Damned and Cursed | Book 10 | Fallen Skye

by Bullion, Glenn

  “Nice,” Victoria said. “But will her bracelet glow whenever she’s with you or me? Not exactly subtle.”

  Jack nodded in agreement.

  “This is going to take some very careful explaining.”

  Kevin looked back and forth between them. His own demeanor had changed.

  “So, you want me to protect our people, but you want me to do it in a quiet, invisible way? I’m never done with this stuff, but this is the start. It’s all I got right now. Tiffany has seen portals, demons. I think she can handle a glowing bracelet.” He rose to his feet, checking the timer on the oven. “I’ll be out back.” He opened the door, but had one last thing to say. “Oh, Jack. Don’t ever call me a coward.”

  Jack smiled. That was the witch he’d seen glimpses of before. The one with attitude, capable of mass destruction.

  Turning the bracelet over in his fingers, he admired the simple, powerful trinket. He’d never tell Kevin, but it was impressive. Victoria was quiet, resting her elbows on the bar.

  “I think you hurt his feelings,” she said.

  “I don’t care about Glinda’s little feelings. He hurt Tiffany’s feelings. He’s lucky I don’t beat him beyond anything his toilet water can heal.”

  “Did he hurt your feelings?”

  Jack laughed, not even willing to address such a ridiculous question.

  “How was the beach?” he asked.

  “Hot. And beautiful.”

  “I’m sure many of the mortals were saying the same about you.”

  “Aww. You flatter me.” She listened for a moment, making sure Kevin was out of earshot. “You helped Kevin put together that room of his?”

  “My workshop.”

  “He’s been calling it his war room.”

  “I’m paying for it. It’s mine. How’s it looking?”

  “I only caught a glimpse. But I think even you would be impressed.”

  “I’ll take your word for it, for now. Now, tell me, what’s bothering you?”

  She squirmed.

  “Nothing.”

  “Victoria. Do I have to point out every nervous tell you’re tossing out right now?”

  Crossing her legs, another tell of hers, she let out a sigh.

  “I’ve just been so busy. Running all over the country, trying to put out little fires. I could use some relax time. Maybe you’ve got the right idea. Sell the mansion, buy a few small houses. Maybe even right here on the beach.”

  “Always trying to save the world.”

  “Well, I do what I can.”

  “That’s great. Now, tell me what’s really going on.”

  She smiled, knowing she couldn’t hide from Jack.

  “Just … humans.”

  His eyes lit up at the one subject he never lacked an opinion on.

  “I know. Humans. Fucking mortals, right? I hate them so much. If I had to pick what I hated the most about them … it would be everything. I hate everything about mortals.”

  Victoria laughed at his enthusiasm for hate.

  “They came up with another weapon.”

  “What is it this time?”

  “Ultra-violet blended with some sound. It freezes vampires, can’t even move a muscle. Except for me. This one makes me nervous.”

  “Why?”

  “Did you not hear me? Soon, they’ll be able to kill us with a tape recorder.”

  “I don’t think they use tape recorders anymore.”

  She rolled her eyes.

  “You know what I mean.”

  “Do you remember when mortals first put together UV bulbs?”

  Victoria nodded and looked down at the bar. The pair knew each other too well. Jack was certain she already knew where he was going.

  “I do.”

  “You probably thought it was the end of vampire life.”

  She smiled.

  “I did.”

  Jack and Victoria weren’t on good terms when humans first created the ultraviolet bulb. They were still in the middle of a century-long fight.

  “You know, I almost reached out to you on that.”

  “Really?” she said, looking up.

  “Yeah. I might have missed you, a little. Wanted to see if you were okay.”

  “Why didn’t you?”

  “I was still mad.”

  She laughed and held his hand.

  “Never change, Jack.”

  “I don’t plan on it.”

  “Anyway, that’s not all. Kevin and I stumbled onto something. I think a human out there is buying magic—”

  An unfamiliar female voice interrupted Victoria. A laugh. Jack frowned. It came from the garden, and certainly wasn’t his daughter or Andee. He rose to his feet.

