I’d promised Dannika earlier on that I’d come by, so I couldn’t skip this meeting with her at the police station.
I arrived around seven thirty, and a lot of officers in the station surrounded me asking how my father was doing. For about half an hour I was talking about the curse and the fact that healers weren’t much help. Finally, after some time I managed to get upstairs to see Dannika in her office.
"You look like shit," she said as soon as she saw me.
"I feel like it. I had a hell of a day and I hope you have good news for me," I said, flopping down in the chair. Dannika had these awesome violet eyes and really black hair, which made her look like she was born somewhere in the Middle East. I had no idea where she was from; I just never had a chance to ask. What mattered the most: Dad trusted her, and she was the best cop in the station.
She locked the door to her office and placed her magic wand on her desk. She was known for her sharp tongue and taking down half of the criminals in London.
"I have been working on this case for days and for once I'm certain that there’s a new coven in the city. Whoever is leading this new group is talking to Lancaster and other gangs. It’s a big deal.”
Now this conversation was getting interesting. New coven and rituals meant that we were getting close to gaining some real information about the witch who hurt Dad and Kate.
"So, do you have any idea why they targeted Dad?"
"No, but many people are talking about necromancy. Those witches are looking for new sources of energy, and other paranormals who are willing to learn from them. They bring the dead back and use the power for their own personal gain."
"So, do you have any suspects?"
"I might, but it’s all speculation at the moment. I'm planning an undercover operation, so make sure you keep your mouth shut and don’t talk to anyone about what I’ve just told you, even with your friends."
"Of course. Don’t worry."
She wrinkled her forehead with effort, staring at me intensely.
"Just don’t do anything stupid. So far, we don’t have any new victims. If this was a hate crime, then I want you off the street at night. That means, not walking anywhere by yourself."
I had to promise Dannika that I would stay at home and wait for news. I hated lying to people who were only looking out for me. She didn’t have any more information about the coven. I thought she might have at least identified the witch who cursed Dad and Kate. The conversation ended shortly after that and I went home.
I called Kelsie and let her know that I was running late. I had three cups of coffee in order to stay focused for the rest of the evening. Luckily enough tomorrow was my day off, so I didn’t have to worry about getting to work early. At home, I took a quick shower, changed and then I was ready for action tonight.
Unfortunately, more problems arose when I left the house. It turned out that I had a tail. And whoever it was didn’t make it very difficult for me to notice him.
CHAPTER 9
GATHERING INTEL.
T here were only two options. Whoever was after me was sent by Nathaniel or by people who wanted me dead. I was ready to exclude option two. I didn't have any enemies. Caleb McGregor was dead, and I didn't believe in his sudden reincarnation. Nathaniel got what he wanted from me, a promise, but it was clear that he suspected that I’d lied to him, so he must have decided to have me followed.
Tron told me to concentrate on my power when I felt like I was in danger. It was easier said than done. In the past few months my power obeyed me, and my spell casting improved, but I didn’t think I was ready to face bad guys on my own. Instead of walking to the tube station, I jumped into my car and gathered the source of my power, and the magic began to pound through my skull in case I had to use it later. I started the car and drove off my street.
Shortly after that, my stalker’s car was behind me. I only noticed it around halfway to Kelsie’s house. Somewhere in my memory I knew that I’d seen this car before. As the realisation washed over me, I nearly enough slammed my feet over the brake pedal.
I was right all along. My ex-boyfriend number two, whom I was still desperately in love with, sent someone to keep an eye on me. He obviously didn't believe me when I said I wouldn't do anything stupid tonight.
Kelsie lived on the outskirts of London, so it took me a while to get to her house. We met almost two years ago, when I saved her from a wizard who was trying to rape her in a dark alley. We had been friends ever since. After I introduced her to another shifter, Michael Longbridge, who got me out of trouble more than once in my short life, they started going out. Kelsie had a little problem with maintaining a long-term relationship, but as soon as Michael came into the picture she was in love.
