by W. J. May
“So, what’s our plan? We find her, and then what?” Kylarai downed the last of her iced cappuccino and fixed me with her grey eyes.
I slapped at a mosquito that had strayed inside. “Honestly? I’m not entirely sure. I’d kind of hoped we could hand her over to Veryl. He might have a safe place to keep her.”
“Like imprison her?” Kylarai’s tone said that she found the idea ridiculous.
“I don’t know what else to do right now.” A strand of hair kept escaping from behind my ear, and I huffed in irritation.
“Kill her.” Arys spoke matter of fact, and though I agreed, death wasn’t my first choice at this point.
“No. Nobody is killing her unless there is absolutely no other way. I want to talk to her.”
“Where’s Raoul tonight?” Kylarai grew thoughtful, judging my reaction.
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “I ignored his call earlier.” He hadn’t left a message, so I felt justified in my choice to screen his call.
“So, he has no idea that we’re hunting his daughter tonight?” Shaz sat up straighter in his chair, his features pinched in disapproval. “Oh Lex, that’s not cool.”
I couldn’t resist looking to Arys. I wanted him to validate my choice. His gaze bore into me, and I felt my power reach for him.
Like the humans in the coffee shop around us, neither Kylarai nor Shaz would see the power, but they’d be able to feel it. The growing power struggled to break free of our control. Maybe Arys should have fed after all.
“If Raoul knew, he would never let us find her.” Kylarai pointed out. “He’s really just afraid for himself. Typical selfish bastard.” Her tune had certainly changed lately. She turned around and stared at the line. She didn’t get up for more coffee. “Let’s just grab her and take it from there. If worse comes to worst, we can just give her to Dracula, here.” She gestured at Arys who smiled. “He can make short work of her in no time, and she’ll die with a smile on her face.”
Shaz gave Kylarai a disapproving look, but she just shrugged. The two of them often disagreed at random. Shaz couldn’t understand how Kylarai could go from being the nicest person around to a ruthless, no nonsense killer. She on the other hand understood that he had yet to come to that point. That remaining innocence was part of Shaz’s charm.
He wasn’t completely naive. He simply couldn’t relate to what Kylarai and I had lived through. Every one of us walked a very different road, but at the end of the day, we were still pack.
“Nobody is going to bleed her, except for maybe me. I might be on her hit list, and it may come to that.” I gave everyone at the table a look that said I meant business, though I doubted anyone took me seriously.
Jez’s white Liberty passed by on the highway just beyond the parking lot. I watched distractedly while she pulled into the Travelodge parking lot next door. Kale’s dark haired silhouette was clearly visible in the passenger seat. My tension eased simply knowing that we could get moving and stop sitting in an awkward little circle.
“Let’s just meet them out there.” I waved to the Liberty through the large window, grabbed the coffee that I’d bought for Jez, and turned to lead the way out.
“Excuse me,” I murmured as I squeezed between two ladies in line for coffee.
Outside, my shoulders eased and I realized how tense I’d been. I had to force myself not to run out of the building in a desperate attempt to put space between Arys and me. The pull was so strong that I wondered if he was encouraging it purposely. I blamed it on his hunger. If that was part of some pissing contest between him and Shaz, I planned to be seriously ticked.
In the parking lot, Jez reached for her coffee before she shut the Jeep’s door. “Thank you. Damn girl, you can read my mind. I swear.” She winked and licked her scarlet lips before sipping from the steaming cup.
She looked smoking hot in tight black leggings and a black tank. The golden hair piled on top of her head shone like she’d stepped out of a shampoo commercial. A glance down at my blue jeans, black ankle boots and basic black halter-top made me feel drab in comparison. It must be her golden hair. My ash blonde was not nearly so brilliant in contrast. Next to Kylarai and Jez, I felt like the girl next door. I’m attractive, but they are striking.
“I really appreciate you giving up your night off. I hope it’s not a waste of everybody’s time, but I need to deal with Zoey before she decides to deal with me.”
