Bargain with Fate (Blind Fury #2)

Chapter 1

Chapter

One

Iopened the front door of my cottage to greet the day—or in my case, grumble at it—and nearly slipped on a white square where no white square should be.

“What’s this, Jinxy?” The envelope was addressed to Maya and Jinx August.

The black cat jumped on the porch ledge for a closer look.

“Careful,” I told her. “Curiosity has been known to kill your kind.” I tore open the envelope and groaned.

An invitation to a party for Gina Tomasetti’s cat, Nefertiti.

Gina was a nymph who dressed her cat in clothes, pushed her around the Neighborhood in a stroller, and—apparently—threw parties in her honor. Was it even a birthday party, or just a random reason to bake a cake for cats? I mean, I wasn’t judging.

Okay, maybe I was judging a little. I’d have to work on that.

“I blame you,” I told the cat. Gina wouldn’t have invited me otherwise. I knew I shouldn’t have bought a litter box for Jinx. She wasn’t mine officially, more of a neighborhood cat that showed a preference for my cozy cottage. Could be due to the food and water bowls I kept filled for her.

Possibly.

I showed the invitation to the cat. “What do you think? Any feelings one way or another toward Nefertiti?”

Jinx’s meow was soft and melodious. Not a no, then. Hmm. Maybe Jinx could attend on both our behalves.

I carried the envelope inside the cottage, Jinx hot on my heels. “How many others do we think she invited?”

The universe answered my rhetorical question with a phone call from Joan Byers, a Neighborhood witch and all-around badass.

Prior to her arrival on Evermore, her most notable act was one of revenge: when she divorced her cheating husband, he forced her to sell their Palm Beach home instead of letting her buy his share.

Joan posted his photo with the word “cocksucker” in huge red letters on all the billboards along the interstate.

“Good morning, Joan.”

“Gina said she invited you to her ridiculous excuse for a party. Why can’t she celebrate her own birthday like a normal person?”

“No one on the island qualifies as a normal person, Joan.” Evermore housed a retirement community of elderly paranormal beings who’d “aged out of the system.” Modern technology made it increasingly difficult for the older ones to avoid detection, and a solution presented itself in the form of a series of secret islands.

Evermore was located off the coast of Savannah, Georgia, and there were other similar Neighborhoods around the world.

“Whatever. You know what I mean.”

Joan didn’t have an animal companion, which meant Gina had extended the invitations to catless Neighbors. I double-checked the party’s location. Gods above. She’d rented out a clubhouse ballroom.

“She must’ve invited half the Neighbors if she’s hosting it in the Palmetto ballroom,” I said. There was even a theme—ancient Egypt. Well, it was clear that Gina had a favorite historical period.

“Maybe she just needs space for the cats so they don’t fight with each other.”

I glanced at Jinx. I knew the cat wasn’t a big fan of people, but I had no clue where she stood on other felines. The party had disaster written all over it.

“I’m not sure I can make it,” I told Joan.

“You’re the acting director of security. You should probably be there whether you want to or not. What if she invited werewolves? Things could spiral quickly.” Joan paused. “On second thought, this party has promise. I think I’ll attend after all.”

This time, I groaned inwardly.

“See you at Meemaw’s this week?” Joan asked.

I played cards with the Neighborhood witches on occasion. “I’m not sure yet.”

“You spend so much time on the fence, I’m starting to think you enjoy the feeling of a post up your ass. I mean, hey, I’m not kink shaming. We all have our preferences.”

“Bye Joan.” I could hear her laughing as I hung up.

My phone trilled again, this time with a call from Edith Evans, resident harpy. “What does one wear to an ancient-Egypt-themed cat party?”

Why ask me? It wasn’t my party. I’d never in my life hosted a party, and I had no desire to start now. As far as I knew, it was generally frowned upon to employ an Irish goodbye if you were the hostess.

“The internet is your friend,” I responded. But I wasn’t. I was her closest neighbor and the current head of security. That was the extent of our “relationship.” The only reason any of these people had my number was for emergencies, which seemed to be popping up with alarming frequency these days.

I missed Judd.

My boss had been the closest thing to a friend I’d had on the island.

He didn’t pester me with annoying personal questions.

We worked together and occasionally had a drink together.

He never asked about my past and was a little cagey about his own.

I knew he’d wanted to be a police officer earlier in his career, but that hadn’t panned out, which was when he upped sticks and took the job on Evermore.

It had wounded his pride to be found wanting by people he respected.

