Pretty Little Fliers

by Erin Johnson

  He jutted out his bottom jaw. “Are these…?”

  “Melisinthe Lunas?” I waggled my brows in confirmation. “You know it.”

  He frowned deeper and peered at the shoes. “If you got these from that stall down Dubloon Alley, they’re knockoffs.”

  I shook my head and crossed my arms over my chest, feeling quite self-satisfied. “Duh. No, I got them from that secondhand shop behind the place with all the birds?” I grinned. “Used, but real.”

  “Huh.” Will stood, but his eyes kept darting down to my boots, an envious flare to his nostrils.

  I grinned, pleased to have finally gotten the reaction from him I’d been hoping for.

  “Not bad, right?”

  Will lifted a thick, light brown brow, his gaze focused on the paperwork again. “You get these with your cop money?”

  I nodded, appreciating the slightly tapered toe of the boots. “I got a little bonus for going beyond the call of duty and catching the real murderer.” I shrugged. “I decided to buy myself something nice.”

  I’d spent the last five years wearing out the same once-nice pair of boots I’d had back when I was a lawyer. They were a constant reminder of a life I’d lost—it was time to move on. Besides, I was looking forward to having dry toes again.

  Will’s blue eyes darted to my face. “This has nothing to do with wanting to look good for that dish of a cop?”

  Heat flushed up my neck, and I sucked in a quick breath. “No.” It really didn’t. Though being around Peter and the other cops and people we’d interviewed had made me realize how far I’d let myself go. Surely sprucing up the ol’ appearance a little wasn’t a bad thing?

  “Hm.”

  Will was clearly unconvinced.

  “So… you’re not getting evicted? Yet?”

  I rolled my eyes. “Thanks for the vote of confidence, but no, you won’t have a new roommate anytime soon.” I batted my lashes at him. “Try to contain your disappointment.” I grinned and settled back into the chair. “Peter said he’s going to officially put me on the list of police liaisons and consultants.” I shrugged. “With more jobs coming in through them—good paying jobs, too— I don’t think I’ll be worrying about making rent for a while.”

  Will pressed his lips tight and nodded down at his paperwork.

  Uh-oh. It was not like Will to hold back on saying anything that came into his mind.

  He’d once taken a bite of stir fry, immediately spat it out, and accused the street food vendor of serving us sewer rat. He’d even taken samples back to his clinic, tested them in the lab, then marched us both back to the stall with evidence and demanded a refund. I mean… he hadn’t been wrong, though my stomach wished he had.

  I shot him a flat look. “Spit it out.”

  His throat bobbed. “Look. I’m glad you’re finally putting your talents to good use.”

  “But?” I lifted a brow.

  “But—” He let out a heavy sigh and looked up, throwing the clipboard onto the counter behind. “But what in the shell are you thinking, Jolene?” He gaped at me. “Peter? Don’t forget it’s Officer Flint to you and the rest of us bottom-dwelling Darkmoon denizens, not to mention”—he lowered his voice to a hiss—“shifters! I’m sure it’s fun to get caught up in the fantasy, Jolene, but this is all we can be—don’t forget, we have to live in the shadows.”

  My stomach sank. “It doesn’t have to be the case. Not everyone despises us.” I’d spent the last couple of days trying to remind myself not to trust Peter, not to let him get too close.

  But hearing Will say the exact same thing made me want to defend him—Peter was different. I gulped. But… was he?

  Will crouched down in front of me again, this time gripping the arms of the chair. With his height, he was nearly eye level with me. “And what about Ludolf, hm? El head honcho himself isn’t going to be happy about you working with the police.”

  I tilted my head to the side and shot Will a “get real” look. “I’m not afraid of Ludolf.”

  Pain flashed across my friend’s eyes. “You should be.”

  I sat forward and placed a hand on his beefy shoulder. “Look, I’m not entangled with the head honcho—we have nothing to do with each other, I’ve been very careful to keep it that way.”

