No Crone Unturned

by Amanda M. Lee

“I never did find out what they did with his body. The Detroit River is notorious for dragging bodies under. Most are never found.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Yeah, well ... .” I pursed my lips as I focused out the window. “I think this nest is bigger than that one. We need to be careful. You ... need to be careful.”

  “Because you don’t want to lose another partner.”

  “Because I don’t want to lose you.” It was the simplest answer ... and absolutely the truth. “We need to come up with a plan.”

  “We will.”

  “Before they do something to hurt one of us. That’s what they’re going to do. You heard Melody tonight. That was psychological warfare. She’s going to try to isolate one of us, maybe even arrange for that person to be turned. We can’t allow that to happen.”

  “We won’t.” He stared hard into my eyes, as if searching for something. “I swear it’s going to be okay. We’re not novices. While we haven’t dealt with many vampires, we’ll handle it. I promise you don’t have to worry.”

  That was easier said than done, but I knew better than to push the matter further. That would only make both of us unhappy. “I’m really tired. I think I need some sleep.”

  “We both do. But I’m terrified that Raisin’s play is going to haunt me forever.”

  “Yeah. You and me both.”

  He gave me a quick kiss and then released me. I had no doubt he would do better once we were inside. He waited in front of the truck for me, something I found quite cute, and when I joined him I was about to suggest another activity to ensure we would sleep well.

  Then I sensed another presence. When I snapped my head toward the porch, I saw movement. “Who ... ?”

  Gunner tensed and shoved me behind him, growling as he prepared for battle. His macho showing aside, I was more interested in who would dare approach the cabin alone in the middle of the night ... until my mind brushed against something familiar.

  “It’s Brandon,” I offered, wrapping my fingers around Gunner’s wrist to still him. “He must’ve come here looking for you. He probably needs a friend to talk with.”

  Gunner relaxed, though only marginally. “Well ... I’m not leaving. The vampires are out there and I’m not leaving you alone.”

  “They can’t get inside the cabin,” I reminded him. “I’ll be perfectly safe. If you need to go with Brandon ... .”

  “No. I don’t want to leave.” Gunner relaxed his stance and forced a smile for his friend, who was still meandering through the shadows to get to us. “Hey, bud. I didn’t realize you were coming out here. You should’ve called. We were at Raisin’s play. I was going to check on you tomorrow.”

  “Sure. Sure. Sure.”

  There was something odd about Brandon’s voice. He almost sounded drunk, giddy even. There was a happy tone to his words.

  “Where’s your truck?” Gunner glanced around, confusion lining his forehead. “How did you get out here?”

  Before Brandon could answer, I heard whispering in the back of my head. My inner danger alarm was dinging.

  “Get out of the way!”

  I don’t know what made me do it. Perhaps it was talking about Evan. Maybe worry for Gunner’s safety took me over. Either way, I raised my hands and pulsed out a burst of magic before Brandon even managed to get close enough for us to see his face. The instant the magic left my fingertips his face became illuminated ... and the red tinge of his eyes was obvious.

  “Brandon?” Gunner took a step toward his friend at the same moment the magic collided with him. “Brandon!”

  The formerly amiable lumberyard owner’s body made a sickening thud when he hit the ground. Gunner was immediately next to him, checking his vitals. I remained standing, my gaze keen as I surveyed the hills and trees surrounding the cabin.

  “Why did you do that?” Gunner snapped, his voice ragged as he checked his friend. “Why did you attack?”

  “That’s not Brandon,” I said after deciding that we were alone. “He’s different now.”

  “Different how?”

  I moved closer, using my phone as a flashlight and holding it over the man’s waxy features. Gunner had his fingers pressed to Brandon’s pulse point and he looked relieved.

  “He’s not dead.”

  “He’s not,” I agreed. “I never had any intention of killing him.” I crouched down, lifting the phone until it illuminated his neck. There I found the marks. It was hardly a surprise. “He’s been taken over.”

