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“Oh, my stars!” Hazel covered her mouth and clutched the collar on her dress, backing up from her granddaughter’s bedside. It was worse than Tyra described. The fire had burned through her battle suit. At least eighty percent of her body was burned. She pulled the sheet back up over her chest.
“She should go to the Madison Clinic,” Rankin said again.
“No, we can take care of her here,” Suzanne objected. “She has too many enemies.”
“I was quite safe there,” Rankin pointed out.
“Because we were looking out for you and Velvet cast a protection spell for you.”
“Hazel, you can do it for Velvet, can’t you?”
“I can but I’m not confident it will hold if I get distracted. Suzanne is right, the best place is in her own home for now. Oh, sweet Jesus!” Hazel buckled at the knees and went down to the floor. “How did this happen? Where were the rest of you when she was being burned nearly to death?”
“Grandma, we were on the way, but she started the battle before contacting us.”
“I’m not your grandma, Suzanne! What kind of sprite let’s this happen to her mistress? You don’t even take care of Carmen anymore. Why weren’t you with her? I know you didn’t have the day off.”
“I was taking care of personal business. Velvet told me I could.”
“Where were you, Suzanne? Why couldn’t you sense she needed you?”
“I was upset, Grandma. I just found out the whole time Craig was dating me, he’s been seeing Reiko and other girls in the pack.”
“Get out,” Hazel said.
“I can’t leave her!”
“You will and right now. Putting a boy over your duties to Velvet.” Hazel pulled herself to her feet, gripping the comforter Velvet lay on top of, semi-conscious and moaning from pain. “Oh baby, Grandma is here.”
“Hazel,” Wilder spoke over her shoulder. “Suzanne is not the blame. None of us knew these demons possessed fire. I’m certain Velvet did not either.”
“You all let this happen. All of you! All you think about is yourselves! She’s been struggling for months, trying to keep herself together.”
“Hazel, we love Velvet.” Rankin stepped to the other side of her. “We are here now. Casting blame is not helping her.”
“Neither is the lot of you taking up space and air! Get out now!”
“Hazel, I can’t!” Suzanne protested. “I won’t.”
“Oh, you won’t?” Hazel took Suzanne by an arm and yanked her from the room and closed the door. “Come back in here if you dare!” She yelled at the door. “Bringing my child home burnt nearly to death!” She strode back to Velvet’s bedside and took her hand, holding it up in a fierce grip. Velvet moaned from the intensity. Hazel’s body lit up in soothing emerald radiance. “Calm yourself, baby girl. Take the light. Take it all!” Hazel’s head went back, her eyes expelled pink light to the ceiling. “Yes... give it to Grandma.”
“Hazel.” Wilder made an attempt to touch her. Her aura repelled him backward. “Hazel, allow Suzanne to come back. Or call Mahalia. Hazel!” He groped for her shoulder through the flooding of light. Energy knocked him back into the wall.
“The demonic spirit in you can’t break her personal barrier.” Rankin reached in and touched her and drew back his hand. Shaking it out, he grimaced as if from pain. “Not good for human natures either,” he said. “The pink light is demonic residue. She’s not strong enough to take it all while she’s feeding Velvet from her own life force. She does need Suzanne.”
“Be quiet, and get out of here. All of you get out.”
~*~
“I never saw her so mad.” Tyra put an arm around Suzanne. “Don’t take it so hard. Miss Hazel is just scared. Come on, let’s go downstairs.”
“What was she doing?”
“Drawing out the demon’s poison and feeding Velvet from her light power.”
“She’s not strong enough to do that by herself!”
“Suzanne!” Tyra held the sprite against her side. “You can’t go back in there. Miss Hazel already hit Wilder hard enough to hurt him. Now, you come on downstairs. We have to trust Hazel. I’m sure she knows when to quit.”
“Where is Carmen?”
“Probably in her room, or with Devon.”
Suzanne put on the brakes then turned and ran back to Velvet’s bedroom door. “I belong to her! Nobody else can tell me what I better do!”
“Suzanne.” Rankin caught her by the back of her duster.
“I’m sure Suzanne can handle herself.” Wilder opened the door. “Let her loose, Rankin. The rest of us are helpless, Suzanne isn’t.”
“If she gets hurt, it’s on you,” Rankin said and released her. Suzanne ran in shutting the door behind her. “Follow me,” he said including Tyra with a glance. They went down to the living room. “Where is Devon?”
“I’m in the kitchen,” Devon shouted through the door.
“That damned wolf hearing. Would you join us please?” Devon came out trailed by Carmen. She was eating raw chicken gizzards from a small bowl. “I thought she wasn’t to eat raw meat.”
