The Sin Eater (A F.R.E.A.K.S. Squad Investigation Book 5)

by Jennifer Harlow

  Since there’s no coming back into the bedroom once I leave, I drag my suitcases out of the bedroom.

  “Do you need help?” I spin around and gaze down the stairs at the approaching woman, a gorgeous, tall, bi-racial woman with an awesome afro decked out in perfectly pressed chinos and white shirt. She smiles to reassure me. “Hi. My name’s Krista Harris. His Lordship asked that I look after you while he slumbers. Here. Let me.” She takes my suitcases. “Are you leaving?”

  “No, I uh, just in case I need something.”

  “Well, that’s what I’m here for! Think of me as your fairy godmother. Your wish is my command,” she says with a pretty smile. She sets the suitcases by the couch. “I‘ve already made you coffee,” she says, hustling to the kitchen. “Cream and lots of sugar, correct?” she asks, pulling those very things out.

  “Yeah. How—”

  “His Lordship left me a detailed list of your likes and dislikes, and I figure you can fill me in on the rest. There are also chocolate croissants, oranges I took the liberty of slicing already, and if you like I can squeeze more and fix you a fresh Mimosa,” Krista says, smile never wavering. Okay, now it’s getting a little creepy.

  “Um, you don’t need to do all that. I can make—”

  She holds up the coffee mug and croissant for me to take. “But there’s no need for you to. That’s why I’m here. Why trouble yourself if you don’t have to?”

  This whole situation is so weird to me I can’t think of a response. I just take the offerings from the Stepford wife. “Uh, thank you.”

  “My pleasure,” Krista says as if she truly means it. She sits at the bar counter.

  I sip my coffee. Damn near perfect. “This is delicious, thank you.”

  “I was a barista/actress before I became Jack’s consort last year. You met him, I think. He has an eye-patch?”

  “Uh, yeah. At the meeting.”

  “You impressed him,” she says with a proud grin. “I heard you were the lone voice of reason and kept us from total war. Everyone’s talking about you.”

  “Is that good or bad?”

  “It’s excellent. Apparently his Lordship hasn’t taken a keen interest in someone for close to two decades. We’ve all noticed a change in him. He smiles more. He even took a vacation. You are so lucky. He is such a great man. A fantastic leader. And so handsome. I adore Jack, I love him, but if Connor crooked his little finger at me…” She sighs wistfully. O-kay. “Anyway, uh, I’m blathering on. Forgive me.”

  “It’s okay.”

  With another Stepford smile, Krista turns her back, opens a drawer, and returns with a pad and pen. “So, I need to know what you wish for me to get you at the grocery store. I’ve taken the liberty of hiring a chef to come in tonight, a try-out of sorts. If you like what he prepares we can extend the job indefinitely, but you’ll love him. I know it. He’s willing to do all your meals. And do you have a preferred mover?”

  “Mover?”

  “For your belongings. I understand you’ve been living with your grandmother. Besides your boxes, will you also need your bed, dresser—”

  “Wait. Wait,” I say, holding up my hands. “Woah. Who said anything about movers?”

  “I’m sorry. It was my understanding you would be staying here for the foreseeable future. For your own safety.”

  “I mean, I…I might stay a couple nights, but I’m not moving in. Does-does Connor think I’m moving in with him?”

  Krista’s smile wavers for a moment but it quickly returns. “No. Of course not! I must have misunderstood. All my instructions said was ‘ask about her belongings.’ I just filled in the wrong blanks. Still. I’m sure you’ll be needing more than what you have with you. While I’m out I can swing by your grandmother’s and get whatever you’ve left there that you need. His Lordship told me you and your family had a falling out. I know how that can be. My family and friends aren’t that thrilled I’m with Jack either. Most people not in this lifestyle don’t approve or understand why we choose to be with vampires. As if you can choose who you fall in love with,” she says, rolling her green eyes. But I can say the friends I’ve made in the lifestyle are far deeper and richer than any I’ve known before. We’re brothers and sisters. We’re family. We take care of one another with no strings. No questions asked. And boy do we have fun.” She chuckles. “And there I go again. Talking your ear off.” She rolls her eyes. “Back to business. Groceries first, no?”

