Fireballs & Familiars

by T Elizabeth Guthrie

  “You did! Why would you tell my sister that one? I mean we’ve had several run-ins, and that’s the one you have to tell her?”

  Wolfe was watching the byplay, and curiosity was killing him. “Hey now. If you’re telling tales on horndog here, I wanna hear them too.”

  “Hey! I am not a horndog.” He paused. “Much.”

  The whole group laughed, except for Balan. His only thought was that he’d better never hit on Jenna.

  “I’ll order us some food, and we can have a picnic right here in the lobby,” Anais said and pulled out her phone. She got everyone’s favorite and set delivery times, then grabbed some box flats from the back and laid them on the floor for everyone to sit on. “When we get food, you can start telling us all those ‘run-ins’ he mentioned.”

  “Hell no! Nobody needs to know all my business,” Louis said adamantly and plopped down.

  “Maybe he’s right,” Balan said. He didn’t want to hear anything about Jenna and the little wolf boy.

  “Thanks, B,” Louis said.

  “Don’t mention it.”

  Food started arriving, so everybody stopped long enough to eat. They were all starving, and any conversation was halted for a while.

  Chapter Seven

  Jenna leaned back, after eating her fill, and moaned. She was stuffed and felt like a bear going into hibernation. “Oh man, I ate too much.”

  Balan swallowed as he watched her shirt stretch over those lush breasts. He kept imagining all the things he’d like to do to them—until he heard someone beside him cough. He turned to look at Wolfe, who was sitting there grinning at him. Shit, he saw what I was staring at. In order to cover it up, Balan asked Anais what else they still had to do and reminded her he had to work later and needed some sleep. He didn’t want to go home, but he had to say something.

  “Well, we still have Scooby’s to complete and the adults-only room,” Jenna said. “But if anybody needs to go, I can get it done myself. You all have already helped so much.”

  “Nah, I like doing this stuff,” Anais replied and got up to throw her trash in the box by the back door. “We need to make sure this goes out to the dumpster before we leave.”

  “I can do it now if everyone is done,” Wolfe said.

  They filled the box with takeout containers and went to work while he went out the back door. He had just opened the lid when he felt the hair stand on the back of his neck. He turned and noticed a shadow a few doors down. He acted like he didn’t see it and turned to go back inside when it moved away from the building and started toward him. He stopped and waited for it.

  “Hello again, hunter.”

  “Well, well, well. If it ain’t the pig boy himself.”

  “Fuck you.”

  “Not for a million dollars. What are you doing here?” Wolfe asked.

  “I’m here to continue to mess with all your heads. And worse of course.”

  “Listen, Khobrel, if you come anywhere near Anais, I swear I’m going to kill you and spread your body parts all across this state.” Wolfe felt his anger rise, and nobody knew that his wife had turned him right after they were married. He’d realized he didn’t want to live without her, and since her lifespan was much longer than a normal human’s, it had been his only alternative.

  “I’m not the least worried about your petty little threats, hunter. Just give a message to your resident demon, would you? Tell him I know his secret, and for a price, I’ll keep my mouth shut. Otherwise, I’m going to spill the beans about him and that little club.”

  Wolfe went to answer when the man disappeared in a cloud of smoke. “Dammit, man, can’t you figure out a way to do that without leaving a stink behind?” he called, then went inside to tell the others about Khobrel showing up.

  As expected, everyone was pissed that he was back, especially Anais. She still felt guilty, thinking she’d started the nasty little vendetta. “Where is he? I’ll rip his head off.”

  After calming his wife somewhat and telling the others there wasn’t anything to be done until Khobrel tipped his hand, he pulled Balan aside and gave him the message in private. “I’m going to assume you know what he meant?”

  “Not really, no, but we need to alert Marshall and Darrell.” Balan knew exactly what Khobrel had meant, and he had no intention of telling anybody anything. “I should be going. I’ll catch up with you at the club.” He said his good-byes and left.

