by Linsey Hall
A cell phone vibrated, the sound coming from the Enforcer’s pocket. His expression hardly changed, but I’d have swore I saw a hint of a frown.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a big cuff made of gold.
A millisecond later, he appeared in front of me and snapped the golden cuff around my neck. Magic fizzed through it. My heart thundered and my skin chilled.
I punched him, but hit only air.
His head had dodged left, too quickly for me to see. He reached out and pinned me to the door, his hand hard against my chest. I kicked and thrashed, but his vampire speed was too great for me. He avoided every strike.
Rage welled within me, a fiery burn.
It only increased when he pulled his still vibrating phone from his pocket and put it to his ear. All while holding me to the door with one long arm.
“Bastard!” I called on my magic, conjuring a sword and thrusting it toward his belly.
Quick as a snake, he dodged. I sliced the blade again, but he let go of me and knocked my sword arm so hard that it went numb. I dropped the blade.
He grasped both my wrists and pinned my arms above my head, pressing the full length of his hard body against mine to keep me from kicking him.
Then he put the phone back to his ear.
“You son of a fucking Horrabeast! Let me go!”
He ignored me, listening to the person on the other end of the line. His body was hot and hard against mine, all strength and tension keeping me trapped against the wall. He was so close that I could feel his heartbeat against my chest. Vampires weren’t dead like human fiction said they were, though they did drink blood to survive.
He towered over me, so tall that my head didn’t top his shoulder. I considered biting him, but my teeth wouldn’t make it through his leather jacket.
And I really didn’t want to go for his neck, even if I could reach it. That wouldn’t turn me into a vampire, but I didn’t want to put any neck-biting ideas into his head. Not with my own neck so close to his fangs.
Though I strained my ears, I couldn’t hear anything that the other person on the line said. I thrashed, trying to get away, but it did no good.
“Are you sure?” the Enforcer said.
Damn it, what the hell was his name? Like all super scary badasses, he went by a title in public. Cass was dating the Origin. Del dated the Warden.
I seriously doubted I’d be dating the Enforcer. Trying to kill him, sure. Dating, no way.
I could not believe my dragon sense had pulled toward this guy. It’d gone haywire.
Finally, he hung up.
“Done?” I gave my tone as much acid as I could muster.
“Hardly.” His green eyes were cold when they met mine.
I shifted, desperate to get away from this stone-cold killer. The movement rubbed a few of my more interesting bits against his.
And he noticed.
His gaze darkened. Warmed a bit. I swallowed hard. The tension in the air turned thick as pudding.
I dragged in a heavy breath. “What the hell is this thing around my neck?”
“Insurance. You’re the official suspect in a murder investigation. The Vampire Court is quick in issuing its verdicts. In three days, if you haven’t been cleared, that thing will blow your head off.”
“What!” I shrieked the words, thrashing and kicking like a banshee. “You son of a bitch!”
“We can’t have you running off,” he said. “Particularly now that I have to go check on something.”
“What the hell? Ever heard of innocent until proven guilty?”
“Not in the vampire court. And that thing will keep you from making a run for it while I figure this out. Cheaper than jail cells.”
“What do you have to check on? You’re just going to leave me here wearing this murder collar?”
He nodded, his gaze deadly serious. “Yeah. It’s procedure. You’re the number one suspect and this keeps you at hand. Added to that, you can walk in the Shadowlands. That is forbidden to your kind. I want to know why you can trespass like that.”
“I didn’t trespass!”
“You did. Was it because of your strange magic?”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Of course you do.” His gaze turned hard. “Fortunately, with that collar on you, running is out of the question. I’ll have time to figure out your secrets.”
I swallowed hard, shivers racing over my skin. This was so not good. Because he was right. I did have secrets. Dangerous one. And I didn’t want him to figure them out.
“I’ll be back soon,” he said. “There will be guards on your place. An extra incentive to not leave. In case you decide to get stupid.”
“Guards?”
He waved a hand, a subtle gesture. Two vampires melted out of the shadows in the distance. I had to peer around his shoulder to see them fully. They’d been hiding near the park, in the shadows of the bushes, and I’d been so freaked out by the Enforcer that I hadn’t noticed them.
Bad Nix.
That kind of laziness could get me killed.
Especially with a murder collar around my neck.
Boy, had I played this one poorly. Demons were no problem. Enforcer vampires? Apparently they were a problem for me.
The two vampires stopped on the other side of the street, their gazes on me. They weren’t as big as the Enforcer and their magic didn’t feel as strong, but I still didn’t want to tangle with them.
Vampire guards, murder collar. Sweat dripped down my spine despite the cold night.
“They’ll stay there until I return. Don’t leave your apartment. If you could even manage to get by them”—he gave my vampire Hello Kitty T-shirt a curious glance, as if he couldn’t figure me out—“it will take nothing for me to track you down. And don’t forget about the collar. You must appear in front of the Vampire Court within three days or…boom.”
I swallowed hard, believing every word. That was his job. Hunting people. Both vampires who did wrong and those who hurt any vampires under his dominion.
“How do I find the Vampire Court?”
