Fire in Her Blood

by Rachel Graves

  “Well, we’ve still got the two fire witch patients at the clinic, and I’m sure there’s another lead in there somewhere.” He pointed to the artfully arranged stack of files on my desk.

  I took a deep breath and dove into the folders. After a few hours a strong possibility showed up—the white power group. I left a message for Mark asking him to pull their file for us then went back to the stack for more. A pair of guys came through the SIU doors, policy said walk-ins went straight to the interview room. The next team on rotation would take them, luckily that was Danny and me. I got to take a break from my stack.

  The two men waiting for us were complete opposites. One was large with dark tan skin, a beard, and thick black hair pulled into a ponytail. The other was tiny and pale with an oddly unmarked face. The first looked big and old, massive like a guard from the stories in Arabian Nights. The second looked new like he’d somehow magically been born at twenty with a mop of bright golden red curls. He introduced himself with a shy smile. His name was Puck.

  “Puck, like in Midsummer Night’s Dream?” I asked.

  “You read Shakespeare?” His eyes opened in a bit of surprise. It made him look even more innocent.

  “Once or twice. Are you a Sprite?”

  “No, but the name helps at work.”

  “Where’s work?”

  “Fairy Tails.” My face must have looked blank because he explained. “It’s a supernatural brothel by the business district.”

  “Everyone at this brothel is a fairy?” It hadn’t occurred to me brothels specialized that much.

  “No, but we’re all something—Raj is a djin.” He gestured to the large man beside him. His companion nodded his head a fraction. “Amadeus is a vampire, Doris is a naiad, and we’ve got witches of all kinds. You get the picture.”

  “What about you?”

  “Well, actually, I am a fairy.”

  “What kind?” Danny put in with a grim tone.

  “I’m a brownie, a helpful fairy.”

  “Helpful?” I asked.

  “I find lost things,” he explained, his smile finally looking self-assured.

  “How does that work in a brothel?”

  “A lot of women lose their passion. I help them find it.” He blushed a little. “But that’s not what you’re looking for. You’re looking for a fire witch.”

  My mouth dropped to my chest. Could it be that simple? Could some guy who happened to drop by give me the lead I’d been scratching for?

  “Fascinating,” Danny groused. “But why are you here?”

  The larger man, Raj, took over. “One of the guys at the club left a few weeks back. He left his girl—”

  “Kelly,” Puck said, softly.

  “His girlfriend, Kelly, without any word. She was pretty broken up about it. Then two weeks later, Kelly’s gone.”

  “Kelly also worked at the brothel?”

  “Yes.” Raj waited for a minute, but when Danny didn’t ask him anything more he went on. “Puck was close with the two of them, so last night, well Puck tell them.” His look made it clear Puck was going to tell us whether he wanted to or not.

  “I thought I saw Chris at the club, except Chris was a vampire. He tried to get me to go with him.”

  “What he means is he put him under,” Raj interrupted. “We followed Puck up the stairs and to the roof, he got pretty close to the edge before we could get him to come out of it.”

  “You don’t know that he would have told me to jump.” Puck stood up for his friend but Raj didn’t look impressed.

  “You want to press charges for supernatural assault?” I asked.

  “No.” Puck shook his head.

  Raj took over again. “I don’t want Puck to come close to taking a dive off the roof again. I was hoping you could talk to Chris. If someone turned him, he’s young enough that he doesn’t know the rules.”

  “So you want us to let him know what not to do?” Danny asked.

  “I want you to put the fear of Allah into him,” Raj said. “He left, then Kelly, now he’s come after Puck. I don’t want anyone else getting into trouble.”

  We got the details, what little there was to get, neither man knew an address or last name for Chris. Although, Puck thought he remembered something typical, like Jones or Smith. While that narrowed it down to about half the country, it looked like we’d be taking a trip to Fairy Tails for more details. As we walked to the car something Puck had said preyed on my mind.

  “You think Puck was right, and we should focus on a fire witch?”

