by John Conroe
I patted my bear and gave him a nod, and he blurred in that eye-scrambling manner of his back into his wolf form.
Everyone was still shocked, which for a party of supernaturals, is quite an achievement.
“That was… amazing!” Janek conceded. “Where did you get him? I want one.”
“Ah, he’s one of a kind and the circumstances of his birth would be exceedingly difficult to replicate,” I said, thinking of elder gods, giant bears, and dark rites.
“Ned said you were a problem solver? What problems do you solve?” Kral asked, attempting to recover control of the conversation.
I wasn’t sure how much the Grangers wanted me to say, so I hesitated. Ned interjected before I could answer. “Mr. Gordon is a specialist in dealing with demons. We had an issue, and he resolved it.”
To his credit, Granger hadn’t ever seen 'Sos Change before, but he was handling it much better than his guest. Possibly Jep had filled him in. His giant second-in-command had simply moved his wife and the Grangers back a step when he saw that I was going to ask 'Sos for a demonstration.
Kral’s interest was palpable, his eyes gleaming with curiosity as he swung around to look at Granger. “You had an issue with demons?” he asked, glancing back at me but focused on Ned.
Ned considered for a moment then spoke. “Our twins and another daughter of the Pack were all possessed this time last night,” he said.
Vrana’s eyebrows shot up and he turned to look at the girls, who were shyly hiding behind their mother, both fingering their necklaces. “Truth?” he asked, his expression a blend of disbelief and horror.
“Truth, Mr. Vrana!” Jep rumbled. “Our Lindsey was the third.”
I noticed the rest of the party had gone silent, all of the guests focusing their sensitive ears on the conversation in front of me.
“How is such a thing possible? How could it happen?” Vrana asked. He was truly, deeply interested in the topic, to the point where I wondered if he had personal experience with Hell’s children.
“Chris, you can probably explain better than I,” Ned suggested, glancing around and frowning at all the listening guests. This obviously wasn’t the direction he had wanted the party to take.
“Ah, this house was built in the early nineteen hundreds by a man who was fascinated with the occult. He used the house as the site of séances, dark ceremonies, and, most likely, at least several sacrifices. Some of these rites were conducted by true adepts. We think that a gate spell was partially completed years ago and the children unknowingly finished it. The portal opened a path to Hell, and the girls were the first victims.”
“These two girls and one other were all possessed just twenty-four hours ago? And here they are… in party dresses?” Kral asked, incredulous.
“Chris is very good at exorcism,” Stacia supplied.
“What about the portal?” Evka asked sharply. “You said there was an open portal to Hell in this house?”
“You know, this may be a topic for after dinner,” Ned said suddenly. He was noticing how everyone in the room was leaning in to listen to our conversation, all pretext of holding their own conversations gone.
“That’s a good idea,” I agreed. “I’m sure there are many more interesting people to meet.”
“Many yes. More interesting? Not remotely likely,” Vrana said. “We will talk, Mr. Gordon.”
“Actually, I’d be interested in hearing about an open Hell Gate,” a masculine voice said from just outside our group. A young man in a well-cut gray suit was smiling, a curious look on his face.
“Ah, Samuel! I suspect you would find it of interest,” Ned said, greeting the newcomer. “Kral, this is Samuel Cooper, who, despite his youthful appearance, is the leader of one of Asheville’s most prominent Circles.”
I didn’t understand circles for a moment till I remembered that witches grouped together in circles of twelve or more, kind of like their own little Packs.
“One of our Circles, but not the most prominent one,” a female voice said from the other side of our group. An older woman stood there, thin and bony, dressed in a black dress that would have looked more appropriate for a funeral.
“Yes, Cercia, of course, we have such luck to live in close proximity to not one, but two powerful circles,” Ned said soothingly, although there might have been a slight tone of sarcasm buried in that sentence.
“Cercia Swallows is the leader of the Circle of the Eastern Star,” Ned explained to Vrana and company while Stacia and I exchanged a smirk at the witch’s unfortunate last name. “Samuel’s circle is known as the White Oak Circle.”
“Ned, I don’t understand why you didn’t consult with me when your children were threatened?” Samuel asked.
“Our children weren’t threatened, Sam. They were fully possessed. Now, correct me if I’m wrong, but witchcraft is usually associated with summoning demons, not exorcising them,” Ned responded.
“Yes, the darker side of the Art is, unfortunately, linked with summoning. But the lighter side has long traditions of protecting and dispelling evil,” Samuel said, his eyes intense
“We didn’t even know witchcraft was involved until Mr. Gordon had already cleansed our children. After the church failed,” Ned said smoothly. “But I could have used your advice not to buy this house in the first place. Please don’t tell me that either of your circles was ignorant of its history.”
Cercia’s dark eyes glittered as she spoke up. “Why should the Eastern Star have jumped forth to help you when your Pack hardly gives us the time of day?”
