Bingo. That explained so many things. Charles’s father was an extremely wealthy and well-placed politician with more influence than was good for anybody. That’s why the Souljacker was locked up rather than staked. “Let me guess. These people you’re talking about were all instrumental in saving his son?”
“Right. Politicians, police precincts…WestcoPsi. We’re talking seven-figure donations. Although Charles broke away from his family to become a tattooist, his father is so wealthy that he could buy a good portion of Seattle if he wanted to. And from a preliminary glance at his holdings, he already has.”
Charles had always seemed totally focused on his art. Half the time he had looked emaciated. “You mean he had money to burn? But he was always broke.”
“He wanted to make it on his own. His father, on the down low, actually paid people to get tattoos so that Charles would have money, until he built up a reputation. He never knew about that and it probably would have killed his ego. The Souljacker was a brilliant artist, but his records show he had no sense for business.” Archer flipped through the stack of papers, pulling out one that had columns of figures on it. He slid it across the table so we could all see it.
“Here are the names of the candidates and organizations his father donated to right after Charles was captured. And by right after, I’m talking within two hours.”
The list of names looked like a who’s who of Seattle, and included every community outreach program in every district of the greater Seattle area.
“So Terrance paid them off to keep his son alive, when by rights the police should have destroyed him.” Dani tossed the papers back on the table. “And a family of five died without any consequences.”
“True, though nobody’s ever going to prove collusion. Even if they tried, you know full well all this information would get a brand new spin. The family that died? Their relatives received substantial compensation from Terrance Schafer.” Archer shook his head. “Blood money.”
I was still at the window, and as I stared out into the yard, I thought I could see a black shadow go floating by. “Fuck. I think—” The shadow vanished.
“What’s wrong?” Nate joined me. “Do you see something?”
“I thought so, but now…maybe I’m just jumpy.” We watched for a moment but nothing seemed to move. “My eyes playing tricks on me, I guess.”
Returning to the table, I said, “Do you think his father thought he could help Charles transition? Some do manage it—there are enough vamps in the business world who navigate society. I mean, look at the Deadfather and the financial empire he runs.”
“Just because they can function in society doesn’t mean you can trust them,” Dani said.
“Right. And Lily, you might be correct, but if so, it didn’t work. Charles snapped when he was locked up. Maybe because he was an artist, maybe something else, but being turned cost him his talent. The minute the vampire drained him, he also drained him of his genius.” Archer sounded almost melancholy. “He lost everything that made him whole.”
Nate was silent for a moment, then shoved the paper aside. “Damn it. He was so talented, and so brilliant. He could look at you and see right into your core.”
I nodded. “His artwork is gorgeous. When he tattooed my phoenix, I felt…complete. Like he’d reached inside me and raked through the muck to find what made me…special. You know?”
“Yeah, but then he murdered five people.” Dani shot me a glare. “The Souljacker who inked my tattoo is not the monster who was thrown in WestcoPsi.”
Archer shifted through the papers. “Yes, exactly. Charles couldn’t handle the loss. During his time in the asylum, he slipped into madness. In the end, they resorted to locking him in a secure room that was magically blocked to prevent him from changing into any other form. They fed him animal blood and kept him shackled by the ankle with specially formulated chains that vampires can’t break.”
“It would have been kinder to kill him.” I felt a sympathy I didn’t want to feel. It was easier to be afraid of him than feel sorry for him.
“Yes, but his father wouldn’t hear of it. The files I managed to download show that every time the doctors brought up humane euthanasia, Terrance went ballistic. He paid dearly to keep his son locked up.”
“So how did the Souljacker escape?” Nate crossed to the stove and put the kettle on.
“Make me some tea, please?” Archer let out a long sigh. “The facts that were reported are these: Three guards were killed by a vampire the night he escaped, and the keys to the ward were missing. The Souljacker’s cell was unlocked. The wards on a window had been destroyed—a fact they discovered the next day when they did a walk-through of the building. I managed a quick hack on the dead guards. One of them has a bank account showing a hefty deposit, all in cash, the day before the Souljacker escaped. He worked on the floor where Charles was located.”
