Witch's Curse (The Bone Coven Chronicles Book 1) Page 5

  “I know,” he said, his voice barely heard above the light wind that whistled through the thin alleyway.

  “Right. Of course you do.” I smacked my palm against my forehead. “How could I forget? You’ve been stalking me.”

  “I haven’t been stalking you, as you so kindly put it,” he said.

  “Well, then what would you call it?” a voice rang out behind me. Laura stepped out into the back alley. The heavy side door of the bar slammed behind her, a sound that reverberated in my bones. She stepped up to my side and glared at Dorian, and I couldn’t help but press my lips together to hide the smile.

  “Who’s this then?” he said.

  I raised my eyebrows. “Don’t you recognize her? I figured you knew everything about my life seeing as you’ve been watching me for the past few months.”

  “Look,” he said with an irritated sigh. “We don’t have all night. If you want to waste all our time arguing, then have at it. It won’t get you any closer to clearing your name though.”

  “Speaking of that, I need to stop somewhere on the way,” I said.

  He gave me a look that would make most men tremble in their graves. “At two o’clock in the morning?”

  “Yeah, I just need to pop into Bubbles & Trouble for a few minutes.”

  He blinked at me. “I feel like you’re not understanding the severity of your situation. If we don’t find who really killed Baker, the coven will lock you away for the rest of your life. So, no. We can’t go on a bar crawl through Boston’s supernatural drinking holes. This isn’t some kind of joy ride. We’re going to Slayerville now, or we’re not going at all.”

  A chill went through me. As much as I hated to admit it, I needed Dorian’s help, and he seemed two seconds away from walking away from this. Alice’s husband could wait a little longer. I’d just have to stop by the warlock bar tomorrow night instead.

  “I’m coming with,” Laura said when he turned to go.

  “You can’t be serious.” He frowned at me. “This wasn’t part of the deal. We’re walking into vamp territory, Zoe. I can’t babysit the two of you.”

  Irritation flashed within me. Babysit? Yeah, I wasn’t letting him get away with that one. “Laura can hold her own. And so can I.”

  “You know what? Fine. I can’t stand around arguing about this all night.” He pointed a finger at Laura. “The second things go sideways, do whatever I say.” He turned to me. “You too, Zoe. I know you think you’re invincible, but you’re not. And half the people in that club are going to want nothing more than to suck you dry.”

  I shivered, despite my resolution to look strong and capable in front of Dorian. I didn’t want him to see that his words had gotten to me, but they had. As big as I liked to talk, I was only a novice witch, and most of the spells I knew were defensive. I didn’t know many specialized runes for bone mages, and the ones I did know, I had trouble casting. The powerful spells. The ones that could hit an enemy where it hurt.

  Sure, I could levitate some inanimate objects, but nothing too heavy, and I still couldn’t force them to fly quickly through the air.

  And, unfortunately, vampires could move faster than sound.

  The three of us stood outside of the booming club. A long line of patrons clad in red and black ensembles snaked down the city block as they waited to enter the black double doors. Two men guarded the entrance, their arms crossed over their bulky chests. From their pale skin to their reddened eyes, it was more than clear they were vampires.

  Not everyone who went to Slayerville was a vampire, of course. Just like witches and warlocks, their numbers had diminished over the years. The Daywalkers fought beside us in the war and experienced heavy losses just like we did. In the end, our side won, and there’d been a shaky peace between vampires and mages ever since. Because when it came down to it, the Daywalkers didn’t want demons overrunning the world any more than we did.

  But that didn’t stop them from craving human blood.

  Truthfully, their cravings were probably why they joined us in the fight. More demons meant fewer humans, and fewer humans meant the Daywalkers could kiss their immortality goodbye. Because unlike Nosferatu, they had to feed in order to keep their supernatural powers. If they didn’t consume blood, they’d be just as human as everyone else.

  “So…” I said, glancing up at Dorian. “Plan? Should we draw some runes before we go inside?”

