Queen of Night

by Emily Goodwin

  Ruby smiles sweetly. “It’s a promise.”

  Fuck, yes, Ruby. I turn and give Scott a smug smile right as Vanessa, one of the store employees, comes up with her sister and nephews. They’re dressed as Batman and Superman, and want to take a picture with me. The older one jokes about how he’s going to put this photo in his locker and make all his friends jealous for getting to pose with “the hot Wonder Woman” and I can tell just how much this is killing Scott.

  I have a life here. A really fucking good one. The Martins’ hate for me ran deep, deep enough to sell an eight-year-old girl like a pig to the slaughter. But I rose from the ashes. Look at me now, fucker. Lucas rests his hand on the small of my back and I look up, smiling when our eyes meet.

  “We need to get going if we want to finish the treat route before it gets too late,” Ruby says, taking Brooklyn’s hand. “I’ll see you later.”

  “I’ll be there,” I tell her.

  “It was nice seeing you again,” Ruby tells Abby and Phil. “I’m sure I’ll see you again in the not-so-distant future.”

  “Yeah,” Abby says, face still beet red. Why is Scott such an entitled asshole? He only thinks of himself. “I’m sure.”

  Penny bobs the blow-up cat, giggling when it rocks back and slowly comes forward. It’s a cute moment and helps ease some of the tension.

  “Can I get a picture of us together?” Abby asks. “Of the three of us, I mean?”

  “Of course!”

  “I was secretly hoping you’d have Binx with you,” Abby admits and peels Penny away from the blow-up cat. The poor girl starts to fuss and cry.

  “I almost brought him. And the others. But then I feel bad for leaving Scarlet alone in the house and she’s kind of a handful to bring in public. She’d get way too excited to be around all these people.”

  Penny is struggling to get out of Abby’s arms, wanting to go back to the cat. “I think you need to get her a pet,” I say and hold out my arms, taking her from Abby to try and help calm her down. She’s fascinated with my headpiece and gives up her fight to go back to the cat.

  Phil takes a few pictures of us and I have Lucas get out his phone and do the same. I know a few photos were taken of me with Abby at my wedding, but those are the only ones I have of us together. I should start taking more pictures in general. It’ll be nice to have something to show my own daughter or son someday.

  “I’ll be here until nine-ish,” I tell Abby. “So if you want to stop and use the bathroom before you leave, feel free.”

  “Thank you, and I’m sure we will. She’s getting difficult to do diaper changes on now and most public bathrooms gross me out.”

  “Hah. I don’t blame you there.” I give Penny another chocolate bar. “I’m really glad you guys came tonight.”

  “Me too,” Abby says. “This is fun. I think we’ll come every year.”

  “Next year you guys need to participate in the store’s costume contest. You dress like a character from a book.”

  “Ohhh, that does sound fun.” Abby looks at Phil. “We should do a family costume.”

  Phil shakes his head, and Lucas grumbles about how I tried to get him to dress up like Superman.

  “I’ve never seen the store before,” Phil starts. “Abby’s told me about it, and I agree. It’s impressive.”

  “Thanks. I love it, of course.”

  “It could be on a postcard,” Abby compliments. “I’ll text you later. You’ve leaving for Florida soon, though, right?”

  “Right, next week. I’m so excited.”

  “I bet!” She turns, trying to put Penny in the stroller, but she’s just not having it.

  Nancy shuffles forward, eyes glossing over. She’s looking at me, gaze unwavering. Lucas rests his hand on my back, protectively moving closer.

  “Hi, Callie,” she says meekly, and I completely ignore her. Betty watches me from the corner of her eye, no doubt wondering why I’m ignoring this woman. Hah. If only she knew.

  “What size does Penny wear?” I ask, sticking with my original plan to totally ignore the Martins. “I might go a little crazy buying her princesses dresses.”

  “She’s in eighteenth-month clothes now. She’s little.” Abby looks lovingly at her daughter. “Don’t go too crazy, we have so much stuff already.”

  “I can’t make any promises,” I laugh. “I’ll see you guys later!”

