Once Lost Lords (Royal Scales, Book 1)

by Stephan Morse

  I looked around at the ground, at the area. At what I considered mine and replayed what happened a few times in my brain.

  “I’m not leaving again.”

  That much was certain but nothing more. Not right now, maybe never. Keeping it together out here was growing difficult. I gave one of the vampires another swift kick and turned away. Kahina let me leave without further incident.

  The adrenaline wore off as I stumbled down the stairs. Shaking started once I passed my makeshift wall of wards. Sleep came in off and on bursts for the rest of the night, I couldn’t shake the feeling that Kahina may have tried to kill me. Again.

  Chapter 3 – They’re All Serious

  An unsteady rhythm of irritation banged out against a wall shattering my already fitful sleep.

  “Wake your ass up, or I’m coming down there! Jay!”

  Half asleep, my senses had unfurled across the apartment. Heavy boots pressed against the upstairs floorboards. The voice was male. His stretches and pauses in cadence took time to filter into words. Feet paced away from the basement door, then back and pounding started up again.

  “Hold on!” I think I yelled it back. It was hard to tell, since what felt like cotton was lodged in every orifice I had.

  What time was it? I tried to stand up and slipped to the floor. My entire body felt woozy, wanting nothing more than to go back to bed until I felt rested enough to stop the jelly feeling. I made it to the stairs, proud I managed enough coordination to get clothes on. My hair a bit mussed, but short enough that no one would really notice.

  “Coming, stop, pounding.” My words were broken and half incoherent.

  “Open that god damn barricade, man.” I could make out a mocking voice upstairs. His vibrations made more sense now. Daniel had never been patient.

  I reached the final few steps and opened the door. I took a careful back step to avoid being hit by the door or falling backward. There wasn’t enough room to open the door outwards so it had been put in with a set of joints swinging inside.

  On the other side was Daniel, in a suit that could have passed for the one he had on before. Daniel was the type of man that had an entire closet of suits all pressed and ready to go, each one a pristine clone of the first.

  “What the hell do you want?” I demanded.

  “Gotta track that elf. I went out to his place and he’s gone.” Daniel set about pacing while waiting for my mind to catch up. He had always been wound tight.

  “Not my job.”

  “Just a direction, man, anything,” He said.

  “What’s so important about a cold case?” My friend was moving too fast. I wanted to put a hand on his head and hold him still while we talked.

  “I ran some searches at work for the elf. His name must have been on someone’s list, less than thirty minutes later my boss is knocking on my door asking what’s up.” Daniel’s face pinched from a sour thought. I stared a moment trying to wind the whole conversation through my sleep addled brain.

  “And?” I asked.

  “And I may have mentioned I had a link between the two and showed the picture.” I groaned at his words. “They gave me the go-ahead to pursue the elf and bring him in if I could still find him.”

  “He’s gone?” Giving my meal ticket to Daniel had resulted in a vanishing act.

  “I tried to talk to him that afternoon, found him easy enough, nervous guy. You scared the hell out of him with the hair thing.”

  I chuckled a bit at that and pushed past Daniel to the top of the house, looking for the kitchen, I was starving.

  “You’ve got to help me, man. Tell me you have something more than the picture to link the two.”

  “The picture that had my fingerprints on it?” Giving Daniel the picture had been a mistake already coming back to bite me in the ass. Fingerprints were a thing, right? I should sit down and study some criminal forensics. Maybe the government didn’t run around testing everything in the universe.

  “They’ll never check that, don’t worry.”

  “The hair?” Something Daniel had already confirmed was in my possession. More than enough for my kind of link. Daniel was already nodding as I caught up. My thought process was going faster with proximity to the fridge.

  “Yeah, the hair. Do your thing and give me a location.” He said in a rush.

  “Leave me out?” I asked.

  “You know it, man, we got too much history for me to blow it up over a case.” Daniel was basically a giant, overactive fuzzy red puppy.