  “No runes inside their premises. That’s against our alliance.” he said quietly. “Once we’re inside, just follow my lead.”

  “And how the hell do you expect to get us inside?” Laura shivered in her Patty Smith t-shirt when a light breeze ruffled her long streaked hair. “The line is at least a hundred people long.”

  “Wait here,” he said.

  Dorian left us on the sidewalk, and we watched as he strode up to the bouncers and said something we were unable to hear under the pulsing bass drifting out of the club. The bouncers gave a nod, moving aside to unclip the red rope that blocked the entrance.

  “What the hell?” Laura murmured under her breath. “How did he get them to agree to that?”

  I shook my head, wondering the same damn thing. He seemed to excel at convincing people to do anything he asked, and I was beginning to wonder if there was a darker reason for that. “Maybe he’s casting some kind of spell.”

  “Isn’t he an Enforcer though? That shit’s against the coven laws.”

  There weren’t many things that set off the coven’s radars. Most witches and warlocks had a pretty laissez-faire attitude when it came to the ethical side of magic. Unlike in the human world, there were only three laws to govern what we could and couldn’t do. Don’t use magic to kill, torture, or control. If Dorian was somehow using his powers to convince people to do his bidding, then he was doing it against the coven’s laws. As an Enforcer, he’d know that better than anyone.

  “Either way, it means we get to skip the line,” I said as he waved us over to the double doors.

  Once inside, it was impossible not to gape at everything and everyone around us. I’d only ever heard rumors about Slayerville, never quite brave or stupid enough to try to get in myself. Sure, Laura and I had whispered about it when we were teenagers, pretending that we’d really try it one Saturday night just for kicks. But we never did.

  It was everything I’d imagined and more.

  Seductive, bass-heavy music thumped loud in the expansive warehouse, pulsing so hard that I could feel the rhythm through the soles of my boots. Red velvet curtains were draped across the walls, making the steel interior look as though it was washed in blood. A thick cloud of sweet sandalwood incense hung heavy in the air, a scent that was laced with sweat, iron, and burning wood.

  We passed a cluster of large cages that hung from the ceiling. Inside, scantily-clad men and women writhed to the music. I couldn’t tell whether or not they were vampires, not under the clownish makeup caked to their skin and the bright purple contacts that made their eyes look animalistic rather than human.

  Laura slowed as we passed a leather couch where two female vampires were wrapped in an embrace, kissing with a passion I’d never experienced myself. Laura’s eyes widened, her cheeks flushed, and her lips parted. A human girl was with them, maybe college-aged, with curly red hair and freckled skin. She dropped her head to the side, and the vampires sunk their teeth into her tender neck. Within seconds, the girl’s eyes rolled back in her head, and she moaned, writhing in pleasure and pain. Laura shifted closer, almost like she was being pulled toward them by an invisible magnetic force.

  “Laura,” I said, stopping to grab her arm. “Let’s go.”

  We could do nothing to stop them feeding on the humans they had here. Another part of our alliance.

  Swallowing hard, she nodded and began to move her feet again. We followed Dorian to the bar, a wide and curving mahogany table that was manned by a vampire sporting horns. Fake horns, that is. Or so I hoped. Still, I found it impossibly creepy.

 
“What can I get you?” he asked with a nod when we slid up to the bar.

  “We need to ask you a few questions about someone who may have been a regular here,” Dorian said, pulling his phone from his jeans. This time, I noticed, he opted to keep his federal badge hidden away. “A man named Jeffrey Baker. I have his photo here.”

  Dorian flipped his phone across the counter, showing the bartender an old image of a solemn Jeffrey Baker. He didn’t look like the kind of guy to get caught up with vampires. Hair thinning at the temples, clothes in desperate need of an upgrade. He looked like someone’s cheesy uncle, not a man who wanted to trade his soul for immortality.

  The bartender flicked his gaze down at the photo and then back up at us, his expression betraying nothing. “I might have seen the guy. But my time ain’t free. You’ll need to order first if you want me to talk.”

