the cafe where they met noticed.”
“But that doesn’t answer the question of what happened to Blaine,” Heath said.
“Yes, it does! Christian was here for the self-defense course, and he probably asked to speak to Blaine for the Messenger during the break. Based on what Luna said about the dagger he used to stab Obax, that’s probably the same thing he used to kill Nazarr, and I bet he glamoured Blaine too then they walked away together like nothing was wrong.”
“It’s certainly possible,” Raina said. “Even the strongest witches and warlocks aren’t immune to the effects of a vampire’s glamour.”
“Right, exactly. We’ve learned that once already with Counc
ilwoman Magnus when Valentine got her under his spell, remember? If she can fall for it, so could Blaine and Dawn. But what about the dagger? What could that possibly be?”
Raina shrugged. “I’m not sure. I’ve never heard of a weapon that’s able to kill a gargoyle in one hit. As far as I’m aware, the gargoyles have no known weaknesses like the vampires and the fairies.”
“Did you notice anything interesting or distinct about the dagger, Luna?”
Luna shook her head. “No, not really, but I didn’t really have time to absorb the details. It seemed small, small enough that he could tuck it into the pocket of his robes, and I’m not kidding when I say that Obax literally exploded at its touch.”
“Gruesome,” Heath said, shaking his head. “Maybe it’s an original weapon.”
“Or maybe it’s something that came with Christian from Starfall Valley,” I said, the realization hitting me like a speeding broom. “He told me the first time we met that they have lots of magic and paranormal species there that we don’t have here. I guess it doesn’t really matter where it came from, the point is what it can do.”
Raina nodded. “Yes, but why would he go through all the trouble of getting hired at the Messenger and creating this facade to target council members?”
“That’s a great question. My first guess is to create chaos in town, but I don’t know why.”
Silence fell throughout the room as each of us retreated to our thoughts, trying to make the pieces fit. If I were Christian, and I’d abducted two council members, where would I have hidden them? Would I have kept them alive? And would I have had help?
A cold feeling swept over me like I’d dipped into a frigid pool. Christian absolutely had a partner, and I was too blind to see it. It could only have been Julien, which was why I’d run into Christian at the vampire’s mansion the night before. He wasn’t there to interview Julien — it was just a front for what they were really doing.
“I think he’s keeping them in the vampire’s mansion,” I said, more convinced as the words left my mouth. It made perfect sense. As the official residence of the president of the vampires, not even Heath and I had the authority to search the place, and no one could’ve gotten into or out of it without the vampire Secret Service noticing.
Which made me wonder: were Dawn and Blaine right under my nose last night when I visited? And if they were, where had the vampires hidden them?
Heath laughed and shook his head in disbelief. “Normally, I would try to poke holes in a theory like that, but I think you’re right. That place is like a fortress, and given Julien’s hard push to get us to vote to expand the Council, it would make sense for him to be working with Christian on this. They must have known that the vote wouldn’t pass, so they systematically targeted the council members they thought would make a difference — but what they didn’t count on was that we’d suspend the vote altogether.”
“Actually, I don’t think you’re entirely right. That might’ve been their original goal, but now they’re down to their last option: holding Dawn, Blaine, and Grandma hostage to force you and I to expand the Council unilaterally.”
Heath’s eyes widened. “Oh, dear Lilith, you’re right. You’re exactly right! But how do we get them back without doing what the vampires want? It’s not like we can storm the mansion and demand they release the captives. The place is crawling with security, seen and unseen, and they’ll know we’re there before we ever set foot on the property.”
“We don’t have to storm them; we have to surprise them. They probably think we haven’t figured them out yet, and we need to keep that going for a little longer.”
“Surprise them? I don’t like the sound of that.”
“I’ll call Julien and ask him for another meeting. I’ll tell him I want to talk about exploring other options to expand the Council as bait. He won’t be able to tell me no because that’s exactly what he wants, and I’ll invite Christian over under the guise of an exclusive scoop on the deal for the Messenger.”
“Zoe, you aren’t seriously considering using executive action to expand the Council, are you?” Heath asked, his brows raised.
“No, of course not. It’s a trap. I want to see what they’ll let slip when they think victory’s in sight, and then once I have them where I want them, I’ll ask for a tour of the mansion to stall and see what I can glean about where they might be keeping Grandma and the others. Once I know, we can send the police inside to get them.”
“But after you go inside the mansion, you won’t be able to tell us what you’ve found until you come back out.”