  I grumbled and checked for anything edible. Inside the fridge, I found two hamburgers sitting on separate plates. Neither of which had been there last night.

  “What time is it?”

  “Two something.” Daniel rattled a chain link watch a bit and looked at it. “Thirty-four.”

  I mouthed in confusion behind the refrigerator door. Two dinners waiting for me threw me off. Someone had been inside the apartment. Not that the top floor upset me like downstairs might have.

  “You alright?” He asked.

  “I guess.” Both burgers went onto one plate then into the microwave. My mouth was already drooling at the thought of cooked meat.

  “So?”

  “Food first.” I waved him away while staring at the spinning plate.

  “Sure. I’ll be outside, don’t go back to bed again or I’ll barge down there.” My front door clicked shut as the agent left. Daniel probably stayed upstairs because he remembered how much I disliked people coming down. Last time he invaded I threw a fit. There was still a hole in the plaster that had never been patched up from the tantrum.

  A half hour later I was cleaner and not quite as hungry. Deprivation still twisted my belly. I would need more soon, but there was an agent to deal with. Daniel was in his car with trashy dance mixes playing. His hands flipped through pages on a file and a laptop powered on inside the car. I had already found the elf. Tracking was easy between the lock of hair and empty lipstick container.

  Daniel rolled down the window after I knocked.

  “He’s at a hotel outside of town, looks rattled. Acted like he was watching over his shoulder.” It was what he wanted, and getting Daniel on his way would allow me to go hunt for more food.

  “Got an address?”

  “Caesars Junction Hotel,” The sign had been overly gaudy. “North. Close to a freeway.” I gave him the room number from my vision. Giant embossed letters that had been nailed into flimsy wood.

  “Perfect, man. Get some minutes on your phone and I won’t have to drop by unannounced.” Daniel had to trash my little prepaid mobile. The thing had two features, calling out and dropping calls.

  “Call Julianne, she’ll pass it back.”

  “Right.” He was already closing folders and piling them into the passenger seat. The engine fired up and he was off again. Daniel was taking this case seriously.

  My stomach growled as a reminder that Daniel’s problems weren’t mine. There were places nearby that I had scoped out since my return. I picked the one with the best barbecue and set about eating a late lunch. A half rack of ribs made the world bearable. I threw down some money to cover the bill and headed back to Julianne’s. It was time to start keeping myself busy again.

  Just outside the door was a familiar elf. Not the one I had been tracking, this was umbrella beer the pointy eared. He had two drinks and was trying to navigate the door. Tired desperation lined his feature, like a druggie trying to escape with a fix. The female and her waggling tongue was nowhere in sight.

  “Double fisting it today?” I grabbed the door for him and tried to act cheery.

  Umbrella Beer glared at me. Warning bells went off upstairs. This guy wasn’t the friendly type. I shrugged and went inside to find Julianne. The elf followed.

  “And who, exactly, are you?” Top ten on my list of questions never to answer. Especially from an elf.

  “Don’t worry, we all got weaknesses.” I was trying to play it off now. “Julianne, what’s my weakness?”
I shouted down the hallway trying to drag in a witness.

  “Dark chocolate!” She shouted back down the hallway, headed on her way out.

  “I meant for drinks!”

  “Buttery nipples?” The elf was still glaring, like he was comparing my features to everyone who had ever crossed his path, trying to figure out who my family was. Or memorizing my face for use against future grandchildren. Asshole.

  “Again, drinks!” I shouted.

  “Oh, you’re a drunk, doesn’t seem to matter much.” To emphasize the point she got me out a shot glass and poured something bronze in color. Damned if I had a clue what it was.

  “See, weaknesses.” I laid the liquid back slowly while trying not to frown. Julianne poured me something from the cheap end of the bar in retaliation.

  The bartender knew enough not to engage the elf needlessly. I leaned against the bar acting distraught over the departure of my free drink. After a minute, Umbrella Beer gave up and turned away, taking both glasses with him. Once the door closed Julianne felt free to start up the ass chewing.