Judd had been a rule follower to the nth degree.

He’d been the perfect choice for director of security.

The Neighbors had followed his orders, for the most part.

There were the occasional shenanigans, but everyone recognized that an island full of powerful people had to be kept on a relatively tight leash.

Now the burden rested squarely on my shoulders.

“I don’t think I’m up to the task,” I told Jinx, once I managed to end the call with Edith. The harpy would expel all the oxygen in her lungs if you didn’t cut her off. I was just grateful she chose to call this morning, instead of showing up at my door unannounced.

The cat brushed against my leg and meowed.

“I’m serious, Jinx. I was only good at my job because Judd was so good at his.

Without him, I don’t know what will happen.

” Judd had a way with people. I had a way with pummeling them into a coma.

I had to be careful. I’d put limitations on myself, of course, but without Judd as a buffer, would they be enough?

The cat’s tail swished from side to side, as though arguing with my self-assessment. Jinx was the ultimate lady of a certain age—she went where she wanted, when she wanted. Her litter box of fucks was barren. I envied her.

A series of impatient knocks on the front door derailed my train of thought. Well, the train hadn’t quite made it out of the station yet, but still.

I hurried to open the door. Margie Ashford stood on the porch wrapped in a blue-striped towel, with soaking wet hair and a trembling body. I’d never seen Meemaw’s daughter look this rattled before.

“Everything okay?”

The witch burst inside and shut the door behind her. “I need to see if it’s still there.” She darted to the front window and peered outside. “I don’t see anything.”

I joined her at the window. “See what?”

“I don’t know. It was huge and blue with horns.”

“A minotaur?”

“No, this thing had one of those hideous stringy beards that millennials think look cool but actually look like mobile homes for pests.” She shuddered.

“You’re seeking refuge in my cottage because you disliked someone’s beard?”

“No, no.” Margie’s face grew flushed. “It was chasing me. You know how old I am. I can’t run these days without the risk of breaking a hip.”

I looked out the window. No sign of the monstrous Smurf. “Are you sure he wasn’t a new Neighbor who wanted to get acquainted?”

Margie hugged the towel tighter around her torso. “Definitely not. It seemed to come out of nowhere. One minute I was alone, and the next, it was there. I didn’t know what else to do, so I ran straight here.”

I guided Margie to the sofa. “Have a seat and walk me through it.”

She glanced uncertainly at the cushion. “I’m still damp.”

“Don’t worry. I think this sofa is older than I am.”

Reluctantly, she sat.

“You look chilled to the bone. Can I get you a cup of tea or anything?”

She pulled the throw off the back of the sofa and wrapped it around her shoulders. “I’ll take a bourbon and Coke. Two ice cubes.”

“Best I can do is black coffee.”

She wrinkled her nose. “Those aren’t remotely similar.”

“Then I guess you should’ve fled to the nearest bar.”

“Last I checked, you’re the head of security, Maya. I needed you.”

And there it was again—that pang of loss. Judd would’ve had bourbon and Coke on hand to offer her. A month had passed since his death, and I was already a failure.

I sat beside her. “Tell me about the encounter. Start at the beginning.”

“There isn’t much to tell. I was coming from aquatic yoga at the pool. The other witches wanted to stay longer, but I have a dentist appointment in an hour, so I needed time to shower and change.”

“Where’s your golf cart?”

“I left it at the pool for my mother. I was walking across the square when I started feeling uneasy. Mist rolled across the lawn. At first, I thought the automatic sprinklers had come on.”

“Did you hear anything?”

She shook her head. “I continued walking, and that’s when I saw it out of the corner of my eye.”

“Mr. Big and Blue?”

“Yes. It was across the square. Sharp teeth. Sharp claws.”

“You could see its teeth from that distance?”

Margie glared at me. “I may be over a hundred, but there’s nothing wrong with my vision, Maya.”

“Okay, then what happened?”

“That thing started to charge me, waving a club in the air.”

“A golf club?”

She smirked. “Not surprised that would be your assumption on this island, but no. More like a caveman club, but I think it was made of metal, not wood.”

“You didn’t cast a defensive spell?”

She gestured to herself. “With what? I have nothing on me. Even if I had, there was no time to react. I had a decent head start, so I picked up the pace.”

“You ran all the way here?”

“It was more of a bouncy step. I wasn’t about to let it follow me home. Then it would know where I live.”

“Yes, much better to lead the club-wielding monster to my door.”

“You have weapons, don’t you?”