by Angel Leya
“Tell me about it. Does . . . does Oberon know?”
Kenzie glared at him. “No. This is my mess, and I intend to clean it up myself.”
“Okay. I get that. I just don’t know how you’d keep something like this from him.”
Kenzie blushed. “I might have told him I thought the mer were behind it,” she said slowly. “Butthat’sbeforeIknewitwasmyfault.”
“And he just . . . believed you?”
“No. Not really. He did question Helena and Lenore, but said he didn’t believe they’d done anything.”
Trevor nodded, chewing on his upper lip. “Okay. Cool, I guess. I mean, they haven’t been the most welcoming”—at a look from Kenzie, he amended—”sure, they’ve been mean, but they shouldn’t be punished for something they didn’t do.”
Kenzie sighed. “I guess not. The imp has also been knocking out the cameras, so he has no idea what’s going on.”
Trevor’s brows shot up. “Oh. I didn’t know.”
She opened her mouth to say more, but a sound from the vent made her freeze. “Did you hear that?” she whispered.
Trevor’s brows crinkled, but shot back up as another popping sound came. It sounded like metal adjusting, like maybe something heavier than air was in there moving around.
Trevor held a hand to his lips, sliding beneath the vent, which was at the top of the back wall. The imp wouldn’t be able to see him until he popped his head out. Kenzie’s eyes widened. She thought Trevor was going to try to reason with the thing, but maybe plans had changed. She double-checked that the Christmas lights were plugged in and the fake tree still standing—that thing really loved to fall over—then held her breath as she watched the vent. After another second, she dashed to the light switch and turned off the overhead light, leaving the room bathed in the soft glow of Christmas lights. Trevor gave her an approving smile and nod, then cast his eyes upward again.
A bang came, and the vent above Trevor bent forward, then returned to its shape. Kenzie couldn’t take her eyes off the vent, her heart in her throat. Another bang and another bend. By the third time, the vent flew off, and out jumped something . . . brown? In the low light it took Kenzie a beat too long to figure out what it was: a gingerbread man.
“What the—?” Trevor asked, as an army of smaller, mangled-looking gingerbread men came pouring through the vent, jumping on top of Trevor. He fought and struggled, crushing cookies right and left, but still, little rounded hands pulled at his hair and clothes, while others tried to climb into his mouth. Kenzie stood frozen, unsure what to do. She had a feeling those were her ruined gingerbread cookies, but how in the world were they alive? Only magic could do that, and she hadn’t cast any new spells recently.
The imp’s head popped through the vent, a gleeful smile on his face. One of the gingerbread men had managed to jump into Trevor’s mouth headfirst, and its little feet were kicking in the air.
The imp laughed, turning his gaze to Kenzie. “If I make Trevor plump and fat, Kenzie won’t want none of that.”
Kenzie stared, her mind whirring. Had the imp used magic to create these living gingerbread men? Kenzie grabbed one of the little cookies, who wriggled in her hand. She looked at it. It’s just a cookie, she reminded herself.
And then she bit it’s head off.
She looked the imp square in the eyes as she slowly chewed. “I’m not afraid of food.”
The imp and the large gingerbread man exchanged a look, and the gingerbread gave a single nod.
Hundreds of the gingerbread men broke off from Trevor and charged Kenzie. There was no way these were all her cookies. The imp had done a lot of magic. Or maybe some baking.
“It’s the big one,” she shouted to Trevor as she began to crush and tear apart whatever she could. “If we can get rid of him, the rest will stop.”
There was a muffled reply from Trevor, and Kenzie hoped he didn’t get hurt in the fray.
Memory of her recent encounter with Helena and Lenore gave her an idea. “Ta’usche,” Kenzie said around the gingerbread men trying to climb in her mouth, and the spell conjured a globe of water. She bit down hard on the squirming cookies, then spit out the pieces. “Trevor! Douse these crumb cakes!”
The water seemed to take on a life of its own, writhing and splitting and shooting toward the large gingerbread man. The brown of his body began to lighten, and he swelled, then burst apart in a pile of mush. The little gingerbread men still clinging to Kenzie did the same, sticking to her clothes and skin and hair.
