A Magical Reckoning: Magic and Mischief Book 1

by N. R. Hairston

  Gull swallowed hard, teeth biting into his thumb until he realized and tucked his hands away.

  Boya sat back on the edge of the desk. He leered toward Gull. “What are you hiding? I’m going to find out. You know I will. Best to tell me now, and maybe we can make it go away.”

  Gull’s eyes darted from the floor, to the ceiling, to the bar. He seemed determined not to look our way. The only question was why.

  A glass of liquor sat beside a folder on his desk. He tried to pick it up, but his hands shook so bad that he ended up dropping it to the floor. Brown liquid spilled out, immediately disappearing into the dark of the carpet. He stared at it for a second, then bolted from his seat, making a run for the patio doors.

  Boya gave chase immediately, me following right behind. “Damnit Gull!”

  Gull was gone. Jumping and leaping, he was halfway down the street by the time we made it outside.

  Smoke flared from Boya’s nose and ears. “I’m going to take to the sky.”

  I nodded. “I’ll follow on foot.”

  I felt for Gull when Boya finally did catch him. There was nothing he hated more than when a suspect made him run, or in this case fly.

  Gull wasn’t a man that scared easily, so for him to behave this way meant we were dealing with some bad shit.

  I’d probably ran about three blocks when a force like a windstorm knocked me off my feet and into the brick wall behind me. I hit with a whoosh, the hard surface sending tiny sharp sparks up and down my back. A minor discomfort, but not enough to keep me down.

  I sprung back up, hands out, energy flowing, ready to take on whatever creature dared challenge me.

  Another hit and this one lifted me in the air and dropped me to the ground. Pain exploded behind my eyes and ricocheted around my face.

  A pounding started in my ears and I sucked in a breath, trying to ease myself through the pain. “Fuuuck.” I rolled on my side, hands massaging my face and neck.

  I had to get up. If I stayed on the ground, they’d surely have me. This had to be about the Hemsworth’s murder, no way would someone just attack an agent of the law without cause. Not unless they had a death wish anyway, which wasn’t often the case.

  I shakily came to one knee, sweat dripping from my face and down my back. Who the fuck? I tried to stand, but another hit sent me sprawling. Blood flew from my nose and I heard the bone when it cracked. I put a palm to it, trying to stop the bleeding.

  A frog didn’t have this kind of power. This wasn’t Gull, besides he would never. “Stop being a coward and show yourself!” I tried to sound hard, but it came out garbled and disjointed, about how I felt at the moment.

  I’d almost made it to my feet when something long and sharp plunged into my stomach. It felt like a thousand tiny pins ripping my insides apart. “Ugh.” I fell to the ground, blood pouring from my abdominal wall.

  My breath came hard now, my whole body sleek with sweat. I placed my hand on the wound, trying to slow down the leakage.

  My eyes clouded over, and I blinked repeatedly, trying to clear them. It didn’t work, but I couldn’t dwell on that. Holding my hand out, I fired off a few weak energy blasts, hoping to stall whoever was after me.

  My vision blurred again, and I knew from experience that I’d soon lose consciousness.

  From far away, I heard a voice calling out to me. “Kia, what the fuck?” Boya. He sure sounded scared. I had no idea why, all I felt was cold. If I could just sleep a little while longer, then everything would be okay. I closed my eyes.

  “Kia!” This guy again. Why was he so loud, and why did he sound so damn scared? Someone should tell him to chill. Not me, though, the only thing I wanted was a nap.

  He dropped to the ground beside me and shook my shoulders. Interrupting me again. What was this dude’s problem? As soon as I woke up we were going to have a long talk about boundaries.

  He placed his mouth over mine and really, now wasn’t the time for that. We really needed to talk, because-- “Take my energy so you can heal yourself.”

  Heal myself? Heal myself… Oh shit! I’d been stabbed, and was probably bleeding out.

