Rex still hadn’t moved from the door, his eyes watching as she wandered around the room.
“You fancy room service? We didn’t get to eat at dinner,” she asked absently.
“This place doesn’t do room service.”
She could have probably guessed that.
“Why did you come?” she asked.
“Why did you not call me?” he countered.
She clenched her teeth, not wanting to overreact. “I had it under control.”
“Clearly not. If I wasn’t there…”
“What? What could have happened?” She strode up to him, her anger vibrant. “You need to let me do my job.”
“That I hired you for.” His eyes flashed arctic. “I’m going to speak to Cole tomorrow morning.”
“And ask him what? Why he’s with a woman who’s eating his people? Or how he could allow Francis Carter to become so entangled with darkness his body was ripped to shreds by his own hands?”
“It’s his wife.” A snarl.
“Who’s killing his people.” She crinkled her nose in disgust.
“How could you possibly understand their situation?”
“Understand?” She couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
“She might give them protection,” Rex laughed emotionlessly.
“Bullshit, protection from what?”
“Pack is everything. I can understand if keeping her around stabilised the pride.”
“I’m not listening to this,” she replied as she stormed past him, her hand touching the door handle before his palm smacked against the wood.
“You don’t have a pack, you don’t understand what you would do for them.” His arm tensed as she tried to open the door, his strength unmoving. “My pack is everything. There is nothing I wouldn’t do for them.” He looked straight into her eyes. “My family, however, is my life.”
Alice froze in place, the emotion coming off of him raw, powerful. “Rex…”
“I would kill for my brothers. I would die for them.” His voice quivered, thick with hopelessness, pain.
Alice felt her own heartache, the emptiness her family left behind radiating. She understood, better than anyone else she understood the pain, something that never went away, but it wasn’t enough. Her anger stronger, hotter.
“You didn’t tell me that it was your brother we were searching for.”
“It didn’t matter.”
“How can you say that?” She heard her voice rise even as she fought to control it. “I’m doing everything I can to help you and you didn’t even give me all the information?”
“I said it didn’t matter.” He stepped forward, his height dwarfing hers as he crowded her against the door. “It’s irrelevant information, knowing wouldn’t have helped.”
“It would give me somewhere else to search, more people to question. Your other brother...”
“Isn’t available.” He raised his own voice, his tone so close to Alpha she had to grit her teeth. “I have given you everything you need, kept nothing from you that I didn’t feel relevant. Yet you still go off on your own, not giving me what I’ve paid for.”
“Do not question my ability.” She felt the intense heat in her stomach, rising with each breath as she fought for control. Relaxing into the power overload she calmed herself, keeping the power within limits.
“Is that a threat?” A whisper against her cheek, a hand twisted in her hair. “Do you think you’re stronger than me?”
Alice let out a flame, a flash in front of his face in warning. “Don’t push me.”
Without warning his lips came down on her own, his tongue assaulting hers with teasing strokes. He released a growl as he grabbed her wrist, pulling her hand from the door and removing the concealer charm from where she had tucked it. The illusion immediately broke, revealing the bite mark. Rex licked across it, his chest grumbling as he nipped her skin.
It felt invigorating. It felt perfect. It felt…
“Stop this.” She pulled her face away, stopping herself from taking it further, from pulling his lips back to her own.
He ignored her, assaulting her mouth once again.
“I said, no.” She pushed against him, the intense lust dissipating the further apart they got. “I don’t sleep with people who don’t trust me.” She pushed at him again, her thoughts clearer as her blue Tinkerbell floated around her wrist.
He looked angry before his face closed off. “It’s just a fuck, Miss Skye.”
Ice cold water. “It’s Agent Skye.” She blasted a space between them, making him jump back or risk being burned. “I don’t really understand what this is,” she pointed between them.
“Well if you need me to draw you a picture...”
“You think I don’t see you? You think you hide behind this emotionless intensity, this mask, but you don’t. It’s a cold rage that your wolf is forcing you to confront.” Her tone was husky, emotions running high. “What is so bad that you have to hide from me? Hide it from yourself?”
“You know nothing.” A hiss. “You’re just a stupid fucking female.” He stood with his arms crossed, tension coiled up his spine.
“What do you want from me?”
“I want you to fix it.” A shout.
“Fix what?”
“Everything,” he snarled, turning to punch his fist through the wall. “I thought you would be the one. You seem alpha enough.”
She gaped at the hole, unable to speak.
“But I don’t know anymore.” He stared at his hand, watching the blood ooze gently down his knuckles. “I don’t know.” With that he yanked open the front door, almost bringing it off his hinges before slamming it shut behind him.
Alice stood there, cold, unable to move until she heard his footsteps fade into the night.
Alice flipped the visor down as the early morning sun streamed through the windscreen. She had been sitting in the car park of the local market for a while, deciding whether to get out or not. She had been up all night, unsure what to say to Rex. Hours later she had gone down to her car, intending to drive home when she noticed him fast asleep in his 4X4. She felt anger at seeing him, anger at what he was trying to do, but mostly anger at his situation. She knew what a man looked like when he was out of options. So she decided to stay in the motel, her annoyance at the situation dissolving, at least until she read the text in the morning.
