The Lunar Secret

by C. J. Pinard

  “Hello, old friend,” he said to the vampire.

  “You’re no friend of mine,” he gritted out, narrowing his eyes at Evan.

  “I called him,” Sanja said, pointing at Evan as I looked at her.

  I locked eyes with Zeke. “Move or try to get away, and you’ll get another fire bath.” I jerked my chin at my witch bestie.

  “Whatever you say, dog,” he replied, and then flipped me off.

  I looked back to Evan and stood with my boot on Zeke’s shoulder where I’d stabbed him earlier. It didn’t affect him, as it was already healed, but he wasn’t trying to move. “He attacked a girl outside of Moon Chasers. It was bad.”

  “Did she die?” Evan asked, not taking his eyes from Zeke.

  “We don’t know,” Sanja answered.

  “If only that was the worst thing he’d ever done.” He shook his head. “Twelve human murders, five witch murders, eighteen vampire murders. Countless humans turned against their will.” He looked at me. “It’s your lucky day, girl. This one has been on our top ten most wanted for about six years. Reward is fifty grand.”

  Zeke snorted. “Fifty large? Really? Who’s the cheap-ass offering that up?”

  Evan looked down at him. “I think you already know who. And also, shut the fuck up.”

  I laughed. “Go, Evan. Do you want to do the honors?” I looked down at his hand where he held my dagger.

  He shook his head and handed me my precious weapon. “No, you started it, you finish it.”

  “Wait!” Zeke said, the cocky look gone from his face. “How about I give you the fifty-thou and you let me go? That’s chump change. I got more than that under my mattress at home. Actually, how about I double it? One hundred and you can stop vampire hunting and take a little vacation, eh?”

  Before anyone could blink, I was straddling his stomach with my dagger hilt-deep in his chest. His eyes widened and blood spurted from his mouth, which was wide open. I leaned down and whispered in his ear, “See, this is what happens when you underestimate someone with not a lot to lose. I’m not in this for the money, you prick. I won’t rest, and I won’t sleep when I know one of you fuckers is attacking innocent people. Enjoy hell.”

  I jumped off him, the dagger in my hand, as his body crumbled. I stood next to my friends and saw Evan lower his phone from where he must have been filming it. He pushed a few buttons, then pocketed it. He then produced a plastic grocery bag from his other pants pocket and handed it to me. “Collect the clothes and as much ash as you can.”

  I grinned. “Where’s the Dustbuster?”

  He laughed. “Karina’s in charge of that. She couldn’t come, and I forgot it.”

  Sanja bent down and gathered his clothes and shoes, then looked at me. “You’re splitting that fifty grand with me, right?”

  “Only if you promise to use it for the magic shop.”

  “Duh.” She winked at me.

  Chapter 15

  Over a month had passed by since we’d taken out Zeke, and things had been eerily quiet. I had no jobs or assignments from the Grants, and honestly? I had been more than grateful for the reprieve. So it was my pleasure to help Sanja and her mother move into their new place. The Victorian was gorgeous and absolutely perfect for her and her mom.

  “Hey, where’s your brother? I was looking forward to meeting him.” I set down the final box I’d unloaded from the truck

  “He just graduated, and is starting A&M in the fall, so he’s staying in Texas for now.”

  I nodded and looked around the kitchen. The house needed some cosmetic work, but it would make a perfect house-slash-magic shop. The area upstairs would be their living quarters, and the entire downstairs would be the shop.

  “This is going to make a great shop, girl. Good choice.”

  “Except the kitchen,” Sanja said, opening a box that was sitting on the counter. “Wish we could build one upstairs and use this for more shop space.”

  I looked around and shrugged. “You could, if you had the money.”

  Sanja’s mom, Samantha, smiled at me. “Hopefully we will. That twenty-five thousand you unbelievably gave to my daughter is going to go fast.”

  I grinned at her mother, who I was surprised to see looked nothing like her. Turned out her mom was a beautiful part-Scottish, part-German woman, with light brown hair and green eyes. Sanja’s father had been one-hundred percent Indian and Sanja took after him with her coloring. Not that she remembered him. He’d not been in the picture since she was two years old. I could see small resemblances between her and her mother, though.