  Okay, be it my year of investigative training or just my inherent bullshit instinct, whatever it is, my gut’s telling me there’s something off with this woman. It’s as if she’s coated me with slime. Like I’m on a used car lot with a saleswoman in front of me. Or a cult member. She did say she was an actress. They tend to be overdramatic. Or she could be overcompensating because I’m the boss’ girlfriend. All I know is I’m massively uncomfortable. I want her gone.

  I rattle off some of my favorite foods and she writes them down, smile never wavering like I’m Moses reading the Ten Commandments. “And from your grandmother’s?”

  No way in hell I want her at Nana’s. “I can handle that.”

  “But if you don’t have to—”

  “I got it. Thank you.”

  For the first time, she frowns and even takes a step back. “I’ve come on too strong, haven’t I? I can tell. I’ve made you uncomfortable.”

  “No, not at all,” I lie.

  “I have. I know it. I just…they’ve never asked me to do anything before. You’re important to his Lordship, and he told me to make sure you wanted for nothing. Those were his exact words.”

  “I just, uh, I guess I’m not used to having—”

  “Someone take care of you? No, I get it. I was the same. Little Miss Independent. I wouldn’t take anything. Not money, not help, not from anyone because my dad told me it made you weak. But…since Jack…he insisted on pampering me. Taking the reins. Taking the weight off my shoulders. And he taught me that easy isn’t bad. You shouldn’t feel guilty about privilege. Life is hard, sometimes impossible, if easy is offered…why not enjoy it?”

  I can’t argue the logic. “Guess I could do with some easy. Worth a shot, right?”

  “Right. So I’m going shopping and then coming right back,” Krista says, smile finally returning. She scribbles something on the pad and rips it off. “This is my cell number if you think of anything else. Oh!” She turns around and picks an envelope off the counter. “This has a key to the door, the garage door clicker, and a corporate credit card. Just in case you want to go out. The card has no limit. Go nuts. Maybe go buy a whole new wardrobe. Leave everything behind! Might just be what you need. A fresh start. So few of us are given a chance. Take advantage.”

  Krista winks this time before retrieving her Coach bag and walking out. I’ve never had a servant before. Not even at the Kansas mansion. A maid service came in twice a month, but only did the communal areas. We took turns grocery shopping and cooking. I do hate grocery shopping. I grab a croissant and my coffee before flopping on the couch and switching on the TV. Yeah, that keeps my attention for all of a minute. What does a woman of leisure do all day? I really only have The Real Housewives to go by. So shopping, lunches, frenemies, and catfights. Suppose I could go out to lunch then get into a fight with my new best friend Krista.

  That thought leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. A sycophant as my new best friend. Wonderful. Sycophants, vampires, groupies, killers, hello new social circle. A few months ago we all had guns pointed at one another now I’m their Prom Queen. Of course the moment I lose Connor’s favor they’ll be more than willing to slit my throat and treat me like a blood fountain. With friends like those…

  I shut off the TV and let out a long sigh. What am I going to do with myself until Connor rises? Heck, what am I going to do after he rises? He seemed genuinely concerned about Oliver and my safety. He’ll probably want me to stay here, or at least in the club. Clubbing’s fun on rare occasions, but I am partied out after Vegas. Well if
I am staying here I need something to occupy my time. And I don’t want to play nice with Krista. I just know she’ll insist on going with me. I need to stock up on books, DVDs, maybe a video game system if I’m stuck here or at a motel. So my choices are to go home and collect those or go shopping. What would a Real Housewife do?

  I collect my car keys and contents of the envelope, throw them all into my purse, and hurry out of the apartment before anyone can stop me or ask questions. No such luck. At the garage stairwell, one of the bartenders is coming up as I go down. He does a double take when he sets eyes on me. “Oh. Hello.”

  “Hey,” I say.

  “Going out?” the twenty-something asks.

  “Yeah.”

  “Is that…smart? The boss said that psycho from last night—”

  “I’ll be fine,” I say shortly.

