3. Chapter 3
Marduk
It was a relief to see a familiar face when I walked out of the store. I grinned at the cop and held out my hand. “Good to see you, Officer Chavez.”
Angel Chavez was a wolf shifter and member of the Lobo Gris Pack. I was an honorary member of the pack and enjoyed going to their parties.
He gave me a knowing smile as he grasped my hand. “What are you doing getting tangled up in something as mundane as this? Aren’t you usually helping vampires find their wayward flock?”
I shook my head. “You’ve got me confused with my twin, Danzig. He was the one who helped Tobias find Briar and Memphis. Thankfully, that was a one-time thing.”
Angel nodded his head. “Right, sorry to confuse the two of you. That has to be annoying.”
I brushed it off. “Don’t worry about it.”
Even shifters and other magical creatures had a hard time telling us apart unless they were around us often. I’d only hung out with Chavez a few times, so he got a pass.
Angel pointed to the store. “What happened?”
I gave him a quick rundown, knowing I could trust Angel to keep the supernatural stuff out.
“Is the guy still in there?” he asked with an alarmed look. “With Bec?”
“He’s never going to hurt anyone again,” I said.
Angel opened his mouth to ask why when he realized what I must’ve done. He paled a little. “Did you give the soul gaze?”
I shrugged and didn’t answer. He’d see what I had done the moment he went in to collect the robber.
After receiving a world serpent’s soul gaze, he’d never be free of fear again.
For the rest of his life, every sound would be a monster.
Every shadow was death coming for him. Every creak of a floorboard was another human ready to hurt or murder him.
He’d never know another moment of peace for the rest of his life.
It wasn’t something I did lightly, but he’d threatened my mate. That called for extreme retribution.
“If the store has security cameras, will they show anything that’ll be hard to explain?” he asked.
“The cameras won’t show anything after I walked in,” I said.
“It must be nice to be able to zap stuff,” Angel grumbled. Zap was a term I’d heard a few times. Some creatures, like me, could flare our aura and kill cameras and phones around us. Which meant I was going to need to replace my phone again.
Oh, and Bec’s phone also, I thought with a wince. Should I tell her that her dead phone was my fault?
Nope, definitely not.
“Hey, um, Officer?”
We both faced Bec standing in the partially open door to the store. “The robber is crawling to the back door. He’s not moving fast, but you might want to do something before he gets there.”
“Hi, Bec,” Angel said. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“Uh, hello, person I don’t know,” she said, stepping aside so Angel could pass her.
“I’m a member of Lobo Gris,” he said, as if that explained everything. It would have, if she wasn’t so new to our world.
“Good for you,” Bec said, clearly confused. She probably thought he was a member of a biker gang or something.
Angel chuckled and disappeared inside as she stepped fully outside to join me.
“Angel is a wolf shifter, and Lobo Gris is his pack,” I explained.
She went silent as she digested the new information. “Is that the pack that Mila’s mate Carter is part of?”
I nodded. “Yes. He’d deny it if I said so, but they’re his pack. He likes to pretend Gio and Mila are enough, but wolves love to run with other wolves. Mikey created a new term, associate pack members. It doesn’t mean anything, but it makes wolves like Carter feel better.”
“I can understand needing those kinds of things to save your pride," Bec murmured, then looked back at the store. “Is the robber human?”
I nodded. “Yes.”
She looked like she was going to ask another question when Angel came out with the robber. The human’s hands were cuffed behind his back, and he was shaking so violently that Angel was mostly carrying him.
“I’m going to secure him in my squad car, then I have to wait for someone to show up to take over the store,” Angel explained. “There’s no one inside.”
“The employee left,” I explained. “I doubt she’s coming back.”
“You guys can leave,” Angel said. “I know how to get a hold of you if I need to.”
“Good,” Bec said. She turned to face me with a fierce expression on her face. “Don’t follow me.”
After that, she turned on her heels and walked to her car without another glance at me.
I’d feel hurt by her dismissive attitude if I hadn’t smelled how turned on I’d made her earlier.
Once Danzig was back, and we could work together, she wouldn’t be able to resist us.
Bec
I wasn’t surprised that Marduk followed me all the way home. He kept his distance but now that I knew what I was looking for, he was easy to spot.
How long had he been following me before today’s incident? He and Danzig had probably been taking turns since I’d met Danzig that first time.
