by Lisa Emme
The headline screamed “Who’s that Girl?” followed by a second line in smaller print that read “And Whose Girl is She?” The article went on to discuss my dress (“attention-grabbing and daringly short”), my hair (“a pixie cut with attitude”), my shoes (“killer pumps that would be equally at home at the Ritz or at the local MC clubhouse”) and lastly posed the question of just who I was there with. Was I the latest arm candy of Salvador Arroyo, the devilishly handsome billionaire (a billionaire? That was news to me, but I guess it shouldn’t have been a surprise. You can amass quite a fortune when you live forever), or was I the latest conquest of the well-known lady’s man, Tomas Guerra? (Tomas had a last name? Huh…that was news to me as well.)
The only bright spot of the whole thing was the inch and a half of space the article spent debating whether Tomas’s mysterious disappearance the month before was due to a drug problem (rehab) or if he had some “work done” which would explain his remarkable transformation from handsome to drop-dead gorgeous (their words, not mine).
“Oh man! I can’t believe they did this.” I continued to scan the article, but Tess grabbed it out from under my gaze.
“Listen to this! It’s a hoot.” She dodged my attempt to snag the paper back and started to read directly from the article.
“The mystery woman, obviously comfortable in her own skin—and why wouldn’t she be?—ate with a healthy appetite, and sources say she finished off the evening with Cirque’s signature chocolate soufflé—a dish that has to be special ordered—and a shot of tequila.”
I growled and reached for the paper again. “Will you keep your voice down?” I grumbled at her. We were drawing attention.
“Wait,” Tess continued, lowering her voice, “it gets even better.”
“If this mystery woman has her sights set on either of Riverton’s most sought-after bachelors, one might suggest a change in demeanor is in order. One witness (name withheld on request) attested to hearing the young lady threaten to “snap his thumb off and shove it where the sun don’t shine” if Guerra didn’t remove his hand from her bottom. While as the picture below attests, if she has a bigger fish in mind, she may want to lose the attitude.”
“Omigod, Harry. The picture is priceless.”
“Let me see!” I succeeded in stealing the page back.
The last part was written directly above a small picture of Salvador bidding me good night with his customary kiss to the top of my hand. I guess my impatient eye roll was considered bad attitude.
“Crap. I can’t believe this is happening.” I leaned over the counter, head in hands, slowly giving it a shake. Well, I guess I knew what Mrs. Flannigan was all about earlier. She had a soft-spot for Nash. Oh no, Nash! I straightened, grabbing my cell phone from behind the counter. “I’d better call Nash and warn him,” I said, just as the bell above the door rang.
“Yeah,” replied Tess, laughter in her voice, “I don’t think that’s going to be necessary.”
Nash stood in the doorway and scanned the room with narrowed eyes. His gaze met mine, and I could hear him growl from across the room. The next thing I knew he was behind the counter, pressing me up against the wall, his hands shoved roughly through my hair, holding my head. “Mine,” he rasped, pulling my face to his. His lips captured mine in a demanding kiss as he slid one hand down to grip my ass, melding our bodies together.
When we finally came up for air, minutes later, we had the attention of the entire shop. “Nash, you Neanderthal, quit making a scene in front of the customers.” I clutched his hand and dragged him down the hall and into the kitchen. “I guess this means you saw this morning’s paper?”
“Yes,” he replied with a scowl. “In fact, my locker at the precinct was papered with it, and several of the guys wondered if I would get your autograph for them.”
Oh. Well. I could see why he might be a little worked up. Being a werewolf, he kind of took the whole alpha male thing to the extreme. A trait I found equally sexy and annoying.
“It’s not like any of this is my fault.” I glared at him. “Salvador obviously set the whole thing up.” I crossed my arms in front of me. “Although why, I have no clue.”
“I don’t like it,” Nash groused.
