Blood Slave: A Realm Walker Novel (5 page)

Chapter Five

They pulled up in front of a non-descript low, white building. Visible Ink, the name of the tattoo parlor was painted in blue and gold on both of the large front windows. A crack crawled across one of them and chips of flaking paint decorated the sidewalk in front. Juliana climbed out of James’s car in disbelief. Proudly displayed in one corner of the front window was a sign proclaiming ‘Buy one, get one half off’.

“Really, James?” She’d tried not to say anything but she couldn’t help herself. She had never questioned her friend’s judgement before but she had serious doubts about this place.

“What?” he asked. His tone told her that he knew exactly what she was thinking and he found it funny.

“There are some things in life you don’t want a discount on. Surgical procedures, for example. Or, I don’t know, tattoos, maybe.”

“Just trust me.”

She snorted but said nothing. If she didn’t trust him she would have already been back in the car. The man wore a lot of ink, most of it beautiful. He had to have some insight as to the best place for her to get her tattoo. He held the door open and she stepped inside. A large man rose from a chair in the back and came to meet them. He wore a neatly trimmed beard and tattoos covered every inch of visible skin from the neck down.  His gaze moved over her from head to toe and it was obvious he was sizing her up. It was just as obvious when he dismissed her. “Piper,” he said, nodding in greeting. “What can I do you for?”

James put a hand on the small of her back and pushed her forward. Clearing her throat as she pulled a piece of paper from her pocket, she unfolded it and laid it on the counter between them. It looked like a Japanese kanji but was in fact a combination of Thomas’s initials which formed his personal symbol. The tattooist looked between her and the drawing several times before pushing it back across the counter with one finger. “Unless your name’s Norris, that ain’t getting anywhere near you.”

She tried to hide her shock but wasn’t very successful since the man snorted a laugh and waved a hand at her in dismissal.

“What, you think ole Jack is stupid? Or maybe you just thought I had a death wish.” He laughed. “Sorry, sister. No one wears Thomas Kendrick’s personal symbol without his permission and unless your name is Norris, you ain’t got it.”

Curse that man. Thomas was nothing if not thorough. He’d probably issued an order to every shop in his area. Not that she entirely blamed him. It wasn’t unheard of for master vampires to collect their own kind of fans. A vampire’s symbol was used to mark his property. Some didn’t care who used it, as it showed their willingness to belong to the vamp in question. Others, like Thomas, were very careful with how that symbol was used. Pulling her Agency ID out of her pocket, she laid it open on the counter next to the drawing. “You were saying?”

Jack examined it and then looked past her to James in surprise.

“Jack, meet my sister-in-law, Juliana Norris.”

“No shit?” He held out a hand, which she shook. His beefy mitt totally engulfed her own. “Nice to meet you. Heard a lot about you from James here, though he was beginning to doubt he’d ever get you in here. Where do you want the brand?”

She cringed at the choice of words, but that was essentially what she was doing. Branding herself so if things went bad in Kansas City, she could flash Thomas’s symbol and maybe buy herself some time. Tugging at the strings of her bracelet, she took it off and showed him the inside of her exposed wrist. It would be easy to hide but she’d have the comfort of knowing it was there.

“Let’s get started,” he said with a grin and led her to the back of the shop.

He gestured to one of the two run-down chairs. She sat and he started prepping his equipment. Her eyes widened in amazement as he pulled out several bottles and lined them up on the counter. Grabbing an empty container he began to mix together a little from each bottle. He never measured, just eyeballing the concoction like a witch mixing potions. The comparison proved more apt than she realized when a little puff of smoke emerged from the container.

“Jack is one of the best magic tattooists in the country,” James said.

Trying to conceal her concern, she gave a dubious look to the room around them.

James smiled. “Relax. He’s done eighty percent of my ink, including the dragon. I wouldn’t keep coming back if he wasn’t good.” James had a large Japanese style dragon tattoo that covered his back. The tail ran up his neck and ended on the top of his head. In addition to being a kickass piece, it was a powerful protection ward.