  “Doesn’t mean he wants it to stay that way.” He lifted his brows. “If he thinks you working with the police might endanger the secret society, he’ll—”

  I squeezed his shoulder. “I’ll cross that moat when—if—we get there, okay?” I sighed and shot him an earnest look. “It just—it feels really good to be helping people again—getting justice for those who deserve it.” I gulped, my throat tight. “It’s what I miss most about being a lawyer.”

  Will’s big eyes searched my face, and I stared right back at him, though I had to fight to keep the emotion from welling in my eyes. He finally gave a nod and rose.

  “There will be consequences with Ludolf Caterwaul.” He pressed his lips tight together. “I just want you to be prepared.”

  I rolled my eyes, eager to clear the air and bring back the levity. “Alright, Dr. Doom and Gloom.”

  He raised his brows as if to say, “I’m serious.”

  I licked my lips and stood. “Listen—if there are any, it’ll be worth it. Plus, I can handle myself.” I rubbed my hands together. “Now, what are we getting for dinner.”

  Will, eyes on his papers, scoffed.

  “I’m paying.” I waggled my brows.

  Will jerked his head up. “Don’t toy with me.”

  I grinned and placed a hand over my heart. “On my honor.”

  He sniffed as he shoved the clipboard aside and ripped off his white lab coat. “Honor among thieves.”

  I chuckled as he shouted out to his assistant. “Heidi—flip the sign to Closed. We’re going out to eat—Jolene’s treat.”

  There was a moment of silence, followed by a crash, like a metal tray had dropped to the floor. “For real?” came Heidi’s disbelieving voice.

  I rolled my eyes. “Such confidence in me.” But it felt good to be able to do something for my friends. It felt like I’d gotten a little piece of the old me back.

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  Saved by the Spell

  A magical academy. A suspicious death. Can an inexperienced cop expose the deadly secrets lurking behind bewitched classroom doors?

  Rookie officer Peter Flint longs for something more serious than a coffee run. So he gladly accepts his first real case, even though it’s an embarrassingly easy undercover assignment to take down a high-school cheating ring. But his investigation takes a dark turn when a student runs screaming across campus and jumps off a cliff.

  Convinced the tragedy was supernaturally provoked, Flint vows to get justice for the boy at any cost. But with a popular clique stirring up trouble and a truth-sniffing German Shepherd threatening to blow his cover, he worries he’ll need to step up the hocus-pocus to unearth the facts.

  Can Flint disenchant the tragic sorcery before another pupil leaps to their demise?

  Saved by the Spell is the prequel to the Magic Market paranormal cozy mystery series. If you like gutsy underdogs, clever twists, and lighthearted humor, then you’ll love Erin Johnson’s charming whodunit.

  Download Saved by the Spell to solve a mystical murder today!

  Keep reading for a sneak peek at Book 2: Friday Night Bites!

  Runway rivalries. An arcane arachnid. Can she unravel this designer death?

  Front Page News

  I raised a fist and banged against the black metal door. I’d have missed it in the near utter darkness of the narrow alley if I hadn’t known the way to my friend Will’s illicit veterinarian clinic like the back of my own hand.

  Speaking of the back of my hand… I lifted my other wrist to my mouth and licked up a drip of mayonnaise that had escaped from the arepa I cl
utched. My stomach ached with fullness, but I popped the last bite in my mouth and savored the chicken salad filling. I closed my eyes and moaned as I crumpled the paper wrapper up. It’d been a while since I’d had too much to eat—I could get used to this.

  Though it was just past 3:00 a.m., the thrum of music and chatter from the main street of the Darkmoon Night Market drifted through the warm summer air.

  Slick. I peeled an eye open to find a couple of dark, almond-shaped ones peering at me from a slot in the door.

  I twiddled my fingers in a wave. “Ig mee,” I mumbled around my giant mouthful of food.

  The eyes crinkled in a smile. “Oh hey, Jolene!” The panel slid closed, three locks clicked in quick succession, and then pale, fluorescent light flooded the dark alley as Heidi pulled the door open. She stood slightly behind it and tipped her head toward the waiting room behind her. “Come in!”

  I tugged lightly on one of her black braids as I passed, and she swatted me away but giggled. The locks clicked shut behind me as I shot my paper wrapper into the wastebasket behind the tall front desk—score!