  “Bye!” Abby gives me a hug and Phil waves to Lucas, saying they have to go look at cars soon.

  “Un-fucking-believable,” Scott grumbles, earning a jab in the ribs from Abby as they walk off. Nancy’s eyes linger on me, and the guilt is obvious on her face.

  “Bye, Callie,” she says, voice tight, and I once again ignore her. Lucas slides his hand from my back to my waist and gives me a little squeeze. I let out a heavy sigh and go back into candy passer-outer mode.

  “Sorry about that,” I say softly, plunging my hand into the bowl of candy, smiling broadly at the next group of trick-or-treaters.

  “About what?” Betty replies, tipping her head a bit as she looks at me. “We, uh, all have our family issues.”

  “Well, I’ve got plenty. That was my former mother and former brother.” I’m not going to explain to her now how we’re related, or more so, how we’re not related. But it’s not too far off to assume I’ve emancipated myself from that awful family.

  “I’ve actually wondered about your family now that I know the truth,” Betty admits. “Kristy talks about visiting her parents every now and then and you’ve never mentioned yours until this last spring.”

  “They don’t have powers,” I say in one breath. Maybe I shouldn’t admit my truth to Betty, but fuck all to the lies. I’m not going to tell her they’re not my real family. Not yet, at least. “And everyone but my sister has hated me for it.”

  “I’m so sorry.”

  “Thanks, but it’s fine. I’ve made my peace with it.” I scrunch up my nose. “Forget about it, okay? Penny looked so cute as a little witch, and the turnout this year is incredible!”

  “It really is!” Betty smiles back and we turn our attention to the crowd of trick-or-treaters coming up to our table.

  “I have to pee,” I whisper to Betty, a good half an hour later. “Can you man the table for a minute or two?”

  “Of course. I’ll be fine,” she tells me, and I take Lucas’s hand, pulling him in the store with me.

  “Please tell me this is a secret invitation to fuck you.” He speeds forward and presses me up against a bookshelf. My eyes flutter closed, and I wish more than anything this was all it was.

  “Hah, I wish. I actually do have to pee, but I also wanted to say thank you for handling everything back there. I know it’s not easy for you to refrain from violence when it comes to Scott.”

  “I imagined myself killing him in at least fifty different ways.”

  “Maybe later you can tell them all to me.” I laugh as I wiggle my eyebrows and give him a kiss.

  “We’re really not fucking?” he asks, disappointed. “You are so hot in that costume.”

  “When we get home.” I wink and sweep my hands down his chest. “And you know how much I love you in suits.”

  We kiss again and then I rush off to the bathroom. Lucas is waiting for me in the little sitting area when I get done.

  “We’ve fucked everywhere in the house, but we haven’t in here.”

  Heat rushes through me. “I’ve never so much as made out in here.”

  He looks around the store, fangs coming down. “There are so many places to fuck.”

  “Another time…like when the entire town isn’t walking by that big window.”

  He takes me around the waist and steps in, widening his legs. “You’re no fun,” he says and leans in to kiss me, but suddenly stops and jerks his head up, looking at the door.

  “What is it?”

  “Vampires.”

  Chapter 14

  “Vampires?” I echo, mind going to the vampire who hired Roger to sh
oot me. Lucas tips his head up a bit and inhales.

  “They’re young, and there’s two of them.”

  I let out a breath of relief. “There are two younger vampires living in Thorne Hill. They moved here not that long ago, and I don’t think they have any idea the town is made up of witches and a Ley line runs under Main Street.” I flatten my hands over Lucas’s chest. “You knew I was a witch the moment you met me, and you can smell the magic. Can all vampires tell who’s a witch or not?”

  “They’ll know you’re different because you smell different, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they know you’re a witch. Becoming a vampire makes you open to the supernatural—obviously—but it doesn’t give you knowledge about the other supernaturals. They might not even know witches are real.”

  “They keep to themselves and live in one of the small historic cabins on the edge of town. Supposedly one of the vampires had family there years ago, and that’s why they came back. I’m surprised they stayed, though. Thorne Hill isn’t a vampire-friendly town.”

