Chapter 15
Fifteen
Nikodemus
Staring at my phone, debating calling Vander Kines was becoming an unwelcome occurrence.
There was no true need to call him. It was more of a courtesy.
While I still might not understand the Warlock Council’s end game, if my suspicions were correct, they’d begun showing their hand.
I might not understand how they’d done it, but I believed they were behind the tainted charm that had made Aaron Detling so ill.
It was a charm that could be tied back to me and since it was in the wind, I had no way to confirm it had been tampered with.
Their plans might be murky, but they’d formed enough of an outline to hazard a guess how they planned on getting to me.
And if they could do such a thing to me, then it wouldn’t be long before they aimed their malice at Vander.
It was early afternoon on the West Coast, meaning it was evening on the East. The voice answering Vander’s phone was deep and resonate, but light with a distinctly feminine touch.
“Hey, Nikodemus,” Vander’s ward, Byx, answered. “Vander’s in the middle of something but I saw your name pop up and I knew he wouldn’t want to miss your call. Hang on and I’ll take the phone to him.”
Byx barely allowed me to offer a brief bit of thanks before I heard her pull the phone away.
Shuffling sounds along with doors opening and closing could be heard in the background.
I had no idea where Vander’s phone had been in relation to the warlock himself, but given the length of time it took, along with Byx’s hollered, “Hey, Van! Nikodemus is on the phone,” I could only assume the distance had been great.
“Tell the jackass to give me a second.” Although it came from far away, Vander’s answer was clearly audible.
“You tell him. I’ve got you on speaker.”
Vander groaned and let loose a litany of creative curse words. A few more bangs and harsh sounds came through the line before Vander’s voice filled in the silence, much louder this time.
“What’s going on, Holland?” All distraction fled Vander’s voice. “Everything okay?”
“No, it is not.” I was surprised by the honesty of my answer. “I called to update you on the situation.”
Vander groaned before saying, “Hit me with it.”
While I didn’t fully understand the slang, I assumed Vander had given me the go ahead to regale him with recent events.
As I did so, I was auditorily assaulted with a few more curse words along with huffs, sighs, and an occasional scoffing sound.
When I’d finished, Vander asked, “You really think they’re trying to disgrace you? ”
“Disgrace, humiliate, professionally handicap…take your pick, but yes, I believe that is their plan. To what end, I am still uncertain.”
Another sigh filled the line. “It’s fucked up, but I agree with your take on things.”
“Coming after me directly is better than the alternative.” Despite what Hikaru thought, I couldn’t see how the Warlock Council going after Erasmus was a better option. As long as they kept their focus on me, then Erasmus was safe. Or, as safe as my son typically was.
“Fuck, I don’t know what I’d do if those pricks targeted Parsnip or Byx.” Vander’s chilled laughter sent a shiver down my spine. “Scratch that, I’d like to see them come after Byx. It might do them some good to underestimate a brownie. A little humility might go a long way with these jackasses.”
While I understood the sentiment, I found it difficult to believe that Vander would truly wish a target painted on Byx’s back.
Most likely he was simply posturing, spouting off such thoughts in order to try and push back his own fears.
I may have a lot of issues with Vander Kines, but I respected his love and protective instincts when it came to his family.
“What can I do?” Vander asked generously.
“For me, nothing. For yourself, keep your head down and be mindful of anything that strikes you as off.” Vander and I were very different, but I imagined the Warlock Council didn’t view us as such.
“Hikaru said Danzig called me too moral for what the council has in mind. It appears they view such a trait negatively. It is a trait I believe we share.”
Vander grunted his agreement. “What in Gaia’s name are they up to?”
“I don’t know, but I intend to find out. I doubt they will appreciate my moral compass and what actions I take once I do discover their intentions.
“Damn straight. Thanks for the heads up. I’ll let Byx and Parsnip know what we discussed. Byx will be all over this shit. Out of all of us, Byx has worked the hardest to repair my… uh… questionable, youthful reputation. She’d be furious if she found out someone was trying to undo her hard work.”