The imp pouted, somehow completely clean. “Aw, you two are no fun. Looks like it’s time for me to run.”
“Wait!” Kenzie said, and the imp peered slowly at her.
Trevor was sitting up, wiping gingerbread mush off his face.
“Why are you doing this?” Kenzie asked. “I created you to help me, not . . .” She looked at her room, covered in all things cookie. “. . . this.”
“Helpers take rules of three. You didn’t follow, so you got me.” He winked, then jumped into the vent, scurrying away.
“Don’t go! Argh!” Kenzie growled, grasping her hands into fists, which just made the squishy cookie ooze between her fingers. There was no sense chasing him. “That trap better be ready by tomorrow night.”
Trevor looked at her, a smile on his lips. And then he laughed, falling back onto the floor. He grasped his stomach, and even Kenzie finally had to admit defeat as she joined him.
“Can you believe we just had a food fight? With cookies?” Trevor said when he was able to speak again.
Kenzie groaned. “Unfortunately, yes. And now we have to clean it up.”
That seemed to sober Trevor up. “Yeah, that sucks.”
“It’s not my first battle with gingerbread, either. This stuff is a nightmare to clean up.”
“You were awesome back there. Biting off that gingerbread man’s head? Genius.”
“You could see that?”
“Barely.”
“I thought you were a goner for sure.”
Trevor’s cookie-spattered smile widened. “What? You think I’d be taken down by some magic cookies? Nah. Mer are tougher than that.”
Kenzie peered at him. “I don’t know. Lenore and Helena wouldn’t have lasted two seconds.”
“They’re tougher than you think. They just suck at inter-paranormal skills.”
“Tell me about it.”
“Wait a minute. Don’t move.”
Kenzie froze, wondering if the imp had returned. Trevor gently wiped a glob off her forehead, his face turning pink when he saw her watching.
“Sorry. It just— It looked like it was going to fall in your eye.”
Kenzie gave him a half-smile. “Thanks.”
“What are friends for?”
Kenzie looked around the room. “Any chance that friendship extends to cleaning this mess up?”
Trevor smirked. “Of course. What kind of fair-weather friend do you take me for?”
Kenzie shrugged.
“Besides, it gives me an excuse to hang out with you a little more, friend.”
Kenzie punched him in the arm. “Fine, friend. Let’s get started.”
Chapter 16
“The HIT isn’t ready yet,” Trevor told Kenzie as she headed toward lunch the next day.
“HIT?” She hadn’t made it to breakfast, thanks to their long night spent cleaning. The scent of molasses clung to her, which would’ve been awesome if it didn’t remind her of the imp’s latest trick. It didn’t help that Trevor smelled like molasses, too, and it blended deliciously with that salty, ocean thing he had going on.
“Yeah. The ‘High-tech Imp Trap.’ HIT.”
“Ooo-kay.” Normally she might have laughed at that, but there was another problem eating at her: the imp had magic. That was bad news. She needed to consult the grimoire, but first she needed food. And not soggy or magically squirming stuff, either. “Maybe we shouldn’t meet again tonight.” She looked around the hall, suddenly remembering she
was in a public spot. Seeing how she and Trevor were features of the latest gossip, she didn’t want her words being taken out of context. Thankfully, they appeared to be alone-ish, though were shifter abilities, in general, still made her nervous. Maybe someone could hear them, maybe not. But who would be paying attention? Right?
“Is everything okay?” Trevor asked, brushing against her shoulder.
“Yeah. Fine. I’ll catch up with you later, okay?”
Trevor stopped her. “Wait. Is this because of Wes?”
“Uh, yes.”
Trevor folded his arms. “Look, I know you guys are dating and all, but you don’t have to take his bull.”
Kenzie grimaced. “It’s not that.”
“Then what is it? I’ve been standing up to Helena and Lenore to hang with you. I don’t see why you can’t do the same. After all, we’re just friends.”
“But you’re not romantically involved with Helena and Lenore.” Kenzie paused. “Wait. Are you?”