Agent Skye,
I’m sorry I wasn’t there when you woke up, but I can’t let you distract me from what needs to be done. Talking to Cole went well, he has given me a lead about a woman Francis was dating when he went AWOL. She owns a shop in the market a few miles up the road, I’m going to head there now.
Will talk when we get back.
Rexley Wild.
“Distract?” Alice closed off her phone, throwing it into the glove compartment. How was she distracting him? Bullshit.
Voices filtered in through the gap in the window, couples arguing about who was driving, an old woman gushing over a recent purchase and even a small child wailing at being denied sweets. A few rows down Rex’s huge car gleamed, standing out against the other less expensive cars and bikes. She opened her door, the sun instantly warming her skin.
The market was bustling with colour, rows and rows of wooden and concrete stalls selling everything from handmade jewellery and clothes to basic concealer charms and amulets. The air vibrated with energy, the exhilaration infectious. A woman bellowed how fresh her fruit and vegetables were, thrusting her treasures at anybody walking too close to her stall. Apples, kiwis, lychees, pineapples, all layered one on top of each other, all glistening in their ripeness. Alice fought not to get side-tracked, her eyes scanning everyone as she searched for Rex.
She had no idea where to start.
At a loss in the busy crowd she searched for someone to ask directions, deciding on one of the stall owners.
Manoeuvring through the crowd Alice found a beautiful collection of stones and crystals sitting elegantl
y atop velvet cloth and oak slices. Touching one she felt it sing, begging to be bought. Crystals were greedy things, natural formations created by the earth used by magic users for spells, the smooth stones able to store a small amount of chi. Alice reached out and touched another crystal, a beautiful pendant, the rock almost glowing with the attention, the small gold flecks shining against the dark blue of the raw stone.
“That crystal was made for you by the song it’s projecting,” the stall owner mused, smiling over at Alice, her multicoloured head turban complementing the colours of all her stones and crystals. Taking the pendant from Alice she held it up to the sun, the gold specks sparkling. “Lapis Lazuli. Nice choice, a protection stone that protects against physical and psychic attacks. Great for protection circles, would you like to buy it?”
“Yes please,” Alice smiled, stroking the cold surface. Handing over the money she allowed the woman to tie a leather knot at the back of her neck, letting the crystal sit in the hollow of her throat. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, my dear. I love it when my crystals find their rightful owners.”
Alice nodded, bringing up her hand to hold the crystal gently, the smooth texture incredibly comforting.
“Oh, my.” The woman grabbed her wrist, twisting it so she could see her bracelet better. “What is that?” Her brows furrowed as she stared at the moon pendant, a frown on her face.
“Alice?” a voice shouted. Alice turned just as Rex stormed towards her, his face annoyed. “What are you doing here?” He pulled her away.
“What, I’m Alice again?” He ignored her. “I was looking for you,” she said through clenched teeth. Turning back to the stall owner she started to apologise.
“Do you know what that is?” the woman asked frantically, trying to grab her wrist again. “Do you understand?”
“Thank you but we should be going.” Rex pulled her through the crowd, towards the car park. “You shouldn’t be here,” he snarled.
“What?” Alice dug her heel in, pulling her arm free with a tug. Her eyes narrowed as she noticed his slight smirk, knowing she could only get him to let go because he allowed it. She preferred him when he was emotionless. “I’m supposed to be helping.”
“I said we would talk back home.”
“Well, I’m already here.” She stared at him, watching his pissed off expression smooth out into one of complete detachment. Ah, there was the emotionless she was used to.
“Have you found this lady yet?” she questioned.
“Yes,” he replied, reserved. “She’s in a cabin at the back.”
“Have you spoken to her?”
“Not yet.”
Nodding her head Alice turned back to the crowd, the number of people thinning as the sun hid behind the clouds, the temperature dropping.
“It’s this way.” Rex walked beside her, his movements frigid as he controlled his anger the only way he knew how. Deciding not to antagonise him further she quietly walked towards the corner of the market square, following to the half concrete half wood cabins.
Beautiful tapestries hung from the top of the concrete shop to the furthest left, flowing down to separate into sections. Each tapestry was handmade to create different scenes, everything from a field of tulips to a feast in a great hall. Inside, the handcrafted scenes became darker, the once beautiful tulips burning, their beautiful colours twisted and warped from the heat. Further inside one showed a scene with people bowing to a horned beast, blood oozing from bite marks across their flesh. Another showed people burning at the stake, their faces distorted in pain in such detail you could almost hear them scream.
“Can I help you?” asked a woman who had walked into the room and begun draping a semi-finished tapestry over an old wooden chair. Rex remained quiet, his muscles bunched as she went to stand beside him.
“Yes, we wanted to ask some questions.”
“Questions?” she frowned, her eyes drifting between them. “I’m sorry, who are you?”
The woman was around the same height as Alice, her hair jet black and tied in twin plaits draped over her shoulders. It was her eyes that held Alice’s attention, she had never seen eyes so dark, even darker than Dread's, like charcoal orbs surrounded by lashes. Alice swore she could even see flicks of red as the woman appraised Rex.