  “You’re an idiot.”

  “Ain’t that the truth.” I shook my head. “Didn’t know he was a serious one.”

  “They’re all serious when you know too much. I’d suggest you avoid him in the future.” Julianne informed me.

  “Someone important?” I asked.

  “They’re all important, at least in their own heads,” Julianne said. I rolled around the empty little glass on the counter enjoying the sound. It lasted ten seconds before she yanked it out of my hands.

  “Any other jobs?” I tried my damnedest to lay out a charming smile. Too bad Julianne was a cynic, a playful cynic, but charm was often frustratingly useless. My busted nose made it hard to look suave.

  “You screwed up the last two, why would I trust you with another one?” She asked.

  “One was a trap, and the other taken by suits.”

  “Kahina is not a trap, she’s a friend whose heart you ripped out when you left.” Now Julianne was nearly mad. Her aggression was spent on straightening up her side of the counter. “Forgive the girl for hoping you’d be sensible when you got back. I told her not to expect much.”

  Correcting Julianne wasn’t worth it. The night I left had started out differently. Hell. We had practically been getting engaged by vampire standards. The next step in their courtships involved a connection between human and vampire, blood bonded. A draw or sort of sharing, and by all rumors probably the greatest sex anyone could ever have. Not that it wasn’t good to begin with. It had been the first time I had let anyone, ever, near my blood and she flipped. That entire event was a little hazy beyond snapshots with coupled sensations.

  “Anything, to keep me busy?”

  “Nothin’ but rounds.” Rounds was code for reminding people of debts owed. Not as engaging as actual collections but less dangerous.

  “Got a list of stops?” I asked.

  “Fine.” She glared and yanked at my empty glass. “I’d take a moment before heading out. Your new admirer is probably waiting outside to follow you home.”

  “That junkie?” The elf was probably huddled in a corner sipping in desperation. “It’s only rounds.”

  “Remember how we do it? No violence, Jeff, these people actually come in and pay.” She handed over a slip of paper that had names and addresses scribbled on it.

  “Sure. No touching.”

  “No, Jeff, no violence.” She glared. Her standing form was eye level with me sitting on the bar stool.

  “Sure. Reminders.” I emphasized the word like it was a code for something else.

  “Jay,” She was serious now. “I swear to god if you break anything I’m adding their debts to your rent.”

  Now I had to behave. “Juli…”

  “Don’t even start. Now shush.” She said. I tried to keep the teeth flashing to a minimum and let her take a few breaths in order to calm down.

  I shifted subjects. “Thanks for the two hamburgers last night.”

  She looked puzzled. “Those were for the last two days, the deal was a week’s worth of meals, remember?” My jaw stopped working and I stared at her. I thought about it for a moment and started again.

  “Hell of a night.” I muttered.

  “What?” She responded.

  “Nothing. I had a longer nap than I thought.”

  Julianne raised an eyebrow at me and started to say something. A set of footsteps came out from the hallway and her accountant popped his head out. It was easier to see where his hair had been chopped at, resulting in an inconsistent look. Either he had children who attacked him while he was sleeping or was horrendous at doing his own haircuts.

  “Julianne, we’ve got to finish this before tomorrow.” The tall balding man said.

  She looked back, then forward at me and glared, an impressive feat for her small frame.

  “You were passed out for two days?”

  My blank stare must have been all the confirmation she needed. Hell, being asleep for two days surprised me too. Down the hall, her accountant’s voice echoed cutting our conversation thankfully short.

  “We’ll get back to this later.”

  My choices were to nod or answer awkward questions. Nodding was easier. Two hamburgers meant two dinners had passed. I had woken up on the third day after going to bed that night. Loving sleep was one thing, sleeping for over forty-eight hours was another. I guess that’s why my ribs felt a lot better than they should have. Even my back was doing better. With a wave, I headed to the door.