When I pulled into Kelsie’s car park, the black BMW that had been following me since I left the apartment vanished. I sighed and wondered if I should call Nathaniel and ask him what the hell he thought he was doing. I thought better of it and decided to see if Michael had any other suggestions. Jasper was also in the back of my mind.
This thought stayed with me while I walked into Kelsie’s apartment block.
"What took you so long?" she asked as soon as I went inside. Michael was in the kitchen.
"We have a problem. Nathaniel sent someone to look out for me," I said, making a face that Kelsie knew well.
"La Caz? Your boyfriend?" Michael popped the question.
"He isn’t her boyfriend; how many times do I have to tell you this?"
I smiled, knowing that it was easy for him to make that kind of mistake. Whenever I was in trouble Nathaniel always came to my rescue.
"Yeah, sorry, I forgot. Besides that, how are you, Julia?"
"Really… are you really asking her how she is right now? Better yet, tell us how to get some information about the new coven everyone is talking about."
Michael frowned and scratched his head.
I spoke up. "Actually, I was hoping you could help me get to Gordon Lancaster."
His black eyes shifted into gold, and for a split second I thought he was going to shift right in front of me.
"You won't get anywhere near Lancaster. He doesn't trust anyone. It would be easier if we concentrated on the coven."
I bit my lip, feeling a little down. Michael had connections all over London, but even he didn’t want to get anywhere near Gordon. I couldn’t expect him to just risk his life for me. His idea to find the coven was more appealing. If I was right and these witches had something to do with the rituals that hurt Dad, then they should know how to undo the curse.
"I had a chat with Dad’s close subordinate, and she’s pretty sure that this new witch coven has something to do with those rituals. These witches are from Sweden and they use necromancy."
“We'll go to Transparent in Brixton tonight. I used to go there, and if there are new witches in the city some people in the club might point us in the right direction."
Kelsie and I exchanged a look.
"All right, let’s try the club," I agreed after a moment of silence.
"What about the tail? Nathaniel will get pissed if he finds out that you lied to him," Kelsie said.
“I'll lose him in the club. Besides, I promised La Caz that I’ll look after you and I'm planning to keep that promise," Michael assured me with a wink.
I wasn't a hundred percent sure that the driver was hired by Nathaniel, but I didn’t have time to play a guessing game. This time I was ready for anything to help my dad and if I had to put myself into the most dangerous places in London, then fine. I was ready for it.
The temperature dropped, and I shivered, feeling cold as we walked towards the car. I put gloves on, feeling a little tense about Michael’s assurance that he was going to lose our tail. Tomorrow Nathaniel was probably going to confront me about this, but I couldn’t worry about him right now. I had a job to do.
Michael was wearing a T-shirt like we were in the middle of summer. Kelsie looked a little tense glancing around her neighbourhood. I
didn’t think it was fair to get my friends involved with this whole thing, but in the end, I trusted Michael more than I ever trusted Jasper. After my last meeting with Gordon I really wasn't ready to face him.
The black BMW showed up again after we made it to the east side of Hackney. Michael spotted the car first and frowned staring into the rearview mirror. The black BMW was persistent driving closely to the back of our car nearly throughout the whole journey. The night traffic was pretty bad, and I doubted Michael could make us magically disappear. I felt a little out of place; my magic was gone, and my phone was silent.
Kelsie was wearing leather pants and a black top with super high black leather boots. She intentionally went for a darker look, probably to blend in a bit better. Before we left her apartment, she asked me to wear a black goth dress and heavy makeup. For that one night I became someone else, not the half paranormal with a screwed-up love life and dying father in the hospital.
"Right, he’s making it obvious. Whatever his intentions are I'm getting rid of him," Michael announced, taking a sharp left on one of the side streets. I bruised my elbow on the door, feeling the impact. Michael slammed his foot on the gas and soon we were racing through London traffic. He was speeding between cars, trying to lose the black BMW, breaking the speed limit and running through red lights.
