Wolfsbane, A Paranormal/Urban Fantasy (The Maurin Kincaide Series) Read online

  I moved with a swiftness I wouldn't have thought possible given my lack of sleep and time to heal."If there is so much as a hair out of place when I find her..." I warned. I jerked him up off the couch. Conry sensed my anger and moved forward, snarling.

  "I didn't touch her. I swear." He practically shrieked, trying to pry my grip from his no doubt expensive dress shirt. Sensing the effort to free himself was pointless he hung there defeated and completely emasculated.

  "So why isn't she at her mother's putting her on wedding dress?" I gave him a little shake, letting him know I wasn't entirely convinced. His face showed his confusion over my Freudian slip, so I shook him again until I could see he was focused once again on my sister and not the state of my relationship with my family. He'd have to do better at hiding his emotion if he had any hope of being a lawyer.

  "We were talking about the wedding, about moving to D.C. in the summer. My father said I shouldn't say anything, that what she didn't know wouldn't hurt her." He was a blubbering mess and hadn't even actually confessed yet. I could only imagine how this went with Frankie last night.

  I knew my expression darkened as my grip tightened. "What did you do? Make it quick Michael, my patience is wearing thin."

  "It was a few months before we were engaged. There was this study group for the bar, every Thursday. You know pizza and beer, that kind of thing." I waved him on with my free hand hoping he would get to the point so I could start looking for Frankie. "Ashley was struggling with the mock exam, at least she said she was. I stayed to help. I didn't mean for anything to happen. One minute we were going over constitutional law and the next we were.....I told Frankie it was meaningless. If anything it made me realize how much I loved her."

  One thing led to another? His words gave a ring of truth the ridiculous fears I had earlier about Aidan and the mysterious woman he was traveling with. I was dangerously close to losing control of my temper.

  "I'm sure she took comfort in the fact that the sex was meaningless. You're a complete fucking idiot. You waited until the night before your wedding to confess your inability to keep your dick in your pants?" I dropped him on the couch with enough force to rock it backwards. The back of his head smacked the wall hard enough to dent the drywall. I watched with satisfaction as his eyes rolled back and his eyelids fluttered. From the looks of the apartment Frankie left before she had time to got angry. Giving him a mild concussion was the least I could do.

  I was already slipping into the between when he regained his ability to focus. He was begging me to tell her how sorry he was and convince her to come home as their apartment disappeared. I stood in the place between realities and tried to figure out my next move. It wasn't like I'd spent a lot of time hanging out with my sister lately. I didn't have a clue where she went when she needed to be alone.

  "Where do you think she is Conry? How are we going to find her, huh boy?" I said squatting down to give him a good scratch behind his ears. He nudged me with his muzzle and knocked me off balance. I plopped down beside him. "We don't have time to play Conry. We need to find Frankie and get her to at least call home. Maybe she took the train to Providence."

  This was the longest I had been in the between with no clear destination. It was like lucid dreaming. Places I had used the between to travel to flashed in front of me. I would think of a place Frankie might be and it would begin to materialize only to dissolve as another place came to mind. My stomach lurched as each place came in and out of focus. I was going to need some Dramamine if I didn't settle on one destination soon. I closed my eyes and focused on just my sister. I pictured her exactly as she was when I left her at the luncheon yesterday, laughing and smiling with her friends. I concentrated on nothing but Frankie until I could practically feel that gravitational pull she had. I didn't try to figure out where she was, deciding instead to let the between lead me to her. I followed the pulling sensation until I felt cold, hard concrete beneath me. I sat there for a second, letting my stomach settle.

  I opened my eyes and cursed my sister.

  5

  "Of all the places, damn it Frankie." I grumbled. It was bad enough that I had to bring her back to Beacon Hill and the dragon lady. "Make yourself scarce Conry. You aren't allowed in."