Trevor rolled his eyes. “Yeah, no. I wouldn’t consider either of them my dream girl.”
Kenzie bit the inside of her cheek. She shouldn’t ask, but it begged the question. “And what exactly is your dream girl?”
Trevor sighed. “More like who.” He gave her a rueful smile and a wink. “But I don’t really want to talk about it. I’m gonna catch up with Mike and see when the new projected date is. We’ll talk later, okay?”
Kenzie nodded, watching him walk away. Maybe Trevor was right. If they were going to be friends, it didn’t make sense to keep it from Wes. But Wes had been such a loose cannon lately. She didn’t want to set him off again. She knew she should be honest.
But with the imp still out there, she didn’t think she could be. Because explaining why Trevor was helping her so much was unexplainable without spilling about the imp. It was bad enough Trevor knew. Wes, who had worked so hard at putting away his past to be with her, didn’t need to be embroiled in a new scandal. If she went down for this, she didn’t want Wes falling with her. He needed these people to control and perfect his powers. And Kenzie? Well, she’d be fine as long as she had her grimoire. Sad and alone—again—but fine.
And with that grim thought, she finally walked into the Dining Hall. Wes was seated apart from their regular crew, and when he saw Kenzie, he waved her over. She held up a finger. Food first, of course. She quickly grabbed the turkey, mashed potatoes, and gravy options, then headed back to where Wes sat, his own plate only about half-consumed.
He smiled as she approached, and for the first time in days, the tension between them seemed to be gone. She sat next to him, and when she leaned in for her peck, his hand caught her cheek as he gently deepened the kiss. Hot dang! She hadn’t been kissed like that for a while. She blushed when they finally resurfaced, especially as the cat calls came in. It seemed pretty much everyone had seen that kiss. Whatever.
“Well, curl my toes, what was that for?” Kenzie asked, ignoring the crowd.
Wes chuckled. “I wanted to say sorry for the other day.”
“And you couldn’t have just used words like a normal person?” But Kenzie was still grinning.
“I wanted you to know that I do trust you. I still don’t like him, but I’m not dating him, I’m dating you. And if we don’t have trust, then we don’t have anything.”
Kenzie nodded, chewing on her bottom lip. He would pick this moment to harp on trust. New plan. “Okay. Well, don’t freak out, but Trevor is kinda working with me on this . . . thing.”
The smile slid from Wes’s face, but he managed to keep to gray skies with a chance of sprinkles, rather than go full-on storm clouds on her. “What kind of thing?”
“It’s kind of a . . . surprise?” She couldn’t lie to him.
Wes raised a brow, his eyes beginning to glow red. But he let his breath out, along with the light in his eyes, leaving sweet chai pools in their place. “Fine. Okay. How long?”
“A week? Maybe? I thought it would be done by Monday, but you know how these things go.”
Wes grunted, shoveling a forkful of food into his mouth.
Kenzie slid her arm into the crook of his, leaning her head on her shoulder. “I’m super excited about my Christmas present for you.”
He gave her a noncommittal hum.
“What? You’re not going to ask what it is?”
“What’s the point? You’re not going to tell me, just tease me with obscure details that I’ll forget by the time I get the thing.”
Kenzie sat up and pouted her lower lip. “Awww, you’re no fun.”
Wes sighed, putting down his fork. “Fine. What did you get me?”
Kenzie grinned. “Not gonna tell. But I’ll give you a hint!”
Wes groaned.
“It’s something you can wear, aaaaand something that works with your inner cougar.”
“Puma.”
“Nope. Cougar. I like my men old and sassy.”
Wes bared his teeth in a mock snarl.
Kenzie pushed her food around with her fork. “Sooo, it’s Sunday. Wanna go out and do something?”
Wes chewed and swallowed. “Christkindlmarket.”
“That’s a mouthful.”
“It’s a shopping thing. It’s kind of a tradition to go and get a sauerkraut brat and some hot cocoa.”
“Sold! But you’re buying.” She winked at Wes, who smiled, shaking his head.
“Fine. But bundle up. I hear it’s cold topside.”