“Then he could have been paid to disable the wards in order to let a vampire in. The vampire then turned on him, killed him and two other guards, and freed the Souljacker.” Dani frowned. “But what does Charles want? Why is he stripping tattoos?”
Archer tossed a stack of pages on the table. “A printout of the Souljacker’s journal. I haven’t had time to skim through, but his case file—which yes, I managed to get a copy of—notes that Charles has become morbidly obsessed. He can’t shake the thought that when his clients die, his art will decay. He began to talk ceaselessly to the doctors about how he might be able to preserve his artwork if he could just get hold of it.”
All of a sudden, I knew where this was going. “Oh man, he isn’t…”
Archer caught my meaning. “Yes, he is. The Souljacker is out to retrieve his artwork. He seems fixated on the idea that once he does so, it will trigger some magical key that will open the door to his lost talent. Only it won’t work because he’s crazy. Not to mention, his chosen method of curing himself has the added side effect of killing his clients.”
“Cripes. Why can’t he just take pictures of the tattoos?” Dani asked, horrified.
“I suppose in his mind, the actual art has magical properties. What he wants…no, what he needs…are the originals. The files also state that Charles is in denial about being a vampire. He’s convinced himself that if he gets his talent back, it will cure his condition.”
“This is just one big can of worms, isn’t it?” I shook my head.
Nate handed round cups of tea. I glanced at the clock. It was almost 9 P.M.
“I guess that’s that. So, the question is now…where do we go from here?”
At that moment, the phone rang. I glanced at the caller ID. Jolene. When I answered, she sounded like she had been crying.
“What’s wrong?”
“We’ve got another one, Lily. You remember Hedge? He’s dead. His tattoo is gone. Vampire kill. This proves your theory. This time, a witness caught sight of the Souljacker while he was stripping the flesh. It’s Charles, all right. He’s back and he’s after all of us.”
Chapter 10
Archer had to leave, but I stepped out on the porch to say goodbye to him, oddly reluctant to see him go. Not only had he slaked my hunger, but I was genuinely growing to like him. He had an easy confidence that wasn’t obnoxious, and a gentle sarcasm that wasn’t cruel. For a chaos demon, he seemed to be pretty damned normal.
“Are you done, then?” I didn’t know what I wanted to ask, but that seemed a good place to start.
He held my gaze. “Done with what, Lily?”
“Done with…your investigation? Do you file your report and we pay you and that’s it? This latest murder proves we’re all on the Souljacker’s hit list. Hedge was another member of our India Ink Club. I’m not sure what more you can do.”
He paused. “Do you want me to be done with it? I can stop if you want me to, but you’re wrong. There’s so much more that I can do. I can try to figure out where he’s hiding himself in the daylight. I can try to ascertain if there’s a pattern to the kills
so we have more information. I’ll do what I can to try to keep the rest of you safe.”
I bit my lip. His offer was comforting, but how much did I really want out of the connection? And why was he so interested? We had just met. Granted, we’d knocked bits but that had been born out of my hunger. I didn’t know many in the Fae world who said no to free sex with a succubus. I figured that demons were probably the same.
“How much is your rate? I have money, yes, but unfortunately, every client I had scheduled for this week cancelled on me after Tricia Jones got to them—that’s Tygur’s widow, in case you don’t know. I don’t know if we can afford your help.” I must have sounded defensive because he reached out and stroked my cheek.
“They’re nuts to cancel on you. If you’re half as good with them as you were with me, then they’d do well to call on you, whatever the she-tiger had to say.” He paused, then lifted my chin so I was looking into his face. “Lily, I’ll help you, regardless of my fees. You know I don’t need the money. This case fascinates me. And…I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to see you again.”