  I take a step down and he takes one up, essentially blocking me in this tight space. “You know, if you’re bored, we can always use a hand in the club—”

  “Maybe later. Could you please…” I gesture him to move.

  For a tense moment he doesn’t move and stares at me, as if he’s mulling over a complex problem, but then nervously smiles and backs against the wall. “Yeah. Sorry. Of course.”

  “Thank you.” I hurry past him before…I don’t know what.

  “If you have any problems or whatever just call the club.”

  “Okay,” I call back.

  I finally relax when the building’s out of sight. Of course that doesn’t stop me from frequently glancing in the rear-view mirror to make sure no one’s tailing me. He wouldn’t…no, he totally would. It seems he told his entire staff to keep an eye on me. What the heck did Oliver do last night? Dance the Macarena on a corpse or something? Okay, I know he means well—okay, I’m ninety-eight percent sure he means well—but I’m not sure I should stay at Connor’s. There’s a fine line between protective and smothering. Will had a tendency to cross it, and I hated it then as much as I do now. I’m not ready to eat crow with Nana, so hotel it is. I won’t go back to Connor’s until tonight, we’ll talk, I’ll get my suitcases and stay at a hotel until I find the nerve to talk to Nana. The last thought makes my stomach knot. Yeah, not even close to ready to face that mess. Any of my damn messes. But as Krista pointed out right now I don’t need to. I don’t need to do anything I don’t want to. And right now all I want to do is…hell if I know.

  I just drive awhile, testing out my new toy with the top down, until not even the radio can keep the thoughts at bay. Oliver and I used to do this all the time. Just driving, singing along to the radio, laughing our butts off and talking. I loved his stories about the past. How people used to live. About meeting kings. The art of courting. All the cities, the villages he’d visited. It was fascinating. One night we lost track of time, somehow ended up in Oklahoma, and barely got back to the mansion half an hour before the sun rose. Will wouldn’t look at me without a sneer a week after that. I’m positive he thought we’d spent the night in some motel going at it like porn stars. God if Will’s spirit is still around what must he think of Connor and me? He’d be so disappointed, just like everyone else. He…ugh. Nope. Don’t want to go down this road. He doesn’t get a vote in my personal life. Not anymore.

  With these thoughts coming fast and furious now, I pull into the mall parking structure. First stop is Hot Dog on a Stick for lunch. After working here in high school—I burned all the photos of me in those polyester shorts and hat—I couldn’t stand to eat there but time wiped away my aversion. I missed the hell out of those corn dogs and lemonade when I was in Kansas. I sit in the food court, savoring the million calories I’m ingesting, and people watch for a while. Society women with dozens of shopping bags chatting on their cell phones. Teenagers skipping school with their friends. I catch sight of a blonde girl in a tie-dyed shirt with one of the groups but when I see her profile I realize it’s not Mariah.

  Mariah. I chuckle to myself. Who knew buying a girl a burger would result in my ex’s death, uncovering a cult, and me falling into bed with a vampire? But that’s life. If I’d chosen to leave my classroom thirty seconds later I never would have saved little Randy, my student, and been recruited by the F.R.E.A.K.S. If I’d kissed Will one of the trillion times I’d wanted to before, we’d probably be married with a baby on the way. If I’d trusted my instinct instead of my fear when Oliver begged me not to free Adrian Winsted, I wouldn’t be sitting in a food court on the verge of tears again. Crap. I toss down my french fry. “Stop it. Stop it,” I whisper to myself. Distraction. I need a distraction.

  I hurry to the movie theater near April’s salon and buy a ticket for the next movie playing. I’ve already seen it, but the ridiculous plot and constant explosions occupy my brain enough I don’t think of anything else. Mindless entertainment, the new opium for the masses. I guess I needed my fix.