“Gee, I don’t know? Maybe because stepping up and warning us might have endeared us to you? Might have healed rifts long in place?” he said before turning back to Samuel. “But what I don’t understand is why the White Oak neglected to warn us? How much mutual business and aid has passed between us, Sam?”
The warlock was smooth, I had to grant him that. “This house had some rumors floating about it, I’ll admit, but nothing that truly warranted warning you off.”
“That’s odd, because my wife’s nephew was able to find out enough dirt on the old shack to fill a research paper. Right off the Internet, right, Malcolm?” Granger asked the young were standing off to the side.
Malcolm blushed a bit but firmed up and nodded.
“Nonetheless, Ned, you should have come to me at the first sign of trouble, not bring in some unknown outsiders,” Samuel said with a derisive wave in my direction. His glance at Stacia was apologetic, but he kept his attention on Granger.
“You know, Samuel, had I known the history before Mr. Gordon and Ms. Reynolds were here, I might have done just that. But when my daughters started crawling on the ceiling, I thought it wise to bring in the very best,” he said, voice tight with anger.
“The best? This is the best?” the warlock said with a derisive wave in my direction. “An ex-cop, a model, and a freak!”
“'Sos! Go piss on his car!” I said aside to my furry pal, who immediately plowed through the crowd and left the party, hopefully to do just that. Part of me was considering how he knew I was an ex-cop.
Samuel turned angry eyes in my direction and began to gather something that looked like smoky blackness in his right hand. The crowd started to clear, and Ned moved right into Samuel’s face. “Do it, Cooper! Launch whatever spell you have up your sleeve at the man who saved my children. Then see how things go,” he said in a clear, angry voice. Jep moved up behind Cooper, looming over the angry warlock.
Chapter 16
For my part, I wasn’t exactly thrilled that Granger was going to let him throw down on me before kicking ass, but I did appreciate the sentiment. Grim wasn’t so ambivalent, though, as a suit of aural armor had appeared over my body. I think it was mostly invisible to the bulk of the guests, but Cercia’s eyes widened as she looked at me, and she edged back from the brewing conflict. Sam Cooper either couldn’t see aura or was too distracted by the angry Alpha werewolf in his face. He grimaced, then took a step back and let t
he blackness dissipate.
“I’m sorry, Ned. I don’t often lose my temper,” Cooper apologized. “I shouldn’t have gone for a spell.”
“You shouldn’t have insulted our guests in the first place!” a female voice admonished. Rose Granger stood just to her husband’s side, glaring at the warlock.
“Roselyn, I beg your forgiveness,” Cooper said smoothly and with some real sincerity. “Perhaps you may still let me see the portal?”
“There is no portal. Do you honestly think I would let my children or my guests into a house with an open gateway to Hell? Mr. Gordon closed it and sealed it this afternoon.”
The young male witch and the old female had matching expressions of shock at Rose’s announcement. Same open mouths, same wide eyes, and each even leaned back a bit.
“That’s impossible! No single witch could close a dimensional gateway by themselves. Why, it would take both our circles, working together, to close such a rift!” Cercia said.
“I do not believe that Mr. Gordon is a witch at all—are you, Chris?” Rose asked, turning to me.
“No ma’am. Not a witch,” I agreed.
“Are you certain it’s closed?” Cooper asked urgently.
“Wouldn’t you be able to sense it if it wasn’t?” Rose responded. “It is sealed off, isn’t it, Chris?”
“Yes, ma’am. Sealed tight.”
Both witches looked from me to Rose and back again. I got the distinct impression that both their nights were ruined. The Grangers might have gotten the same impression.
“So you both came here tonight to see the portal? That’s why you came, isn’t it?” Ned asked, eyes flashing. Vrana and family were watching the whole scene play out, highly interested.
“Ned, an open dimensional gate is a big deal… huge, really. One that allegedly connects to Hell is even more so,” Cooper said.
“How did you know? That there was a portal here at all?” I asked, curious.
That question hadn’t, apparently, occurred to the Grangers, because both Alphas turned sharply focused glares on the now decidedly defensive witches.
“Ah, tears in the fabric of our reality cause a disturbance in the energy that we use,” Cercia explained.
“But yet you didn’t show up to help?” Ned asked dangerously. “Let’s see if I have this right. You knew there was a nasty history to this house tied to magic, yet neither Circle chose to purchase the property for study. Neither Circle chose to warn us, either. Then, after we move in and you sense a rip in the dimensions, you still hang back to see what happens. We throw a party, and you’re both here with bells on to get a peek at the results? Is that pretty much how it is?”
“Ah, Ned it’s not like that,” Cooper began.
“Actually, it is,” Cercia said, eyes flashing. “There is no love lost between us, Alpha! Why shouldn’t I let you take the risks?”
“Wow, Cercia!” Ned said, eyebrows raised. Then he nodded. “Thank you for the honesty at least. That I can appreciate. But you, Cooper, you’re supposed to be an ally? The Asheville Pack and the Oak Circle have always supported each other.”
