Bat Shift Crazy: An Ex-Shifter turned Vampire Hunter Urban Fantasy (The Legend of Nyx Book 2)
Page 20
"No phone calls in or out of Vilokan," Cain said. "And she won't be going out to the city for a while. But I'll make sure Rutherford communicates regular updates."
"Thank you," Devin said. "I appreciate it."
Three knocks thudded on Cain's door. Cain stood up and opened the door.
"Malinda," Cain said, smiling. "I'm glad to see you're doing well."
Malinda was in a wheelchair. Cain helped her into the room. "Did you come to say goodbye to Nicky?"
"No, doc," Malinda said. "At least I hope not. I'm better. What I need now is physical therapy, and, you know, I can do that anywhere. I was thinking, you know, since I don't have a family to go back to and I'm not at all inclined to wake my parents anytime soon, that maybe I could go with Nicky and Devin."
Devin and I exchanged glances. "What do you think, Devin?"
"I'm not a blood witch. I mostly work with fire. But, Malinda, I think your abilities could be helpful."
Cain bit his lip. "She needs Hailey's guidance. Bloodcraft can be dangerous. I'm not so sure."
"I'm sure she would be a great help," Malinda said. "And I'll stay in touch with her. I promise. But Nicky is my only friend. I need a friend now, more than anything."
"What do you say, Nicky?" Cain asked.
I smiled. "I'll have to check with Donnie. She's our roommate. And I drove a motorcycle, so I don't know if I'll be able to drive you to your therapy."
"I'll take care of that," Devin said. "But I have to let you know, Malinda, we have a lot going on. We have to focus on stopping Mina."
Malinda raised her hand. "I won't get in the way of that. I want to help. I promise I won't be a burden. Once I'm walking again, you're right. I might not be as powerful as Hailey, but I am a blood witch. I'll only get stronger with practice."
"Then, pending Donnie's approval which won't be an issue, it's settled. Looks like we have a new roommate."
Chapter thirty-eight
Pauli escorted us back to Annabelle's office. Apparently, despite everything we'd went through, the Voodoo Queen was a stickler for the rules. Not because she was worried about us, per se, but after the powers of heaven and hell collided in the streets of Vilokan, the citizens were a bit uneasy. Following protocol was more for their sake than ours. Pauli hugged us both.
"If you two are ever up for a threesome, you know who to call."
Devin laughed. "I don't think we'll be reaching out anytime soon."
"Damn," Pauli said. "Can't blame a boy for trying."
"Catch you later, Pauli," I said as we left the elevator and met Annabelle. She, with Hailey at her side, was back to pouring over the grimoire. They were already at work trying to find a way to defeat angels. Hopefully, it wouldn't come to that, but, you know, we needed to be prepared.
"Did you ever figure out how they got into Violokan?" I asked. Obviously, Lazarus and Victoria had shifted to look like Pauli and Devin. But they didn't have access to Violokan, even though they looked like people who were supposed to be there. Only vodousiants can open the door on the side of the cathedral.
Annabelle sighed. "When they came to the door, I saw them on the camera. Pauli, or who I thought was Pauli, insisted he needed my help. I asked why he didn't just teleport Devin in, you know, since he was totally shitfaced at the time, but Pauli can be a bitch sometimes."
"You don't say," I said, chuckling.
"He had a big shopping bag full of new clothes and such," Annabelle said. "And he didn't want to teleport out of his outfit. I just figured, you know, since it was Pauli, whatever."
"And once they were in, they let Mina in later?" I asked.
"When the city isn't locked down, you don't need any special power to open the doors from the inside. Needless to say, I've corrected the problem."
"And you didn't see Mina on the cameras?" Devin asked.
Annabelle shrugged. "It's not like I'm watching them constantly. People come and go regularly. Hell, it was just a stroke of luck or bad luck as it proved to be, that I was in my office when Lazarus and Victoria showed up pretending to be Pauli and Devin."
"Don't beat yourself up," I said. "How could you have known?"
"They're right," Hailey said. "This isn't your fault. By the way, Malinda, are you really leaving us?"
"I am," Malinda said. "But if we could still work together. By phone, or whatever. I could use some help figuring out my abilities."
Haile smiled. "We'll Facetime. Just don't do anything crazy, you know, like any binding spells with any family members' DNA."
Malinda laughed. "After several years paying for that mistake, I don't think it's one I'll repeat any time soon."
"Thank you for all your help," I said.
