"Took you long enough," Amber said as she approached.
"I can't believe you didn't call me. And what is he doing here?" She jabbed her thumb at Shane, then felt bad. "No offense, it'd be good to see you under different circumstances."
"None taken," he said, nodding in greeting. "And I volunteered to help since Amber is stubborn and won't just hand the girl over."
So, the council didn't know everything. That was probably for the best.
"We met with this old vampire named Bram, and he said he sold a bunch of stuff to Zachariah Hudson, that half angel we saw." Amber handed her a list scribbled down on a piece of paper. "He bought it all before the attack on Evangeline's house."
She read the list quickly, her brows knitting together as she thought about the supplies. They had to be for multiple spells because she couldn't think of anything that would require all this. Some of the ingredients would even work against each other. Then the name of the vampire registered and she looked up sharply, glaring at Shane. "You took her to see Bram?"
He lifted his hands and took a step back. "She was safe, Bram trusts me."
"You have got to be kidding me. That guy is insane. He uses people."
"He was a little weird but he didn't seem that bad––"
"You don't know his reputation," Ceri snapped before turning her glare back to Shane. "Are you actually trying to help or are you just here to keep an eye on her for the council?"
"I think Amber is being an idiot, but I'm trying to help."
Well, that sounded honest at least. "Fine. Let's get this over with."
It was impossible to miss the spot. She'd seen the pictures on the news, but nothing could prepare you for the wrongness of it. She braced herself and ducked under the police tape. It was a perfect circle about ten feet across where all the light and life seemed to have been stripped away.
Amber leaned in toward it and Shane grabbed her arm, yanking her back a step. “Don’t step inside it!"
Amber batted his hand away. “I’m not an idiot. I’m just trying to smell it.”
Ceri rolled her eyes. They were like children. "Sniff it from farther away. We can't risk you tripping into it. They're not sure what it would do to a werewolf."
She crouched down and opened her bag. Dozens of witches, elves, and other magic users had done tests to try to find out how these spots were made, and if they could be fixed. None of them had come up with anything, but she had something they didn't.
Her owl flew down from the tree and landed on the ground next to her, startling both the werewolves.
"Where the hell did that thing come from?" Shane asked, eyeing it warily. "I didn't hear it."
"Guess you should pay better attention," Ceri said, smirking at him. It was fun to see him a little freaked out, and she didn't want to explain the owl anyhow.
Amber simply looked at it curiously. She knew what it was now, though she'd never seen it up close.
Her bag was a mess. She'd dumped everything in it in a hurry so that she could meet them here. After digging around for a moment, she brought out the sage and a little vial of holy water. She knew she had some lavender in there too but––
Her hand hit something warm and wiggly and she shrieked, almost falling backward as she jerked her hand out of the bag. Woggy was flung through the air, shrieking as well.
"Oh shi––"
Shane grabbed the back of Amber's shirt as she reached over the no magic spot, catching Woggy before he could fall into it. Shane yanked them both back and Amber toppled onto her butt, holding the pixie close to her chest.
"Well, that was close," Amber said drily.
Ceri put her head in her hands and tried to get herself under control. She was not going to cry. "That's it. Woggy is grounded."
Shane laughed. "Is that pixie some kind of a pet or something? I thought witches just used them for parts."
Ceri lifted her head and glared at him. "They're sentient. He's not a pet, he's part of the pack."
"Oh...okay." Shane glanced at Amber as if expecting her to tell him that was just a joke, but Amber was busy making sure Woggy was alright. The pixie seemed rather excited actually and was signing something at her about outside and happy.
Taking a deep breath to shake off the trauma of nearly dumping Woggy into a no magic spot, she found the lavender and set it next to the sage. This was a chance to see if demons were actually involved in the creation of these spots, something that had been bothering her since it had come on the news.
She didn't trust Zachariah. The way he'd acted at the house that day, and on the news, set off warning bells in her head. But just because he couldn't be trusted didn't mean he was entirely wrong. Evangeline didn't seem to be the culprit, but that didn't mean Amber's demon wasn't doing something shady on the side.
Shane crouched down near the edge and sniffed it carefully. "It's weird that magic doesn't work inside it since it smells like magic."
"It smells like death and decay to me," Ceri said as she lit the sage stick. She pushed up to her knees and waved it gently around the edge of the no magic spot. The smoke curled around it, and drifted upward, but couldn't seem to pass over the edge. She frowned and blew gently, trying to coax it into the circle. It simply spread even further in either direction, none of it able to drift forward.
"Is there some kind of barrier?" Amber asked. Woggy was struggling in her hands, so she set him on her shoulder. He liked to climb in everyone's hair and hide in it, which he promptly did, disappearing into Amber's.
Shane grabbed a stick and tossed it into the circle. It passed through unimpeded and landed on the ground. Nothing seemed to happen to it. "Not a physical one."
"Whatever spell created this was evil. The sage won't touch it." Ceri set the bundle of sage next to her, letting it smolder. Having it nearby was calming. It afforded her a little protection against any evil spirits that might be lingering nearby.
