"I can get that for you," I said. "I'll take my computer home tonight and e-mail it to you if that works. It'll take some time to dig up from the records."
The detective slid me a small business card with his name, phone number, and e-mail address. "And the bartender? Do you happen to know if Amelia and Connor both consumed anything he gave them?"
I bit my lip. "Yes, they both had mixed drinks. You don't suspect Joey..."
"We have to cover our bases, ma'am. It is ma'am, correct?"
I nodded. "Thank you for asking."
The officer grinned at me kindly. "We're not accusing anyone of anything. But when two young people, in good health, die mysteriously at the same place, two nights in a row, we can't rule anything out."
"You don't think they were murdered, do you?" I asked.
"We don't know. Like I said, we have to consider anyone who was here on both nights in question as a possible suspect."
I sighed. "Including me, I suppose."
"Again, Nicky, we have to do our due diligence."
"Understandable," I said. "It's so strange."
Cavanaugh nodded. "Without any obvious cause of death, I have to warn you, this might get a little messy. We're going to have to secure your place as a crime scene."
I snorted. "So no more shows?"
"Not here," the officer said. "I apologize for the inconvenience. Do you have any identification, a driver's license perhaps?"
I nodded. "It's with my stuff in the greenroom. I can get it for you."
"Please do," the detective said.
I got up from my chair and, my heart racing a million miles per hour, made my way back to the greenroom. I could still smell the blood in my office. I didn't think the officer would find any evidence of blood, at least not tonight. But if they started investigating, I wasn't sure what might turn up using their black light. My only saving grace, I supposed, was that the place had been a funeral home. I could only hope if they found any blood, it might be explained as part of the facility's prior status. Of course, even then, blood in the office would be strange.
But that wasn't my biggest concern at the moment. My identification, for obvious reasons, had been manufactured. Cain secured it for me when I was discharged from the Asylum. The Voodoo world had connections. I wasn't sure how they pulled it off, but my driver's license was in the name of Nicholas Williams. Cain even managed to secure me a matching Social Security number. If the police really started digging into my background, though, they wouldn't find much beyond five years before. From what Cain told me, I was considered a naturalized citizen. At least, according to the record. That meant, I hoped, that any dead-end they reached when investigating my history would be explained by the fact I was considered an immigrant. Technically speaking, I was. I could only hope that however Cain went about inventing my identity and background, it was thorough enough not to raise any red flags.
I retrieved my Missouri driver's license and brought it back to Officer Cavanaugh.
"We'll run your identity and return this to you shortly," Cavanaugh said.
I nodded. "Do what you need to do. Is there anything else I can help you with?"
"I see you have cameras. Do you have any footage from the last two nights we could review?"
I nodded. "It's all on the cloud. I'm sure I can get you access."
The detective nodded. "That makes it easier. If you don't mind giving us your log-in information, it would be helpful. A lot easier than if we have to get a warrant for it. You'll just have to sign a form for us indicating you're granting us access."
"Again, that won't be a problem," I said.
"And any keys to any locked areas on the property," the detective added.
"Right," I said, biting my lip. My mind went immediately to my vampire hunting weapons in the basement. If they found all of that... crossbow bolts and stakes stained with vampire blood... "I can get that for you."
Chapter Seventeen
I didn't know how long it would take for the officers to secure the place. I knew it would be a risk if I tried to sneak in, myself, and take anything out of the premises. Removing weapons from a crime scene would undoubtedly cast suspicion in my direction. I brought my keys to the detective, and he returned my driver's license. He said they'd be there a while, but I was free to go. In fact, he encouraged it. The longer I was there, or anyone other than the officers roamed the place, the more likely we'd contaminate the potential crime scene.
I mounted my motorcycle and drove a couple blocks away. I needed a place out of view. I pulled between two brick buildings.
"Brucie!" I said.
The sprite appeared behind me on my bike. "Come on, Nyxie! I'm trying to get my drink on!"
I snorted. "I need one more favor if you don't mind."
