Ryker wrapped his hands around my waist as I reached for the tea in the cupboard. He planted a kiss on my shoulder. “We will find Sasha.”
“Sasha isn’t the first shifter to go missing.” I put the tea bag in the coffee cup I had pulled down.
When Ryker looked up from the cup he’d grabbed, his eyes turned from his crystal gray to bright yellow. “What do you mean, Paldon? When did you start working supernatural cases?”
The teapot whistled, and I reached around Ryker to grab it. “I don’t take supernatural cases.”
Ryker narrowed his eyes at me.
“Atieno mentioned that a few supernaturals have gone missing. He thinks it’s part of the grand plan of whoever is after me. After he left my office, I did some research, and he was right—shifters of all species have disappeared, and it seems to be more and more each day.”
Ryker didn’t comment. He put a pod in the Keurig, and I poured hot water from the kettle into my waiting mug.
“What is your plan?” he asked after a few seconds.
I knew he wouldn’t be happy, but my supposed father had said I needed to go back to where it had all started for me. Ryker wouldn’t like me going back to Celistic, Georgia, but the more I thought about it, the less everything made sense. Judy, my supposed birth mom, had watched me get thrown out of the only pack I had known.
Ryker handed me a cup of coffee, and I took a sip. The hot, dark liquid ran down my throat. “I need to figure out what happened ten years ago.”
He grabbed Mary’s cup of tea. “Are you going to tell me what happened?”
I wasn’t sure if I’d kept what happened from Ryker because I was ashamed or because he would think differently of me. Well, it was time to figure that out. He needed to know since he had made me the second in his pack. So much had changed in a few hours.
After I took a deep breath, I said, “Ten years ago, the second of the North American pack attacked me. I was out for a run in the woods, and he took me down.” Thinking about the attack sent a chill down my back. “His eyes were red like Carter’s were tonight. It almost felt like I was reliving what happened all those years ago. I couldn’t stop him, and that was when this rush of magic came over me and I threw him against a tree and a branch stabbed him through the heart. That was the first time I had ever used my magic or even known it existed.”
Ryker said nothing as he waited for me to continue.
“When Joseph Hanson arrived, he banished me for killing his second. He arrived at the scene within seconds after I had killed George, and he took me back to the pack house and put me in his office. Hours later, he came back and told me the pack had voted to kick me out and ban me. He marked my face, handed me a suitcase, and drove me to the end of the property. I haven’t heard from any pack members since that day. I need answers, Ryker. I plan to go back and confront my supposed mom. Look at Mary.” I nodded toward the living room, where the pack members had surrounded her. “If Judy cared about me, how could she have let this happen?”
“You are not going alone.”
A flash of anger coursed through me. The magic in my body didn’t enjoy being told what to do. “I need time, Ryker. Give me a little space. I will let you know if I plan to go visit the pack. But all of this is new. I need to understand everything.”
Tabatha walked over and grabbed the cup of tea and took it to Mary. Ryker took my hand and dragged me outside. The moon was full and lit up the backyard. He pulled me over to the bench swing on the patio.
“Paldon, Carter attacked you tonight with trolls and demons. Do you think it’s a good idea to go off on your own? We have a missing pack member, I need you to help with the pack as well."
He had a couple of valid points. I pushed off on the deck to swing us back. “I understand your concern, but I’ve been on my own for years, and I have tools for tracking.”
“Humans,” he grunted.
I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. “You don’t think those same tools help me track the supernatural? They do. I might not take cases, but that doesn’t mean I don’t help when I hear of a supernatural going missing. Let me grab my laptop and do some research.” When it looked like Ryker would protest, I said, “I promise to come back. I will grab a couple files and my laptop from the office. I know people are after me, but I need time to process this. Hell, I just found out my real father is the devil. The fucking devil. How would you feel if he told you that?”
Ryker pulled me to his side. “I finally got you into my house and pack. I would’ve liked you to come into my pack freely, not because you killed someone. When you go visit your old pack, I’m coming. I’ve never liked Joseph. I didn’t want to deal with him. But maybe it’s time I take care of those issues.”
Pushing my feet against the deck, I slowed the swing. “Why would you care about the North American alpha? He seems to leave you alone, though you don’t follow his rules.”
Ryker ran a hand through his hair. “There are things I haven’t told you about me, either, but all in due time. We have enough on our plates. I want to come with you to grab your things, but I need to stay here and take care of things going on. Will you let one of the pack members go with you?”
I couldn’t help but grind my teeth. He needed to learn I could do things on my own, especially since I was the second in his pack. “Let’s go check on Mary.”
When we walked into the living room, Mary was still sobbing into her hands. Tyler had come back and had his arm wrapped around her. He, too, looked like he had been crying. I excused myself to run upstairs and grab a couple of things before I left.
Once I reached Ryker’s bedroom, I put my plan into place. I needed a little breathing room. When I threw open the doors to the balcony, I saw that it was a long way down. But luck was on my side. I grabbed onto an oak tree and shimmied down. The twigs poked my bare feet as they touched the ground.
