by Fiona Roarke
“You want to play fetch, huh? Just for a little while.” He tossed the mouse and waited for her to bring it back. They repeated the game a dozen times before he hid the toy in his desk. She’d keep going for an hour if he was game.
As Spot curled up on her bed, Dustin finally got to his mail. There were half a dozen Christmas cards, but a red envelope captured his interest. The return address was from the Hair Scare. He tore it open and pulled out a folded flyer. It was an invitation, a masquerade holiday gala.
They’d probably sent it to all the salon’s clients. Surely Amethyst didn’t want him there. She’d probably invited that vampire her mother wanted her to go out with—Lawton.
He automatically clenched his jaw at the notion of any other guy dating her—a vampire, no less. She might not be safe with this Lawton person. He’d heard through the grapevine that some vampires who married mortals eventually bit their mate in order to make them vampires, too.
How could he be sure that Lawton wouldn’t hurt her? All vampires had the potential to be dangerous. Just because the Ellinghams were upstanding members of the community didn’t mean all vampires were. The idea of Amethyst being with that dude gave him the willies. He didn’t know who Lawton was, but he sure as hell was going to find out.
And he knew just the person who’d be familiar with the guy. As luck would have it, Dustin was picking up that vampire’s Maserati tomorrow morning for an oil change and tire rotation. He’d pick Julian Ellingham’s brain, find out if Amethyst would be safe with Lawton.
Dustin parked his pickup in the parking lot at the Excelsior Saturday morning then headed into the lobby.
Lou, the beefy doorman glanced up from his newspaper. “Good morning, Dustin.”
“Morning. I’m picking up Mr. Ellingham’s car.”
“Right. He told me you’d be coming for it.” Lou fished out a keyring from the desk drawer, and dropped it into Dustin’s palm.
“Is he home?” Dustin asked. “I need to speak with him.”
Lou narrowed his eyes at him for a moment, then shrugged. “He’s in the gym here, actually. Let me call him.” Turning his back on Dustin, the doorman used his cell. “Mr. Ellingham, Dustin is here for your car. Says he’d like to talk to you. Right, I’ll ask him.” Facing Dustin, he moved the phone away from his ear. “He asked if you’d mind going to the gym. It’s right here in the building.”
“No problem.”
Lou nodded then spoke into his cell again. “I’ll send him over, sir.” After he disconnected, he directed Dustin to the gym.
Minutes later Dustin found the sleek modern gym that would rival any free-standing facility. Spotting Julian Ellingham at the end of the long row of state-of-the-art cardio machines, Dustin headed along the padded floor.
Julian was running—almost as fast as Dustin could—on the treadmill. Watching him, Dustin recalled his endless sessions on similar machines in his parents’ lab.
“Pick up the pace,” his mother said. “Come on, son. I know you can do better.”
Every day they’d insisted he run faster, lift heavier weights on the machines, do more chin-ups. They’d usually left him barely enough time to do his school work after all the tests they’d made him endure. Forget any social plans.
Unclenching his jaw, he waved to Julian, who slowed his pace to a walk as Dustin neared the machine. “Sorry to interrupt your workout.”
Julian’s brown hair was damp and a bead of sweat slid down the side of his face. He used the towel on the side of the treadmill to wipe his forehead. “I was hoping for an excuse. Everything okay?”
“Fine. Any problems with the Maserati?”
“Not a one.”
“Great.” Dustin tried to think of a way to ask the vampire’s advice without sounding like a stalker. “Off topic, I’ve got a question for you.” He scanned the area, and thankfully found no one within earshot.
“What’s on your mind?”
“I was wondering if you’re familiar with a vampire named Lawton.”
Julian nodded. “He fills in as Vampire on Duty on occasion. What do you need to know about him?”
Dustin scrubbed a hand over his chin. “Is he trustworthy? Has he ever hurt anyone? That kind of thing.”
“Are you hiring him for a job? Or is this about a woman?” Grinning as if he already knew the answer, Julian pressed a button on the treadmill’s control panel and the belt slowed then stopped.