  I crossed the street still baffled at how my sister ended up here. I took a deep breath and opened the door to The Daily Grind. I was about to go in when I realized Conry was still stuck to my side. I told him to stay, sit and lie down but he ignored all of my commands. I gave up. What's the worst that could happen, they'd toss me out? I was pretty sure that would happen regardless.

  Conry evaporated as soon as I walked through the door. Cool! I knew he was there, I could still feel his breath on my hand. If we could manage to avoid bumping into anyone they'd never know my mystical dog was there.

  Frankie looked up as soon as the little chime above the door rang out. "Maurin!" She exclaimed. "It took you long enough. I've had enough espresso to keep me awake for a week waiting for you."

  I grimaced as she practically shouted my name. Every eye in the room was focused on me. I tried not to squirm under the scrutiny of so many unfriendly faces. "Frankie we need to go."

  "You said you came here all the time. I thought you liked this place?" She whined. "I've been sitting here alone like a total loser hoping you'd show up."

  "I'm giving up coffee." She raised a skeptical brow. "Fine, I haven't given up anything. I'm kind of banned from the Grind." I cut her off before she could ask me why. "Firstly, I used to come here alone all the time and I am not a loser. Secondly, we're not here to talk about me. I'm taking you home, let's go Frankie."

  "Sit down Maurin. I'm not going home." She informed me.

  "Fine, we can go somewhere else." She just crossed her arms and sat back in my favorite chair like an insolent child. I fought the urge to tip her out of the chair and plop down on the warn leathery cushions. Man I missed this place. "Did you hear what I said? We're leaving. My money's no good here."

  "Well mine is. I gave that girl a fifty dollar tip. So sit down and order something so we can talk. I really need some sisterly advice." She was glaring at me, daring me with her eyes to argue. I remembered the skill with which she would throw a tantrum as a child and sensed we weren't far from a repeat performance.

  I hesitantly sat down on the edge of the chair next to my sister, unwilling to get comfortable for fear of getting tossed out on my ass at any second. Before I could object Frankie was waving Amalie over to take my order. I didn't even bother looking over my shoulder to see if she was coming. I could hear hushed arguing from behind the counter.

  "I saw Michael." I told her, in an effort to get the conversation moving so we could get the hell out of here before someone hexed me.

  "You went to my apartment?" She seemed surprised to hear I made a point of seeing her fiancé or ex-fiancé as the case maybe. "He told you what happened?"

  "I didn't really give him much choice." I laughed. "Look I'm the last person who should be giving advice, my life is far from normal. But people are going to start showing up at a wedding with no bride or groom in a couple hours. So if you really don't plan on being there you might want to give the priest a heads up."

  I was about to lay on the guilt trip about how worried everyone was when Amalie came over with a cup of coffee and a croissant. I gave her a weak smile as she set them down on the little table in front of us. She didn't say anything, just smiled back and walked away. Peace offering or poison? She gave some guy who said something about Council whores not being welcome here the finger on her way back to the counter. Maybe it was safe to eat. I picked a corner of the croissant and popped it into my mouth. It turned to ash on my tongue. I passed on the coffee.

  "I don't even care about the thing with Ashley. I mean I do but I wasn't entirely faithful either." Frankie blurted out as I debated wiping my tongue with a napkin.

  Not wanting to give the asshole who hexed my food the satisfaction I ignored the foul taste in my mouth. "
What?" I couldn't take it, I grabbed Frankie's coffee and swished it around in my mouth. "Does Michael know?"

  "Yes." She frowned and reached for my cup. I handed hers over before the loser two tables down had a chance to hex it and waited for her to continue. "I told him after he told me about Ashley. She's been trying to break us up since they started that stupid study group. He told me he couldn't marry me with a lie like that between us. He's a better person than me because I had no intention of telling him what happened with his old roommate."

  "His roommate? Who are you and what have you done with my sister? I mean honestly Frankie!" If she wasn't telling me I wouldn't have believed it.

  "Don't judge me Maurin. You're not perfect. Care to tell me why you're getting banned from coffee houses now?" When I didn't elaborate she went on, "It was rush week, I had way too much to drink. It was just the one time and we both regretted it. He moved out at the end of the semester. Anyway none of that matters. I know Michael loves me."