  Dumbfounded disbelief washed over Gunner’s handsome features. “What does that mean? Is he ... going to be one of them?”

  I shook my head. “No. He’s going to be a half-vampire like the others. I’m guessing they gave him a double dose of blood to better control him. That’s why I sensed he was different. It usually takes me longer with half-vampires because they can pass for human. He was practically feral.”

  “But ... what do we do?” Gunner looked lost as he pressed his hand to his friend’s forehead. “He’s cold and clammy. Should we take him to the hospital?”

  “There’s nothing they can do for us. We have to find a place to strap him down. The second he wakes up he’ll come after us again.”

  Gunner balked. “No. We can’t do that. I ... we have to help him.”

  “We’re going to help him. First we have to make sure he doesn’t hurt us. We need to find a place to tie him up, and it has to be someplace the other vampires can’t get to him. That means a private residence.”

  Gunner’s eyes immediately moved to the cabin. “You want to tie him up in there?”

  “That’s our easiest option.”

  “And then what?”

  That was the question. “I don’t know. Let’s take it one step at a time. We need to secure him ... and I’m going to need magic to do it to make sure he can’t escape and attack. We can’t protect him if he threatens our lives.”

  Gunner didn’t look convinced, but he didn’t mount an argument. “Okay, but we need to fix this. He’s ... my friend.”

  Now it was my turn to comfort him. “He’s not gone yet. We can still save him. Everything will work out. I promise.”

  He looked comforted by the words. Now I just had to make sure they were true, because I was way out of my depth here.

  Fifteen

  My intention was to tie up Brandon, magically enchant his bindings, and go to bed. My mind was weary and there was a lot to think about. I figured if we warded and gagged him we would be okay.

  Gunner apparently had other ideas.

  “Why is Rooster on my front porch?” I demanded as I exited the bathroom.

  Gunner was already on his way to the front door. “Why do you think?”

  “But ... .” I looked down at my sleep outfit and frowned. I didn’t go for fancy nighties or the like, but I also preferred not sleeping in a bra. I crossed my arms over my chest and frowned as Gunner swept open the door. “You could’ve warned me.”

  The look he shot me was odd. “You didn’t think we were going to leave him tied to a chair while we were sleeping, did you?”

  “Um ... yeah. I thought I would try to free him tomorrow.”

  “Well, you can still try to free him, but we can’t keep him here. The cabin is too small and ... it’s weird to have him out here while we’re sleeping.”

  I was instantly suspicious. “You just don’t want him listening in case you decide to get romantic.”

  “There is that.” Gunner winked as he pulled open the door. It was his attempt at lightheartedness, but it was a lame effort. He was obviously worried about his friend.

  Rooster wasn’t exactly happy when he strolled through the door. “Can’t you guys go to bed like normal people at least one night a week?” he groused.

  “Hey, this isn’t our fault,” Gunner countered. “We were coming back to crash when ... well, I’m not sure what happened.” He nodded to me. “Scout took him out.”

  “Wait ... he’s dead?” Rooster lifted his hand t
o still us. “I thought he was still alive.”

  “Oh, he’s still alive,” I replied. I felt on display in my tiny sleep outfit. “He’s a half-vampire. We have to keep him restrained until we can cure him.”

  “Uh-huh.” Rooster didn’t look convinced. “And have you ever done that?”

  I shook my head. “No, but how hard can it be?”

  Rooster muttered something that sounded like “famous last words.” It was late and he was obviously wiped but because the day had decided to throw another curve at us, he had no choice but to deal. “Where is he?”

  “Scout tied him to a chair in the kitchen,” Gunner replied. “She warded the ropes so he can’t move.”

  “Well, that’s something.”

  “He’s kind of mad,” Gunner added.

  “Hey, he’ll live.” I was in no mood to feel sorry for the guy who had come to kill us. Whether Gunner had gotten far enough to put that together, I couldn’t say. I had no doubt that was Brandon’s intention. The vampire had found him sometime after dark and decided to enlist him as a weapon ... or maybe he’d been grooming him from the start. He was already pale the day we tracked him down to inform him of Honey’s death. There was only one reason to fixate on Brandon, and we were it.