“It’s winter in Chicago. Of course it’s cold. And don’t worry about me. I have my magic, and a super-hot boyfriend who’s more than happy to share his supernatural body heat if I need it.”
Wes pecked her on the cheek, then shoveled in his last bite. “Meet you at the platform in five minutes,” he said around his food, then took off.
Kenzie snarled at her plate. She wasn’t about to leave without cleaning it off. Better get moving.
THE MARKET WAS BEAUTIFUL, Christmas lights everywhere, music playing, the smell of food wafting through the air. The many vendors had an array of wares, and Kenzie loved poring over all of them with Wes. The cuckoo clocks and Christmas ornaments were her favorite part—besides the hot cocoa, of course. She even tried a bite of Wes’s sauerkraut brat, but decided she wasn’t a fan. She made him get her a soft pretzel, instead.
She bought a hand-carved figurine of a wolf for Jesse’s Christmas gift after watching the man at work for a while, and then some roasted nuts and German chocolates for June and Leya—and a few extra for herself. Her final purchase was a quartet of bracelets, similar in design, but each suited to one of her friends.
“These are so pretty,” Kenzie said as she walked away from the stall, holding up one of the bracelets. It glittered and twinkled in the soft Christmas lighting. “I’m so glad you suggested coming here. I had no idea.” She put the bracelet back in the bag, smiling as she mentally recounted all her purchases. She still had to get something for Wes, but now wasn’t the time, and this wasn’t the place. Turquoise tended to be more of a Native American thing. The only question was whether or not to get Trevor something—and if so, what?
Wes shrugged. “Like I said, coming here has been a tradition for me. Thanks for suggesting we go out, by the way.” He bumped her shoulder, and Kenzie laughed.
“So, how exactly did this tradition start?” They’d talked about his past some, but Wes was usually short on details. He didn’t like to talk about it. His parents had been killed by shifters, though to be fair, they’d been trying to kill those shifters. The Hunters were good at what they did, but being fully human left room to slip up. Like Wes did when he was bitten. Or more accurately, torn to shreds. But he’d survived, in no small part because of her family’s magic. Becoming a were might have saved his life, but it ostracized him from everyone he’d known. He was so deep in the Hunter hierarchy that he didn’t have any regular friends. Just her. Too bad she was anything but normal. But he knew that before coming crawling back to her.
“My p
arents used to bring me. I hated the sauerkraut brat when I first came, but my dad loved it. I wanted to be like him so much. I kept trying it until one year it tasted good. We always talked about the Christkind coming to deliver presents, you know, instead of Santa. She was prettier.”
Kenzie smirked. “Were your parents German?”
Wes shook his head. “Not that I know of, though it could be part of the mix. They just loved the market, and the culture that surrounded it. They started going a couple of years before I was born, and decided to make it a family tradition.”
Kenzie took Wes’s hand. “That’s so neat.”
“Yeah.” Wes looked at the ground as they sauntered away from the lights and buzz of the marketplace. “Some days I wish they were still here. Others, I’m glad they’re gone so they don’t have to see me like this.”
“Because they were hunters?”
Wes nodded.
Kenzie squeezed his hand. “I’m sure they would’ve still loved you anyway.”
“It’s not like we’ll never know. But maybe that’s for the best.”
Kenzie bit her lip as they walked in silence through some of the quieter outskirts of the market. Sometimes it was difficult, being there for him. He’d literally lost everyone. Not all by death, but still, she was the only person left he could rely on. She wished he’d make more of an effort to befriend the shifters, but becoming one didn’t erase years of ingrained hatred.
She squeezed his hand again.
Wes looked at her with a crooked smile on his handsome face. “Any chance you have enough of those bon-bons to share?”
“Maybe. If we do it Lady and the Tramp style.” She winked.
Wes’s grin deepened. “Anything I can do to help.”
She pulled one out, unwrapped it and put it between her lips, the stood on tiptoes, her eyes closed. Wes’s lips were against hers a moment later, his teeth gently maneuvering to get some of the chocolate. They broke apart laughing, and Kenzie nearly dropped her half.
“Maybe that wasn’t one of my better ideas,” Kenzie chuckled.