  “What was that all about?” Jenna asked as she watched him get into his car and drive off.

  “I have no idea,” he told her. “Well, I guess I better get back to work, or my wife will spank me.”

  “You sound too hopeful there, my friend.”

  “Who knows, I might get lucky today after all,” Wolfe said and laughed.

  “Please stop talking about my sister that way before I go deaf.” Louis had walked in and had heard part of the conversation. He put his hands over his ears and walked back out.

  “I better find my wife,” Wolfe said and wandered into the adjoining room, chuckling.

  Jenna stood looking around again. It was while she was turning to look at the front, trying to come up with a good display to put in the picture window, when she spotted something looking back at her. She must have screamed because the others rushed in.

  “What’s wrong?” Anais asked, halting in front of her.

  Jenna pointed, and the others turned to look. Wolfe cussed and went for the door with Louis right behind him, while Anais growled and stepped in front of Jenna and the little subbie who had come to help. “What is that thing?” Jenna asked.

  “Like Wolfe said, his name is Khobrel and he’s some sort of demon or something. No one rightly knows, but he’s dangerous and has some mean-assed powers,” Anais told her, and they watched as it disappeared once again in a stinking cloud of smoke.

  Louis came back inside, holding his nose. “What is his deal with that smelly smoke?”

  “Probably just a parting gift, knowing him,” Wolfe said and waved his hand in front of his face. “Come here, wife.” He buried his face against her neck and inhaled deeply. “Much better.”

  Jenna walked over to look out the window again. “Will someone fill me in please?”

  Anais told her the story of how she and Wolfe had met and what had happened with her previous client from the club. Khobrel had been a regular of hers for a while, until he started to demand more than the D/s relationship they’d had. When she rebuffed him, he showed his true colors and his true self, which was some sort of pig demon or something.

  “Girl, I don’t think I could ever do your job,” Jenna replied.

  “Most days it’s not so bad. Besides, if I didn’t do it, then I might not have met my twin flame.” Anais had heard Wolfe coming up behind her.

  “Good answer, mate.” He pulled her back against him and hugged her.

  Jenna felt a longing that was almost pain. She couldn’t stand to see them suddenly. “Maybe you should go on home. I can always get Louis to stay with me and we can finish this.”

  “That is a good idea,” Wolfe answered.

  She watched them leave, and soon after, the little sub followed suit. He said he had to work later that evening and needed some sleep. Jenna thanked him and locked the door after he left and turned toward Louis. “We need to talk.”

  Chapter Eight

  “Uh oh. Why do I feel like I’m in trouble again?”

  “Have you told anyone, besides your sister, about me? What I am and used to be?” Jenna needed to know after some of the comments that had been made earlier.

  “I told her, but she won’t say anything,” Louis replied. “Well, maybe to Wolfe, but she’d swear him to secrecy.”

  “Why would you do that?” She paced in front of him. She didn’t want anyone to know about the troubles she’d had.

  “Jenna don’t worry. My sister won’t say anything, I promise.” Louis walked up and took her into his arms. He just stood holding her for several minutes until she could pull
herself together.

  “Okay. Just please make sure she doesn’t. I don’t need anybody asking me questions, especially considering that most of the people your sister works with aren’t human. I don’t want them looking at me funny.”

  “I doubt that would ever happen. I mean, look at Wolfe. He was a hunter of every kind out there, and they accepted him with no questions asked.”

  “Yeah, but he saved your sister’s life too. I’m sure that helped tremendously,” Jenna said with a snort.

  “Everything will be fine. Stop worrying, will ya? Come on, let’s get this last room as close to done as we can and then get out of here and get some sleep.” Louis took her hand and led her into the fourth room to set up.

  They spent the next couple hours working until Jenna slid the last empty box into a trash can by the back door. She wasn’t going out to put them into the dumpster after Wolfe’s encounter. She told Louis she’d do it later.

  “Nah. Let’s just get it done and we can go home.”

