Living Hell

by N. L. Hoffmann

  Pulling away from him, I strode to my office and looked at my cell. Ethan watched me with a curious expression. Just as I sent her a text message telling her to report to my office, Mikey magically appeared in front of us, his face contorted in pain, his arm hanging limply at his side.

  “Ethan, put my shoulder back in,” Mikey ground out, inching toward the Mage.

  Ethan furrowed his brow, then grabbed a hold of him. With an abrupt movement of his hands, he popped the shoulder back in. I cringed as Mikey cried out, gasping for breath, tears forming in his eyes. He looked at me, swallowing.

  “Jenna has gone rogue.”

  “What?” I clenched my hands at my sides.

  “She went to Roark and told him Drake’s whereabouts.” Mikey shook his head in disbelief, rubbing his shoulder. “I can’t believe she’d do that. Why the fuck would she betray us after all this time? I tried to stop her, but you know how good she is in a fight.”

  I sat down in my seat heavily, unable to hold myself up anymore. “After all we have been through. We’re best friends. I don’t know what I did to cause this giant rift between us.”

  “I searched her room, but she completely cleaned it out. I managed to follow her magic signature, and boom, there she was, carrying her bags through the gate to the Vampire mansion.” Mikey sat down in one of the chairs, cradling his arm. It was probably going to hurt for a while.

  Feeling bad for him, I walked over and called to the magic of the necklace. I placed a hand on his shoulder, sending some healing into him. He sighed and looked up at me gratefully, still holding his arm.

  My necklace used to be my grandmother’s, who was the Lady of the Lake, and had been passed down through the generations. It contained a lot of power from her and the Ancestors. In my opinion, the Ancestors were creepy as hell, but they were a powerful bunch who liked to get their way. I could never take the necklace off, either. Supposedly, once it felt like it could trust me to keep it around, it would release its hold, but so far, that hadn’t been the case.

  The pretty opal was larger than my typical jewelry, but at least it went with everything. So far, it had helped me more often than not. Whenever I needed an extra boost in my powers, it was there to back me up. I was already a strong Witch, but situations sometimes called for more than I could give.

  I played with it absently as I watched Ethan close the door to the office. He seemed pretty concerned that Jenna would turn on us. Even though he didn’t know her that well, I was confident he knew her dedication to our kind. She’d never betrayed us before. I didn’t know what to make of this new erratic behavior of hers.

  “I’ll give her time. Tomorrow, I will contact Drake and ask for an explanation. He has to know something by then,” I told them as I took a seat back at my desk. “Maybe we can fix this before it explodes in our faces.”

  Mikey laughed, clearly not amused. “I doubt it. Jenna is on a mission, and when she’s focused like this, you know there’s no stopping her.”

  “We just don’t know what that mission is.” Ethan crossed his arms over his chest, his muscles bulging.

  I tore my gaze away from him, ashamed that I was even admiring his body right now. I glanced at Mikey, seeing him roll his eyes when he realized what I’d been doing. He was far too observant for his own good. I just stuck my tongue out and started waving my arms, motioning them out of my office.

  “We’ll figure this out tomorrow. Right now...” I gestured to my desk, “I have a lot of applications to go through.”

  Ethan came over to give me a kiss. Mikey started making gagging noises as he stood. “Get a room!”

  “This is my room.” I smiled.

  Chapter Four

  The next day, surprised Drake had agreed to see me, I appeared at the Vampire mansion. Forced to stand at the gate, I waited as the guard spoke on the phone. He finally hung up and looked me up and down, leering more than was appropriate. When he motioned me through, a car appeared just yards away.

  I climbed in, looking around the vehicle. It made me miss my Charger, which I hadn’t driven much lately. Most of my traveling consisted of poofing in and out of places. I enjoyed driving a nice vehicle, though, especially after the death trap I used to have. My Toyota had definitely seen better days.

  The car stopped in front of the mansion. Two guards stood at the doors, barely acknowledging me as I climbed out of the car and walked through. A short man with thinning, blond hair appeared, his hands behind his back. He smiled at me before speaking.

