Freaky Reapers (A Mystic Caravan Mystery Book 8)

by Amanda M. Lee

  “What’s wrong?” Kade was instantly alert as he turned. “Do you see something?” He raised his hands, as if he was going to get into a fistfight, which I found absurdly amusing.

  “I don’t ... .” Something clicked in my brain and I turned away from the mausoleum and headed toward the trees. Something — or someone, rather — was there. I could feel it in my very bones.

  A danger alarm went off in my brain at the very last second and I immediately stepped to my left as a figure jumped out from behind the tree. The light was limited so I couldn’t immediately see a face, but I recognized the voice as a sword shot in my direction.

  “I’ve got you now!”

  I was beyond annoyed as I magically slapped the sword away, causing it to fly five feet before it fell harmlessly to the ground. “Knock that off,” I ordered Redmond Grimlock, shaking my head as I met his gaze. “What do you think you’re doing?”

  Redmond took a moment to stare at me and then straightened his shoulders, smoothing the front of his T-shirt as he lobbed an imperious look in my direction. “May I ask what you’re doing here?”

  His reaction was funny enough that I had to bite back a laugh. He clearly hadn’t been expecting me. That meant he’d set a trap for something else. “I believe that’s supposed to be my question,” I shot back.

  “Hey, Redmond, did you catch her?” Another man, this one boasting the same black hair and purple eyes, rushed out from the shadows and pulled up short when he saw me. “Hello. It’s a wonderful evening for a walk in the cemetery, isn’t it?”

  I had no doubt this was another Grimlock. I’d met three of them so far, and apparently their genes were so strong they could be mistaken for twins. “You must be Braden or Aidan.” I involuntarily chuckled. “Hey, that rhymed.”

  The man didn’t immediately answer, instead pinning me with a suspicious look. “And who are you?”

  “She’s the circus chick,” Redmond volunteered, dusting off his shirt. “You remember, I told you about her.”

  “The one you said was ridiculously hot and warm for your form,” the man surmised. “This is her? You’re right about her being hot. She doesn’t look like she’s hot for you, though.”

  “I’m most definitely not,” I agreed.

  “Definitely,” Kade echoed, moving in behind me.

  For the first time, Redmond’s eyes moved from me to my partners in crime. “She doesn’t go anywhere without you? That’s a bummer.”

  “Not for me,” Kade shot back.

  “Leave it to you, Redmond, to fall for a chick who already has a guy ... and one that could clearly beat the snot out of you.” The second man looked more amused than annoyed. “That’s so ... you.”

  “Shut up, Braden,” Redmond snapped.

  Well, that answered that question. There was only one Grimlock sibling I’d yet to meet. “What are you guys doing out here?” I challenged.

  “We were about to ask you the same thing,” Braden replied smoothly. “You know this cemetery is off limits after dark, right?”

  He acted as if that was the most normal thing in the world to say despite his location. “And yet you’re here,” I pointed out.

  “We got turned around while taking a walk.”

  As far as lies go, it was a weak one. He delivered it without a hint of hesitation, though, so I had to give him props for that.

  “I thought maybe you were visiting your mother.” I pointed to the mausoleum I’d just been standing in front of. “I read the dedication plaque. It’s sweet.”

  For an instant, a dark look swept across Braden’s features. He looked genuinely evil. “You didn’t touch my mother’s grave, did you?”

  I was taken aback. “Of course not. I ... why would you think that?”

  Braden didn’t immediately answer. In his stead, Redmond offered up a hollow chuckle and moved to his brother’s side, lightly resting a hand on his shoulder.

  “You’ll have to forgive Braden,” Redmond offered. “Our mother’s death isn’t exactly something we enjoy talking about. We’re sensitive.”

  “I didn’t mean to upset you.” That was the truth. “I was merely curious when I saw the name.”

  Braden found his voice. “Which doesn’t explain what you were doing over here. I thought you were warned to stay out of the cemetery.”