  Sanja hadn’t even hidden the reasoning behind the money. Her mom already knew I was a wolf with vampire tendencies and she had no issues with me killing vampires. Sanja had explained to me a long time ago how witches felt about the vampire race. She hadn’t been happy to hear that her daughter had gotten involved and had helped me take Zeke down, though.

  “Do you guys need any more help with anything? I can come back tomorrow evening and help you unpack. I don’t have much planned.”

  “Not going to see Kellan?” Sanja asked, hip-checking me with a wink.

  I shrugged. “Not sure. Haven’t seen him in a while. Maybe I’ll go to Moon Chasers and see I can catch him.”

  She frowned. “Wait. What? You guys don’t call or text or go on dates?”

  I laughed. “I don’t think I ever gave him my number, otherwise—” The room started to spin and I grabbed Sanja’s arm as the blackness started to cave in on me. “Crap,” I whimpered.

  The house was dark and quiet, but also strangely familiar to me. The weightlessness I always felt when I was inside these visions was there as I seemed to float down a long hallway. I quickly realized I was in Kellan’s house and that it was nighttime. I walked into the massive kitchen and saw Jeffrey at the large kitchen island. There were beautiful, colorful flowers spread out over the entire island, and four large, clear vases were filled with water, waiting for flowers.

  Jeffrey wore thick gloves and used gardening shears to trim the tips of the stems off each flower. He then removed the thorns from a group of pink roses. I was mildly interested in his slow and methodical precision of which flowers he chose to put in each vase, but I also wondered why I was watching this in the first place.

  When he came to the gorgeous lilies, he seemed to stop and look at them almost longingly. Maybe they reminded him of someone? Maybe they brought back a bit of nostalgia for him? I would have loved to have been inside his head, until he looked quickly around the kitchen and then to the entryway. I watched in horror as he picked up one of the lilies, crumpled it in his fist, and then shoved the entire thing into his mouth. His eyes almost rolled back into his head as he chewed and quickly swallowed.

  “What the actual f...”

  He then repeated it six times until all the lilies were gone.

  I shook my head. I mean, out of all the flowers one would want to actual eat, those would be the lowest on the list. They are gorgeous, but they stink so bad!

  Jeffrey let out a huge burp, put his hand to his mouth, giggled like a schoolgirl, then went back to his task.

  “Okay, well that was weird.”

  I wasn’t sure why I was talking to myself, but I left the kitchen and tried to remember my way to Kellan’s room. I closed my eyes and opened them to find myself standing there without having even moved.

  Huh, that was new.

  Kellan sat on a large chaise lounge with an iPad in one hand, and a small glass tumbler of something amber-colored in the other. He took a sip of it, and then set it down so he could hold the electronic tablet in both hands.

  “No, I didn’t know that. Well, good for her. She’s feisty and strong, so I can only imagine that he didn’t stand a chance once she got her hands on him.”

  The person he was video-chatting with responded, and the sound of his voice sent chills up my spine. “I think you need to bring her to me. I may have a use for her.”

  Kellan’s frown deepened, and he sh
ook his head. “She already has an employer and teachers. She would not be interested in the organization.”

  “Know her that well, do you?” came Linden’s unmistakable voice. “You fucking her, are you?”

  Kellan sighed and blew out a breath. “Are we done here? I have things I need to take care of tonight.”

  I floated around behind the sexy vampire and looked at the screen. Linden’s pale face and gray eyes were staring intently at the screen. He looked as though he was trying to intimidate Kellan somehow, but my man wasn’t backing down. He stared at the blond menace and finally said, “Well?”

  Finally, Linden nodded. “For now. Be here by nine tomorrow for a meeting.”

  “Yes, sir.” Kellan tapped the screen and then lifted his middle finger at it once it was dark.

  I laughed. It was so uncharacteristic of him.

  “Useless wanker,” he mumbled as he tossed the iPad onto the bed and loosened his tie so he could pull it off over his head.

