Hunted Witch Agency Box Set Books 4-5 (Hunted Witch Agency Set Book 2)

by Rachel Medhurst

  Smiling, I nudged Gerard in the ribs. “My husband hurt his wrist earlier today, so he’s looking for some relaxation. Is it possible to squeeze some time into the spa?”

  Scowling in my direction, Gerard pursed his lips. We had agreed on a story, but I’d just completely changed it. Well, served him right for flirting with the first woman we came across. Even if it was because we were undercover.

  “Of course, ma’am,” the sarcastic wench replied, her eyes dancing in amusement as she eyed Gerard.

  Ma’am? How old did she think I was? Glancing down at my outfit, I couldn’t blame her for judging me. Justina had sent me a wardrobe fit for a rich wife. I understood that I had to dress the part, but did I really have to wear a baby pink dress with a white cardigan? It looked like I had walked straight out of a magazine and not in a good way.

  “I’ve booked you in for a couples’ massage and manicure.” The bitch had the audacity to eye my nails as I handed over our fake membership card.

  Okay, so they were short and stubby from all the fighting I’d done in recent weeks. Did she have any idea what it was like to be a kickass agent? No, she didn’t.

  “Thank you,” Gerard muttered as I was about to open my mouth and tell her to shove her manicure up her arse.

  Grabbing my arm, Gerard dragged me across the foyer and into the bar. I walked with my head held high, only just stopping myself from throwing a little spell in the woman’s direction. How would she like it if her perfect eyebrows grew ten times their size?

  A giggle escaped me as the door closed behind us.

  Gerard was already checking out the clientele, looking for our target. When Justina had called us the night before, she’d asked us to stake out the leader of the coven. He was a business man with many connections.

  “I can’t believe the solstice is three weeks away,” I muttered to myself as we were shown to a table.

  My gaze traced the polished people who were sitting around, cocktails in hand. Oh, cocktails. I was a sucker for a cocktail or five. Maybe being undercover would have its advantages.

  “It’s going to be risky around a place like this,” Gerard hissed as we sat down at a round wicker table.

  The bar was lit with sunshine as it streamed through the window. The garden furniture made it feel summery. Especially considering we were in Scotland. A place not known for its warm temperatures.

  The club was on the outskirts of Edinburgh, and I could see exactly why Gerard was a little weary.

  “This place is full of supernaturals.” He beat me to it.

  Witches were sitting at the bar, laughing amongst themselves. A couple of vampires were playing chess on the other side of the room. Several shapeshifters were having lunch, their suits too pristine for a normal social event.

  “Maybe they won’t recognise us,” I said, grinning at him. “I do look like a housewife now.”

  The corner of his lip lifted into his cheek as he held his drink menu in front of his face. “True. You look like a lady of leisure.”

  Tempted to take the stupid sunhat off my head, I brushed the dress over my lap. The fine material did not entice me to like the outfit, not even one bit. I missed my heavy sexy boots and the rips in my jeans. I’d worked hard to achieve the look of an agent. And, now I looked like a Stepford wife.

  “I must admit,” Gerard said quietly as he leant towards me. “It’s a treat to see your hair up. It shows off your gorgeous neck.”

  A warm flush rushed over my chest as he licked his lips in suggestion. What was going on with my man? It was unlike him to be so… complimentary.

  “Well, it’s nice to see you in a suit. I could jump on you right here.”

  Tracing the tan lines where my leather bracelets usually rested, he cocked an eyebrow.

  Shaking my head, I laughed. “Okay, okay. You can change the outside of me, but elegance will never be my middle name.”

  We giggled together as the waitress came over. In the past, at a place where I could get a free cocktail, I would’ve ordered several. However, Gerard took control, ordering us the usual amount of one drink each. Spoilsport.

  “Today is training day. You’ve never been undercover, so we just sit here. We don’t do anything but observe. Understand?”

  Ugh, he was such a killjoy. “I know, I know. It can’t be that hard. Surveillance is just being nosy. I’m quite good at that.”

  “There,” he whispered when a witch came through the door.

  Ah, yes. The energy that radiated from him almost blasted through the bar. He walked over to a man who sat at a window table.