  “Ms. Sophie, my name is Felix. It is good to see you. Drake is waiting in the great hall for you.” He led the way, even though I was confident I could make it there myself.

  My heels echoed through the hall. I looked through the door of the massive room, seeing Drake at a table glancing through some paperwork. He smoked a cigar, a glass filled with what looked like brandy sitting in front of him. When he heard me come in, he glanced up and stood. He set down his cigar and smiled at me.

  “Hope you didn’t have to wait at the gate for too long,” he said, leading me over to the table.

  I shrugged, not wanting to complain about the ridiculous process. Sitting in the chair next to his, I shook my head when he offered me something to drink. As he finally sat, I sighed. He looked good. I didn’t see a trace of evil.

  “To what do I owe this visit?” he asked, clasping his hands together. He knew why I was here. He just wanted me to bring it up. I hated that he played games with me.

  “I want to know why Jenna abandoned her post and came here.” I gave him my best High Mistress business-like expression, hoping he knew there was no room to wiggle out of this one.

  He shrugged. “Apparently, she wasn’t getting the recognition she sought at your location. So, after we offered her an investigative position within our guard, she came here.”

  I raised my eyebrows. “You’re hiring a Witch?”

  “As you know from personal experience, I have no issue with Witches.”

  Debating on how to take that, I chewed on my bottom lip. Did that mean they were an item? She seemed awfully dedicated to him, which shocked me. Jealousy reared its ugly head, fire and destruction all around me. That was what I pictured, so I just asked the question.

  “Are you two seeing each other?”

  He smiled at me, his hand brushing mine. “Would that make you angry?”

  I pulled my hand away, afraid what I might do if he kept touching me. “Don’t play games with me, Drake. I’m serious.”

  “I believe I’ve answered all your questions, Sophie. Let me know if you need anything else.”

  He was dismissing me?! The immature brat in me wanted to stomp her foot and demand answers, but I wasn’t about to do that. I stood, my back straight, then spun around to head out of the room. If he wanted to be an asshole, so be it. I was done playing games. When he wanted to start negotiations, he could come to me.

  Thinking to make a beautiful exit, I turned too sharply as I left the room. Stumbling, I nearly fell on my face. I heard Drake chuckle. He knew I was jealous, but there was nothing I could do about it. It had been my choice to leave him. Now he left it up to me to get him back.

  KICKING HARD, I WATCHED the bag swing from the ceiling. I kicked again, smashing my foot right into Drake’s face. The paper version anyway. One that I had pinned onto the bag to get some of my anger out. When I kicked again, my foot tore through the image.

  “Oh shit.” I stopped to piece him back together again. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to rip your face apart,” I said through clenched teeth.

  I started punching the pieces, the bag swinging with each hit. Drake’s face was now wrinkled and split in two. Taking a deep breath, I started bouncing from foot to foot, letting my heart calm down a little.

  Gods, he makes me so angry. Can’t he just give straight answers?

  “Something you need to get off your chest?” Ethan asked, walking over to the bag to hold it for me.

  I kicked high, tearing the paper ag
ain. It floated down to the floor of the sparring room. Snatching it up, I pinned it back onto the bag, ready to go another round.

  “He just makes me so angry. Plays all these head games with me.”

  Kick.

  “How’s that?”

  Kick.

  Glancing at Ethan, I wasn’t sure if I should discuss my jealousy with him. We had started getting close. It would be awkward if he had deeper feelings for me than I did him. When I didn’t answer, he seemed to figure it out for himself.

  He sighed. “I know you’re not over him, Sophie. He’ll always have a piece of your heart. I get that.”

  I stopped and lowered my arms, looking at him standing behind the bag. “Then why the fuck do you stay? What are you getting out of this?”

  Did I really want to know? Hell, I liked what we had. I enjoyed the sex. I loved his company. If he left, I wasn’t sure how I would react. Would I be sad? More than likely, but how sad? I didn’t understand my feelings. They were complicated and overwhelming.