“I know you,” the woman almost purred as she walked over and dragged one of her long nails across his chest. “You have some ‘splaining to do.” A sharp cackle.
“We need to ask questions.” Rex finally said, his voice cold, no recognition on his face, yet he didn’t step back.
“Fine.” With a twist of her wrist the front of the shop closed, a lock clicking into place. Once she was happy the door was secure she lifted a tapestry, revealing a hidden archway. “No one will disturb us. Please follow me into my office.” Without a backwards glance the woman sauntered through, her black braids swinging behind her.
The hidden room was faintly lit with red candles, the flames creating shadows dancing across the black and white portraits adorning the walls. Not one face was smiling.
“Take a seat.” The woman threw her hand out in the rough direction of the table, her attention on the shelf by the back wall. With a little click, the lights above turned on.
Alice carefully studied the room, warily eyeing the shelves along the walls.
She felt something stare.
Turning around she eyed the portraits hanging on the walls, their eyes dead. Yet, when she moved, they seemed to follow. A clatter as the woman removed something from a shelf, dropping it onto the table. Deciding against the vulnerability of being seated, Alice chose to stand behind Rex as he folded himself into one of the chairs, arms braced on the table.
“So why are you here?” the woman asked Rex, completely ignoring Alice.
“I need to talk about Francis Carter.”
“Francis?” The woman’s smirk that was etched on her face started to fade, a black look replacing it. “Francis is dead.”
“We know. We want to know how.”
“How?” Barely a whisper this time. “You want to know how?” A dry laugh. “He was chosen, gifted. He wanted the power, craved it.”
“What power?” Alice moved from behind Rex.
“But he was unable to control it. So it consumed him.” The woman continued as if she hadn’t heard Alice.
“Annie.” Rex tapped his knuckles against the table. “I remember. Your name is Annie.”
“Ah, so you do know me,” she laughed.
“More heard of you. You’re the gatekeeper.”
“Precisely.” Turning away from the shelf she sat at the other end of the table, opposite to Rex.
Sensing movement in the corner of her eye, Alice looked past Annie and regarded the shelves behind, an array of creatures forever frozen in position. A taxidermy rat was bent at an impossible angle along its backbone, beside it an owl with its head turned one-eighty and a boar’s head with a rabbit’s carcass impaled on one of its tusks.
This place was next level creepy. “What’s a gatekeeper?”
Annie glared over at Alice as if she had forgotten she was even there. “I find people worthy enough for the cause.”
“The cause?” Alice frowned, where had she heard that phrase before? “Wait.” Alice thought back, remembering her conversation with the bouncer. “The cause? Are you talking about The Becoming?”
Rex tensed, refusing to look at her.
“Rexley Wild, who have you brought with you?” Annie stepped closer, her chi electric as she flared, testing Alice’s magic against her own. “A witch? Why have you brought me a witch?” She looked at Rex for an answer. “They’re not going to be pleased.”
“Who? Who isn’t going to be pleased?” Alice asked.
“Alice we need to go.” Rex stood to leave, his movements edgy.
“Wait, your name’s Alice?” Annie’s eyes narrowed. “They’re not going to be pleased at all.”
“Alice, please,” Rex begged, his
voice urgent.
“Yes, Alice, white magic is so boring isn’t it? Never thought about going to the dark side.”
“Dark side?” Alice frowned, flicking her attention to Rex, then back again. “No, never.”
“No?” Annie stalked closer, her movements slow. “Not even a little bit?” Lifting up her sleeve she showed her scarification tattoo, a ram’s head entangled in a pentagram. Twisting her wrist she held out her hand, beckoning Alice to touch.
Alice almost did. Almost. “Rex let’s go.” As soon as the words left her mouth, he had pulled her back into the market, the crowd having completely dispersed.
“We need to get out of here.” His eyes darted around the crowd.
The cold air hit her, clearing her thoughts. “What the fuck was that? This is more than a normal lost person case…”
“Calm down,” Rex leant down to hiss in her face.
“Calm down?” She moved towards the car park, deciding only a few steps in that she wasn’t finished. “You know what? I can’t help you. You hired me to help and yet keep vital information from me.”
“I’m not…”
“Don’t.” She cut him off with a hand gesture. “You knew that witch. You knew what The Becoming was.” She barely paused to take a breath. “What even is The Becoming? Some sort of cult?”
“Alice, you have to understand…” He slowly backed her away from the cabin.
“Understand? UNDERSTAND WHAT?” Her voice rose again, anger a vibration beneath her skin. “I’m good at my job but you’re giving me nothing. How am I supposed to help you?” She felt lost as she faced him, her energy zapped.
“I don’t know what to say…” His eyes widened, flicking behind her.
Annie stood in the doorframe, her head tilted as she watched them argue.
“You can’t leave.” She stepped out, a smirk tilting her lips. “We were just getting acquainted.”
“Alice, please.” His eyes darted back to Annie. “We’ll discuss it back home.”
“I said,” Annie twirled her hand, a black ball of aura coating her skin. “You can’t leave.” The air became static.
Witch's Sorrow: A Witch Detective Urban Fantasy (Alice Skye Series Book 1) Page 17