I quickly shifted into my wolf and sprinted toward my house. It was a quick run between the backyards. I could see Ryker’s house from my deck. When I arrived home, I shifted and looked back at his house. Ryker was standing on the back deck with his arms crossed. I could see the scowl on his face. It would only be a matter of time before he had a pack member following me.
The smell of rotting flesh assaulted me when I opened the back door. Trolls seemed to decay at a fast rate, and the stench in the house made me want to vomit. I covered my mouth and ran to my room to grab clothes and my car keys.
Dressed and ready to solve the case, I ran through my destroyed living room. Blood covered the walls and the floor. The elegant white carpet and couch looked like Christmas had vomited all over them, but Reggie would have it cleaned up for a hefty price. I would probably have to sell a pair of my Prada shoes when the bill came.
When I ran for the door, I didn’t see the half-alive demon reach out and grab my leg. His hand singed my skin, and it felt like acid. I let out a scream as I fell forward into a heap of dead demons and blood.
His red-clawed hand wrapped around my ankle. Knowing a little more about my magic, I pictured a ring of fire. The dark magic coursed through my body, and I let it fly toward the demon. He screamed as his body burned, and the smell of burning flesh overpowered the trolls’ decaying bodies. I scrambled to my feet. Not wanting to deal with any more demons, I hightailed it to the door.
When I threw the front door open, a very pissed alpha stood at my doorstep. “Move.” I shoved at his chest. Wow, it was rock solid. I held my hand against him a second too long. His pissed-off scowl turned into a cocky smirk.
“Move, Ryker.”
“We had a plan. You could go, but a pack member would go with you.”
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. “No, you had a plan. I never agreed to it. Now please move. I have to go grab my things. I will be back to the pack house by morning.” Unless I found a good lead.
The sexy alpha was about to open his mouth, but I interrupted him. “Ryker, if you expect this to work, you need to trust me.”
> He pinched the bridge of his nose. “I trust you, Paldon, but Atieno said someone is after you. Hell, look at your house. Who knows what this person will do next.”
The sound of a bush blowing in the breeze had Ryker looking to his left. I used the moment to sneak by him and dash to my car.
“Paldon,” he groaned.
“I have my cell. I will call if I get into danger.” Then I slipped into my car and drove off. When I looked in the rearview mirror, Ryker had his arms crossed and was glaring at me. The note on my seat, which was written in blood, sent a wave of worry through me.
Chapter 5
I parked my car along the cobblestone street outside my PI office and crumpled the note. It was from the two upset pack members, reminding me to leave town. They’d added a nice touch by using blood from the dead troll. I would let Ryker know what was going on when I went back to the pack house.
My office was in a row of a bunch of other businesses. It had been a long time since I’d been there at night. I jumped out of my car, and the wet Orlando air chilled me to the bone, so I pulled my gray sweater tighter around my body.
A light in the shop two doors down caught my eye. A tickle in the back of my brain reminded me I had work to do, but the array of colored lights drew my attention. I walked toward the occult shop. When I pulled the glass door open, a bell chimed. The scent of jasmine wafted through the air. White Christmas lights illuminated the shop. Directly to my right stood a case of old books.
My fingers itched to run across the spines. I slowly read the titles. Maybe I could find an answer to my magic problem. I touched a book with silver lettering and a green spine—Earth’s Magic. The next book on the self was blue and titled Magic of the Oceans. I felt excitement when I read the next title, Heavenly Magic, then the shelf ended. Hoping the next shelf would hold a book about underworld magic, I moved on, but I only found a book about vampires. Every time I felt like I was getting close to an answer, it would slip through my fingers.
A soft voice startled me. “Here.”
I spun around to find a frail elderly lady. She had her long, curly hair up, and strips of red-and-pink ribbon dangled from her hair tie. A few wayward curls covered her face. She wore a long floral skirt. In her right hand, she held out a red book with shimmering gold text that almost seemed alive.
I took the book from her. “Thank you,” I mumbled. When I looked down at it, I saw that the title read Magic of the Underworld. I looked up from the book. “I don’t understand.” How could she know about my powers? I only found out they came from my father a few hours ago.
“I can feel the dark magic within you. It is calling to me.”
Ten years I’d spent trying to figure out what my magic had over me, and within three hours, I’d found out where my magic came from and learned it was drawing people in. Maybe that was the reason so many supernatural creatures kept moving next to me. My butt hit the table behind me, and I cringed when the sound of breaking glass rang through the small shop. My heart sank when I looked down at the priceless antique. There goes another pair of Prada shoes. I needed to figure out the supernatural problem so I could get back to finding bail jumpers. Setting the book with the key to my future aside, I looked at the vase I’d broken. When I bent down to pick up the pieces, the elder lady swatted my hand with a broom.
“Get up, my dear. I’ve got this.” She swept the broom across the floor. I cringed as she swiped the price tag with four hundred dollars written on it into the pan.
I twisted my hands in front of me. “I’m so sorry. I will pay for it.”
The shop owner stopped mid-sweep, and her purple eyes pierced through me. “How about instead of paying for the vase, you have a cup of coffee or tea with me?”
“Coffee,” I mumbled. I didn’t think the old lady could hurt me, but she knew about my magic.
