by Deanna Chase
I laughed. “Link, buddy. I missed you. Thanks for saving my butt.”
At the sound of my voice, the Shih Tzu’s tongue went into overdrive, licking me everywhere from the neck up. “I’m glad to see you, too, boy.” His little body shook and wiggled against my chest as he tried to get as close as possible. Hugging him to me, I buried my face in his fur.
“Welcome home,” Phoebe said from somewhere nearby.
I jerked my head up, spotting my roommate leaning against her car a few feet away. Her normally short, spiky hair was concealed by a sleek black wig, styled in a high bun. She wore a belted green tunic over her black leggings. Sensible low-heeled, knee-high boots completed the ensemble. She looked exactly like the free-spirited, hippie-type artists that populated the city. Only they likely didn’t have a knife in each boot and magic-wielding stones tucked in their pockets.
“What happened?” I asked.
“What do you think happened? You almost passed out. Would have, too, if Link and I hadn’t been there.” Phoebe lit a cigarette and took a long drag. “Fuck, Willow, why didn’t you wait for me at the gate?”
I scowled. Phoebe knew how much I hated smoking. It wasn’t that it was just an annoyance; it made me physically ill. Thankfully she only smoked when she was really stressed. “I did wait! For twenty minutes. What was I supposed to do, stand there all night like bait?”
“It beats checking into the City of the Dead.” Phoebe took another long drag. “You could’ve sent me a text.”
I clamped my mouth shut and focused on Link’s scruffy coat. He needed a groomer ASAP. Looked as though Phoebe hadn’t brushed him once in the two months I’d been gone.
“Wil?” Phoebe prompted, her accusatory tone implying she already knew what I was going to say.
“It’s dead.” I reluctantly met her gaze.
“Again?” Phoebe narrowed her eyes and shook her head. “One of these days, that lazy habit is going to cost you your life.”
“Give me a break. I just got off the freakin’ plane. I’m not even supposed to be on duty again until early next week. At least I remembered to turn it back on before it died.” The only reason I’d even gotten Phoebe’s message was because I’d promised to text Tal as soon as I got off the plane. And for once I hadn’t forgotten. How could I? The embrace we’d shared at the Sacramento airport had burned an imprint on my skin.
I shook my head. Tal was a childhood friend, my brother’s best friend. It was better not to think about it. I set Link down and leaned against the oak again. “Thanks for getting me out.”
Phoebe shrugged. “Not like I could leave you there.”
“What are we doing here, anyway? No self-respecting vampire hangs out in a cemetery.”
“This one does, apparently,” Phoebe said.
“How cliché.”
“No shit, right?” Phoebe took one last drag and snuffed out the cigarette. “But he’s gone now, so I guess we’ll have to try again tomorrow.”
“You lost him?” My eyes went wide with shock. Phoebe was one of the best agents in the Void. I couldn’t remember the last time she hadn’t caught whoever she’d been sent to eliminate.
“It was either you or him.” Phoebe grabbed the suitcase. “Come on. It was a mistake to call you out here after you spent hours on a plane.”
I lifted one shoulder. It was true. I shouldn’t have been working a case after being confined in metal for such a long time.
Living, breathing things filled me up, left me powerful and strong, while metal, concrete, and death sucked me dry. On any other day, the cemetery wouldn’t have affected me as fast or as strongly. I would’ve been weakened by it, but I’d have had plenty of time to find Phoebe, who had the power to shield my energy from being leeched. We’d both been stupid.
“Sorry,” she said. “I didn’t realize it would be that bad.”
I smiled and fell in step beside her. “It’s okay. Neither did I. Now, tell me about the case.”
“Not much to tell. A cemetery-tour group was attacked last night. The third attack in a week, but this time someone died. The guide identified the attacker as a vampire. So, we’ve… well, I’ve been dispatched, but you know how I hate to work alone.” Phoebe grinned sheepishly.
Yeah. Over the last few years—ever since we’d figured out my unique abilities—Phoebe had stopped running down vampires alone. Who could blame her? My talent was invaluable when dealing with vamps.
“Seems pretty open and shut then,” I said.