  I watched unabashed as he stripped down to absolutely nothing. Sexy as hell, he went to the glass he’d set on a small table, lifted it to his lips and drained it, then set it back down. He slowly walked to the bed and lay down. Realizing the lights were still on, he said, “Lights off,” and they obeyed until the room was plunged in darkness.

  Oh, my God. What was that horrific smell?

  I shook my head and recoiled from the disgusting scent.

  Blinking my eyes open, I could see Sanja and her mother hovering over me. Samantha had a small, white capsule in her hand.

  “Oh, God.” I coughed. “Why?”

  “Ammonia. I keep it in the house for emergencies.”

  “You couldn’t throw water on me or something?” I asked with a groan.

  Sanja laughed and helped me sit up. I was on their sofa, and briefly wondered how they managed to get me on it.

  Never mind, they were witches. I’d rather not know.

  “Mom wanted to wake you immediately, but I told her not to. I knew you were having a vision. But after like fifteen minutes, we got worried. Sorry.” She looked at me apologetically.

  I waved a hand. “It’s okay, really. I’m just glad I was here, and not in public. That shit is embarrassing.” I put my hand over my mouth and looked at Sanja’s mom. “Sorry.”

  She laughed. “Honey, I work in the emergency room. I’ve heard much worse.”

  I nodded, relieved. “So, can you tell me what kind of supernatural creature eats flowers?”

  Sanja and her mother looked at each other, confused, then back to me. In unison, they replied, “Elves.”

  I chuckled. “Why do I keep running into them? I met one at the grocery store a few months ago, then a couple of them were in Estes Park, acting weird, and now Jeffrey.” I was mostly talking to myself.

  “Who’s Jeffrey?” Sanja asked, getting up and heading toward the kitchen.

  “He’s Kellan’s...” I paused, trying to find the right word. “Personal assistant? No, butler, maybe? Driver?”

  “We get it,” Samantha replied, also standing up.

  Sanja came back with a cup of hot tea and told me to drink it.

  I wasn’t a big tea fan, but I wasn’t going to be rude. “What’s in it?”

  My friend and her mother exchanged another glance. “While you were... out, we decided we could probably help you with these visions. That is dream tea. Normally it’s given to help people with nightmares, but we have put a special spell on it—one we had to call a more experienced witch for help with. If it works correctly, you’ll still get your visions, but only as you sleep. Not at random times.” Sanja smiled proudly.

  I lifted an eyebrow over the rim of the mug, which was poised at my lips. “Seriously?”

  They both nodded. “Seriously.”

  I lifted a shoulder and let it fall. “Well, here goes nothing.”

  I sipped the tea, which tasted horrible, but once it had cooled off enough, I downed it, then got up and put the cup in the sink.

  “So your vision was about Kellan’s elven assistant?” Sanja asked as I pulled my phone from my pocket to check the time. It was almost six p.m.

  I looked up at her. “Yes and no. I was in Kellan’s house, finally found him after watching creepy Jeff eat lilies.”

  She made a face. “Lilies, really? They stink.”

  I chuckled and slid the phone into the back pocket of my jeans. “That’s exactly what I was thinking!”

  “Guess it takes all kinds. Like food, the Elven probably have different taste in flowers. So I’ve read, anyway.”

  “Well, Kellan was FaceTiming with that shithead Linden. He somehow found out I’d killed Zeke—well, that’s what I was assuming they were talking about—and wants Kellan to bring me to him. Kellan tried to dissuade him of the idea, but I get the feeling that piece of shit won’t take no for an answer. And you know what? I don’t care. I want Kellan to take me to him. Show me where he lives. Then I will be able to kill him and he will be the one who invited me in to do it.”

  She nodded. “I get your logic, but do you really think he’d let you anywhere close to him with that thing?” She pointed to the dagger in my thigh strap.

  “Of course not, but I will find a way. I hate him so much, I could probably kill him with my bare hands.” I grinned. “Wouldn’t be the first time.”

  She glanced at me like I was crazy, then shook her head. “If he’s as old as I’ve heard he is, you will be doing nothing of the sort. But”—she walked out to the small living room and I followed—“a little magic would help you.”

