“What did you do afterwards?” She asked in a quiet voice.
“I brought your mother and Benjamin back to America. We stayed in Boston at first which is where your brother, Alexandru, was born. As it became more crowded and old superstitions rose up again, we traveled west. Eventually, we made our way to Magic where Nonny and Gramps had already settled.”
Tory was silent for several minutes as she absorbed the new information about her ancestors that she hadn’t known. A shiver went through her as she thought of what her grandparents must have gone through. It must have been devastating for them when the people they knew and trusted suddenly turned against them based on the words of strangers.
She couldn’t imagine that ever happening in Magic. She thought of all the things she had learned during her High School years and even during the four years she did her studies online at New Mexico State College in Graphic Design. It was one thing to hear about such things on the news or read about it, it was another to know that it had touched her own family.
“I always thought you were overprotective because of my disorder,” she whispered. “It isn’t that at all. You’re afraid that someone will try to hurt me like they did Grandma and Grandpa.”
“Yes,” he replied in a quiet voice. “When you almost died as a baby, I swore I would do whatever I could to protect you. You’re my little girl, my princess, my little Vampiress and I love you very much.”
Charles reached his arm around her and pulled her close. He sighed when she rested her head on his shoulder. She was right. She would always be his little girl, but it was time to let her grow up and spread her wings.
***
“Do you mean it? Really?” Tory asked in excitement. “Oh Daddy! You are the best!”
“Alexandru,” Charles said, wrapping his arms around Tory as she threw hers around his neck. “I expect you to protect her.”
Alexandru Vuia Carson grinned at his father’s stern face. He had arrived a couple hours before just as everyone was sitting down to dinner. He didn’t know why he thought he could surprise his parents and grandparents. Nonny had met him at the door just as he was about to knock.
“You’re late,” she said with a frown. “You should have been here fifteen minutes ago.”
“I stopped in town to talk to Theo,” Alexandru explained with a raised eyebrow. “Are the Fates here?”
“No, they’re in Vegas,” Nonny had grinned. “But, they said you’d be here by eight.”
After a long, leisurely dinner of an assortment of dishes including Polish Czarnina, Blodplattar, and Black Pudding, Tory had been so stuffed by the time it was over she had almost missed the turn in conversation. Alexandru was discussing his latest commission in Charleston, South Carolina for a gentleman who had just moved to the States.
“I haven’t met him yet, but he has excellent taste in furnishings. I have most of what he wants,” Alexandru was saying. “I still need to acquire a few pieces. He wants everything set up as soon as possible.”
“What is Charleston like?” Tory asked, leaning forward in excitement. “I heard it is filled with history. They have a market there where you can get the coolest sweet grass baskets. I heard you can even watch as they are being made. Can you get me one for my collection?”
“Why don’t you come back with me and pick out your own?” Alexandru suggested. “I have no idea what to get you. You must have every basket known to mankind, plus witch, elf, dwarf, and fairy.”
“Don’t forget Genie!” Grandpa Carson added with a twinkle in his eye as he wiped his mouth. “She found one online last month.”
“A Genie!” Alexandru exclaimed in surprise. “How on Earth did that happen?”
“It was an old wine basket. I got it off of ebay for twenty bucks. When it arrived, I was cleaning it up and the next thing I knew, Dev popped out,” Tory grinned.
“What did you wish for?” Alexandru asked in curiosity. “Or was he not that kind of Genie?”
“What other kind of Genie is there?” Tory asked, puzzled by the choked laughter that followed her older brother’s question. “Nevermind, I don’t think I want to know. I gave him his bottle, kept the basket, and told him that he should go talk to Susanna down at the Krazy Kettles.”
“Why?” Alexandru asked, confused. “What would she need a Genie for?”
“Well, he said he had to do something to repay me for rescuing him,” Tory replied with a grin. “Susanna is short-handed right now down at the diner. I was helping out as much as I could, but I had a big project I was trying to finish. Now, she has help, and I was able to finish the project so I can go to Charleston without feeling guilty.”
“Totally brilliant,” Alexandru laughed. “Good move, sis.”
“So, when do we leave?” Tory asked excitedly.
Chapter Three
Simon stood on the sidewalk across from his office building and turned in a frustrated circle. The male and female were gone. He didn’t understand how they had disappeared so quickly.
He drew in a deep breath, but all he could smell was the salt breeze and automotive exhaust. Frustrated, he rumbled a low growl of warning at Youssef when he jogged across the road. The beast inside him was pushing dangerously against his restraint.
There were many legends about Werewolves in the world, practically all of them were wrong. There was only one that was correct that he knew of and that was the effect of the full moon on him. His need to mate became insatiable. In previous years, he would find a willing female and fuck her to take the edge off. The beast inside had never reacted this strongly to a female, especially at just a glance.
He glanced up at the sky. The faint outline of the moon could be seen in the twilight. He had four days until the next full moon. He turned when Youssef stepped closer.
“They were gone?” He asked in concern, looking up and down the street.
“Yes,” Simon replied in a deep voice. “See if they were on the surveillance cameras you set up. I want you to find her.”
