by T. A. Kunz
“Jack, hold up,” Heath calls out, but Jack doesn’t turn around. He keeps moving away toward the door at the back of the room where the butler-looking guy came through.
“What the hell was that all about?” I ask Heath, who looks over at me and shrugs.
The sound of shoes clacking on the black tile floor fills the space, drawing my eye to the only apparent way out of the room. A young woman who’s a dead ringer for actress Lucy Liu approaches us decked out in tight black pants and a light purple blouse. Her liquid black hair, which shimmers in the lights overhead, is pulled back into a high ponytail. Her face is in a state that could be best described as “resting bitch face” until she gets within several feet of us, and then it breaks into a smirk.
“Hello. My name is Jack … short for Jackeline. I believe you’re here to see me,” she says.
I peek over at Heath, who looks as shocked as I am. He’s the first one to speak up. “Wait, you’re Jack? Then who’s the other guy?”
“Oh, you mean Nate. He’s my watchman and last line of defense. He masquerades as me so no one knows what I really look like. As you can probably guess, I have several individuals who’d love nothing more than to see me dead for what I do. For as many friends I’ve made while running the so-called ‘paranormal black market,’ I’ve made just as many enemies. I apologize for the deception, and normally I observe from afar while Nate attends to these kinds of dealings, but I had to meet Miss Olivia here,” she explains.
“And why is that?” I inquire.
“You may not be aware of this, Olivia, but you’re sort of an underground superstar in our world. Not everyone knows who you are and what you’ve done, but the important ones do. You’ve made an impression, that’s for sure. How you sacrificed a piece of yourself to save your little witch friend was highly admirable, and something that’s rarely been done. When a little nugget of info like this crosses my desk, that a Hunter bound her soul to a witch’s in order to save the witch’s life, it highly interests me.”
“How did you find out about me? The only ones who knew were my mother and Heath,” I say, and then look over at Heath who shakes his head slightly.
Jack laughs under her breath at my question. “I have my ways.” Her eyes glow bright red, like rubies glinting in the sunlight. “It’s my job, Olivia. I buy, sell, and trade information, with the occasional dip into weapon creation for all the different races and Guilds. I don’t discriminate. I’m an equal opportunity employer as long as the price is right.”
“What are you?”
A leer turns up the corner of her mouth. “A Jinn. But don’t let the red eyes mislead you; I’m not evil. Well, not entirely. And no, before you ask, I can’t grant wishes,” she answers.
“A Jinn, huh? I remember hearing about you guys at the academy. There aren’t too many of you left in the world. And given what a Jinn does, I’m thinking people don’t pay you with money for your services,” I say.
“You’re a smart one. I’ll have to keep my eye on you. You’ve got your hands full with this one, don’t you, Heath?” she asks, a smirk still present and accounted for. “I have no need for monetary gain. I’m more interested in an agreed arrangement with my clients. Like I said, if the price is right. Speaking of arrangements, what brings you all the way out here to my humble abode?”
“I was curious if you’d heard anything about a Witch Hunter assault on a sorority house last night.”
“I may have caught wind of such an incident. Why does it concern you?” She narrows her eyes when she looks at me.
“That Hunter was my brother, but the thing is, I don’t know if it actually was him. I’m not sure how, but I think someone’s either controlling him or someone used a spell to make themselves look like him,” I explain.
“Interesting conclusions. And what makes you think your brother didn’t do this of his own will? Or as an ordered hit from the Guild?”
“He said he wasn’t there, and I believe him. Have you heard anything about a hit put out on an Angelica Delacour, the daughter of one of the light witch High Priestesses?”
“No, but it sounds like if that were to get out, we’d have a little war on our hands between light witches and your ex-Guild. Breaking a thousand-year-old truce isn’t taken lightly in the paranormal world.”
“Hence the urgency, and why we’ve come to you,” Heath interjects.