  “Jack, hold on,” Victoria said.

  He didn’t. Marching across the kitchen, he threw open the door and stepped onto the deck, looking over his garden. Victoria caught up, standing beside him.

  The scene was simple, but still odd.

  Tiffany sat in the dirt. He’d carved out a small area for her, so she could grow whatever she wanted. Her crops were a sad story. They could use some work, maybe even a minor miracle. Kevin was on one knee behind her, watching as she dug a hole.

  In front of Tiffany was a woman he’d never seen before. Jack picked her apart. Dark skin, dark hair. A disarming, almost child-like smile. Very jumpy, cautious. Every noise about the neighborhood seemed to catch her attention. There was intelligence behind her eyes, but something missing. She wore a tiny bikini, that after a few meals, perhaps she would fill out.

  “Victoria.”

  “Yes?”

  “Why is there a half-naked whore playing with my daughter?”

  “Christ, Jack, stop. She’s not a whore.”

  “Jack!”

  Tiffany shouted his name. At least, for a moment, everything was forgotten. Kevin’s antics, Victoria’s mysterious guest, all gone. Tiffany stood and ran. Jack bent his knees, a huge smile on his face. Tiffany was much too big to be picked up and held, carried. He imagined the toddler age was when that was supposed to end. Neither one of them cared. She jumped in his arms, as if he’d been gone for a month. He’d only been away two days. She put her head on his shoulder. Garden dirt covered his shirt, but that was okay.

  “I missed you.”

  “I missed you, too.”

  “How was your business trip?”

  Jack smiled. Her first thoughts always went to others. She was the opposite of him. A victim of foster care abuse that had nothing, yet gave to the world. Jack had everything, and continued to take.

  “It was good. I think I can call it a success.”

  She pointed to the garden.

  “Do you see? Kevin’s back.”

  He lowered her next to him, in between himself and Victoria.

  “Unfortunately, I do see.”

  “He says he’s going to start coming over again. We’ll watch movies.”

  “Oh, joy.”

  Victoria winked at Jack. Tiffany took both their hands and dragged them forward.

  “So,” Jack said. “Who’s your new friend?”

  She lowered her voice.

  “Did Kevin and Leese break up? I think that’s his new girlfriend. She keeps trying to touch him.”

  “What’s her name?”

  “She doesn’t talk.”

  He looked at Victoria.

  “No name?”

  “She hasn’t said a word.”

  Jack approached and hovered over her. She was in the middle of destroying what was left of one of Tiffany’s tomatoes.

  “Great, I’ll name her. I’m going to call you … Fido.”

  Fido smiled.

  “Jack, no,” Victoria said.

  Tiffany sat next to her.

  “You’re doing very well,” she said, grabbing Fido’s hand. “But you don’t have to make the hole so deep. I did the same thing, at first.”

  Jack smiled, but not at their gardening. They were both doing terrible in that area. He smiled
at Tiffany’s language. It had taken some time to conquer good versus well.

  Fido let Tiffany help with the hole. They smiled at each other. Jack saw Fido had already formed a bond with his daughter.

  The mystery woman reached behind her, trying to undo her bikini.

  “No!” Kevin shouted, lunging forward. He stopped her and retied the loose strings, his hands trembling the entire time.

  “Uh, why does she keep doing that?” Tiffany asked.

  “My daughter is smart, with good questions,” Jack said. He glanced between Victoria and Kevin. “Any good answers? If she wants to yank her clothes off, maybe she should hang out with Victoria in Baltimore?”

  Kevin said nothing, merely shaking his head. Victoria drew closer to whisper.

  “It seems she hates clothes. The bikini was helping, for a while.”

  “I hate mortals,” he whispered back. “But there are things I have to control. She can’t control herself?”

  “We’d better talk.”

  “It’s pretty, isn’t it?” Tiffany said.

  Jack peered down at Tiffany and Fido. Fido was looking upward, smiling at the clouds passing by. It was a beautiful, sunny day. Jack had the feeling that Fido didn’t have many opportunities to lounge and enjoy her surroundings.

