The Lost Ones (Here Witchy Witchy Book 12)

by A. L. Kessler

  “Of course. They deny they knew the vampires were there. I couldn’t sense a lie. It’s possible they are damn good at lying, but I should have at least seen some sign.”

  That was one perk of being a vampire. “They denied knowing about the body on their land too.”

  “Did you believe them?”

  I shrugged. “Hard to tell. Detective Mason took their statement while Liz and I investigated the body.”

  “Mason’s a good guy, he’d know. There were signs of an attack on the road near the property, traces of magic and blood.”

  Damn it. “They attacked us as we left the scene. We assumed it had been an attack ordered by the same person who ordered the attack on the press conference.”

  “Mm, yes, I saw that. I didn’t think they were related until now. Shouldn’t you have a guard with you then?”

  “He’s waiting for me upstairs and any minute now…” There was a knock on the door. “The other one will be here.”

  Torrid got up to open the door, and I took his seat and went back to the video.

  Zayne walked in. “Princess.” Zayne nodded.

  “Good evening, Zayne. Sorry I know I was supposed to be home tonight, but I needed to look at the footage.” I didn’t even look at him. The vampires in the video all turned to something else in the woods. They were staring in that direction for just a moment, and then they shot out of view. I glanced at the timestamp. It was right before they attacked us.

  “We need to find out more about our friends the Petersons.”

  “Do you think your case is connected to this?” Torrid came back to the desk, not even acknowledging Zayne.

  I thought for a moment. “Too soon to tell. The vampires were waiting for something, an order, a sign, something, and they got it. The timing is right with the attack, and I recognized the faces. So either it was an attack specifically on me, or on PIB. The question is the motive behind it.”

  Torrid nodded. “I’ve started a file for the Petersons already. I’ll send it to your email so you can take a look.”

  “Thank you. I really appreciate it. I’m working out of the office for a while. So please, if you need me here for some reason, give me a heads up?”

  “Of course, have a goodnight, Princess.”

  I stood and walked out the door, Zayne on my heels.

  “Anything else useful that you saw on that video?”

  I shook my head. “No, but I know Torrid is on top of his shit. He knew there was an attack. I’m willing to bet the blood samples are at the lab too. He’s not too keen on me looking into this instead of Levi, but it sounds like he’ll work with me as long as I’m working through the PIB side of things.”

  “You didn’t mention that Levi was out of town, did you?”

  Out of town, that was a pleasant way of putting it. “No, I didn’t think it was common knowledge. I told him that the council was giving me a chance to learn.”

  “Smart. I relieved Merick for you. He said that the Hummer was still at the shop?”

  I nodded. “Yeah, I’m assuming they had to order parts. Liz and I are supposed to go car shopping this weekend.”

  “Such a human thing to do.” He chuckled. “You have Cult and vampire guards. You don’t need a car.”

  I snorted. “Sometimes, I like human things.”

  “Come on, Princess, it’s time to get you home.”

  “Actually, I need to go to a club first.”

  His face went blank. “A club?”

  “Case related.”

  He took a deep breath. “I don’t like clubs.”

  “I can take Liz, or you can wait outside.”

  “No, I’m supposed to stay by your side.”

  I shrugged. “Then you get to come to the club with me. Don’t worry, we won’t stay long. I don’t particularly care for clubs either.”

  Zayne and I showed up at The Underground, and I heard him let out a very long string of foreign words. I assumed he was cussing.

  I glanced at him. “Ready?”

  “I am not just going to let you waltz in there. What is wrong with you? Do you know what this place is?”

  I nodded. “Yeah, a connection to the supernatural underground. I have shit I need to find out, and my answers are going to be in there.” I pointed at the club, keeping my voice down.

  “Abigail,” he growled. “It’s not safe to let you go in there.”

  “There are children on the line. Fuck being safe. You can come in with me, or you can stand out here and wait. All I need to do is ask a bartender some questions and then I’m heading home.”

  He glanced as a couple walked by us and down the stairs to the club. “A few questions?”

  “That’s it. In, out, home for dinner,” I promised him.

  “Fine, let’s go.” He motioned for me to head down. “I have your back.”

  There was something in the way he said it that caused dread to curl in my stomach, but I went down the stairs trying to ignore it. He’d have my back because it was his job. Honestly, it surprised me he didn’t just drag me out of there if he was so concerned. Maybe it was the comment about the children.

  We walked down the stairs, and the bouncer smiled at me, flashing her fangs. “Aw, cute little witch, five dollars.”

  I dug a five out of my bag and handed it to her. She picked up a stamp, and I held my hand out. She put the ink on my skin and then I walked in. The blue symbol glowed under the black lights that now lit the club up. Zayne stepped up beside me and let out a low whistle as he looked over the crowd. “Lots of people here for the middle of the week.”

  I nodded and watched as the crowd moved to the music. My heart stuttered with the beat, and I tried to calm myself as I realized I wouldn’t be able to spot an enemy in this chaos. Zayne gave me a little nudge toward the bar, and I swerved through the people that tried to press against me on the dance floor.