I followed her to the back of the store. She pulled a rainbow-colored bead curtain aside and motioned for me to go into the back room. It was lit by hundreds of white candles, and in the center of the room sat a table with a few chairs.
“Have a seat, Paldon. I will be back in a second.”
My feet faltered at the sound of my name. I quickly went over everything I’d said since I entered. Nope, I never mentioned my name once. Though I still didn’t know how to use my magic, I let it come to the surface.
The lady came back into the room with a cup of coffee and eyed me for a second. “I won’t harm you. No need to let your dark magic out yet.” She smirked as she handed me the cup. The heavenly French vanilla smell made my mouth water, but I needed more answers before I trusted the old lady. Ryker would kill me if I let someone poison me because of my addiction to coffee.
She took the seat next to me and brushed the wayward blond locks behind her shoulder. My breath hitched when I saw the scar on the side of her face. I couldn’t stop my hand from going to my face. Her purple eyes flashed amber for a second before going back to a deep purple.
“I didn’t poison your coffee.”
My cheeks warmed. “I would like a couple questions answered. First, what is your name?”
“Marilyn Bien.”
“Okay, Marilyn, how did you know my name? I never told you what it was.”
She reached for her cup of tea and took a sip. My fingers itched to bring the coffee to my mouth.
“Well, there has been talk in the supernatural world about someone who will save us. And they say she has dark magic and a white wolf. When I asked around, someone told me about you. The spirits say you will need help when the time comes. Why else do you think so many supernatural people live close to you?”
I twisted the cup in my hand and pondered her question. “I figured they wanted to move to sunny Florida.”
Marilyn pulled a black book with dark-silver writing from a stack on the table. The title wasn’t in English or any language I had seen before. She flipped to the middle of the book and showed me a picture. It looked like a wolf in the middle of a war, surrounded by every creature in the supernatural world.
“Can you explain the picture?” I asked.
She tapped the wolf in the picture. “That wolf is you, Paldon.” She slid the book across the table.
The pages were stained yellow, and the paper felt like it might crumble under my hands. “This book looks old. I’m not old, so you have the wrong woman.” I wasn’t so sure the key thing was true, though more evidence kept pointing to the prophecy.
With a snap of her fingers, the book slid back to her side of the table. She waved her hand, and the pages turned. Her voice turned from light and sweet to deep. “A marked wolf will stop the prophecy of the souls entering the human world with the powers of the underworld.”
I leaned back in the chair. “Well, there could be someone else. Also, I’m no longer marked banned.” I couldn’t stop my hand from reaching up and touching my face.
Marilyn reached across the table and ran her hand down the side of my face where the mark used to be. “It’s gone on the surface, but the meaning behind the mark is still present. It will not go away until you face your past. The hex is in your blood. You might’ve been innocent and not deserved what happened, but the hex is still there.”
I shifted, not ready to talk about what my new father had done. I also noted that since he hadn’t removed everything, I would still have issues once I stepped on the North American alpha’s land. “The book you handed me—what do you know about the underworld’s magic?”
She reached up and ran her hand along her scar. “When I was younger, I wanted to have power and learn about all magic, even the magic of the underworld. In my coven, we have laws about pulling magic from the underworld.”
“I thought you could only pull the magic you can wield, such as heaven, hell, and earth elements.”
Marilyn let out a sigh. “Like I said, I did things because I wanted power. I learned to work with all elements.”
I took a sip of the coffee and waited to see if I would die. Nothing happened,
so I took another sip. “Have you ever trained someone to use their powers?”
Before she could answer, the bell of the front door rang. The sound startled me, and the liquid gold in my hand spilled on the white tablecloth. Marilyn rose from her chair, handed me a rag, and walked through the beads. I listened to her conversation. The customer was looking for a healing crystal because a doctor had diagnosed her friend with cancer. I stopped listening and looked around the back room. Black-and-white photos lined the wall next to the beaded door, but I couldn’t see anyone in the images well in the dimly lit room.
Marilyn was back in the room only a few minutes later. “What do you want to learn to do?” she asked as she sat in the chair. She waved her hand over the cloth, and the stain lifted.
I wondered if she could lift the green and red blood from my house. Her prices might be cheaper than Reggie’s. My main goal was to learn to control my powers before I killed anyone else. If I could learn to control them, I might be able to stop someone without blowing them up. “I don’t know how to control my magic.”
She tapped her red manicured nail on the table before she blew out the white candle. “Light the candle.”
“Umm... do you have a match or a lighter?”
Marilyn stared at me.
“Maybe you should leave the room. I don’t want to hurt you or blow up your shop. On second thought, maybe we should go outside.”
“You will be fine. Visualize your magic, then visualize your fire lighting the candle.”
I concentrated and visualized the ring of fire. The magic warmed my body, and I visualized the flame lighting the candle. I let my mind send the fire, and as I released my magic, my phone screeched “Sweet Home Alabama” in my pocket. The sound startled me, and I sent the magic out without control. The mesh curtain covering the window lit up like a dry Christmas tree.
Hell’s Key: Siblings of the Underworld, Book 1 Page 4