“I think you’re looking at this the wrong way, Ned,” Cooper began, but stopped when he saw rage flash across Granger’s face. “At least tell me if you found the book?”
“What book would that be, Sam? And how do you know of it?”
“Listen, you’re angry, Ned. I get that. You have good reason, but that book is dangerous! If you’ve found it, you need to get it into the hands of someone who can properly contain it.”
“Like you contained the secret that this house was a magical trap that would trigger with the right circumstances? I think we’ll stick with the guy that not only reversed the damage but sealed the portal. If we find a book, we’ll let Mr. Gordon handle it. But for now, I think it would be best if you both left, along with any guests you may have brought with you.”
Cooper looked like he might say something more, but he snapped his mouth shut at the last second. Turning to the crowd, he raised his hand to a plain-looking young woman who had blended into the crowd. She looked rattled by the heated exchange as she followed Cooper out.
A slender young man appearing to be in his late twenties moved out of the crowd to take
Cercia’s arm. He looked like he could be her relation.
Cercia turned to me as the young warlock moved to her side. “I’m curious about the shape of the armor you shield yourself with, Mr. Gordon. Actually about a great many things, but the armor seems familiar?”
“It’s a copy of Iron Man’s armor, Grandmother. You know, the comic book turned into a movie?” her grandson explained. Perhaps the ability to see aura was genetic.
“Oh, that’s more than a bit puerile, isn’t it? But tell me, Mr. Gordon, just what are you?”
“Hungry and hoping that dinner is soon!” I said with a glance at the Grangers. The tense crowd laughed, but from the corner of my eye, I caught the dark look that flashed over both witches’ faces. As one, they turned and left the party.
“My apologies!” Ned said to the group at large. “Chris, dinner will be served quite soon. In the meantime, the young lady behind you has some hors d’oeuvres.”
Vrana reclaimed his attention as I turned to look behind me. The young waitress standing with a tray of bacon wrapped scallops was brown-haired and brown-eyed, looking to be about seventeen or eighteen. She was also a vampire, and I knew her.
“Katrina? What are you doing here?” I asked, my hands helping themselves to four bundles of bacon goodness despite my surprise.
“Checking up on you. Tell me, Chris, are you tapping that? You banging the blonde bitch? Have you gone over to the furry side?” she asked smoothly, her tone snarky, her eyes serious.
I gulped down the scallops and focused my gaze on her. “Katrina, did you just travel seven hundred miles and take a temp job as a waitress to piss me off? Were you looking to move your age up? Because I’d be happy to blast you into, oh, say, about sixty-five or so.”
Katrina was one of Tanya’s oldest friends, one of the Outsiders who lived in the sewers that surround Citadel. She had been turned at the age of twelve, despite all the vampire conventions against it. Stuck in a preteen body for over a hundred years, she had grown bitter and violent by the time I first met her. Predictably, she had lashed out at me, and I had stunned her with a blast of aura. Knocked back to human for three days, she had aged physically from twelve to fifteen. Tanya had convinced me to zap her again, which had left her looking like a college kid. That episode should have been a clue to me that my aura could be lethal to ancient vampires, aging them to dust in minutes, but I hadn’t added two and two to get four.
Now she studied me carefully, her nostrils flaring as she blatantly sniffed me.
“Just checking. Tanya is a might… distraught at your absence, particularly as you are traveling with the furry bitch over there,” she said, her eyes flicking in the direction of Stacia, who was in conversation with Kral and Janek.
“She’s a friend. She’s had my back without fail, which makes her part of a very, very small group of people. But why are you here and not Tanya? Why can’t she come herself?”
“Is that so hard to work out? I know you’re young and not overly bright, but surely you can understand. If she leaves the Coven now, the faction that is calling for your death will be unopposed. You have scared the Coven badly. Most of the older vampires left as soon as the Conclave was concluded, scurrying back to fortify their homes. Now even the younger ones are terrified of you. Tanya sent me because I won’t be missed and I don’t buy into the crap that’s getting slung all around. If she had left New York and come herself, there would be contracts on your life within minutes.”
“How is she?”
“How do you think? She’s separated from her Chosen and fighting a political campaign for his life. Then, to top it off, she hears that you’re travelling with little miss werewolf over there.”
“I told you, she’s a frien
d.”
“I heard you, but did she? You think she views you as just a friend?”
I didn’t answer right away, which was answer enough.
“Yeah, so you know that much at least,” Katrina said.
“I’ve been gone, what? Three days? She said I had to leave and it turns out that I was really, really needed down here. Stacia was picked by the Malleks to go with me, and you know what? She’s been a really good friend, nothing more, and she’s doing the job her bosses expect her to. Yeah, she wants more, but I told her that wasn’t going to happen.”
She tilted her head and studied me for a moment.
“I heard something to the effect that you saved the Alphas’ children and stoppered up some kind of Hell hole or something?”