  “Now, darling,” Gerard said. “It’s rude to stare.”

  My gaze slipped away from the tall, powerful man just before he turned to survey the room. His dark shaggy hair fell to his shoulders, touching the extremely expensive lapels of his navy blue suit. The bright blue of his eyes reminded me of the sea. Well, not British sea, that would be murky, but the Caribbean Sea. The hue was so light, I couldn’t help but look straight into his eyes as his gaze finally landed on me.

  Blinking quickly, I turned as the waitress brought our drinks over. My heartbeat was loud in my ears as I inwardly cursed my rookie mistake. Checking out the target was not on the agent To Do list.

  “I just made eye contact,” I said to Gerard, plastering a huge pretend smile on my face. “Kill me now.”

  Clearing his throat, Gerard took my hand. “Be easy on yourself, you’ve never done this before. At the same time, don’t fuck up. Just, keep looking at me. Your boyfriend.”

  It was lucky an amused smiled lit his face. I wasn’t eyeing up the leader of the mob coven on purpose, it just happened.

  “His magnetism is strong. That’s why he’s so powerful.” Gerard was analysing him at the same time as I was trying desperately not to look over.

  What if he had taken notice of me ogling him? The last thing we needed was for him to take an interest in us. Not that he would. I was dressed in pink. And, it just wasn’t my colour.

  “I can feel his witch magic. Ever since I connected to the-”

  Leaning forward, Gerard kissed me quickly. “Don’t forget your training,” he whispered as he stared into my eyes, only inches from mine. “Anyone could be listening.”

  Chewing on my lip, I nodded. Oops. It seemed that ever since I’d donned the persona of a lady, I’d forgotten how to be an agent. That was my excuse, anyway.

  “Okay, so how’s work going, hunny?”

  A grin spread on Gerard’s face as he sat back in his chair. Pulling a cigar packet out of his pocket, he put one between his teeth. I frowned. He didn’t smoke. Ever.

  Gesturing for me to go closer, Gerard ran a finger down my neck. Shivering, I glanced around to check that no one was watching. They weren’t. Our target was talking casually to the man he was sitting with.

  “Spell this so the smoke hides our conversation.” Gerard whispered so lightly in my ear, I hardly heard him.

  Taking the cigar, I frowned. He hadn’t encouraged me to use the ley lines before now. But, it was a good idea. When we had set off for the golf club, we hadn’t expected our target to come in at the exact same time as us. It was purely coincidental.

  Closing my eyes briefly, I pressed my flat, flimsy, pink dolly shoes hard on the ground and breathed. The pure magic filtered into me as I pulled on it, smiling as I covered my mouth to fake a yawn, and whisper the spell.

  Power zapped through me as I handed the cigar back to Gerard. Trying to stifle it so no one else noticed, I lifted my feet from the floor. It didn’t really help, but the magic stopped automatically flowing into me.

  “You need your mother to teach you how to use that properly.” Gerard lit the cigar, almost coughing when the smoke went into his face.

  I had to laugh as he covered up his discomfort. Neither of us were smokers, but we had to look the part. Resting the cigar against his lips, Gerard feigned delight in the taste.

  “We need to be careful. As soon as you connected to the ley li
ne, the energy grew stronger in here.” Gerard glanced out of the window as he took a swig of his beer.

  Sucking on the straw of the pink, yes pink, cocktail that he’d ordered for me, I almost choked on the alcohol content.

  “I thought you could handle your drink,” Gerard quipped without looking at me.

  The green grass outside was backed by the city in the distance. The castle sat on the top of the hill, its magnificence highlighted by the clear blue sky behind it. Edinburgh was a stunning little city.

  “I can drink a few, but I’m not used to club cocktails.” My stomach warmed as I drank more, hoping to kill the anxiety that swam through me.

  Being undercover wasn’t as easy as I’d presumed. There was something very hard about not being myself. Especially when I was constantly aware of being a target for the warlocks.

  “Is it strange that there are no warlocks in here?” I asked as the waitress came to see if we were ordering food.

  I could’ve eaten a burger before the mob coven leader had walked in, but my stomach was slowly churning now.