  “I think we already knew that.”

  “Right, but we could ask him for more.”

  Danny shook his head. “I don’t trust fairies.”

  “But you’re…” I let my voice trail off. I had no idea what Danny was. I waited for him to fill in the blank.

  “The kind of person who knows better. They’re nasty little creatures, even the helpful ones have a dark side. Trust me, once you’ve met one you’ll agree.”

  “Uh, Danny, I just did.”

  “Not him. A real fairy.” He started the car. I didn’t want to ask what the difference between the shy young man from the interview room and a real fairy was. He looked real enough to me.

  ****

  Downtown was divided by a small branch of the river. The Mississippi churned through the rest of the city a full thirty feet wide and angry, but here the pier and docks sat next to fifteen feet of placid water. The river was like an angry woman, with curves and hips that spelled danger but one gentle right arm. It was there the early settlers had done businesses, pulling the boats out of the main current so they could load and unload without trouble. Pictures on historic markers showed women in long skirts and girls in elaborate bonnets buying fish and fruit along the same wooden walk ways I used for a breath of air when the dancing at Convenire got too hot.

  But Convenire was on the wrong side of downtown, close to where the Giving Tree Clinic had stood. Farther down river, past all of the night clubs, past where downtown turned into shops that sold pieces of art my mother would have called garbage, the trip through history was complete. There our downtown was left in the antebellum south, with only a few touches from the 1950s to ruin the illusion. Painted lady Victorians stood with wide front porches and painfully maintained gardens. Most of the homes were bed and breakfasts, one had become a playhouse, another few held charities. The one Danny drove to served a different purpose altogether.

  From the outside it was another example of the architecture of a by-gone era—a house with a huge front garden hiding the view from the porch. Over the tops of the bushy evergreens, I could see cream shutters against lavender walls. The fence was black wrought iron. The metal curved around a medallion stamped out with letters. In my head I could see the downtown residents walking by when it had first been put in place, offering that most Southern of insults, “Bless their heart. They didn’t check their spelling.” But it wasn’t a mistake. They meant it to read “Fairy Tails.” The bedtime stories in this house were of a decidedly adult nature.

  “Uh, would it be prying if I asked if you’ve ever been inside here?” Danny’s voice was filled with hesitation.

  “Nope, first brothel ever, actually. Any advice?”

  “Try not to stare at the naked people.”

  I was grateful for his serious tone. We parked in a hidden parking lot in the back of the house. The only people who would see our car were the ones going inside or coming out. A handy design for customers, but it made me feel like I was doing something wrong. We entered the backyard through another iron fence to beautifully kept gardens. Butterflies landed on a half dozen flower covered bushes, a small fountain bubbled, and farther on the path, glass orbs sat on pedestals. I stopped to look at a cobalt orb, its surface shiny and smooth. We didn’t have an appointment inside so why not look? The dark sphere reflected my face with a curve that broke at the top where a small hole went in. It looked like a belly button or a poke into fresh bread. I was trying to
decide which when Danny interrupted me.

  “Mal!” I turned without taking my eyes from the piece. “I’m sure it’s fascinating but step away from the witch ball. Get lost on your own time.”

  “Witch ball?”

  He grabbed my shoulder and pulled me along on the path in front of a sundial decorated with a likeness of petite female fairy. I could see the pedestal but wasn’t quite so enthralled. He kept walking, and I forced myself to keep up.

  “Witch ball, an enchanted glass sphere that can be used to catch a witch. Folk wisdom says they follow the surface of the ball then fall in the hole, but the rest of us know they stare at the damn thing like idiots while someone grabs ’em.” He laughed a little.

  “I thought it was pretty. I wasn’t enchanted.” My pride stung. “I didn’t even feel high. I was just interested in it.”

  “Yeah, sure, it was the first knickknack that made you feel all calm and fuzzy, like why not sit and stare a while, while oh yeah, look at the nice man with the net.” He laughed again.