I wasn’t sure how to take that. I was used to men wanting to fuck me, but some days, I wanted to hear a different reason. “Because of the sex?”
He stroked my cheek. “No. Though you are fantastic, that’s not what I meant at all. I like you. So, if you don’t mind, I’ll just keep on digging into the case.” He closed in on me, leaning in to gaze in my eyes. “That’s all right, isn’t it?” His voice was husky; his lips were almost on mine.
But I pulled away. I wasn’t sure how to read demons—he might be telling the truth, but he might be lying. I wanted to know which.
“We could use the help.” And then, I held out my hand.
Archer took it, softly bringing my fingers to his lips where he gently kissed them, one by one. I shivered as an aching stab of desire raced through me. Not hunger, this time, but pure, absolute desire.
“I’ll call you tomorrow.” He scanned the sky, and then the surrounding area. “Be careful tonight. Stay inside, where you know it’s warded.” With that, he slid into his car.
As I hurried back inside, a swirl of snow drifted down. Once again, I could hear the Hunt riding into the night—Wynter was on a roll all right, and the wild boys were chasing her skirts.
• • •
I hadn’t known Hedge very well, but he had been part of our group. He was more Greg’s friend than mine. Human, he owned a small diner on the outskirts of the Underground. He had little to no family that we’d ever heard about, and while his death was a shock, it was more because it proved what we were thinking.
Dani shook her head. “I’d better get home and get started on your new wards.” She paused, hanging her head. “Hedge was one of Greg’s best friends. I wonder what he’d think about this…” She paused, then—her eyes tearing up—said, “I wonder if Greg even remembers him. Would he have cheered on the Souljacker? Sometimes…sometimes when I can’t sleep, late at night, I lie awake wondering how many people Greg has drained…killed.”
This was the first time she had spoken about Greg so openly since he had been murdered.
When someone was turned into a vampire, usually the families kept it quiet. Greg’s turning had been public, widespread because of his political win, and Dani had been hit with an onslaught of questions, reporters, and hecklers until she had slammed the door tight on the subject, refusing to ever talk about it.
Nate was closest. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and rocked her gently as she stood there, steadying herself by the counter. Tears trickled down her cheeks, and I wondered if this whole mess with the Souljacker would prove too much for her.
“Are you sure you want to go home? You can stay here if you need to. I’ve got plenty of room.”
Dani let Nate ease her back into her chair. “I guess…I have to learn how to talk about vampires without falling apart. I try to keep the subject at arm’s length because it hurts so much, but I guess I’m just avoiding the inevitable.” She groaned, leaning forward as she rested her arms on the table.
“Vampires are terrifying. And given what happened, you have every right to want to avoid the subject. I can’t imagine what it might be like.” Nate sat down beside her, taking her hand.
I felt like a hypocrite. I had drained my share of innocents in the past, left mourning families like Dani behind. All I could do now was try to help. “You’re both right to fear and hate them. Over the years I’ve met a lot of vampires. I’ve been on this planet for a long, long time and done a lot of things I’m not proud of. In all that time, I can’t remember a vampire who wasn’t to be feared. None of them—none—were trustworthy. It’s inherent to their nature. That being who owns Veek? You were right, Dani, when you said it isn’t Greg. It wears his body, but that’s not your husband. Your husband hasn’t killed anybody. The vampire who took over has.”
She sucked in a deep breath, then let it out slowly. “Thank you…thanks to both of you.”
“What do we do about Hedge? Did he leave any family behind?”
“I don’t think he had any,” Nate said.
Dani looked over at me. “Did Archer say anything else before he left? Are we on our own now?”
I couldn’t help it. A warm smile formed on my lips when I thought about the man. “No, actually, we aren’t. Archer wants to continue helping us, and he said he would do it for free.”
Nate and Dani both brightened. Having a chaos demon on your side was a double-edged blessing, but it was far better than the alternative—facing this all on our own.