“Hazel said she wasn’t going to fix it for her. Carmen got them herself.”
“She can’t open the fridge by herself, Devon.”
“Baby girl, knows how to get in the fridge after somebody opens it. And ain’t nothing wrong with her eating what she wants. I eat raw meat, so does Wilder. What do you think the teeth are for, man?”
“Yum, yum,” Carmen said licking her fingers. “Want some?” She held the bowl up, offering her snack to Rankin.
“No, child. I don’t eat raw meat.”
“It’s good,” she tried to tempt him.
“I’d like some, Carmen.” Wilder took one, popped it in his mouth. She smiled, leaking blood juice on her lips. “Mmm, it is good.” He rose turning to Rankin. “It takes hardly any effort at all to please a child.”
“Can we get down to business?” Rankin cast his eyes especially on Devon, who was seated with Carmen standing between his legs feeding him a gizzard. “How can you eat at a time like this?”
“Because I’m a werewolf and my body goes through cycles. Regular feeding is one of them. Besides, what’s not eating when I’m hungry going to do for anybody?”
“I could go for some boiled gizzards,” Tyra said. “Carmen, did you leave some for me?”
“Nope.”
“There’s half a container in the sink, Tyra,” Devon told her.
“People, I am trying to hold an emergency meeting.” Rankin frowned his displeasure with the group.
“Shouldn’t we wait for Suzanne and Hazel?”
“No, Devon. Neither of them are associates.”
“Suzanne is a team member,” Wilder differed. “She’s attached to Velvet. And Hazel is her nearest blood relative. If this meeting is concerning what is best for Velvet, I insist they be present. Or is there something else you think we should talk about?”
“The Avaricites,” Rankin began. “And Troy, along with members of his pack.”
“Which members?” Devon asked.
“Reiko. According to Suzanne, just now, Craig has been involved with her intimately. Did you know this, Devon?”
“It’s not surprising, unmated pack members are often there for each other.”
“Why didn’t you tell Suzanne that?” Tyra asked. “Girl thought she had a boyfriend.”
“She did. If Craig was messing with Reiko, it was just a pack thing.”
“Right.”
“Anyway,” Devon took a breath then asked, “What do Reiko and Craig have to do with those demons that burned Vee?”
“Nothing, but Troy is a leader to demons these days. Demons who are specialized.”
“You think he’s involved with body snatchers that prey on children?” Wilder stood up to ask.
“I don’t know. I think we should keep our minds open to the fact that Troy’s behavior has changed and he has taken up with demons. And it was demons who took Velvet out.” He paused a few seconds then continued. “Reiko is an unrelated issue, I believe.”
“And?” Devon sat forward in his chair.
“Didn’t Troy order all pack members to disassociate with vampires?” Rankin looked from Devon to Wilder for confirmation. “Seems either the girl is not obedient or she is following special orders. It appears she’s been seeing the vampire Haido.”
“You saw this with your own eyes, Rankin?”
“Yes, Wilder.”
“It could be an innocent relationship,” Tyra offered. “They might just like each other.”
“Not likely,” Wilder objected.
“So all we really know is that Reiko is on the sneak and Craig is involved with her. Should we tell him?”
“No, Tyra.” Rankin shared a look with Wilder. “We should simply keep our eyes and ears open. Be careful what you say about business in front of Craig. These are the beginnings of strange times. We can only depend on each other. Outsiders are not to be trusted.”
“He’s a friend, Rankin. I trust him like a brother.” Devon picked Carmen up to sit on his lap. “No way he’s involved in a plot against any of us. Or Troy.”
“Craig is not your brother, Devon. You aren’t even a pack member. His loyalty is always to his pack and Troy. Yours should be to Velvet and this team. If it isn’t you should take your leave now.”
“Aw, man. It ain’t that damn serious.” He bounced Carmen on his lap and gave her a kiss. “What’s serious is Velvet. I never thought I’d see the day she was put down like this.”
“Neither did I,” Wilder concurred. “And right now, all that matters is keeping her alive.”
~*~
Rankin didn’t like it. It was perverse. And exactly what he feared. He was the senior associate, and Suzanne a mere imitation of Velvet. Yet Tyra and Devon looked to her for guidance. She decided to send the exorcists away, declaring there was nothing left for them to do. She even refused to turn over the demonic spirits trapped in Velvet’s bottles, claiming she knew what had to be done.
Since Velvet went into a healing coma, Suzanne began taking on more Velvet like qualities. She was taller, appearing as a full grown woman all the time, and she carried Velvet’s mojo bag and ax rather than the smaller versions Velvet had presented to her. She was showing her power. Taking Velvet’s place. And the team was accepting it.