“So you’re psychic, huh?”
Julian laughed. “Nope, but I have some experience with feeling protective towards a lady.”
Dustin nodded. “I just need to be sure that she’ll be safe.”
Julian slung his towel over his shoulder. “Wish I could tell you I knew him better, but I don’t. Since most of us are hundreds of years old, we’ve all done things we’re not particularly proud of. We always screen vampires before they’re hired. Apparently nothing shady turned up.”
Darn. He’d really hoped Julian could have provided a more in-depth character reference. “Well, thanks for your help.”
“I can tell you that most evenings when he’s not doing a VOD shift, he can be found at Insomnia, usually hitting on the prettiest women in the place.”
Dustin had only been to the supernaturals-only nightclub a few times. “Maybe I’ll check that out tonight. Thanks, Julian.”
He waved away Dustin’s gratitude. “No problem. What time will the Maserati be done? I’d like to take out my lady tonight.”
He’d met Julian’s wife, Desi, recently, a beautiful vampire who was apparently a Las Vegas star. “Early afternoon. I’ll have my detailer spiff it up, on the house.”
“I appreciate it.”
He drove the sports car back to the shop, and made extra sure the Maserati was in perfect condition before returning it. Then he headed home for a nap since he planned to have a later night than he was used to.
Just before midnight he arrived at Insomnia. It had been a couple of years since he’d last been there, but judging by the number of cars outside the abandoned-looking warehouse, the club was busy as ever. He entered through the rusted steel door on the side of the building. Deceptive silence greeted him. A moment later, the doorman, Chet, greeted him.
“Evening, Dustin,” the bear shifter said. “I haven’t seen you here for a while.”
“I open the repair shop at seven in the morning, so late nights aren’t usually my style.” Dustin wasn’t used to seeing the hulking bear shifter in a suit. On the occasions Chet had brought his F-150 into the shop for service, he’d always been dressed casually. Dustin shook hands with him. “Good to see you.” He stepped onto the elevator.
Chet reached inside and punched a code into the elevator keypad. “Same here. Enjoy your evening.”
“Thanks.” If he was there for purely social reasons, he might, but that wasn’t the case. The doors closed and he descended to the basement. When the doors opened, loud dance music filled the air. He stepped into the club and checked out the eclectic crowd. As he strode to the bar, he glimpsed every kind of supernatural imaginable. It still struck him as odd to be around so many all in one place.
An attractive vampire smiled at him as he passed, revealing pretty impressive fangs. A few feline shifters strutted their stuff on the dancefloor, along with a gargoyle he’d seen at the fountain downtown. On his way to the bar, he noticed a couple of male vampires. Could one of them be Lawton? How would he know? He had no clue what the guy looked like.
Taking a seat at the bar, he checked out the bartender. Her pointy ears and small stature gave her away as one of the local fae.
She set down a black napkin in front of him. “Welcome. What can I get you?”
“Heineken Dark, please.”
When she came back with his bottle a minute later, he set a twenty on the bar. “Do you know most of the regulars?”
Shrugging, she picked up the bill. “I guess. Searching for someone in particular?”
Leaning toward her, he kept his voic
e as low as he could, considering the level of the music. “A vampire named Lawton. Know him?”
Her eye roll was almost too quick to notice. “He’s over there hitting on a witch with green and blue hair.” She tipped her chin toward the VIP area. “I’ll be right back with your change.”
“Keep it.” He carried his beer to a high-top table with a better view of the VIP section.
Lawton sat close to the witch, laughing, and leering at her. She didn’t appear to be having the good time Lawton was.
Between the music and the din of the crowd, even his superhuman hearing didn’t allow him to hear their conversation, but he was able to read the witch’s lips when she called the vampire a jerk. She practically jumped off her stool and hurried away from Lawton.
It only took Lawton a few minutes to find another pretty woman to bother—one who appeared human. But Dustin knew better than to assume, especially here, since the club was exclusively for supernaturals.