“You don’t. I take you.”
“Fine.” I bit out the word, equal parts annoyed and freaked out. Hopefully my friends could get me out of this. “But other people live here as well. They have to be able to come home.”
“They can enter. But the guards won’t let you leave.”
My jaw hardened. We’d see about that.
“Okay.” Forcing out the words was like prying open a new jar.
He gave me one last look, then stepped back and disappeared into thin air. Immediately, I was cold, my muscles like jelly. I leaned heavily against the door, panting and eyeing the vampires.
Shit, shit, shit.
When I’d said I wanted a hot guy to show up on my doorstep, this hadn’t been what I’d meant. He thought I’d killed that guy Marin. And he’d sensed strange magic on me. No one was able to do that. I kept my true self hidden deep.
But he’d sensed it. And he wanted to drag me in front of the Vampire Court. He would drag me in front of the Vampire Court, or this collar would blow my head off.
I reached up, tugging at it. The thing didn’t budge. It was smooth and warm beneath my fingertips. Normally, gold gave me the warm fuzzies. It gave all FireSouls the warm fuzzies.
Not this thing.
Shaking, I turned and unlocked the green door, then made my way up the long flight of stairs to my apartment, which was right above the shop. Del lived above me, and Cass above her.
I let myself into my cluttered home. This part was nothing special, just one thousand square feet of Goodwill furniture and an old kitchen with a fridge that liked to sing me the song of its people. The hums and whines kept me company.
But even the eighteen-pound block of English cheddar that I kept in that fridge wouldn’t fix me in an emergency like this. Every muscle I had felt like a noodle, and my mind was racing like it wanted to win the Indie 500.
With the Enforcer on my tail, I was well into the deep end here.
I pressed my fingertips to the comms charm at my neck. “Cass? Del? I have a problem.”
Del answered immediately. “Where are you?”
“My apartment.”
“We’ll be right there,” Cass said.
“Ignore the vampires across the street and let yourself in. I’ll be in my trove.” I cut off the connection and hurried to my bedroom. It was small and cave-like, with one window leading out onto an alley. The mirror above the dresser showed the narrow gold collar around my neck.
I ignored it and went to the empty wall, where I pressed my fingertips to the plaster and envisioned the wall disappearing. It ignited the magic, and a doorway appeared. I left it open for Cass and Del and stepped inside.
There was just a spiral staircase leading upward. The rest of the space was empty and dark. Though Cass and Del stored their troves in the big empty spaces behind their bedroom walls, that wouldn’t work for mine. The only thing back here was the stairway.
I began to climb, three stories up to the roof, where I stepped out into the jungle. Plants of every variety grew in profusion. We’d built this space custom when we’d moved in, creating a giant greenhouse that was enchanted to be hidden from view. From the outside, it looked like a normal roof.
It was far from normal.
This was where I really lived. Though I slept and ate and watched TV out in the main part of the apartment, this cavernous three-thousand square foot space was my heart. My home.
My trove.
I gazed out over the giant room that contained my treasures. I’d been collecting since we’d moved in here five years ago. It was the first time I’d had a place to store my preciouses.
It was a weird place, considering that it was a jungle and there were three cars in the space. They’d had to be magically transported inside and the building strengthened with enchantments.
Treasure was different for each of us. For me, it was plants, cars, and weapons of every variety. I kept the weapons because my conjuring required that I fully understand the thing I was creating. By getting to know so many different weapons, I was able to conjure anything and protect myself. It was really more of a survival mechanism, but I loved the gleaming blades and elegant bows. They were stored on shelves in the back of the greenhouse.
I had the cars just because I liked them. Up here, I had a ’71 Plymouth RoadRunner, a ‘68 Pontiac FireBird, and a ’69 Ford Mustang Boss 429. They sat in the middle of the greenhouse, paint gleaming.
Since it was hard for me to get them out of here—I had to buy an expensive transportation spell—they mostly just sat here. But I loved them.
The plants—they were my babies. I’d always loved growing things, but I’d never had the ability until we’d moved to Factory Row and created this space. The glass ceiling let in light, but I also had grow lights for the plants that wanted more sun.
Trees and bushes and flowers bloomed in profusion, filling the place with the most amazing scent. I didn’t know why I loved plants so much, but a while ago I’d heard a prophecy about how I was somehow connected to the magic of life.
It made no sense to me, so I ignored it. There were more important things to focus on, anyway.
I walked among the plants, checking the irrigation tubing and pinching off some dead buds. My breathing calmed just being in here. I was a great big dragon-y stereotype, but I didn’t care.
This place wouldn’t protect me for long, though. Not with this thing around my neck.
I heard footsteps on the stairs and turned to see Cass and Del entering climbing up from the stairs. Aidan wasn’t with them, probably because he knew he wasn’t allowed in my trove. Too personal. Though I thought of him as a brother, it still would have been weird.
“What the hell is up with the vampires across the street?” Del asked.
“Does this have to do with the murder?” Cass frowned.
“Yeah.” I pointed to my neck.
Their gazes went immediately to the collar. In unison, they asked, “What is that?”