  “What if that thing is still hanging around out there?” Jenna asked.

  “Are you really worried about it? Between your power and my wolfiness, we can take him.” Louis laughed and reached for the lock. “Besides, I have a feeling he’s long gone for the time being.”

  “Wait!” Jenna felt a sudden sense of foreboding and knew they shouldn’t open the door, but it was too late. She watched as it swung open, as if in slow motion. There stood the very creature she was talking about.

  “I was wondering how long it would take you two to let me in.” Khobrel threw a fireball and knocked them both back into the shop. “Well now, let’s get started, shall we?”

  Jenna came up ready to fight. She didn’t even bother to look for Louis. She knew she needed to make sure the creature didn’t hurt either of them. She lobbed a fireball of her own, which shocked him, and using that momentum, she continued to pummel him with magic until she could get close enough to take a swing.

  He blocked the punch but left himself open to a hard shot of magic to the face, which knocked him back out the door. Jenna slammed it and threw the bolt, adding a protection spell as she did. She’d already warded the front door to stop anyone with ill intentions from entering. She went to find Louis, who was stunned and lying on the floor.

  She helped him sit up and checked for any magical injuries. Finding none, she handed him a bottle of water. “You okay?”

  “What the hell just happened?” He shook his head and took a long drink.

  “That thing was waiting on us to open the door. I have them warded now, so he can’t get in.” Jenna moved away and checked the windows. She didn’t see him or anybody else outside. He’d disappeared again.

  “We need to get to the club and let them know. I’m sure Anais or one of the others have already called the guys, but we should tell them about the second hit.” Louis was still rubbing his head. “What the hell did he hit me with, a building?”

  “Nope. Just a fireball.”

  “Hey, wait a minute. How did you get him back out the door?”

  She noticed Louis was looking at her suspiciously. “I rushed him and shoved him back out while he was shooting at you.” There was no way in hell she intended on telling him about the true extent of her power—or the fact that she’d almost lost control of it on her last mission with the coven. She was the reason her friend had died in that fight.

  “Damn, woman. You must have some kind of wrestling moves,” Louis said. “Come on. Let’s see if we can get to your car.”

  “Give me a second and I can let you know.” Jenna stood very still and sent her spirit out to scout around. “We’re all clear. Let’s go.”

  Louis watched her back as she locked the door, and they made a dash for her car, which was parked close to the front of the building. They hopped in and took off toward the club.

  “Louis, we’re being followed.” Jenna had been watching traffic since they pulled out.

  “We just need to make it there. He won’t try anything with all the humans there.” He hoped, anyway.

  She made sure to do the speed limit. No need to bring in any outsiders if she didn’t have to. The truck behind her kept pace until she was outside the city and then it sped up. She pushed the gas pedal harder and felt the sweet little Vette leap in response.

  Louis gave a squeal and held on tight.

  Jenna laughed. She loved her new car. It was a 2020 Chevrolet C8 Corvette in Elkhart Lake Blue, and it was her baby! She had never felt so alive as when she was driving around in it and often took it out into the desert on the open roads just to see how fast she could get it up to. “Hang on.” She floored it, left the truck in her dust, and didn’t slow down until she was pulling into the parking lot of C. PB Delight.

  Chapter Nine

  They turned to look out the back window and saw headlights off in the distance. They didn’t wait to see if it was the same truck. Instead, they got out and hurried into the club, thinking there was safety in numbers—and many more entities inside who could help fight if need be.

  “Come on, we need to find Darrell or Marshall, tell them about the second incident and being followed here.” Louis led the way upstairs to the club’s offices. He found Marshall at his desk looking through old surveillance videos. “Marshall, can we come in?”

  “Yeah, come on.” He turned to look at his visitors. “Take a seat.”

  They sat opposite the desk and told him what happened, including the first contact with Wolfe at the candy shop. “By the way, this is Jenna, and she’s the owner.”