  I opened my mouth and drew his life force into me. The pain lessened to an ache, but I still needed more. Sex. I needed sex. Nothing healed a succubus or incubus better. I fumbled with his pants, trying to get the zipper down. “Please, Boya, I need…”

  He kissed my forehead, moving a few strands of hair out of my face. “I know, baby. I’ve got you. Don’t worry. I’ve got you.” He removed his pants, and kissed me again, giving me more and more of his life force.

  I tried to take my own pants off, but my hands were too sweaty and kept slipping. “Boya!” He snatched them away with one fluid motion, and then eased himself between my legs.

  Trembling with anticipation, I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him closer. “Don’t hold back,” I whispered in his ear. “I want to feel every part of this.” My back firm against the ground, I closed my eyes and allowed myself to heal.

  By the time we finished, my wounds had started to close, and the pain was at least bearable. I picked up my pants, which Boya had ripped to shreds. Wondering what the hell I was going to wear home, I balled them up and threw them at him. “Good job, asshole.”

  He laughed and slung them down the alley. “Come on, baby. Now you know I’m going to fly you home.”

  I glared at him. “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”

  He held out his arms and I limped into them. He lifted me up and I wrapped myself around his neck. “Finding you bleeding to death in an alley? Nah, K. Nothing enjoyable about that at all.”

  I closed my eyes and willed the burning behind them to go away. I hadn’t thought of it from his perspective. How scared he must have been to walk up and find me bloody and unmoving.

  I ran a hand through his hair, just to let him know that I was okay. He smiled slightly, which I took to mean he was grateful for the effort.

  “Who did this to you?” he asked softly.

  I shook my head and buried my face in his neck. “Didn’t get a good look at them. Take me home.”

  He nodded. “Finally caught up with Gull about six blocks away. All he said was he’d rather go to jail than talk.” Boya seemed resigned. “I’ll leave him alone for now, might need his help on another case soon. Don’t want to rattle him too much, right?”

  I let him know that I agreed with his decision and we took off through the sky.

  If we didn’t find anything, we could always come back to Gull. If he knew something, we’d just have to find a way to get him to talk, because I wasn’t willing to face the wrath of the First Families just because he’d chosen to stay silent.

  Boya flew me into my bedroom window and deposited me on the bed. He made a move to get up, but I pulled him down beside me.

  He raised an eyebrow.

  I pointed to my half-closed stomach wound. “I’m not fully healed yet so…”

  He gently stroked my face, his expression tender and loving. “I got you, babe,” he mumbled against my skin. His lips were like a gentle caress, and I smiled in pleasure, always wanting more of him.

  Flipping him over, I straddled his hips. “Seem like I’ve got you this time, babe.”

  He laughed and rubbed his rough hands up and down my bare arms. My eyes fluttered closed. Sometimes it was so easy to lose myself in his touch. “Everything’s a competition with you, girl.”

  I kissed him again, sucking more of his life force in. “Only when you make it that way, boy.”

  Boya ended up healing me throughout the night and by the next morning I felt a lot more like myself.

  The threat of the First Families still hung over me, though, and that made the whole night more bittersweet than anything else.

  3

  I walked into the kitchen that next morning completely healed and with nothing but food on my mind. Lin sat at the table writing something in a notepad. He had a plate of food in front of him, a cup of coffee and jui
ce to the side.

  Steva, who was doing the cooking, piled my plate high and handed it to me. “Didn’t hear you come in last night.”

  I accepted it and took a seat beside Lin, nibbling on a piece of bacon. “Didn’t know you were waiting up.”

  Ninia poured herself a cup of coffee. “He was just waiting for everyone to go to bed so he could sneak that siren chick upstairs.”

  Steva tore off a small piece of toast and threw it at his partner. “Why you gotta put me on blast like that, though.”

  Ninia batted the toast away and laughed. “Hey, you’re the one who told everybody about my toenail fetish. I’m just returning the favor.” She seemed pleased with herself, sipping her coffee with a sly grin on her face.

  I laughed and scooped up a fork full of eggs.

  Lin stood, and put his pad in his back pocket. “Going to talk to Misha. Come with?”

