by Jen Pretty
I pushed the last of my magic out, lighting up the whole alleyway, but it was no use. I couldn't find her. "Well, that's new." I murmured, turning to Nick. "The second wraith is gone."
His eyebrows shot up. "What does that mean?"
I shrugged and tucked the knife away. "At least we have a name and an address for the party. That might be helpful."
Ryan stepped forward. "I know that place. Vampires frequent parties there." Ryan glared at Nick, but Nick didn't even seem to notice.
"It's not far from the Witch Coven either," Nick said, Glaring at his brother.
"Why would you think it was witches?" Ryan asked.
Nick filled him in on the star I had seen on the bodies. The detective had the coroner come and move the bodies so we could see, and sure enough, these bodies had the same marking near the bite marks on the neck, though there wasn't much left of the second victim, the mark was clear as day on Sherry's neck, just below her ear. A full star this time.
Crow had hopped off to look through the garbage and I tried to call him out of the trash, but he was set on some old French fries and something that looked like coleslaw. I told myself it was coleslaw, anyway. We left the scene, passing the officer who had mocked us on the way in. He opened his mouth to say something, but Crow caught up to us and let out a cry that silenced the officer. He lifted the tape and let us pass.
"Listen," Detective Winscott said as we reached our vehicles. "I don't want you going into that house alone. Wait another hour and I'll have a couple of officers to escort you. They can also clear the building before you go in, in case there is a murderer still lingering around."
I grinned at her and agreed, though I was pretty sure now that if there was a murderer in the building, her officers didn't stand a chance. Vampires didn't eat people. There were a few monsters in my book that ate human flesh, but without more to go on, I was still in the dark about what we were dealing with.
We got in the car and began the long drive back across the city toward Nick's parent's house. Ryan said he would meet us at the party house in a few hours. Nick rolled his eyes, but I could understand Ryan's reluctance to go back to his parent's house. I didn't want to go there either, but I needed a shower and a pot of coffee though.
I nodded off twice on the drive back to the mansion, waking up when the car stopped to drop Zander off at his hotel, then falling asleep again with my face pressed to the cold window glass.
"Why couldn't I have been a vampire," I asked with a groggy voice as the car rolled to a stop in front of the monolithic home. The vampires in the car were still bright-eyed. Falcor was snoring.
"Let's just leave him there," I suggested, not wanting to be the one who had to wake him up.
Nick chuckled and wrapped his arm around me. "You afraid of a grumpy Warlock?"
"He is grumpy enough on a regular day, I don't want to see him sleep-deprived."
We climbed the stairs to the suite, and I was thankful we didn't see Nick's parents. His mom seemed nice, but I worried that his father would hold a grudge against me since Crow had unceremoniously denied Amon's attempt to make Nick his heir.
I collapsed on the bed, wishing I could just stay there, but I was gross and needed a shower and to change out of my icky dress.
I rolled off the bed, my eyes barely open and rummaged through my suitcase. Pulling out some sweat pants and a hoodie, I climbed into the shower and washed my hair with one eye propped open.
Once most of the shampoo was out, and I was clean enough, I dried myself off and pulled on my comfy clothes. Staggering back to the bed while pulling my still-wet hair up into a bun. I had zero interest in drying it or even remaining upright for another moment.
My body had just collapsed on the soft mattress when the door swung open.
"The officers are ready to meet us at the party house."
I groaned.
"I have coffee in a travel mug for you," Nick said. "And a breakfast sandwich with bacon."
A demonic noise rose from my stomach. Apparently, I should have eaten that burger at the restaurant. I rolled off the bed again, wishing once more that I was a vampire instead of a black crow, and followed Nick out of the house, munching my breakfast and slurping the hot delicious nectar that would give me wings. Or whatever.
This life was for the birds.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
The house was an abandoned Victorian in serious need of repair or demolition. The windows were boarded up and the old shutters were hanging on hinges, some had fallen off already, lying haphazardly in the front yard.
"This is a delight," I said.
A police car and Zander pulled up at the same time. I had a moment to wonder where Ryan was, but he wasn't my responsibility. I needed to find the beast who killed the girls and put an end to this. I was getting frustrated with how long it was taking to even get a hint at what kind of monster we were dealing with.
Crow screamed from the morning sky and landed on the peaked single-story roof over the front porch of the house.
"We'll go in first and clear it, you wait out here," the gruff officer said.
I had convinced myself that the monster wouldn't have returned to the building after dumping the bodies on the other side of town, so leaned back against Nick's car and waited. The officers stood beside the open doorway where a sheet of plywood had been removed to gain entrance to the building. They looked at each other and then spun and burst through the door, splitting up and disappearing into the rickety old house. We waited for a long time. So long I began to fall asleep with the morning sun shining on my face and heating me through my layers.
My legs were barely keeping me upright when the first scream rang out. Nick and Zander took off, disappearing through the doorway faster than I could blink. Crow appeared above the door to the house, His black eyes glaring at me and his beak wide in a string of screams that sounded like scolding.
