Night Tide

by Kory M. Shrum

  His smile widened as it watched the emotions dance across her face. It occurred to her he must be able to read her mind.

  “I wonder if you would do something for me?” He wet his lips. “It is a task well-suited to you.”

  She sat up straighter, trying to gather the reins of her mind. If he was telepathic, she couldn’t let it roam so freely in his company.

  “The sirens live in a cavern beneath the eastern cliffs. If you swim across the cove and then around the cliff face, you will find it. You need only follow the rocks until it opens. The sirens will not bother you as long as they believe you are a shark. They revere and respect all sea creatures. Therefore they shouldn’t react to your presence.”

  Her mind began to clear. “You want me to swim to the caverns and check on the sirens.”

  “Yes,” he said, taking another long draught from his glass. “See if anything looks amiss and report back to me. Maybe by visiting their territory, we can get a sense of what ails them.”

  “I wouldn’t know what to look for,” she said, shifting on the bench.

  Ethan smiled. His eyes were filled with soft flames now. She was certain his eyes had not been full of hellfire earlier.

  “It doesn’t matter. Just use your eyes,” he said. “I have ways of extracting what I need.”

  “And they won’t hurt me for swimming into their territory?”

  “No,” Ethan said, perhaps too quickly. “Of course, if for some reason they do realize you are a woman...” He took another sip of wine, his eyes never leaving hers. “My advice is to swim away as fast as you can.”

  Reese Choice 4

  Agree to go to the caves

  Refuse to go to the caves

  Reese: Hold down the bar

  “I’ll hold down the bar for you,” Reese said. She didn’t believe she could be much help at the pack meeting, but she did know that she could keep Kristine’s business running smoothly while the alpha helped the community. It seemed like a better use of her time.

  “Great,” Kristine said. The relief in her voice was clear. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

  “Will you fill me in later?” Reese asked.

  “Of course.” A short rustle of fabric made Reese suspect that Kristine was moving the phone to her other ear. “When can you get to the bar?”

  Reese glanced at the clock. It was shaped like a great white shark, the white belly shining in the afternoon sun. And it really was afternoon. She’d slept most of the day away. “Within the hour.”

  “Perfect. We’ll talk later.”

  They exchanged their goodbyes and terminated the call. Reese considered her needs in order of importance.

  Food and shower were at the top of the list. She decided on the shower first. Under the hot jets, she gently slapped her face, trying to spark some alertness in her.

  She dressed in freshly laundered clothes that still reeked of fabric softener.

  Breakfast, she decided, was a can of tuna on dry toast. After finishing her toast and throwing the rinsed can in the recycle bin, she brushed her teeth for a second time. She unwrapped two sticks of mint gum and washed her hands just to be sure. She hoped the fish smell wouldn’t linger.

  The drive to Alpha’s was quiet. It was that calm hour between afternoon and evening. Most of the daytimers hadn’t left work yet, and the evening crowd hadn’t yet woken. The streets were nearly empty. In Cliffside, a few people were walking their dogs, their earphones in as they strolled down the white-washed sidewalk.

  When Cliffside gave way to downtown, she saw more students. Kids that were enjoying their summer break by hanging out in clusters in front of their favorite haunts. The Magic Bean coffeeshop seemed particularly busy, but there was also a cluster outside the burrito shop on the corner.

  Reese parked her rattling red pickup in the parking lot across from Alpha’s and crossed the street to the bar. She was the first one to the bar, using her key to open the door and begin prep work for the night.

  She’d just restocked the pint glasses when Nick showed up to bounce the door. Early bird patrons requesting beer and popcorn arrived a few minutes later. After that, it seemed her shift passed quickly.

  Reese looked up the moment the vampire crossed the threshold and entered the bar entrance. Not just any vampire, but Liam, one of the oldest residents in town and a good buddy of Kristine’s.

  Reese motioned the vampire forward. He obliged, stopping at the bar. He placed a black umbrella on the wooden top.