Jack rolled his chair over and took her arm, positioning it on the wide arm of the chair and turning it so he could tattoo the sensitive skin of her inner wrist.  He pulled the table loaded with his equipment over. Grabbing the gun, he rolled his chair even closer to hers and bent over with the needle. Squeezing her eyes shut, she waited for the pain. When she felt only pressure, she opened one eye to peer at what he was doing.

The ink was indeed being worked under her skin, but she felt nothing. “How…”  She trailed off, afraid if she continued, she’d break whatever spell was making this a pain free experience.

Jack chuckled low in his throat and James joined him. “Take a look around now, little sister.”

Her eyes widened as she did as she was told. The decrepit, run-down tattoo parlor had faded away to be replaced with a pristine, state of the art shop. Four new chairs, including the one she was on, sat two on each side of the room. Gleaming chrome and black vinyl pervaded the space. Everything was new, or so clean it might as well have been. She blinked in disbelief and James laughed again.

“Told you.”

“But how?”

“It’s in the ink, love,” Jack said as he rolled back and eyed the tattoo, wiping away the excess ink before going back to work.

“This place runs on word of mouth. If he doesn’t know you, or you aren’t brought in by someone he does, you get the old shop and a non-magical tattoo. On the other hand, if you meet one of those qualifications, well you can see how that works.” He waved a hand to indicate the shop around them.

“If I’d known it was going to be like this, I might have let you talk me into this a long time ago.”

Shaking his head, he gestured to her wrist. “That has nothing to do with me. I want you to get a protection ward. Or twelve. The risks you take, you need all the help you can get.”

“There’s a bit of protection mixed into the ink. Not much, it’s a small tattoo, but it may help.” Jack said as he wiped her wrist again. He turned his head and eyed his work. “I believe that will do it.”

Juliana looked at the perfectly executed symbol and was surprised to see it shimmer under the light. Pulling her arm closer to her face, she turned the wrist to get a better view. A purple so deep it was almost black shimmered like the night sky on her wrist. “It’s gorgeous.”

“Got some healing magic in there, too. Give it an hour and it will be completely healed.”

She paid Jack, not even blinking at the exorbitant rate, and tipped generously, brushing off the offer of a half priced second tattoo to go with the first. His work was so exquisite she might have taken him up on it if she could decide what to get. She assured him she’d be back and walked out into the sun with James.

“Well, Thomas will be thrilled to see that,” James said with a frown.

“I think we’ll delay the reveal for a bit.” She slid the bracelet back on, the thick leather band covering the ink perfectly. Holding out her hand, she waited for James to tie it.

“It’s not as if he won’t see it eventually,” he reasoned.

“True. But he’ll wonder why I didn’t discuss it with him first and why I’m doing it now, right before I go out of town. That is not a discussion I wish to have at the moment.”

“And why
are
you doing it now?” James asked as they slid back into his car.

“Maybe I’ll just really miss him?”

James snorted a laugh. “Nice try, little sister. I’m not buying it. I need to stop by the Apocryphan and pick something up. Is that all right or do you want me to run you home first?”

Going home meant Thomas and more lies. “I’ll go with. I haven’t been by in a while.”

“Neither have I.” Sorrow colored his words and she turned to look out her window to give him privacy with his grief.

The Apocryphan was the headquarters for the Gathering and James’s office. The truth was she’d missed it, and the people that worked there. When her caseload would allow, she’d made a habit of swinging by to see James a couple of times a week and they’d go out to lunch, sometimes with Sara, sometimes without. He’d been on an extended leave since Sara’s death. It was more for Rachel than himself. Without his daughter he would have buried himself in work and have to be dragged out kicking and screaming. Juliana knew her training was really for both of their benefits.