  “Yeah? And what captures your kind?” I was still waiting for Danny to tell me what he was, what let him hear things, what gave him such sympathy for the people we worked with. My question chased the smug expression off his face.

  “Nothing you’re ever going to get your hands on.” He looked up at the front door and composed himself. “Truce?”

  “Truce.” We’d followed the path around the side of the house to the front porch. At nearly three o’clock in the afternoon it was empty, and gentle music floated out at us. Envisioning it at night meant adding a bevy of beauties and changing the tune considerably. I wondered if the jasmine flowers climbing up the porch would be open then and how heavy they would smell. Before we had a chance to knock, the door opened letting a businessman exit with a sly smile. Danny nodded and I blushed wishing there was a quick way to say “we’re not a couple; we’re cops here for work, so don’t even think it, buddy.”

  It was too late for any witty rejoinder; Danny was already inside the narrow entry way. There was an old fashioned hat stand with a large mirror in the center and bench for coats. It looked commonplace until you realized the pink and purple flowers around the mirror’s edges were actually sex organs intermingling.

  “Okay.” Danny straightened up. “You take the door at the back of the hall. I’ll take the side.”

  “We’re looking for Kelly, right?”

  “Yup, remember she won’t be upstairs and keep your badge in your pocket.” He gave me a smile and walked through a side door. I caught a glimpse of red velvet furniture, and he was gone. Twenty feet down, the hallway receded into complete darkness. When I got there and my eyes adjusted, I could see a door. Somehow Danny had seen it from the foyer; I rolled my eyes at his hidden talents.

  I wandered through the doorway and into what I guessed was a strip club, a t-shaped stage with poles on each end dominated the room. A woman was dancing on it in the smallest bathing suit I had ever seen. Overhead, dusty speakers pumped out a song about a red corvette, even though it had been silent in the hallway. Men seated around her held bills, farther back the small circular tables were deserted. One of the men watching glanced my way worriedly. After deciding I wasn’t his wife, he happily opened up his wallet. I was suddenly grateful I never had to worry about finding Jakob in a place like this.

  There was a bar running the length of the back of the room with long mirrors behind it so the patrons getting a drink could still see the show. The room ran the length of the house but was narrow. Why go to such an effort? My mind reeled at the habits of brothel and strip club customers while I headed to the back bar. A teenager, who looked too young to be in here, was pouring himself a shot of something thick and dark.

  “Looking for something sweetheart?” His voice was a mellow whisper in my ear. I realized he was a vampire and, since he was behind the bar, likely one of the help. He wasn’t particularly gorgeous, but definitely well put together with chestnut brown hair and eyes that offered all sorts of interesting suggestions.

  “No I’m, well actually I am, only not—” In the mirror behind him the woman had taken off her top to reveal two breasts and three nipples. It was all too distracting. There was no way I could see that, look at him, and form coherent sentences.

  “Maybe a bite?” He smiled and flashed fangs at me. Anger helped me focus.

  “I’m not food.”

  “Sounds like you know someone in the life. Who taught you that?” His voice was sweet yet sarcastic as he put the bottle away behind the bar.

  “Jakob.” I was grateful for the chance to answer with one word.

  My reply wiped the smile off his face. “There’s only one vampire in town with that name.”

  “Really? Fascinating,” I said. In the mirror Danny walked into the room. He didn’t even glance at the girl on stage.

  “Not really, any other vampires with that name who show up, well, he kills them.” He leaned back and gave me a smile the reminded me of a trap. Okay maybe Jakob had some flaws. Then again…

  “You’re lying.”

  He threw back the shot in a smooth motion. It was blood. “Maybe I am. But you’re not sure, are you?”

  “Detectives?” The first fully dressed woman I’d seen in the building came out of a door behind the bar. Danny and I followed her gesture out of the room.

  “Oh my, a detective,” the vampire whispered. I was sure I was the only one who could hear it.

  Danny introduced me to the manager, Lynn, as she ushered us into a back office that looked like it’d started life as a closet. The small desk filled the width of the space so she had to turn sideways to get behind it. She was a thin Asian woman with warm yellow skin and dark hair.