Adrenaline rushed through my body, as we nearly crashed into a lorry that came out of the corner. Michael slammed on the brakes and then reversed, squeezing through the other side of the building into a small alley.
The car stopped all of a sudden and Michael switched off the lights. I held my breath like I was under water, electrical current was running from my toes, igniting the fire in my hands, probably with a new dose of adrenaline. We waited, and it looked like Michael made the right call, because the black BMW sped through the street missing us completely.
Kelsie made a triumphant sound and I exhaled, reducing the flames all over my fingers. I closed my eyes and concentrated on my energy; my magic calmed down and my heartbeat went steady. Since I’d been staying away from Nathaniel, Nicky started helping me with a few magic tricks, so I didn’t have to worry about unexpected outbursts like I used to.
"Sorted. I’ll take another turn. He shouldn't be a problem anymore," Michael muttered. "This club has a very unique atmosphere; not many paranormals know about it. Mostly filled with vampires, who use it to drink blood from elves and fairies. I just want to make sure we all stick together."
“Don't worry about us," Kelsie said, dismissing her boyfriend’s warning. “What's the plan?"
I rubbed my skull, feeling exhausted. I had a busy day and now I was going to walk straight into a club filled with vampires.
"The plan is to ask questions. We know these witches are from Sweden, but we need a name for at least one of them."
Michael was right. We had to learn the identity of these witches before we could consider approaching them.
"All right, let’s do this," Kelsie said, rubbing her hands together.
Michael started the car again and drove further down in the back of Hackney. We had to drive for a little while before he managed to find a parking space. I didn’t know why Michael chose this location. Many professional humans lived here and paranormals normally stayed away from decent neighbourhoods like this, where police patrolled this area more often than others. We left the car somewhere by a small park. It was just after ten o’clock.
Michael seemed to know where he was going. I kept looking around, making sure that no one was following us. Nathaniel might have been persistent. It wouldn't have surprised me if he hired more than one paranormal to keep an eye on me. Ten minutes later Kelsie started complaining that her feet were hurting.
We reached another busy street with shops and a bus stop, until Michael turned sharp right into a cold dark alley filled with bins. I was feeling unmotivated and tired. It was a dead end and I wanted to ditch this whole idea. That thought quickly went away when Michael pointed out at small black door hidden between the rubbish. Michael tapped it three times and a small spyhole flapped open, then large dark shiny eyes peered at us from the other side.
"Password?" the deep, crackly voice asked.
"Fish pie," Michael replied, glancing around, like he wanted to check if we weren’t being followed. The alley was empty. I tried to push away the feeling that this entire setup reminded me of my time with Jasper at the underground party.
The eyes looked from Michael to Kelsie and then me. Then the spyhole shut, and the eyes vanished. Someone on the other side was unlocking the door.
"Go in fast," the same unwelcoming voice snapped. As soon we stepped inside, music blasted in my ears. It was techno and I was baffled that we hadn’t heard anything from the street.
Yes, yes, that was it. Whoever owned this underground club used charms to protect it from the police and humans. A large and very tall giant eyed us quickly, nodding towards Michael, then pointed at the stairs that led down to somewhere.
The corridor wasn't very spacious, and we struggled to walk because they were so steep. My breathing came short. The stairs were going right down, the two walls on each side were making me a little dizzy. I stopped for a minute to catch my breath.
"Are you all right?" Kelsie asked from behind me.
"Fine, feeling a bit claustrophobic," I replied and continued walking down, wondering why every place I went to get any kind of information had to be small and underground. A few minutes later we squeezed through another thin door and entered the club. The music was loud, thumping in my ears. The space was bigger than I expected, filled with a crowd of dancing paranormals. There was a bar at the back. The club was really busy. We began squeezing through a throng of people. Michael was right: all around vampires were staring at me, and some of the male vampires danced with female fairies and elves. Their scent was swirling in my head, turning my stomach upside down.