Jack looks back and forth between Heath and me before landing her gaze on me. “It’s very seldom I do favors, but for you, Olivia, I’ll make an exception. I like you. Your soul is purer than most. I have some information that may prove useful, but what you do with it is up to you.” She pauses for a moment and then continues. “Once I tell you what I know, you’ll be shown out immediately with no further questions asked, understand?” We both nod. “Oh, and before I tell you, I just want to say it was such a pleasure meeting you.”
“Likewise,” I say, which causes her eyes to glow red and a smile to show on her face.
Jack claps her hands together and begins rubbing them back and forth while speaking in a language I don’t understand. A deep red smoke begins seeping from between her palms and swirls around her hands, completely encompassing them. Her hands part the instant she utters her last syllable. She cups them in front of her mouth and gently blows the smoke in our direction. It floats through the air like a snake slithering through the grass, heading right for me. It caresses my cheek, which kind of creeps me out, but I try not to panic. I feel the smoke crawl into my ear, and can suddenly hear Jack’s voice in my head, but her lips aren’t moving when I look at her.
Images begin to flood my mind. I see flashes of people’s faces I recognize, but then they disappear as quickly as they appeared. All I can see now is blinding white surrounding me. I look to my right for Heath, but he’s not there. Then out of nowhere, Jack appears in front of me, her eyes red and her lower half made up entirely of deep red smoke swirling around in lazy circles.
“The one you seek is an Elder of your Guild, Tobias Young. He’ll have the answers you’re looking for.” Jack’s voice rings through my head and then her image dissipates from in front of me.
My eyes shoot open and I draw in a deep breath, gasping for air. When I gain my bearings, I realize I’m back outside and staring out into the empty clearing where Jack’s compound stood.
Heath’s face comes into view. He places his hands on my shoulders, trying to get me to focus on him. “What the hell just happened?” he asks. “You okay?”
I nod, not able to speak. My head feels like it was pummeled. Why couldn’t Jack tell me what she knew instead of skull-effing me with her magic? Talk about a serious head-trip.
“That most definitely didn’t happen the last time I was here with my father. We only met with that Nate guy and then he showed us out himself. All I remember just now was Jack talking one moment, and then the next thing I know, there was red smoke, and then we were outside. I’ve seen magic before, but damn … that was fucking awesome,” Heath rambles.
“She said I need to talk to one of the Elders. That he’d have the answers I need, or something like that. It’s all kind of fuzzy right now,” I say while massaging my temples as a headache begins to invade.
“When did she say that? I didn’t hear anything except her speaking in tongues.”
“She told me while she was in my head.”
“So, what now?” Heath asks.
“I think I need to have a little chat with a certain sorority president, and then it’s time for family reunion number two.”
“Going to visit the parentals, huh? You think that’s a good idea?”
“If an Elder was involved in this whole mess with my brother, it’s not like I can walk right up to Guild headquarters and request a meeting. My mom’s the only one still talking to me, so that’s my one and only option right now.”
It’s only been a couple hours since we passed by the Alpha Nu Gamma house on our way to Jack’s. It seemed empty then, but now there are severa
l cars out front and in the driveway.
Pulling Scarlet up to the curb, I throw her into park before telling Heath to sit tight while I go talk with Angelica. The entire way up to the front door, I find myself mulling over every question I want to ask her, making sure I don’t leave anything out.
I knock a few times and then my abdomen crunches slightly as I hear heels clicking on the foyer’s wooden floor inside. The instant Angelica sees me after opening the door, she smiles wide and releases a tiny squeal before wrapping her arms around my neck. I stiffen in anticipation of a painful surge throughout my entire midsection, but it never happens. I only get the normal amount of discomfort.
“I can’t believe you’re here. I’ve been talking about you nonstop today, and how you saved my life last night,” she exclaims into my ear. She pulls back to look at me and her wide eyes and toothy smile framed by her curly red hair is all I see. “Our housemother is dying to meet you.”
