No More Black Magic

by A. L. Kessler

  “There’s a fifty-fifty chance you’d pass it to the child.” I studied the grain of the bar. “I guess knowing what’s out there, knowing how my parents died, makes me second guess bringing a family into this world.”

  Simon went back to the coffee pot. “Glad I’m not the only one.” He fixed me a mug of coffee and bent behind the bar, only to return standing with a carton of half and half creamer.

  “I never really said thanks for helping me out. I’m hoping Levi didn’t have to threaten you too much. Even for tagging along today.”

  Simon shrugged. “He really wants us together.” He held his hands up in surrender before I could say something. “I told him that you weren’t interested and I wasn’t going to force anything. He made me promise that I’d at least ask you out for a drink.”

  I rolled my eyes but smiled. “Levi worries too much. He forgets that I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself.”

  “Well, part of it is that he’s worried about you doing something rash and stupid with no one to talk you off the edge.”

  I poured cream into my coffee and thought about it. Levi wasn’t the first one to mention something like that. This case alone had started to make me rash. “Fair enough, but I don’t think dating is the answer.”

  “Neither do I.” He shrugged. “But we can be friends, or drinking buddies.” He winked at me.

  I sipped the coffee and savored the warmth of it as it went down my throat. “Thanks for letting me deal with Michele alone.”

  “I don’t think I want to be there. Besides I know the coven already has something against you, but you have to do this.” He laughed. “You sure you don’t want to have a shot before you go? Could help you.”

  I shook my head. “Nope, don’t think I’d stop if I just had one.” I really didn’t want to do this dinner and after I had Merick from the Cult to meet with. “Keep your phone on though. My second meeting could get dicey.”

  “I still don’t approve of you going to that one alone.” He scowled and I shrugged.

  “Glad to know you care, but really, I think they’d kill you if you showed up and I don’t want that kind of blood on my hands.” I closed my eyes and cupped my hands around the warm mug. The heat burned the wound a little, but it wasn’t anything I was unfamiliar with. Just enough pain to let me know that it was still there and fresh.

  We both remained quiet. I put my head on the bar. “Okay, I should go after I finish this cup.”

  “Yeah, probably. She’s taking you to a pretty fancy place.”

  I nodded. “And I’m going in with my badge clipped to me to remind her its business.” I sat up, drank the rest of my coffee, and stood.

  Snatching my bag off the floor I headed towards the door. “I’ll text you when I’m done.” I gave him a little wave and left.

  I walked into the restaurant and looked around for Michele. She was sitting back in a corner and waved at me. I took a deep breath and headed towards her. I noticed she seemed to be holding together a lot better than Clarissa, but of course, Michele was older and more practiced with grief, I was sure.

  I sat down in the seat across from her. “I’m sorry that we have to meet under such poor circumstances. I’d much rather have come to you without someone dying.”

  “Trust me, I would have preferred that too. Nonetheless here we are.” She motioned to the menu. “Feel free to order.”

  My stomach grumbled and I reached for the menu. “You were my dad’s research partner at one point.”

  I saw her nod over the menu. “Yes, like I told you, I knew him.”

  “But you didn’t tell me how. Are you aware of the circumstances of my parents’’ deaths?” I settled on the first meal with red meat that I saw.

  She sighed and folded her hands on the table. “Does this have to do with Jade’s death?”

  “Yes, it does, because we found her hand with a picture of you and my father.” I put the menu down and met her gaze. “We also found out what was in the deposit box at the bank. Did she have a child?”

  Michele’s jaw locked and I knew she was about to lie to me. “No.”

  “Don’t lie, please. I want to catch the person doing this. I need to finish this case.” I met her gaze. “If you want me to trust you, you have to tell me the truth.”

  She raised a brow at me. “I’m old enough to be your mother.”

  I hated when people brought that up. “I don’t care. She had a picture of a child in her planner, and there was a picture of him in the deposit box.”