Despite the situation, a grin tweaked my lips. “Indeed. I would not wish to be in her crosshairs.”
“No truer statement and all that.” Vander let loose another weighty sigh. “I know you’re capable and all that, but if there’s anything I can do to—”
“I will be fine,” I quickly asserted.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought. Regardless, the offer still stands. You helped when I reached out. I hate to think what the outcome would have been if Erasmus hadn’t been here to stop Janus. I… we’d all be dead if not for your son. That’s no small thing, Holland.”
Pride was a dangerous thing and yet it filled me to the brim when Vander sang my son’s praises. While I hadn’t been there that night, I’d heard the stories and from what I understood, Vander wasn’t exaggerating.
“I will alert you if anything further occurs.”
“You fucking better, and I’ll do the same. So far it’s been quiet on my front. I still think the Warlock Council’s coming after you first. I’m probably somewhere on their hit list, but you’ve got the honor of the top spot.”
“That is one honor I would happily decline.”
Vander’s laughter sang through the phone. “Oh, I don’t know. I might be a little bit jealous that they view you as a bigger threat than me.” I clearly heard Byx yell, “idiot,” in the background.
Speaking with Vander was always headache inducing and this time was no different. As the first twinges of pain flared, I offered a brief, “Goodbye,” before ending the call. I didn’t wait to hear Vander’s own dismissal.
I’d no more than ended the call than my cell pinged with an incoming text, quickly followed by three more—four in total, all from one source, Keir.
Given the condition Hikaru had returned in after he’d retrieved his murdered friends remains quickly followed by the situation with Aaron Detling, I’d completely forgotten I’d agreed to review the Warlock Council’s recent communications with the Magical Usage Council.
Keir’s accompanying message was brief, thank you for reviewing and offering your opinion. I wasn’t at all certain I could review the Warlock Council’s messages neutrally, but I would endeavor to do so.
In keeping with what I’m certain Hikaru would deem, “stuffy warlock practices,” each note was dated, signed, and carried an official emblem.
Keir had kindly sent them in the order in which they’d been received.
The first seemed innocuous enough. Although brief, and most likely wholly superficial, it offered the Warlock Council’s condolences regarding the Magical Usage Council’s feared losses.
The tone was polite, if insincere. It seemed in keeping with what I would expect.
The second letter appeared to be a follow up of sorts, asking for more details of who exactly was missing and if they were expected to be found alive or dead.
While the tone of this one wasn’t cruel, it wasn’t kind either.
It seemed more businesslike than personal.
While it wouldn’t have been the avenue I would have taken, it didn’t strike me as completely out of character.
The third letter became a bit more… interesting.
Why on Gaia’s green earth would the Warlock Council be interested in how the next leader of the Magical Usage Council would be chosen?
Most likely a human wouldn’t have found it odd.
Humans had the misguided notion that all the species had a ruling party that represented them and that these ruling parties communicated and supported one another.
While I wouldn’t call them antagonistic, mostly we ignored each other.
The very fact that the Warlock Council was so interested in the hierarchy within the Magical Usage Council was… odd.
By the time I got to the fourth letter, I was nearly dumbfounded.
This letter expressed concern regarding those left within the Magical Usage Council and their abilities to properly perform their tasks.
The tone of this letter was completely different to the previous ones.
It wasn’t particularly threatening. Instead, it was cajoling.
Concern oozed through nearly every line, along with the Warlock Council’s willingness to offer assistance in the Magical Usage Council’s restructuring during these trying times.
I scrolled through the letter again. Reading it a second time only served to increase the queasy feeling that had settled deep inside my gut. While the first three letters sounded harsher, they didn’t set off nearly the alarm bells the last one did. I simply wasn’t certain why.
There was nothing I could exactly point to beyond just how odd it was for the Warlock Council to show more interest beyond what seemed properly courteous.
I imagined the Magical Usage Council had received similar acknowledgments from the Vampire Council, Witches Council, and various shifter organizations.