  With a frown, Dorian nodded. “Three of whatever it will take to get the information.”

  The bartender’s smile became a Cheshire Cat sized grin, and I couldn’t help but shiver. That look did not exactly quell my unease about being in a club full of vampires. He turned to make the drinks, pouring and mixing and shaking at least a dozen different ingredients together. When he finally handed us our drinks, he threw out his palm, rubbing his forefinger and thumb together. “That’ll be forty dollars.”

  “You’ve gotta be fucking kidding me,” Dorian said.

  “These bad boys are ten dollars each,” the bartender said, pointing at a sign that was propped up on the bar. The drink in question was called the Cloud Red, and it did in fact cost ten ridiculous dollars. “The other ten dollars is for my tip.”

  Dorian threw the cash on the bar. “There. Now, what do you know about Baker?”

  “Is he always this grumpy?” the bartender turned toward me as I lifted the drink to my lips. The cloudy red liquid was sweet and bitter at the same time, almost like a Long Island Iced Tea.

  “Seems that way,” I said. “I’m pretty sure he sets his asshole dial on maximum.”

  A low growl emitted from Dorian’s throat. It felt good to get a shot in. He’d been driving me crazy ever since he’d popped into my life the night before, and it was about damn time he got a taste of his own bitter medicine.

  “Anyway, your friend comes in here a lot.” The bartender leaned forward to speak over the thumping base, his horns shifting precariously on his head. “Normally I wouldn’t recognize a random human, but this guy has been to the club at least twenty times. Maybe more.”

  I took another sip of my drink, the liquid shooting sharp spikes of heat through my stomach. It felt weird and good at the same time, and I had to wonder how much of this was laced with some kind of vampire magic elixir. I’d never tasted those myself, but I’d heard of them. Elixirs that would cause all your inhibitions to get tossed into the wind. Probably not a great idea for me to be drinking it in a vampire bar.

  Dorian’s voice rumbled as he spoke to the bartender, and I swiveled my head to gaze up at his face. The rest of the bar fell away as my eyes drank in his strong jaw, the intensity of his eyes, and the aura of power and danger that flowed from his ripped body. My heartbeat quickened, and my pulse thrummed in my throat. Fingers aching with the need to reach out and touch him, I—

  Shit. Blinking hard, I glanced away. This vampire brew was going straight to my head. I set the glass back onto the counter and wrinkled my nose, hoping Dorian hadn’t noticed.

  But he hadn’t. He was far too focused on the task at hand, like always. “Who did Baker usually come here with?”

  “He came alone,” the bartender said, dropping his voice into a conspiratorial whisper. “He’s one of them, if you know what I mean.”

  Dorian nodded, but I didn’t have a clue what he was referring to.

  “One of what?” I asked.

  “Blood bags. Yummy, yummy blood bags.” The bartender opened his mouth, and two sharp teeth protruded from his gums. Startled, I took a step back. “They like to get sucked off, though not the way most men do.”

  Heat filled my cheeks, and I had to glance away. That reminded me of another rumor I’d heard about vampires. Their attitude toward sex, and the way they craved it, was a lot different than ours. More…intense, to say the least. When a vampire wanted someone, they really, really wanted them, and nothing could satiate their need until the conquest was made. Might explain my ridiculous reaction to their drink. They’d clearly put thoughts into my head that I normally wouldn’t have.

  “We’re going to need some names,” Dorian said just as stony as ever, clearly not as ruffled by the bartender’s words as I was. “Did he have any regular feeders? Anyone who particularly liked his taste?”

  Dorian talked as if he knew more about the vampire world than most people. And, I guessed, he would. As an Enforcer, he’d be tasked with keeping the uneasy alliance between the two supernatural communities. And he would have been briefed on the various components of their world, which made me wonder how much the Daywalkers knew about ours, too. Did they have a task force just like we did? And if they did, were they watching us now?

  The bartender narrowed his eyes and pulled back, his horns lifting high toward the ceiling. It made him seem a lot more intimidating than he’d been two seconds before, and my heartbeat picked up speed. “What’s this about anyway? If I tell you who he runs with, are you going to cause some trouble?”