“So what else is new?” I snorted and grabbed the front of his shirt, pulling him towards me. “You never came home last night to help me out of my dress.” I tugged him closer so we were face-to-face. “I really wanted you to help me out of my dress.” I ran my free hand down his torso towards the bulge in his pants. As my fingertips touched the waistband of his jeans, he groaned and I found myself once again pinned against the wall, my hands captured in his. He slid my arms above my head and leaned into me, dipping his face to my neck and taking a deep breath.
“Damn work,” he said, speaking into the curve of my neck, his lips tickling my sensitive skin. He nipped at my collarbone, and I sucked in a surprised breath. When his tongue flicked over the same spot, I let out a heated sigh, squirming in his grasp. Our bodies rubbed together, and I could feel him hard against me. “I’ll be home for sure tonight.” He let my hands drop, sliding his to my hips as he boosted me up. My legs automatically wrapped around him, my arms falling to his neck. His mouth found mine, and he ground his body against me, pushing me up against the wall.
I was a bit lust-dazed, so it took a minute for what he had said to register. When it finally did, I reluctantly pulled my mouth from his. “I have to go out tonight,” I said breathlessly.
“What? Where?” He nipped at my neck again, working his way down to my collarbone, moving his hand to cup my breast. “I’m sure I can persuade you to change your plans.”
With a grunt of effort, I pushed Nash away, my feet falling to the floor. “I wish, but they’re not my plans.”
Nash paused for a second then scowled. “Damn Salvador. What does he want now?”
***
“Yippee!” Tess squealed and clapped her hands. “Don’t worry, Harry. It’s going to be fun.”
I had just told her about my assignment from Salvador. I shook my head slowly. “I don’t know. Weren’t you listening? Salvador thinks there is something hinky going on there, and vampires can’t even get in the door. It doesn’t bode well for fun.”
“Don’t be such a downer. I’ve heard it’s totally lit.”
“What’s totally lit?” Barbie paused on her way past to the kitchen.
“We’re going to Wishes, the new club.”
“No way! Can I come?”
“Sure!” Tess smiled at her. “The more the merrier.”
“Wait, wait.” I held out a hand. “I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”
Barbie’s smile disappeared. “Oh, okay.” She shook her head. “Yeah, you’re right. It would be weird with you being my boss and all.”
“What? No! That’s not what I meant. Of course you can come if you want. Like Tess said, the more the merrier. I just think you should know what you’re getting yourself into first. The last thing I need is your entire posse of brothers coming down on me for taking you into danger.” Barbie had four older brothers. The oldest, Martin, was a cop in the SRU—the Supernatural Response Unit—the force that Nash headed up. “Maybe you better sit down a minute and I’ll explain.”
Chapter Eleven
When all was said and done, we ended up with quite a group heading to Wishes. Tess and I were riding with Isaac, who insisted on coming even if it meant he would end up only playing chauffeur and waiting outside. After a tense moment when Max arrived (all the tension being on Tess’s part and no one else’s), it was decided he would follow in his own car, a snazzy Lexus. Tess had breathed a sigh of relief and climbed into the back of Isaac’s vehicle, leaving shotgun for me without even a token fight. That left Barbie and her beefy werewolf boyfriend, Tank, who were meeting us there.
As we were leaving, a sapphire-blue Porsche roared into view, spraying gravel in the parking lot behind my building as it came to a stop.
“What the
hell are you doing here?” I asked when Tomas climbed out.
“Russo,” he replied, his eyes taking a trip down the length of my body. “As charming as ever.” He smirked and leaned against his car, arms folded casually across his chest. He was dressed in a dark blue suit with a similarly coloured shirt. The shirt was open at the neck with no tie. He looked sexy as hell. “Where’s your little pet?”
“Nash is working. He’s joining us later.”
Tomas made a face. “Not him, the other…the little chica.” He waggled his eyebrows. “She’s a feisty one, that one. I like them feisty.”
There was a movement behind me, and then suddenly Max was in Tomas’s face.
“Watch your mouth, buster.” Max bristled, his hands in fists at his sides.
“Whoa, there. No need to bring the hammer down, Elder.” Tomas grinned at his joke, playing on Max’s official title as leader of the Coven.