  Waving her away, Gerard placed a hand over mine where it rested on the table. “Warlocks are rarely welcome in places like this, you should know that.”

  Okay, so his hand holding was supposed to soften the blow. He was right, warlocks weren’t often socially accepted. Their reputation in the past had made people look down on them. They were slowly trying to regain some credibility, but it was taking time.

  “Listen in on him,” Gerard said, without indicating who he meant.

  My brain was a tiny bit fuzzy from the cocktail, but I nodded without replying. The power that ran through my veins only heightened my senses. It was taking time to get used to, but slowly, I was assimilating.

  Staring out of the window, I concentrated on the man with amazing hair. The sounds in my ears suddenly changed as I whispered a magnifying spell. My old spells were coming in handy. I would have to reacquaint myself with my old spell book.

  “The deal is going through tonight. I know he’s going to blast everyone away,” the handsome man was saying.

  Taking a sip of drink, I told Gerard what I’d heard. He nodded, gesturing for me to listen further.

  “Cameron, I know you think this is a good idea, but they’ll be on to us soon.” The other man was also a witch. His appearance was unremarkable, but his words were noted in my mind.

  Cameron Fieldman. An unremarkable name for quite a remarkable man, in my opinion. Although, I hadn’t seen enough of him to really know that. Shaking my head clear of the thought, I glanced at Gerard.

  “Flirty Mac-my-man,” I said, frowning as he stopped staring at the waitress. “I’m having inappropriate thoughts about our target.”

  Taking a deep breath, he looked around, confused. “I was just enraptured by the waitress, and she’s not even my type. Interesting.”

  Did the club have a spell in the bar or the drinks? Maybe they wanted to loosen everyone’s inhibitions so they spent more money.

  Concentrating on Cameron again, I smiled when Gerard took my hand and started to read the paper that was on the table. Anything to distract himself from naughty thoughts probably. Hopefully I wouldn’t feel the urge to think about the coven leader in any way but professional.

  “I know it’s risky, but if we don’t act now, someone else will get there first.” Cameron took a mouthful of food.

  As he chewed, the other man took advantage. “You’re always taking risks. It’s one thing doing it for the good of the coven, but it’s quite another to do it because you like the thrill.”

  Oh, was the coven leader a magic addict himself? It did feel like he used some sort of attraction spell. Or, maybe he was just plain gorgeous. Either way, the intel was enthralling. My adrenaline level rose as the culprit glanced around.

  My gaze was still watching out the window, just to the left of our target. Hopefully, if he did look in my direction, he’d see a whimsical, but boring looking, female. Not the hot mess of an agent panicking on the inside. I hadn’t held my muscles so tight for a long time. Showing any kind of weakness would make everyone in that bar question me.

  “They’re new,” the other man commented. “Shirley told me that they’re an English couple who have a membership with the London club. He’s meant to be a mean player. And, singer.”

  Singer? Huh?

  “Well,” Cameron said. “He’s got the looks if he wants to become a singer. Would need to roughen him up a bit though. Far too prissy for the business.”

  What were they talking about? Why would Cameron know so much about singing? And, who the hell had told the other man that Gerard could sing?

  “Everything okay?” Gerard asked without looking up from the paper.

  Nodding, I kept quiet as I listened to our target. “She’s pretty, if a little done up.”

  They both agreed, chuckling to themselves as I was dismissed. Good. I didn’t want them taking notice of me. Not when I had such a strong connection to the earth. And, they were right, the make-up was way too much.

  “Anyway,” Cameron said, downing his drink. “I’m ready to make my move. If you want to be involved, you need to be okay with what we’re doing.”

  “Okay,” the man said, clicking his fingers for the waitress. “I’ll support you. However, I’ve got to make sure my clients are protected. The music industry isn’t exactly a hot bed for supernaturals right now.”

  Shrugging, Cameron pushed his chair away from the table. “Yes, Keith, the music of today leaves a lot to be desired. However, your record company has some of the highest selling artists. I’m sure you can turn it around.”

  As they left, I turned my attention to Gerard. He put the paper down and smiled. “Are you sure you don’t want some food, darling?”