The owl shuffled closer, climbing onto her knee. She pet it tentatively. It had never let her touch it before, and she wasn't sure why now was different. It seemed content just to sit on her knee for now though.
She grabbed the holy water and whispered a quick incantation –– infusing the water with her magic to give it a little more oomph –– then squirted some into the circle. The droplets hit the ground and...did nothing.
She frowned. "If this had been created by demons, the holy water should have done something."
"Could it be a natural phenomenon?" Amber asked.
Ceri shook her head. "No, there's something very wrong about it. It feels the opposite of natural."
The owl turned its head to face her and she met its deep, orange eyes. All the sounds around her faded away, including Shane and Amber.
The ground shook. Red eyes glowed in the darkness, surrounded by magic. A voice chanted, growing louder and louder, but she couldn't make out the words. Only the feel of them. They were wrong. Cursed. Hollow.
The owl blinked and she snapped out of the vision.
"Ceri?" Amber prompted again, looking a little concerned.
"Sorry, what?" she asked, rubbing the back of her hand over her eyes.
"I think I hear someone coming down the road, we should go."
Ceri nodded and began gathering up her things. The owl hopped off her knee, then launched into the air, disappearing into the trees. Shane watched it go suspiciously.
"I think that whatever answers we're looking for, we won't find here," she said as she pushed up to her feet. "I don't know what the council wants as proof, but I don't think any demon did this."
Shane shoved his hands in his pockets. "Jameson will stand by his word if you can prove it, but I don't think he knows what he wants to see either. The biggest issue is just disproving Hudson publicly. If it gets out that the council was protecting you, it won't matter what the truth is. It'll be a shit show."
"We'll figure something out." Amber untangled Woggy from her hair. He'd fallen asleep and simply rolled over in her ha
nd. She walked him over to Ceri who took him and set him back in her bag. "I have to take Shane home. I'll see you back at the house."
Ceri nodded and hurried back toward her car. The more they learned about all this, the more it bothered her. Something wasn't adding up. They were missing something important.
She followed Amber's truck back to the main road. As they turned onto the highway, a sleek black sedan turned down the gravel road. She thought she saw a glimpse of blond hair through the tinted windows, but she couldn't be sure.
Chapter 48
GENEVIEVE
Genevieve's favorite part of her job was research. Digging into a client's past and finding every skeleton was important for a defense lawyer. She had to know her client's weaknesses better than the prosecution. If she got blindsided by evidence or something they'd done in the past, the client was screwed.
Finding out everything she could about Paul Greer was probably an abuse of power. After all, she had access to information most people didn't. She didn't feel the slightest bit guilty though.
"Here's your waffles," the waitress said cheerfully as she slid the plate in front of her.
"Thanks," Genevieve said with a smile.
The waitress set Paul's food in front of him –– steak with a side of mashed potatoes –– then hurried away to the next table.
He picked up his fork and knife and raised an eyebrow at her. "Aren't waffles normally a breakfast food?"
"They're delicious, therefore they're breakfast, lunch, and dinner food." She grabbed the blueberry syrup and poured a liberal amount on top of the perfectly golden waffles. This was going to hit the spot. "Thanks for meeting with me on such short notice."
"It was no problem. I was surprised to receive your message, actually. Many new alphas aren't interested in taking on the responsibility of sponsoring someone, especially for a pack that has caused them trouble." He cut into his steak and blood leaked out. In the past that would have grossed her out, but now it just looked good. The wolf was jealous he had steak and she didn't, but she pushed the urges down.
"It is a lot of responsibility, which is why I'm interested in negotiating a few things before I approach Amber. I guarantee she'd turn you down without hesitation if we can't work out something that will help her before I bring it up." She watched his reaction closely. He did look a little surprised. Perhaps he hadn't expected her to be so prepared.
He finished chewing his bite, then set his fork down and clasped his hands together in front of him. "Alright, that seems fair enough. What do you want?"
She smiled, expecting the question. "I think we should start with what you want. Seeking out Amber is an odd choice. Most potential alphas would go to someone like Jameson first."
"You haven't been a werewolf long, so you haven't seen the way things have changed in the past decade," he said, his eyes going distant. "Some of the packs are becoming more like gangs than a werewolf pack. We're meant to be family, not mercenaries for hire. The alphas also try to suppress the instincts of their pack members so much that they end up acting out like rebellious teenagers."
"There has been a rise in gang violence associated with werewolf packs," she agreed with a nod. "Especially in cities."
"Born or bitten doesn't matter to me. If anything, the bitten wolves help the packs. Their issues with control remind us that we aren't human. We aren't tame. There is a balance between control and accepting the wolf that lives up here." He tapped a long finger against his head. "Lockhart never got that. He never accepted how much the wolf drove him, and he became mean. And selfish. He wouldn't allow challenges within the pack and simply chose his favorites for various positions. No one respected his beta or gammas as a result."
"They were definitely assholes," Genevieve muttered, sopping up some more syrup with an already soggy piece of waffle. "How does Amber fit into all this?"
Paul smiled at that. "She didn't give a fuck about what people thought. She demanded their respect, and found a way to not only enter the Trials, but survive them. I have changes to make in this pack, and allying myself with someone like Amber sends a message not only to my pack but everyone else as well."