Tyra and Devon were in battle-ready mode, wearing their full battle gear, just like Suzanne.
“Rankin, you are scowling again,” she said, raising her head upon his arrival into the office.
“And you are overstepping too many boundaries. This is not your office, and you do not summon me to you.”
She pushed from behind the big desk and came around it to sit on top of it, crossing her legs. “We need to get some things clear. Our mistress is weak. If not for me aiding Grandma, she’d most likely still be in a coma if not dead.”
“That’s your spin, Suzanne. I insist Velvet is looked after by a doctor of the Council’s choosing.”
“Impossible.”
“Excuse me?”
“Our mistress-”
“Your mistress! I am not a slave to anyone.”
“Especially a woman?”
“Why are you denying the Council? They demand to at least examine her. She is one of their own. Hazel did not object.”
“Hazel also told you her granddaughter is on the mend. The Council has no valid reason to come anywhere near Velvet while she is weak. My valid reason is that they excommunicated her. They have no right to demand anything.”
“If those ladies should push it, Suzanne, what the hell are you going to do?”
“I’ll tell them to kiss my ass. If they keep pushing, I’ll have to push those ladies back- and much harder.”
“Suzanne, if you knew how ridiculous you look and sound. I advise you to stop playing Velvet and go back to being Carmen’s nanny. With Velvet and Milton out of action, this agency is run under my command.”
“When my mistress is weak, I assume her roles. It is my duty.”
“That is a personal relationship. It has nothing to do with this business. I am solely responsible for the team. If you continue to refuse my authority, I will deal with you.”
“Are you sure you want to do that, Rankin?”
For a second there, she looked just like Velvet. It gave him a chill with her sounding just like Velvet too. Then he remembered she was nothing but a little trickster. He wondered how much of Velvet’s powers remained inside her. With Velvet stricken, he had to assume Suzanne was limited to what she managed to store previously. Yet, she seemed so confident. “I know Velvet did not tell you to act like this.”
“I know my duties. I also know you want this agency. You think with her down you can finally show the others how much better you can run things.”
“Why are you trying to get in my way, Suzanne?” When she slid off the desktop, Rankin noticed she wore a gun holster on her hip.
Smiling, she looked up in his face. “You want to run the agency, fine. But you won’t make decisions for the care of Velvet. What goes on in her home is under my watch. Mine and Hazel’s.”
“What about Devon and Tyra? Have you put a fix on them?”
“Are you trying to offend me on purpose?”
“Answer the question,” Rankin challenged. “Or don’t. It will be obvious soon enough, and if you used magik to get Devon’s and Tyra’s compliance, you will have to answer to somebody.”
“I wouldn’t do that to my friends.”
“You aren’t yourself, don’t you realize that?”
“Or maybe you never realized who I am.”
“I want Velvet looked at by someone else. Too much about you isn’t right. What’s more alarming is that Hazel is allowing you to take charge.”
“Hazel, now knows I’m the best person to handle things for Vee. Besides, she has more important things to occupy her than being suspicious of her own granddaughter’s sprite.”
“I want you out of her office right now. There is no reason for you to be here. Leave the building now.” He went to the door, opened it and stood to the side holding it wide, waiting for her to walk through it.
Glowing indigo, she smiled, levitating over the desk. Then with a gleeful childlike laugh, she flew out of the office using enough force to rip the knob from Rankin’s hand. The door slammed shut behind her.
Angrily, he shot down the hallway and out to the lobby. She was still in the air, opening and shutting doors with magik, having a regular tantrum.
“Suzanne! Stop that!” Ignoring him, she flew out the exit doors to the windy sky.
His pondering on Suzanne’s odd behavior back down the hall and his constant concern over Velvet’s medical condition was why he didn’t notice his office door was half closed. Normally, he kept it wide open or all the way shut. Or perhaps Suzanne’s recent tantrum with the doors was the reason he didn’t think it was odd. When he pushed the door hard enough to bang against the wall and it didn’t bang against the wall, was when he realized something undead was waiting for him in his office.
He backed out into the hallway. Suzanne was right about unknown threats coming out of the woodwork once news of Velvet’s extreme injuries hit the streets. He wished he’d dressed out in his battle suit as the sprite strongly suggested. From the men’s room down the hall another vampire approached him at a run. He had to assume they were packing weapons, his only option was to run back to Velvet’s office.
“Damn it.” He locked the door and ran to her closet. He grabbed the sword as the door gave in to one of the vampire’s boot. “Bless you, Velvet,” he said, swirling around and pulled the weapon from its sheath.
