Hex and the Single Witch (Vehicle City Vampires) (18 page)

Walking out to
the car Mel just couldn’t keep it in, her giggling erupted. “Girl, you finally
got you some. ‘Bout damn time, too.”

“You saw it? In
a vision?”

“Naw, girl. I
saw it in High Def.”

“What?” I
screeched with alarm.

“Anwyn, I told
you Galen’s quarters are wired with the latest technology so Satinka can keep
an eye on him. The system includes cameras.”

“Oh my Goddess!
Are you telling me everyone watched Galen and I have sex?” I couldn’t believe
it; the room really did have cameras. I should have known. I had known. I just
hadn’t cared at the time.

“Not everyone,
just me and Satinka. She sent the Guardians out of the room.”

“How thoughtful
of her,” I snarked. “You know I can handle you seeing me like that, you’ve been
watching my sex life for a long time now, but Satinka Tala. I guess I was close
to her a long time ago but now…this is too weird.”

“Look we only
did it out of concern for you. To make sure Galen was okay and he didn’t vamp
out and bite you. Honestly, we only had your interest at heart. Satinka has all
of Galen’s sessions monitored so he doesn’t freak and hurt anyone. It’s no big
deal. Vamps and shifters are kinda weird sometimes about sex and nudity. Sure
they are super sexual creatures but at times they can just shut it off and take
a cold, clinical approach to anything—including sex. Satinka watching you guys
was purely clinical and a safety protocol. And don’t worry she deleted all the
video footage so no one else will be able to watch it later.”

“Wow that makes
things all better knowing I was just watched while I had sex with my boyfriend
for the first time.”

“I’m sorry Wyn,
but it was for your own good.” She frowned at me like I was a small child.

“Galen would
never hurt me.” Wow, maybe I did need mothering because I sounded childish,
even to my ears.

“Honey, Galen is
a vampire. No matter how sweet he may seem, remember he has fangs and shit
happens.”

“Always so eloquent
aren’t you, Mel?”

“You don’t have
to get all snarcastic on me, Wyn, I’ve dated vamps before. I know those who
crave the blood/sex mix as much as Galen doesn’t do well without it. He will
eventually bite you, with or without your permission.”

The thought of
his fangs buried in my neck made me shiver with fear…and a little bit of
desire.

****

“So what is this
camera going to do?” I asked Mel as she prepared to do some kind of magick scan
on me. I stood in front of a white screen while Mel messed with the gadgets and
gizmos in front of her computer.

“Well, if it all
goes as planned it should show me if someone has been tampering with your
magick. It should also show me any bindings that have been put on you. And the
best part is…not only will I be able to see the magick, I’ll be able to trace
it and add it to my database.”

“You mean trace
it back to whoever cast the spell? And put it in a database?” I asked. If my
magick was working right I could trace it back to its owner by touching
something, like a bloodhound on a magick scent trail. Lately though, I wasn’t
picking up much of anything. And I never could store everything in the database
of my mind. Photographic recall was not one of my talents. Mel’s mix of magick
and technology truly amazed me. “If there is a spell on me, something binding
my power, can you remove it?”

“Come on, Wyn,
this is Magick 101. You know it’s hard to undo someone else’s magick. I would
have to unweave the spell, trace it to its owner and decipher the personal
magick signatures within the spell. An almost impossible task. Ninety-nine
percent of witches can’t do it.”

I smiled. “Yeah,
I know. I asked because I also know you are the other one percent. You’re a
powerful witch, Mel. A spell caster extraordinaire. And you have technology on
your side. Please tell me you can undo this.”

She giggled. “How
about you let me see what we’ve got going on here before I answer that?”

“Okay, are you
ready?”

“Yup, just be
still, this isn’t going to hurt at all. Chances are you won’t feel or see a thing,
but for me, it will be like I’m putting on special goggles that let me see
every magick string, every fabric of magick on and around you. I usually just
let the camera do the work, but I want to see this, plus it’s a little more
detailed than just the normal data grab I do. I need to sync my vision, the
camera, and the tweaked spell so I can really see what’s going on with you.
Think of it as a magick X-ray.”

