“You sure? I can easily get a ride from someone here.”
I nodded. “I will see you tomorrow.”
Josh did not look happy but let me have my way. “Yeah, I’ll pick you up at the usual time.”
“I will see you then,” I said before walking toward the front door. The receiving line had dispersed by the time I got there, so there was no ugly repeat of the earlier scene. I walked out into the sultry summer air. What have I just done?
I WAS IN A NEAR panic over my actions by the time the taxi dropped me off in front of my house. Grabbing a bottle of scotch and a rocks glass, I went out on the loggia to contemplate my situation. After pouring myself a liberal draught, I pulled off my too-small shoes. At least one good thing came out of my fight with Honore; I was able to take my shoes off much earlier than I otherwise would have. I rubbed my aching toes and began planning.
First and foremost, I had to stop rising to Honore’s bait. It only led to problems. Second, I needed to come to terms with the fact that my nemesis was going to become my coven leader. Third, I needed to diffuse Honore’s anger. As much as I hated to, I was going to need to apologize. I would probably eat a good bit of undeserved crow, but it was unavoidable.
In the midst of my reverie, I felt the tang of magic and looked up to see Jaime dropping off the courtyard wall into my new garden.
“Watch the plants!” I called as she trod across the new soil. Not only had the interior of the house been redecorated but the outside courtyard had been re-landscaped. Gone was the inappropriate sculpture garden, replaced by wide beds of medicinal herbs and flowers. Jaime ignored the neatly laid-out brick walkways and walked directly to me. I sighed, wondering what she had crushed in her haste. Yet another thing to fix.
“Oh, hey! I wasn’t sure if you’d be here or not,” Jaime said, dropping into the chair opposite me.
“Aren’t you supposed to be my guardian or something? Shouldn’t you know where I am?” I asked.
The girl shrugged. “Josh keeps a good eye on you. No need for double duty. Where is he by the way? In the house?”
“Still at the Gala. I left early.” I took a sip of my scotch.
“Good thing you left, ‘cause I heard Honore’s been spotted,” Jaime said. “The Gatekeeper who told me said she was all gussied up and leading a posse of Aether. They were probably heading to the museum.”
“Oh, yes. She was there. That is the reason I came home,” I said, taking another sip.
“Oh, shit!” Jaime said. “How bad was it? Is there carnage I need to clean up?”
I laughed but realized she was serious. “We exchanged harsh words but nothing more. It would not have been possible anyway. I warded the museum so that no offensive magic could be used.”
“Thank God.”
I looked at her quizzically. “How do you know Honore and I don’t like one another?”
“Shit, your feud is legendary. An Aether catfight. Was it really over de la Croix?”
“Among other things,” I said.
“Is it gonna be bad for you that she’s back?” Jaime asked.
“It is not going to be good,” I admitted. “She is going to be my Coven Mistress and I owe her fealty.”
“You’re fucked, Juliette.”
“In a word, yes,” I sighed and drained my glass.
WHEN I AWOKE the next evening, there was a message on my phone from Honore asking me to come to her house in the Garden District. Amazingly, she did not sound angry or demanding. I was immediately on guard. Honore was never nice to me. She wanted something, and that was not a good sign.
I called Josh to tell him I would not be available to do any warding until later, if at all. He offered to drive me to Honore’s, but I declined. I did not wish to anger her further, and I was sure arriving with the Sylph lieutenant would do just that. Josh made me promise to call him when my meeting was over.
I called a taxi and gave him my destination across town. When we pulled up to the address, the large house was gaily lit and a number of automobiles were parked in the driveway and along the curb. “Looks like quite a party,” the driver said to me as I paid my fare. I smiled faintly and mumbled something appropriately polite. Not a party, a lynching. Of course, to Honore, they are probably the same.
The door was thrown open before I even had a chance to knock, and Honore exclaimed in a bright, sing-song voice, “Juliette is here! We can begin. Come in, come in, my dear.”