  I dropped the eggs back on my plate and stood. My stomach growled its displeasure, and I patted it, promising to fill it up later. Lin wouldn’t have asked unless he really wanted me there, so food could wait. “You owe me for this,” I let him know, looking longingly at my abandoned breakfast.

  He downed the rest of his coffee and pulled me close. “I’ll let you give me a blowjob when we’re done.”

  I squinted, and pushed him away. “Good way to get your dick bitten off, but you know, if that’s one of your fetishes who am I to judge? Maybe you and Ninia could compare notes.”

  Ninia choked on her coffee. “Hey, don’t put me in it, that’s your mess.”

  She threw an apple at me, and I caught it with one hand. “Thanks.” I took a large bite. “But your partner’s the one that put you on blast, not me.”

  She playfully shooed me away, and I took another bite as Lin and I walked out the door.

  Coming from a Samg family, the twins, Mitch and Misha, both resided in Winn Town. Lin took a deep breath, his hands flexing at his sides. This wasn’t going to be easy, and if they were in trouble, it would be even worse.

  I rubbed his back. “You good?”

  His eyes stayed on the door. “Depends.” He went ahead and knocked.

  “Whataya want?” a small voice asked.

  Lin put his hand on the door and leaned in. “It’s Lin, Misha, open up.”

  “Come back. I’m busy now.”

  Lin looked at me, eyes intent. I raised a brow, letting him know that I was down for whatever he wanted to do.

  He fired up. Energy flowing all around him, his hands pulsating with a power that would get him through that door whether she wanted him in there or not. “You going to make me do this?” He was hesitant.

  I understood the reluctance. He didn’t want to overstep his bounds. Like it or not, it was her right to hide behind the door and not open it if she didn’t want to.

  This was different, though. He was concerned for her safety. If he walked away and something happened to her, he’d never forgive himself. I just couldn’t let that happen.

  I powered up, ready to go in, but he looked at me and shook his head. “Don’t do that. Let me talk her around.”

  I stepped aside, willing to do this his way. He knocked again. “Just need a minute, Misha. Open up.”

  The door creaked about an inch wide, and a small dark head peeked out, eyes cast toward the floor. Misha, just like her brother, had olive colored skin with short black hair.

  Lin got straight to the point. “Heard you got powers now. How?”

  She lifted her head, and her eyes flashed a wolfish yellow-orange. Whoa. I took a stepped back, not sure what we were dealing with, but ready to fight if I had to.

  Lin put his hand on my arm to stay me, and then turned his attention back to Misha. “This what you want? You do this or was it done to you?”

  Misha’s eyes flashed bright and she growled low in her throat. “Gonna do the Riverwalk.” With that she closed the door, leaving us stunned on the front porch.

  I think I may have blinked three times before I could say anything. Because what the hell was she talking about? “Lin?”

  He furrowed his brows, his gaze darting between the door and the living room window. “Come on.” I hoped he wasn’t thinking about breaking in. I was sure that wouldn’t end well.

  It wasn’t until we were back in the car that he let me know what was on his mind. “Got to set up surveillance on her and her brother, see what’s going on.” Not sure they’d take too kindly to the intrusion, but I’d let him figure that out on his own.

  I took out my phone, looking over my messages. “I need to meet up with Boya, anyway. I’ll call you later to see what you’ve found out.”

  Boya was coming down the steps when I arrived back at the house. “Got a lead, come on.”

  His lead ended up being a cemetery in Winn town. A white-haired, milky skinned banshee sat on a bench, wiping her eyes and softly keening. Oh boy. “Helena, hey. What’s the word?” Boya asked.

  Her voice alone sounded like that of three, its musical quality only making it that more eerie. “Something is coming. The First Families are in danger. The balance is set. It is not final.” She never looked at us and faded into thin air before we could question her further.

  Boya ran a frustrated hand down his face. “Now what the hell does that mean?”

  I stared at the spot she’d just vacated. “It means we’re going to Riverwalk.” My phone rang, and I whipped it out, already knowing who was on the other end. “Lin? Find something?” That was fast.

  “Yup. Need you.”