  “Want a drink?” Reese asked. Alpha’s carried blood packs that could be heated or mixed into certain cocktails.

  Liam’s piercing blue eyes considered her for a moment.

  “No,” he said finally. “I can’t stay long.”

  “Oh. Well Kristine is down at the park. I’m not sure when she’s coming in.”

  It was strange to see the living vampire before sunset. Unlike their undead brethren, living vampires could move around in the day. They would not explode into dust if sunlight touched them. However, they were nocturnal. Being up during the day taxed their bodies and strength. Whatever Liam wanted, it must’ve been important enough to disregard the nausea for. “Is it important?”

  “I went to the park first,” he said. “She said you were here.”

  She paused in the middle of the tequila sunrise she was making. “What do you want me for?”

  Reese liked Liam, but they weren’t exactly friends.

  His ocean blue eyes fixed on hers. “Ethan heard you were in the cove last night. He wants to talk to you.”

  “When?” The idea of refusing Ethan Benedict was incomprehensible. Not only because he had built this town with his own two hands and a hell of a lot of magic, but because of every creature in this town, he was by far the strongest. If he wanted something, he would have it. And Reese could see no reason to make enemies with a man like that.

  “He wants you to come by the house.” His pale hand adjusted itself on the umbrella handle. “When can you leave?”

  “I can’t leave before Kristine gets back,” she said, topping off the glass and sliding it across the bar to a werewolf who looked like she needed it.

  Liam pushed back from the bar and brushed his hands over the front of his jacket. “I’ll be outside when you’re ready.”

  Once the vampire stepped out into the late afternoon, Reese’s mind went into overdrive. In fact, her brain was so busy building up scenarios for how the Ethan Benedict conversation might go that by the time Kristine walked into the bar an hour later, she was in a proper state.

  “Calm down,” Kristine told her, taking the broom from her hand and the rag from her shoulder. “He just wants to ask about last night. We need eyewitnesses.”

  This changed nothing.

  “Go on,” Kristine said, nodding toward the bar door. “Liam’s waiting out there for you.”

  And he was. Reese found him on the sidewalk, leaning against the brick face of Alpha’s.

  “I wanted to give you directions. It isn’t easy to find his house,” Liam said by means of explanation. Full twilight was upon them. The umbrella was closed, hanging from his wrist. “Where did you park?”

  Reese pointed across the street. “The red pickup is mine.”

  They looked both ways and crossed when the light turned red.

  “Have you been out in the sun this whole time?” She frowned at him. “You okay?”

  “I’ve felt better. But we need to get on top of these killings.”

  She unlocked the truck and reached across the seat to do the same for the passenger door.

  Liam slid onto the bench seat and tucked the umbrella between his legs. Then he pulled the heavy door shut with a clank.

  “Take Canyon Road towards the interstate,” he instructed, pulling the seatbelt across his chest.

  Reese turned over the engine and reversed the truck. The street population had tripled since she’d started her shift hours before. Humans were wrapping up dinner and the night creatures
were taking to the street for their nightly hunts. She waved to the supernaturals she knew as she passed them.

  Liam said nothing on their drive through town. She didn’t press him for conversation. Instead she rolled down her window to let in the warm ocean breeze. She hoped the fresh air would calm her.

  At the stop sign across from The Crossroads bar, Liam lifted his right hand and pointed straight ahead. “Follow this up to Midnight Pass.”

  She did, casting longing looks out over the water. The waves were purple with early evening light. A faint waning moon sat above the horizon.

  “There should be a road up here on your left. Do you see it?”

  It was another twenty or thirty feet before the road materialized in her view. It seemed to not be there one minute, then appeared the next. Reese wasn’t sure if that was magic, or simply a tricky shape of road that had hidden the drive well.

  Either way, she turned onto the road per Liam’s instruction.