I pushed off the car and forced my tired legs into a run. The sound of Falcor's boots pounding behind me gave me courage as I ran towards the sounds inside. The old house had been gutted, the walls peeled back to the studs, but morning light streamed through the busted-out windows, lighting the way to a set of wobbly stairs that led down into the basement.
It was pitch black down there, but I could hear a scuffle for a moment then a gunshot. Falcor's hand wrapped around my arm and suddenly I was in the front yard again.
"What the fuck?" I screamed at him, trying to wrench myself free.
"Just wait!" Falcor hissed, his other arm coming around my waist to hold me tight.
My magic flared, bursting out of me so fast it knocked Falcor backward and launched me forward toward the house. I careened up the front steps just as Nick appeared at the door.
"You need to see this," he said, his voice solemn.
I followed him back down to the basement.
The officers had their flashlights out, scanning the blood-soaked walls. The lack of blood at the crime scene hadn't struck me as odd, considering all the bodies had been drained of blood before, but this was something completely different.
Blood splashed across the dirty cement walls of the cellar and ran down like morbid modern art. I immediately found the reason the officer had screamed when a flashlight slid over the wraith form of the second murder victim. She was torn and bloody, her mouth open in a scream, though no sound escaped her lips.
I shuddered at the sight and immediately pushed the flame inside me to send sparks across the littered floor, reaching out to the wraith.
Her appearance smoothed out slowly, like cinematic effects, until we stood before an average looking teenager. Her hair was plaited in two braids that made her look even younger. I put her age around 17 at the most.
I had been waiting for one of these girls to be the missing Annie, but this girl wasn't her either.
Crow hopped down the stairs, his toes ticking on the old wood. One of the officers jumped at the sound and turned his flashlight on the bird who cawed, continuing o
n his decent.
"He's with me," I said to the officer who resumed his watch on the wraith.
"They said there wouldn't be any weird stuff here," the officer said.
"Sorry," I replied.
Crow flapped his wings a few times and landed near the wraith, calming her features until she stood naturally, with a peaceful expression. I was getting used to seeing them in agony and wondered if that was a good or bad thing, but I didn't have time to think about it. The girl looked vaguely familiar, and I wasn't sure why. I had seen her somewhere; I was sure, but I couldn't remember where or when.
"I'm not sure if I can talk to her here. We don't have her body."
Nick handed me his pocketknife and said, "only one way to find out."
Falcor strode down the stairs, a scowl on his face. "You owe me for that," he said.
"You are the one who tried to hold back the Black Crow," I said, setting the knife to my skin.
Falcor had nothing to say about that, but the girl in front of me began to speak as soon as my drop of blood mingled with hers.
"He is coming, you have to leave the city. He will hurt you! Please, Black Crow, you must leave."
"Who is coming? And how do you know me?" I asked.
"We met at the coven house. Please! You need to go. Tell Trina I'm sorry and it's all my fault."
"Trina?" I asked when it finally came back to me. "Oh god."
The wraith began to fade, the pleading look on her face etched into my mind. I knew where I had seen her. She was the quiet girl from Anlon's coven. One of the homeschooled kids. I wanted to ask her more, but she was beyond speaking now, nearly faded away completely. I cut my skin again and let the blood fall before pulling the rest of my magic back, removing the blue glow cast by my magic. Then I turned and strode past everyone and up the stairs. I needed to get to Anlon's coven. Somehow the witches and warlocks were mixed up in this. I had already known that by the star impression on the necks of the other victims and should have been there already. Investigating. My tired legs carried me up the stairs. I wouldn't be getting more sleep now.
Falcor appeared in front of me in the yard. "It could be anyone. Don't trust anyone in the building." His hand wrapped around my arm and I was suddenly in front of the apartment building that Anlon had taken me to on my first full day in Phoenix.
"We should have Nick," I said.
"Vampires can't even get in the building. Much like Crow couldn't get in before. It's just you and me this time."
My cell phone began vibrating in my pocket. I pulled it out and saw Nick's number on the display but set the phone to silent and reached for the door. "Let's do this then."
We stepped in the door and the building was eerily silent. I wasn't sure where Anlon's apartment was, but I knew the way to Lolita's apartment, so led the way to the elevator and pushed the button, Falcor hot on my heels.
When the doors slid open a feeling of doom settled in my stomach. I pushed the button to take us up. Turning I caught Falcor's eye.
"You sure about this?" I asked.
"I've got your back, Selena. I know you and I haven't had the best start, but you can trust me to keep you out of real trouble." He grinned at that and I had to join him, smiling and shaking my head.
"All right," I said and returned to watching the elevator numbers light up one at a time. Finally, the elevator stopped, and the doors made a light ring sound before sliding open.
There were no young people there to greet us and not a single sound as we exited the elevator. It was as if the whole building was holding its breath.
I knocked on the door to Lolita's apartment, but there was no sound of the television this time. When no one answered, I tried the door and found it locked. I was about to turn and give up, but Falcor rested his hand above the lock and his magic flooded out, yellow sparks like a fire in the night sky. The dancing magic circled the lock until the sound of a deadbolt disengaging rang through the silence.