  “Jeff!” She yelled at me.

  “No unwanted physical interactions! I got it!” Then left to the sound of the doorbell jingling from above. Hopefully, if someone asked for a beating, I could use that phrasing to get out of trouble. It worked before. Julianne liked me better than most of her clients anyway.

  Walking took time. A majority of people who gambled at Julianne’s were local, and if they were willing to pay it would be pretty straight forward. Show up, remind them of a debt, look imposing, leave.

  It’s even easier than it sounds.

  For humans, things are basic, show up, be in their bubble, violate personal space and be bigger. It’s not about what gets said, but what’s being done while talking. Keeping a hand in the pocket is all a worried person needs to spark their imagination. All that while sounding overly friendly.

  For elves, it’s a bit harder. I have to look bored of their existence. I’m only a thug, a messenger, and expendable. Beneath threatening, posturing, or memorizing. Then when they’ve dismissed me, I take the chance to get behind them. Nothing drives them crazier than a human, looming over their back. It's not even a bubble issue, but an inborn fear of being stabbed. Generations of in clan fighting from the old world had ingrained a healthy fear. Elves with debts were loners anyway. No clan support made it easy.

  Vampires are probably the most straightforward to deal with. Intimidation is typically useless. I would show up, tell them they have a bill, walk off once they make eye contact afterward. They’ll either pay or not. That was if I even met the actual vampire. Most were lesser-ranked cadre members on the twelve step program to leave humanity behind. Every full vamp had at least three partials.

  The wolves were the most fun when cornered outside of their pack. I often only got one crack at a wolf for serious collections. Anything more and they would have their like-minded pack looming behind them. Since my job was to intimidate and my methods were hands on, guns were a bad idea. Nothing got wolves screaming hate crime like silver buckshot found in a wall.

  My last stop was at a suburban home, furthest one out from the main part of town I floated around in. Cookie cutter houses lined both sides of the street. Each lawn manicured, probably by the same overpriced person. Roughly eighty percent of these houses belonged to normal people. Humans. The rest of the population was more controlled, or in some cases, segregated by personal design.

  Elves were a prime example. Most lived with their clan. A
family unit that went out to fourth cousins and beyond, all grouped together. I had seen them sometimes, owning entire blocks of the richer sections, refusing entry to normal people. They often had high walls made of all natural materials. Clay bricks, spirals of ivy, tree branches growing out in canopies over the sidewalk.

  This house, according to the ‘W’ by the name and address Julianne had given me, belonged to a wolf. Full on capable of shifting between human and wolf and a rarer form in between. Their third form normally meant bad things were about to happen. Usually to me.

  From the outside it would be impossible to guess they weren’t human. The yard was well kept. Two cars in the driveway. One was a van. Lights showed a peaceful kitchen and living room, the television tuned into a drama.

  No violence was a good approach. My cross would be worthless as a symbol. The pure silver aspect would work. Their severe allergy affected everything down to a wolves’ choice in utensils. My silver laced knuckles would work. I wove a hand through the finger slots in preparation. Just in case.

  I gave the door a solid knock. The sun was rapidly setting and I wanted to be on my way home before things were too dark.

  There was the usual pause as someone tried to peep on who was outside. It was the same paranoid glance everyone did in this sort of neighborhood. Then the door opened completely revealing female barely into her twenties.

  “Yeah?” Her eyes glazed over, less than five seconds into our conversation and she was already checked out. Her irises were sky blue, nearly as vacant as an elf’s might be, the ears screamed human.

  “Looking for Francis.” I didn’t risk aiming at a nickname. Julianne hadn’t provided one and guessing would be a bad choice.

  “Mom!”

  Another female shuffled up looking like a middle-aged version of the first one. Her clothes were more professional than her dingbat daughter’s. She also had a few pieces of jewelry, like an ornate wedding ring that I could see sparkling from halfway down the hall. It took a bit to restrain the drool.

  “Are you Francis Sauter?” I asked.