“Miss Fuentes is a lady, and you will give her the respect she deserves.” Max turned his back, dismissing Tomas, and looked at me. “I’ll meet you there, Harry.”
“Yeah, okay, Max. We’ll be right behind you.”
Max hopped in his car and drove off, tires squealing. Tomas grinned. “What got him so riled up?”
“Just leave it alone, fangboy.” I put my hands on my hips.
Tomas gave me another lazy once-over. “You know, you clean up nice, Russo. You look equal parts ready to kick-ass and party girl.”
I shrugged. I’d take that as a compliment. It was, in fact, what I had been going for. I was dressed in a killer, black leather mini dress with a large paisley print detail. The leather was soft and supple, giving me optimum flexibility. I had paired it with my favourite pair of thigh-high, black leather boots. I was wearing my katana strapped across my back, but with the new invisibility enchantment Max had put on the sheath, no one would know it was there until I wanted them to.
“We should get going,” Isaac said, lifting an eyebrow at Tomas.
Tess popped her head out of the window. “What’s the hold up? Are we going, or what?”
Tomas smirked again and then sauntered back to his car. He hopped in and gunned the engine before roaring off, his taillights winking at us in the distance.
“Definitely must be compensating for something,” I muttered to myself as I climbed into the Escalade.
***
I have to admit to being nervous about going back to the warehouse. I didn’t particularly have the best memories of my time spent there. I needn’t have worried though; it looked nothing like it did before. The entire building had been painted canary yellow. The entrance, originally a single, nondescript steel door, had been widened, and two bright green doors hung there instead. A gaudy neon rainbow with Wishes written in flashing orange script stretched across the side of the building, arching over the entrance. There was a small crowd gathered up against one side of the doorway, held back by a purple, velvet rope. They stood just at the edge of the red carpet that lined the front of the doorway.
Isaac parked a ways up the street, and the three of us climbed out of the vehicle and simply stood staring at the monstrosity.
Tess made a disappointed little sound. “That’s not at all what I was expecting.”
“It’s like it was designed by someone colourblind,” I added.
“It looks like a clown vomited,” Tess replied.
Isaac shrugged. “Appearances can be deceiving.”
“Yeah,” Tess said, the smile returning to her face. “Maybe it’s like The Lodge.” She was referring to the werewolf pack’s local hangout. On the outside it looked like a tired, old, western-themed dive bar, but that was just a front for one of the hippest nightclubs in town.
We walked towards the entrance, joining up with Max and Tomas, who had each been waiting in their respective cars. We were standing on the sidewalk across the street from the building when Tank and Barbie appeared.
Barbie gave us a skeptical look.
“We’re thinking it’s better on the inside,” Tess said in reply.
“Don’t fall for temptation! Evil is among us!”
The voice rang out from the front of the building. A brief commotion erupted and a man dressed in dark clothing stood in front of the gathered crowd holding up a paper. “Step away! This path only leads to damnation.” The man handed out leaflets to the people in line. He turned to face the street. There was a flash of white at his neck and I started in surprise.
“Father Mike?” He was the priest from St. Anthony’s.
Father Mike looked up at his name and, spotting me, crossed over to join our little group.
“Harry! You shouldn’t be here.” He shoved a leaflet into my hand. It was an invitation to a special Mass at St. Anthony’s. “This is a place of evil.”
“Father Mike, since when have you started picketing nightclubs?”
“It’s more than that, Harry. Can’t you feel it?” He tucked the remaining leaflets into a satchel at his side and placed a hand on my arm. “It’s infecting the whole city with its evil. I’ve felt the shift.”
“The shift!” I grabbed his hand. “What do you mean?”
“Evil, Harry. Pure evil. Don’t go in there. Nothing good happens in there.”
“What are you talking about? Has something happened?” Max’s voice seemed to startle Father Mike, as if he had been so focussed on me he hadn’t noticed any of the others. His eyes widened as he took in Isaac and Tomas, but then he turned back to me.