I had no idea what was happening, but Honore was acting peculiarly and it worried me. I walked into the formal parlor and saw various clan members milling around. Then I noticed the reason for Honore’s conciliatory and almost friendly attitude toward me. Diana Langdon, the Aether legate from London, stood regally by the French doors calmly regarding the dark garden. She turned at my approach. I dropped to one knee and kissed the gold signet ring on her right hand. Raising me from my supplicant position, Diana said, “Regent Grammont, it is so good to see you again. I am sorry we did not have more time to speak at the Gala last evening.”
I had been introduced to Diana Langdon the previous night in the Gala’s receiving line, but we’d not had time for more than the briefest of exchanges. We were to have spoken at length later about my leadership position within the coven and then, when all of the humans had left, she and Marc would have formally invested me as Aether leader. I had assumed the investiture ceremony had occurred with Honore in my place, but Diana’s use of my honorific suggested that perhaps it had not.
Keeping my eyes demurely cast down, I said, “I am sorry that I left so abruptly last evening.”
She tucked my hand companionably into the crook of her arm and said, “Come, let us speak alone for a few minutes.” Opening the French doors, the legate led me out onto the terrace. When Honore attempted to follow, Diana said, “Privately,” and closed the door firmly in her face.
We stepped away from the door, not that it would matter. Honore, with her enhanced vampire hearing, would be able listen in at will. At least she would have, if Diana had not touched the gold pendant she wore around her neck and spoke an incantation. I felt magic flare and envelope us.
“We can speak freely now. No one outside of the charm’s power can hear us,” Diana told me.
“That is a very useful bit of magic,” I said, wondering how hard it would be to make one of my own. I could magick bullets to burst into flame. How hard could enchanting a necklace to dampen sound be?
“You have no idea how handy this piece of jewelry is, my dear. We could speak in the middle of the parlor with the entire coven present and none of them would hear a thing. That, however, is rude, so I suggested we step out here.”
“You wished to speak to me,” I said, mentally preparing myself for the coming lecture.
“Yes, since we were unable to speak last night.”
I put on my most contrite face, complete with downcast eyes, and said, “I am very sorry about that. I should not have left without your leave, nor should I have spoken to Honore as I did.” Saying the last made me feel as if I had glass in my mouth.
Diana laughed. “You do submissive very well, but you’re not sorry at all. A bit regretful because you think you will be disciplined because of your actions, but not sorry.”
Startled, I looked directly at the legate. “Is it that obvious?” I gasped.
Diana laughed again. “No, my dear, it is not obvious to others.”
“But it is to you?” I asked.
“Let us say we are cut from the same cloth, you and I. Power found us, we did not seek it, and with our temperaments, we are not quite suited for the positions we hold.”
“Coven Mistress, even just as Regent, is not my first choice,” I admitted.
“But you are most capable. I have known Marc and Sophie for a long time, and they both speak very highly of you.
Even Gabe says nice things about you and I thought him completely incapable of praising anyone.”
“They have all been very good to me since my return.”
“Yes, Sophie let me know how the coven failed you.”
“It was not Frederique’s fault. I was busy helping the Gautiers. As for what Andre did or did not do, it is a moot point. He is dead and I am moving on.”
“I noticed that. Josh Bouchard is very handsome, but I did not come to discuss who you take to your bed. We need to discuss coven leadership. Do you wish to give it up?”
“I do not exactly have a choice, do I? Honore is an Elder. She has Right of Precedent.”
“Normally that is correct. However, it took Honore several weeks to step forth and claim the position. In the interim, a Regent was appointed by the city’s Grandmaster and acknowledged by the Aether Motherhouse. You would be on very firm ground to retain leadership if you chose.”
“Did she say why she did not step forth earlier?”
“She was injured in the fire and went into torpor.”
“That is a legitimate reason,” I said.