  “They were probably drawn to the power of the Ley line. Everyone is lucky there hasn’t been any sort of attack.”

  “Right? We’ve all been a little worried, but seeing how young they are and how they really do just keep to themselves, it hasn’t been an issue, and it’s not like we can just walk up to them and ask them for a sit-down talk.” I let my hands slide down Lucas’s chest and he laces his fingers with mine, kissing me once more. We go back outside and look for the vampires.

  I’ve only seen them a few times, and if I wasn’t able to sense that they were vampires, I wouldn’t think twice about them walking through town. Both vampires are young men, who were probably in their mid-twenties when they were turned. I don’t know any of their backstory, if they were turned by the same vampire or maybe even if one turned the other. They’re holding hands, solidifying my guess that they’re a couple, and are both dressed casually in jeans and t-shirts.

  I lose sight of them behind another wave of trick-or-treaters. We’re getting closer to the end of the night, and the lines are thinning out a bit. We’ve gone through two big bags of candy already and still have another unopened. Part of me hopes we don’t have to open it and I can take it home and binge my heart out on chocolate bars and Sour Patch Kids.

  Another part doesn’t want to gain a billion pounds before this kid is born either, and it’ll be best to pass out this candy or at least leave it at the store.

  “They’re coming over,” Lucas tells me, able to sense them. I do my best not to be obvious as I look up, watching the two vampires make their way through the crowded street. They dodge around a line of kids waiting for their candy and make a beeline for Lucas.

  “Hi,” one of the vampires says, holding out his hand. “I’m Thomas and this is Derek. You’re Lucas King, right?”

  “I am.” Lucas shakes Thomas’s hand.

  “Ah, good,” Thomas says tossing his head back with a laugh. “That would have been a little awkward if you weren’t.”

  “Can I help you with something?” Lucas goes on, not one to exchange fake pleasantries.

  “We wanted to come say hi,” Derek tells him. “Mindy Foster from the county’s VC chapter called to check in on us and suggested we get to know the other vampires in town. Turns out, you’re the only one.”

  “How did you know my name?” Lucas asks.

  I drop candy next to a kid’s bucket instead of into it since I’m paying more attention to the exchange between vampires closer than passing out candy. It’s not strange for the rumors to circulate through a small town, and I’m sure there was talk about how the quiet bookstore owner had a whirlwind romance with some rich guy who may or may not be a vampire.

  Lucas hasn’t been into town with me all that often, but it would only take one date at a restaurant for people to know he’s not human since he never orders food or a drink, and pretty much everyone in my coven knows I married a vampire. It wouldn’t be hard for the rumors to spread like wildfire.

  Still, I’m on fucking edge, and I hate this. If someone has it out for either of us, I wish they’d just put on their big-girl panties and do the dirty themselves instead of hiring shitty-ass hunters or trying to throw a wrench in Lucas’s business dealings. It’s cowardly, though I’m sure it’s been very well thought out.

  They’re trying to annoy Lucas enough to get a reaction out of him, making him retaliate against having to assimilate. They sent Roger after me in the hopes Lucas would get pissed and do something irrational, and when that didn’t work, they had those protestors attack Lucas in public.

  And yet it hasn’t worked. I don’t see this mysterious vampire giving up any time soon, and I’m getting more and more nervous he’s going to do something bad. Really bad.

  “Mindy told us.”

  “Mindy, from the county’s VC chapter, told you my name?” Lucas repeats.

  “Was she not supposed to?” Thomas asks, eyeing his boyfriend nervously, worried he said something he shouldn’t have.

  “No,” Lucas replies. “I’ve never met this Mindy, so I’m curious how she knows who I am.”

  “Oh,” Derek says, and his shoulders relax. “She said a vampire purchased some property in town. She saw your name on the deed or whatever it is.”

  That makes sense. A lot of sense, actually. Lucas did purchase a large plot of farmland and then almost bought Suzy’s Café before pulling out of the deal to keep the peace with my coven, on top of our house. Lucas is registered as a vampire, so the info would be easy to see…and it’s made very apparent, so everyone knows what is owned by a vampire.