I barely have two seconds to even get a word in as Angelica links her arm with mine and guides me toward the living room area. She keeps chatting my ear off about how awesome it is that she can thank me in person.
When we enter the living room, I’m shocked to see Tara there amongst several other girls I recognize from the party last night. My surprised eyes meet hers and she sends me a slight wave coupled with a little shrug and a hesitant look.
“You must be Olivia,” a woman announces while moving from her seat to make her way over to us. She’s dressed in a fashionable navy blue pantsuit and has her blonde hair pulled back into a tight bun. I’m guessing she’s the housemother, since everyone else in the room looks like they’re in college. “I’m Hattie, Alpha Nu Gamma’s housemother.” She extends her hand to shake mine.
I’m cautious to give her my hand, but after a few seconds, I take hers and give it a delicate shake. There’s no jolt or even the slightest of tremors through my abdomen. She isn’t a witch. How is the housemother of a predominately witch-run sorority not one?
“It’s so nice to meet you, Olivia. Angelica hasn’t stopped flapping her gums about your heroics last night. May I speak with you in private so the girls can get back to their house meeting?” she asks while gesturing toward the hallway I just came from.
“Uh, sure,” I reply and wait until she leads the way. I send one last disapproving look to Tara before following Hattie out of the room.
“Let’s chat in my office, shall we?” she calls out over her shoulder.
She stops in front of a set of open doors. She waves her hand toward the room and allows me to enter before her. I hear the doors slide closed, which causes me to spin around. Her face is inquisitive and seems to have a hint of frustration spread across it. Gone is her cheery demeanor.
“Can you please explain to me what in the hell happened last night?”
Her question and tone surprise me. Two seconds ago, she was this prim and proper lady, and now she resembles a scorned woman.
“There I was,” she huffs before continuing, “on my first date in what seemed like forever last night, with the most perfect man I might add, and I get a phone call from Angelica asking me to pick her up. She was at the university because the sorority house had been shot up by some unknown assailant.” I try to butt in and explain, but she cuts me off. “Do you realize I had to spend the remainder of the night wrangling up all the students who attended the party in order to have Angelica perform memory wiping charms until the wee hours of the morning? And then I had to clean this place up. Thankfully, we got everything tidy by the time the police arrived, and were able to explain it was a hazing prank gone awry and was blown completely out of proportion, just in case anyone had reported what actually happened.” She takes a deep breath after her rant and then focuses her attention solely on me, waiting for me to say something.
I can’t really tell her what happened because then I risk implicating my brother, and possibly starting a war. “I have no idea what happened last night. All I know is bolts were fired into the living room, but I never saw who did it. I just pulled Angelica out of the way, that’s it.”
Her upturned eyebrows let me know she isn’t buying it. “Well, speaking of those bolts, they were nowhere to be found when I got here. And Angelica told me you plucked the first one right out of the air. I’m sorry, but that sounds like you have some skill. So, who are you exactly? And no, I won’t believe it was a lucky catch.”
“Sounds like Angelica was confused when she told you what happened. I ducked and covered just like everyone else,” I reply.
Her probing stare slams into me like a ton of bricks. “You’re not fooling me, my dear. I’m not like most humans in this town who are completely oblivious to the other world right beneath their noses.”
I sigh, realizing I have to tell her who I am. “All right, you got me. I’m an ex-Witch Hunter, but I’m trying to start my life over. I had nothing to do with what went down last night. I’ve turned my back on the Guild and have absolutely zero ties to them now. Please, you can’t tell anyone. The last thing I need right now is this getting out more than it already has.”
“Your secret’s safe with me, dear. I have a little secret of my own,” she says. “I’m Miss Angelica’s keeper appointed by her mother, who’s one of the seven High Priestesses. I’m sure you’re aware of them, since you were a Hunter.”
If this lady is Angelica’s keeper, what was she doing out on a date with some guy and not here?