  I stepped up to the bar, and the music seemed to die down, and I let out a sigh. I realized it was a magical barrier, but it was a welcomed one. A woman stood at the bar, a hand on her hip and a scowl on her face, and her eyes were all for a man leaning over the bar.

  “You keep your gross hands off me and the bar. Back off, pal.” She growled.

  I waited a moment to see what the man did. He flipped the bar tender the middle finger and walked off. She walked over to me, shaking her head.

  “Sorry about that hon, what can I get you?”

  I smiled, “Are you Faith?”

  “Depends on who’s asking.”

  “My name’s Abigail Collins.”

  A look of recognition flickered in her eyes. She looked me up and down and then her eyes flickered to Zayne and her smile grew. “Zay?”

  Zayne shuffled behind me. “Hey Faith.”

  “Hooking up with the vampire princess now?” She laughed, and I tried not to roll my eyes.

  “Can we focus here? I need to ask you some questions about a woman who’s been frequenting the bar.” I tapped the bar.

  Her eyes snapped to me. “I don’t answer questions from PIB.”

  “Not really here as PIB. I’m looking into death of a child.”

  She looked at Zayne again. “What’s he doing here then?”

  “Unfortunately for me, I don’t get to go anywhere on my own.”

  She chuckled. “They have turned the princess into a damsel in distress?”

  “Trust me, she’s not in distress. She wanted me to wait outside.” Zayne snorted. “Can we get this over with though? It’s getting more crowded.”

  Faith jerked her head toward the back. “Meet me at the employee entrance in five. It’s behind the building, you can’t miss it. I’ve got to get someone to cover me.”

  I nodded and headed back toward the front door, Zayne right on my heels. We stepped out into the night and I looked at him. “Zay?”

  “Okay look, I might have used her as a donor once or twice.” He grumbled. “Faith is a common name. I didn’t think it was that Faith.” He lo
oked slightly embarrassed. “She wanted more, and I didn’t. So I broke off the donor relationship.”

  “Good to know. Maybe I should have had you stay outside.”

  “Not happening, Princess.” Zayne shook his head.

  It was like having another Mario around. I walked around the building to find Faith already standing there, leaning against the wall. She took a long drag of her cigarette and then flicked the ashes. “You’re talking about Lisa, aren’t you?”

  “I am. I have a personal interest in the home of the elementals and the fact that Valerie Ross has been following them. I heard you’re friends with her.”

  She shook her head. “Friendly, but not friends. She comes in here pushing for information, but I don’t give her much. She already knows too much.”

  That I agreed with. “Did she say what she wanted the information for?”

  “She said kids were going missing, but she was asking about things like locations and last names, parents, things that I either don’t know or won’t tell her.” She took another drag. “I don’t like when people poke around the underground, especially when they don’t belong here.” She glanced at me. “You though, you’re a legend here. In the club and the actual underground. Abigail Collins, the woman who killed a hundred vampires, controls fire, and daughter of the king of vampires. Are you really here to help those kids?”

  I nodded. “I am.”

  “You talked to Titan already?”

  “I did, he sent me your way to ask about Ross. Said you guys were friendly.”

  “Ross isn’t the person you’re looking for. She’s tracking the person. She’s not an elemental, but apparently she knew a child that was put into the facility and never came out and was never allowed visitors.”

  That would explain why Ross wanted me in the facility, but with me being high profile, it wouldn’t have worked either way. “Do you know the name of the child?”

  She shook her head. “I don’t. Honestly, at first, I thought it was a line of BS, but a vampire confirmed that she wasn’t lying.” She flicked the butt on the ground and stepped on it. “I have to go back in, that’s really all I can tell you.” She turned around and walked through the metal door there.

  I looked at Zayne.

  “She’s telling the truth.”

  I wrinkled my nose. “I’m going to need to go to the facility.”

  “I don’t like the sound of that.”

  “I’m not sure what I’ll find there, so I don’t like the thought of it. I know horror stories come out of there, some of them very reminiscent of old asylum stories.”

  “With all the science and technology we have today, why are people afraid of Elementals?”

  I considered his question. “Because there is still so much unknown, and unlike magic that comes with every generation, there’s not always an elemental around to teach control.”

  “And it can get out of control easily,” Zayne tacked on. “I see. Much like when magic first started surfacing and people feared it.”

  “Yeah. Okay, let’s go home. I have some research I want to do.”

  Zayne put a hand on my shoulder, and we disappeared from the street.

  We appeared at my house and walked down the driveway to the door. Zayne put a hand on my shoulder. “Stop, I smell something.”

  I shook his hand off. “Nothing can get past the circle that’s going to harm me.”

  His brows drew together. “I smell, wolf.”

  Simon. I tried not to run the rest of the way down the driveway. My heart fell when I realize Simon wasn’t waiting on the porch, and the lights in the house were off, so he wasn’t there either.

  Travis stepped around the corner of the house. “Simon wanted me to come speak to you.”

  Zayne appeared behind me. “Are you going to manhandle her again?”

  “What do you care, vampire? Abigail can handle herself against me if I get rough, she’s done it before.”

  “Lay a hand on the princess again and I’ll rip it off.”

