The Werewolf Queen of Bourbon Street: City For Lost Souls Series Book 1

by S. K. Gregory

  “How do you think Regine will react to the news?” I asked.

  “If he’s the one responsible, I think she’ll be happy. Did he confess?”

  “Actually, no. Not to Kandy’s murder, but given how he reacted I think its clear he was lying.”

  “I’m sorry, I should have gone with you. I was going to go looking, but Kate cornered me. She said that Reynolds was a suspect in a girl’s disappearance.”

  “Another one?” How many girls had the man killed?

  “It seems so.”

  “Then it’s a good thing he’s dead. At least now he can’t hurt anyone else.”

  22

  Kol

  I sat on the couch, staring at the TV, but I couldn’t take in what I was watching. I couldn’t believe Jade would pull a stunt like that. Asking Harry for the money, like I was some charity case? She was the one living off me!

  I would never forgive her for this. I spent my whole life living as a prince, everything done for me. If I failed at this, I would do it by myself.

  In the end, the only thing I could do was try and sell my client less of the product. Whoever took the call said that he wouldn’t be happy, but he would get back to me. So far, nothing. I didn’t hold out much hope. If Lewicki made another visit, I probably wouldn’t have a shop to worry about anyway.

  Jade came in, wrapped in a man’s dinner jacket. She looked dishevelled and she was limping.

  “What the hell happened to you?” I asked, in spite of my anger.

  “Attacked by a creature with spines,” she said as she headed into the bathroom and shut the door.

  If it was anyone else…but Jade had a knack for getting herself almost killed. I got up and made her a cup of tea. I may be angry, but I’m not a monster. I’m sure she had a dramatic tale to tell. I wondered if Harry would hire me when I lost this place. It sure seemed like an exciting place to work.

  She came out of the bathroom a short while later, dressed for bed, looking miserable. Trudging across the room, she checked her reflection in the mirror on the wall, trying to fix her hair which had become a tangled mess. What the hell had she been up to?

  “Are you okay?” I asked.

  “No. I ruined my damn dress and now I have to pay Harry $800 for it.”

  “He asked for it?”

  “No, of course not. But I’m not taking his money…” she trailed off.

  “So you do understand where I’m coming from.”

  “It’s not the same. Harry isn’t going to have my legs broken. I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

  “I’m touched.” I guess she did just want to help. I couldn’t be angry at her for that.

  She turned to glare at me. “Well, you should be, loser! I couldn’t stand it if anything happened to you or Harry.”

  Smiling, I handed her the tea, planting a kiss on her head. “Same.”

  She took a sip of the tea.

  “So what happened tonight?” I asked.

  Jade settled on the couch to tell me the whole story. It sounded like she got lucky, again. I know I felt better about the whole mind reading incident if that’s what the guy did.

  “Where was Harry in all of this?” I asked.

  “He got way laid by Detective Bell. I swear she’s only interested in dating him.”

  I laughed. “So?”

  “So, she’s not right for him. He needs to stay away from him,” Jade said, finishing off her tea.

  “Sounds like you like Harry,” I laughed.

  “No,” Jade snapped. She put her cup down and wrung her hands. “Not like.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I think...I think I’m in love with him,” she said.

  I chuckled, then I realized she was being completely serious. “Wait, what?”

  “Don't look at me like that.” She sighed, running her hands through her hair.

  “Harry?” I said incredulously.

  “Yes.” She got to her feet and started pacing the floor.

  “Harry? The one you work with? British guy, wears suits all the time.”

  “Yes,” Jade said through gritted teeth.

  I tried to comprehend what she was saying. “Harry?”

  “For God’s sake, Kol,” she snapped.

  “I’m sorry, I’m just surprised. Why?”

  “Because...” she trailed off. Hardly a compelling argument. “I just do.”

  “Have you told him?”

  “Of course I haven’t told him and you can’t say a word. Swear to me, Kol.”

  “I won’t say anything but I think you should if you feel this strongly.”

  She flopped onto the couch. “There’s no point.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because I know what will happen. He’ll give me some speech about how he’s flattered but not interested and I’ll never be able to look him in the eye again.”

  “You don’t know that.” Although I think she was right.

  “Yes, I do. Please, Kol, forget I said anything.”

  I promised not to, I wouldn’t do that to her. But Harry! I mean I do like the guy, but he did not seem like her type at all. But what would I know? It’s not like I had one. I just hoped she knew what she was doing and didn’t get her heart broken.

  “I’m going to go to bed,” I said, getting up off the chair. As I did, my phone buzzed in my pocket. Pulling it free, I saw a blocked number flash up.

  Curious I answered. “Hello?”

  “We agree to the shipment. But we will need more before the end of the month. A courier will be there tomorrow and payment will be made upon delivery.” The caller hung up.

  “Holy shit,” I said.

  “What?”