Over the course of the next hour, he observed Lawton hit on four more women, mostly of the tipsy or full-on drunk variety. He’d seen enough. The guy was a slime ball. How could Amethyst’s folks be okay with having the daughter that they supposedly loved, date someone like Lawton?
He hardly knew her parents, but he’d thought that they cared about her more than that, more than his mother and father had about him. Maybe not.
He couldn’t just walk away and let her get involved with someone who seemed to be such an ass toward women. Thinking about the invitation he’d gotten to the Hair Scare holiday party, a plan formed in his mind—a way he could make sure Amethyst was okay, at least the night of the party. Sure, he had a vested interest in trying to dissuade her from Lawton, and the last thing he wanted was to come off like he was stalking her. But despite that, he couldn’t live with himself if he didn’t do everything in his power to keep her safe.
Chapter Five
“Would you hold the ladder still?” Petra asked Amethyst the night of the holiday gala.
Amethyst took in the tall metal archway that her friend had decorated with red and green Christmas ornaments, and loads of mistletoe. “Are you sure that won’t fall over? I’d bet it weighs a ton.”
Petra huffed as she tipped her chin toward the chandelier in front of the reception area. “Which is why I need your help with the ladder. I’m going to use wire to secure it so that it stays put.”
That didn’t seem like a great plan, but since Petra had gotten irritated with her a little while ago when Ami had suggested moving the food table close to the kitchen, she kept her mouth shut.
“You’ll see,” her friend said. “This place is going to look like a winter wonderland when people start showing up. Oh, and we have food coming any minute from Howler’s and some desserts from Delaney’s Delectables.”
Amethyst held onto the ladder as Petra climbed to the fifth rung holding several pieces of wire. Even with the prospect of all that delicious food, Amethyst could barely muster any excitement about the party. As her friend threaded wire through the archway and the chandelier, Ami took in all the decorations. Twinkling strands of white lights strung through real pine garlands hung around the perimeter of the main room and the reception desk. The mirrors over each hair station had been edged with white spray-on frost, and the back wall was decorated with stockings bearing the name of each person who worked at the salon. Petra had even made dozens of paper snowflakes that she’d suspended from the ceiling using tape and white string.
The effect wasn’t as authentic as Santa’s Workshop, but the winter elves were experts at holiday décor since they maintained theirs all year long. Considering that this was Petra’s first attempt at making over the Hair Scare for Christmas, she’d done a darn good job. The place really did resemble a winter wonderland.
Amethyst glanced at the clock. 7:20. T minus forty minutes. Soon Lawton would be here and she’d have to spend some time with him. Dread washed over her, but she did her best to shake it off. She had to make the best of this. That’s all there was to it.
She tried to get into the holiday mood. “How many people are we expecting?”
“We had thirty-eight RSVPs. I think.” She gestured toward the reception desk. “I wrote the number next to the appointment book. What’s it say?”
Ami craned her neck around the ladder to see what her friend had written. “Um, it says eighty-three.”
Petra gasped. “Uh oh.”
“What?”
Descending the ladder, Petra scratched her head. “I must have transposed the digits. I ordered food for forty people, and that’s how many place settings I bought at the Party Depot.”
Amethyst swallowed. “So we have only half of what we need?”
“About, yeah.”
Ami jumped into action. “I’ll call Howler’s to double the order. And let Delaney’s know we need more desserts. Maybe the Party Depot is still open. I can run over and—”
“They closed at six,” Petra said. “I know. I can do a doubling spell.”
Amethyst thought about Petra’s spell disasters. Aside from the key fiasco, there was the time she’d done a weather spell to try to end two solid weeks of rain. The rain did stop—but was replaced by a rare October snowstorm. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
But her friend waved away Ami’s comment and disappeared into the back room. Before she could go after her, Mallory cornered Amethyst at the reception desk. “Hey, can you do me a favor?” Mallory asked.
Ami nodded. “What’s up?”
“I was wondering if you have your scrying mirror with you.”
