by Isa Fae
Looking at her, Kally was injured but still alive. Her breathing was slow, but it was steady. Miranda looked around, searching for help, but the alley remained deserted. She’d have to get her back to the shop herself. She moved around to her head and leaned down, hooking her arms under Kally’s armpits and dragging her over the asphalt. This way would bring her more injuries, but it was the only way Miranda could get her out of here.
As she rounded the corner, she nearly ran into a Fae teen. The girl took in Miranda. Then Kally. Her eyes widened and she screamed, fumbling in her pocket for something and running away.
Great. Miranda was sure this didn’t look good to the young Fae. But she couldn’t think about that now. She had to get Kally to safety and help her.
Finally reaching the doors to the shop, Miranda balanced Kally’s body up with one arm and her knee, using the other to open the door. Once inside, she kept going, taking her friend into the backroom.
Getting her over on the sofa, Miranda quickly limped back to the front door holding onto her side, locking the door and turning the sign in the window to “closed”. Then she returned, dropping to her knees next to the sofa. She placed her hands on Kally, pushing whatever magic she had left inside of her into her friend. Her palms warmed and before long, Kally began to stir, but before she could open her eyes, everything around Miranda went black.
37
Eric
He stood in front of his refrigerator door, thinking about oatmeal and pasta. He had neither. Reaching into the fridge, he grabbed a bottle of beer from the side shelf. But before he opened it, his phone buzzed away in his pocket.
He pulled it out and glanced at the screen. Not again. Doesn’t she ever go away? Eric thought about not answering it. Just letting it go to voicemail, but it was too late in the evening for her to be calling him just to chat.
He sighed, and then hit the talk button. “Winters.”
“Eric, it’s me again.” He was well aware it was Matryx. And when had they been on a first name basis? Oh, right, he thought. In the parking lot.
“This better be important,” he snapped at her. “I was almost asleep.” No, he wasn’t almost asleep. And he didn’t think he’d ever sleep again until he found Miranda. But he wanted to make Matryx feel guilty for calling him so late.
“Eric, it is.”
“Winters,” he corrected her finally before he ended up exploding on her.
“Whatever, Winters. I’m not playing this game right now.” She huffed into the receiver. “We have a situation that needs investigated immediately. A young Fae witnessed a witch dragging another Fae down an alleyway. She said the Fae was unconscious. Captain wants you out there now.”
Eric shook his head, unable to believe this shit. “Why me? I failed at my last mission. Besides, I don’t investigate. I track. Remember?”
“Think of it as a way to reinstate your credibility within the Division. If this goes right, Captain is willing to talk to the Lord on your behalf.”
Reinstate my credibility. Eric wanted to laugh at that remark. “I don’t need the captain to talk to the Lord. I can do that myself.” In fact, he wanted to do that himself. All he needed was one bad remark about Miranda to send him over the edge. He’d find pleasure in torturing that bastard.
“Winters, look.” She sighed into the phone. “If this is about earlier, I apologize. It was unprofessional. But this matter is series. We could have a serial witch on our hands. She could be part of the Renegades.
That did pique his interest. Since four of them almost killed him, he’d be more than happy to take another one down. Especially, before their leader found out about Miranda’s betrayal. “What’s the location of the scene?”
“Fae Avenue and Magical Drive. The Fae saw them coming out of the alley.”
For some reason, that place seemed familiar to him. But he couldn’t think why. “I’ll meet you there in ten minutes.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
Eric ended the call before she wanted to have another drawn out conversation. One he wasn’t interested in having. Shoving the phone back in his pocket, he opened the fridge, putting his beer back and saving it for later.
Eric walked over to the doorway, grabbing his keys off the hook and slipping on his boots. Then he was out the door.
When he pulled up behind Matryx’s car, he realized why the address was so familiar. This was where he thought he saw his hallucination of Miranda. It didn’t take long to feel her impression. Fuck. She was here somewhere.