"Three ciders, mate," Michael shouted when we reached the busy bar. Kelsie began scanning the crowd. Two tall vampires approached our group, standing not too far from me. The air was soaked with sex and blood. I felt a surge of magical current moving between my legs. Female elves were swirling their bodies to the rhythm of the music, temping hungry vampires with their sexy short dresses.
Michael passed us a beer and I took a sip. Two tall vampires were watching me closely until a shorter dark-haired one approached us. He undressed me with his almond eyes, wetting his lips. He looked foreign to me, maybe Italian with a hint of Arabic heritage in his blood.
He smiled and revealed his long fangs, and before anything else, he shook hands with Michael. I exhaled with relief. After all, I was new to all of the vampires. Michael and the vampire talked a little. After some time, Kelsie pointed toward another room and soon we moved to a smaller lounge where the music wasn't so loud. Slowly I was getting an idea of why this space was underground. Fairies and elves blood was intoxicating for vampires. These female paranormals were selling their blood and it looked like they had plenty of interested individuals. I guessed that sex was part of the deal as well.
My stomach heaved, and my magic rumbled through me faster than ever. Michael chose a table in the corner away from most of the vampires.
"Shaun, this is my woman, Kelsie, and her friend, Julia Taylor," Michael said. The vampire, Shaun ran his hand through his hair. He was short, stocky, with a double chin. He had shaggy longish hair and a nice smile, which totally creeped me out.
“You're half-breed, aren’t you?" he asked me.
"Yep, but I'm not interested in selling my blood," I said, tossing my blond hair behind me.
"Shaun, we’re here to find out more about that new coven from Sweden," Michael said.
The vampire didn't answer straight away but continued to stare at me for longer than he should have.
"A pretty elf like you should stay away from those necromancy witches. They’re searching for easy targets, gathering followers from every part of London."
CHAPTER 10
> THE BLOOD GIFT.
I widened my eyes staring at the vampire in disbelief. He was obviously well-informed. It looked like Dannika and Jasper were right about the coven. At first, I thought these witches couldn’t have been responsible for what happened to Dad, thinking that my ex-boyfriend was exaggerating, but now I was starting to believe more and more that it was them who created that unbreakable curse.
Kelsie opened her mouth to say something, but Michael shook his head letting her know that I should lead this conversation.
"What else do you know about them?" I asked.
The vampire smiled again, revealing his white fangs and glancing at the couple a few tables away from us. The woman was a full-blooded elf, barely wearing anything at all; she was sitting on the vampire’s lap and he was drinking from her. It was strange, because down on the dance floor I felt queasy and uncomfortable, but here the female elf looked like she was in ecstasy, giving her blood freely to the vampire.
"I heard that one of them is searching for someone or something. The perfect sacrifice. Rumour has it that she hasn’t found one yet. The witches use black ritual magic, and some of the rituals get out of hand."
Michael was sipping his beer. He looked relaxed, but I saw something in his eyes: concern and wariness. Was he warning me to take it easy? I didn't know that he expected me to take the lead with Shaun.
"Can you tell us more about the rituals?" I pressed.
Shaun sat back and scratched his chin, moving his eyes around like he was trying to judge how far we were willing to go to get this information out of him. The elf a few tables away from us moaned. The vampire stopped and kissed her, moving his hand between her legs. Shaun smiled, and I looked away.
"Darling, I don’t give out that kind of information for free. You’ll have to give me something and then I’ll tell you everything you need to know," he said with a casual shrug. I saw a mad, lusty gleam in his eyes and my stomach made a small contraction. I wasn't prepared to make out with him like the woman a few table away. Kelsie narrowed her eyes, grabbing my hand under the table.
Witch's Promise : The Witching Hour Series Book 4 Page 7