“Okay.”

Mel threw the
last ingredient of the spell into her cauldron, which was actually a copper
pot, and the potion poofed. Smoke filled the room like fog curling out and away
from a lake. It circled around me, her, and the camera.

Mel’s eyes grew
big as she stared at me, then she circled me, snapping photos. “Oh, my Goddess.
This is incredible.”

“What is, tell
me, Mel, what is it?”

“Ssh, just let
me look. I have to make sure what I’m seeing is right.”

“Is it bad?”

“Shh.” She kept
staring and circling, snapping photo after photo, bending here and there to get
closer to me. Several times she would reach out like she was fingering strands
of hair or touching strings I couldn’t see. “Honey, this ain’t good.”

“Mel, what is
it?”

“Anwyn, you have
layer upon layer of binding spells wrapped around you. They have been cast over
and over again; years upon years of spells have been weighing you down. It’s no
wonder you’ve been a late bloomer with the magick. Someone has kept you from
coming into your full powers.”

“What? Who? Why?”
I couldn’t believe what she was saying; I stammered and stuttered trying to sort
it out in my head. “But I’ve always had my gifts of knowing, why are they
suddenly gone as well?”

“Well, on top of
all the old layers of spells which look like they were cast by the same person,
a new spell got placed on you. A new binding spell. This one by someone totally
new and it specifically binds your knowledge skills. It is so fresh I can see
exactly what it does. It lets enough of your power through to keep you
unsuspecting but it really has you bound up. I have never seen so many spells
on someone before. I don’t understand, Wyn. Someone really wants you left in
the dark. They want you powerless.”

“But why? I
don’t understand.”

“I don’t either,
but I am going to figure this out.” Mel’s mouth set in a determined line, her
jaw tight. She was angry. So angry she remained silent. That was when I really
needed to worry about Mel, when she grew quiet. “Look, I need to upload these
photos so I can have the threads of magick stored in my magickal data base. The
virtual image of the threads will let me unravel and hopefully trace them
without you standing here the whole time.”

“So you have a
complete data base storing the images of magick you take with the camera?”

“Yeah, I have
used my talents for combining technology and magick for more than just weapons
and wards for the P.I. T. Crew. I’ve created this camera to record everyone’s
signature magick. With some tweaking, like I did a moment ago, I can also
capture images of magick placed on someone or something. I upload it all into
my magickally altered computer and start sorting out the spells, bindings and
threads layered on you. While I am at it, I can also add your personal magick
signature to my database.”

“How many Others
have you stored in that thing so far?”

“I have almost
every known witch in the area. I have been snapping discreetly, but I don’t
have too many vamps, weres, or demons yet.”

“Wow, amazing. I
didn’t know magick could be caught on film.”

“The wonders of
digital technology are now used magickally. Just look at vamps, for years they
couldn’t be seen on film or in mirrors because of the silver used in film
processing. Now digital technology allows them to use cameras and screens to
see themselves and be caught on camera.”

I was completely
awed by Mel’s abilities. “So how long will it take to unravel all this?”

“It’s going to
take a while and I really need to concentrate. I don’t mean to kick you out
honey, but you know I do my best work when I’m alone.”

“I understand,
Mel. I’ll let you work. Call me as soon as you find something or figure something
out.”

“You bet, Wyn.”
Suddenly a thought seemed to pop into her head, “Hey, are you going to the
Vampire Ball Saturday night?” she asked.

“The Vampire
Ball? You mean that crazy costume party downtown where humans dress up as
vampires not realizing real vampires walk among them?” I snorted, the whole
thing seemed ludicrous to me. Plus, no one asked me to be their date.