  Sanja rummaged through a few boxes until she found what she’d been looking for. She turned to face me, holding a small necklace in her hand. She dropped into my open palm. “Keep this safe. When you need it, we will discuss. Until then, do not wear it. Do you understand?”

  I looked down at the thin gold chain and the square pendant with a ruby in the middle of it.

  “We need to make sure you understand how important that talisman is,” Samantha said from the foot of the stairwell.

  “I understand,” I replied.

  Chapter 16

  As I sipped my Red Bull, I thought about the necklace—the talisman—Sanja had given me and wondered what it could do. I was excited to find out. Would it make me invisible? Look like someone else? All the crazy thoughts ran though my head on how I could kill Linden with a little magic on my side.

  But first, I would have to get to him. Moon Chasers was crowded, and Beckett and I sat a small corner table. We were having a good conversation until his boyfriend Gavin showed up. I mean, I liked the guy, we’d all hung out together a lot over the past couple months, but now the two sat making googly eyes at each other and I was quickly growing bored. I vowed if Kellan came in tonight that I was going to get his digits. Ridiculous that I knew where he lived, had rocked his world twice, but didn’t have his damn cell number.

  Not that I would be able to find his place again. I remembered what it looked like, but couldn’t quite remember exactly how to get there.

  “Ugh, get a room, you two,” I said to the guys as they sat holding hands and staring at each other.

  “Ayla, don’t be jealous,” Gavin said. “You should get you some, girl.”

  I rolled my eyes and finished the last of my drink. “I have, and I will.”

  As if on cue, Kellan and his two security guys walked in. The sight of him made my stomach do a little flip-flop. Our eyes met and he smiled so slightly, and I would have missed it if I hadn’t been looking for it.

  I ignored my amorous tablemates and didn’t take my eyes off of Kellan. He glanced at them, then to me again, and gave me a slight nod. I wasn’t sure exactly what that meant, but I nodded back, hoping it meant he’d be taking me home later. The thought of another night with him sent a deep shudder through my body.

  Then I remembered the little tool I had that nobody else did. “How long are we staying here before you take me home?”

  His sexy lips curved into
a mischievous smile as we didn’t break eye contact. “No more than an hour. I need to make sure things are on the up and up here, love.” God, his accent was so hot.

  I nodded. “Good.”

  It was bold of me, but he clearly loved it, because for the next hour, as he and the security team made rounds in the bar and then up to the rooftop, he seemed distracted and was unable to keep his serious countenance. It made me giddy that I could have that effect on him... that we held such a cool secret between the two of us. He was still mysterious to me, and part of me wanted to get to know more of him... all of him... and part of me didn’t want him laid bare and stripped down emotionally. Not any more than he had already been while telling me his story. The not-knowing and the mystery of who he was and where he came from was still very exciting and thrilling.

  Finally, after I had downed my second drink, and the boys had taken off to go be alone, Kellan approached me with his hand out. “You ready?”

  I nodded and set the glass down. “Oh yeah.”

  I noticed he had the two guys with him still. I also knew we wouldn’t all fit in his flashy two-seater Porsche. I didn’t say anything, though. When we reached the back parking lot, I watched as one of the guys disarmed a shiny new black BMW SUV. He opened the back door and helped me inside. Kellan got in next to me, and then the big guy closed the door. The other man got into the front passenger seat, and without another word, the car was started and we were driving down the boulevard.

  “Ayla,” Kellan said. “These are my associates Phil and Maurice.”

  I bit back a smile and said, “Nice to meet you.”

  “Likewise, ma’am,” the guy in the passenger seat, Maurice, said.

  “We’ve heard a lot about you, Miss St. John,” Phil said, looking at me in the rearview mirror. Phil had a shaved head and a dark-brown goatee. His eyes were a friendly brown, and he and Maurice were both huge with biceps like cantaloupes.

  “You have, have you?” I asked, lacing my fingers with Kellan’s and smiling at him.

  “We sure have,” Maurice replied, his dark skin shining orange from the streetlamps. He had a clean flat-top haircut and eyes the color of chocolate.