When I found an empty spot close by my condo, I parked and looked around. I didn’t see Marduk, but I knew he was out there somewhere. Grabbing my purse, I stomped into the condo I shared with Mila’s sister.
I didn’t expect to find Emily wearing a cloak and sweeping her arms out as if addressing people.
“How could you do this to me?” she spoke in a loud dramatic voice. “Let me go or I'll tell everyone the secrets I know!”
“Hey, Em, what secrets are you going to tell everyone?” I asked, shutting the door behind me. When she’d been about six, she called herself EEEEmmmmm and insisted everyone else use the elongated sounds. Even after she’d stopped doing that, the shortened version of her name stuck.
Em jumped a little and swung around with a laugh. “I was practicing my lines,” she explained. “I’d never tell anyone that you dip your fries in ranch dressing.”
I snorted. “That’s not much of a secret. I’d forgotten you were going to be in that play.”
She’d gotten a part in a little indie play about a woman who reveals everyone in her community are liars, thieves, and abusers, only to be accused of witchcraft.
I didn’t know the whole play, but it sounded depressing as hell.
I wasn’t looking forward to seeing it, but Em was family, and I had to show her my support.
At least her sister Mila would be there too. If Mila was going then her partners Carter and Gio would be coming too. They would all make it tolerable, maybe even fun.
“You’re home late,” she said, pulling the cloak off and tossing it over a chair.
“Not that late,” I said, pulling out my phone to look at the time, only to realize it wouldn't turn on. I fiddled with it as Em pulled off her cloak and folded it.
“That's bad,” I said, dropping my purse on the small table next to the front door and heading for the kitchen.
“What's wrong?” she asked, following me.
“My phone isn't working,” I grumbled, pulling my old phone out the kitchen junk drawer. The old one still worked, it just tended to overheat if I used it for too long. I switched the sim card over, relieved to see that it wasn't damaged and a few text messages populated.
Em picked up the bricked phone. “What happened?”
“No idea,” I said with a shrug and tossed the dead phone into the junk drawer. “Anyway, I was out on a case today.”
Em’s eyes went wide with interest. “Oh yeah? What was the case? No, wait, let me guess. Stolen diamonds? A ninety-five-year-old billionaire has died, and his kids think the sixth playboy bunny wife did it. Oh, I’ve got it!
An heiress has run off with her lover and now you need to rescue her from a cult. ”
I laughed. “Nothing that exciting, but it’s still a case.”
The condo was a good size with a full kitchen that had plenty of counter space. It was too bad neither of us cooked. Opening the fridge, I found a box of Mila’s pastries and grabbed it out with a happy exclamation. “Yes!”
Shutting the fridge with my hip, I set the box on the counter and ripped the top in my eagerness to get to the contents. I was disappointed to find that my favorite wasn’t inside, but still, you couldn’t be too upset when faced with a box full of cookies!
Em moved to stand next to me as I shoved a snickerdoodle in my mouth and moaned.
“Yeah, Mila makes the best,” Em said and grabbed one herself. “Tell me about this case.”
I ate two more cookies as I told Em about Gale, Hugo, Leif, and Mr. Stoner-guy roommate. I mentioned trying to watch the apartment complex, but I left out what happened after I’d driven to the gas station.
“That’s not really exciting at all,” Em pointed out.
“Not yet,” I said. “But I bet if I go back and watch the place a little longer, I’ll find Leif and the dog.”
Em frowned. “Honestly, that sounds like a really bad idea.”
She was probably right, but I didn’t want to give up. “Do you think I could set up one of those little cameras to watch the guy's front door?”
Em raised an eyebrow and that was all it took for me to realize it wasn’t a practical idea.
“Right, it would be hard to hide in that place and easy to steal,” I agreed with her unspoken objection.
“I know what will help you,” Em said.
“Yeah?”
“Pizza,” Em said, trying hard not to grin. “You’ll never come up with a solution if you're hungry. Getting food is the first step.”
“You are absolutely correct!” I said. This woman was full of great ideas!
Forty minutes later, we were lounging on the couch watching a detective show on TV and munching on perfectly greasy pizza.
She was halfway through her slice when she let out a sigh and put the slice back down on her plate. “I’m feeling really guilty.”
“Because you forgot to tip the driver?” I asked. “Don’t worry, I took care of it.”
“No, it’s not about that,” she said. “Well, it’s kinda about that. I bought this pizza with the allowance Mila sends me every month. I’m living in a nice condo, and I don’t pay rent because of her kindness also.”