I resisted the urge to take a step back when Jez leaned in close to breathe my scent. “Oh, you naughty girl,” she purred as she glanced at Kale, who was greeting my small crew with the best fake polite act that I’d ever seen him pull off. “You finally did it.” She grinned and winked slyly. I shot her a warning look that went ignored.
I waited patiently while everyone exchanged pleasantries, and the two vampires sized one another up. They’d met before but only briefly. The fact that Kale and I were strictly platonic seemed to be enough for Arys. His good behavior was surprising. So, he could be civilized and abandon the tough guy routine on occasion.
“What’s your plan for nailing this target, Alexa?” Kale stepped up beside me. His mismatched eyes stood out in startling contrast against the black of his long jacket. “I’m hearing that this is a no kill hunt. Could you possibly be more boring?”
“Please, stop,” I waved a hand dismissively. “You’re going to make my ego positively huge with these sugary sweet compliments. And yes, for now, it’s a hunt and detain. I’ll sort out the killing stuff as we go.”
I perused the five people who waited for my clearly thought out plan. Other than tracking Zoey down, I didn’t really have concrete details.
“I guess we’ll split up.” I shrugged in response to their expectant expressions. “Three groups of two should make it easy to cover the whole town. Zoey’s energy feels hybrid but she smells human.”
“So pairing a shifter with a vampire would make sense,” Kylarai spoke up. She gave Kale a roving once over. The first time that she’d met him at my office, she’d told me that she found him hauntingly beautiful with those eyes.
I nodded and surveyed the possibilities. I shouldn’t be paired with Arys. I wasn’t willing to gamble with being alone with him right now. His allure was too strong. Our energy worked on its own science. It didn’t give a damn who I loved or why. It just wanted more of our power.
Kale’s differently colored eyes darted between me and Arys. He sensed the bond between us. I wanted to ask if he could see the aural colors, or if all vampires were unable, but this was hardly the time.
I didn’t have to look at Shaz to know he hoped to come with me. However, the testosterone-laden air spoke of envy.
To keep my focus on business, I didn’t want to go with either Shaz or Arys. I considered pairing the two of them together, but that didn’t sit well with me, either. Frankly, I didn’t trust the vampire alone with my wolf. In the end, I smiled apologetically at Kylarai.
“I’ll go with Jez. Shaz can go with Kale, which leaves Ky and Arys. Is that cool?” After they all nodded, Ky somewhat begrudgingly, I continued. “Since Ky brought her Escalade, we have enough vehicles to easily cover the whole town.” I turned to Jez, indicating Shaz and Kale. “Do you want to give them my car or yours?”
“Yours is newer,” she shrugged, her eyes on a leggy blonde exiting the Travelodge. “They can take mine.”
Kale made a scoffing sound, as she tossed the keys to him, before flipping her off.
I delegated everybody to a different section of town and stressed again to take Zoey alive. “Kill her, if it’s you or her, but I think we should all be capable of overpowering her.”
In my hurry to get moving, I almost forgot about the photograph. When everyone had taken a good look and exchanged cell phone numbers, we were ready to move.
“What if we run into Raoul?” Shaz asked softly. He was so quiet that I couldn’t be sure if he was upset or his usual, soft-spoken self.
“Try to avoid him I guess. Call me if you do s
ee him. If we don’t find Zoey within a few hours, we’ll call it quits.”
As everyone turned to go, Arys told me, “Be careful.”
He surprised me when he kissed my hand in a way that made my blood run hot. A slip of his tongue on that soft stretch of skin between my pinky and ring finger made me shiver.
I was painfully aware of the wide-eyed horror etched on Shaz’s face before he successfully forced neutral expression. I forcefully pulled my hand from Arys’s and gave him an absolute death glare for his trouble.
“You, too.” I did my best not to scream when he smiled in satisfaction and turned on his heel towards Kylarai’s Cadillac.
Shaz quickly turned to the Jeep where Kale sat fiddling with the radio knobs. I grabbed Shaz’s elbow and forced him to face me.
“Please, don’t let him get to you. It’s just in his nature. He’s used to getting what he wants.”
Shaz ducked his head so that his white blond hair hid his eyes. “I know. It just makes me crazy knowing he’s bound to you.”