  "And you love him?" I asked, thoroughly confused and in need of confirmation.

  "Of course I do. Don't be thick Maurin." She so reminded me of her mother when she said that.

  "Help me out here Frankie, if you're both willing to over look your infidelities why did you take off?" Why couldn't we be having this conversation at Toil and Trouble? Why couldn't I be fighting a demon instead of having this conversation? I was so much better at that. At least that made sense. Bad guy hurts good guy, eliminate the bad guy. This on the other hand? I couldn't get a handle on why any of this was so Earth shattering or how they managed to stay together this long.

  "He wants to move to Washington. He accepted the offer at some big firm without even talking to me about it. I had a flash of my life as the wife of a junior partner. I was already freaking out before he even mentioned Ashley. I don't care that he made a mistake. So did I. Our relationship is probably better for it. But I don't want to turn into mom. I can't." She looked like she was about to hyperventilate.

  I obviously hadn't been spending enough time around norms because I was ready to get up and walk out. This whole conversation seemed ridiculous. I was really trying to see the severity of the situation but couldn't. "I think the odds of you turning into mom are far greater if you stay here. Do you want to marry Michael? Be honest."

  She didn't hesitate. "Yes, more than anything just on my terms."

  I sighed. We weren't getting anywhere. "I think the terms are covered under the vows."

  "It's supposed to be a partnership. He didn't even ask me what I wanted." She said.

  "And what would you have said if he asked?" I already knew the answer. She graduated in May and wanted to be an artist full time.

  "Of course I would have said yes. I can paint anywhere. He took it for granted." She huffed.

  "Did you try telling him that or did you assume he was going to turn you into the Stepford Wife mom dressed you up like yesterday?" I was getting irritated that all my answers seemed to be defending Michael when all I wanted to do was punch him in the face for cheating on my sister. It didn't matter that she cheated on him first. Not very rational, I know.

  "So you think I should go through with it, the wedding, moving to DC?" She asked.

  "I am not going to tell you what to do Frankie. You've got to make that decision for yourself but you already knew that." See I totally sucked at giving advice.

  "I've got to go!" She jumped up and bolted for the door. "You better be at the church!"

  "I think that was supposed to be my line." I called out.

  I grabbed Frankie's cup of coffee as I got up, raising it to the jerkwad who referred to me as a Council whore. I could feel Conry beside me as I walked out. I took a swig of the now ice cold coffee as my dog materialized next to me. My taste buds were once again assaulted with bitter ash. Son of a bitch. I tossed the coffee in the trash can on the corner. With that "crisis" averted I could finally report back to the Council. I decided to go home and change first. Knowing Agrona she would keep me at the Council meeting well into the reception.

  I was so glad Frankie didn't ask me to be a bridesmaid. I had no desire to spend the evening in the ankle length, pin straight and super tight pewter dresses she picked out. A dress like that was not designed for someone who was barely five foot two. The women's tux inspired suit I bought from Black Market fit perfectly. Just the right amount of cleavage was visible with the black strapless top, highlighted by the black crystal beadwork along the edge. I was a little concerned about the top but the woman at the store assured me the boning would help keep it in place. It would be just my luck to have a wardrobe malfunction. There was no way to hide my sword in this outfit but I managed to strap a dagger to each calf. Another reason I was grateful for pants. My hair was pulled up in a chignon and I finished off the look with a smoky eye and nude glossy lip. Three inch heels completed the outfit. Seeing it all together for the first time, I had to agree with the sales associate. I didn't need a fancy designer dress that I couldn't afford. Sometimes less is definitely more. I slipped on the jacket and took one last look at myself in the mirror before heading out to meet the Council with Conry in tow.