  “Well, hey.” Rooster’s smile was amiable enough as he crossed into the kitchen and studied Brandon. The half-vampire was struggling against his ropes and sputtering what I assumed were vile threats behind his gag. His eyes were wild as he yanked on bindings that would never give. “You don’t look so good, Brandon.” Rooster hunkered down so he could be at eye level with the demented lumberyard owner. “Are his eyes supposed to be red like this?”

  When I realized the question was directed at me, I shrugged. “How should I know? It’s not as if I’ve ever had a half-vampire for a pet.”

  Rooster feigned patience, although he didn’t put much effort into it. “Yes, but you’re more familiar with this phenomenon. I’ve never seen a half-vampire. They’re not common up here.”

  “Yeah, I’ve been thinking about that.”

  “For right now, I need you to focus on him.” Rooster extended a finger toward Brandon’s face. “Is he supposed to look like that? I mean ... with the blood tears and everything?”

  He was asking a question I couldn’t answer. “I’m sure he’s fine.”

  “Except you’re not sure.”

  “I ... well, no. It’s an assumption.”

  Rooster grunted as he straightened. “I think we need a second opinion.”

  “And who should that come from?” Gunner asked. “Like you said, we’re not exactly experts. This is shifter territory.”

  “There is one person I know who took out a nest of vampires back in the day. I don’t know if she’s an expert, but she’s the closest thing we have.”

  Gunner turned grim. “Mama Moon?”

  “Can you think of anyone else?”

  “No.”

  “Then Mama Moon it is.”

  IT TOOK MAMA MOON A FULL HOUR TO MAKE it to my place, and she was grumpy to the point of belligerence when she arrived.

  “This had better be good,” she growled when I answered the door. While we waited for her, I’d excused myself long enough to throw one of Gunner’s T-shirts over my head to hide my lack of bra. Mama Moon hadn’t bothered. She was dressed in a tank top (sans bra) and a pair of sleep leggings that were so tight I had to force myself to look the other way so as not to appear rude.

  “They’re in the kitchen,” I grumbled, wrinkling my nose as I took in the plastic things she’d stuck in her hair. “What are those?”

  “What?” Mama Moon made a face as she glanced around and then chuckled when she realized what I meant. “Oh, these are curlers.”

  That didn’t mean anything to me. “No. I’ve seen curling irons before. I don’t use them because I don’t see the point, but I’ve seen them. That’s not what those are.”

  “No, these are different,” Mama Moon agreed. “You put these in your wet hair at night. Then, you unroll them in the morning and you have a new, fresh hairdo.”

  “But ... why?”

  “Because it’s a look some people like.”

  “But why?”

  “Oh, geez.” She rolled her eyes and gave me a little shove to get me to move. “I can tell already that you’re going to be a pain tonight. I’m not in the mood. Show me the ... whatever it is.”

  I gestured toward the kitchen, following as she stalked in that direction. I almost careened into her back as she pulled up short on the other side of the door. Apparently the sight of Brandon magically warded to a chair was enough to throw her.

  “I don’t ... understand.” Her eyes were turbulent as she looked over the struggling half-vampire. “What’s going on?”

  “It’s a long story,” Rooster hedged.

  “You have five minutes to tell me,” Mama Moon countered. “No embellishments. I just want the facts and nothing more.”

  “Fair enough.” Rooster launched into the tale, glossing over a few things but getting the gist of it out. When he finished, Mama Moon seemed perplexed — and maybe a little angry.

  “I see.” Her tone was clipped as she began to circle Brandon. She didn’t look happy. “So, this is why you were so interested in the half-vampires in the woods the other night.” Her eyes briefly flicked to me. “You should’ve told me what was going on.”

  “And then what?” I challenged. It was late and I was exhausted. I was ready for this night to be over. “What good would that have done? You couldn’t have smoothed over the situation. You didn’t have any additional information to help matters that night.”