“I know. That’s why you need to call Mueller and the FBI. Tell them everything and make sure they’re able to help me if things go south. But we have to be careful about it because if the vampires figure out ahead of time that we’re setting them up, the whole thing will fall apart.”
“And you’ll be the next one they throw in a dungeon,” Heath said, shaking his head. “I don’t like this, Zoe. I don’t like it at all. It’s too risky.”
“What other choice do we have? We don’t know what they’ve been doing to Dawn and Blaine since they disappeared, or if they’re even still alive. I don’t want Grandma to be next, Heath, I couldn’t live with myself if that happened. I brought her here. I did this to her.”
Heath sighed and looked to Raina for input. She nodded somberly. “She’s right, Heath. This is the best chance we have to get everyone back safe, and it might be the last one we have.”
A beat of silence that felt like an eternity passed before Heath finally gave in. “Okay, but I want at least three gargoyles to go with you. They won’t be much protection against a mansion full of hostile vampires, but I refuse to let you go alone.”
“No, that won’t work. They’ll know right away that I’m up to something. I can take one gargoyle, tops. That’ll look reasonable from their perspective, and I want it to be Gorloz.” Considering how strong he was and the gentle way he’d handled me, I couldn’t think of anyone better.
“That won’t be enough. Wait here,” Heath said and left my office in a hurry. He returned a few moments later holding a crescent moon-shaped necklace and a small, polished wooden stake. “Put this on,” he said, so I pulled my hair off my neck to let him latch the small silver chain around it. As soon as the trinket touched me, my skin tingled and I knew it was magical.
“What is this?”
“An enchanted necklace that will protect you from vampire bites and their glamour while you’re wearing it. And this,” he said, holding up the stake, “Will help you fight them if they get the necklace off you somehow. It’s practically indestructible and the surest way to end a vampire’s immortality. Hopefully, you won’t need either of them, but we can’t be too safe.”
I took the stake from him and rolled it in my palm. The polish sparkled in the light, and its tip was so sharp I wondered if it could draw blood on its own — though I didn’t want to find out.
“Okay, make your calls. I’ll get in touch with the police and tell the gargoyles the plan. Something tells me we’ll need every one of them for this,” Heath said and left.
Raina crossed the room to rest a hand on my shoulder. “I’ve been proud of you many times since you moved here, Zoe, but I think this is the proudest I’ve ever been. You’re an incredible witch, and we’re lucky to have you.”
My cheeks ignited. “Thank you. I appreciate it.”
“Good luck,” she said with a smile and left me alone with Luna, who laid on my desk flicking her tail against its surface. She let out a great yawn, all tongue and fangs, and rested her head on her paws.
“Taking on the entire vampire administration alone, huh? Better you than me,” she said as she drifted off to sleep, and I appreciated her sarcasm; if things had gone differently, I might never have heard another snarky comment from her again, and I didn’t think I could live without them.
I stroked her head and reached for the phone, hoping that I wasn’t about to make one of the biggest,
deadliest mistakes of my life.
Chapter Fourteen
“President Julien Delroy’s office, how may I help you?” a smooth voice with a light French accent answered.
“Hello, this is Head Witch Zoe Clarke. I know it’s short notice, but I was hoping I could make an appointment to see President Delroy this evening.”
Silence crackled on the line as the vampire absorbed what I said. “And what is the reason for the request?”
I paused, unsure of how clear I should be. If I told the receptionist right away that I was interested in speaking to Julien about the vote, I might not do myself any favors, but if I couldn’t give a compelling reason to meet, I wouldn’t get an appointment.
“It’s sensitive governmental business,” I said as confidently as I could, hoping it carried the weight I needed it to.
“Hold please,” the vampire said, and the line switched to generic jazz music. A beat later, the vampire returned. “Yes, the president has an opening at seven o’clock and has agreed to see you. I’ll tell the security detail to expect your arrival.”
“Perfect, thank you,” I said, but I might as well have been talking to myself because the vampire had already hung up. Talk about ruthless efficiency. With a shrug, I moved on to the next call and dialed Mitch’s phone number from memory.
“This is Mitch,” he barked after the third ring.
“Hey, Mitch, it’s Zoe again,” I said, trying to keep my voice as light as possible. I didn’t want him to suspect anything was wrong yet.
“Well, ain’t that something. I go for more than a month without hearing from you, and now I’ve heard from you twice in one week. What gives?”
“Look, I’ll get right to the point. I’m calling about Christian. Are you alone right now?”
“Yeah, I’m in my office with the door closed. Why?”