  “I’m kind of curious why that rule is supposed to apply to me but not you,” I shot back “I want to know why you guys were setting a trap — with swords, mind you — in the same cemetery where I saw you banishing a banshee last evening. Are you hunting another one?”

  Redmond didn’t miss a beat. “What’s a banshee?”

  I narrowed my eyes. If he thought he was being cute — and the way his lips curved told me he did — he’d severely missed the mark. “You’re not fooling anyone,” I pressed. “You guys are up to something. We’re not idiots.”

  “That’s good,” Redmond supplied. “I would hate to think people hanging around a cemetery in the middle of the night and throwing magic at one another were idiots. What was that, by the way? We assumed the red spark meant you were evil. But I’m always keen to be corrected. If you have a whip, you can teach me a lesson.” His smile was devilish.

  Kade growled as he moved closer to me. This clearly wasn’t his day ... although that defensive spell he’d whipped up was something special, so I was hopeful it balanced out everything else.

  “We have no idea what you’re talking about,” Max replied smoothly. “We didn’t see any bright lights. We were just taking a walk, enjoying the fine night air.”

  Braden made a hilarious face. “In a cemetery?”

  “You seem to be enjoying the same night air in the same cemetery,” I reminded him.

  “We’re local,” Braden argued. “We know how fine the air is in this cemetery. You’re new. You couldn’t have figured that out yet.”

  Redmond snorted. “Smooth, dude. Truly masterful.”

  I didn’t want to encourage Redmond, so I kept my expression neutral. His reaction made me want to laugh. “What are you doing here?”

  “Leaving,” Redmond replied after a beat, keeping a firm hold on the back of his brother’s shirt and tugging him in the opposite direction. “We’re leaving ... and you should do the same. Cemeteries aren’t safe to hang around after dark, especially in this neighborhood.”

  “You should perhaps heed your own advice,” Max noted.

  “Perhaps.” Redmond winked at me and kept pulling at his brother. “Have a lovely evening.”

  I watched as they turned and walked toward the front of the cemetery. They continued talking as if we couldn’t hear the conversation.

  “I told you she was hot,” Redmond said.

  “She’s also running around with her father and boyfriend. I don’t think you have a shot,” Braden argued.

  “I always have a shot. Can’t you tell how badly she wants me?”

  “No.”

  “Then you’re blind. Have you considered having your eyes checked?”

  “I’m done talking to you for tonight,” Braden complained on a sigh. “You make me tired. I should be home with Izzy and in bed. Instead I’m here with you. I hate it.”

  “That’s because you’ve gone soft. We need to fix that.”

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah.”

  10

  Ten

  The next morning, I was still bothered by our meeting with the Grimlocks. Once separated from the encounter — and with a full night’s sleep under his belt — Kade was feeling pretty good about himself. If it were someone else, the show of ego might’ve bothered me. He’d been so unsure about his burgeoning magic, though, that I was more amused than annoyed.

  He puffed out his chest and reenacted the event for anyone who wanted to listen, and given who we were, he had an engaged and captive audience.

  “That sounds rather intriguing, mate,” Percival enthused, his fake accent on full display. He’d been discovered as a fraud — just on the accent; he really was a cl
own — yet he insisted on throwing out the British accent whenever possible. “I would think that marks tremendous growth.”

  Luke rolled his eyes. “Mate?”

  Raven pinned him with a dark look, practically daring him to say something. Most days Luke would’ve taken that challenge. This morning, however, he was in a pouty mood and wisely opted to refrain from poking the beast.

  “I’m just upset that I wasn’t invited along on this late-night excursion,” he complained, fixing his eyes on me. “I mean ... what were you thinking, Poet? You might’ve needed me for backup.”

  Nellie let loose a derisive snort. “Max was with her, mate.” He smirked when Luke glowered at him. “She didn’t need you when she had the big dog.”

  “I didn’t technically need anyone,” I reminded them. “It was supposed to be an easy outing, a way for Kade to practice without prying eyes.”