“We have these things now called phones. She should have called or whoever got her to safety should have called. If not London, at least Gautier House here in New Orleans. She had the presence of mind to get the coven ring off of Frederique’s finger, so she easily could have called.”
“She has Frederique’s ring?” Anger flared deep and hot inside me. The only way for Honore to have that ring was to have taken it from Frederique before the fire. It took me several moments to gain control of my emotions. While it was obvious that Honore had killed Frederique and my sire to gain control of the coven, I could not take time to deal with her now. Finally, after a deep breath, I said. “I will relinquish my leadership peacefully.”
Diana looked mildly surprised. “Are you sure?”
“For the time being. Honore will not let coven leadership go without a fight, and other events in the city take precedent. I cannot combat the Stray problem if I am constantly worried about challenges from my own coven. Nor would I effectively be able to deal with day-to-day coven issues. The only reason that I have managed to this point was because there were no members.”
Diana regarded me for a moment and nodded. “You know how to prioritize and pick your battles. We are lucky to have you. When it is time, I will be proud to confirm your leadership of the New Orleans coven.”
“Thank you.”
“We should probably return to the coven soon, but before we go, please understand that I will not be able to give you much assistance later on, as that would be interfering with city coven politics. What I can, I will give freely. Contact me through Sophie.” Diana reached behind her neck and unclasped the pendant. Taking my hand, she pooled the chain in my palm. “Just push some power into it and murmur ‘tacere.’ To break the enchantment, say ‘abracadabra.’” I felt the magic fall away.
“I am honored,” I said as I fastened the pendant around my own neck and tucked it into my blouse.
“Good luck, Juliette,” Diana said and returned to the parlor.
The transfer of power was a simple affair, with me verbally renouncing my position in front of the coven and legate. Honore then formally announced her assumption of leadership and was officially recognized as Coven Mistress by the legate.
I did not realize until I was in the taxi on my way home that none of us had sworn fealty to Honore.
Chapter 14
JOSH CONTINUED TO pick me up every evening and squire me around so I could ward the final pieces of the anti-werewolf matrix in the city. In essence, everything remained the same. Happily, there were no more werewolf attacks, but we could still not find the Strays’ lair. It was almost as if they had left the city. I began to worry that my wards had been breached and the Stray pack was hiding somewhere that wasn’t being patrolled. I said as much to Josh and he had Beau Roulet bring part of his pack to test them. All were still in place.
While warding was boring and monotonous work, there were upsides to it. I got to see the entire city, and Josh was a funny and informative tour guide. I learned much of what I had missed being gone from the city so long. He pointed out prime feeding grounds if I should tire of taking blood from a bottle. Josh also warned me of areas to avoid.
“Drinkin’ blood from a crackhead won’t cause you any lasting harm, but you will do some stupid shit while it’s in your system. You can always tell when a vamp made a meal of someone high. They just ain’t themselves. Some vamps do it on purpose ‘cause they’re bored and that’s one thing. Something entirely different when you don’t realize what you’re drinking. Druggies are easy meals and as predators we are drawn to ‘em. Most of the time it’s better to walk away and find different prey,” he told me.
I nodded and mentally catalogued good and bad areas of town.
Two days after the Gala, I was warding on the far end of Bourbon when I felt the tang of Jaime’s magic. I had not seen the young woman since she had come to my house with news of Honore’s return. I wondered if she had come for a quick lesson in werewolf wards or if something else had happened.
“Long time, no see,” Josh said as Jaime approached.
“Been busy with these damn demons and tryin’ to figure out where the Aether holed up between the fire and the Gala,” Jaime explained.
“So what’s the news?” Josh asked.
“Well on the demon front, there has been a definite upswing in summonings. I’ve sent the same guys back through the Gate two or three times in the last week,” Jaime said.
“Do you have any idea who is summoning them?” I asked.