“It figures the one time I decide to have some me time that something like this would happen. Angelica was the one who pushed me to go out. I refused for days, since I knew going on this date would mean I’d have to ignore my obligations for a few hours. I’ll be lucky if I’m not banished for this,” she sighs. “I did take extra precaution last night and had Angelica wear a bangle of protection, even though she complained that it didn’t really go with her outfit. But it was my stipulation for going out. She had to wear it.”
That must’ve been why the bolt didn’t hit her last night. The bangle also explains why I was in so much pain yesterday when I touched her and not when I hugged her today.
“Why was she so intent on you going out?”
“Why do most young people not want their elders around? Because she didn’t want me here cramping her style. Plus, she’s been on me about needing to take a day for myself anyway, so I did.”
“Can you think of anyone who’d want to hurt her?” I ask, trying to find out anything that may help clear my brother.
“Not really,” she replies.
“Are you sure? If there’s something you’re not telling me, now would be the time to spill it since, you know, Angelica’s life is on the line here.”
She looks to be struggling with herself over what she wants to say. I can tell she has some information, but she isn’t sharing. Finally, a heavy breath escapes her lips.
“The High Priestess is going to string me up for sure over this,” she murmurs. “There is one person who might want something to do with her. You may actually know him. Tobias Young. I believe you used to call him Elder. He has past ties to Angelica’s mother. But you can’t say where you got this info, because then I’ll surely be exiled by the High Priestesses.”
Tobias Young was the same name Jack gave me.
“Sounds like I need to pay a visit to Tobias.” I notice Hattie’s uneasy expression. “Don’t worry. I’m not going to say anything about you. I just want to get this whole thing resolved, and get back to my new life.”
“May I ask you a question, Olivia?” she inquires as I’m about to slide open the doors to leave.
“Sure.”
“Why are you so interested in this matter? It’s not every day a Hunter actually helps the very thing they’re sworn to keep under control.”
In my head, I’m saying to help my brother, but out loud I answer, “First of all, I’m an ex-Hunter, so everyone is on the same playing field now in my eyes. And second, that person shot at me too, and I don’t know about you, b
ut when someone shoots at me, I tend to take it personally.”
“Fair enough,” she replies, and motions to me that I’m free to go.
Sliding open the doors, I almost crash right into Tara. “Don’t be irked with me,” she whispers with puppy-dog eyes.
I quickly shut the doors behind me and grab her by the arm before pulling her off to the side so we can talk without prying ears. “I’m not irked.”
“You are, too, irked. I could tell the moment you saw me here,” she replies, shaking off my grip on her forearm.
“Okay, maybe I’m a bit irked. What the frick are you doing here?” I murmur.
“I bumped into Angelica while walking back to our dorm from our Intro to Crim class, and we got to talking about last night. Before I knew it, we were here.”
“Like by magic?”
“No, she drove,” Tara answers, and then cuts me off when I’m about to speak. “Look, I clearly have an in here, so maybe I can help you with collecting some info.”
“Out of the question,” I mutter.
“I’m not made of glass, Livie. Stop treating me like I am. I’m a part of this paranormal world now, whether or not you like it. So let me be a part of it and help you,” she pleads.
I knew this would happen sooner or later. Why is starting over never simple? It seems like we’re having a standoff of the wills as we stare each other down for a few seconds. I’m only able to keep my steely gaze up for so long before it cracks under the pressure of her pointed one. She knows I know she’s right, like always.
“Okay, but you’re on recon only. If anything happens, you call me ASAP, no questions. Please try and remember that we’re tied together now, so don’t go being a shero. Ass kicking is my domain.”
“Understood,” she replies with a half-smile. “Thank you for trusting me, Livie. It means a lot.”
“Please don’t make me regret this.”
“I’ll be careful, don’t worry,” she states, placing her hand on my shoulder while sending me a reaffirming look.