Hailey nodded. "I'll be speaking to Mercy, too. I can't speak for her, but I think the Vampire Council will be more than eager to help given that their ongoing existence is at stake."
"I still intend to acquire the grimoire before Mina does. But if she gets it, we'll need all the help we can get."
"Consider the Voodoo community allies as well," Annabelle said. "You might not be able to reach me by phone, not while I'm in Vilokan, but if you need anything, reach out to Hailey."
"Of course," I said. "And if you find out anything that might help, please let me know."
"Already planning on it," Annabelle said. "I'll be speaking to Oggie as well."
"He's your boyfriend, right? A Loa?"
Annabelle nodded. "He's the Loa of war. I can't say if he has any experience facing off with angels, but we've taken on a few demons before, and, at the end of the day, angels are just the same."
"Except that they have celestial rather than infernal power behind them," I said.
"Right," Annabelle said. "But we aren't without resources. If it comes down to it, we'll be ready to fight."
Chapter thirty-nine
Donnie was surprisingly enthused about the prospect of having a new roommate. Not because she was eager to add more people to our apartment but because, come to find out, on their last date on the Plaza, Caleb proposed to her. I couldn't be happier for her. It did mean, though, that Donnie would be moving out. We'd have a free room for Malinda, after all. Also, Donnie said she had a few connections with some physical therapists. As a pharmacist, they often sold various items that were used for people recovering from surgeries or injuries. It made sense that she might know someone.
The drive back to Kansas City was uneventful. Malinda slept in the back seat most of the way. I wasn't surprised. She was expending a lot of energy just to stay upright in her chair, not to mention wheeling around in it.
As luck would have it, we arrived back in town about an hour before the nightly show at Nicky's. Geraldo certainly had a Gina starred show planned, but I wasn't opposed to surprising the crowd with my return. In fact, I was looking forward to it. It had been too long since I'd had a chance to take the stage. Even missing one night performing and I start itching for the stage.
Gina's crowd was a bit more rambunctious than the audience I'd attracted, but, apparently, she'd gained a solid following after just a couple shows. I wasn't surprised. Gina was a talented diva.
I caught up with Geraldo already halfway into his transformation into Gina in the green room as Devin wheeled Malinda in to enjoy the show from the audience.
"Guess who's back," I said as Geraldo or Gina spotted me in the makeup mirror. Apparently, enough of Gina had taken over that she immediately jumped up and wrapped her arms around me.
"I'm so excited to see you!" Gina said. "And the crowd will be thrilled."
I sat down at my makeup mirror and started primping myself. I had everything I needed to doll myself up. "Still singing your original songs?"
Gina giggled. "A few. But I listened to what you said. I've been singing more covers than before."
"You do you, Gina," I said. "People love you."
"Awe. Thanks, Nicky!"
"So no problems while I was gone?"
Gina paused a moment. "That depends
what you mean by problems. We ran out of booze last night."
"Didn't you keep the bar supplied?"
"I did," Gina nodded. "Apparently, I'm attracting more of a drinking sort of crowd."
"And they drank everything?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.
"Honey, they even drank the cheap stuff. I never had to call more Ubers for people in my life."
"Well, so long as everyone's enjoying themselves. That's what it's all about, right?"
"Totally. And no worries. I double-stocked the bar tonight."
"Which will probably mean twice the Ubers," I said, chuckling.
When Gina took the stage and started singing, the reason for the alcohol shortage became abundantly clear. Her opening number, which, based on the chorus, must've been titled "Take Another Shot," was basically a series of verses about things that pissed her and other people off. Then, she belted out her chorus: "If that's you, then take another shot!"
The bar was busier than I'd ever seen it. And once you have the people drinking, well, a certain number of them don't stop. I'm not sure it was good for the reputation of my club, but it certainly did wonders for the bottom line. I hadn't looked at the books yet, but I was pretty sure we were raking it in.
By the time I took the stage, I was pretty sure that most of the crowd was thoroughly intoxicated. When they saw me, I don't think I'd ever heard so many enthusiastic cheers in my life. And my crowds had always been strong.
I finished my last song and took a bow.
Then, the crowd started chatting.
"Bring the Bat! Bring the Bat! Bring the Bat!"
I chuckled a little. They'd still think it was a magic trick, that I was a master of illusion. But who was I to deny my fans what they wanted? I placed my microphone back in its stand.
I shifted into bat form, leaving my stilettos and dress behind. I flew around the room to the loudest cheers I'd ever heard. It wasn't just loud because of my enhanced hearing or the average level of intoxication. They loved the bit. They were bat shift crazy. Little did they know what I'd gone through to master my little trick.