Amethyst glanced at the door to the back room. Hopefully Petra was getting the food situation worked out. Mallory seemed concerned about something, and since she’d given Amethyst a reading last week, Ami felt compelled to return the favor. “Sure. Let me grab it. I just need to make two quick calls first.” After she’d phoned Howler’s and Delaney’s to adjust the food orders, she strode to her station to retrieve the antique silver mirror from her drawer.
Mallory glanced around. Keeping her voice barely above a whisper, she asked if Amethyst would give her a quick glimpse into her future. “I just want to know if my twin’s really moving out of my house soon. She said she is, but I need to be sure.”
Amethyst unwrapped the mirror from the silk cloth she kept it in and drew a deep breath. She sat in her chair, cleared her mind, and focused her intent on divining the future, Mallory’s future. Then she stared at the reflective surface. “Show me Mallory’s sister, Jordan.”
The mirror grew foggy. Amethyst felt the familiar pull for a moment. The salon faded away. She saw Mallory with her twin. Jordan stood at a door, suitcase in hand. “Thanks for putting me up, Mal.” Then she headed away.
“I see her leaving, but I can’t tell when that is,” Amethyst told Mallory.
Mallory groaned.
“Wait, there’s more.” Ami saw snow flurries blowing through the air. “Soon, I think. Very soon.”
“Awesome,” Mallory said. “That means her new business will take off. Thank you.”
Amethyst was vaguely aware of her coworker walking away. The mirror came into focus again. Instead of Mallory and her sister, though, Ami saw herself. She was kneeling next to someone who’d been hurt, and she intuitively knew it was a person for whom she cared deeply. But before she could make out who it was, the vision faded.
She redoubled her efforts to get back to the image. No luck. Concentrating on what she’d seen, she recalled that a piney scent had filled the air, and holiday music had been playing. The premonition must have been about something that was going to take place at the salon, on this very night. It was so unusual for her to get any information about herself. A chill ran up her spine.
Heart hammering, she struggled to return to the scene, but the scrying mirror merely showed her own reflection. She closed her eyes and tried to remember any details she’d seen. Whoever it was had been wearing black pants and shoes. The details were so faint.
She couldn’t be sure of anything.
The one thing she was positive of was that the person who’d been lying on the floor was someone she loved. Somebody close to her was in serious danger.
On the night of the party, Dustin parked a few blocks away from Hair Scare.
Last chance to back out.
Thoughts of Amethyst filled his mind. She probably had little to no information about this vampire her mother wanted her to go out with. But Dustin now knew enough about Lawton to concern him.
Amethyst was sweet and caring, while Lawson seemed like a hundred percent jerk. And there was no telling what the vampire might do to Amethyst if he got her alone. A chill snaked up his spine. No, he couldn’t back out of this, not in good conscience.
Feeling a little like a stalker, he pulled the price tag off the Batman mask he’d bought at the costume store, and slipped it on. Then he brushed white cat hairs off his black pants. With a glance in his rearview mirror to be sure it was straight, he drew a deep breath, then headed toward the salon.
When he neared the entrance, he couldn’t help but be impressed by the decorations. The only thing missing was the real-looking falling snow that Santa’s Workshop sometimes managed, although how they pulled that off was a bit of a local mystery. Winter elf magic, he guessed.
Through the frosted windows he glimpsed at least fifty people inside the salon, maybe more. The big crowd would make it easier for him to go unnoticed. Stepping inside, he spotted Amethyst, who apparently had no desire to be stealthy in a purple mask that only covered her eyes. Her beautifully kissable lips were on full display, which only made it more difficult for him to be so near her.
Someone bumped into him, causing him to stumble, but he immediately caught himself.
“Oops, sorry about that.” His friend Aiden patted Dustin’s shoulder. Wearing a Phantom of the Opera mask that only hid part of his face, Aiden smiled at him. “You okay?”
Darn. He silently nodded as he quickly walked away. Last thing he needed was for his best friend to recognize him and call him out. Careful to avoid people that he knew—and more importantly, knew him—he made his way through the throngs and got to the refreshment table in the back of the salon.