I had no idea if Fairy would respond or not.
Fairy was aware of what happened, but I doubted any could anticipate Queen Silvidia’s response or if she even deemed what occurred as worthy of her attention.
I puzzled over the letters, oddly wishing Hikaru was here to offer his, undoubtedly, colorful opinion.
The kitsune was off on what he termed a reconnaissance mission.
I didn’t like the idea of him venturing back into Danzig’s lair, but Hikaru was determined and confident Danzig would never know he was there.
I rubbed my chest, attempting to dissipate the growing tightness festering there.
It was absolutely ridiculous, fretting over the kitsune this much.
Hikaru was more than capable and I’d yet to fully grasp why his wellbeing was important to me.
I suppose it was due to a sense of responsibility.
At least that’s what I tried to convince myself.
The effort wasn’t all that successful. There were many I felt responsible for and yet I did not fret over them this way.
Those individuals did not consume my thoughts or take up permanent residence in my brain.
What was it about Hikaru that I couldn’t shake?
The kitsune was undoubtedly irritating. He’d rearranged not only living room, but his bedroom, the kitchen and bathroom.
Hikaru claimed the disorder was an improvement.
Clearly, he was wrong, and yet I’d not straightened a single item he’d intentionally mussed.
Hikaru came and went as he pleased. His tails constantly accosted my body and his flirtatious teasing was beyond inappropriate.
Contemplating the kiss we’d shared in the hospital stairwell was enough to send my blood south.
Perhaps that was the problem. My cock was commandeering all the blood in my body, leaving little to power my brain.
I scoffed at my own idiocy, a smile straining my lips.
That right there was the crux of the issue.
I should find Hikaru’s antics obnoxiously annoying.
And, to an extent, that was true. What was also true was that I found those same antics amusing.
Despite what was going on with the Warlock Council, I’d found myself smiling more in the past few days than in the past ten years combined.
The simple truth was that I felt lighter when Hikaru was around.
The world didn’t seem so serious, or perhaps I didn’t need to be so stern when dealing with that same world.
Oh, I still stewed. I doubt anything could ever change that aspect of my personality, but Hikaru had a way of pulling me out of my self-induced funk.
I’d flown into a rage when I found out another warlock had possession of the charm that had injured, and continued injuring, Aaron Detling.
It wasn’t simply a matter of examining the charm, but without it, I couldn’t counteract its life-threatening consequences.
The charm was still active and harming the human.
The least the warlock who’d taken the charm could have done was negate its effects.
They hadn’t seen fit to do that. I doubt the warlock, or more likely, warlocks in this case, hadn’t viewed Mr. Detling’s suffering as important.
He was human and would be seen as lesser—a necessary casualty to serve their version of a greater good.
Perhaps that was giving the responsible party too much credit. Most likely they understood that whatever they were planning wasn’t beneficial to anyone but themselves. Narcissists were like that and seemed to overpopulate the warlock community.
Elbows on my worktable, I rested my forehead in my clasped palms. As I sat there, Cilla was carefully boxing up all the charms available in the store.
She’d put the closed sign out and left a forwarding message on the answering service that the store would be closed until further notice.
If someone needed a particular charm, I would make a new one and see to its delivery personally.
Once the charms were collected, Cilla then had the daunting task of contacting every customer who’d purchased a charm in the last three weeks.
We’d discussed how far to go back and Cilla and I agreed it would be best to go back in time to when the elder warlock was in the store.
I had no idea if he’d tampered with the charms or not.
It was possible something had happened even earlier.
It was also very possible that all the charms were fine and nothing of the sort had happened.
The simple fact was, we didn’t know and I wasn’t willing to take the chance.
My reputation wasn’t everything, but it was damn close.
It wasn’t just my reputation at stake, though.
Assuming the charm had been intentionally corrupted, if what was happening to Aaron Detling was any indication, at least one other warlock out there would go to extreme lengths to discredit me, even if that process left dead bodies in its wake.