“What happens when I do?” Youssef replied in surprise. “You have never asked me to kidnap a female before. I usually have to beat them off you.”
Simon turned and glared at Youssef. “Find her,” he repeated. “You have two days.”
Youssef paled as he glanced up at the sky before looking back and nodding. “I will find her,” he replied gravely.
Simon turned and gripped the railing along the sidewalk. “Call the car. I will stay at the estate tonight,” he ordered in a low voice. “I need to run.”
“At once,” Youssef said, pulling his cell phone out. “Meet us out front now.”
***
“Today was the most wonderful day ever!” Tory said, laughing as she twirled around in a circle so she was walking backwards. “I found at least a dozen baskets and Maureen said she would let me sit and watch her tomorrow and I found some gifts for mom and dad and Nonny and Gramps and Sue and…”
“And you’ll need a truck to get everything home,” Alexandru chuckled at Tory’s flushed face. Whoever said Vampires were supposed to be pale had never met his little sister. She glowed with happiness. “So, what did you get me?”
“I got you, my dear brother, a new website!” Tory grinned. “Yours was so outdated, it belonged with all the antiques you are always looking for. I’ve polished it until it shines and you’ve already had an increase of twenty-five percent thanks to the little spell I wove in it.”
Alexandru shook his head. “You know I’ll have to hire you to keep it up to date. Also, since when did you create a spell that actually works for any length of time?” He teased, jumping back when she tried to swat him with one of her shopping bags.
“I’m getting better! I just don’t quite have it down yet. Nonny is working with me. I’m better when I weave it in my designs,” Tory admitted with a tired sigh. “I’m hungry. What’s for dinner?”
Alexandru chuckled as he took the bags from her and opened the door to the apartment he was renting while he w
as in Charleston. He carefully laid the bags by the entrance table. Walking into the kitchen, he flicked on the light and opened the refrigerator. He pulled several containers out, turned and held them up.
“Nonny and mom packed a going away basket,” he grinned.
Tory’s face dropped. “I thought we could try something different,” she muttered, walking over and peeking into the top container. “Black pudding, yay.”
Alexandru tapped her nose and placed the items on the counter. “You know she and dad worry about you,” he said as he pulled some plates out. “Besides, I don’t get home cooking all that often.”
“I know,” Tory muttered just as Alexandru’s cell phone rang. “I’ll do this while you take your call.”
“Thanks, sis. Alexandru,” he said, turning and walking out into the living room.
Tory rolled her eyes at her brother’s back. She could hear every word both he and his caller was saying. The good thing about being a Vampire was she had excellent hearing.
“The bad thing is being a freaking Vampire with a blood allergy!” She muttered as she heated the Blood pudding in the microwave. She hated cold Blood pudding. “Who ever heard of a blood-intolerant Vamp?”
“You’re talking to yourself again,” Alexandru said, leaning against the door jam. “I have a lead on a piece I’ve been looking everywhere for.”
“I know. I heard,” Tory muttered, pulling the second plate out of the microwave. “I guess you want me to go home.”
“No, actually, I don’t,” Alexandru said, straightening up so he could take a plate from her. “I was hoping you wouldn’t mind being on your own for a few days.”
Tory’s eyes widened and her mouth dropped open in surprise. “Are you serious? What about daddy? He’ll kill you if you leave me on my own?” She whispered.
“Tory, you’re twenty-four, not fourteen,” Alexandru said, brushing his knuckles along her cheek. “Charleston is a safe town as long as you are smart. Besides, I could use your help, if you don’t mind.”
“I… Sure, anything!” She grinned.
“Can you deliver some of the pieces I’ve already got to Mr. Drayton’s estate outside of town? If you can do that, it will help me tremendously as he wanted it all taken care of before the end of the week,” Alexandru explained.
“I… yeah, I can do that,” she laughed, giving her brother a one armed hug. “I just need his address and where to get the items.”
“I’ll leave everything in a folder for you,” he said with a relieved smile. “You’ll be fine. Just be careful and make sure you don’t draw any attention to yourself.”
“No worries!” She replied. “Nonny put a ‘human’ spell on me. No one can tell that I’m not a normal human girl.”
“Perfect,” he said. “Let’s eat. I’ll go over everything with you before I leave.”
“Thanks, Alexandru,” Tory said, setting her plate on the small table in front of the window overlooking Market street.
Alexandru frowned as he looked at her suddenly serious expression. “What for?”
“For giving me a chance to spread my wings,” she said in a quiet voice as she turned to stare down at the street bustling with tourist.
“Just be careful, Tory,” he replied in a soft voice. “Dad isn’t the only one who is overprotective of you. If anyone hurt you, they’d find out what hell was really like when every resident of Magic came after them.”
Tory smiled and picked up her fork. Her eyes kept moving to the street down below her. For the first time in her life, she would be left alone to explore and discover at her own pace. Suddenly, the Blood pudding didn’t taste so bad. Tomorrow, she would try something a little different, maybe a touch spicier.
Chapter Four
“What have you found?” Simon asked as Youssef walked into the elegant office.
“Nothing,” Youssef replied in frustration. “There was nothing on the cameras. It was as if they were never there!”