  “With a binding spell, or at least the evidence of one.” She nodded. “But it wasn’t her child. None of us are related to that little brat.”

  Now we were getting somewhere. “None of you?”

  “Abigail, you don’t understand what you are dealing with here. His father was a powerful warlock. If we were to let him run around without guidance then his power would have gotten out of hand.”

  The waiter came before I could speak. I gave my order without losing contact with Michele’s gaze. I wasn’t going to give her a chance to wuss out on me. The waiter jotted it down and then walked off.

  “So you put a binding spell on him. Let me guess, the werewolf, the witch, and whoever was in that barn. You were all in on it.”

  She nodded. “Yes, his mother wanted us to do it. She was afraid that he would turn out like his father. When the father died, the child went to someone else. She only kept one of two. The older child was already in the process of being mentored, but no one wanted to take on the younger one.”

  “That doesn’t give you an excuse to bind a child.” I shook my head. “Do you realize that it could be him out to kill you?”

  “Better than you do. I can’t get ahold of Matthew but I know he’s alive. As for the person we bound, I’ve attempted a tracking spell and I can’t pin point him.”

  Fuck, she had been tipping him off with her magic. “He’s always one step ahead of you. I have the same problem. Why did Jade keep a picture of him in her binder?” I gritted my teeth.

  “She felt she needed to constantly be reminded of her guilt.” She shrugged. “People do strange things like that.”

  “Thank you for the information.”

  “You know you can’t win this fight alone, right? With the Cult here? They are after him and then they’ll be after you for interfering.”

  I thought as much, but I was planning on taking care of that problem tonight when I met with Merick. “What do you suggest?”

  “Let the coven take care of you, Abigail, you spend so much time away from us. We’re worried about you and the influences around you.” She cupped my wounded hand with hers. “Blood magic is dangerous, you’re not strong enough to control it. You’re too young.”

  I chuckled. “I control it just fine. And that’s the reason I’ve never been interested in completely joining the coven. It’s a family, yes, but I will always be the misfit. I saw that when I registered in my teenage years. Everyone knows what happened to my parents and they expect me to be a healer like my mother.”

  “You were raised by a vampire, we expected you to be out of control.” She admitted.

  I shrugged. “I have perfect control. Especially for my age. I won’t allow you to try to mold me into something that I’m not. Levi knows what he’s doing and I’m my own person.”

  Luckily for me, our food arrived and I found myself in awe of how fast a pricey restaurant worked. Quick, efficient. I cut into my meat. “I’ll consider it later, but I really don’t have the time to commit because of other obligations.”

  “Levi.” She stated.

  “Paranormal Investigation Bureau. In case you forgot, we have a serial killer that you and a few other people created.” I shot back. “I need to know who else was involved and if you want we can get you protective custody.”

  She shook her head. “I’m not scared of him.”

  “Jade sure was. She had protective wards all over her classroom. I’m sure if I was to go to her home, I�
�d find the same things.”

  “She was paranoid.” She shrugged. “He won’t come after me. He doesn’t know that I was involved.”

  I tried not to roll my eyes again. She was over confident and I didn’t like it. Many of the powerful people in the coven tended to be that way. “What was his name?”

  “Devon Averin.”

  I felt the color drain from my face. “You’re kidding me.”

  “No, you can run it through any of your systems. I’m sure something would come up.” She fussed with her napkin. “His brother’s name—“

  “Nikolas.” I finished for her. “Fuck. I’d be surprised if I’m not on this guy’s menu.”

  “Something you want to share?” She asked and started to eat her meal.

  I shook my head. “Nope, just my own personal demons.” And the past coming back to bite me in the ass. I cut into my steak and started eating. The rest of the meal was awkward silence. I didn’t really have anything to say to her, nor her to me. My mind was occupied by the next meeting at the coffee shop with Merick. I could only imagine a man in a red cloak and sinister voice...except he didn’t sound that sinister over the phone.