I turned the knob again and this time the door slid open on squeaky hinges.
The apartment was dark, but things littered the room as if there was a struggle, or someone had packed up in a hurry and run.
I walked through the room, to where the old rocking chair the Lolita had been seated in used to stand. Now it was an empty space. Her cane was gone too.
Falcor appeared from a doorway I could see led to a bedroom. "Not much left in the closet. I'd say she left in a hurry."
That answered that question. "Do you think the whole coven has left?"
"Let's go find out."
We knocked on every door on that floor and the one below it, then the one below that. We didn't hear a single television or baby crying. No sounds at all. The entire apartment building was vacated.
"I think we can assume they were involved somehow in the murders."
"The whole coven?" I asked, pressing the button to take the elevator down.
Falcor just shrugged. We went down to the lobby and out to the street where a very angry pair of vampires and an irate Crow stood.
"What the hell?" Nick said with a scowl.
"You can't go in there," I said with a shrug of my shoulders that rivalled Falcor's level of indifference.
"They've all left, apparently," I said.
"What?" Zander asked with a shocked expression. "The entire coven has just left?"
"Looks like it," Falcor said.
"Wait, Falcor," I said, grabbing his arm. "Can you take me to the police station? I can check and see if Anlon is at work."
"Not without me," Nick said, grabbing hold of Falcor's arm a second before he shifted us to the alley beside the station.
"I'm going across the street to the diner," Falcor said as Nick and I hurried around to the front of the station.
I waved to him and slipped through the front door. The secretary was on the phone, so we waited in the empty lobby. Officers and regular people wandered around beyond the reception desk, but it was surprisingly quiet in the station during the day.
"They must have had something to do with whatever is killing people," Nick said.
I nodded. "The girl, Mandy, said it was all her fault and to tell Trina she was sorry. What could those girls have possibly done?"
Crow popped up, still angry with me for going back into the witch's coven, but he dropped the book of monsters on the floor beside me, then hopped up onto the reception desk, startling the secretary.
I picked up the book but hadn't seen anything about a monster that could be summoned or created with magic, so I couldn't see how the girl could have had anything to do with it. Certainly not enough that the whole coven had to leave the city.
I flipped through the pages, scanning the text that I knew was actually in some strange language, but thanks to Crow I could read it. There were plenty of monsters. Hundreds in this book alone and I knew that there were more books like this one on the shelves in the vampire library in Canada.
"I don't see how this is helpful," I said to Crow after flipping through most of the pages.
"Can I help you?" the receptionist asked at that moment.
"Yes, is officer Reedon here?" I asked.
"I'm sorry, he's transferred to another precinct," she said. "We were sad to see him go, but I can find another officer for you if you like."
"Where did officer Reedon go?" Nick asked.
"I'm sorry, I can't divulge that information," the receptionist replied.
I thanked her, and left, crossing the street to meet up with Falcor.
At the same time, Zander's car came around the corner and screeched to a halt in front of us.
"What the hell? I'm supposed to be going with you," he said, a deep scowl on his face. It was the first time I had seen him upset.
"Sorry, maybe you need a warlock," Nick said with a snicker.
"Very Funny," Zander said, slamming his car door and striding beside us into the diner. "So, what did you find out?"
"Only that Anlon has transferred to another police stati
on, but not which one," I said, still flipping through the pages of my book.
"Well, it's too bad you don't have a DPI agent on your team to get you information like that," Zander said with a sniff as he plunked down in a chair across from Falcor who was already stuffing his face with a burger and greasy French fries.
"You can find out where he went?" I asked. "Should we even be trying to find him? Don't we have bigger problems than a coven that disappeared?"
"Well, I'm assuming they left because they know who or what is killing people," Falcor said with his mouth full.
"I think that's a safe assumption," I agreed.
We all stared at Zander who was perusing the menu as if there was more than burgers and fries on it.
"Well?" I asked for all of us.
"What?" Zander asked in mock surprise. "Oh, you want me to go find out where our suspect disappeared too? Funny, cause just a few minutes ago, you all zipped off without me."
Nick rolled his eyes, but Zander had a point. "Look, we're sorry we didn't grab you. We won't leave you behind again." I raised my hand in a solemn vow.
Zander grinned. "Okay, I'll go find out. Order me a cheeseburger and fries." Then he slipped out of his chair and I watched him cross the street to the police station out the large window.
I ordered his meal when the waitress took our orders and by the time Zander was crossing the street back towards us. The waitress had set down a big plate of burger and fries in front of each of us.
"Well?" I asked as Zander slid back into his seat.
"Yeah, he's transferred to a small town in eastern Canada."
Nick chuckled. "Must be a huge mess if he left the country."
"I'd say so," I replied. "Considering how much carnage has already fallen on this city." I thought about it for a moment. "We will have to solve this on our own and make a run-up to Canada to talk to the coven after."
"Agreed," Said Nick and Falcor at the same time.
With that settled, we ate in peace. Well, as much peace as we could muster considering the circumstances.
CHAPTER TWENTY