Phoebe nodded, then heaved the suitcase into the trunk of her green Camry. “Jeez, that’s heavy.”
The locks clicked, and I reached for the door. Then I went completely still. The heavy, sticky sensation of death settled on my skin, ever so slowly leeching my life energy. Not enough to weaken me. Just enough to put me on high alert.
“Wait,” I said before Phoebe could disappear into the car. “Can I get a cigarette first?”
She cast me a questioning glance but passed a cigarette over and held out a lit lighter. I leaned in and mouthed, He’s still here, then puffed the smoke to life. My eyes watered and my lungs constricted in protest, but I managed to appear cool and collected. Sort of. Until I coughed as I exhaled.
Phoebe, clearly holding back laughter, grabbed the cigarette and took a short drag before crushing it with her shoe. “You don’t need any more bad habits.”
Ha! As if I would take up smoking. Faeries didn’t smoke. At least none I knew. I jerked my head, signaling Phoebe to follow.
“Link,” I called. The Shih Tzu bounded up next to me, his normally brown eyes glowing gold. “Keep it together, boy,” I soothed. He yelped softly and then put his nose to the ground, intent on the search. “Good boy.”
“Jesus,” Phoebe said under her breath.
I ignored her. Link had saved Phoebe’s ass numerous times. Which more than made up for ruining her favorite ritual robes and her suede boots. Besides, that had been months ago. He was only a puppy, and he was learning.
We strolled along the outer wall of the cemetery, quiet and alert. The only sound came from Link’s insistent sniffing. I slowed when the sticky sensation intensified; I was swimming in it. Link’s nose went into overdrive at the base of a magnolia tree, his tail wagging in excitement. He’d found something.
In unison, we both looked up.
Right there on a lower limb, the vampire sat watching us. I squinted, trying to make out his features, a habit instilled by the Void’s training. Eliminators were sent to eliminate. Mistakes were not tolerated. Always identify the perpetrator before the deathblow. Not that I had any idea who we’d been looking for. Phoebe hadn’t given me the details.
I took a step back, offering her the stage.
Curious thing about my ability—I could sense a vampire within a mile radius if I concentrated. It was the reason I’d been recruited to the Void branch of the Arcane—the government-sanctioned supernatural authority—two years ago. Prior to that, I’d just been Phoebe’s normal faery roommate, spending my days running The Fated Cupcake. Now I was super Willow. Baker by day and badass vampire stalker by night.
Link hovered protectively at my heels. My job was done. Despite having other magical abilities, they weren’t ones that could help Phoebe take down a vampire. Not unless he was a diabetic, anyway. Thank the Fae Lords I had Link and his supernatural abilities to protect me, because if anything went wrong, Phoebe would have her hands full.
Link was already trembling and emitting an amber glow.
Uh-oh.
I crouched, running a soothing hand over his white and gray fur. “It’s okay, boy. Phoebe’s got this.”
“Kind of unoriginal, taking out tourists at Marie Laveau’s tomb, don’t you think?” Phoebe taunted him, taking a step to her left to get a better view of her suspect. “You vamps, always going after the easy marks. Where’s your pride?”
A low chuckle rumbled from the branch.
“Wil, I think our friend finds us amusing.” Phoebe gripped
her black agate crystal.
“Just you,” the vamp replied, his voice as deep and gritty as a thirty-year chain-smoker. “She’s interesting, as well as that dog of hers, but I’ve been looking forward to this matchup for some time.”
A grin broke on Phoebe’s profile and her eyes glittered. “Oh, good. A challenge.”
The hooded figure leapt from the branch a second before Phoebe blasted the spot with her sunlight-infused agate. The branch sizzled and, with a deafening crack, landed inches from where Phoebe had been standing.
“Holy fae,” I breathed and took off after Phoebe, who was now sprinting to catch the vampire. She sped up, periodically flashing her agate, trying to stun him. His reflexes proved to be far superior to the average vampire’s, and I suspected this one had been around much longer than most. He alternated back and forth from the tree limbs to the cemetery wall in smooth, graceful movements, deliberately waiting for Phoebe to make a move before leaping.
He was playing with her.
