“Good, you’re home.” Lucas is sitting in the living room, legs stretched out on the coffee table in front of him. He has a book in his lap, another one of my steamy romance novels by one of my favorite authors TL Smith. Binx is curled up next to him, and my other familiars are lounging in the sun.
“Why, did something happen?” I ask, unzipping my boots as I walk.
“Nothing bad.” Lucas sets the book down on the coffee table, trading it for his phone. “I had Eliza do a bit of work for me. For us, I suppose.” He waits until I’m on the couch next to him to go on. I pick up Binx, who lazily stretches and snuggles into my arms. I kiss his furry head and scratch under his chin. He starts purring right away.
“What did she do?”
“She found this.” Lucas opens his text and shows me the pictures she sent through. It’s a wedding venue, and it’s breathtaking. A century-old barn has been converted into a reception hall. It’s whimsical in its decor, but not over the top. I click in the link under the photo, going to the venue’s site.
It’s only an hour and a half away in Michigan, where we can legally get married. The barn is situated on twenty acres of woods, and there is an outdoor pavilion for ceremonies. The barn itself is rather small, seating no more than fifty-five people, which is perfect since I don’t need a large space at all.
“It’s gorgeous.” I flip through the gallery of photos once more.
“They just had a cancelation for the first Saturday in September. We could get married then, and I thought if you’d like to delay our honeymoon until October, we could spend most of the month traveling. I know not being able to attend your coven’s Samhain festivities will be hard for you, so I thought getting away would help. And there is trick-or-treating in Disney World,” he adds. “It’s not too late to buy tickets. Because I already did. Just in case you want to go. I was going to surprise you,” he adds with a grin. “But you make me rather impatient.”
“Lucas,” I start, eyes getting misty. He’s so thoughtful. I put the phone down and carefully move my sleeping familiar to my side, tucking a blanket from the back of the couch around him. Then I throw my arms around Lucas. He pulls me to his lap and hugs me tight.
Stupid organ-harvesting demon. I don’t want to deal with it right now.
“Did you have Eliza book that venue too?”
“She put a temporary hold on it. We have to let them know within the hour if we want it or not.”
“I want it,” I say with no hesitation. “We only have like a month to get things lined up, but I’ll have my dress, we have a venue…and I have you.” I blink away tears and kiss Lucas. “I still need flowers, a DJ, a caterer…and this all on short notice.”
“The thing about money,” Lucas starts with a grin, “you can buy anything. You want flowers? Fancy food? A live band? I’ll pay whatever it takes to get them at our wedding.”
“You’re a bit ridiculous at times,” I laugh. “And you’re going to turn me into a trophy witch.”
“Too bad I can’t brag about being touched by an angel.”
I roll my eyes but kiss him once more. “Let’s book everything.”
“Are you sure you’re ready?” he asks, and I know he’s not asking if I’m ready to get married—I am. He’s asking if I’m ready to officially leave the coven.
“Yes.” I suck in a breath. “Evander said I can leave of own free will and it’ll be a quieter affair than having to be publicly kicked out.”
“That’s good, I suppose.”
“Yeah. He’s going to stop by sometime tonight or tomorrow so I can do it.” I run my fingers through Lucas’s hair. I want to be nothing but happy. Brimming with joy and love for my groom to be.
Lucas wraps me in a tight hug and then picks up his phone, texting Eliza so she’ll go ahead and call the venue and officially book our wedding date.
“I’m also not opposed to traveling or vacationing for two months after the wedding,” Lucas says. “We could see the world.”
“That would be amazing…but I kind of have the bookstore and that’s a lot of responsibility to put on her.”
“Kristy has managed just fine without you.” He starts to bunch up the hem of my dress. “And, Callie, is it practical to continue to put yourself on the schedule?” he asks gently. It’s not the first time he’s hinted that trying to hold a steady job doesn’t really work for me. Which is true. It’s hard to keep regular hours when demons are always after me.
I needed to work before.
Now I don’t.
“Everything I have will become yours too,” Lucas tells me.
“So you’re not going to make me sign a prenup?” I joke.
“I couldn’t if I wanted to. It’s not a privilege vampires are awarded.”
“Really? That’s not fair.”