He met the duo, charging them together, backing them out into the hall. They were fast and a bit clumsy. Got in each other’s way. He could defeat them easily, but he had no way of knowing how many attackers were in the building. He had to get a better weapon.
~*~
“Hey, hold up!”
“Who-” Coming abreast her, flying fast was a smiling man. He didn’t seem friendly to Suzanne. He was a vampire, she knew it before he revealed his fangs. Young and good looking, the type Jerome specialized in bringing over to the dark side. Pulling back, she maneuvered to change directions.
“Slow down, honey.” He shouted trailing behind her, “What’s the rush?”
“Eat my tailwind! Oh no!” Another male was overtaking her, coming out of nowhere. He was fast and strong she found out when he took hold of her from the back. “Let go! Ahh!” He was biting her, wrapping his body around her, holding her so tight it was painful. And she hadn’t the power, not even enough light to force him off. “Damn it!” He took control of her flight while she weakened, unable to keep her eyes open.
~*~
Haido touched down on the penthouse terrace, meeting Darnell and the few remaining members of Jerome’s crew that had not pledged loyalty to Wilder. He lay Suzanne by his feet and began to spit. “She’s a pretty package, but she’s bitter, man! Purple blood!” He spit some more.
“Who is that?” Darnell asked. With his shoe, he brushed her hair out of her face. “Who’s this honey? Where is the sprite?”
“Right there under your Stacy Adams.”
“This chick is too big and dark! I told you she looked half Asian and petite.”
“I know what you told me, but she tore out of the office building flying like a witch. She’s that sprite, man. Her blood is purple!”
Darnell knelt beside her, lifted her up and studied her closely. “She looks like Velvet. Could be her kid sister or cousin.”
“I expected her to really put up a fight,” Haido said. “I guess sprites are easy to catch.”
“Something is off,” Darnell concluded.
“Like what? You said, take her from the back. It was a snap.”
Darnell looked to one of the females in the group. “Gail, take her inside and confine her.” He waited for the others to retreat inside the penthouse. “What about that son of a bitch, Rankin?”
“He wasn’t so easy to catch,” Haido answered dryly. “Bastard got hold of an ultraviolet rifle. Franco got grazed in the shoulder.”
“Damn. That’s some nasty stuff. How is he holding up?”
“Dirt seemed to help some. But he’s suffering. Says it feels like it’s going deeper into his flesh.”
“He needs potent fresh blood. From a werewolf or a master vampire at the least. See, this is why we need Jerome.”
“You really think he’s alive somewhere?”
“Yes, I do. I’ve decided to believe Wilder hasn’t lied at least that much. And Velvet knows where.”
“What about if she doesn’t?”
“Then she better find out.”
Haido tossed his braids back with a flick of his neck. He walked out to the stone wall railing and looked out over the city.
Darnell joined his partner leaning over the side. “Speak now or hold your peace, man.”
“What about Wilder? You know he still adores that woman. He came home for the brood, but we know where his heart is.”
“We aren’t going to touch her. Just her friends. How can he object to us doing all we can to locate Jerome?”
“In case you missed it, Darnell. Wilder is doing whatever he wants, whenever he wants. And you said he used to date that sprite. What if he has feelings for her? Maybe we should let her go, say it was a mistake.”
“If you want out, go ahead. No hard feelings.”
“Don’t get it twisted, I’m afraid of Wilder, but that ain’t it. I never had a family and I feel good among the brood.”
“Finding Jerome is for them.”
“What about us? What are we getting? Do you love Jerome this much, for real? You told me how he held out on sharing his precious blood to cure your anguish. You took a direct hit of UV for him and he waited hours before he helped you.”
“In the end, he did the right thing, Haido.”
“He made you drain Mary and killed that cute maid when he didn’t have to. Was that right?”
“What are you saying?”
“I’m saying there better be something else worth taking on Velvet Washington and Associates because Jerome ain’t doing it for me, man.”
“Will street credit do it, Haido? Me, you and the crew. Finding Jerome. Alive or dead, doesn’t even matter. If we punk or discredit Velvet Washington and Associates, we can run these streets and eventually the city. Jerome was on the verge, we can take it all the way.”
“By keeping that sprite?”
“There’s more to come. But we need support from Jerome’s family and associations. Discovering and sharing what happened to him is the best and quickest way I know how to get that accomplished.”
“Okay, I’m with you.”
“All the way?”
“For our piece of Fairlight,” Haido clarified. “Not Jerome.”
“Not just a piece. I want it all,” Darnell shared and greedily looked over the city with his partner.