  “How’s your night going?” Heidi resumed her spot behind the receptionist’s counter. She fluffed her white lab coat out behind her and settled onto the tall stool. Below the coat, she sported black bike shorts that rose up above her bellybutton and a neon pink sports bra.

  I ignored the several beat-up chairs that lined the wall beside the door, and instead folded my arms on the counter and leaned over. “Eh. Gave a reading to a witch whose cat familiar had gained unexpected weight.”

  Heidi lifted a brow and grinned, her dimple showing. “Let me guess….” She tapped a slim finger to her lips. “He figured out how to open the cupboard and was getting into the tuna.”

  I drummed my fingers on the counter. “He’d have also needed to learn how to open cans for that.”

  Heidi giggled and pulled her half-eaten bowl of ramen closer. I don’t think I’d ever seen that girl when she wasn’t eating—I envied that about her. “I give up.” She twirled some noodles around her chopsticks.

  “Turns out the he was a she, actually. And Mr. Handsome Face, who apparently needs a new name, got a little frisky with the tomcat next door and is now expecting kittens.”

  “Aw.” Heidi pouted up at me before shoving the noodles in her mouth. “I wang a kiggen.”

  I pressed my lips tight together as I thought over the “reading” I’d done for the witch. While I wasn’t actually a pet psychic, I could speak with animals, which amounted to basically the same thing. I just masqueraded as a seer, because the lovely magical community here on the enchanted island of Bijou Mer viewed my kind, shifters, as third-class citizens. And admitting to being able to speak to animals was akin to shouting, “hey, I’m a shifter.”

  Most shifters could only speak to their own kind when in animal form. As far as I knew, the curse that had cost me my law career—and whole life, basically—had also given me the unique ability to speak to all animals… while also robbing me of all my other powers. It wasn’t a trade I’d have voluntarily made, but you know the old saying. When life gives you lemons, you move back to the slums and live in squalor. Or something like that.

  And seeing as I was already barely scraping by, I wasn’t in any hurry to further stack the deck against me by making the world even more suspicious. So, aside from Heidi and Will, no one knew the truth about my powers... or lack thereof.

  Recently, though, my luck seemed to be turning around. I’d landed a sweet gig as a consultant for the police when Officer Peter Flint had come to believe in my “psychic” abilities. I drummed my fingers again. Though it’d been a whole six days (not that I was counting or anything) since that first case, and I was itching for another one.

  The money was better than my regular job, and it felt good to be helping people get justice again. It didn’t hurt that I got to work with Peter either… though I could’ve passed on his hard-nosed, truth-sniffing dog, Daisy.

  I lifted a brow. “Well, not sure what the witch plans to do with the kittens, but I sure got to hear all about what she plans to do with their placentas.”

  Heidi made a face.

  “Oh, yeah.” I opened my eyes wide. “Guess they make excellent bases for stew.”

  Noodles and broth poured from Heidi’s mouth back into her bowl as she gave me a disgusted look, mouth downturned. “Ew.”

  “You’re telling me.”

  Heidi pushed the bowl away. “I think I lost my appetite.”

  I blinked in surprise. “That’d be a first.”

  She nodded seriously. “I know, right?”

  I frowned and pointed at the newspaper in front of her. A magically moving picture took up nearly the entire front page. Lights flashed in the image, and a crowd thronged around a woman lying on what appeared to be a catwalk.

  “What’s up with that?”

  She blinked at me, then glanced down at the local paper, The Conch. “Oh!” She looked back up at me. “Did you see the midnight news?”

  I gave a slight shake of my head.

  “Bel Hahn died during her fashion show. They think it was a heart attack.” Heidi’s face fell as she looked back down at the newspaper. “So sad.”

  I mean… it was sad, but I couldn’t help shooting Heidi a slightly perplexed smile. Since when did she take a personal interest in the designer for the House of Hahn? My eyes drifted to the large leather bag on the desk beside her—a massive gold double H emblazoned on the side. Ah. There it was.

  “Nice bag.” I lifted my chin toward it, and Heidi glanced over, then up at me.