“That’s the law.” Lucas buries his face against my neck. “Though I’ve never been one to live by the law.”
“Good. Because I’m totally marrying you for your money.”
“I’m marrying you for your blood.”
“As long as we have an understanding,” I say and lean back so I can look at Lucas’s face. Sunlight is streaming in through the living room windows, lighting up his face. His eyes are the darkest blue I’ve ever seen, with little flecks of green and gold mixed in and they almost sparkle in the light.
“Do you want to text your friends?” he asks. “And tell them we have a date?”
“I do.” Now I really am beaming. “And I need to make sure everyone can come. At least our guest list is small. That’ll make it easier to get last-minute services.” I think for a second, mentally counting everyone I want to invite. Eliza, of course. My sister, Phil, and Penny. Kristy, Naomi, Nicole, Evander, and Tabatha from the coven. And then Betty from work, though she’ll be the only one there who doesn’t know the truth about who I am.
“If our marriage was allowed, would you invite more people?”
“I’d have the wedding at the Covenstead, so the whole coven would be there to celebrate. Which is kind of cool, but at the same time wasn’t really something I wanted,” I say honestly because I know Lucas is going to wonder. I might invite a handful of other witches that I graduated with and talk to at gatherings, but really, I keep to myself and I’m happy with it. “I don’t have family roots in the coven. And I never saw myself marrying anyone from my own coven either. I’m kind of picky when it comes to romance. You should feel very lucky.”
I’m joking, but Lucas looks at me, eyes locking with mine. “I do, Callie.”
I rest my forehead against his. “Not to ruin the mood, but I think I found the demon.”
“Found?” he repeats. “In what sense?”
“Remember that article I showed you about the missing girl?”
“I do.”
I move off his lap and hold out my hand, telekinetically sliding my purse across the floor and reach inside for my phone. The news article about the homeless man found with missing organs is still open.
“I did some digging, and then held a cop under my spell to get info. Three bodies turned up in Newport about a month ago, all with missing organs. The first was only missing a heart. The second, the heart and liver. The third had missing guts on top of everything else. And then about a month later, three more people went missing.”
“Sounds ritualistic.”
“Exactly.”
“But the Gates were opened only a week or so ago.”
“Right when the second set of victims went missing. What if it’s an offering of some sort?”
Lucas considers it for a few seconds. “That makes sense, actually. Julian did say other demons or a group of witches would be able to access the door. You’re more well-versed in dark rituals than I am, but I’d assume sacrifices would be made?”
“I haven’t partaken in that many dark rituals.”
“I watched you resurrect a body before I even tasted your blood,” he counters.
“True, though that was my first resurrection. And hopefully my only, unless I’m better prepared to handle the start of the zombie apocalypse.” I shake my head. “But yes, if you are trying to summon a powerful demon, it’s usually because you want something. Power, for them to do your bidding…that sort of thing. You’d have to present offerings first, which fits with each body missing more and more organs. If just a heart didn’t suffice, then add a liver.”
“What is your plan?”
“I’m not sure yet. The heart and liver combo seem rather specific. If I can narrow down what demon prefers that as an offering, I might be able to find a way to trap and kill it.”
“Let me know how to help.” Lucas smiles, and his fangs slide down. “It’s been a few days since I’ve killed anything.”
I cup his face, carefully touching the tip of his fang with my finger. Lucas’s eyes flutter closed, and he leans in against me. His razor-sharp fang nearly pierces the skin on my finger from that little pressure. I pull my hand back, resting it on his cheek. “I’m going to act like a normal bride-to-be now and call my friends and start ordering shirts that say bride on them from Amazon.”
Lucas laughs and grips my hand before getting up with me. “I have some work to do,” he tells me. “I’ll be taking over the office for the rest of the day.”
“That’s fine. I don’t really use it much.”
He kisses me and speeds off. I go upstairs and sit on my bed, opening my laptop to start researching caterers and florists like mad. Lucas has a point that even though everything will be last minute, if we offer enough money, I don’t doubt I’ll be able to find what I need.
I pull up the calendar and go to add an event. I get to the first “d” in “wedding” when I realize it.
If the sacrifices are being made roughly a month apart, then the next set of victims will be killed right before my wedding.