“Hey.” Matryx walked up to him, stopping a short distance away and placing her hands on her hips. “The caller said she saw them right here. I can feel some magic, but it’s faint. How about you?”
Eric drew his eyebrows in and shook his head. “I’m not getting a thing.” She was here. He glanced around, but he couldn’t pinpoint her.
“Check this out.” She waved her arm at him and turned around, disappearing around the corner into the alley.
He followed her a short distance, stopping before she did. A pool of blood. A pile of ash. He clenched his teeth together and balled his hands up as anger erupted inside of him. He’d only witnessed one witch reducing another to a pile of ash before. And there was blood. Not to mention the distinct sensation of Miranda’s magic. He felt her everywhere. He fought against the emotions pressing to escape from inside of him. If someone harmed her, he would kill them. There was no denying it.
“Winters, what’s wrong?”
He glanced up, and Matryx was looking at him. He had no idea how long she’d been staring at him. “Just looks like some ash and blood to me. The ash could be anything really.”
“Maybe, we should get a sample?”
“Yeah, I’ll get it,” he said, not wanting her to see through his mask. “You can go home, Matryx. I think whoever or whatever did this is long gone. From what you told me, the girl didn’t have enough information for the case. I’ll walk around again to see if I can pick anything up, but for right now, I don’t sense anything.”
“Are you sure?” She drew her eyebrows in.
“Yeah, besides, I’m sure you have a lot to do before Friday night.” He gave her a wink, stooping low to get her to go away. He was sure he would regret the gesture, but he’d handle that when it came time.
“Actually, I do.” She smiled as her cheeks reddened. She turned around and started back down the alley. “But if you need anything or you find something new, call me,” she said over her shoulder.
Not going to happen. “Sure.”
He watched as Matryx disappeared, and then he knelt, placing the tip of his finger in the puddle of blood and bringing it up to his nose. Him and Miranda. Just as he thought, it was Miranda’s blood, with a small amount of his own mixed in. His blood was still inside of her. Knowing it was hers caused the lava to flow.
Looking up and down the alley, nothing else caught his attention. And her impression felt stronger where he parked his car. Eric retraced his steps, following the impression as it got stronger and stronger. One of the stores.
He stopped in a doorway where it was the strongest. It was some sort of clothing store. Picking his hand up, he banged on the glass. Then he waited.
After a few moments, someone approached the door. A petite blonde unlocked it from the inside and opened it up, peeking her head out. She looked at him wearily with her big, hazel eyes. “Sir, I’m sorry, but we’re closed.”
Even though this is where Miranda’s magical essence led him, there wasn’t a hint of it seeping out of the doorway. “Sorry to disturb you, but I’m investigating a call we received at the Division.”
“Really. What kind of call?”
“A Fae witnessed another of our kind being drug out of the alley by a witch. Have you seen or heard anything suspicious? Maybe, saw a witch with auburn-colored hair. Possibly bleeding.”
The Fae shook her head slowly. “No. I haven’t seen anything.”
Eric was losing his patience. “Would you mind if I c
ame in and checked the store?” It was a long shot, but he had to check to see if her impression was in the store. Even though, he didn’t think a Fae store keeper would have hidden her.
“Sure, come on in.” The woman stepped aside, allowing him to enter.
As he slowly walked around, she remained on his heels.
After a few seconds of getting absolutely nothing, he turned back around to her, fully aware that if she was hiding someone, she wouldn’t have let him in. “Thank you so much. If you see anything, please feel free to give me a call.” Eric reached into his pocket and pulled out one of his personal cards and handed it to her.
“I will thank you.” She smiled.
After the woman walked Eric out, he circled the area again. But there was no sign of her or even where she went.
Miranda Sage was amazing at many things, but now he added another thing to the list. The witch was excellent at hiding. But she could only hide from Eric for so long. If he was sure of anything, it was that he could definitely find her. And he would. Without a doubt.