  When the movie lets out I still have hours before Connor wakes. God, how do the socialites handle the boredom? I meander through the mall to the bookstore. My haven. When I was with the F.R.E.A.K.S. traveling around the country, I always made sure to locate a bookstore in town. When I needed something familiar, an anchor, I’d go and just browse or read magazines until I felt grounded in reality. Today I browse the fiction sections, not finding anything since I was here last week. Time to lower my expectations, I guess. Suppose I could—

  “Guess some things never change.” I spin to my right and find April sauntering over. She’s still dressed in her all black salon uniform but must have just gotten off work since her purse is slung over her shoulder. “Want to find Bea Alexander, go to the nearest bookstore.” She stops a few feet away, folding her arms across her chest. “Yo said she saw you coming this way. Glad to see you’re not dead.”

  I roll my eyes. “Always so dramatic.”

  “You disappeared off the face of the earth this past week,” she points out.

  “I went to Vegas.”

  “With him?”

  “His name is Connor and yes, I went with him and had an amazing time. Came back super-relaxed. Happy even. Thanks for ruining that.”

  “I ruined that?”

  “Yeah, you, Nana, and…him. All of you. Conspiring behind my back. Gossiping. No doubt betraying confidences. Scaring Nana with your conjecture. Bringing him to ambush me.”

  “Yeah, gee, what assholes we are, especially Oliver. Dropping everything to make sure you’re okay. What a shit friend he is, no?”

  “Probably because you told him God knows what. That Connor kidnapped me or something.”

  “Don’t put this on me,” she says. “He was coming here before I even said a word about Connor.”

  “Bull.”

  “Nope. We spoke once, once, right when you first got back three months ago then out of the blue, like one hour after you stormed out of my house, he called asking if something happened to you, that he just got a weird feeling, and he was going to make arrangements to come here. I figured you called him that night but he said no. But then yeah,” she says, putting her hands on her hips, “When he called again I told him what was happening. I just damn well wish he’d gotten here sooner. What he told me about your new boyfriend…” She shakes her head. “Did you know before he became a, you know, he was already a Lord and led the charge in butchering a rival’s village? He can’t even blame being a killer on being a…you know, Bea. He was a murderous jackhole before he was even turned. And now you’re living with him?”

  “I’m not living with him. I stayed at his place last night—”

  “And you were with him the night before and the night before…” She sighs. “At least tell me you’re going home tonight and begging for your grandmother’s forgiveness. Because you can yell at me, even at Oliver until your tongue bleeds, but don’t you dare treat her like you’ve been treating us. Seriously, I don’t recognize you right now. You’re…mean. You’re pushing away everyone when we just want to help like you’ve helped us a trillion times in the past. How can you not recogniz
e we’re doing this because we love you.”

  “Then love me enough to trust me.”

  “If you were acting like you, then I would. If you were sleeping with this guy because you like sex and he makes your feel great, hell yeah! Ride that pony. But you’re doing this to fill some hole. You’re doing it so you don’t have to face what happened. At least with those stupid video games there wasn’t a chance of finding you bled dry in a ditch.”

  “I won’t end up dead in a ditch, April. I can handle myself. He touches me, I kill him.”

  “Okay, just the fact this is a topic we’re rationally discussing in regards to your boyfriend should be a huge, major flashing red light, no? The fact everyone, everyone who cares and knows you is screaming they’re worried about you should be too. And…you’re not listening to a word I’m saying, are you? Guess I should just be happy you’re not screaming at me this time.”

  “I’m listening. I am. And I am sorry I was so…dramatic the other night.”

  “I forgive you. You know we can have a trillion fights and I’ll forgive you each time. It just hurts me, like physically hurts me, so much to see you like this. You have no sparkle. Even now with your rich boyfriend and fancy trips. And I don’t know what to say or do anymore. What happened to you is so out of my wheelhouse. Just…know that no matter what, I love you.”

  The shame washes through me like acid rain. “I know. Thank you.”

  She squeezes my upper arm. “But if you don’t apologize to your grandmother, and at least speak to Oliver once, this is the last time I’ll talk to you until you do. They don’t deserve that. And my best friend would know that. When she comes back to us, I’ll be a phone call away.” April kisses my forehead as I’ve seen her done to her kids a million times. “Hope to hear from her soon. I miss her like hell.”