"I'm listening, Nyxie."
"I have a lot of weapons down in the mortuary. If the police find them..."
"Yeah, that wouldn't be good," Brucie said, taking a swing from a bottle of rum.
"However you took those bottles before. Could you do the same with my weapons? Get anything that might cause me any problems and take them someplace else."
"You got it! I can take it all to your apartment if you'd like."
"That would be perfect. I owe you, Brucie."
"That you do," Brucie said. "Don't sweat it, Nyxie. I'll take care of it!"
"Thanks, Brucie," I said. "The sooner, the better. They'll probably be focused on the auditorium first. But especially since that's where Amelia's body was when they came last night, I imagine they'll be taking a look down there soon."
"No worries, Nyxie. Brucie's got this!"
Brucie disappeared in a cloud of mist. At least I had that covered. I was still worried about the bloodstains. Devin and Malinda used chemicals Alice had left behind, specifically meant to clean up biohazardous waste. I had to hope they did a good enough job to avoid any problems with the police. But since Devin and Malinda cleaned up in a rush the night before, my confidence wasn't as high as it could have been.
"One worry at a time, Nicky," I muttered to myself as I fired up my Thruxton RS. My next worry? How would Malinda take the news? I was dreading her reaction almost as much as whatever the police might turn up. Really, though, I hadn't done anything illegal. I didn't kill anyone. My only saving grace, I supposed, was that I hadn't interacted with Connor at all. That meant I hadn't broken my promise to Malinda. With respect to the police, though, it was good I hadn't talked to him. I hadn't touched him. Still, suppose the detectives viewed the cameras and saw him kiss Malinda the night before. They knew I was protecting her. In that case, they might be able to hypothesize a motive. Again, one worry at a time.
I walked into the apartment and into a pile of vampire hunting wares. I suppose I didn't tell Brucie not to put it all just inside the front door. Looking past the small mountain of weaponry, I saw Malinda on the couch, tears in her eyes, as Devin consoled her.
"Why didn't you listen to him!" Malinda cried. "Devin told you to cancel the show!"
I sighed. Brucie apparently broke the news. I should have figured as much. What were the chances he could unload my entire armory in the apartment without so much as an explanation?
"I'm sorry," I said. "If it helps, Connor was flirting with other girls right before he died."
Malinda looked at me, her jaw dropped. She stomped one foot, banged her cane into the floor, and disappeared into her room, slamming the door behind her.
"Seriously, Nicky?" Devin asked. "Did you really think telling her Connor was flirting with other girls would help?"
I shrugged. "I assumed, you know, if Mal realized Connor was a creep, maybe the loss wouldn't hurt so much."
"Two different kinds of pain, Nicky. Now she has to deal with being upset about Connor being into other girls while trying to figure out how she feels about the fact that he's dead."
I snorted. "I guess I wasn't thinking. If it means anything, Nicky's wont be open again for a while."
"Sin
ce the police shut you down."
I nodded. "They're looking into my background. Probably the whole background of the club, which means they'll be looking into Alice, too."
"That could get messy."
"I've never had any problem with my ID before. I pay taxes. I pay off my speeding tickets. But no one has ever looked into my background with such a critical eye."
"Let's hope whatever evidence they find, or don't find, sends them down another path."
I nodded. "I think the detective will zero in on Joey. All the victims had drinks shortly before they died."
"With no obvious cause of death, some kind of poison, something untraceable, would probably be a leading theory."
"My thoughts exactly," I said, sighing. "The problem is there are only three people left alive who've had contact with the victims and were there on all three nights. Joey, Katie, and Rose. And none of them seem like anything other than human. At least there's no evidence I can sense to the contrary. It feels like we're missing something. And my gut tells me it has something to do with the grimoire."
Devin shrugged. "If your dream was right. It could just be a dream, after all."
I shook my head. "My dreams are never just dreams. There's always significance to them. Cain agrees."