“I know. But it’s metaphysical, not emotional.” I raised his chin up so that he met my eyes. “As good as all of that power feels, it isn’t like what you and I have. You need to believe that.”
“Don’t worry about me, Alexa.” He glanced at Kale, waiting in Jez’s Jeep. “I’m not as fragile as you seem to think I am.”
“This isn’t about being fragile. This is about me needing you to know that, no matter what happens with Arys, he’s not the one.” My voice caught.
Did he know what I was trying to say? I couldn’t possibly guess how deep this thing went with Arys, but I searched Shaz’s eyes for some kind of confirmation that he loved me regardless.
As he pulled me to him in a soft yet strong embrace, I basked in the wolf scent of him, reluctant to let go.
“I’m not walking away from this, Alexa.” He breathed into my hair. “Not now.”
The emotion in his voice tugged at my heart, and I pulled back to look into his youthful face. His smile warmed me in places the vampire’s cool touch just couldn’t reach. It was all Shaz.
“Alright,” he leaned in for a fast press of his lips to mine before turning to the Jeep where Kale feigned interest in a family parking their motor home across the lot. “We better go find Raoul’s offspring and tidy up another one of his messes.”
I had to laugh. He knew Raoul almost as well as I did. The back of my neck was stiff, and I just wanted this all to be over. Both Zoey and Raoul needed a supernatural psych ward. Did such a thing even exist? From what I knew of Veryl, he liked to take out the trash, not put it in a care facility.
The sun had set a while ago, yet the faintest pink glow remained in the western sky. Heavy metal music pumped out of the Charger, and I frowned. She was so bad for that. Jez had slid the sunroof all the way open, and I glanced nervously at the circling seagulls overhead. My footsteps quickened, my boot heels clicking loudly as I hurried to the car. I was not at all surprised to find her chatting up some ginger haired girl in the truck next to us.
Shaking my head, I used my hair to hide my smile as I climbed into the driver’s seat and turned down the speaker volume. As Jez fished in her purse for her card, the girl’s boyfriend, or so I assumed, returned with two coffees and a bag of muffins.
“Just in case.” I heard her say as she handed the card through the open window.
“You’re unbelievable.” I tucked a gold chunk of hair behind one ear and started the engine.
“Why, thank you, Alexa. To what do I owe such a fine compliment?” A few stray strands of wavy hair had come loose to frame her heart shaped face.
“You put guys like Arys to shame.” I tsked and looked over both shoulders before backing out of the narrow parking space.
“Good,” she quipped.
I directed her hand away from the volume knob and signaled into traffic. She gave my hand a light slap, exactly the way a cat would, not quite enough to hurt but enough to exhibit her displeasure. Since she gave up on the volume, I didn’t slap her back like I wanted.
“How can I not put them to shame? Most of them really don’t know the first thing about women: How to understand them, or what to do with them.” She pulled out a box of nicotine patches from her purse.
“So you always say.” I glanced at the box in her hands while waiting for a red light to change. “Finally trying to quit?”
She strained against the confines of her seatbelt in an attempt to turn partially around. Fumbling with the waistband of her leggings, she peeled them down enough for me to see the milky white of her left butt cheek. I didn’t notice the clear patch until she hooked a long nail under the edge and removed it. I did notice that Jez enjoyed going commando.
“Try me, Alexa, just once. You’ll give up both of your men in a heartbeat. And yes, quitting again. Every time I turn around, Veryl’s wagging a finger in my face.” She slapped the new patch on to her ass and settled back in her seat.
My heart sped with an anxious beat. I’d heard her come on many times before, but she’d referred to both Shaz and Arys as my men.
“They are not both my men,” I said tersely.
The guy in the next lane revved his engine, and I recognized the truck with the girl from the parking lot. Not wanting to encourage him, I eased off and allowed him to race ahead. “And why do you put it on your ass? Does it absorb into your bloodstream any better?”
“Which one of them isn’t your man? Hmmm?” She winked a cat eye at me when I glanced her way. “No, it’s just a good place to keep it out of sight.”