  “A buyer is going to take a rare potion from me. It’s enough money to pay off Lewicki, plus interest. Which you know that asshole is going to try and charge me.”

  “Seriously?”

  “Yeah, I did it!”

  Jade got to her feet and hugged me. This solved everything and once I had sold it, I could source more of the rare herb, he might even become a regular customer. Things were finally turning around.

  “Let’s celebrate. You’ve solved your case and I saved my shop.”

  I grabbed a bottle of tequila for us from the kitchen.

  “You know I don’t really drink,” Jade said.

  “Come on, you can have one,” I said.

  Shrugging she took the shot from me and knocked it back, instantly gagging. I laughed wildly. “Don’t worry, Jade, we’ll make a drinker out of you yet.”

  “That is disgusting,” she said, then held out her glass for another.

  23

  Jade

  Stepping into the club, I scanned the crowd for Regine, trying to ignore my aching head. I knew I shouldn’t have let Kol convince me to drink so much. It was the first time I was able to drink without the wolf getting away from me, in fact she seemed pretty relaxed during it. Maybe I changed that time with Brett because I was so nervous. Whatever the reason, it was a relief. It meant I could chill out every once in a while. If all our cases were like the one for Regine, I would need it.

  It looked like business was booming tonight at Easy Ride. Maybe Regine got a new girl in. The one on stage at the moment was a redhead in a sparkly pink thong. I wondered what type of supernatural she might be, since Regine only seemed to hire them. She smiled at the men waving their dollar bills at her and I swear I could see fangs.

  She doesn’t have vampires in here, does she?

  Creeped out, I weaved my way through the crowd.

  “Hey, baby, dance for me,” one guy practically screamed in my ear, waving some bills in my face.

  “Drop dead,” I said, shoving him away. Did I look like I was here to pole dance? He stumbled, looking stunned, but he was so wasted he immediately turned his attention to another girl and tried the same crap with her.

  I spotted Regine by the end of the b
ar, sipping on a glass of champagne. I guess she had reason to celebrate. With Reynolds dead she didn’t have to worry about him coming after anymore of her girls. Maybe she already heard the news.

  Squaring my shoulders, I headed toward her, praying she would be happy about the killer being revealed and would leave me alone.

  I shot a glance at Bobby as I passed by. He flashed me a devilish smile and I quickly averted my gaze. As hot as he was, I doubted any good would come from going anywhere near him.

  “Regine?” I said, stopping beside her.

  She turned to look at me, a bemused look on her heavily made up face. “Yes?”

  “I came to tell you that we got the guy, he’s dead. You don’t have to worry about him anymore.”

  She arched an eyebrow. “You killed him?”

  “No, he attacked me and ended up dead accidentally.”

  She smirked, revealing her white teeth. “Well, looks like you have more bite in you than I gave you credit for.”

  “I didn’t kill him,” I hissed. Killing someone for her was the absolute last thing I would do.

  Shrugging, she turned her attention back to the stage. “Whatever you say. Is that all?”

  “What about what we discussed? You leaving me alone now.”

  “Did I agree to that?”

  The wolf growled within. She had taken enough of Regine's shit and if she wasn’t careful, the wolf would splatter her all over the stage.

  “Do we have an agreement or not?”

  Regine sighed. “Very well. You’re free to go.” She waved me away.

  I felt relief flood through me and turned, eager to get away.

  “You passed the test,” Regine muttered.

  A normal person wouldn’t have heard it, but I did. Spinning on my heel, I asked, “What test?”

  “Go away, you’re bothering me.”

  She got up off her seat and headed into the back, her black dress fluttering.

  I should have walked away, gone back to the office and left it alone, but something told me there was more to those words than it seemed.

  Hurrying after her, I followed her into her office. “What test?” I demanded.

  “I told you to leave,” she said, taking a seat at her desk.

  “Not until you tell me what you mean. You were testing me? Why? To see if I’m useful to you? I’m sure it helped when someone died here. Wait...did you kill Kandy?”

  She stared at me, no reaction on her face but I knew. She did it, she murdered Kandy. This whole time we were looking at the wrong suspect.

  “Why would you do that to one of your own employees? And why send us after that developer guy?”

  “Oh for God’s sake, I wanted him out of the way! He's been trying to buy up my property, to take over in this town and I can’t allow that. I’m the Queen, you were just another puppet in my little game.”

  I glared at her. “Like Kandy?”

  “That little bitch was always trying to pull a fast one. She would do anything to scam people, even tried to blackmail a few of the clients. I found out and offered to back her if she cut me in. Then she got bored. Didn’t want to play anymore. She threatened to leave if I didn’t pay her more. I don’t like ultimatums. I saw a way to get everything I wanted in one fell swoop. Killing Kandy got rid of her, setting up Reynolds got rid of him, and I even got to see how useful you could be to me. I know who to call now if I ever have any issues in the future.”

  “Go to hell,” I snarled.