“You said the surveillance system was operational,” Simon bit out in a deep voice, turning away from the window to the glare at his friend and chief of security.
Youssef ran his hand over the back of his neck as he frowned. “It is,” he muttered. “Every movement along the street was recorded. The time-date stamp showed the exact moment they should have shown up on the camera. Everything is there. Hell, I watched a squirrel play in the damn tree they were standing under and nothing. They weren’t there.”
A dangerous growl escaped Simon. Two nights until the full moon and the only female the beast inside him wanted was the one he saw yesterday. He would have to be locked up in the special room he had built in the basement if he couldn’t find and convince the woman to stay with him. He would lose control of the beast otherwise and that could prove to be deadly to everyone, including Youssef.
He turned back toward the huge set of windows looking out over the long driveway. A white van was pulling down it. As it turned the curved in the driveway, he made out the name of the company he had employed to find the exact furnishings for his new home.
Alexandru Carson of Magic Furnishings had managed to find all of the pieces he had requested so far. Simon wondered if the mysterious entrepreneur could find the woman he had seen yesterday. It appeared to be a task beyond his security chief’s ability.
A moment of regret washed through him as he admonished himself for being so hard on his friend. It was not Youssef’s fault the camera was defective. His friend had spent years protecting him. In fact, he bore the scars from it across his chest when Simon had lost control one night and almost killed one of the gardeners who had returned after dark when he was running.
“Replace the…” Simon’s voice died as he watched in disbelief as the door to the van opened and the woman that he had seen yesterday stepped out of the driver’s seat.
“Simon!” Youssef called out in surprise as Simon turned and rushed by him. He glanced back and forth from the window to the open door before he cursed again as he turned to follow Simon. “I really do hate it when he does that.”
***
Tory carefully folded the papers and slid them back into the envelope. The guards at the front had been about the strangest thing she had ever seen. They acted like she was trying to steal the furniture instead of delivering it!
She shut the door to the van and looked up at the house. It was beautiful in a huge, I-want-to-bury-a-dead-body-in-it, kind of way. She had seen pictures of houses like this. It reminded her of the houses from the Vampire movie she had watched on television a couple months ago.
She rolled her eyes as she walked up the steps to the front door. The actors had been really good, and really hot to look at, but they had gotten the whole Vampire thing wrong. Hell, when the little girl had turned to ash, Tory had laughed so hard she had almost wet her pants. Then, there was the other one where they were supposed to be all sparkly in the sun!
“Not unless I took a bath in glitter,” she muttered as she raised her hand to knock on the massive door. “Damn, Hugo would love to have a set of these on his house,” she muttered as she thought of the gentle giant that lived off of Dust Bowl and Redwood back home.
“Who is Hugo?” The male who opened the door demanded.
“What?” Tory squeaked in surprise. She hadn’t heard him walking to the door, so when it opened it had surprised her.
“Who is Hugo?” The male demanded again. “Is he your boyfriend or husband?”
Tory tilted her head and frowned. Great! She came all the way to Charleston to meet… a Werewolf! Like she didn’t have enough of those running around back home.
She wiggled her nose at the distinctive scent. She refused to admit he smelled a hell of a lot better than Maverick. Still, she didn’t want to meet another Werewolf! She wanted to meet a cute human male! Preferably with Type A positive blood. It was the only one she could safely drink.
“No, Hugo isn’t my boyfriend or husband. He’s just a g… guy I know. I’m here to deliver some furni
ture for Mr. Drayton. Can you let him know? I’ll need some help carrying it in, as well,” she added, folding her arms as the tall male continued to stare down at her. “Please.”
She thought she better add the last part for good customer service. She didn’t really need any help with moving it. She could shrink the stuff and pop it back up when she got it inside, but she had promised her mom, dad, Nonny, Gramps, Alexandru and half of the town of Magic that she wouldn’t do anything ‘different’ in front of ANYONE while she was gone.
Tory sighed. That might mean biting on a Type A positive neck is a no-no, but I can enjoy a guy’s company without biting him.
“What is your name?” The man demanded.
Tory bit her lip to prevent the word Elvira from popping out. She didn’t think he would appreciate her reference to the 1980’s Mistress of the Dark. Instead, she slowly looked over the man standing between her and a night out on the town, all on her little own. He was tall and handsome with his thick blond hair pulled back at his nape. The dark suit he was wearing emphasized the muscles under it. He had a wide chest, narrow waist, and… a blush rose over her cheeks at the bulge in the front.
Okay, eyes to the face, she muttered silently. Werewolves! I swear they are the horniest creatures in the world!
She rolled her eyes again. That was why Maverick, Mitch, Hanson, and Jude were never allowed to do track, swimming or wrestling. Well, they weren’t allowed to do track after they chased down Edgar and cornered him.
No, their constant state of arousal once they hit puberty made it difficult for them to play certain sports. They were great at football and basketball. Their pack mentality made them great out on the field or court.
“Tory Carson,” she said, pursing her lips together. “Are you like the butler or something? Can you give me a hand with the furniture?”
“I’m…,” Simon started to say when a low rumble escaped him when the woman in front of him tilted sideways and smiled at Youssef.
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