  Marshall stood and shook her hand. He’d seen her around the club and knew she was the one Balan had gone nutty over earlier. “Hell of a way to be welcomed to town, ain’t it?”

  “Yeah it is,” Jenna answered and was impressed with the way he took charge to make sure everyone was kept safe from this thing.

  “Okay, we’re not going to leave you or the shop without protection, and since we have no idea what Khobrel is or what we’re dealing with yet, let’s err on the side of caution. I’m going to see if a couple of the employees would be willing to stay with you for a while, just to make sure he’s not going to be targeting you since he showed up at your place.”

  “I’ll stay with her as one, but who else?” Louis asked, “And what are you going to do for protection of the others in the club until we know who he’s targeting?

  “Let me put word out and see who volunteers. Jenna, don’t worry about a thing. We’ll have your back,” Marshall said. “I’ll take care of everything and make sure everyone is protected.”

  “Thank you, but you guys do know I’m a big girl and can take care of myself.”

  “Yeah, Anais thought so too, and he threw her across the room like a ragdoll. And that was after she’d shifted,” Louis said.

  “All right. I’m never one to turn down free labor.” Jenna held her hands up in surrender and chuckled.

  “Good girl. Now go have a drink, and I’ll get with you before you leave.”

  He’d already turned away and was picking up his phone. They left and decided to forgo the drink. It was still a bit early to start drinking, so they went to see who was working the day shift.

  “I’ve never been here at this time of day. I wonder who works?”

  “Hey, does Marshall ever sleep?” Jenna asked as she followed him into the employee-only part of the building.

  “I have no idea. He’s always here when I am.” Louis pushed the doors open to the changing room and looked to see if anybody was inside. “Damn, nobody here.” He turned back toward Jenna. “Now what?”

  “Let’s go see who’s at the front desk in the lounge.” She led the way.

  Louis was the first to step toward the counter, and he grinned from ear to ear when he realized it was one of his favorite subbies. “Hello, Celeste. How is my favorite girl in the place?”

  Jenna rolled her eyes and tried to hide a grin. Good ole Louis. Some things will never change. She listened to them ta
lking and flirting until she couldn’t stand it any longer, and she went to the bar. I guess it’s not too early to start drinking after all.

  “What can I get ya, beautiful?”

  She looked up at the bartender and smiled. “Do they only hire beautiful women to work here?”

  “Aw, sugar. Since you said that, the first drink is on the house.”

  “Then I’ll take a mudslide please.”

  “Comin’ up.”

  Jenna watched the woman prepare the drink and return with it in hand. “Thank you. I’m Jenna.”

  “I’m Melanie. I’ve seen you around with Louis and his family.” She grabbed a towel and started wiping glasses fresh from the dishwasher.

  “Damn, this is good. The best I’ve ever had, I think.”

  “Thank ya,” Melanie said. “So, what do you do for a livin’, Jenna?”

  “I just moved here and bought the old candy store in town, then proceeded to move the location. It was a bit rundown on that side, so I moved it into the new strip mall on Russell.”

  Melanie laughed. “Balan is a happy boy, I’m sure. He’s been looking for a new place to buy his stash.”

  “His stash?”

  “Yeah, he’s addicted to Fireball candy. Nobody knows why, but he has a serious fetish for the stuff.”

  They talked a little longer until another customer came in and ordered. Melanie had to leave and take care of him. Jenna sat and nursed her own drink. She was relieved when Louis finally came in.

  “Hey, sorry.” He slid onto a seat beside her and called, “Melanie, when ya got a minute, can I get a soda please?”

  “Sure thing, handsome.”

  “A soda?” Jenna couldn’t help but ask.

  “Yeah. What’s wrong with drinking a soda?”

  “Oh, nothing.” She took another drink of her mudslide. “It’s just that we grownups prefer alcohol.”

  “Ha. Ha. Ha.” He watched as Melanie sent a can sliding across the bar at him, then a glass with ice. “Thanks, love.”