At the end of the cemetery, the vampire turned and looked Phoebe in the eye. “What else you got, witch?”
Phoebe stopped yards ahead of me, her tiny, lithe body seeming to grow a few inches. She lifted her left hand straight out, palm up and shouted, “Siste!”
Her long, glossy black hair fell from its bun, whipping straight back in the windless night.
The power behind the spell rooted me to the path, frozen in a running pose. Link was a few yards ahead of her, suspended in midair, his face scrunched up in a snarl. The vampire’s laughter rang clear as he bounded onto a nearby rooftop and disappeared.
“Fuck!” Phoebe shouted as the power dissipated.
With the spell broken, I lost my balance and fell face-first on the hard brick sidewalk.
Link shot ahead, his little legs never breaking the run. His body shimmered gold before his limbs gave way, expanding until he’d grown to ten times his normal size. Once again in wolf form, he shot out of sight, sprinting after the vampire.
I groaned and rolled over, staring into Phoebe’s exhausted face. “You all right?”
She offered me a hand. “Yeah, but shit. I lost him.”
“How’d he do that?” I’d never seen a vampire manipulate her magic before. “It’s like he blocked it.”
“He deflected the spell, and it hit you and Link instead.” She rubbed her temple. “I don’t know how. I’ll need to do some research.”
I nodded. “I can’t sense him anymore, he must be long gone. We better go find Link before animal control gets him again.” The last time they’d picked him up as a wolf, he’d turned back into a Shih Tzu before I could claim him. The paperwork confusion had been a nightmare.
“You go ahead. I’ll grab the car and catch up.”
“Okay. Be safe. I’ll keep an eye out for you.” Smiling, I flew to the nearest rooftop.
I spotted Link within moments. He was racing around the corner at the end of the street, his white coat gleaming in the moonlight. Had he picked up the vamp’s trail or had Phoebe’s magic sent him into a frenzy? I couldn’t feel the vampire, so it must have been the magic.
Or could I? My limbs were weighted as if the air was heavy, and my lungs had to work harder for oxygen. Something was off, though. It didn’t feel the same as the sticky, swimming death I’d experienced earlier. The sensation pressed lightly and then all at once clung to me.
A vampire was close. Really, really close. But why did it feel so different?
My heart picked up as panic set in. Link was blocks away. Phoebe was in the car somewhere, and I was alone on a roof.
Why had I taken off by myself? Stupid, stupid, stupid.
I glanced around at the half-deserted neighborhood. A stone settled in my gut as recognition dawned. I was on vampire property. In the years after hurricane Katrina, the city had swelled with vampires. Drawn to the despair and lawlessness, the vampire population had more than tripled.
At first, they helped the struggling economy by buying up blocks of decimated homes. Unfortunately, they only rebuilt the one they lived in and left the others to rot. The perfect way to discourage neighbors. Vamps had been known to do a lot worse for privacy.
I scanned the streets for Phoebe’s car or a glimpse of Link. If I could find either of them I’d be fine. The silence grated. Alone on a roof with no cell phone and a vampire lying in wait. Now what?
I stretched my wings, fluttering a few feet off the rooftop. Flying always gave me a sense of control. I couldn’t cover a lot of ground, but I could move pretty quickly if I needed to. Faster than sprinting, anyway.
The sticky sensation stayed with me, but as I flew, the intensity lessened. Maybe he was in the building.
The thought didn’t put me at ease one little bit. Vamps were impossibly fast. If one had spotted me… Link reappeared at the end of the block.
“Finally.” I flexed my wings and shot toward the edge of the building.
“Willow?”
I spun. My wings stilled mid-flutter as pleasure heated my insides. I knew that voice and missed it more than I cared to admit. Managing to land gracefully on shaky legs, I peered through the moonlight. “David?”
He nodded.
Relief washed through my body at the sight of him, uncurling the knot I’d forgotten existed in my stomach. I took a step closer and froze.
Thick honey vampire energy clung to me and it was coming from my ex.
Chapter Two
Of course, when I’d dated him, he’d been human.
When the hell had he turned vamp? I intended to ask just that but blurted, “Where have you been the last three months?”