  “Well, I stay because the sex is amazing.” He chuckled when I kicked the bag hard enough to make him step back several inches. Finally, he sighed, ready to get serious. “I can’t even begin to understand what’s happening between us, Sophie. Whatever it is, I’m willing to explore it. I’ll do whatever you want to do.”

  “What if I end up with Drake?”

  He swallowed hard, taking his time before answering. “Then I’ll deal with it.” He smiled. “But I think you like my ass too much to give it up.”

  I laughed. “Got that right. Now, bring it over here so I can rub my hands all over it.”

  “I’d rather do that to you. Yours is a man’s fantasy come true.” He walked over, kissing me lightly before placing arms around me and rubbing his hands over my ass. “There it is. It’s mine tonight.”

  I giggled, wiggling out of his arms and hurrying toward the locker room. “If you can catch me.”

  “Game on!”

  ETHAN HAD BEEN GONE so long, the Mages asked him to return to their compound and report. As he packed, he gave me a sad smile.

  “I may be gone for a week. In the meantime, you need to let Mikey watch over you. You’re the High Mistress-”

  I rolled my eyes. “Blah, blah, blah. I need to remain protected. Yeah, I get it.” I laughed when he smiled at me and came closer.

  Ethan ran a hand down the side of my face and sighed. “I’m going to miss your ass.”

  “My ass or my sass?”

  “Both.” He pulled me to him and grabbed my butt, squeezing. “Gods, you’re so tempting.” He glanced down at his watch. “Do you want to have a quickie before I go?”

  “We just did, Ethan!” I laughed, swatting at his hands when he reached for me again.

  Taking a deep breath, he grabbed his bag and threw it over his shoulder, then kissed me. “I won’t be long, so behave. If I find out that you went on a mission alone, I’ll be upset. I’ll blame myself for not being here to protect you.”

  Nodding, I cupped his cheek with my hand. “I won’t do anything like that. So go. Take care of business so you can hurry back.”

  Ethan gave me one more kiss, then he was gone. I was kind of sad that he wouldn’t be back for a week. It was almost depressing. I looked around my home, finding it far too quiet.

  Shaking my head, I decided to get ready for bed. When I finished up in the bathroom, I heard my phone ding with a text. Praying it wasn’t anything work-related, I glanced down at the screen, seeing it was from Drake.

  Meet me for dinner at 6 Friday night for negotiations. We’ll meet at my place in Riverdale.

  Surprised, I texted back that I would be there. Why did he want to meet at his place? Should I bring Mikey? I snorted, deciding I could do this alone.

  I walked to the closet, wondering what I should wear. It was just going to be a discussion, but I wanted him to realize what he was missing. My gaze narrowed on a blue dress that brought out my eyes. It was his favorite.

  Pulling it out, I hung it on the edge of the closet door. I knew I was treading into dangerous territory, but I wanted him to feel bad. With the games he’d played, it was only right that I earned a few points myself.

  Chapter Five

  “This is a really bad idea, Sophie. You’re walking straight into the lion’s den. Ethan would be totally against this,” Mikey said, walking behind me down the hallway to my office. I had a lot to do before dinner with Drake. I was a little excited to see his face when I showed up in that dress. His jaw would drop to the floor.

  I opened my office door and walked to my desk so I could finish looking at the last of the applications for the Council position. “Good thing Ethan isn’t here then, isn’t it? Listen. I’m a big girl, Mikey. I can handle this myself. Drake is completely normal now, so we don’t have to worry about the demon.”

  Mikey sat in a chair across from me, his elbows resting on his knees. “The demon hunter seems to think the demon is just hiding inside of Drake, biding his time.”

  “Carlos used his senses to scan Drake’s body, finding nothing. Drake is fine, Mikey. I have you on speed dial, just in case.”

  I gave him a reassuring glance, then started separating the bad from the good applications. I had a lot of them to interview, which sucked. Normally, I’d have my assistant dig through this mess, but seeing as Allison was gone, I had to do it myself.