  She maneuvered the truck slowly through the dense brush. Then something remarkable happened. The branches that were overtaking the road, at first scratching at the sides of her red pickup, suddenly pulled back, offering her a clear path.

  They bent away from the truck as if held by an invisible force.

  “What the—”

  “Ethan,” Liam said, matter-of-factly. “He knows it’s us.”

  Reese didn’t want to ask how Ethan knew who was a quarter of a mile away from the house, or how the demon had the power to bend back tree limbs thicker than her body.

  She suspected that if they were a mated pair, Liam and Ethan would share a telepathic bond. She knew that demons did that from time to time—took mates. Hadn’t Violet been the one to hint that such a thing was possible—if Reese was interested.

  She’d seen Ethan and Liam together often and knew they were together in some capacity.

  But Ethan was also a known playboy. In fact, many thought it was a badge of honor to have slept with Ethan Benedict and a few people claimed to have done so. He owned a bar in Red Light too, called the Labyrinth, and it wasn’t uncommon for humans or supernaturals to disappear for a few hours in his care.

  Like most demons, he probably fed on lust or sexual desire in some way. Or worse, their souls. Most humans seemed to think this was a small price to pay for such an encounter.

  How Liam felt about these dalliances, Reese could only guess.

  Either their relationship was open or Liam was the confident and forgiving kind.

  While she shouldn’t care—none of this was her business after all—Reese would’ve been lying to herself if she said she wasn’t curious.

  The trees broke open and a two-story Spanish villa sprang into view. The dirt road turned to beautiful paving stones that circled in front of the house. In the center of the roundabout was a fountain bubbling softly with turquoise water. The fountain was lit with submerged lights, changing the water from purple to a rose pink to turquoise again.

  Reese parked her truck in front of the marble steps. Ethan was standing on the porch as if ready to receive them.

  “Welcome to my home,” he said as she stepped down from the truck.

  He regarded Liam and his face pulled into a distasteful frown.

  “Get inside and rest, my love,” Ethan said. “And eat something.”

  Liam gave a dismissive wave and went inside

  Reese stood on the steps looking up into the demon’s face. Kristine had once called Ethan’s looks smoldering. And this close to him, Reese had to agree. It was the sensual pout of his lips to be sure. The strong, square jaw and cat-like eyes. His dark hair had fallen forward, drawing attention to those eyes.

  “Come in,” he said with a mischievous grin. “Let’s see if I can’t make your visit...pleasurable.”

  With heat building in her guts, she followed him across the threshold into the house. Liam was nowhere in sight as Reese was led through the foyer to the door nestled between the twin staircases.

  “Can I offer you something to eat? Drink?” He threw a mischievous grin over his shoulder. “I can accommodate any taste, I assure you.”

  He pushed open the door to reveal a massive kitchen.

  “No, thank you.” No one needed to tell her that getting drunk with this guy was a bad idea. And though she could drink like a fish, as she often joked, she didn’t want to take any chances. Not with Ethan Benedict so close at hand.

  Ethan pulled a bottle of red wine from the counter, uncorked it and poured himself a glass. He flicked his eyes up to meet hers.

  “You’re sure?”

  “Positive.”

  Wine glass full, he motioned toward the adjacent door. “It’s my understanding that your true form is a shark.” He held the door open for her, forcing her to brush her body past his as they moved into the next room. “Is that correct?”

  “I can change into a shark, yes.”

  He flashed a wry smile. “It is said that Vendetta herself created shifters. She so loved nature and its beauty, that she bestowed many animals the ability to take human form, so they could walk amongst them as she pleased. If we believe this tale, it would mean truly you are a shark who takes a human form, not a human who takes shark form.”

  The room around them could’ve been a library or a study. It had a desk with a laptop and folders on it. The walls were replaced with floor-to-ceiling bookcases and given how high these ceilings were, Reese was certain she was looking at tens of thousands of titles. At least.