Crap. Smooth, Willow, real smooth.
Considering he’d unceremoniously dumped me in a text—after a year-long relationship—the last thing I’d wanted to do was make him think I actually cared about his cold, undead ass. Too bad my mouth forgot to consult my brain.
“Why are you here?” David moved closer, his vampirism making my head swim. Death leeched my life force, but the way he looked right then, his familiar, intense, midnight-blue eyes searching mine, I didn’t move back.
“Why are you here?” I demanded, struggling to remain calm. “Did you have anything to do with those poor tourists?”
“Tourists? No.” His steps slowed when I flinched at his now-alarming proximity. “What’s wrong? Are you hurt?”
My chest constricted, making it hard to breathe. The protectiveness in his tone sparked memories I’d just as soon keep buried. Anger quickly filled the ache in my heart. “I’m fine. But you aren’t going to be in a few moments if you don’t start talking.”
“You aren’t supposed to be here.” His elegant brow furrowed in confusion.
My wings twitched in agitation. “Where the hell am I supposed to be?”
“Not here.” He glanced over his shoulder and moved closer.
With one forceful stroke of my wings, I shot straight up out of his path. The cemetery incident had left me too weak to sustain flight, forcing me to land on a nearby dormer. Even though I was above him, I knew I didn’t have the advantage. If he wanted to get to me, he could… and I’d be powerless to stop him.
I studied his pale face, the perpetual tan a thing of the past, his tall body much leaner than it had been. Now his muscles would be corded, reminiscent of a chiseled statue. A trait of all vampires. “Why are you here?” I asked again.
“Wil,” he said softly. “You’ve got to get out of here. You’re in danger.”
“I’m safe enough.” Right. Standing ten feet from a vamp on a roof with Link and Phoebe at street level, I’d never been less safe. But I wasn’t leaving without answers. Damn it, I deserved them. “Answer my question and I’ll go.”
“Still stubborn as a wisteria vine, I see.” He tried to make his tone light, but the strain in his voice gave him away.
I crossed my arms and waited.
He stalked closer, slowly so as to not frighten me, but I recognized the predator he’d become. The h
istory between us didn’t change anything.
“Stop right there.” I put my hand out, palm raised, as if that would actually hold him off.
He glanced up with a wry smile, then suddenly appeared inches from me on the dormer. I hadn’t even seen him move. The physical effects were instantaneous, leaving me trapped by my unfortunate vampire disability. I couldn’t fly in such a weakened condition.
This was bad. Very bad.
“Are you going to answer my question?” I asked, proud my voice held steady.
“So brave,” he said, leaning in, his eyes shining in the moonlight. “One of the things I always loved about you.”
I bristled. “I’d step back if I were you.”
“Or what?” He chuckled. “Gonna force-feed me a Truth Cluster?”
He was making fun of me. Asshole. Heat burned my face, and if I could’ve lifted my arm, I’d have punched him in the gut. Never mind his vampire physique probably would’ve broken my hand. “I might, after Phoebe blasts you with her sun agate.”
He brushed back a lock of my hair, bringing his lips close to my ear and whispered, “I’m not afraid of the witch.”
“You should be,” Phoebe said from behind us, steel in her voice.
David vanished and reappeared behind me, his cold arms wrapped around my middle, crushing my wings between us. The impact knocked the air from my lungs, causing a silent cry of pain. Fiery jabs of tiny pinpricks seared my bare arms where his skin touched mine. My knees buckled, and I concentrated on sucking in air, half hoping I’d go ahead and pass out. Anything other than endure a vampire’s touch.
“Willow can’t protect you from my magic. What I’ve got for you won’t even touch her.” Phoebe inched toward us, one hand on her agate, the other one holding an electric stun gun.
I closed my eyes. The gun meant Phoebe was weakened. The combination of her failed spell and however she’d gotten up on the building had taken a toll.
“Calm down, Phoebs.” David kept me locked in a tight grip. “I’m not here to start anything.”
“Looks like you already have. Let go of Willow, and we’ll see if we can sort this out.” She stopped a few yards from the dormer. “No need to make this messy.”