  I said goodbye to Boya and then made my way to where Lin had asked me to meet him. He was parked on a side street three blocks from Misha’s apartment. I scooted inside. “What are we doing?”

  “Went to see Mitch. Thought he might have information about his sister. Got the same reaction.”

  I threw my hand over the headrest. “So his eyes are glowing too?”

  Lin tapped his thumbs on the wheel, a clear sign that he was frustrated. “Think we’re dealing with an absorber. Don’t know who they’re working for, though.”

  I sighed, because depending on who held the strings, this could be a big problem. Absorbers were rare. Highly sought out, these magical creatures could transfer powers from one being to another for short lengths of time. “They could stay that way for months,” I said incredulously.

  His jaw tightened, and I knew he was doing everything he could to keep his anger in check. “To what end? Why power up a bunch of Samgs?”

  “You think it’s more than those two?”

  His tapping intensified. “Couple of things Mitch said. Made me think there’s at least a dozen of them.”

  Well, that wasn’t good, but it was more than we’d known before, which was a start. “Seems like you got more out of him than his sister.”

  He shook his head. “Not much. We need to talk to Kevin.”

  I thought about the twin’s father and how he and Lin had parted ways. I scrunched up my nose. “I’m pretty sure he hates you.”

  He chuckled, but it had no humor in it. He ran a slow hand across my face, his features going soft as he stared at me. “Yeah, well.” He leaned over and placed a soft kiss on my lips.

  I greedily took him in, as we exchanged energy and fed off each other. I slipped my fingers around his neck and he wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me onto his lap.

  Hmmm. It felt so good to be with him like this again. I placed my hands on either side of his face and guided his lips to mine. We exchanged more energy and then I started to feel myself go weak.

  It was too soon. We still had a whole month to go before we could have sex again. Trying to force it before our bodies were ready would leave us both vulnerable.

  My breath rugged, I tried to tamper down my desire. “We have to stop, baby. We can’t do this.”

  He rested his head in the crook of my neck, trying to regulate his own breathing. “So easy to get caught up in you.” He sat back in his seat and I hopped back over to mine.
>
  “You want me to go with you? To talk to Kevin,” I asked.

  “Yup.”

  Lin started the car and I patted down my hair and wiped a hand across my face, trying to tell myself there were only a few weeks left before we could be together again.

  We didn’t really talk on the way, as Lin’s attention seemed focused elsewhere. Probably on what he was going to say once we got there.

  We’d only driven about ten minutes before the familiar house came into view.

  Kevin lived in a one-story yellow clapboard. Lin pulled to the side and cut the engine. We got out and Lin knocked on the door a couple of times, while I stood off to the side waiting.

  The unforgiving southern sun bore down hard, causing us both to constantly wipe sweat from our brows and face.

  Kevin was tall, bald-headed, and had a set of eyebrows that needed their own personal barber. There was no mistaking his look of displeasure when he finally opened the door and saw it was us.

  This was his usual greeting, and I found myself bracing for his icy response. “Didn’t think I’d ever see you two again.” It was said like a question.

  Lin cleared his throat, his voice rough and scratchy. “You been good?”

  Kevin’s face stayed hard as stone.

  Lin didn’t let that stop him. “Mitch and Misha are in trouble. Let us in.”

  That gave him pause, and he stepped aside, granting us entrance. The house was very clean, but cluttered beyond belief.

  The living room was small but was still expected to host two couches, a love seat, three armchairs, a coffee table, an entertainment stand with multiple objects on it, an open cooler with several bottles of beer sticking out, and a bunch of rectangular and square shaped odds and ends placed throughout the room.

  The furniture looked to be about ten years old, but still sturdy and in good shape. The whole place smelled like sweet spiced cheery. The type left behind after someone had long ago put out a cigar, yet the smell refused to go away.

  Kevin sat in one of the armchairs and crossed one leg atop the other, placing his clasped hands on his knees. He gave us a pointed look, disdain evident in his every move. “I could tell something was wrong when I talked to Misha the other day, but what I’m not sure of, is how that involves you, or you.” He looked from me to Lin.