38
Miranda
Miranda shot up from the sofa, realizing after the fact that it wasn’t the smartest thing to do. She’d felt like she had been run over. As if she’d suffered from Mason’s abuse a million times in a row. Her ribs were sore, the bridge of her nose ached, and the rest of her body just throbbed.
“It’s about time you woke up, sunshine.” Kally stood by a sink, bottles of liquid lined in a row on the counter next to it. “I thought I’d have to give you your makeover while you were still sleeping.”
“What are you talking about?” Miranda attempted to push the grogginess away.
“It’s Friday, Miranda. You’ve been asleep since Wednesday night.” She pulled a chair away from a small table and backed it up in front of the sink. “I wanted to use my magic on you to heal you, but it would have been pointless. We would have just been healing each other back and forth with no end. I did manage to heal a few things. Your nose and ribs are no longer broken. And I cleaned your face up some. The rest of the scrapes and bruises will just have to be covered with makeup.”
She slowly sat up and placed her feet on the floor. “Kally, you’re losing me.” Miranda felt as if she were sitting in the thickness of a fog. Nothing her friend said made any sense to her.
“The ball?” She lifted her brows and placed a hand on her hip. “I need to get started or you’ll miss it. I have a lot to do.”
Miranda leaned over, placing her face in the palms of her hands. “Crap. I can’t miss that.”
“No, you can’t. Besides, I have to get you out of my shop before that hunter comes looking for you again.”
This caused her to perk her head up. “A hunter?”
“Yes. Not that I mind him coming in. But that damn man makes my mouth water. The only thing is, if he finds you here, I’ll be in a lot of trouble. But he insists he keeps tracking your impression or whatever to my doorway. The spell I put on the shop should have hidden it. I have no idea how he keeps coming back.”
Miranda took a deep breath. “Would his name happen to be Winters?”
Kally patted the cushion of the chair. “Yeah, why? You know him?”
She got up and sat down in the chair, leaning back while Kally turned on the water and ran it through her hair. “Yes, I know him very well. Mason sent him to hunt me when I escaped from the mansion.”
“I take it he didn’t find you?” She poured a floral scented shampoo in her hand and began to massage Miranda’s hair.
“Oh, no, he found me. We were trapped in a Renegade shelter during the storm. I sort of fell in love with him, and I thought he felt the same. But when the hunters came, instead of turning me in, he told me to stay. Then when I peeked out the door, he was hugging another woman and she was kissing his cheek.”
“Oh, honey.” She rinsed the shampoo from her hair. “I’m so sorry.”
“No, really it’s okay. I learned my lesson.” Just talking about everything caused a gaping hole to open up in Miranda’s heart. As much as she yearned to be held in Eric’s arms, she wanted to push him away just as much. Continue her mission and never see him again.
“Then I guess we need to make sure he doesn’t find you.” She added a matching floral scented conditioner to her hair.
“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure that doesn’t happen.” And this time she meant every word. Or, at least she kept telling herself that.
Kally worked on Miranda all afternoon, refusing to give her any little peeks in the mirror as she went along. She was aware she had changed her hair color. And more than likely to blonde.
When the light began to fade outside, Kally was nearing the end of her makeup. She put on one last stroke of blush and smiled. “Are you ready to see the new you?”
Miranda swallowed. “I’m not sure.”
“Oh, relax.” She spun the chair around, putting Miranda face to face with a gorgeous blonde.
She took herself in, unable to believe her eyes. Her smooth blonde locks flowed down past her shoulders. The colors on her face were warm. Light pink lipstick. Rosy pink blush. Taupe eyeshadow. Kally even managed to cover up all her bruises and scrapes, except for one. The cut on her lip.
“Kally…I—” She couldn’t find the right words. Miranda had never worn makeup before, and the transformation was flawless.
“Look absolutely stunning.” She smiled behind her from the mirror. She placed her arms on Miranda’s shoulders. “Now, for the best part. Your dress.” She circled the chair and grabbed her hand, forcing her to her feet. Wait until you see this!” She squealed, leading Miranda out into the store to a rack.