“So, what’s the next step?” Dani wiped away her tears.
“I’m not certain. First, I need to go talk to Wynter about this. The queen will have to know, because there might be members of the court who visited the Souljacker. If she hears about it through the grapevine, and then finds out I already knew? My neck would be on the block. And, I want to talk to Tricia.”
They both looked at me like I was crazy.
“Listen…I have to appeal to her. There’s nothing else I can do. I’m going to throw myself on any goodwill that might be hiding under a rock and beg her to ease up on trash-talking me. If she doesn’t stop, I won’t have any clients left.”
Dani flashed me a sympathetic look. “Talk to Shayla Masters instead. She’s Tricia’s best friend and not as likely to be so antagonistic. Maybe. I hope.”
“I wouldn’t count on that,” Nate said, his voice glum. “You know the Weres. They’re thick as thieves, and they stick together. Are you sure you want to try this? I’m not just asking rhetorically. You know the Weres. They can be a rough bunch.”
He was right. Weres put the v in volatile. And Nate wasn’t kidding when he said they were thick as thieves. Anger one member of a Were pack or pride, and you might as well take out a bounty on your own head because all of them would be up in your business. They held onto grudges like they were a precious commodity.
“What other choice do I have? I can’t sit around waiting for her to calm down. If I don’t get her to back off, I might as well pack up and move my business to another city.” As I spoke, another text came in. I glanced at it. “Oh, for fuck’s sake. Another cancellation. Leon, one of my best clients, just cancelled his standing appointment ‘until further notice.’ The only thing I can do is beg her to back off.”
The thought rankled. If she didn’t like her husband coming to me, fine. But that battle was between the two of them. I wasn’t a streetwalker. I didn’t go out soliciting business. No mass-mailings or pamphlets or coupons for half-price days. No, I worked strictly on a word-of-mouth basis.
Dani shrugged. “I guess you’re right. Do you have enough to live on until you get this straightened out?”
“I sunk a fortune into buying this property and building the house, but at least it’s paid off. I’ll be fine for a year down the road, as long as I’m cautious. With property taxes and district taxes and everything else, the money will go faster than I want to think??
?but hell…”
Then, another thought struck me. “Trouble is, I’ll have to feed. The salon has primarily been a fun and lucrative way to feed without letting myself get too hungry. I’ll have to be cautious, make certain I don’t let myself get ravenous…”
“Maybe Archer can help you out there,” Nate said.
I stared at him. “Archer?”
“I’m perfectly serious. You two seemed to hit it off. If you both know where you stand, since neither of you has any encumbrances, maybe he can help you cope with your hunger.”
Dani’s phone rang. She glanced at it. “Damn it. I have to get something started for a ritual—I have to be home by midnight. The moon goes into Capricorn then, and this spell needs to be finished during that time.” She stood. “Okay, this has been…real, I guess. I can’t say it was the most pleasant evening we’ve spent together, but at least if this has to happen, we have each other. I’m headed out.”
“Let us walk you out to your car.” Nate motioned to me. I nodded and we slipped into our coats.
As we walked Dani to her car, we were a silent trio. I stared up into the darkened sky, looking to see if I could spot the mist I had thought I’d seen earlier. The Souljacker couldn’t get into the house now—at least not for a few more days. By the time the protection patches wore off, Dani would have my new wards made or I would buy temporary ones. But still, the thought that he might be around, waiting and watching, nagged at me.
Dani let out a long sigh as she opened the door to her car.
“I’ll text you when I get home. Please, be careful. I know I’m a little bit fanatical when it comes to the subject, but when you’ve lost a loved one to a monster, and those monsters are free to walk around in society, you tend to get…paranoid.” With that, she slid into the driver’s seat, locked her door, and eased out of the driveway.
Nate and I linked arms and headed back to the house. We seemed to share the need to change the subject.