  I cleared my throat. “Boys, please play nice. Travis, please come in and we’ll chat.” I unlocked the door and disarmed the alarm and motioned for Travis to go sit in the living room. “Let me grab a cup of coffee.”

  Travis nodded and went to the other room. Zayne stared at me. “He had his hand around your throat last time you saw him.”

  I nodded. “And if you noticed, my magic didn’t kick him out, which means he didn’t actually have the intent to harm me. It’s the way Travis tries to show he’s big and bad. He’s used to dealing with pups and wolves who are out of control and trying to challenge people.”

  “You’re not a wolf.”

  “Correct, but Travis doesn’t know how to deal with a witch. He’s been a wolf for a long time. The first time he put his hands on me, I pulled down a magic spell and left his business vulnerable. It’s a power game, Zayne, and I have to play it, or I’m seen as weak. Just like being a witch in the vampire world.”

  He laughed. “The council would never see you as weak, not after you shot Grayson after spending time with Ira.”

  I almost smiled at the memory of the surprised looks on their faces. “That was the first time I actually earned their respect, and now they understand I don’t take treason lightly. Catalina tell you about that?”

  Zayne nodded. “She warned me not to piss you off or stab you in the back. Heard you threatened to shoot Mario a few times too.”

  “I did. I’ve also trapped him in a circle a couple times.”

  “So he told me.”

  I finished making my coffee and went into the living room. “Okay Travis, why are you here instead of a phone call?”

  “I thought maybe you’d ignore my phone call.”

  “I answered earlier.”

  He nodded. “Simon wants me to apologize for my behavior.”

  I felt a but coming, so I didn’t say anything.

  “But.”

  Yep, there it was.

  “What I was doing was to protect my alpha and my pack. I wasn’t in the wrong, except for physically attacking you. That I am sorry for.”

  I took a moment to pick my words wisely. “I appreciate your apology for the power display and the intimidation tactics. I understand that as second in command, you have to do what you feel best for your pack while your alpha is out of commission. But,”

  He snorted. “Always a ‘but.’”

  “But, this goes far beyond just me, you, and Simon. This goes to the alliance with the vampires, and that’s something we both have to think about, because the wolf pack gains from that.”

  Travis crossed his arms. “We do, but with our alpha being harmed more often than not while working as your security, we have to wonder if the advantages outweigh the risks.”

  That we did. I nodded and stayed silent for a moment. “So, we take him off the security team.”

  I swore Zayne sucked in a breath behind me, but I ignored him. I finally sat down on the couch with my coffee and looked Travis in the eyes. “The alliance with the wolves is too important for us to lose. Your pack is the other strongest supernatural group in this area. We can find other security for me, but we can’t replace Simon as alpha.”

  Travis raised his brows. “And you dating him?”

  “I guess our dates will be chaperoned from now on.”

  Zayne cleared his throat. “We’ll have to pass this through the council.”

  “And me through Simon, but Princess Abigail is within her rights to propose new guidelines to the alliance.” Travis bowed his head. “And I think that is something that will satisfy both sides.”

  I agreed. I’d miss the extra time with Simon, but I could see where Travis was coming from with this. “I’ll let the council know we need to rework the alliance then.”

  “Are you calling the shots now?”

  “Levi will have to approve it too,” I said easily. “The council is letting me learn.”

  Travis laughed. “You’re a horrible liar,
Abigail.”

  “Fuck off, Travis.”

  He chuckled. “Simon is healing well. Hopefully after the full moon he’ll be completely healed. He has asked me to allow you up there for that night.”

  “If it’s safe, I’d like to come.”

  Travis nodded. “If it’s safe, please do.” He stood. “Now that’s all done, I’m going to head back and get the pups in line.” He stretched. “The whole pack is restless with Simon down and the full moon coming.”

  “You really didn’t have to drive all the way down here. You know that, right?”

  “Would you have answered?”

  “Yes. I answered earlier.”

  “Maybe I wanted to see your reaction to my apology.” He shrugged. “Have a good night, Abigail.”

  I let him out and looked at Zayne. “We need to figure out a replacement for Simon.”

  “We need Levi back to make that choice.”

  I swallowed. “Hopefully, he’ll be coming back soon. Catalina said she was going to speak to the council about the negotiations tonight. Samuel will answer quickly.”

  “Why are you so sure about that?”

  “Because he’ll think he’s won.”

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  I closed the laptop about midnight and leaned back on the couch. “I can’t find anything on the Petersons.”

  “Torrid wasn’t helpful?”

  “He hasn’t said anything about it yet. I’m betting that we’re running into the same problem. The Petersons are squeaky clean.”

  Zayne shrugged. “Maybe they aren’t involved and were just at the wrong place at the wrong time. Not everything is connected.”

  “I honestly don’t think the blood-starved vampires are connected to the murders and the disappearances of the elementals. But like the council said, it’s my job to deal with them. I don’t even know how to deal with them.” I growled. “Someone needs to get me a training manual.”

  “What, like a book Vampire 101, how to deal with vampires?” Zayne laughed. “This isn’t the academy, Abigail. You’re in the real world and at the top of the political game of the vampires. Figure it out.” He stood from his seat. “Now, I’m going back to installing those shutters.”