  “You don’t know that,” Mama Moon challenged. It was obvious she wasn’t used to being questioned, and my attitude was known to have a chafing effect, which she clearly hated. “I thought you were playing games last night. I didn’t realize you had a genuine beef with the half-vampires. If I had, I would’ve warned you.”

  “You would’ve warned her about what?” Rooster asked.

  “I would’ve warned her that the area was suddenly crawling with vampires. I mean ... I assumed she had noticed, but that doesn’t appear to be the case.”

  Oh, now she was just messing with me. “Are you saying you knew that we were dealing with a nest last night? Why didn’t you say something?”

  “Actually, I would like to hear the answer to that, too,” Rooster supplied. “Why wouldn’t you share that sort of information? I know that we’re not always on the same team — we can’t be by virtue of what happened — but I thought we were on the same page for the big stuff.”

  “You slow your roll, Rooster,” Mama Moon ordered. She curled her lips and poked her finger into Brandon’s cheek. Even though he was tied to the chair, his mouth gagged, Brandon turned in her direction and jerked his head as if he was ready to attack. “This is interesting. He’s not even trying to pass for normal.”

  “I think that’s on purpose,” I volunteered. Actually, I’d given it a lot of thought while we were waiting for her, and I had a few ideas. “They want to rattle me, throw me off my game. They think turning Brandon into a monster will distract me.”

  “But why?” Rooster’s face was blank. “You barely know Brandon.”

  “No, but I know Gunner ... and he loves Brandon.”

  “Ah.” Realization dawned on Mama Moon’s face and she bobbed her head. “I get it. They’re trying to distract you. But why you?”

  I tracked my eyes to her, confused. “What do you mean?”

  “Why you?” she repeated. “There’s an entire contingent of Spells Angels in the area to deal with. They’re fixated on you. There has to be a reason for that.”

  “I would guess I’m on their radar because they saw me the night I took out the bog monster. I didn’t realize it at the time — and that was probably a mistake — but that makes the most sense.”

  Gunner stirred. “It’s not just the bog monster,” he argued. “You sensed something about that
house from the start. I believe they were trying to fly under the radar — at least as far as we’re concerned — but Scout pushed the issue because she sensed something about the house.”

  “What did you sense?” Mama Moon asked.

  “It wasn’t the house necessarily,” I hedged. “It was more that I could feel eyes on me. When Marissa and I got back to our bikes, I felt ... off. I sensed that someone had been near our bikes but I had no proof so I let it go. Marissa was complaining nonstop because I blew up the bog monster. I didn’t want to listen any longer, so we left.”

  “But you thought people were watching you,” Gunner persisted. “That’s one of the first things you mentioned to me. That’s why we headed out there after breakfast the next morning.”

  “And that could’ve been the trigger,” Rooster mused. “It makes sense. They thought they were relatively safe until two Spells Angels representatives showed up on their front porch. What did they do when they saw you?”

  “Well, it was weird.” Gunner took on a far-off expression, as if losing himself in the memory of the moment. “There was this little guy— we’re talking like five feet tall — and he came out to give us grief. He wasn’t exactly welcoming and it was obvious he was trying to get rid of us. Bixby. That was his name.”

  “He’s a minion,” I muttered. “He’s not a half-vampire. He’s a minion ... and he’s different.”

  Gunner slid his eyes to me, thoughtful. “And you thought you recognized him from the start.”

  I wanted to explode. “I did recognize him. You don’t believe me, but ... I totally have met that dude before. You think I’m crazy, hormonal or something, but I swear I’ve interacted with him.”

  “Hold up.” Rooster extended his hands and stepped between us, perhaps worried we might fight. “This is the first I’m hearing about this. Where do you think you know this guy from?”

  I was fairly certain I’d brought up Bixby in front of Rooster before and I wanted to point out that the men who refused to listen were the problem, but I knew it was a wasted effort. We had other things to worry about, and the biggest was tied to a chair in my kitchen.