  “You needed to learn how things work in this city. If you expect to survive, you better be prepared to get your hands dirty.”

  I stormed out, unable to listen to her anymore. I struggled to maintain my breathing as I headed back to the office. The wolf was going to break free.

  Staggering inside, I called for Harry. He ran to my side.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked.

  “I don’t think I can hold her back. You need to knock me out,” I said. A wolf loose in the city would create a panic, and draw attention to us.

  “No, you can control it, Jade.”

  Harry led me to the couch in the corner and sat me down. “Just breathe. I’m right here.”

  He placed a hand on my back as I did as he asked. Gradually I felt her recede as I regained control.

  Putting my head in my hands, I sighed. “I think I’m okay.”

  “What happened?” Harry asked.

  I told him what Regine had said.

  “It was her all along?” he said.

  “I told you!”

  “But she agreed to leave you alone?”

  I nodded. “At least for now. But how long will that last?”

  “I don’t know, but we can’t let her rule our lives. For now, we should get on with our job.”

  “Yeah, with zero customers and no money.”

  There had to be something we could do to make Regine pay. She couldn’t just get away with this. But of course she could, she had the money and the power, we had nothing.

  I sat back against the couch, feeling defeated. I got played, again. I knew that bitch was up to something and I didn’t trust my instincts. Never again.

  “I’ll get you some water,” Harry said, getting up off the couch.

  As he poured it into the cup, the front door opened and a woman stepped inside. She clutched her purse in her hands, looking nervously at us.

  “Hello? Are you open?” she asked.

  “Yes, how can we help you?” Harry asked.

  “Well, I need help finding my daughter, she ran away from home.”

  Harry glanced over at me. Was this our actual first paying customer?

  “Of course, why don’t we go into the office and discuss it,” Harry said.

  He motioned for me to follow.

  The door opened again and an elderly couple came in. “Excuse me, who do we talk to about taking our case?” the man asked.

  I got to my feet and smiled. “I can help you.”

  Harry headed into the office with the woman while I dealt with the couple. I wondered if word had gotten around about us or if they were just finally willing to give us a go.

  Maybe we had a shot at making this a success after all.

  Epilogue

  The night air was alive with sound of insects and other critters. I trekked through the bayou, hoping no one would see me. It seemed like the best place to run, but I worried about who might be out here.

  Stopping by a tree, I closed my eyes, listening for any sounds that might pose a threat. When I felt sure that I was alone, I quickly removed my clothes and shifted into the wolf.

  I came to just before dawn, lying by the water. I felt better having finally let her loose, but now I had to wonder how far I’d traveled away from my clothes.

  Getting to my feet, I heard something splash in the water nearby.

  Please don’t be an alligator.

  I didn’t need to be eaten by something out here, not when I was supposed to be the apex predator.

  Hurrying through the trees, I tried to figure which direction I had gone in, but everything looked the same in the dark.

  I should have told Harry where I was going. I’m going to end up lost out here.

  I kept walking, surely, I had to find something sooner or later. Wrapping my arms around myself, I felt a chill run through me. It felt like I was being watched, which was ridiculous, no one would be out here.

  I hope.

  Thoughts of Regine filled my head. She could have followed me out here, although I tried to be careful.

  Well if she is out here, I have no problem kicking her ass.

  I knew I’d probably lose against her, but the anger made me feel a bit more confident about a fight.

  I stepped on something hard. Pausing, I leaned down and discovered one of my boots.

  “Yes,” I whispered. I found my things.

  Redressing, I kept glancing around for someone. I cou
ldn’t shake the feeling.

  The quicker I get out of here the better.

  Breaking into a jog, I returned to Kol’s car, which he let me borrow.

  As I unlocked it, I noticed something on the windshield. A piece of white paper.

  Snatching it up, I found a simple drawing of a red heart, nothing else.

  “Now I’m officially creeped out.”

  I scanned the trees, trying to find my secret admirer, but if they were still here, then they were far enough away that I couldn’t hear them with my wolf hearing.

  “I don’t know who you think you are, but I’m not interested. Stay the hell away from me,” I yelled.

  With a final look around, I jumped into the car and drove off. If some sicko had been watching me, I didn’t want to run into them out here after shifting. The act exhausted me and that would affect my ability to fight. With a bit of luck this was all just a practical joke.

  Crumpling the piece of paper, I tossed it out the window as I drove.

  Good riddance.

  The Ripper of Mardi Gras: City For Lost Souls Book 2 is out later this year.

  About The Author

  S. K. Gregory writes urban fantasy, paranormal romance and horror novels. She currently resides in Northern Ireland, where she works as an editor.

  You can learn more about her books through her website:

  www.skgregory.com

  Check out the Academy For Lost Souls Series:

  Sanctuary

  Asylum

  Tempus Fugit

  Power Outage

  Plus the bonus short story - Runaway