End of Book 2
To be continued in...
No Shift, Sherlock
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AUTHOR NOTES
Bat Shift Crazy was a lot of fun to write. Ever since I wrote Bloody Mad I've been itching to get back to the Vilokan Asylum of the Magically and Mentally Deranged. Just not as a patient! These books have been so fun to write that I've decided to start a new series (coming after Nyx is complete) featuring Cain and the Vilokan Asylum--check it out here!
The action gets turned up a notch in Bat Shift Crazy. Since Nicky's acceptance of her body, her transgenderism, and the like was a major theme in Scared Shiftless it's not as big of a theme here--at least not directly. At the heart of her struggles is the fact that she's only been human for five years, but she's in an adult relationship, running a night club, doing adult things, and all kinds of things that no one else who has ever been on earth for a mere five years would ever do. Of course, she's a lot older than that. But what of her past existence really has much carry-over into the present? Her talents, her voice, etc. Now, though, we find that Nicky is able to embrace what's good about her past without letting the horror of what she was define her, now. I strove to show a unique blend of Nicky's immaturity here (as a human of five years) and her maturity as a centuries-old elemental. I hope you found that depth in her character interesting. I sure had a lot of fun discovering these things about her in the process of writing!
There are a lot of folks I should thank for their help writing this book. First, thank you to my wife and children for leaving town to visit family for two weeks. Yeah, I know, it sounds callous--but I wrote the bulk of this book while they were gone! I missed them. They are home now. I'm glad for it. But it was certainly a journey, absorbing myself in this story for a couple weeks straight and doing nothing else (Except for the obvious essentials! I'm not that nasty!). After all, writing prolifically with a seven year old, three year old, and two year old sometimes presents its challenges! The extra time alone helped!
Also, thank you to those who read and reviewed Scared Shiftless and sent me your feedback. If you read the original edition of Scared Shiftless it may be worth logging into Amazon and navigating to your digital orders page so you can run an update. There are a few changes--especially in the finale--that might be wroth checking out. Nothing substantially different in terms of how it affects Nicky's story, but there's a little more action than was included in the first edition.
In the first pages of Bat Shift Crazy we see more slayage than the entire first book in the series. Of course, things are never quite as they seem. And there's a lot more going on behind the scenes with Mina, the order, the catacomb vampires, and the younglings they've been creating, than we realize. But are they the only threat on the scene that has an interest in Nicky? I suppose we'll have to find out in No Shift, Sherlock!
Thank you to everyone who read this book. I hope you enjoyed it. It's truly a dream come true to be able to write my fun (dark-ish) little stories fulltime and it wouldn't be possible without my passionate and enthusiastic readers and fans. I hope you'll continue with the next book in the series! Until then, happy reading!
-Theo
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Introducing the Vilokan Asylum of the Magically and Mentally Deranged
Welcome to the Vilokan Asylum of the Magically and Mentally Deranged.
I'm Doctor Cain. I'll be supervising your treatment plan.
Yes, before you ask, I am that Cain.
I've come a long way since I became the world's first murderer.
I'm now a licensed psychiatrist.
What is it you just asked? You heard that I was cursed?
Yes, I'm also the world's first werewolf...
But don't worry. I have it under control.
It won't interfere with your progress at Vilokan Asylum.
LEARN MORE: CLICK HERE
ALSO BY THEOPHILUS MONROE
The Druid Legacy
Druid’s Dance
Bard’s Tale
Ovate’s Call
Rise of the Morrigan
The Fomorian Wyrmriders
Wyrmrider Ascending
Wyrmrider Vengeance
Wyrmrider Justice
The Voodoo Legacy
Voodoo Academy
Grim Tidings
Death Rites
Watery Graves
Voodoo Queen
The Legacy of a Vampire Witch
Bloody Hell
Bloody Mad
Bloody Wicked
Bloody Devils
Bloody Gods
The Legend of Nyx
Scared Shiftless
Bat Shift Crazy
No Shift, Sherlock
Shift for Brains
Shift Happens
The Vilokan Asylum of the Magically and Mentally Deranged
The Curse of Cain
More to Come!
Nanoverse
Algorithm
Nanoswarm
Posthuman
Nanowar
The Blood Witch Saga
Coming Soon!
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Theophilus Monroe, Bat Shift Crazy: An Ex-Shifter turned Vampire Hunter Urban Fantasy (The Legend of Nyx Book 2)