  In front of the large window, she saw the sea, reminding her of the window in her aunt’s own library at home. If Constance saw this room she would be in love. Likely with Ethan as much as the room itself. Her aunt had no sexual qualms about bedding whomever she wanted.

  “What kind of shark?” Ethan inquired. His gaze was intense.

  “A black-tip reef shark.”

  He grinned. “Yes, I can see it. One might think your hair was dyed.”

  “Most people do.” She’d heard her hair described as blond pigtails dipped in ink. But it wasn’t ink or even dye, only her natural coloring betraying her true form. It hadn’t mattered when she’d bleached her hair. The black tips remained. It was the same for her Aunt Constance, though her hair wasn’t blond, rather a deep auburn.

  Ethan placed a hand on the handle of the French doors behind him. “Would you like to come out into the garden with me?”

  He didn’t wait for her to answer. He pushed opened the French doors and motioned for her to follow.

  They stepped out into an assault of freesia. The high, heady fragrance of a thousand flowers assaulted her. She felt paralyzed by them, her mind unraveling like a pulled string. The cloying sweetness had a narcotic affect, dulling her mind.

  They followed a small lit path to twin benches.

  “I love sitting in the garden in the evenings,” Ethan confessed. “Beneath the moon, it’s lovely.

  Ethan sat on a wooden bench nestled into a grove of roses. He settled down into it, pointing to the padded chair opposite. Reese took her seat, enjoying the last of the day’s heat on her skin as well as the peach garden rose hanging inches from her face.

  She’d bent forward to sniff it before considering if that was all right.

  But Ethan was smiling at her. “Can you tell me what happened last night?”

  “I did my closing shift at Alpha’s and then drove to the beach for a swim.”

  “Yes,” he said, in agreement, turning the glass in the fading light. It sparkled in his hand. “And then?”

  She recounted all that occurred as she swam the waters the night before.

  When she finished, he was regarding a blush rose and nodding as if it had spoken to him.

  “Yes,” he said finally. “It’s clear that the sirens are unwell. Unfortunately, this could be for any number of reasons.”

  He turned those dark eyes on hers. A shiver crawled its way up and down her spine. Had his eyes been that color earlier? She couldn’t be sure.

 
His smile widened as he watched the emotions dance across her face.

  “I wonder if you would do something for me?” he asked sweetly. He wet his lips. “It is a task well-suited to your abilities.”

  She sat up straighter, trying to gather the reins of her mind and the strange electricity rippling along her skin.

  “The sirens live in a cavern beneath the eastern cliffs. If you swim across the cove and then around the cliff itself, you will find their nest. You need only follow the rocks until you come upon the opening. The sirens will not bother you as long as they believe you are a shark. They revere and respect all sea creatures, it seems. Therefore they shouldn’t react to your presence.”

  Her mind began to clear. “You want me to swim to the caverns and check on the sirens?”

  “Yes,” he said, taking another long draught from his glass. His lips were dyed red with the wine. “See if anything looks amiss and report back to me. Maybe by visiting their territory, we can get a sense of what ails them.”

  “I wouldn’t know what to look for,” she said, shifting on the bench.

  Ethan smiled. His eyes were filled with soft flames now. She was certain his eyes had not been full of hellfire earlier.

  “It doesn’t matter. I only need you to look around.” His grin turned wicked. “I have ways of extracting what I need from the mind.”

  “And they won’t hurt me for swimming into their territory?”

  “No,” Ethan said, perhaps too quickly. “Of course, if for some reason they do realize you are a woman...” He took another sip of wine, his eyes never leaving hers. “My advice is to swim away. As fast as you can.”

  Reese Choice 5

  Agree to go to the caves

  Refuse to go to the caves

  Grayson: Cut her with knife

  The siren pulled on his legs, bringing him farther out to sea. His head sank under the next wave and he was swallowed by dark water. Sand scraped his back and bare legs. She was latching onto his body, settling her weight against him. If she mounted him here, she was going to pin him against the ocean floor until she was done with him—however long that took—and he would die.