  “It doesn’t sound like it went that way,” Raven pointed out, using a spot of magic to keep her spoon continuously circulating in her mug of coffee. “It sounds like outsiders saw what he could do. Should we be worried?”

  It was a fair question. “I sincerely doubt it. They were there for a specific reason.”

  “And you think they were hunting banshees?” Naida asked, sliding a platter of bacon on the table and making a face when all the men eagerly reached for it. “What a bunch of gluttons,” she groused. “We made enough for everybody. It’s not as if you’re going to go hungry.”

  Luke, five slices in his hand, merely smiled. “We can’t help it. It’s a man thing. The smell of bacon turns us into wild animals.”

  Naida looked to me for confirmation. “Is that true?”

  “That they’re wild animals? Yes. I don’t think it’s the bacon, though. They simply have poor manners.”

  “Ah. That I already knew.” Her gaze was dour as it landed on each man in turn. Only Dolph, our strong man, had the grace to look abashed.

  “We’re growing boys,” Nellie explained. “We can’t help ourselves.”

  “Some of us are growing more than others,” Luke noted. “That pink dress of yours is looking a little tight, by the way. You might want to lay off the bacon ... and leave it for me.” He reached for more but Nellie gripped his fork in such a manner that it looked as if he was about to use it as a weapon and Luke backed off at the last second. “Of course, I’ve always thought that a few extra pounds is something to exalt.”

  “You’d better think that,” Nellie growled.

  I ignored the raw showing of testosterone and returned to the matter at hand. “As for the Grimlocks, I think they’re paranormal ... although I’m not sure what they are. Never in my life have I seen such strong genes. The four I’ve seen look exactly alike, even the girl. It’s ... eerie.”

  “You said you liked the woman,” Kade pointed out, forgetting about his magical triumph long enough to focus on security issues. “I have to believe you’d recognize if they were evil.”

  He had a point. “I didn’t sense anything evil about them. I mean ... they’re snarky, don’t get me wrong.”

  “Who isn’t?” Luke challenged.

  “The best people in life are snarky,” Nellie agreed. “That’s not a reason to behead them. But I’m not ruling out beheading them if it becomes necessary.”

  I wanted to freeze that compulsion quickly. “That’s a terrible idea,” I countered. “We don’t know that they’re evil. In fact, from where we’re sitting, they could be allies. They did take out the banshee, after all. They could be just like us.”

  “It seems to me that you should’ve been able to pin down a species after three run-ins,” Raven argued. “Maybe you’re off your game.”

  “Or maybe they’re something we’ve never encountered,” Nixie shot back. She was loyal to a fault. She rarely argued with anyone, but if she was going to throw down, more often than not it was Raven on the receiving end of her ire.

  Raven was philosophical. “I guess that’s possible. Unlikely, but not impossible.”

  “I don’t know what they are. They obviously know about the paranormal world. They’re not going to talk to anyone but each other about what they saw. We’re fine.”

  “Okay then.” Raven held up her hands. “What do you want us to do about the missing girls? It’s become apparent that you plan to track down the culprit before we leave. It’ll be easier if we all work together.”

  She wasn’t wrong. “I don’t know where to look yet,” I admitted. “It’s ... frustrating because I can’t even be sure we’re dealing with a paranormal monster. For all I know, it’s a monster of the human variety.”

  “We take those monsters out, too,” Raven said. “I have no problem ending an evil human. With that in mind, I plan to head down to the area in question and see if I can poke around some heads. Maybe I’ll get somewhere.”

  The territorial part of me wanted to fight her on that, but I knew it was a ridiculous reaction. “Just be careful. Don’t wear any jewelry or you’ll look like a mark.”

  “I’ve survived a very long time,” she reminded me. “I know what I’m doing.”

  “What are you going to do?” Kade demanded. “I can see your mind is already working.”