“Not really. I mean the Aether are back in town, and they’re always suspect. Sorry, Juliette, but it’s true. We think Honore and her crew must have gone to ground out in Meterie. It’s close enough to get to but far enough out that we don’t normally patrol it.”
We were interrupted by a small group of drunken revelers stumbling down the street. They were still half a block away but the trio was making enough noise to wake the dead. Singing off-key at the top of their lungs, one tripped over a garbage can and careened into his friend, sending him sprawling into the street. I was almost ready to dismiss the group and return to the conversation with Jaime when I caught the scent of stray werewolf in the air. A quick glance told me that Josh had smelled it also. Jaime’s eyes widened in alarm as Josh drew his gun.
“I guess we’re gonna find out if those hoodoo bullets of yours work on werewolves or not,” Josh said.
Jaime looked down the street toward the revelers and I felt the tendrils of magic slide past me as she sought out the Stray. “Just one, past the drunks,” Jaime said. “How are we gonna do this? Guns draw attention.”
“It’s New Orleans. Gunfire ain’t gonna surprise anybody. Juliette, you distract the drunks. Jaime, take the high ground,” Josh directed, pointing to the tall brick courtyard wall. “I’ll circle around.”
Jaime scaled the wall like a spider while Josh crossed the street. Distract them? How in the world am I going to do that? Just then, one in the group fell again and sat on the ground laughing like a hyena. Maybe not as difficult as I thought. They were oblivious to anything but themselves. I walked toward the three men. Jaime ran lithely across the top of the stone wall, closing the distance to her target. I could not see Josh at all but could tell from his power aura he was near the werewolf. I could now see as well as smell the Stray. He stayed in the shadows as he stalked his prey. With my vampire sight, I could easily see him, and even the humans, if they had been paying attention, could have seen the glow of the creature’s red eyes. He was still a block from his quarry, but since they had stopped moving, he was quickly gaining on them. I picked up my pace, hoping the Stray was as focused on his prey as they were on themselves. They had just noticed me when a quick succession of gunshots
rang out.
“Oh, fuck! What was that?” the man on the ground slurred.
Pushing power into my words, I said slowly, and deliberately, “This is New Orleans. Gunshots are not unusual, but you should leave the area immediately.” I pointed down the street away from where Josh, Jaime, and the werewolf were. The man on the ground scrambled to his feet, and the trio lurched passed me. As they rounded the corner I cast another spell that shrouded the block in darkness. It would not hinder vampire sight, but it would shroud our activities from any humans.
I forgot that Jaime was human until she yelled, “Shit! Who turned out the lights?”
I heard Josh chuckle and hurried down the block. Jaime had jumped down off the wall and was wrapping the werewolf, now in naked human form, in her trench coat. Josh knelt beside her, helping.
“Good idea to cast ‘Darkness’ to keep pryin’ eyes away, but warn me next time, will ya? I nearly broke my neck on that wall before I could cast ‘Sight,’” Jaime said.
“Sorry,” I said contritely.
“S’alright,” she said.
“What are we going to do with the body?” I asked.
“We’ll take him back to my place and call Vinny. We better let Marc know too. Good news is that the hoodoo bullets work on werewolves,” Josh said.
“Shit dude, you shot him like six times. How can you tell if it was the bullets or magic?” Jaime asked.
“I only put three slugs in him and he started changin’ after the second shot. I’ve never known less than a half dozen to take out a werewolf.”
“We can discuss the merits of my bullets at a later time. Let’s get him off the street,” I said.
WE HAD FINISHED the last bit of warding just before dawn three nights previously and I was lost as to what to do with my newly free schedule. Even before my nights were monopolized with safeguarding the city, there had been the Gala and coven concerns to occupy me. I suddenly had nothing to do. The first night I reveled in my freedom. Nearly giddy with the time, I had set to weeding my herb garden. It had become quite overgrown and desperately needed attention. The night before I had created dozens of hoodoo bullets. Tonight there was nothing on my agenda.
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