  “I love watching the sky,” Tiffany said. “Sometimes at night, Jack and I will lie on the roof and watch the stars.”

  Fido pointed.

  “Sky. Pretty.”

  Kevin’s jaw dropped as he stared at Victoria.

  “Holy shit!”

  She smiled again.

  “Sky,” she said, then pointed at Tiffany, circling around to Victoria and Kevin. “Pretty.”

  Jack laughed to himself, having not made the pretty list.

  “So,” Victoria said. “She can talk.”

  “Hell, let’s just call her Skye,” Kevin suggested.

  “What’s wrong with Fido?” Jack asked.

  Victoria tapped Jack on the shoulder.

  “The oven just beeped.”

  “Pizza!” Tiffany shouted. She grabbed both Kevin and Skye by the hand. “Let’s go!”

  Jack and Victoria remained in the group's rear. He strolled, with Victoria matching his pace. The hair stood on the back of his neck, his sense of danger. Different supernatural beings were in tune with different aspects of life. Vampires were all about blood, able to smell it, taste it. They could hear heartbeats. Some could even tell when a mortal was sick. Werewolves were all about nature, the woods, and the thrill of the hunt.

  Jack was adept at knowing when something was going to annoy him. He could sense it coming, tried to brace for it.

  “Victoria,” he whispered. “Are you going to ruin my day?”

  “What? No, why would you say that? I’m hurt.”

  “You did almost ruin eighty percent of my twentieth century.”

  She looped her arm through his and put her head on his shoulder.

  “Well, it’s a new century. We’re just getting started. New beginnings. New adventures to have.”

  “Bah, shit,” he said, holding his forehead. “You’re going to ruin my day.”

  They entered the kitchen to see pure movement had taken over. Kevin had already removed the pizza from the oven, having set it on the bar. He searched for a pizza-cutter from the drawer. Tiffany was in front of the couch, searching for something to watch on television. She moved back and forth, pacing, as if that would help. The only one not moving was Skye, standing off to the side. She observed everything, taking it all in.

  As soon as Kevin cut the first slice, Tiffany leapt across the back of the couch, landing a foot away from the bar. Skye jumped, then laughed. Tiffany tried to move back to the living room.

  “Tiff,” Jack said. “Eat at the bar. Or at least, get a plate. You’re going to make a mess.”

  “No, I won’t.”

  He pointed at the trail of dirt leading from the back door.

  “What the hell do you call this?”

  She shrugged.

  “I don’t know,” she said, then pointed. “Skye did it.”

  Skye’s eyes went wide, and she shook her head vehemently. She almost shrank, backing against the wall and putting her hands behind her.

  She understood.

  “Hey,” Victoria said, touching her shoulder. “It’s okay. It was a joke. Ha ha.”

  Skye mimicked Victoria’s laugh, and nodded.

  “Jack,” Tiffany said. “Is that bracelet for me?”

  He took the trinket from the bar and approached his daughter. Carefully, he removed the old one and slid the enhanced magical protection over her wrist. Her face lit up and her mouth opened.

  “It’s awesome,” she said. “It glows!”

  “Yeah. We’ll talk about that later.”

  She gave him a bear-hug around the neck.

  “Thank you thank you thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.” He turned his head, looking back to the bar. “You should actually thank Glinda, too.”

  “Thank you, Kevin. I love it.”

  Kevin nodded and gave Jack a wink.

  Jack reached for a slice of pizza. Skye reached out and grabbed his wrist. He eyed her dangerously. Few people could get away with touching him, and she certainly hadn’t made the list. Victoria and Kevin tensed, but Jack didn’t react violently. As gently as his personality would allow, he pulled his wrist free.

  She pointed at herself, then at the pizza. Her mouth was practically watering.

  “Please,” he said, handing it over. “Eat two slices. You could use the calories.”

  “What do you guys want to watch?” Tiffany called. “Do you want to rent a movie?”

  “Actually, I have to talk with your father a moment. Kevin, could you watch Skye? Be the life of the party?”