They pulled up in front of the building and someone was at the side of the car opening her door immediately. Moving around to the other side, they took James’s keys and the car was on its way to be parked before they’d gone up two stairs. Not everyone rated valet parking at the Apocryphan. Sometimes it paid to be important.

A large, burly man in an impeccably tailored suit met them at the door. She gave him a smile. “Hey, Rickert.”

The man in question grunted and pulled her against his side in a half-hug. Rickert was one of James’s personal guards. Most of his predecessors had flaunted their guard, using them as if their lives were constantly under threat. James only used his when he was heading into a combat situation or when he needed a trusted party to carry out a sensitive task. He believed it made him look weak to depend on other mages for his protection.

James started toward the elevators, Rickert fell into step beside him and Juliana trailed along behind. “You did as I asked?” James’s tone was all business.

“Yes, sir.”

“Thank you.”

Juliana’s curiosity was piqued but she knew better than to ask questions. It was Apocryphan business. And while Juliana was tolerated, even accepted, because of who she was, the last thing the Gathering wanted was the Agency in their business.

They all stepped on the elevator and rode it to the top floor to James’s office. When they arrived, Rickert stayed in the hall to one side of the door and she and James went in by themselves. He shut the door behind them.

“I’ve had something made for you,” he told her as he walked around his desk.

“For me?” She followed him across the room. When she saw what he was holding, her eyes widened. A gorgeous antique necklace lay in one palm. He held it out to her and she took it, gingerly. One should always be cautious of gifts from the Apocryphan. The long silver chain held a cameo-style pendant featuring a dragonfly on a green background. “It’s beautiful, James. What is it?”

“Press the dragonfly for a long three count and a portal will open to our practice arena. When you press it again a portal will open to return you to wherever you came from. I had one of our strongest mages make that for you. Once the spell is set it doesn’t have to be recharged. Keep it with you while you’re gone.”

Juliana couldn’t even begin to fathom the amount of money she currently held in her hands. Portal keys that didn’t have to be recharged were incredibly hard to come by, as were the mages capable of spelling them. She thrust it back in his direction. “I can’t take that. What if I lose it?” her voice held a horrified edge to it she didn’t particularly care for.

He pushed her hands back. “You won’t lose it and if you do, it’s not the end of the world. Use it if you need it, not just to get to training. Understood?”

Briefly, she thought of pressing him harder on his concern, but stopped. Losing Sara had changed him. He’d been untouchable for so long and then the worst happened. It was bound to make anyone more paranoid over their loved ones well-being. She slipped the chain over her head and tucked the pendant into her shirt, giving him a nod of thanks in the process.

***

Early the next morning, Thomas drove into the parking lot at the Agency. Juliana sat beside him running her thumb over the spot where her engagement ring normally sat. She hadn’t been without it since Thomas had it charmed so she couldn’t lose it. There was no way Thomas hadn’t noticed its absence this morning, but he’d said nothing.  She felt almost naked without it. Like she’d left something important at home. Sometimes her work really interfered with her being a girl.

She’d done everything she could think of to get him to stay home, but he insisted on seeing her off. And, as she couldn’t think of a good excuse to refuse him, here he was. She’d managed to send Nathaniel a text to warn him about her cover story, but since he didn’t respond she had no idea if he got the text or not. Cursed werewolf.

No sooner had she climbed out of the car, than Nathaniel rushed from the building and trotted over to greet her. He grabbed the duffel from her hand. “Let me get that, pup.” He winked at her and relief coursed through her. Surely that meant he’d gotten her message. Didn’t it?

“Mr. Kendrick.” Nathaniel greeted him with a nod. “Good to see you again.”

“Wolf.”

She snorted and they both turned to look at her. “Mr. Kendrick? Really? His name is Thomas, Nathaniel. You can call him Thomas.” She pointed at her mate.  “And you. Don’t think I don’t know what you’re up to. His name is Nathaniel. You’ve known him long enough to use it by now.”