  I finished and went to take out my wallet. Michele touched my hand. “No, my treat. Good luck.” She left it at that and went back to what was left of her meal.

  “Thank you.” I stood and grabbed my bag. I couldn’t ignore the feeling that she was watching me leave. Creepy, but I didn’t expect anything less of a person willing to bind an innocent child. I needed to talk to Nick, but that would have to wait. Surviving this night was my first priority.

  I was early to the coffee shop, but I had nowhere else to be. I texted Simon to let him know that I was fine after meeting with Michele. I sat down with my coffee and called Detective Mason.

  “You realize that it’s late, right?” He asked, but there was no sign in his voice that he was sleeping.

  “Boy do I, but I have a name to go with that baby picture. Devon Averin. I also have a connection to him that I wasn’t expecting.”

  “You going to get pulled off the case?” He sounded worried.

  “No, because I know who his brother is and that his dad was one of my father’s research partners.” Just like Michele. I had a moment of terror wondering if my dad had been involved with the binding. “Everyone that has been killed so far has a connection to the binding.”

  “Do you know what his connection to the Cult is yet?”

  “Not yet.” I looked up as the door at the coffee shop chimed. I met the dark eyes of the man who walked in and I knew that it was Merick. “I have to go.” I hung up on Mason without another word.

  The man walked towards me, his dark skin looked as if he’d been tanned by the sun, but a tan that dark came only from ancestry. His dark eyes held my gaze as he approached me. His black hair was slicked back and his suit made him look like any businessman.

  Who wore a suit to meet for coffee? Seriously? I started to offer my hand, but thought better of it. “You must be Merick.”

  “I am. It’s so nice to meet you in person, Abigail.” He couldn’t have been much older than me and his voice only held a hint of an accent.

  “Can’t say the same, seeing as your people tried to kill me. What does the Cult want with me?” I asked. I cupped my hands around the mug and tried to look natural, but my nerves were on edge.

  “We wanted you to stay out of our way, but it seems that you can actually help us.” He said and leaned back in the chair. “We were not aware that you were the best in the nation.”

  I frowned. “The best in the nation for what?”

  “Linguistics, paranormal investigation, you name it.” He shrugged. “You have quite the talents.”

  “Someone is blowing smoke, I’m not top in everything. I struggle with linguistics.” I shook my head. “But how can I help you? You’ve gone from trying to kill me to wanting my help.”

  “The reason we have come to your city is to find Devon, he is making a mockery of our Cult and has gone rogue.” There was no humor in his voice, but I found it funny.

  I cracked a small smile. “A Cult that kills people, under what they believe are the true laws and the true way of the Craft, has a rogue.”

  “You find it humorous?”

  I nodded. “I do, seeing as your Cult killed my family, tried to kill me, and is very questionable...in general. Why should I help you?”

  “For the reason you named, so we don’t kill you, Abigail. Your father and mother were very powerful. Your father stumbled onto some old magic, that is why he had to be killed. Your mother was killed for trying to defend him. Had you not been a child, you would have joined them in death.”

  “You’re no older than me, how do you know so much about it?”

  He leaned forward and flashed me a smile that, under any other circumstances, would have made me melt. “Because you’re in our history books. You’re taught to every new inductee as a person to keep our eyes out for. One that is bound to get into more trouble than they can handle.”

  Sounded like me. “So I help you how? I’m doing my job, we know that he’s our murderer now.”

  “You kill him.”

  I jerked. “Why does everybody think that I just go around killing people? I’m not trigger happy. He’ll be taken to court and bound again if found guilty.”

  “You know that’s not true, he’s using magic to kill.”

  I cursed. It was a death sentence, either way he would die. “I’m not an executioner.”

  “That’s not what I hear.” He chuckled. “He dies by your hand and you live to see another case. You fail and we kill you for your parents’ crimes.”