She drew in a deep breath, tears struggling to free themselves from the corners of her eyes. A white dress with thin strapped sleeves draped on the hanger in front of her, the bodice splattered with crystals which sparkled and danced in the light. The bottom was short and puffed out a bit instead of being tight on the thighs. Miranda Sage couldn’t breathe.
“I kept it short in case you have to run.” She giggled. “But other than that, I think it’s the best one I’ve made. Here.” She lifted a box off the top shelf and opened it up. White heals with delicate closures that strapped over the top on her foot. “I’m sure you can’t run in these, but you can just kick them off.”
Miranda took the box of shoes from her, still stunned and unable to speak. Nobody had ever done anything like this before. And now she was more determined to free both the Fae and the witches. There was so much good in this faction, but it was ruled by evil.
“One more thing.” Kally skipped over to another shelf and grabbed another box. She opened that one, revealing a cat like mask inside. It matched the dress perfectly. “I probably shouldn’t have went all out on you. We are supposed to make sure you don’t get noticed, not put a spotlight on you.”
Miranda did manage to laugh at that. “I absolutely adore you, Kally.” She leaned over and embraced her in her arms, squeezing her tight.
“Okay, enough.” She pulled away. “We have to get ready for a ball.” She winked at her, and then spun Miranda around, pushing her toward the backroom. “Get yourself in there. I’ll bring you the dress and the shoes.”
Miranda had been waiting a long time for this moment. She only hoped Kally’s disguise would be good enough to fool everyone, including the Lord.
39
Eric
Eric Winters stood in the mirror and frowned. Black coat. White shirt. Black laced handkerchief shoved in his front pocket. No tie.
He left the tie out on purpose. There was no need for it, and he didn’t feel being undercover required him to dress up for the ball. If it were up to him, he’d be working the sidelines and not actually participating in the festivities. His nature required him to be free, to roam through the faction and track people down. Not being cooped up at some stuffy mansion occupied by too many Fae who thought they were the faction.
But on the brighter side, as soon as he got this function
and the Lord’s meeting out of the way, he could get back to what really mattered to him. Locating Miranda. He knew he had been close, and her impression always took him back to the same spot. A spot he had visited numerous of times in the past couple of days. But the Fae shop keeper, Kally he thought her name was, always told him she hadn’t seen a witch matching that description.
Eric glanced at the watch around his wrist. He was due to pick up Matryx in fifteen minutes. Another thing he didn’t want to do. While she had left him alone since he sent her away the night they investigated the caller’s claim in the alley, he knew his luck was about to run out.
Brushing the lint from the legs of his dress pants, Eric stepped into his shoes. Shiny and black. Definitely not hunter attire either. Then he walked over to his door, swiping the keys from the hook and heading outside.
When he reached Matryx’s apartment complex, she was already waiting outside the building for him. She trotted over, unable to move her legs freely because of the tightness of her skimpy red dress. She wore her hair up and a ring of pearls sat high on her neck. Any other Fae would had bent over backward at the sight of her, but not Eric. He could care less about her and the dress which revealed way too much for his taste.
She opened the door and slid in, holding two flashy objects in her hands. “I have our masks.” She looked at him and smiled as she shut the door.
“What masks?” He put the car in drive and drove through the lot, pulling out onto the main road.
“Winters, it’s a masquerade ball. They normally require masks to attend.” Her gaze burned into the side of his face. “I kept yours simple. It’s black and will only hide the top part of your face. Mine is red to match the dress, and look it has cute feathers.” She held it up, but Eric didn’t take his eyes off the road.
Now he had to wear a mask. He had nothing more to say.
Eric followed the line of cars into the front entrance of the mansion and looped around the driveway. The last time he was here he parked in the back. Before Miranda Sage had changed him in ways he never thought possible.