  6

  The Council had recently taken ownership of a local burlesque club. Apparently there was more than a little private dancing going on in the back rooms. Rule number one when running a club for norms and others in Salem, don't let the vampires drink the norms. Especially not for money. Seems the prior owner found out selling vampire bites for the sexual euphoria that follows was pretty lucrative. The Council didn't approve of that particular business venture so they were the proud new owners of Risqué. They went in fully intent on shutting the place down but after closer inspection they all agreed to keep it open. It wasn't the club that really interested the Council, it was the space below it. Once a speak easy during prohibition, the club beneath the club offered a neutral meeting ground for all factions of the Council and their constituents.

  I knocked on the back door. A woman wearing a black tee shirt with the word security in bold white letters stretched across her chest opened the door. She gave me a hard once over before stepping aside. Some patrons might make the mistake of thinking they could take her on but I knew without even a hint of fang that she was a vampire. After giving me a quick pat down she was ready to take me downstairs.

  "You come with me. The dog stays here." She motioned to someone I couldn't see, presumably to watch Conry.

  "The dog is coming with me." I was trying to play nice. This was my first time at Risqué - most of the staff didn't know me. I let her frisk me but I was not going downstairs without Conry. If I had known this would be an issue I would have told Conry to go stealth mode. They had already seen him so it was too late for that.

  She was fast but not fast enough. She came at me, arm extended to grab me by my neck and shove me against the wall. With my left arm I struck out at the inside of her elbow, bending her arm. I threw my right shoulder into her chest using her momentum to flip her around and force her back against the bricks. If she was even half a century older that move wouldn't have worked but I've gone up against the equivalent of her great-great-great-well a lot of greats- grandmother and lived to talk about it. I could certainly handle this toddler.

  "Must you always resort to violence Maurin?"

  I didn’t recognize the voice. Conry instinctively moved in front of me. I eased my weight off the bouncer and slowly turned around. My heart stopped. The bouncer's bright red lips curved up into a wicked grin. She caught the hiccup in my heartbeat and knew this particular fae scared the shit out of me. Aidan warned me about Kellen the first time I saw him at Mahalia's trial. I had seen him only twice since then but my skin crawled every time he looked at me. His power felt both familiar and foreign.

  "You were instructed to bring her down immediately upon her arrival." His voice was calm but I could tell he was fuming inside. He gave the bouncer a look that practically had me quaking in my three inch heels.

  "She bro
ught her dog. I told her he couldn't go down. She wouldn't cooperate." The bouncer explained in a rush.

  "Is that how it happened Maurin? You refused to leave your guardian behind after being instructed to do so by our security?" It felt like a trick question - like no matter what I said the vampire would be punished. Something I was certain he would enjoy.

  I glanced at the vampire who was daring me with her eyes to say otherwise. "I don't answer to security and Conry stays with me."

  I could see the tension leave the vampire's body when I corroborated her story. She was safe from his wrath for now.

  "Follow me. Everyone is waiting for you." Kellen extended a hand to Conry whose lips curled back in a snarl in response. He laughed and I broke out into a cold sweat. This fae's power was dangerously close to dark magic.

  Conry fell in step beside me as we followed him down the stairway into the old speak easy part of the club. The room, once damp and dimly lit for drinking and gambling away from the watchful eyes of Johnny Law, was now a fully renovated bar decorated in full Gatsby grandeur. I took my place in front of Agrona who was sprawled glamorously across a chaise lounge. Kedehern sat on a stool with his back to the bar, elbows propped on the wooden top supporting him as he casually leaned back. My fae escort took his seat next to his brother on a velvet set tee. He didn't bother feigning interest.

  "So tell me all the gory details. Did Roul make short work of Cash or did he toy with him for a while?" Agrona almost sounded excited.

  It hadn't occurred to me that I would actually be breaking the news of Roul’s death to the Council - report back on what I witnessed yes but I assumed they already knew about Roul. They always knew everything. Of course the two people who usually reported shifter activity to the Council were dead so....

  "Actually," I cleared my throat when Agrona sat up. "Actually he lost. The Salem pack belongs to Cash."