"Maybe I can help," Malinda said, wiping her eyes as she leaned on her cane at the doorway to her bedroom.
"You're not still mad at me?" I asked.
"No, I am. But I'll get over it. I know you were only trying to catch the killer."
"How do you think you could help?" Devin asked.
"I was talking to Hailey about it. Hear me out, okay?"
I nodded. "We're listening."
"My spell I was practicing the other night."
"When you exploded the blood bags?" I asked.
"Yeah, that one. Anyway, the reason that happened was there was no soul left in the blood. Whoever or whatever killed these people is stealing souls. What if the souls are still trapped in the killer's body?"
"You think you could use your spell to communicate with Amelia, Connor, even Geraldo's mom?"
"Hailey thinks I could do more than that. If their souls are still intact, I might put their souls back in their bodies."
Devin and I exchanged glances. I scratched my head. "You're talking about resurrection?"
Malinda shrugged. "Hailey says it might work. But I have to practice. I'd have to make sure the whole soul gets put back into the body. If any soul is missing, well, they might not be totally themselves if they come back."
"What do you think, Nicky?" Devin asked.
"I think it's risky. Like you said, if any of the person's soul is left behind or consumed, there's no telling what they might be when they come back."
"They might lose something of themselves," Malinda said. "But surely that would be better than being dead, having their souls trapped by some kind of soul collector. Either way, Hailey is researching it. Trying to figure out if it's a viable option."
"She has a point," Devin said. "What's the worst that could happen?"
I sighed. "I don't know. It depends on how much of the soul has been consumed. I need you to be a hundred percent sure you can do it and that Hailey knows what risks there are. Also, if we try to extract the souls from the wrong person, I want to make sure you don't, you know, take the wrong soul out of the body."
"Shouldn't be a problem," Malinda said. "Hailey said I need a little DNA from the person whose soul I'm collecting. The soul will be naturally attracted to it like a magnet. I shouldn't be able to pull any soul other than the one I'm targeting."
"You'll need to practice, somehow," I said. "You need to work on this with Hailey until you're sure you can pull it off. The last time you cast a spell targeted by DNA..."
"That was different!" Malinda said. "I was using my parent's DNA when I did that. That's why it backfired on me. Because I was their daughter. I'm not related to any of the suspects in this case."
I nodded. "Alright. Well, I want you to focus on this. Spend as much time practicing with Hailey as you can."
"So then, I can skip my GED classes?" Malinda asked.
I laughed. "I didn't say that."
"You still need to do your therapy and go to school," Devin added.
"Damn. Well, you can't fault a girl for trying, right?"
Chapter Eighteen
Malinda got a break. It was a weekend. She wouldn't start her classes until the following week. Also, she didn't have therapy on Saturdays. I called Geraldo to appraise him of recent developments—no reason to rush back since Nicky's would be closed until further notice. He was grateful. He decided to take another week off. Malinda spent most of her day on video chat with Hailey. Devin and I left her alone. If this spell they were working on had any chance at success, she needed to be confident in the particulars. I didn't know much about witchcraft, certainly not bloodwitchery. I understood enough, though, to know that the slightest miscalculation could drastically impact the results.
I spent most of the day sorting through my weapons, organizing them in my closet, sharpening my stakes, and replacing the string on my crossbow. I hadn't encountered any vampires recently, but it never hurt to be prepared. Bloodsuckers tend to show up at the worst of times. And this was one of those times.
I wasn't sure of the proper dress code for crashing a retirement party. Devin was wearing a three-piece suit.
"Dapper Devin," I said, brushing my long, white hair in the mirror as I caught his reflection.
Devin chuckled. "Is that my new nickname?"
I smiled. "Today, it is. Damn, boy. You look good!"
"Thanks! What are you wearing?"
I shrugged. "It's a retirement party, not a funeral. Do you think I need to wear black?"
"Probably not," Devin said. "I hope I'm not overdressed. I just hope we can blend in."
"I don't think I could even if I wanted to," I said, grabbing my makeup kit from the drawer in my vanity. "So, why try?"