  I shook my head. “You people are so screwed up.”

  “Take it or leave it, Abigail. I’m sure Levi would mourn losing you.” He stood. “You have until the case is solved. We’ll be in touch.”

  “One question. How long has Devon been part of the Cult?”

  He chuckled, glancing back at me. “He found us when his binding started to wear off. We took him in and taught him how to control his abilities.”

  He walked out and left me sitting there with my cooling coffee. My heart stopped. I could save my own life by taking another. When I signed up with the state there was a reason that I didn’t want to be an executioner. I didn’t have it in me to kill when it wasn’t self-defense, it’s why I hated when Levi sent me on missions to kill. Like tonight.

  I leaned my head against the back of the chair. This was not the turn of events that I wanted or expected, but at least I didn’t have to worry about the Cult until after the case was over.

  After the case I’d have to figure something else out. My mind went back to Oliver. How would Merick have gotten my number? I wondered for a moment if there was a connection and then decided it was probably best unknown. I had a drug-selling vampire to take care of.

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  The dumbass vampire was on the same corner as the first night I found him. I took a deep breath. I could shoot him, but that was noisy and it didn’t promise his death. The only way to make sure he’d stay down was if I took out his heart and then took his head. I’d leave him to the sunlight and his body would disappear into ashes. It would be perfect.

  I’d left my bag in the trunk of my car. Pulling out a long blade instead. I held the blade up to the moonlight and smiled. Some part of me enjoyed the hunt. I’d regret and mourn the killing after, but I told myself now that he’d killed someone.

  I started towards his corner, sticking to the shadows. I had my gun at my back just to be prepared, but he was staring up at the sky when I approached him. He’d been that way too when I drove by.

  Something wasn’t right here. I rushed up and came around him. My blade was ready to strike, but I stopped. My eyes widened when I saw that he’d been impaled on a stick and arranged to make it look like he was staring at the sky. There was a hole where his heart should have been.

  My stomach churned. Impalement hurt,
if done right death wasn’t quick as the spike slowly made its way through the body. He’d suffered. Around his neck a note was hanging.

  You’re welcome. -Merick.

  What the fuck? I just stood there staring at it. How did Merick know? Why did it suddenly seem like I had no privacy? I tore the note off the neck and ripped it up. I wanted to stomp and scream like a child, but I knew he’d just saved me from killing.

  Just how much about me was in their history books? I ran a hand through my hair and walked back to the car. I was sheathing my blade and putting it in the trunk when John came up to talk to me. I hadn’t even parked near his motel this time.

  “Hey, I’m off work, want to grab that cup of coffee?” He asked.

  I shook my head. “I’m sorry, I can’t. I’m working on this huge case right now.”

  “Aw, come on, you need a break.” He grinned at me. He was charming, he was human, and he wasn’t trying to kill me. “My treat.” He added, which made the deal that much better.

  I sighed. “Fine. I’ve got an hour before I have to head back anyways.”

  I craved something normal and he was willing to give it to me.

  “Midnight Cafe?” He asked, like there was another choice.

  I laughed. “Of course, I’ll meet you there.”

  “Abby, promise you won’t stand me up?”

  I glanced at my watch, I still had an hour before Simon’s bar would close. “Promise. I have time.” I got in my car and started the engine. I drove back to the coffee shop and looked around to see if I could see any sign of Merick or Oliver. I had a feeling the two knew each other, especially since the truce came after I’d met Oliver.

  I got out of the car when I didn’t see either and walked into the shop. John had beaten me there and already claimed a set of chairs by the fireplace. I ordered my coffee and joined him.

  “So, just like old times?” He held up his coffee. “Except during high school you were pretty much a hermit.”

  Great way to start a conversation, really, someone should have given him lessons. “I had a hard time during high school. It’s when my magic truly started showing itself. It was an awkward stage for me.” I shrugged and watched the fire dancing.