  “We didn’t know there were any other vampires in town,” Thomas says. “It’s nice not being the only ones.”

  “It’s such a cute town too,” Derek goes on.

  “You had family here, right?” I ask and Derek nods.

  “My great-grandmother was born and raised here, and her house stayed in the family for a while until my father sold it out for under my grandparents,” he says bitterly. “The second it came up for sale, we knew we had to snatch it back up and get it back in the fam! It was in shambles and we spent more on renovations than we did purchasing it, but I don’t regret it one bit!”

  “We’re actually doing the same with another historic house in Thorne Hill,” I tell them.

  “That big white one in the woods?” Thomas asks excitedly.

  “Yeah, it’s been a slow process since we’re trying to keep as much of it original or at least period appropriate.” I look at Lucas. “It helps that he lived through the time the house was built.”

  “Can we ask how old you are?” Thomas asks, wincing at his words. “Or is that poor taste?”

  “Slightly, but you can ask,” Lucas says. “And I was turned in the three hundreds.”

  “So, you’re like…” Derek has to stop and do the math. “Sixteen… seventeen hundred?”

  “Yes.”

  “Wow.” Both vampires eye Lucas with awe. “We’d love to get to know you a little better,” Thomas says. “Would you like to go get a drink? The bar down the street serves bottled blood.”

  “I don’t drink bottle blood,” Lucas shoots back, and I elbow him. He should go, warn these vamps to keep their distance and to find out for sure if the whole “Mindy told me your name” story checks out.

  “Oh.” Derek’s eyes to go me, looking at the bite wounds on my neck. “I never caught your name,” he tells me, and I realize I never introduced myself. He holds out his hand.

  “Callie,” I say, and I shake his hand. “And I think it would nice for you to get to know Lucas better. He’s pretty great, but I might be a little biased since I’m married to him.” I ignore the side-eye Lucas is giving me for suggesting he go socialize. “We just have to finish up here and then he can meet you.”

  “Really?” Thomas asks, trying not to look excited. “You’re welcome to come too.”

  “I have plans with friends, so it’s perfect.”

  “We�
��re going to check out the darling decorations. Should we meet you back here?” Derek asks Lucas, who grumbles a yes in response. The vampires say bye and head down the street to the bar.

  “And I thought you loved me,” Lucas says.

  “Don’t be so dramatic,” I tell him and go back to the table. “Keep your friends close and enemies closer. We have no idea if the VC is trying to use them to get to you,” I whisper. “Having a drink—or not having drink in your case—is a good way to get info.”

  “That doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

  I laugh and pass out candy, giving out big handfuls now that we’re getting close to the end of the night. I send Betty home once trick-or-treating officially ends. Lucas helps me take everything inside, do a quick sweep of the store, and lock up for the night. We leave through the front, stopping to say our goodbyes before going in separate directions. Derek and Thomas are across the street, and wave before crossing.

  “I’ll see you at home.” I stand on my toes and give Lucas a kiss, acting as if that pissed-off look on his face isn’t really there…and seeing him all moody and broody isn’t doing bad things to me. “Try to have fun.”

  “You’re going to owe me for this,” he counters, locking his hands around my slender waist.

  “I’m not taking it up the ass,” I deadpan.

  “I was thinking more along the lines of you in a costume of my choice, you on your knees with your hair wrapped around my fingers and my cock in your mouth.”

  Heat rushes through me as I visualize that, not caring that anyone around us more than likely heard what he said. Though I think it’s fair to say Lucas talking dirty can turn anyone on, even when his words are directed at me and me alone.

  “Metal bikini again?” I sink my bottom teeth into my lip and step in closer, pressing my hips against his.

  “I was thinking something more restrictive this time. I was always a fan of the corset, well, particularly in ripping them off.”

  “I do like the thought of you tearing my clothes off.” I run my hands down his chest and hook my fingers through his belt loops.

  “You better watch your mouth before I rip them off right here.”