"Fair point," Devin said, chuckling. "Did I ever tell you how good your butt looks in those leather pants?"
I nodded. "Every time I wear them. But you know, it's more about the heels than the pants. The higher the heels, the higher the ass."
"Well, if you wore heels any higher than that, your ass would probably smack you in the back of the head."
I giggled. "I love these Louboutins! Been thinking about going a little higher. James Syiemiong makes a twenty-inch platform boot I've been eyeing."
"Twenty inches?" Devin asked, raising an eyebrow. "Isn't that a little much?"
"Too much heel? Please. That's like too much fun. Too much money. Too much sexy. No such thing!"
Devin snorted. "Not sure how useful those would be in a vampire hunting situation."
"True," I said. "The heel on Syemiong's design isn't particularly sharp. But they'd be fun to perform in!"
The retirement party was being held at Lakeview. A funeral home was a strange place for a party, but, you know, it made sense in this case. I imagined the party was likely on a scale comparable to a post-funeral reception.
A catering truck from Fiorella's Jack Stack Barbecue was parked outside. I clapped my hands in excitement as Devin parked the car.
"Sweet! I hope they have burnt ends!"
Devin snorted. "I don't know if they'll serve us. The invitation was meant for Alice, after all."
I sighed. Barbecue was my weakness. It was a stroke of luck I happened to live in a city renowned for its smoked meats. Transitioning from my former diet of human flesh to barbecue was a lot easier than, say, trying to become a vegan or something. Plus, the sauces aside, barbecue was relatively low-carb. It was good for my girlish figure. At least that's what I told myself. Sounded reasonable, so I rolled with it.
"What are you two doing here?" Kevin, the funeral director we met before, asked as we walked through the glass-paned double doors of the place.
I flashed the invitation I'd received in the mail. "We were invited!"
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Kevin cocked his head. "I don't think that invitation was meant for you."
I turned the invitation around and looked at it. "I don't see a name on here."
Kevin rolled his eyes. "You only received it, most likely, because Alice's funeral home was in our address book."
"We're here to honor Lester's career," Devin said.
"Right," Kevin said, scratching his head. "I don't think..."
"Welcome!" an older man said, stepping in front of Kevin. "I don't know if we've had the pleasure."
"I'm Nicky," I said. "And this is Devin. Alice sends her regards."
"Ah! Alice! How is she doing these days? Still something of a night owl, I suppose?"
I laughed. "Something like that. She's been busy with her newest venture. But, so far as I know, she's doing well."
"Just as well. If you want my honest opinion, a young girl like that getting into the funeral business was a bit unorthodox. Still, it's always nice to find young folks interested in our line of work. No matter, any friend of Alice's is a friend of mine! She came to me for advice when she was setting up her home. I'm Lester, by the way."
"I assumed as much," Devin said. "I think you knew my father, also."
"Your father?" Lester asked.
Devin nodded, pulled out his phone, and retrieved a picture of his dad. "Yes. Thomas Miller."
Lester cocked his head. "That name rings a bell."
"Take a look," Devin said, showing Lester the image on his phone.
"Oh yes!" Lester said. "How could I forget! How has your family coped after your loss?"
I had to hide my grin. I wanted to scream "jackpot," but that would have been inappropriate.
"We're doing well," Devin said. "But you know, a loss like that, it strikes a little close to home."
"I thought you didn't know the name of the deceased," Kevin said, turning to Lester. "They came to me a few days ago inquiring about some kind of book buried with someone. But they didn't know the name of the deceased."
"Yes," Lester said, waving his hand through the air. "Not a surprise. Mister Miller indicated he hadn't seen his sister in years."
Devin nodded. "It's true. I don't know the whole story, but it did impact my dad pretty hard. He actually passed away shortly after the funeral."
No Shift, Sherlock: A Vampire Hunter Urban Fantasy Mystery (The Legend of Nyx Book 3) Page 10