  “Sure. Good luck.”

  Jack didn’t like the sound of that.

  Victoria grabbed Jack’s hand and led him outside to the deck. She peered back through the window to see the three of them on the couch. Tiffany was offering the remote to Skye, trying to show her how to use it.

  “God, where do I begin?” she said. “It’s a long story.”

  “I’m not sure I want to hear it.”

  “Kevin and I stumbled onto her. She was locked in a cage.” She took a breath. “She’s a witch.”

  Jack froze for a moment.

  “A full-blooded witch?”

  Victoria expected the question, and was already shaking her head.

  “No. Kevin did a test, some simple potion he said any full-blood could do. She couldn’t.”

  “And you didn’t kill her? Wow. You’ve definitely changed.”

  She bristled at the one topic capable of causing tension between them. Her jaw tightened as she ignored him.

  Jack watched Skye in the living room.

  “It’s not easy to get a read on her. Human trafficking, obviously. Or … witch trafficking. Whatever.”

  “Yes. Someone was forcing her to do magic.”

  “Hell, does she even know she’s a witch?”

  “I don’t know. She hasn’t said a word until she got here.”

  “Aren’t we special?”

  “Anyway, I think a human bought some magic. And I don’t think they’re using it for good. Kevin and I are going to check it out.” She sighed, and the hairs on Jack’s neck stood. “I was hoping you—”

  “No.”

  “You haven’t even heard—”

  “No.”

  “Jack, come—”

  “No.”

  “Would you stop saying—?”

  “No.”

  Victoria crossed her arms and tapped her foot, waiting impatiently. She shifted her hip as she eyed Jack. She was a beautiful woman, even more so when she was annoyed.

  “Are you five years old?”

  “No.”

  “I’m in a bind here.”

  “I can see that. Maybe you should stop picking up strays. Speaking of strays, why do
n’t you just let her stay with Stray, at your place?”

  “A vampire-still-learning and a child-witch. They would burn my place to the ground before I got back.”

  Jack peered at Skye again through the window.

  “She’s not a child.”

  “Ah. Find her attractive, now, do you?”

  “That’s not it. I mean … there’s something else there.”

  “See? You’re already invested.”

  “No, I’m not. Anyway, let Stray watch her. Your problems would be solved. Your place burns down, no more strays.”

  “Jack—”

  “Okay, okay. Just hold on a second.” He tried to wrap his mind around what she was asking. “You want her to stay here for a few days?”

  “Yeah. That’s all. You have the space. Tiffany and her already have something going. I’ll knock this thing out with Kevin, and take her off your hands. Figure out what to do with her.”

  “This is important to you?”

  “It is. Please.”

  The magic word. Jack put his hands on his hips and looked up at the sky. How did Victoria always rope him into insane situations?

  “You owe me. Our friendship is great and all, but on this, you owe me. I’m actually losing track of how many you owe me.”

  “Understood.”

  They walked back inside.

  Chaos had erupted.

  Tiffany stood on the couch, laughing and pointing. Skye ran all throughout the open first floor. She was topless, her breasts bouncing with every stride. She circled the breakfast bar, the couch, then back again. Kevin, the witch with enough magical power to destroy a small country, gave chase. He couldn’t catch her. She easily avoided him, making him fall and slip several times. With every clumsy tumble, Skye and Tiffany would laugh even more.

  “Stop!” he shouted. “Would you stop! Hold still!”

  She waved her bikini top like a lure. Kevin’s face was red from anger and humiliation.

  “Skye,” Jack said.

  She froze, looking at Jack with eager eyes. The room fell silent. Only the television made a sound. Kevin bent over with his hands on his knees, catching his breath. Jack pointed to the bikini top dangling from her finger.

  “Put it on. Now.”

  They locked eyes. Jack wasn’t sure what was going through her mind. Maybe she respected him. Maybe she thought he owned her, similar to how she’d been owned by others. Regardless, the crisis was averted. Still smiling, she slipped on her top and tied it behind her.