  “Thanks. Just got it.”

  I nodded. “A House of Hahn, huh? It’ll be worth a fortune now that she’s dead.”

  My friend, eyes still downcast and brow pinched in concern, murmured, “You think?”

  I smirked. Oh, Heidi, so smart, yet so naïve. “I mean, it would be, if it weren’t a knockoff.”

  She jerked her head up, eyes wide in surprise. “Knockoff?” She reached over and pulled the bag closer, turning it this way and that. “How can you tell?”

  I chuckled. “Well, for one, you don’t have the pinched look of someone who’s mortgaged her house to buy a handbag.”

  Heidi, eyes glued to the bag, shook her head. “I don’t even have a house to mortgage!”

  Heidi still lived at home with her family. It was common in the Darkmoon District for kids to live with their parents all through their twenties—sometimes longer. Folks here just couldn’t afford to move out on their own.

  She grinned up at me. “But I didn’t have to, anyway. I got a great deal on it. That guy down Anemone Alley had a trunk full of ’em.”

  “I’m sure he did.” I lifted my brows.

  Heidi’s face fell. “Oh. Right.” She looked forlornly at the bag. “Caught and cleaned.”

  I felt like kind of a jerk. The Darkmoon phrase meant something along the lines of—man, I was an idiot. Caught and cleaned like a fish—I fell for it. I patted the counter. “But who cares, right? It looks great.”

  Heidi rubbed her thumbs on the oiled leather. “Yeah.” She grinned at the bag. “It does—who cares?”

  I gave her an encouraging smile, straightened, and strode a couple steps to the swinging door that led to the exam room in back. “What’s Will up to?” I pushed it open as Heidi whirled to face me.

  She stretched an arm out. “Wait! I wouldn’t go back there—”

  Too late. I froze as I took in the exam room. A wiry guy covered in tattoos sat on the metal exam table as my friend Will, who stood behind him, pulled stitches through a cut in his cheek. They froze, as did the beefy wall of a man who slumped in a chair to my left and the well-groomed guy who leaned against the wall to my right.

  In a flash, they all three pulled their wands and leveled them at me, the tips glowing white.

  Ludolf's Goons

  “Oh. Perfect timing, Jolene.” Will rolled his eyes and huffed. His hands still held a thread that was looped
through the tattooed guy’s face.

  Neo, the guy standing to my right, glared at me with dark eyes, then addressed Will. “What’s she doing here?”

  I folded my arms and leaned into one hip, shooting Neo a flat look.

  “That’s a great question.” Will hiked his bushy brows up and returned to stitching up Victor, the tattooed maniac perched on his exam table. “Why don’t you ask her?” He grumbled to himself as his hands moved quickly, expertly stitching up the cut. Knowing Will’s work, there wouldn’t even be a scar. Which, judging by Victor’s “I’ll shank you for a corndog” aesthetic, would probably be viewed as a negative. I gave a little shake of my head. My brilliant former surgeon friend’s talents were being wasted here.

  I cocked a brow at Neo and felt a flush of satisfaction when his gaze momentarily flicked to my feet, then back up.

  Despite being a captain in Ludolf Caterwaul’s secret Shifter Underground, I’d always managed to intimidate him, at least a little. We’d grown up in the orphanage together, and back then, him being a few years younger than me counted for a lot. It’d made me ages wiser and stronger than him (in kid terms), and the dynamic continued today. Who knew what I’d do if he actually called my bluff.

  Heidi claimed he had a crush on me, but considering I was wearing a T-shirt that hadn’t been washed in weeks, a bra held together by a safety pin, and a ponytail so tangled I’d have to cut my hair tie out of it, I doubted my womanly charms had much to do with it.

  The pale overhead exam lighting accentuated Neo’s sharp cheekbones. A muscle twitched in his jaw as we glared at each other. Finally, he jerked his head and shoved his wand back into the waistband of his black jeans. His two goons followed suit.

  “Hey, Jolene.” Sacha, the bald brute of a man who sat to my left, inclined his head. His low voice rumbled from deep in his chest.