“Didn’t we all learn that when we were first turned?” Killian asked. “As we watched our friends and family who were still human grow old and die?”
I tilted my head, listening to an owl hooting in the trees. “Those deaths are your teachers—the moments that make you realize you really are different. The later deaths…” I trailed off, considering what I’d learned in my long life. “They’re wounds you never recover from, a pain that never leaves you—your only companion in a life that stretches endlessly before you.”
Killian had nothing to say about this so I started down the driveway, a foul mood biting at my heels.
I played the role of dutiful guardian tonight. I think it’s about time I go have some fun.
CHAPTER
FOURTEEN
Jade
Istudied the charming brick storefront of Tutu’s Crypta & Custodia. It seemed like the staff had taken even more precautions than when I’d last dropped by. I was getting a touch more fae magic radiating off the building that seemed new. (The overwhelming sensation, however, continued to be the spicey dragon magic—understandably, considering the owner.)
Why would Gisila want to break in and steal something? That’s equal to outright declaring war against her sister.
I didn’t know enough about dragon shifters to say if family wars were common. What I did know was that in addition to being obsessed with their hoards, dragon shifters were generally loners and didn’t care much about or for others.
But attacking Tutu’s would bring her wrath down on Gisila. So, there must really be something Gisila wants… but how could we possibly find out what it is?
Brody sniffed the air.
“Smell something?” Tetiana asked.
“Nah,” Brody said. “Just pizza, wet leaves, and fried food from downtown—we’re downwind here.”
It was nearing midnight, and there was a strong gusty wind that pulled at the hood of my navy-blue uniform and tugged on my clothes.
Soon, I’d need to invest in thicker versions of the underclothes I wore beneath my uniform. (I wore layers year-round to limit the risk of bleeding from something like a simple scratch or scrape.)
I glanced at Tetiana and Brody—the cold wouldn’t be a problem for them. Tetiana couldn’t feel much of it and, as a werewolf, Brody was overheated most of the time. (Werewolves generally loved winter the most out of all supernaturals.)
“Team Blood. There’s an incident on Main Street that I want you to respond to.” Sarge’s voice crackled on the radio.
Brody cracked his knuckles, and his blue eyes gleamed in the low light cast by the streetlights. “Who wants to respond to Sarge?” he asked.
“I’ll get it!” Tetiana cheerfully pulled her radio from her belt, then yelled. “UNDERSTOOD!”
When my ears stopped ringing, I checked to make sure my mask was in place. “Should we tell him we’re still down on Goldstein Street?” I asked.
“Oh, good point.” Tetiana sucked in another breath, and Brody blanched.
“Wait,” he started. “Tetiana, I’ll—”
“WE’RE ON GOLDSTEIN, INCOMING IN FIVE MINUTES. IS THAT ACCEPTABLE?” Tetiana shouted with enough gusto that it made me suspect she better understood how to use the radio than she let on.
Static crackled on the radio for several seconds, until Sarge spoke again. “Yes. Headquarters got a call—there’s a vampire in The Lucky Clover Irish Pub bothering some of the patrons. I want Blood on hand in case there are problems.”
“Makes sense, send the slayer in to scold the vampire,” Brody said. “That will put the fear of true death in them.”
Tetiana nodded, then pressed the talk button on the radio again. “GOT IT!”
Brody cursed and clamped his hands over his ears. “For crying out loud, Tetiana. You’ve gotten enough remedial lessons on tech; you should be able to handle this!”
Tetiana batted her red eyes at the cross werewolf. “It’s just so confusing!”
“And yet you have somehow figured out how to drive?” Brody asked.
Tetiana winked. “That’s different. That’s like driving a carriage!”
“Not hardly,” Brody grumbled as we headed north, towards Main Street. “But I suppose, your driving isn’t all that good.”
“Hey!”
“Should we move faster?” I asked. “If the vampire is already bothering patrons, they might escalate to something more physical in a short amount of time.”
Tetiana grimaced. “Ah, true. Fine, we can run.” She grumbled some more under her breath but started off at a fast trot.
Brody loped along with her, his stamina helping him keep up, and I brought up the rear, my training making the short run easy.
In no time at all, we reached the Lucky Clover and headed inside.
Brody drew back a little when he opened the door and was blasted with Irish music—fiddles, flutes, drums, and what sounded like a bagpipe to my uncultured ears.
“I’ll lead!” Tetiana offered, plowing past Brody. I waited for Brody to recover and stagger inside, bringing up the rear as usual.
Once I set foot inside the pub, I started taking inventory trying to find the best escape routes so we could block the vamp and eyeing the best places to drag the vampire to if I had to fight.
Despite the low lighting, the Irish pub felt cheerful and full with an elaborately carved bar made of dark wood, matching barstools that boasted the same arched design, and etched glass mugs decorated with shamrocks and Irish musical instruments.
The use of the dark wood and the black and white floor tiling set off the bright green wallpaper that decorated most of the walls—the only exception being the wall the bar was in front of, which was more rustic styled and made of worn brick.
The place was busy, but not crushed, so Tetiana, Brody, and I were all able to stand comfortably in the entrance together.
Brody cringed as he rubbed his ears. “Why do humans insist on blasting music so loud that you can feel it damaging your ear drums?”
I keyed into my senses, trying to track the vamp… but I felt nothing. Tetiana was the only presence.
That’s weird. Did he leave already?
Tetiana stood on her tip toes, craning to scan the pub, her eyes lingering on the live musicians standing on a tiny wooden stage. “Okay, I don’t see any obvious candidates for vampirism—no one is wearing visibly historic clothes. Can you tell where the vampire is, Blood?”
“No,” I paused for a moment to double check my senses but besides the loud music, the only other sensation I was picking up on was the distinctive smell of barley and hops from the alcohol and the wood polish the staff must use to clean the place. “I’m not feeling any besides you in the area right now.”
Brody frowned. “Do you think he realized he’d gotten reported and ran?”
I reflexively checked my belt, toying with the sharpened hair stick I used to wear in my hair whenever I was on an undercover mission with my Family. “I don’t know…”
There were two bartenders—a man and a woman—working—both wearing T-shirts with the pub’s logo emblazed on them.