Mel’s eyes
narrowed. “Wow, your Gram really has kept you out of the loop. How do you keep
your job as Preternatural Liaison when you don’t know jack about the
supernatural activity in this city? Satinka Tala puts on The Vampire Ball so
preternatural types and humans can mingle—safely, on her terms. Guardians will
be all over the place, making sure no one gets out of hand. And I guess you
didn’t get the P.I.T. Crew memo, team members are encouraged to be there. I
would think because of your job as Liaison it would be a requirement for you.”

Shit. “Sorry
Mel, I didn’t know. I haven’t even checked my mail box at work or my email in
days. This whole Galen-Mike thing has thrown me for a loop and is obviously
keeping me out of it. Not to mention the fact someone is messing with my
personal mojo. And as far as the ball…I was kinda hoping a certain vampire
would invite me.” I looked down at the floor.

“Honey, this is
the twenty-first century and we aren’t in high school, you don’t need a man to
ask you to go anywhere. Nobody asked me and I’m still going, you can be my
date.” Her smile was radiant.

“Okay, Mel. It’s
a date. Now I need to find something to wear.”

“Don’t worry
about it, I have something perfect tucked away in my closet. I bought it but
the color doesn’t work with my skin tone, for you…it’ll be perfect. Come by
tomorrow and we’ll play dress up. Now, I have to get to work on tracing your
bindings.”

“That’s great
Mel, thanks.” I smiled at her realizing I had really missed hanging out with
her.

“That’s what
friends are for, Wyn. Now get the hell outta here.” Laughing she gave me a big
hug and practically shoved me out the door.

Chapter 24

I’m sexy and I
know…

Oh Goddess,
another nightmare! This time I stood completely naked in a bar and a light
skinned dude wearing Speedos and sporting a ‘fro wiggled his huge erection at
me.

Noooo…

I struggled out
of the dream and reached for my cell, I knew it was Malone.

“Rose,” I
grumbled into the phone.

“Get up Anwyn,
there’s been another murder.”

I bolted
upright. Shit. Galen. He was alone. “When, where, who?”

“Downtown by the
river, right off Saginaw. It’s fresh, only a couple hours old.”

“Who found the
body?”  I didn’t want to know. I had a really bad feeling about this.

“The vic’s
boyfriend. A werewolf. It’s a full moon. He wolfed-out and went for a run, came
home a couple hours later and she was gone. He tracked her scent to the river
where he found her. Weirdest thing though, he says he can’t smell anything or
anyone else even though it is clear she was fucked and fanged just like the
rest. It’s just like with you and your magick; he can’t sense this bastard at
all.”

I shook and
prayed to the Goddess, but I knew the victim was Galen’s missing blood donor.
Sure she had been found with her new boyfriend yesterday, but now she was dead.
After Satinka Tala released Galen. “I need to get dressed then I’ll be there,”
I said.

“Sun will be up
soon,” Malone said then hung up.

I dialed Mel’s
number while I scurried around looking for a shirt. I wasn’t going to show up
at another crime scene in my see-through pajamas.

“Lo?” Mel’s
sleepy voice grumbled.

“Mel, wake up.
There’s been another murder!”

“What? Who?” She
became instantly alert.

I probably
shouldn’t even be calling her, but since she worked for the police like I did I
could get away with it, not so if I called Satinka Tala directly.

“Galen’s blood
donor, the one who went missing, Charlotte. Her wolf boyfriend found her dead
by the river. Last night was a full moon so he left her to go for a run. For
some reason she left, or was lured away by this bastard and he killed her. Oh,
Mel. We set Galen free. What if it was him?”

“Calm down
Anwyn, you know this wasn’t Galen, but the bastard wants you and everyone else
to think it is. He knows about the donor and somehow knows Galen was set free.
Damn it, Wyn! This guy knows everything we do, or at least everything Galen
does. I bet this one wasn’t even planned. He took a chance and snagged her, a
crime of opportunity. Maybe he made a mistake.”