“I’ve had parishioners go in and come out changed. They stop coming to Mass, stop living their lives. They neglect their families, their jobs. It’s like some sort of drug.” Father Mike turned back to me. “You must feel it, Harry. I know you are…different. That you have a gift.”
“I…” I let out a long breath. I didn’t see much point in denying it. “That’s why I’m here…to check it out.”
“You have a pure soul, Harry. You do God’s work.” Father Mike patted my arm.
“You know I don’t follow your religion, Father Mike.”
“We all find God in our own way,” he replied, pulling something from his pocket. It was a small bottle of clear liquid. Before I could protest, he tipped a bit out on his thumb and then rubbed it on my forehead, making the shape of a cross. “Lord Father, bless this child. She is a warrior of the light. Shield her with your strength and keep her safe from harm.” I blinked at him in surprise and he clasped me on the arms. “Be safe in there, Harry.”
“Thanks, Father Mike. I will.”
“Well, that was weird,” Tess said as we watched Father Mike hurry back across the street to continue to preach to the waiting crowd.
“He’s right though,” Max said, “there is something here. I can feel it.” He looked at me. “Can’t you, Harry?”
I frowned at him and then turned my senses outwards. As soon as I did, I was hit by it—a wave of, well, of what I wasn’t sure. It just felt wrong. “Yes, I can feel it, but I don’t know what it is.” I looked at the rest of the group. “Can anyone else feel anything?”
Tomas, who had been pacing impatiently stalked across the street then stopped less than a quarter of the way across. “I can,” he said. “It starts right about here.”
Isaac cocked his head as if trying to sense something and then strode towards Tomas. He came to an abrupt stop right beside him. “Yes, I can feel it too.”
“What? I don’t feel anything,” Tess said with a frown. She stepped up to stand beside Isaac. With a shrug she crossed the street to stand on the sidewalk in front of the building. “Come on. We’re wasting time. Let’s check it out.”
I approached Isaac and Tomas, walking across the street to join Tess. I looked back, but neither of them had moved.
“I’m afraid this appears to be as far as I am able to go,” Isaac said, his face puzzled.
“Really? Why?”
“I don’t know. I am just unable to move forward.” He put his hand out, reaching towards me. His arm wasn’t
fully extended when it suddenly stopped, as if encountering a barrier.
“What do you feel?” asked Max, coming to stand beside Isaac. “Does it feel solid?”
“Yes, it feels as if there is a solid wall right in front of me. I am unable to pass it.”
“Interesting.” Max nodded absently. He walked across the street to where Tess and I were waiting and then turned and walked back to Isaac. “Most interesting.”
Tess rolled her eyes. “Are we going to stand here all night?”
“You go ahead,” Max replied. “I want to explore this barrier. I wonder if it goes around the entire perimeter of the building?” He looked at Tomas.
Tomas nodded. “It did when I checked it out the other night. Although it was closer to the building then. It’s widened. Last time I was here I was able to make it across the street to the sidewalk.”
“You mean it’s growing?” I gaped at him in shock.
Tomas shrugged. “It appears so.”
“Okay, then. Max, you stay out here and do your thing. Tomas, you go with Max.” Tomas gave me a look as if to say he didn’t like to be told what to do by me. “Someone has to watch Max’s back while his senses are tuned elsewhere. If not you, then Isaac.”
“I didn’t say I wouldn’t do it,” Tomas replied.
“I will wait here,” Isaac said, moving back to lean against Max’s car.
I looked at Tank and Barbie, who still stood on the other side of the street. “What about you two? Are you coming?”
“I’ve got a bad feeling about this.” Tank shook his head.
“Oh, come on. We have to go. What can go wrong if we all stick together?” Barbie grabbed his hand and tugged him across the street towards us.
“Alrighty, then. That’s settled.” I turned to Tess. “Ready?”
She patted her tiny purse with a grin. “Locked and loaded. Let’s go.” I rolled my eyes. She had insisted on tucking a small revolver—a Ruger LCR—into it. Since I currently had an invisible sword strapped to my back, I couldn’t really complain.