  “Fine, but when something happens, I’ll be there to say I told you so.” He stood. “Just be safe. Please, call me if you need anything. I’ll be waiting at your house. If you aren’t back before midnight, I’m coming after you.”

  I laughed. “Okay, Dad.”

  Mikey shook his head. “I’m being serious, Soph.”

  Looking up at him, I nodded. “I’ll be fine, Mikey. We’re just going to discuss the Witch/Vampire negotiations. We basically have the contracts written up already, so it won’t even take that long.”

  “I hope you’re right.”

  When he left, I sat back in my chair and blew hair out of my face, thinking about his words. Was I heading into dangerous territory? Most definitely. But I needed to see what he wanted to talk about. I knew it wasn’t about negotiations. Why would he have me come to his house? The bigger question was why did I insist on tempting fate by showing up? This was a bad idea all around, but I couldn’t help myself. I needed to go. Maybe he’d show me a little bit of the old Drake.

  Maybe not, an inner voice said. Maybe he’ll just rip my throat out and chow down like he hasn’t eaten in a decade.

  Looking at the clock, I frowned. It was close to five and I was already exhausted. This afternoon, I had to meet with a ton of Witches who had complaints that couldn’t be handled by any of the Council members. Most of them were about dogs shitting on lawns or someone failing to trim a tree. I didn’t see why those cases had to come to me, so come Monday, we’d all sit down and have a serious talk.

  Shutting down my computer, I grabbed my things to head out. I stopped and glanced around my office one more time, just in case. Ethan usually came to see me home. I missed him, yet here I was, going into the devil’s lair. Shaking the thoughts from my head, I focused on my house and disappeared.

  STANDING OUTSIDE DRAKE’S house, I nervously debated if I was really ready to go in. If I were a smoker, I’d be on my fifth cigarette by now. I took a deep breath and started forward, then heard something crunching behind me. I held my breath and spun around, afraid someone was trying to sneak up on me.

  Using my magic, I surrounded myself with light and looked around. Standing several feet away was the shadow of a man, as if he had been waiting the entire time.

  “Who the fuck are you?” I demanded, trying to make sure my voice didn’t shake. Damn, I could be such a wimp sometimes.

  “It’s me.”

  Frowning, I took a step closer, then released a breath. “Kevin? Shit. You’re one creepy fucker! Why are you always outside his house, sneaking around?”

  He chuckled. “I always walk
the perimeter, just in case. He put me on his guard for this location.”

  Kevin used to be an assassin for the previous High Mistress. He was as deadly as they came. We became friends when we worked together to take down the previous High Mistress, Daphne. She had his sister killed, so he wanted revenge. I kind of missed him, so I made a mental note to visit him more often.

  “Well, I’d better get inside. You should stop by my office sometime so we can catch up. You hardly come around anymore.” I started up the steps to the door.

  “I might sometime soon, but we’ll have to actually do something. I don’t want to just watch you work.”

  I laughed. “Fine. I’ll see you later.” I waved, but he had already melted into the shadows. He was probably the sexiest killer I knew. There was no doubt in my mind he took many lives, probably using his good looks to do it. He reminded me of a shorter Chris Hemsworth.

  Examining the shadows, I tried to see where he went, but the door of the house opened. Drake, wearing one of his impeccable suits, leaned against the frame.

  “I thought I heard you out here.”

  “I was just saying hi to Kevin,” I explained, walking inside.

  Setting my purse down on the table next to the door, I admired how well he kept the place up. It was old, but you couldn’t tell. The woodwork of the floor and walls was detailed and extravagant, polished to a high gloss. A chandelier with tear-drop crystals, the light reflecting off them, hung in the center of the room. I always loved the cozy feel of the place.

  Drake closed the door and led me to the dining room, the smell of food slowly invading my senses. “You always did look beautiful in that dress,” he said, looking me over.

  I smiled at him, my stomach rumbling. After all, I hadn’t eaten all day. Ethan usually kept track of that for me; otherwise, I would starve myself and only drink wine.