  “Are you looking for someone or investigating something?” she asked.

  “A little bit of both,” Danny offered. “We understand you had a small vampire attack the other night.

  “We have them every night. Amadeus specializes in them.” A hint of a smile played at the corner of her mouth, making the dark freckles on her cheekbones pop out.

  “Amadeus?” I asked.

  “I’m sorry; the way you two were talking I thought he’d introduced himself.” Again the smile came out.

  “No. He didn’t.” I made my voice cold. She might enjoy playing games, but I was here for work, and the vampire pissed me off a little.

  “My mistake,” she cooed. “I assume you mean a vampire attack someone didn’t pay for then?”

  “A vampire attack on one of the help, a fairy by the name of—”

  “Puck.” She interrupted Danny with an angry voice. “This all goes back to Kelly and Chris. I knew those two were going to be trouble.”

  “What makes you say that?” Danny asked.

  “Kelly was in love with Chris. I mean the kind of irrational bullshit love that makes people stupid. They didn’t talk about it, but I gathered they ran away from small town nowhere together. Except they weren’t bright, neither of them. You run away from nowhere with a bus ticket and almost no cash; it’s a recipe for disaster.”

  “But they did well here?” I asked.

  “Sure, Kelly is one hell of a fire witch, girl made money hand over fist. Then she got stupid and handed it to Chris. Who, by the way, was nothing, as in nothing but trouble, and about as psychically active as a brick. He did laundry for us, took deliveries, bounced a little at night. Puck took pity on him and tried to teach him to strip, but he wasn’t very good at it. He went back to working in the back of the house while Kelly worked upstairs.”

  “How long were they here?” Danny asked.

  “They came in August, fresh out of high school, well supposedly anyway. They had birth certificates to prove their age, but I can print those on my computer.” She gestured to the technology and wires taking up most of the space on the desk. “At first they wanted to sleep here, which we don’t allow. I expected them to leave then. I kinda got the vibe Kelly was looking, but they stayed.”

  “Bo
th of them?” Danny asked the question we knew the answer to.

  “Pretty much, until the beginning of the month, then Chris disappeared; didn’t pick up his last check or anything. I figure Mommy and Daddy tracked him down, and he’s back in high school bragging to his friends. Kelly was gone a couple of weeks later, which messed up my schedule in a big way. People ask for her all the time, and I have to tell them I don’t have a clue if she’ll be back. Of course there’s no one to replace her. Do you have any idea how hard it is to get a fire witch in here?”

  “None,” I said dryly. My tone was lost on her.

  “Impossible, they stick to their own. Hell, we barely even get them as clients. There was one but she—”

  “Could we talk about the assault now?” I tried to keep my voice level. I didn’t want this conversation to degrade any further.

  “Puck was between appointments, in the kitchen getting something to eat.”

  “Is that normal? Would Chris have expected him to be there?” I asked.

  “Pretty much, I mean not the exact time, but everyone hangs out in the kitchen. Anyway, Puck looked out the window for a minute, then he started walking up the back stairs. Some of the guys followed him; they ended up grabbing him from the edge. Even then it took him a few minutes to come out of it.”

  “Tell me about the back stairs. Would clients have known they were there?” Danny asked.

  “No, I mean they might guess, but the only people who see them are staff. The cleaning people use them to get into the rooms during the day, and if someone has a special request, wants something private, it comes up through the back stairs.”

  “A special request?” I asked.

  “Last night we had a bachelor party come in; everybody splits up to go upstairs. The groom sent the girl he went up with down using the back stairs. The guy who was his special request used them to take her place. We keep those kinds of things pretty private.” She stopped for a minute and pushed her lips together. “Look, more than any other brothel we sell fantasy, and fantasy doesn’t work when there are cops around. I appreciate that Puck could’ve been hurt, but it would be really great if you could pursue this quietly and away from here.”