  The man with Cameron glanced over his shoulder at Gerard as the doors closed behind them. Ah, he was a record producer. Maybe we could use that to our advantage.

  “What did they say?” Gerard’s face was full of intrigue.

  Most males would be jealous of the power I possessed but not him. Even as my muscles started to relax, he was rubbing my arm in support.

  “How are you at singing?” I asked, a grin spreading on my face when he raised his eyebrows.

  “In fact,” he said, sitting back in his seat and putting his ankle on his other knee. “I’m not bad. Why?”

  Leaning forward, I stroked his thigh. There was something about the black suit that suddenly made me hot and bothered. “The man with Cameron was the owner of a record label. And, I think he had the hots for you. How do you feel about doing an audition?”

  Chapter Four

  My boots pounded the cobbled street as I looked over my shoulder. The cool air rushed into my lungs as I sped up. I wouldn’t let him catch me. I had to win.

  “Devon Jinx, you’ll never beat me.” His voice was husky, deep, and puffed out.

  Using the power that coursed through my veins, I sped up, reaching the doors to the supermarket before he did.

  “Gerard Freshwater, I think you’ll find that I just did.”

  His arms came around my waist when he caught up, spinning me towards the wall. Our laughter echoed as we forgot where we were. He stared down at me as our breathing evened out.

  “This is nice,” I whispered.

  It felt like we could be a normal couple for just a moment. Every second was usually accompanied by the thought of a case, my family, or my bosses. Edinburgh was good for us.

  “There was something going on in that club,” Gerard said. “When we got back after visiting yesterday, I could barely keep my hands off you in front of Mary.”

  The hilarity bubbled up my throat. “I know, it felt like we’d been hit with a lust spell or something.”

  Gerard’s face fell as lines formed between his eyebrows. “You might be onto something there. The club might be spelled to put people in a good mood.”

  “Excuse me?” Someone coughed to get our attention.

  Turni
ng my head to look at the man, I froze when I saw that he was wearing a long leather jacket. Why did warlocks have to be so obvious?

  Gerard stepped in front of me as the tall, thin man with red hair, came closer. Sweat broke out above my lip as I held onto Gerard’s grey hoody. We had just popped to the shop to get snacks, so we weren’t wearing our finest attire.

  “What do you want?” Gerard’s voice was hard, aggressive.

  Which wouldn’t help the situation. Pushing him gently, I came around to face the warlock. He tucked his hands into his pockets, a small smile on his face. Did he have a weapon?

  Whispering an invisibility spell, I hid us from the public. Pulling my dagger out from my boot, I charged forward with it extended.

  “Wait!” The warlock threw his hands up in surrender, covering his face.

  My feet skidded to a halt directly in front of him. Holding the dagger close to his chest, I raised my eyebrows when he looked out at me.

  “What do you want?”

  It may have looked dramatic from the outside, but the warlocks were my enemy for now. Becky, the seer in London, had warned me that they would all come for the magic I was connected to. How they thought they would get it, I didn’t know. However, I wasn’t willing to take the risk.

  “I’m not here to harm you. I… I need your help.”

  Huh? My dagger moved closer to him as I leant forward to look in his eyes. They were dark brown, framed by light ginger eyelashes. It was an odd combination. One that I’d never seen. He was a little older than me, probably in his thirties.

  “I mean it,” he snapped. “Why don’t you trust me?”

  My scoff made Gerard come over. He put a hand on my arm and moved me out of the way. Was he protecting me? Or, was he protecting the warlock?

  “He’s telling the truth.” Cocking his head to the side, Gerard watched the warlock closely. “How do you know who we are?”

  Checking around him, the newcomer shook his head. “Not here, it’s too dangerous. Your pictures have been shared with the whole warlock race in the UK. Maxwell Maddocks is gunning for you. He said he didn’t trust you.”

  A tiny part of my heart hurt at his words. I had somehow formed a small bond with the leader of the London warlock coven. Yet, he was right not to trust me. Instead of talking to him about our problem, I’d run. However, Justina had promised me that she would take care of it. Maybe that hadn’t been enough.