  It was, and he wasn’t going to be happy with my answer. “There’s a shelter about three blocks from here. Er, well, there used to be. I’m hoping it’s still there. The guy who used to run it kept his ear to the street.”

  “What are the odds he’s still there?” Luke asked. “I mean ... a lot changes in twelve years.”

  “It does, but he struck me as a lifer.”

  “I’m assuming you want to make this trip on your own,” Kade noted. He didn’t sound bitter as much as resigned.

  “I think it would be for the best, at least for now,” I replied. “These kids don’t trust easily. We’re going to be outsiders venturing on their turf. At least I used to be like them. I should be able to blend in better. If the kids are taking refuge at the shelter even though the weather is good, some of them probably have a reason.”

  “Like they heard stories about bad things happening on the street,” Kade surmised. “That’s smart. I still wish you would let me go with you.”

  “It’s better this way. I don’t know how to explain it. This entire thing is throwing me for a loop. I need to talk to Beacon alone if he’s there. It’s been a long time. He’ll be more likely to open up to me if I’m alone.”

  “Did you know him well?” Naida asked. “Were you close?”

  I turned grim. “I wouldn’t say that.”

  BEACON HILL SHELTER WAS IN the same building, though it had grown since my last visit. Unlike some of the others I ran with back then, I was never keen to stay in the facility. It was usually my last resort.

  At the time, I told myself it was because they locked down the facility at night. Once you entered for the evening, you were stuck there. I hated feeling penned in. It was more than that, though. The place always made me uneasy.

  Beacon was on the front sidewalk talking to two street kids when I rounded the corner. I slowed my pace so I could watch the interaction without him registering my presence. An intense conversation seemed to be taking place, and none of the participants were happy.

  “I don’t know what you want me to say,” one of the girls offered, her blond hair dirty. She looked like she’d showered — even recently — but a layer of grime that could never be laundered away coated her clothing. She’d been on her own a long time. “I didn’t do what you’re saying.”

  “Come on, Cotton,” Beacon chided. “We both know that’s a load of crap. You were caught offering blow jobs for meth. Two of the workers overheard you. I’m not here to judge your lifestyle. I know it’s hard out there. But you can’t bring that in here. That’s one of the rules.”

  Cotton — and I couldn’t help but wonder how she chose that name — worked her jaw. “You can’t send me away.” She almost sounded pitiful. “It’s not safe right now. I ... won’t do it again.” />
  “You’ve said that before.”

  “Yeah, but ... I promise this time.”

  Beacon looked caught. I remembered that expression from when I knew him before. His job wasn’t easy. He wanted to help everyone, but there were some kids who couldn’t be helped. He set rules for a reason, and there was a zero-tolerance policy in place for breaking the rules. It had to be that way or everybody who tried to stay would run rampant and create an unsafe environment.

  “I need to think about this for a bit,” he said finally. “I know it’s not safe out there, but it has to be safe in here. That’s non-negotiable. Come back after dinner and I’ll tell you what’s up. Until then ... stay safe.”

  “Fine.” Cotton jerked her head so the other girl would follow, and when they swiveled they walked in my direction. Cotton immediately started complaining under her breath. By the time they reached me her expression had changed, and her eyes shined with keen interest as she looked me up and down.

  Like the previous day, I opted for simple capris and a T-shirt. They were casual clothes and I didn’t stand out in them. Still, I was out of place in this neighborhood now. I no longer fit in. I figured that out the day before, but the notion being reinforced still stung.

  “You lost, lady?” Cotton asked. “I’ll point you in the right direction for five bucks.”

  She was a hustler, understood that she had to keep moving or the world would swallow her whole. The demons chasing her were essentially sharks and she would sink and serve as dinner if she didn’t keep moving.

  “I’ll give you twenty bucks if you do me a favor,” I countered, fixing her with a pointed look. I didn’t want her to think I was a mark, but I couldn’t ignore her plight.

  “I don’t roll with chicks,” Cotton shot back. “Although ... you look kind of clean. Double it and I’ll consider it.”