"It doesn't also have to do with the fact that Jameson refused to sponsor you once before?"
Paul sat back, a smile forming on his face. "You looked into my past in more detail than I expected."
"I might be recently bitten, but I wasn't born yesterday. You might want to send a message, but I knew that couldn't be it." She took a drink of water and waited for him to explain. She already knew the gossip, but hearing from him why he'd been turned down was important.
"My original pack fell apart. I was the beta, and I expected that I'd be able to take control and move on. I expected it to be simple, but I made a mistake." He sighed and tapped his thumb on the table, an almost nervous gesture. "I didn't gain the pack's respect. A few of them broke the rules, went out on a full moon and got drunk, and someone got killed. It was my fault. I'd seen the signs and thought simply forbidding it was enough. I'd barely been alpha for a day but thought my word was law. It was naive."
"What should you have done?" she asked curiously. Amber never really told them what to do, but with such a small pack, they hadn't had any issues with idiotic pack members.
"Watched them. One of them showed disrespect when I gave the orders, but I didn't want to be too hard on them since their alpha had just died. I should have challenged him and forced his submission, for his own good. He was wild with grief. His wolf wanted a fight and I could have given it to him." He rubbed his hand along his jaw with a sigh. "Instead, he is spending life in jail. That is my fault."
"Well, we all make mistakes. Sounds like you've learned from yours," she said, setting her fork to the side. It was time to get down to business. "So, Amber is a bit of a last resort for you. All the risk is on her if she does this for you. What can you offer to my pack?"
He leaned in and rested his arms on the table. "I think the first thing we should discuss is an alliance. However, I would also like to offer to cover the sponsor’s fee. From what I understand, Amber doesn't necessarily have the funds for it."
Genevieve nodded. "That sounds like an excellent start."
She smiled as they got down to the nitty-gritty. This was something she was good at. Hopefully, Amber wouldn't be pissed about it, but this could be really good for the pack. Right now, no one really respected them. It would only cause problems in the future if that wasn't remedied. Even if Amber asked Ceri to be her beta instead, she wanted to do this for her.
Chapter 49
AMBER
Amber rubbed the demon mark. Angel had been mysteriously absent today. Normally, he followed her around trying to ruin her mood. The absence made her suspicious, but perhaps he was spending his time harassing Evangeline instead. She’d seen him talking to her the night that half angel had come on the news.
"Is the mark hurting?” Derek asked, sipping on a beer. He'd been at the warehouse all day, and she felt bad about not helping, but everything had gone downhill fast after that council meeting.
"Yeah, I just haven't seen the demon in a while. Makes me antsy," she admitted with a shrug.
Eloise grunted as she sat down on the couch. They'd decided to include her and Evangeline in tonight's conversation. They needed to know about the most recent issue, and Amber was hoping they might be able to remember something helpful from the night of the attack.
Ceri handed Eloise a small vial to help with the pain of her healing ribs, then turned to her and Derek. "You ready?"
"Yeah, let's get this over with." She headed into the living room and plopped down in the armchair she'd dragged into the room just for this.
This needed to be a pack meeting, not just her standing in front of them telling them what to do, and she thought sitting might help with that. Genevieve and Ceri sat on either side of her, while Tommy took the last seat on the couch next to Evangeline.
With a sigh, she leaned forward, bracing her elbow
s on her knees. "This morning when I arrived at the council meeting, they demanded that I hand Evangeline over to the police."
Eloise visibly tensed, her hand going to her daughter's arm. "You can't––"
"I know," Amber said, waving her concerns away. "I wouldn't do that, and I can't anyhow with the deal I've made with the demon, Kadrithan. Fortunately, they're willing to give me a week to prove that Evangeline isn't the one destroying magic."
"Only a week?" Tommy asked, his face pinched in concern.
She nodded. “Ceri's cousin is looking for the sorcerer, and I talked to someone else today who gave me some interesting insight into that guy on the news, Zachariah Hudson. I have an address for him, and I think I should go see him tomorrow.”
Ceri and Genevieve turned on her in sync, each of them in varying states of shock.
“You can’t be serious,” Ceri choked out.
“I’m not going to say I have Evangeline, but I want to try to figure out what he’s after, really. He’s working with the sorcerer, so he has to have a different reason for wanting her dead.”
“That is the worst idea you’ve ever had. Hands down,” Genevieve said, shaking her head. “If you go try to talk to this guy he’s going to show up here with the police, and they’re going to find Evangeline.”
“We can’t just sit here and wait for something to fall in our laps.” Amber crossed her arms and sat back in her chair, exasperated.
“What if you just send me away somewhere?” Evangeline suggested. “If I leave, then everyone will be safe.”
As if summoned by the utterance, Angel appeared. “She’s not going anywhere until I figure out how she was found in the first place. I won’t risk sending her into greater danger.”
Amber met Evangeline’s gaze. The girl looked as furious as she felt. They didn’t have much in common but they both hated Kadrithan’s constant interfering.
Misfit Angel Page 20