I sighed. Technically, neither of them was mine but figuratively? I had to acknowledge the territorial claim I felt over each of them. I suck. I knew Shaz felt that Arys didn’t deserve any piece of me, but I felt that I didn’t deserve Shaz. He deserved so much more than what I could give him, but as long as he wanted me, I had no intention of cutting him loose.
I followed Golf Course Road through town towards Raoul’s neighborhood. I wanted to check out some of the alleys and side streets. Hopefully, we wouldn’t pass his Jaguar anywhere.
“If I were you,” Jez began, as she reclined her seat, “I’d enjoy it. Two fine looking creatures that want to ravage you, how can you go wrong?”
“One of those creatures is a self-absorbed vampire and the other is someone sensitive and sweet that I don’t want to hurt. This can blow up in my face, Jez. Stop thinking with your…” I realized what I’d been about to say and censored myself with a chuckle. She laughed, a musical sound like the tinkling of wind chimes. “What I meant is that the physical and especially metaphysical fun can lead to some real emotional distress. It already has.”
“Well, you have a very strong energy. Honestly, I’m surprised that you don’t have more power hungry wannabe lovers as it is.”
As Jez spoke, her eyes lit on me with a weight that I could feel. She studied me intensely for a long, drawn out moment, and I saw her lick her full red lips. I didn’t truly think Jez was into me. We’re friends first and foremost. The flirty “try me once and never go back” was a running joke she had with many of her straight lady friends. However, did I think she might be attracted to me as a power source? I did now.
“Well, one is more than enough. At least with Shaz, there’s a real foundation.” I huffed impatiently at the guy in front of me. Could he possibly turn any slower?
“I like him. He seems like a good guy. And Lord knows, you could use one.” She picked at one of her perfectly manicured nails, oblivious to the frown I wore.
Unsure if I should feel insulted or not, I said nothing. I scanned the streets and sidewalks, scrutinizing everyone we passed.
“So, where are we headed?” Her cell phone vibrated loudly, and she pulled it out to read a text message before typing a response.
“Cruising the streets near Raoul’s then heading to Lucy’s. I know she’s been in there even if I haven’t seen her myself.” A thought struck me, and I added, “There’s another area, too, adjacent to
my neighborhood. That’s where she watched Shaz and I run this morning.”
We cruised every street but Raoul’s. For that one, I parked down an alley, and Jez took a quick stroll around the block. When I asked if Raoul’s Jag was in the driveway, she said no. The kitchen light had been on, but she’d seen no one.
Just after eleven, we pulled up at Lucy’s Lounge. The place was already pretty packed.
“Is this place ever dead?”
Jez eyed the small group of ladies in the parking lot. An eyeful of short skirts and cleavage enhancing tops had her ogling like a kid in a candy store. We weren’t even inside yet.
“Aren’t you seeing someone?” I raised a quizzical eyebrow.
“I see a lot of people. There’s no ring on this finger.” She wiggled the fingers of her left hand too close to my face, and I slapped it away. “I’m not dead, Alexa. I’m always open to meeting that one lady that just knocks my socks off.”
“Just one huh?” My wry smile wasn’t lost on her, and I chuckled at her exasperation.
“Who are you to talk about having just one?”
“Ouch. Nice, Jez.”
Inside, the aggravating sounds of a recent Top 40 hit made me long for Jez’s heavy metal. The joint was packed with humans. It was strange to see the bar without Shaz. Most of the staff recognized me and nodded. A few of the local Weres were usually there, but I didn’t feel their energy anywhere.
“Go ahead and grab a drink if you want,” I said close to Jez’s ear. “I’m going to use the restroom.” I didn’t have to tell her twice. I knew I’d come back to find her with a brightly colored cocktail in each hand. She just couldn’t resist a fruity beverage.
After using the facilities and washing up, I was walking down the small hall back towards the bar when I felt someone’s eyes on me. Before I could turn to look, the lightest touch on my elbow had me startled into a defensive stance. It was just a human girl, and I relaxed until her scent hit me. It was David’s girlfriend, the one who had lied to the police.