  “No trouble. All I’m going to do is ask some questions,” Dorian said, holding up his hands. “I just want to find out what he’s been up to in here. See if he did anything to catch the attention of the wrong people. Then, we’ll be on our way.”

  “Hmm, I see. Well, before you do that, you might want to be aware that your little friend is the one who caught the attention of the wrong people.” The bartender pointed behind us, his face transforming into a knowing smirk. “Though, I have to say, she looks like she’s enjoying it.”

  I whirled on my feet and discovered that Laura was no longer by my side. Her empty glass sat sideways on the ground by my feet, and my eyes lifted to find her halfway across the club. She was spread out on the laps of the two vampire women we spotted on the way inside, her eyes closed, her mouth open wide.

  And their fangs were sunk into her neck.

  Chapter 7

  “What the hell?” I cried out, fear and anger boiling the Cloud Red in my gut. Instinctively, I reached for the dagger in my back sheath, but Dorian threw out a hand to block me. I ground my teeth together, glaring up at him. The vampires had my best friend. They could drain all of her blood. They could consume her entire life-force. If we didn’t act soon, she could end up dead.

  “Don’t,” he said quietly. “We need to handle this carefully.”

  “They’re. Drinking. Her. Blood.” I choked out every word like it was a bullet. “It’s against the alliance. I have every fucking right to draw a weapon now.”

  “I know.” He gripped my arm tight in his hand and squeezed. “But we’re surrounded by at least a hundred vampires. I hate to say it, but we can’t take them all on our own.”

  Okay, so he had a point. Still, it was hard to see past the rage turning my vision to red. There were few things in life I loved enough to toss my own safety to the wind, but Laura was one of them. Her and Grams. I’d do anything for them, even if that meant sacrificing myself.

  “Come on,” he said as he began to stride across the room, his grip still tight on my arm.

  When we reached the two vampires, he towered over them, pure power radiating off his body. It was impossible not to notice. Even the vampires around us took note, and they were born with the potential for much more power than either one of us had. The women paused in their feeding, extracting their teeth from Laura’s neck and glancing up at us with a mock innocence that made me want to smack the smug smiles from their pale faces.

  “Is there some kind of problem?” one of them asked in a lyrical voice that set my teeth on edge. Her pupils were dilated from the fresh blood, and her words r
ang with strength and life, the sound echoing in my ears. It was almost too much to bear.

  “Let her go,” I snapped before Dorian could stop me. “She’s off-limits, and you fucking know it.”

  “She is not off-limits,” the other said, pulling her lips away from Laura’s throat. “You can hate us all you want, witch, but we’ve done nothing wrong.”

  I opened my mouth to spit back at them, anger fueling me in a way I’d never felt before. I should be scared in their presence. As strong as I was, they were stronger. Faster. And any wound I inflicted would be a temporary slice of their very long life. For me, it could be fatal.

  “We have an alliance,” I said, heart hammering hard when one of the women turned back to Laura’s neck. “No feeding on members of the Bone Coven. It’s been that way for five years, so it’s not like you could have forgotten.”

  “You are a strange one to speak for the Bone Coven.” The vampire smiled, her teeth stained with Laura’s bright red blood. “And this one here has no coven mark. She’s not a member of any of them, so she’s up for grabs.”

  “A technicality,” Dorian growled. “She’s still a witch, and she’ll have her coven mark soon enough.”

  “Soon isn’t now.” The vampire shrugged, and her dress strap fell off her shoulder to reveal even more smooth, pale skin. “And right now, I’m hungry.”

  “Anastasia and Georgina,” came a cool voice from behind us. I turned to see an old vampire—a rarity—hovering behind us. As little as I knew about the vampire community, I recognized him in an instant. The head of the Boston clan, Christian Dogaru. He and his family came from Romania centuries ago to build a better life, escaping the Nosferatu that plagued Eastern Europe.