I explained what had just happened.
“Shit. The Enforcer?” Del asked. “Here? After you?”
Cass had gone entirely white, her red hair now stark against her skin. “That collar is bad fucking news.”
“No kidding.” I paced the open space in front of the shelves, my hands wrapped around my arms. “Do you think there is any way to take it off?”
“I don’t know.” Cass dug her phone out of her pocket. “Let’s ask people smarter than us.”
“Good idea.” I held still—as still as I could, while shaking—and let Cass take a close up picture of the collar.
“I’m sending this to Dr. Garriso,” she said. “And Aidan and Roarke, for good measure.”
“Good.” I touched it again, unable to help myself. One of those three might know what was up. Both Aidan and Roarke had contacts with the magical governments, so they might know something about vampires.
And Dr. Garriso was our friend at the Museum for Magical History in downtown Magic’s Bend. The old scholar knew something about everything.
“Send it to Aerdeca and Mordaca, too,” Del said.
Cass nodded.
“Good idea,” I said. Aerdeca and Mordaca were sister blood sorceresses who lived in Darklane. They often knew all kinds of weird things.
“While we wait for responses, tell us where the Enforcer went,” Cass said.
“No idea. But when he comes back, he’s going to drag me in front of the Vampire Court. This collar will make sure I show up.”
“Oh shit,” Del said. “They might be able to sense what you are. Vampires are weird like that. They’ve got a mind reader, right? And they’re good at feeling out magic.”
“It’d be almost impossible to stop it,” Cass said. “The Vampire Court is too powerful. And we have no sway there. None.”
Cass’s boyfriend had an in with the Alpha Council, and Del’s had an in with the Order of the Magica. But no one knew anyone within the Vampire Court. No one wanted to know anyone within the Vampire Court.
“Fuck.” I rubbed my hand over my eyes. “I need to prove I’m innocent.”
“That needs to happen before you even go in front of the Court,” Del said.
“Seconded.” Cass’s phone vibrated, and she pulled it out and studied it. “Neither Roarke nor Aidan know how to remove the collar.”
My heart sank. The phone vibrated twice, and I looked at her hopefully.
She studied her phone, then looked up at me. “Both Aerdeca and Mordaca and Dr. Garriso say that there is no way to remove the collar short of being a member of the Vampire Court.”
My shoulders sagged. “Shit.”
“Shit is right,” Del said. “So we need to find some clues.”
“Yeah.” I straightened and nodded. Moping wasn’t going to get me anywhere. “I need to find at least one clue to point him in another direction. That might buy me some time.”
It was the only option that made sense. And I still wanted to find Marin’s killer. The image of his face hadn’t left me. I wanted justice as well as my own freedom. Leaving him there had felt like shit.
“How do you solve a murder, though?” Del asked.
“I’ve got this,” I said. “I’ve seen plenty of police shows. And The Fugitive. Hell, I’m basically Harrison Ford here.”
Cass frowned. “Better to be Harrison in his role as Indy, though.”
“No kidding.” With our treasure-hunting gig, we normally were Indiana Joneses. I wanted to get back to that—not be on the run for my life. “This will be fine. I know what to do.”
At least, I freaking hoped I did.
Chapter Four
My plan started with an
escape attempt, as many good plans often do. A quick peek out my bedroom window confirmed that there were vampire guards surrounding my place.
The Enforcer was taking no chances. He clearly hadn’t fallen for my Hello Kitty T-shirt.
Which meant he took me seriously, and that was a major pain in the ass right now. I’d have preferred to sneak down the alley because he hadn’t properly secured the perimeter. Instead, I was waiting for Connor to show up with a couple of sleeping potions. He could whip up anything—acid bombs, fire blasts, stunning drafts. Even quick-acting sleeping potions.
I used the waiting time to sneak in a quick shower and upgrade to my ‘Lil Bub T-shirt. I loved that weird little internet cat. I was tying my shoes when I heard footsteps thunder from the stairs leading up to my place.
I went into the living room, where Cass and Del were opening the door to Connor. He lifted the bag, a big grin on his face. Today, his band T-shirt was for Lyle Lovett. I approved.
“Got ‘em! Two sleeping bombs and an invisibility potion for good measure.” His British accent was thick despite the five years he’d lived in Magic’s Bend. “Can’t stay long though. Claire is minding the bar, and you know how she is.”
“More focused on demon killing than drink slinging,” I said.
“Exactly.” He shook his head. “Can’t trust her around the taps.”
“Thanks for bringing those.” I dug money out of the little wallet that I’d shoved into my jeans and traded him for the bag of potion bombs. “You’re a lifesaver.”
“Happy to help!”
“The sleeping potions will only last a few hours, right?”
“Yeah. They’re for the vampires out front?”
“Exactly. I don’t want them sleeping when the sun comes up and turning into crispy critters.” Though vampires scared the crap out of me—all that biting and blood—they weren’t free game like demons. The last thing I needed was an actual murder charge.
“Don’t you worry.” Connor winked. “They’ll wake in time.”
“Thanks,” I said. “Want to wait until they are asleep to pass back by them?”
